Before Long Chen lay a massive spatial cave, spanning thousands of li. He hadn't expected that there was such a vast space underground.
Inside the cave, a group of people were fiercely battling a golden horned python. The python was over a hundred zhang long, its golden scales bearing strange runes. As the scales floated, endless water vapor surged, and ripples spread across the void.
Hundreds of experts were frantically attacking the golden-horned python, but all were slaughtered in a sorry state. The ground was littered with bloodstains and fragments of corpses. In the distance, dozens of people lay on the ground, barely alive, seemingly severely injured.
"What is that?" Luo Bing sensed the terrifying aura of the Golden-scaled Horned Python and was startled. Its presence was so terrifying it made one's scalp tingle.
"This is the ancient relic Golden Crystal Soaring Snake. As an adult, it becomes a fifth-rank immortal beast. The Golden Crystal Soaring Snake produces third-tier metal, fourth-tier wings, and fifth-tier crystals. Its scales all turn golden, and only the water-aquatic wings on its wings have actually grown wings, which means it is a peak third-tier immortal beast." Long Chen looked at the Golden Crystal Teng Snake and explained.
Now, Long Chen was well-read and no longer a rookie in the Immortal Realm; he had dabbled in many pieces of knowledge.
"We actually saw a celestial beast."
Li Cai was shocked. Immortal beasts possessed immortal bloodline and were favored by the Immortal Realm, making them one of the most powerful beast clans, extremely rare.
With a loud explosion, the Golden Crystal Teng Snake's long tail lashed like a whip toward the disciples of Qinghe Palace. A man dressed in a purple robe, with fair hair and a fair face, wielded a water-splitting spike and struck the snake's long tail with a loud bang.
Water vapor surged across the sky, and a ripple spread through the void. The disciples of Qinghe Palace immediately roared in anger, fighting with all their might, but were still blasted away by the terrifying mist. Half of them coughed up blood, utterly disheveled.
The man wielding the Water-Splitting Spike forcibly blocked the Golden Crystal Teng-Flying Snake's strike and charged at it again. The Water-Splitting Spike in his hand was a powerful water-element divine weapon, sharp and skinless, and managed to slash through the snake's body.
The disciples of Qinghe Palace, who had been knocked away, lunged forward again, working together to suppress the Golden Crystal Teng Serpent. Judging by their skillful movements, it seemed they had already figured out the serpent's attack rhythm after a long fight, and their coordination was very seamless.
"Are they planning to subdue this Golden Crystal Teng Snake?" Seeing the people from Qinghe Palace desperately attacking the Golden Crystal Teng Snake, Luo Bing asked in confusion.
"With their strength, it's impossible to subdue this Golden Crystal Teng Snake. Immortal beasts can only be subdued by absolute power; without their recognition, they'd rather die than submit." Long Chen shook his head.
To subdue a celestial beast, one must first defeat it one-on-one, and then absolute dominance. If both are similarly strong, relying on luck to defeat the beast will not be recognized either.
With so many of them attacking this Golden Crystal Teng Snake, it was simply impossible to make it submit.
"Is the corpse of the Golden Crystal Teng Snake really valuable?" Otherwise, why would they provoke it? Luo Ning asked.
"Look behind the Golden Crystal Teng Snake." Long Chen pointed in a direction.
Luo Ning and the others looked closely and saw that behind the Golden Crystal Teng Snake was a pool. Amidst the mist, they vaguely saw a high platform several feet square on the stone cliff at the edge of the pool, shaped like a bowl.
On the high platform stood a strange flower and plant, its leaves like gladiolus spreading in all directions. At the center grew a small branch, bearing a fruit on the branch that was deep red as blood, with seven long tentacles hanging down, looking like a handful of dust—extremely strange.
"What is that?" Mu Qingyun asked, clearly no one here knew about this thing.
Long Chen explained, "That's the Divine Beard Narcissus, famous for its human beard. The most precious thing about the Divine Beard Narcissus isn't its fruit, but the seven roots on it."
The Divine Beard Narcissus takes eight hundred years to bloom and bear fruit. The roots are one inch long, a thousand years—meaning that one inch longer takes a thousand years. The roots are over seven inches long, meaning this Divine Beard Narcissus is already over eight thousand years old.
The Divine Beard Narcissus is a rare medicine, not classified by grade, containing water-element essence. It can be used in over a thousand types of pills and is a treasured medicine coveted by water-element cultivators. Even if taken directly, it has endless wonders. "
No wonder they're fighting so hard. The leader is a powerful water cultivator." Luo Bing suddenly understood. Most disciples of Qinghe Palace were water-element cultivators, no wonder they were fighting so hard.
The Golden Crystal Teng Snake was also a water-type immortal beast. It guarded this place and clearly relied on this Divine Beard Water Immortal to cultivate. If the people of Qinghe Palace wanted to seize the Divine Whisker Water Immortal, the Golden Crystal Teng Snake would naturally fight them to the death.
"This beast's blood and energy power is starting to decline. Everyone, stay calm. Don't be greedy or reckless, and avoid unnecessary casualties. This Divine Beard Narcissus is already within our pocket." The leader shouted loudly.
His voice was sharp and thin, carrying an inexplicable feminine power that made people extremely uncomfortable. It sounded like it was coming from someone neither male nor female, and it gave people goosebumps without realizing it.
But the disciples of Qinghe Palace were all greatly energized. After so many had died, finally seeing the Golden Crystal Teng Snake's strength weaken, it meant the treasure was about to be obtained and everything was worth it.
Watching the Golden Crystal Teng Snake's strength wane, the people from Qinghe Palace became even more cautious, tightly surrounding it and not daring to relax for a moment.
It should be known that this Golden Crystal Teng-Flying Snake guards the Divine Beard Narcissus. If it knew it was doomed, it might destroy it before dying. So now, they dared not act rashly. As long as they didn't push the Golden Crystal Teng-Snake too hard, it would think their strength had declined and they still had the strength to fight.
As long as the Golden Crystal Tengxian Snake's power is exhausted, it will be powerless to destroy the Divine Beard Narcissus. Therefore, this is the critical moment—they have no choice but to be extremely cautious.
"Third Brother, they're so strong. If we fight head-on, we'll suffer a big loss." After carefully observing the experts of Qinghe Palace, Mu Qingyun found that they were all too powerful, with over five hundred members—more than a hundred more than the combined total of the two guilds. This was somewhat awkward.
If they just left like that, it would be a bit unsatisfying, but if they tried to seize it by force, regardless of whether they succeeded, even if they succeeded, it would inevitably cause heavy casualties.
"It's fine, just follow my arrangements. The Divine Beard Narcissus is mine, the Golden Crystal Teng Snake is mine, and their lives are mine too." Long Chen chuckled. That Divine Beard Narcissus was of great use to him, and he was determined to obtain it.
After half an incense stick's time, the Golden Crystal Teng Snake's aura dropped dramatically. The people of Qinghe Valley were secretly delighted. This time, even if they wanted to destroy the Divine Beard Narcissus, they couldn't do it. But to be safe, they decided to wear the Golden Crystal Teng Snake down to its weakest state before killing it.
The Golden Crystal Teng Snake opened its mouth wide and spat out a water sword. The crowd dodged it, but no one noticed. Amidst the swirling mist, a pill floated into the snake's mouth before it could close its mouth.
"Buzz!" Suddenly,
the scales all over the Golden Crystal Soaring Snake lit up in an instant. Its aura surged wildly, and a terrifying pressure radiated outward.
"Not good, it seems to have broken through." The Qinghe Palace expert wielding the water-dividing spike changed his expression dramatically.