"You know quite a lot. Tell me what the nightmare of the Calamity Immortal Race is." The captain looked interested.
Ning Yan shrunk his head, not daring to say anything.
"It's rumored that after the pure-blooded Calamity Immortal Race members die, the calamity in their bodies will turn into a nightmare. It's like a sealed world, trapping the person who disturbs their corpse inside for eternity. Their flesh and bones will gradually disappear until only their heart is left, merging with the nightmare."
As Ning Yan spoke in a trembling voice, Qing Qiu narrowed her eyes and quickly looked around.
Xu Qing's expression didn't change much. His gaze landed in the distance. When he continued to observe, the captain chuckled.
"As expected of a descendant of the Calamity Immortal Race. You actually know about the Aluoe Tribulation. Not bad, not bad."
Almost at the instant the captain spoke, a thumping sound rang out. It was like the sound of a heartbeat. As it echoed, the ground trembled and the mountain range swayed. It was as though blood was flowing inside, emitting even more blood light.
As the sky became increasingly red, Xu Qing and the others were also enveloped by the blood light. Very soon, Xu Qing frowned. He discovered that his body was disappearing.
A piece of flesh the size of a fist was missing from his right leg.
There was no blood flowing down, nor was there any pain. It happened silently.
Xu Qing didn't panic. After checking his wound, the Third Heavenly Palace's Poison Restriction Pill circulated in his body and poison intent filled his entire body.
The others also began to see their flesh disappearing. Half of Qing Qiu's palm disappeared, and Ning Yan's right ear and a small portion of his face also disappeared at this moment.
"It's starting. It's over!"
Ning Yan let out a blood-curdling scream, his eyes revealing horror and despair. However, almost as soon as his cry rang out, the captain took something and stuffed it into Ning Yan's open mouth with a slap.
After that, he patted Ning Yan's stomach. Ning Yan's eyes widened and he involuntarily swallowed the thing in his mouth before speaking with a horrified expression.
"You, you, you, what did you feed me?"
"Be good. You'll know in a while." The captain had a spurious smile on his face. After he finished speaking, he looked at Xu Qing.
Noticing the captain's gaze, Xu Qing tilted his head and looked at him. On the way here, the captain's various performances had already confirmed his guess.
'Junior Brother, do you believe me?' The captain smiled and transmitted his voice.
Xu Qing nodded and waved his right hand. The Purple Moon Heavenly Palace in his body swayed and the aura that belonged to the Purple Moon spread out and fused into Qing Qiu's body.
It didn't invade her body but spread throughout her entire body, helping her resist the destructive power of this place. After that, under Qing Qiu's complicated and confused expression, Xu Qing calmly transmitted his voice to the captain.
'Eldest Senior Brother, do you mean that we still need some time before we can leave? How long?'
The captain laughed heartily. With just a sentence from him, Xu Qing knew what he wanted to express. This sense of tacit understanding was really satisfying. He replied with his divine sense.
'Junior Brother, I know you have many questions, but right now, this thing can't be said and can only be done. Just believe me. The king of the Zenith Nation is right. The way to enter the True Immortal Ten Guts is like fiddling with a puzzle. You can't barge in forcefully. The Shebi corpses from before were the first piece of the puzzle, and the current Aluoe is the second piece.'
'We need about an hour here. We can leave in two hours at most.'
Xu Qing nodded and sat down cross-legged. While waiting silently, he also circulated more of the Purple Moon's aura on Qing Qiu's body.
Qing Qiu felt increasingly complicated. This wasn't the first time she felt that the Black Heaven member in front of her was treating her differently.
'This evil Black Heaven must have ulterior motives!'
Qing Qiu took a deep breath and silently told herself.
Just like that, time slowly passed. The captain's body was dissipating, but he clearly had a way to resist and the speed of dissipation wasn't fast. As for Xu Qing and Qing Qiu, the dissipation was even slower.
Only Ning Yan didn't have anyone to help. However, the strange thing was that he didn't continue to dissipate.
However, he felt more alarmed than happy. This was because he discovered that although he wasn't dissipating, his stomach was gradually bulging.
It was as though something was being nurtured in his stomach…
Looking at his stomach, Ning Yan's face turned pale and his eyes opened wide. He instinctively looked at the captain and begged.
"Lord, what did you feed me? Why do I feel that there's something wrong with my stomach…"
As he spoke, Ning Yan's stomach suddenly swelled outwards, becoming even larger. He became extremely nervous.
Qing Qiu gasped and Xu Qing also had a strange expression. He recalled Wu Jianwu's beloved beasts.
"How do you feel in your stomach?" The captain quickly walked to Ning Yan's side. His eyes were filled with anticipation as he asked softly.
"I feel something kicking in my stomach." Ning Yan was really about to cry.
"Have a peaceful pregnancy!" The captain coughed.
Ning Yan wanted to curse, but he didn't dare. At that moment, his forehead was covered in sweat and he was feeling grief and indignation. He suddenly felt the thing in his stomach begin to move, as though it was pressing against his navel and drilling out.
"Lord, it, it, it…"
Ning Yan was horrified. At the next moment, his robe that covered his belly revealed a sharp point at the navel.
Xu Qing and the other two immediately looked over.
Compared to the captain's anticipation, Xu Qing was more curious.
As for Qing Qiu, her heart shook when she saw this scene. She felt extremely wary of the evil methods of the Black Heaven Race.
