Free Web NovelChapter 313: Yin Sha Swamp
The silver light shuttle flew at a constant speed at a low altitude, while Fang Hao sat cross-legged in the cabin with a calm expression.
Several days had passed since he had counter-killed that demonic Cultivator who blocked his path.
He had simply processed the demonic Cultivator’s Storage bag, burning away the items that clearly carried the aura of the Demonic Path, and left only a small amount of Mid-Grade Spirit Stone and a few relatively pure Ore Materials before ignoring it.
Raiders of this level were as numerous as crucian carp crossing the river in a chaotic place like the Yin Sha Swamp; killing them was simply killing them, and it would not leave behind any major consequences.
As they continued forward, the terrain below began to change significantly.
The originally undulating, jagged black mountain range gradually became sparse and low, eventually being replaced by an endless, mist-filled dark green wetland.
The air was filled with a strange smell mixed with humus, miasma, and a certain cold Evil Qi; the Spiritual Qi became thin and impure, and his Divine Sense perception was also significantly suppressed and interfered with.
"Yin Sha Swamp... we’ve arrived." Fang Hao maneuvered the silver light shuttle to hover above the edge of the swamp, his expression becoming solemn.
Looking out, the swamp was astonishingly vast. As far as the eye could see, water and land intertwined, with large patches of dark green aquatic plants and moss covering the water surface and muddy ground, dotted with strangely colored and twisted shrubs and low, weird trees.
On the water surface, bubbles occasionally rose, releasing a faint, fishy-sweet smelling miasma when they burst.
Deeper inside, dense gray or even dark green poisonous miasma rose and swirled, completely obscuring the scenery further away, giving one a feeling of depth, mystery, and hidden danger.
Occasionally, the cries of scattered birds and beasts came from the depths of the swamp, sharp and strange, carrying an ominous aura.
When his Divine Sense probed into the swamp, he immediately felt a sense of sluggishness and chill, as if countless tiny evil spirits and Evil Qi were eroding his Divine Sense, compressing his detection range significantly and making it blurry.
"It is indeed as famous as they say," Fang Hao whispered.
This Yin Sha Swamp was a natural barrier spanning hundreds of thousands of miles between Tiangong City and the western Flowing Cloud Plain. Within it, not only was the terrain complex and filled with countless poisonous insects and fierce beasts, but there were also naturally formed poisonous miasma, maze Formations, and various evil spirits and Demon Beast that had bred due to the perennial accumulation of Yin Sha Evil Qi.
More importantly, the Spiritual Qi here was thin and chaotic, and the environment was harsh, making it a hiding place and hunting ground for many wanted evil Cultivators, demonic Cultivators, as well as some Cultivator who practiced special Cultivation Technique or engaged in shady business.
Chaos, slaughter, and the law of the jungle were the eternal themes here.
Fang Hao took out the Jade Slip map and carefully compared it.
The annotations on the map regarding the Yin Sha Swamp were extremely brief, only outlining the general contour and some known relatively "safe" routes.
These routes were not truly safe; they were just passages that generations of transmigrators had explored with their lives, avoiding some known large dangerous areas and powerful Demon Beast nests, but even so, they were full of variables and dangers.
"According to the records, the shortest route is to pass through the ’Black Water Ravine’ in the south-central part of the swamp, but that place is occupied by a 4th-tier Late Stage ’Bone-Rotting Crocodile King’ and is the lair of several fierce robbers, which is extremely dangerous.
Another route is to follow the northern edge of the swamp, bypassing the ’Ghost Cry Forest’ and ’Rotting Poison Pool’; although the distance is 30% longer, it avoids some known Nascent Soul level threats and is relatively’safer’." Fang Hao calculated in his heart.
Although his strength had greatly increased and he had the golden puppet in hand, not fearing ordinary Early Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, he still did not have absolute confidence in winning against a 4th-tier Late Stage Demon Beast, especially a Bone-Rotting Crocodile King that fought on its home turf, had thick skin, and was extremely poisonous.
