Martial Arts Overlord

Chapter 1071: Chapter 1068: Divine Dragon Nine Changes, Red Dragon Mountain Range

The blood-red sun hung high in the sky, the scorching heat slightly distorting the air.

Looking far into the distance, mountain ranges stretched to the ends of the earth, their rocks crimson red and trees towering tens of meters, shooting up to the sky. Strangely, from the trunk to the leaves, all these trees were red.

Not just the trees, the flowers and grass crawling on the ground were mostly fiery red too, not a hint of green to be seen. From afar, it looked like a sea of flames, endless and dazzling.

Whoosh!

A figure maneuvered rapidly; Luo Feng paused on the trunk of a tree.

"No wonder martial artists of non-Spiritual Rotation Realm cannot set foot here. An ordinary person arriving here would likely soon be turned into a dried corpse."

Luo Feng exhaled deeply.

As he ventured deeper into the Red Dragon Mountain Range, the evil qi between heaven and earth grew more intense, so much so that even with his cultivation, he could not completely shield himself from the surrounding high temperatures.

Taking out the map, Luo Feng compared the nearby mountain terrain, muttering to himself, "Looks like we’re about to reach the Fire Scale Mountain Range."

Putting the map away, Luo Feng was ready to keep moving when a sense of alert surfaced in his gut, and a foul wind came rushing from behind him.

Suddenly turning his head, Luo Feng’s pupils shrank; there was a giant red python atop the tree crown, appearing out of nowhere.

The python’s body was as thick as a door panel, its blood-red mouth wide open, like a cave intending to swallow him whole, with a stinking foul wind barreling towards him.

Swish!

Without the slightest hesitation, Luo Feng’s figure leapt away, dodging the python’s sneak attack.

Boom!

The python crashed into the tree trunk, and the crimson trunk was directly snapped in two.

Seeing this, Luo Feng raised an eyebrow. He had tried before; the trees here must have been affected by the evil qi for years, as their hardness was several degrees stronger than steel. Yet in front of this python, they were as fragile as tofu.

Bang!

The python, seeing Luo Feng evade its attack, suddenly retracted its twisted body, spewing out a massive fireball from its blood-red mouth, aiming it at Luo Feng.

The fireball carried a fierce aura, making the air crackle as it passed.

"Slash!"

Facing the incoming fireball, Luo Feng remained calm, his figure pausing mid-air before drawing the Emperor Yan’s Sky-breaking Saber, immediately executing the first form of the Four Symbols Ultimate Saber, ’Spring Breeze-as-Heart-Wills’.

Sizzle!

The Emperor Yan’s Sky-breaking Saber transformed into a wind-fire wheel, pulling out a fiery red streak in the sky and sweeping out. The demon qi fireball split in two, leaving the giant red python no chance to dodge, its enormous body pierced through, its head nearly severed, with black blood cascading down like a waterfall.

Catching the Emperor Yan’s Sky-breaking Saber, Luo Feng landed on a nearby tree, his gaze fixed on the slightly twitching body of the python. Just as he was about to relax, a chilling sensation crept up his spine, and he shot into the sky.

Crash!

The instant Luo Feng left, the branch beneath him suddenly twisted. This was no ordinary branch at all, but another demon python, even larger than the one before.

"Die!"

With a cold shout, Luo Feng condensed Yuan Qi and slashed down.

A blade light dozens of meters long shot out, directly cutting the pursuing python in half, even splitting the trees behind it into two parts.

Buzz!

With soul power released to the fullest, Luo Feng only relaxed after sensing no other threats, still feeling anxious about the previous encounter.

Had he not reacted quickly, he might have fallen prey to the python’s bite, killed by its venomous fangs.

"It seems to walk here, one must remain wholly vigilant; otherwise, the demise would come unnoticed."

Normally, Luo Feng would have sensed the python before its sneak attack, let alone getting ambushed by it.