Ning Yan's mind was filled with endless horror and he started screaming. Immediately after, his Daoist robe tore open and tender green vines snaked out.
These vines were slender and rapidly intertwined with each other. They continued to extend and grow longer and longer. Very soon, they were 30 feet long. Their color also turned brown and emitted an ancient aura.
"Youling Vine!!" Ning Yan looked at the vine and cried out involuntarily.
A hint of surprise appeared in the captain's eyes as he took a few more glances at Ning Yan.
"Interesting. I am realizing that you know quite a lot."
The vines that grew out of Ning Yan's stomach bent at a height of 30 feet. In just over ten breaths of time, it actually bent into a circle.
The instant they connected, fluctuations appeared in the circle, causing ripples to spread outwards like those on the surface of a body of water. It was as if the circle had transformed into a circular gate.
"Let's go!" The captain winked at Xu Qing and directly entered the circle.
Xu Qing didn't hesitate. He grabbed Qing Qiu and headed straight for the circle. Ning Yan became anxious. Just as he was about to call for help, a hand stretched out from the circle and grabbed the part of the vine that was connected to Ning Yan's stomach. With a tug, it pulled Ning Yan's body into the circle.
At the next instant, the vines that formed the circle rapidly retracted after Ning Yan left and finally disappeared.
When everyone reappeared, they were still in the jungle of the True Immortal Ten Guts. However, it wasn't the area where the bird was previously. Instead… they directly arrived at the deepest part of the True Immortal Ten Guts.
In other words, they were right under the Ten Guts Trees!
The moment they appeared, intense waves rose in Xu Qing's mind. This was the closest he had ever been to the True Immortal Ten Guts.
Each of the Ten Guts Trees in front of him was a thousand feet thick and clustered together, occupying an area of ten thousand feet. They meandered in different directions in the air until they rose into the clouds.
Countless slender leaves grew on them. Every single leaf seemed to contain some kind of laws and emitted dense spirit qi fluctuations. One could imagine the astonishing value of any one of them.
There were also countless branches spreading out. The value of those branches clearly surpassed the value of the leaves by a great extent. There was a faint glow of treasure light circulating on them that not only contained the power of laws but also Dao charms.
Any one of them was a supreme treasure.
As for the tree itself, it was completely blackish-brown. Other than the forked branches and leaves, the tree trunk was covered in bulging eyes. At that moment, they stared at Xu Qing and the others. The tree gave off a fishy stench and emitted an astonishing pressure.
It gave off the feeling that these Ten Guts Trees… were alive!
Or rather, this true immortal was alive!
Under this pressure, Xu Qing's vision blurred.
It was as though the Ten Guts Trees had transformed into a shocking figure and was performing a ritual dance. There was also a sea of fire and countless cultivators dancing in the surroundings.
This blurriness caused Xu Qing to feel extremely uncomfortable. The world in front of him kept changing. Sometimes, it was the True Immortal Ten Guts Trees, and sometimes, it was the sea of fire and dancing cultivators. They gradually overlapped with each other.
His body seemed to twist as well, and the intestines in his body shook as though they were about to leave his body.
Xu Qing's breathing fastened. The power of the third Heavenly Palace's Poison Pill and the fourth Heavenly Palace's Purple Moon erupted at the same time and spread throughout his body, before spreading toward Qing Qiu as well. Only then did the blurriness in his vision dissipate a little.
Qing Qiu's face was pale as she gritted her teeth tightly. Her eyes were bloodshot and she could barely hold on.
The captain also circulated his cultivation base. A face appeared in his pupils. The face in the pupils also had another face. They overlapped layer by layer, sharing the pressure from the Ten Guts Trees.
Only Ning Yan was normal. His entire body emitted a bronze luster. At the same time, the vines on his stomach undulated and swayed, synchronizing with the Ten Guts Trees.
He originally wanted to escape, but the other end of the vine was grabbed by the captain. No matter what he tried, he couldn't break the vine, and could only sit there in a daze.
Xu Qing took a deep breath. After his mind recovered, he immediately observed his surroundings.
The soil under the True Immortal Ten Guts Trees was dark red. Similarly, there were no withered leaves or broken branches on the ground. Hence, Xu Qing instinctively cast his gaze on the leaves and branches of the Ten Guts Trees in front of him.
'There are so many branches. I should be fine if I break off one!' Xu Qing licked his lips and looked at the captain. At that moment, the captain also looked at him. The two of them could see the intention in each other's eyes.
Xu Qing rushed forward.
The captain dragged the unwilling Ning Yan and rushed out as well. He instantly arrived under a tree and made a move with Xu Qing.
The captain tore off three leaves and stuffed them into his mouth.
Xu Qing broke off a branch.
After the two of them were done, they looked at each other.
"Fine?"
"Fine!"
As they spoke, the True Immortal Ten Guts Trees suddenly shook intensely. An awakening energy spread out from it.
This scene instantly caused Ning Yan to gasp. He looked at Xu Qing and the captain as though he was looking at someone who was courting death. At this moment, he could truly sense the madness and abnormality of these two people.
However, at the next instant, Qing Qiu also moved. She actually tore off a leaf and ate it.
"Damn, why are you like this too!"
Seeing that the Ten Guts Trees were shaking even more, Ning Yan's eyes revealed horror.