Moreover, he might encounter swarms of harassing robbers, increasing unnecessary variables.
Bypassing the northern edge, although the distance was long and there were also dangers (the Ghost Cry Forest was said to have natural illusion Formations that confused the mind, and the Rotting Poison Pool was dense with poisonous miasma), at least there were no clear Nascent Soul level existences entrenched there.
With his strength and the speed of the silver light shuttle, if he were careful, the probability of passing through would be higher.
"Bypass to the north." Fang Hao quickly made his decision.
Safety first; he was not short of this time.
Mo Yunhe’s storage ring had massive resources, enough for him to Cultivate for a long time. The top priority was to arrive safely at Myriad Laws Immortal City and obtain the nascent soul pill formula.
After determining the route, Fang Hao did not immediately go deep into the swamp. Instead, he maneuvered the silver light shuttle to land on a slightly higher, relatively dry mound.
He put away the silver light shuttle and quickly set up several layers of concealment and protection Formations around the mound, perfectly masking his aura and the surrounding environment.
After doing this, he did not rest immediately. Instead, he sat cross-legged and took out a pale yellow Medicinal Pill and swallowed it.
This was a type of Medicinal Pill called "Miasma-Clearing Pill" from Mo Yunhe’s storage ring, which could effectively resist the erosion of most common poisonous miasmas.
He then took out a Talisman glowing with a faint golden light, activated it, and stuck it on his chest.
The Talisman turned into a thin, cicada-wing-like golden light film that covered his whole body. This was the "Golden Light Evil-Avoiding Talisman," which could isolate the disturbance of Yin Sha Evil Qi to a certain extent.
"The Yin Sha Swamp is filled with poisonous miasma, and Evil Qi invades the body. One must always use Spiritual Qi to protect the body, and cannot fly for long periods, lest one becomes a living target or easily gets lost in the poisonous miasma." Fang Hao recalled the records about this place.
The best way was to fly low to the ground or use some special paths in the swamp (such as hard ground exposed above the water, passages formed by ancient tree roots, etc.), supplemented by walking, which could save Spiritual Qi and also allow for better observation of the environment and evasion of danger.
After resting for a moment and waiting for the Medicinal Pill and Talisman to take effect, Fang Hao brought out the silver light shuttle again.
However, he did not rise to a high altitude, but instead controlled it at a height of a few feet off the ground, slowly flying forward along the northern edge of the swamp.
The speed was not fast, but it was cautious enough.
He restrained most of his aura, only maintaining his Divine Sense within a hundred-foot radius around him, concentrating and staying alert.
The scenery of the swamp slowly receded beneath him.
Under the turbid water, huge black shadows could occasionally be seen sliding quietly, creating ripples.
Brightly colored poisonous flowers and strange-looking fungi grew wantonly on rotting trees and muddy ground, emitting sweet or foul odors.
In the air, swarms of fist-sized poisonous mosquitoes flickering with eerie green light circled, but they seemed wary of the protective Spiritual Qi outside the silver light shuttle and the aura on Fang Hao’s body, so they did not approach.
After flying for about an hour, a more dense gray poisonous miasma area appeared ahead. Even at a low altitude, his line of sight was greatly affected.
Fang Hao frowned and was about to detour when, suddenly, his Divine Sense moved slightly.
He captured extremely faint Spiritual Qi fluctuations not far to his left, beneath a seemingly calm patch of water, and... a trace of extremely faint, almost imperceptible blood scent.
Fang Hao immediately controlled the silver light shuttle to hover, full concealment Formations activated, and his aura restrained to the extreme.
He cast a sharp gaze toward that stretch of water.
After a few breaths, with a splash of water, a disheveled figure stumbled out of the turbid water and fell onto a relatively dry piece of hard ground on the bank.
It was a middle-aged Cultivator wearing a blue Daoist robe, but the robe was damaged in many places and covered in mud.
His cultivation was about the Middle Golden Core Stage. At this moment, his face was pale, his aura was weak, and there was a claw mark on his chest that was deep enough to see bone, gushing black blood, clearly having been poisoned by a potent toxin.
