As Long Chen charged into the mist, a faint soul pressure surged toward him. As Long Chen advanced, the soul pressure grew stronger and stronger.
This soul pressure stirs up negative emotions in the heart, combined with the fog before one's eyes, which reflects scenes as one's thoughts shift, causing one to fall into illusions.
But these soul pressures were almost ignorable for Long Chen. Riding the Blood-Infused Mammoth, he charged forward at full speed, while Mu Qingyun and the others were quickly left behind.
There was no other way—the deeper you got to the depths, the stronger the soul pressure became. Those whose souls weren't strong enough or whose will wasn't firm needed to adapt little by little. If someone like Long Chen charged forward like this, they'd soon lose consciousness.
Seeing Long Chen ride ahead of the crowd, ignoring the illusion array and charging straight toward the core area of the Divine Dao Banner, the sisters Luo Bing and Luo Ning looked tense, their palms already drenched in sweat.
"Chu Kuang's side also passed through the Demon-Slaying Path, so fast." Someone cried out in alarm. People hurriedly looked toward Chu Kuang's side, only to find that the gate to the Demon-Slaying Path had already opened, and they too began rushing toward the core area.
Perhaps Chu Kuang sensed something was wrong, so he sped up the process, followed closely behind Long Chen, and rushed in.
Long Chen sprinted wildly all the way. Because he was running so fast, his soul ached slightly, but it didn't really affect him.
Long Chen ordered the Blood-Infused Mammoth to speed up, shattering the surrounding trees one after another, with sand and stones flying along the way, creating a terrifying scene.
Long Chen spent the time it takes to burn an incense stick and rushed straight to the peak of the core area, where there was an altar, and at its center stood a large flag.
Long Chen rushed to the altar and placed a jade token in his hand into a groove on the altar.
"Buzz"—
the entire altar lit up instantly, and the thick fog in Long Chen's area began to slowly dissipate.
Long Chen was the first to rush to the side of the Divine Dao Banner, leaving a mark on the altar. As a result, the power of Long Chen's formation began to gradually diminish, making it easier for Mu Qingyun and the others to charge forward.
Long Chen pressed his large hand on the jade token, channeling the power of his immortal spirit into it. There were eight lamps on the altar, and the first one emitted a faint glow.
The banner on the altar was locked by a formation; only when eight lamps were lit would the lock be released and the banner could be taken out.
However, lighting each lamp takes a certain amount of time, and one person's strength is limited. In other words, the more people exert their power simultaneously, the easier it is to light up, regardless of personal cultivation.
"What is that?"
Suddenly, someone shouted and stood up. In the area where Chu Kuang was, a ball of white light enveloped Chu Kuang, Gu Fei, Tang Yaochen, Li Chengbei, Xiang Kejie, Yang Fang, and other powerful figures, all shooting toward the core area like a meteor.
"It's a Formation-Breaking Shuttle Talisman. Wow, this thing costs hundreds of thousands of Immortal Crystals each. They burned so many Formation-Breaking Shuttle Talismans, probably over a hundred." Someone recognized that the white light was formed by burning hundreds of talismans.
Chu Kuang burned talismans worth tens of millions of immortal crystals as soon as he made his move—this was just too much! It seems Chu Kuang is determined to win this Divine Dao Contest, willing to do whatever it takes.
At the same time, they understood why famous powerhouses like Gu Fei, Tang Yaochen, Li Chengbei, Xiang Kejie, and Yang Fanghe would all come to support Chu Kuang—there must be some shady deal behind this.
"This is simply cheating. What will we do in the future of the Divine Dao supremacy?" Might as well compare who has the richest—whoever has more money is number one. What's the point of competing? Luo Ning couldn't help but feel furious, standing up and shouting loudly.
"Wealth is the foundation of cultivation, more important than talent. Don't you understand?
No matter how talented you are, if you have no resources, what use is it? Chu Kuang and the others' actions did not break the rules, so how could there be any talk of cheating? The elder beside Chu Huairen sneered.
The disciples present were all furious. This was indeed cheating, and it was blatant cheating. Winning this match with money was nothing short of a desecration of Lingxiao Academy.
People couldn't help but look at the head of the Discipline Institute, seeing his calm expression and no reaction.
People were deeply disappointed and looked to Master Yunyang, hoping he would speak fairly.
Master Yunyang shook his head and said, "In the immortal path of competition, in pursuit of victory, one will stop at nothing. It is not despicable."
On the path of cultivation, every extra resource you fight and one more opportunity you gain is equivalent to gaining a bit more strength, and a greater chance to survive.
So, many times, in the face of life, moral constraints are meaningless.
Although these words may be a bit cruel and shameless, this is reality. Someday, you might understand. "
Buzz"
At that moment, the first lamp on the altar was lit by Long Chen. Just as Long Chen was about to light the second, suddenly the blood-soaked mammoth with its long nose swept through the air and was flung to the side.
With a loud explosion, dust flew everywhere. Gu Fei's body was shaken away by the Blood-Infused Mammoth's strike, and the Mammoth was forced to retreat several steps.
"Long Chen, die!"
At that moment, Gu Fei saw Long Chen, shouted loudly, runes glowing all over his body, slapped the ground with both hands, and the earth trembled violently. Countless golden swords flew out from the soil, stabbing straight at Long Chen.
Long Chen was slightly startled. Gu Fei hadn't even ignited the divine fire yet, yet he could still cast spells. In other words, he was a master of metallic nature—something he hadn't expected.
Long Chen almost instinctively stepped back, avoiding Gu Fei's attack range. But as soon as he stepped back, he immediately sensed something was wrong, because he sensed something unusual in the space behind him.
"Get lost!"
Suddenly, a cold laugh rang out. Long Chen saw Tang Yaochen holding a formation disk, aiming at him. Long Chen's expression changed instantly.
"Buzz"—Long Chen's
body lightened, and in an instant, he vanished from where he stood. When he reappeared, he was already at the gate of the Demon-Slaying Path.
Long Chen was both shocked and furious. He had actually been set up; Gu Fei was only trying to distract him, and Tang Yaochen had taken the opportunity to activate a formation and teleport him out.
"Long Chen, I won't kill you because I want you to watch helplessly as I take the Divine Dao Banner. What can you do to me? Hahaha... From atop the distant mountain, Chu Kuang's arrogant laughter echoed, along with the dying cry of the Blood-Furious Mammoth. The Blood-Furious Mammoth was killed by Chu Kuang and the others working together.
"Crack, crack, crack... Long
Chen's fists clenched so tightly his joints cracked, murderous intent surging in his eyes. Chu Kuang and the others were doing it on purpose—they had deliberately tormented the blood-soaked mammoth, making it howl in pain, then killing it and deliberately provoking Long Chen.
"Since you're courting death, I'll grant your wish."
A murderous intent surged in Long Chen's eyes. The power of thunder rippled beneath his feet, and suddenly a pair of thunder wings sprouted from his back, like a bolt of lightning, rushing toward the core area.