Chapter 117: Thunder Pool Altar

“Huh, why isn’t Senior Huang Fu saying anything anymore?”

Someone started @ing Huang Fu in the group chat, but there was no response for a long time.

A chill crept into everyone’s hearts.

“Could it be…”

“Impossible! Senior Huang Fu is a fifth-stage Martial Artist at Perfection, and he’s even opened nine Aperture Points. There’s no way he could have an accident in a place like this!”

Someone declared confidently, refusing to believe that the usually unfathomable senior could fall here.

But the fact was—Huang Fu hadn’t replied in the group chat for a long time!

Despair! Utter despair!

If even one of their strongest members had met with misfortune, what chance did trash like them have of surviving?

Chen Fei from Jin Hui Academy stepped forward at this moment, @ing all members in the group.

“Everyone, don’t be afraid! Huang Fu might just be lost. This Red Mist has the effect of blocking signals. Communication devices lose signal if you’re too far away. With his strength, I’m sure nothing has happened to him!”

Chen Fei’s reassurance acted like a stabilizing pill, gradually calming everyone’s nerves.

Right! How could Senior Huang Fu, with his fifth-stage Perfection cultivation, possibly meet with misfortune before them?

It must be the poor signal. It must be!

People kept sending messages in the group to confirm they were still alive, but as time passed, the number of active posters dwindled.

The feeling of not knowing when death might strike was like a Saber twisting in their hearts, carving into them. The oppressive atmosphere was almost suffocating.

Within the Red Mist, dark shadows flickered constantly, and lives were lost almost every moment.

Crimson splattered on the ground, soaking into the earth in large patches, giving rise to even denser Red Mist.

“Don’t let it go to waste.”

“It’s fine. Those frenzied Fierce Beasts can’t outcompete us.”

Whispers drifted through the Red Mist, but unfortunately, no one could hear them.

The number of survivors plummeted drastically. Pei Qin’s face was already smeared with bloodstains, having consumed who knew how many lives.

“As expected, Professor Lan didn’t lie to me. You really can feast to your heart’s content in a Secret Realm, hahaha!”

“That old geezer definitely has ulterior motives. He never seemed like a good person.”

“Then are we good people?”

This question interrupted their exchange. They exchanged a knowing glance and burst into maniacal, twisted laughter.

Indeed, none of them were good people. They were all just pursuing their own needs.

Casually kicking aside the mangled remains on the ground, Pei Qin began hunting for his next prey.

On the ground, the broken body had already withered to a skeletal state. Through some blurred physical features, one could vaguely recognize it as the tall and sturdy man, the fifth-stage Perfection Martial Artist with nine Apertures whom people had spoken of—Huang Fu.

After devouring Huang Fu’s life force, Pei Qin’s Aura had reached an entirely new peak.

What followed was the mutation of his body.

Blood-red Meridians bulged grotesquely, some of his body tissues twisted and deformed, and he muttered incoherently from time to time. A purple Qi swirled and rose around him, gradually eroding his humanity.

“Hehehe…”

Pei Qin let out a chilling laugh, transforming into an After-Image as he flew toward the student group ahead.

“Ah!”

A female student screamed within the Red Mist, but unfortunately, no one could hear her.

In the group chat, another person stopped sending messages to prove they were still alive.

Under extreme pressure, some had completely lost their sanity, letting out a scream and rushing out of the formation.

“Don’t leave the formation, everyone!”

“It’s useless, we’re all going to die…”

“I’ll fight you monsters to the death!”

Someone had gone mad, wildly swinging their sword, striking indiscriminately at friend and foe alike.

“Kill you monsters! Kill you all!”

“Die! All of you, die!”

Thud—

Pei Qin’s sharp nails slit the man’s throat.

“You’re welcome.”

Then, he turned his attention to the others.

Guided by the Yin Demon’s senses, Pei Qin moved through the Red Mist as if it were empty space.

His gaze settled on the strongest among them—Chen Fei.

Whoosh!

A dark shadow shot forward.

Clang!

Sharp nails met a crimson spear. Pei Qin’s lethal strike was actually dodged by Chen Fei’s instinctive reaction!

Whether it was muscle memory or combat intuition, Chen Fei had undoubtedly undergone countless training sessions to reach this level.

Pei Qin’s previously unstoppable Move had finally been thwarted.

“No matter. I have plenty of time to play with you.”

“Vile beast, take this spear!”

For some unknown reason, Chen Fei actually hurled his spear forward. The tip blazed with towering flames, radiating an overwhelming power.

The air was torn apart in that instant, and with a force that crushed everything in its path, the spear pierced through Pei Qin’s body.

“I hit him!”

Chen Fei exclaimed in delight.

“Congratulations, then.”

Pei Qin sneered, gripping the spear shaft with both hands. Slowly, he pulled the spearhead from his back, past his heart, and through his chest. The sharp barbs tore through his flesh as he forcibly extracted it.

Blood dripped profusely, yet Pei Qin seemed to feel no pain at all.

If one were to examine a cross-section of Pei Qin’s body, they would find it already hollowed out inside. Only half of his heart remained; the rest of his organs were gone, their whereabouts unknown.

“Here, take it back.”

Whoosh!

The flaming spear flew back, its momentum even fiercer than before!

Thud!

The spear was returned to Chen Fei exactly as it came.

But not in his hand—instead, it was… embedded in his heart.

“Ugh—”

Chen Fei let out a muffled groan, his Aura growing feeble. However, the robust vitality of a Martial Artist kept him from dying immediately.

Frowning, he touched the spear shaft protruding from his chest and chuckled bitterly. “Heh, I never thought I, Chen Fei, would one day die by my own spear.”

“At least I die without regrets.”

But then, his eyes sharpened, his gaze turning fierce.

“Before I die, I’ll take you with me!”

“Then let’s see about that.”

Two figures closed in almost simultaneously, determined to decide the final outcome.

And at that very moment, countless bolts of lightning descended from the sky above. Thunder and fire churned through the clouds, connecting heaven and earth to form a sacred curtain of lightning. On the ground, the Red Mist was instantly annihilated by this apocalyptic thunder, and within a radius of a thousand meters, the sky cleared in an instant.

People had light once more!

Ahead, the earth trembled, Fierce Beasts retreated, and a pitch-black Altar slowly rose.

Upon the Altar were Engravings of divine patterns, as if the heavens themselves had written a Secret Manual, inscribing ancient incantations.

In an instant, the divine patterns suddenly glowed, emitting a Supreme divine light.

Heaven and earth connected, and boundless Purple Thunder descended upon the Altar, transforming in a flash into a vast Thunder Pool.

Boom!

The heavens drummed, as if chanting for this occasion. Within the celestial clouds, faint roars of sacred dragons and golden crows echoed, their After-Images stretching for thousands of miles, timeless and traceless.

A celestial anomaly—a peerless secret treasure had emerged!

The Red Mist was not a burial ground!

It was merely the herald of a divine miracle descending upon the world.