The middle-aged Cultivator struggled to sit up, hurriedly took out a few Medicinal Pill and swallowed them, then took out a Talisman and stuck it on the wound, barely stopping the bleeding.
However, his face was still gray, clearly heavily poisoned, and his state was extremely poor.
He looked around vigilantly, his eyes filled with fear and lingering dread.
Fang Hao hid in the dark and observed quietly.
The style of this Cultivator’s clothing did not look common near Tiangong City; rather, it had some characteristics of certain small sects in the hinterland of the Western Regions.
Looking at his appearance, he had clearly just experienced a fierce battle and escaped luckily.
Just then, the middle-aged Cultivator seemed to sense something, suddenly raised his head, and looked in the direction where Fang Hao was hiding.
A glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes, and he shouted hoarsely: "Which Fellow Daoist is ahead? I am Liu Feng, a Disciple of the Flowing Cloud Sect. I was ambushed by a treacherous person and have been poisoned by a potent toxin. I ask for Fellow Daoist’s help! I will definitely have a generous reward!"
Fang Hao raised his eyebrows slightly and did not appear immediately.
In this Yin Sha Swamp, a request for help from a strange Cultivator often meant trouble.
Moreover, this person claimed to be a Disciple of the Flowing Cloud Sect... The Flowing Cloud Sect seemed to be a medium-sized Sect on the Flowing Cloud Plain, and its reputation was decent.
But human hearts were unpredictable, and it was hard to tell if it was true or false.
Just as he was pondering, a sudden change occurred!
The water behind the middle-aged Cultivator who called himself Liu Feng suddenly exploded!
A giant python, as thick as a water bucket, covered in black scales, with a triangular head and a pair of blood-red small eyes, shot out like an arrow from a bow.
It opened its giant mouth filled with sharp teeth and dripping with foul-smelling venom, biting fiercely at Liu Feng’s back!
This giant python had a powerful aura, surprisingly reaching the Third-tier Peak, equivalent to Perfected Golden Core, and it had been lurking underwater, launching a sudden attack with lightning speed!
Liu Feng was already seriously injured and poisoned, his reaction was half a beat slow.
By the time he sensed the evil wind attacking from behind, it was already too late to dodge, and his eyes were suddenly filled with despair.
At this critical moment, a dark golden stream of light, like a teleportation, shot out from where Fang Hao was hiding.
It arrived later but reached first, striking with extreme precision on the side of the giant python’s ferocious head!
Clang—!
A loud noise like metal hitting metal!
The giant python’s forward momentum was forcibly stopped. Its head was smashed to one side, and it let out a painful hiss, its scales shattered, and blood flowed directly.
The one who attacked was naturally the golden puppet!
Although he only used a portion of his power, that tough body comparable to a 4th-tier Magic Treasure and terrifying giant strength were not something this giant python could easily withstand.
Liu Feng survived, still shaken, and scrambled to escape several feet forward.
Only then did he turn back to see the dark golden tall figure that had suddenly appeared and repelled the giant python with one blow, as well as Fang Hao, who was walking slowly out of the concealment Formation with a calm expression.
His face was immediately filled with the wild joy and gratitude of surviving a disaster.
"Many... many thanks to Senior for saving my life!" Liu Feng hurriedly saluted.
Although the cultivation Fang Hao revealed was only Perfected Golden Core, being able to possess such a powerful Puppet meant his status and strength were definitely extraordinary. He did not dare to be the least bit negligent.
Fang Hao did not pay attention to Liu Feng’s gratitude. His gaze fell on the black giant python that had been repelled by the golden puppet, which was raising its head, flicking its scarlet snake tongue, and making a threatening hissing sound.
His eyes were slightly cold.
"A Third-tier Peak ’Black Water Mystic Snake’, quite a rare Demon Beast. Its poison glands and snake gall are excellent Materials for refining several types of detoxifying and barrier-breaking pill." Thoughts flashed through Fang Hao’s mind, and he immediately gave the order to the golden puppet.
"Finish this quickly."
