Refining the Mountains and Rivers

There was a ringing sound in his head and Li Zhouyi's vision turned black. How dare you do this! Li Zhouyi recognized General Tiger Roar's strength. As the general of the West Desolate, he was one of the most powerful True Saints.

Although his strength would be greatly reduced in Bounded Zero Place, everyone was weaker here. Who could have scared him away in such a short amount of time? Furthermore, there was no need for General Tiger Roar to run away. Although a puppet body was valuable, he did not have to risk offending Li Zhouyi.

He took a deep breath in and suppressed the hatred in his heart. Gritting his teeth, Li Zhouyi demanded, "Speak, what happened?"

The cultivator's face turned pale, "Your Highness, the reason why General Tiger Roar ran away is likely because the attacker is from the West Desolate…"

Li Zhouyi's expression changed drastically.

Shock and anger flooded him. His guess was wrong, the attacker did not come from that clan. It was a backstabber.

Damn it, how dare they do this? Aren't they afraid of the Desolate King investigating this? They will all be doomed!

No, it could not be that simple. General Tiger Roar would have thought of this before he ran. Unless he knew that the attacker's background was scary, he would not have run away like that!

Who? Who was it!

All of a sudden, Li Zhouyi froze. His eyes widened in alarm.

The only way for an attacker to be unafraid of consequences and scare General Tiger Roar off…could this be an order by the Desolate King?

An image of the Desolate King's cold expression crossed his mind and Li Zhouyi's heart jumped. Although the Desolate King was his birth father, Li Zhouyi did not understand why he had always been cold to him.

If it wasn't for the previous Desolate King's order, he would not have obtained the rights to control the Inextinguishable Flame. Li Zhouyi knew that the Desolate King would not be happy about this and hence he was determined to make full use of this opportunity.

After the battle, if he made big achievements, even if the Desolate King did not like him, he would have received recognition. Otherwise, his life would be destined to be wasted and there would be no hope for the future.

Nonetheless, Li Zhouyi never imagined that the Desolate King would hate him to this extent. I am your child and we have the same blood flowing through our veins. Why do you favor your third son more? I am not happy!

His breathing grew rougher and he slowly lifted his head. Blood dotted the sides of his lips from where he bit down too hard, "Get out, defend against the attacker at all cost! If you succeed, I will reward you heavily. If you fail, don't even think about living!"

His orders were already implied for all puppets who descended into Bounded Zero Place. The cultivator's expression turned ghastly and before he could reply, he was chased away by Li Zhouyi's command, "Get out immediately!"

"Yes…yes…" He struggled to stand up, then he turned and headed for the exit of the cave.

'Wheeze, wheeze'. Li Zhouyi breathed in deeply. The blood around his mouth pooled and a sharp glare filled his eyes, "I will not admit defeat. Never. Even if it is the Desolate King, I will challenge him!"

If he lost the Inextinguishable Flame, he would be thrown into the abyss.

There was no turning back, he could only bite the bullet and carry on!

Outside the cave, Qin Yu's powers were outstanding and the injured World of Darkness cultivators could not stop him. If they had not used cheat methods, they would already be dead. Their corpses would pile as high as mountains and the pungent smell of rotting flesh would permeate the area.

They were beaten to pulp. The pathetic World of Darkness cultivators struggled, and finally, their partner returned. However, his first words made everyone's faces fall.

"His Highness has ordered us to stop this man at any cost…otherwise, we will all die!" The surviving men were suddenly envious of their companions who were already dead.

Stop? How were they going to stop him?

General Tiger Roar was almost killed by the other party after a few blows. If he had not run quickly, his puppet would be cold now.

Even if these men gave their all, they were still worthless. It would be a matter of minutes before they were killed.

"Everyone, let's do our best!" A World of Darkness cultivator uttered in a low voice, "With the Forbidden Technqiue we might have a chance to live. We have followed His Highenss for many years, and we know that he definitely lives up to his words."

It was not said to them but they knew that if they succeeded, His Highness would reward them massively.

Those who heard 'Forbidden Technique' were surprised. Their eyes took on a haunting look, darting around in their sockets. There was no other way. Even if there was a sea of swords before them, they could only suck it up and continue!

"That's right!"

"Come on guys!"

"Kill this man with all we have. We will get exponential returns in the future!"

Qin Yu swept his hand forward and directly slaughtered a World of Darkness cultivator. His body broke apart and he turned into darkness aura and disappeared.

Afterwards, he realized that there was no one in front of him. The World of Darkness cultivators who had been rushing forward, unafraid of death, were now gathered in front of the cave.

He frowned slightly but did not think more of it. Stomping down, he flew forward.

He was not interested in killing people who could not die. They were like a thorny bush in front of him. If he wanted to proceed forward without being injured, he could only brandish his knife and cut them off.

After a while, Qin Yu locked onto the cave. His eyes burned with desire.

