Trials of the Abyss

Chapter 187: The Black Turtle Approaches

"Kid, Emerald Lake is too dangerous; you'd better not stay here. Find another place to hide," Huang Qi said after a long-winded explanation. "Don't worry, these invading foreign race warriors won't be able to cause trouble for long.

"If you can hold out for a few more days and they haven't left the Primordial Wilderness, the combined forces of the five major sects will crush them.

"Oh, and if you've begun cultivating the Grand Providence Sacred Body, then keep at it."

After giving a few more pieces of advice, Huang Qi finished his pipe and thoroughly examined Emerald Lake. He did not notice anything unusual.

"I'm heading to the First Peak now. I hope those foreign race warriors manage to breach it. I just want to see Cao Mang's and Lady Hua's miserable states." Before leaving, Huang Qi put away his pipe, gave Pang Jian a deep look, and said, "Kid, you're right to be cautious of me.

"Remember, you should be wary of anyone who knows you. A million spirit stones are enough to make even the elders of the major sects envious. It's not hard for them to kill you."

With that, Huang Qi flew away.

Pang Jian did not hesitate to dive back into Emerald Lake.

Burying himself in a muddy corner at the bottom of the lake, he held a piece of spirit jade in each hand and continued to develop his brain using his spiritual power and life energy. The life energy gifted by the little tree in Misty Swamp was immensely helpful and he felt he could soon advance to the Profound Abode Realm.

Whoosh!

The green spiritual power and life energy flowed into the nerve fibers in his brain as well as the acupoints at the top of his head. A large area of his brain, including several acupoints, seemed to be transforming into a hazy sea of clouds.

First, form the sea of consciousness, then manifest the divine sense, Pang Jian recalled.

He knew that the hazy sea of clouds was the embryonic form of the sea of consciousness and would soon develop into his divine sense. The formation of his divine sense would signify his advancement to the Profound Abode Realm, and his perception and insight would undergo an instant qualitative transformation as a result.

Having advanced to the Innate Realm by becoming one with the world, and with the little tree's dense life energy on top of that, I should break through quickly!

Pang Jian's spirit soared.

Qi Qingsong also advanced to the Innate Realm by becoming one with the world. He then broke through to the Profound Abode Realm within a few months. If Qi Qingsong can do it, so can I!

The mysteries hidden within his body were even more wondrous than Qi Qingsong's and the little tree in Misty Swamp could provide him with endless support. The life energy and becoming one with the world meant that Pang Jian was undoubtedly close to breaking through to the Profound Abode Realm.

The Profound Abode Realm.

Pang Jian suddenly recalled Sun Bin's words before he had taken his sister, Pang Lin, away.

Sun Bin had told Pang Lin that if she could prove her abilities and reach the Profound Abode Realm within a century, she could return to the Solitary Mountain Range and bring Pang Jian to the upper worlds.

Now, looking back, reaching the Profound Abode Realm within a hundred years seemed like child's play!

If I advance to the Profound Abode Realm...

With his Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea, as long as Pang Jian could advance to the Profound Abode Realm, even those in the same cultivation realm like Yang Rui and Qi Qingsong would not be his match.

When breaking through to the Profound Abode Realm, will I also endlessly draw in the surrounding spiritual qi like when I broke through to the Innate Realm?

With this question in mind, he established a connection with the black turtle.

To his surprise, the black turtle had not only awakened from its slumber but had also grown several times larger!

The black turtle was now a hundred zhang long, surpassing even the Giant Abyssal Serpent in size!

That place... Pang Jian was startled when he noticed the nameless fragmented land the black turtle was residing in had drifted to a familiar area.

The nameless fragmented land was now between the Three Immortal Islands and the Primordial Wilderness. The black turtle had controlled it to cross the Three Immortal Islands and was now heading straight for the Primordial Wilderness.

This guy...

In his daze, Pang Jian also noticed that the nameless fragmented land had expanded. The newly added area was teeming with life, with its valleys, forests, and streams.

There was only one explanation for the nameless fragmented land's growth—it had merged with other fragmented lands!

The nameless fragmented land could actually absorb other fragmented lands and make them part of its own!

Those valleys and forests seem familiar...

Pang Jian was once again taken aback. His acute intuition told him the newly added area in the nameless fragmented land was from Cloud Island of the Three Immortal Islands. It resembled the Cloud Wilderness from the era of the one-eyed giants!

The black turtle had somehow absorbed the core area of the Cloud Wilderness and Cloud Island and integrated into the nameless fragmented land. The spiritual qi in the nameless fragmented land had also become much denser and was now several times richer than when Pang Jian had first stepped foot there.

This black turtle is continuously growing by absorbing more fragmented lands and mineral veins. At this rate, won't that nameless fragmented land eventually become larger than the Primordial Wilderness? Is it possible for that nameless fragmented land to rival a continent once the black turtle becomes strong enough?

Pang Jian's mind wandered and countless ideas flashed through his head. The more he thought about it, the more excited he became.

He dared to stay behind alone in the Primordial Wilderness because of the bronze pendant. With it, he could go to Divine Fortune in the Fourth World or the black turtle's nameless fragmented land.

As long as he was not instantly killed, he could disappear in the blink of an eye. The black turtle's quiet approach toward the nameless fragmented land only increased his confidence.