But here, in the Red Dragon Mountain Range, the pervasive evil qi affects soul perception, combined with the skilled concealment of serpent-like demon beasts. Luo Feng nearly found himself in a tight spot.

Clang!

Sheathing his saber, Luo Feng looked at the corpses of the two demon pythons on the ground, murmuring:

"Didn’t expect I could now kill a mid-level nine-class demon beast in one slash. Perhaps I’ve underestimated myself."

These two beasts, named Fire Nest Venomous Pythons, were mid-level nine-class demon beasts. This powerful physique led Luo Feng to believe it would take some effort to kill them, yet it turned out to be a single-swipe defeat.

Thus, in his heart, Luo Feng gained further confidence in contending for the Single Horned Red Cloud Python’s demon core. If he were to go all out, the two Ninth Spirit Rotation Realm martial artists accompanying the Crown Prince into the Red Flame Mountain might not stop him.

Extracting the demon cores of the two beasts, Luo Feng wasted no time and ventured deeper into the desolate mountain range.

After two hours, Luo Feng raised his head to gaze ahead.

A crimson mountain range rising into the clouds lay there, towering above the surrounding landscape, standing tall and distinct.

Luo Feng flew to the sky, his gaze extending far; the mountain range stretched in a streamlined curve, disappearing into the distance. It appeared like a giant red python moving across the ground, with eerie purplish-red mist drifting around its perimeter. The trees close to the mist had withered entirely, devoid of any vitality, evidently poisoned.

"This must be Fire Scale Mountain; indeed, a place of peril."

Without the need to check the map for comparison, Luo Feng had made the confirmation in his heart.

"The Crown Prince will likely take a while to arrive; I should recover my Yuan Qi first."

Luo Feng had the detailed map of this area, avoiding all dangerous spots on his way, encountering only three demon beasts, essentially traveling at full speed. With the Crown Prince’s extensive retinue, they couldn’t conceal their tracks and were sure to take more time.

Facing a major battle soon, Luo Feng planned to elevate his state to peak condition, unchanged to meet all changes.

Whoosh!

With a flash, Luo Feng appeared atop a towering tree. After confirming there were no threats nearby, he sat cross-legged and began practicing the Divine Dragon Nine Changes.

Hm?

Once Yuan Qi began circulating, Luo Feng immediately noticed something different.

The Yuan Qi from heaven and earth was drawn into his body, instantly filling him with a scorching aura. The circulation of Yuan Qi inside was much smoother than usual, completing a grand circulation in just two-thirds the usual time. Even the ever-quiet Divine Dragon Nine Changes felt like it was on the verge of a breakthrough.

"This mountain range indeed harbors mysteries!"

Luo Feng opened his eyes, his gaze burning.

Since entering the Red Dragon Mountain Range, he had felt an unusual agitation in his body’s Yuan Qi.

Yet upon careful investigation, he found nothing and finally dismissed it as the effect of the surrounding evil qi. Now, it seemed that this wasn’t the case.

He had always wanted to cultivate the Blood Soul Transformation to its ninth stage and refine True Yuan, diligently practicing the Divine Dragon Nine Changes lately, but progress was slow. Yet now, after mere routine practice, a breakthrough sensation arose, leaving him astonished.

"Divine Dragon Nine Changes originates from Teng Dragon’s Step, and the Teng Dragon’s Step secret manual was discovered by the headmaster on the outskirts of the Red Dragon Mountain Range. Could the Divine Dragon Nine Changes be related to this mountain range?"

After pondering a while, Luo Feng couldn’t conclude, so he shook his head, choosing not to dwell on it.

What he needed to focus on now was obtaining the demon core of the Single Horned Red Cloud Python from the Crown Prince, aiming to break through.

Other matters would have to wait for later.

Calming his mind, Luo Feng closed his eyes again, starting his cultivation.

Roar...

The faint sound of dragon roaring reverberated within him, as if the Yuan Qi of heaven and earth was drawn by an invisible force, converging towards him. Observing closely, one could see a fiery dragon scale faintly appearing at Luo Feng’s brow.