His real target was inside!

Buzz -

Suddenly, he felt faint. Something seemed to pierce him and pain shot through him. The sharp pain tore through his consciousness but it stopped abruptly in the next moment.

A purple seal formed between his eyebrows. The World of Darkness cultivators who were gathered outside the cave started wailing.

Large black patches suddenly appeared on their skin. Then, their flesh started to rot and a disgusting goo oozed out of them that turned their bodies sticky. The decay did not stop there, but continued to penetrate all the way through their bones and finally their organs.

It was as though these World of Darkness cultivators were thrown into a large cauldron of acid. Little by little, they corroded away like snow under the sun. Anyone who witnessed such a sight would be haunted and their hair would stand on end!

"Ah!"

"Why is it like this?"

"Help me! Your Highness, save us!"

"No, no. My physical body is rotting away!"

These piercing screams were chilling.

The curses!

Rules in Bounded Zero Place were broken and the effect of this on different divine ways was large. Absolute strength, treasures, and other secret techniques were the best ways to kill someone here.

A curse was regarded as a secret technique.

The World of Darkness had surveyed Bounded Zero Place for many years and their understanding of it was deep. Every cultivator who descended here would learn a secret method that sacrificed their lifespan for a powerful curse.

The most terrifying thing about this curse was that it could be superimposed. The more participating members, the more lifespan sacrificed and the more powerful the curse was.

This was what Qin Yu just experienced.

Crackle -

A sharp cracking sound emerged and Qin Yu knew that it came from the curse of the Endless Sea between his eyebrows.

Almost there, he would not be able to hold on for long!

As such, when Qin Yu felt the piercing pain, he knew that it was the curse breaking through the seal.

Slight fear started to grow in his heart. Looking at the pitiful states of the cultivators in front of him, Qin Yu knew how terrifying the curse was.

If he did not block this curse, he would be in deep trouble. Not to mention stealing the Inextinguishable Flame, he might not even be able to escape.

This time, it was not because he was careless. He had made all necessary preparations but there was nothing he could do. A curse was one of the most mysterious and incomprehensible powers in this world.

He had to thank the Sea Spirit who cursed him before its death, the furnace with amazing defense, and the sea beasts in the Endless Sea. If not for them, he would not have obtained this curse imprint.

Qin Yu had never believed in going the extra mile now to reap benefits in the future. He was certain of being able to enjoy the spoils next time.

However, this seemed to be true now!

A few World of Darkness cultivators collapsed onto the floor, their bodies rotting quickly. This time they did not change into darkness aura, instead their bodies turned into corpses.

Qin Yu instantly came to a realization. These people were truly dead; there was no chance for them to survive.

He did not feel any pity for them. These idiots dared to mess with him and they deserved everything that came their way now. They were lucky he did not…

Urgh, no no, he would not do it. This gross mess was too disgusting!

If he did not see it, he would be blinded to the mess. They could just die.

Qin Yu jumped towards the cave and did not hesitate before entering it. Very quickly, a barrier appeared in front of him.

With so many people outside, they still set up a barrier. This person was very cautious but he was unfortunate to meet Qin Yu.

Punch!

……

Li Zhouyi had a very clear understanding of the Forbidden Technique in the World of Darkness. Further, he also knew that his subordinates would know what he wanted after he told them to stop the attacker at all costs.

They would not dare to feign ignorance as they would die. Whereas if they stopped him with all they could, they would have a chance to live.

With such choices presented, did they need to think twice?

Considering the time that had passed, the Forbidden Technique should have been used by now. With so many people sacrificing their lifespan, they should be able to stop a True Saint.

Furthermore, Great Dao was useless in Bounded Zero Place. A curse was the most effective skill.

If his attacker was killed, that would be the best outcome.

However, it was unlikely that this would happen. Since the Desolate King ordered this attack, he would have made the necessary preparations.

Li Zhouyi was alright with this and he did not have much hope. He did not demand his subordinates to kill the attacker. If they could just delay the attacker, Li Zhouyi would finish his refinement very soon.

Of course, he sped up his refinement with a cost. At that point, his expression was pale and his eyes were dull. He took ragged breaths and he looked extremely tired.

Right at that moment, there was a deafening explosion that caused the cave to shake violently. Rocks tumbled off the cave walls.

Li Zhouyi's head whipped around and he looked towards the entrance. Damn it, a bunch of useless idiots!

Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!

There was one final bit left but he would lose control of the refinement object at any moment. He had to complete it in one last breath!

A few seconds later, a second explosion came and more rocks crashed down.

The third and the fourth followed soon after without any stopping.

Smack -

Someone landed on the ground. Qin Yu looked at the deep end of the cave and saw Li Zhouyi sitting cross-legged there. He paused and coldly said, "I knew you were cautious but I didn't think that you would be this prepared. It is a pity that I am faster, apologies in advance."

With that, he unleashed his attack!