Another three days passed with Pang Jian cultivating diligently at the lakebed when he was awakened by something outside the lake.

Who is it now? He frowned.

Pang Jian's divine sense had not yet manifested, so he could not use it to identify the newcomer. All he could sense from the aura fluctuations of the approaching individuals was that they were also humans from the Primordial Wilderness.

While he wondered about the newcomers' identities, several cultivators from the Star River Alliance nervously entered the lake. One of the disciples, upon entering the clear water, was startled at the sight of Pang Jian sitting up and hurried back to the surface.

Splash!

Rushing out of the lake, he shouted to Liang Ying, "Elder Liang, there's someone at the lakebed!"

"Human? A human like us?" Liang Ying anxiously sought confirmation.

"Yes! A human like us, not a foreign race!" The disciple confirmed.

Whoosh!

Pang Jian reluctantly flew out of the lake and landed on the shore. He frowned at the dozen or so Star River Alliance disciples and asked, "What are you guys doing here?"

"Pang Jian!" Xie Xiwen and Liang Ying simultaneously exclaimed.

"What are you doing here?" Liang Ying asked Pang Jian coldly after getting over her initial shock. "Foreign race warriors and Vicious Beasts emerged from the lake. You shouldn't be here!"

Meanwhile, the young, beautiful Xie Xiwen stared at Pang Jian with curious eyes.

"I heard your sister managed to escape," Xie Xiwen said.

Pang Jian was stunned at her comment. He then recalled how this attractive Star River Alliance disciple had spoken up for Luo Hongyan at the trading hall, only to be rebuked by Liang Ying.

"Why are you hiding here?" Liang Ying repeated coldly.

"This is the safest place." Pang Jian gave her the same excuse he had told Huang Qi. "I was cultivating in a nearby cave when the foreign race warriors and Vicious Beasts emerged, so I hid there and didn't come out. Since they didn't return to the lake and no other cultivators dared approach, I decided to stay at the lakebed as it seemed like the safest place."

"How long have you been here?" Liang Ying asked skeptically.

"A few days," Pang Jian casually answered. Taking in Liang Ying's bloodstained clothes and Xie Xiwen's and the other disciples' disheveled appearances, he could not help but ask, "What happened to you?"

Liang Ying did not answer immediately. Glaring Xie Xiwen and the others into silence, she then took a moment to study Pang Jian, monitoring his heartbeat and breathing to ensure he was not lying.

Noticing nothing out of the ordinary, she let out a long sigh. "We left the First Peak early on, planning to head to the Sixth Peak to see if we could reclaim our Gilded Chariot. On our way, we encountered a group of Ghost Race warriors, were ambushed by the Wood Race, and finally battled a one-eyed giant. We were just about to reach the Sixth Peak when we saw our Gilded Chariot take off."

"Elder Qin died, and all the disciples on the Gilded Chariot perished in battle against the foreign race warriors," a petite female disciple in the Qi Refining Realm softly added.

Liang Ying shook her head and sighed. "The ones who suffered the most were us and the Sinister Soul Temple as we were the closest to Emerald Lake."

The members of the Star River Alliance started talking all at once and Pang Jian learned that the invading forces had left the Sixth and Seventh Peaks after successfully taking control of the Gilded Chariot and the Divine Spirit Pagoda.

This area now had neither foreign race warriors nor rogue cultivators.

After escaping from the one-eyed giant, Liang Ying and her group had ended up here partly because the foreign race warriors had not returned and partly to investigate what was happening at Emerald Lake.

In the end, they only found Pang Jian.

"Like you guys, I'm hiding from the foreign race warriors. The difference is, I was already nearby, so I got here earlier," Pang Jian said.

Liang Ying was no longer suspicious of Pang Jian and asked if he had noticed anything or anyone suspicious near Emerald Lake.

Pang Jian pretended to think for a moment before mentioning that a rogue cultivator named Huang Qi had been there.

"Huang Qi?" Liang Ying knitted her brows in thought.

I vaguely remember him. He has the appearance of a weasel and is not a good person. His cultivation level isn't high, but he had a lot of spirit stones. Lady Hua and Old Monster Cao also found him suspicious, saying his background could be problematic. Could Huang Qi be connected to this invasion? she wondered.

With these thoughts in mind, she then asked Pang Jian, "Where did he go?"

"The First Peak."

After answering her questions, Pang Jian decided not to stay with the Star River Alliance. He cupped his hand and bade his farewell, "You all can keep watch over Emerald Lake. I'll find another place to hide."

The fact that the foreign race warriors had taken control of the Gilded Chariot and killed a Star River Alliance elder made him feel slightly...guilty.

“Pang Jian, the entire Primordial Wilderness is in chaos, with foreign race warriors and Vicious Beasts still attacking human cultivators,” Xie Xiwen said in concern. “It’s too dangerous for you to be alone. Why don’t you stay with us?”

"No need," Pang Jian firmly rejected.

Without another word, he turned and made his way toward the edge of Emerald Lake.

"Xie Xiwen, you stay here for now. I still have some questions for him," Liang Ying instructed as she turned to follow after his disappearing figure.

"Elder, what about us?" a timid disciple asked.

"I won't be long. I just have a few more questions," Liang Ying reassured with a smile before hurrying after Pang Jian.