Transmigrating to become Hua Qiangu

"Phew! Finally out of that hellhole!" Sha Qianmo collapsed to the ground as soon as he got ashore, panting heavily. "That underwater maze was absolutely horrible! I felt like I was being crushed to dust by the water pressure!"

"Sister Sha, stop complaining! We're all out safely now." You Ruo skipped over and patted Sha Qianmo's shoulder lightly. "And we even got the divine artifact! This trip was incredibly dangerous, but it was totally worth it!"

"Hmph, You Ruo is right." Hua Qiangu walked over, her gaze fixed firmly on the distance. "Each time we acquire a divine artifact, it is extremely difficult, which means we are one step closer to saving the world of immortals. However, we cannot stay here any longer; we must hurry and find the next divine artifact."

"Little Bone, you make it sound so easy, but we don't have a single clue about the new artifact!" Sha Qianmo frowned, his face full of helplessness. "Where are we supposed to look in this vast world?"

"Don't rush, we can examine the artifact we obtained earlier first. Maybe we can find some clues," Dongfang Yuqing suggested, as he carefully examined the artifact he had retrieved from the underwater labyrinth.

“Dongfang is right.” Bai Zihua nodded in agreement. “There may be some connection between these artifacts. Some of the previous artifacts were located where dark power gathered, and some were in sealed places. Their placement was obviously meaningful.”

“Yes! Like this underwater maze, it used to be a stronghold of the dark forces, right?” Shuofeng chimed in.

"Hmm, so we need to think carefully about what other places might be related to dark forces, or where powerful forces once existed." Hua Qiangu said thoughtfully.

The group sat together and began to discuss.

"I find those ancient battlefields, corrupted and sealed by dark forces, very suspicious," Ni Mantian said excitedly, her eyes lighting up. "Those places must hold many secrets; maybe even divine artifacts are there!"

“Ancient battlefield? That’s a good idea.” Dongfang Yuqing stroked his chin and pondered for a moment before saying, “However, ancient battlefields usually have extremely powerful resentment and residual power, and their level of danger is no less than the places we have been to before.”

"What danger is nothing! What danger haven't we encountered along the way?" Sha Qianmo suddenly stood up and waved his arms vigorously. "As long as we can find the divine artifact and defeat the dark forces, I dare to venture into any dangerous place!"

“Sister Sha, it’s good to have courage, but we can’t act blindly.” Hua Qiangu looked at Sha Qianmo with a serious expression. “We need to find out which ancient battlefields are there before we make any plans.”

“Then we need to ask around,” You Ruo said. “There should be towns or villages nearby; we can ask the locals.”

The group packed their belongings and headed towards the nearest town. Upon entering the town, they found it bustling with activity, yet also imbued with a tense atmosphere.

"Don't you guys think the atmosphere here is a bit strange?" Hua Qiangu whispered to Bai Zihua.

"Hmm, something's not right. It seems like everyone's afraid of something." Bai Zihua looked around warily.

They arrived at a tavern, hoping to gather information. The tavern was crowded, and everyone was talking in hushed tones.

"Have you heard? There have been some strange occurrences around here lately, it seems like some dark forces are at work!" a burly man in coarse cloth clothes whispered to his tablemate.

"That's right! I've also heard that some people have seen dark shadows at night. Wherever those shadows go, the flowers, plants, and trees wither. It must be the work of dark forces!" Another person said, his face filled with terror.

"And what's more, I've heard that strange noises often come from the valley to the west, like something roaring, it's terrifying!" an old man added to the conversation.

Hua Qiangu and the others exchanged glances, feeling that this information might be related to the divine artifact.

"Uncle, do you know the exact location of the valley to the west?" Hua Qiangu walked up to the old man and asked politely.

"Young ladies, you must never go there! That place is very eerie; once you go there, you'll never come back!" The old man looked at Hua Qiangu with a face full of worry.

"Uncle, we have something important to do, please tell us." Hua Qiangu looked at the old man earnestly.

"Well, since you insist on going, I'll tell you. Go west out of town, until you reach a large river. Follow the river upstream, and you'll see the valley. But you must be careful!" The old man sighed helplessly.

"Thank you, Uncle!" Hua Qiangu thanked him and returned to her companions.

“It seems we need to go check out that valley,” Sha Qianmo said. “Perhaps this is the clue we’re looking for.”

"Yes, but everyone should be prepared, this could be a trap," Bai Zihua warned.

The group prepared their weapons and magical items and headed towards the western valley. Along the way, they saw many withered trees and flowers, and the surrounding air became increasingly oppressive.

"The dark power here is so strong! Everyone be careful." Dongfang Yuqing frowned and cautiously observed his surroundings.

Upon arriving at the entrance to the valley, a powerful aura of darkness swept over us.

"Wow! This aura is terrifying! It feels stronger than anything we've encountered before." You Ruo gripped Hua Qiangu's arm tightly, her body trembling slightly.

"Don't be afraid, Youruo, we'll face this together," Hua Qiangu comforted, while gripping her sword tightly.

The group cautiously entered the valley, where thick fog reduced visibility to very low levels. Suddenly, a sinister laugh echoed through the valley.

"Hahaha, you fools, you actually delivered yourselves to our doorstep!" A deep, hoarse voice rang out.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Sha Qianmo shouted, his weapon gleaming brightly.

"Hmph, what's the rush? You'll see me soon enough." The voice rang out again, its laughter even more sinister and terrifying.

"Everyone be careful, this could be a trap set by the dark forces," Bai Zihua warned, already prepared for battle, his entire body radiating a cold sword aura.

"No matter who it is, we will not back down!" Hua Qiangu shouted, her eyes shining with fearlessness.

As the laughter drew closer, a massive black shadow gradually emerged from the thick fog. The shadow was enormous, seemingly formed from countless dark forces, surrounded by swirling black smoke, making it impossible to discern its true form.

"What kind of monster is this?" Shuofeng frowned, his expression grave.

"No matter what it is, attack first!" Sha Qianmo shouted, charging towards the shadowy figure and unleashing a powerful beam of light from his weapon as he slashed at it.

The shadowy figure seemed unconcerned about Sha Qianmo's attack. With a gentle wave of its arm, a black energy wave surged toward Sha Qianmo, easily neutralizing the attack and even knocking Sha Qianmo back several steps.

"Sister Killer!" You Ruo exclaimed in surprise.

"I'm fine, this thing is pretty powerful!" Sha Qianmo steadied himself and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

"Attack together! Don't scatter!" Hua Qiangu shouted, casting a spell that sent a beam of colorful light shooting from her hand toward the shadowy figure. The others also unleashed their strongest spells, a cacophony of light attacking the shadowy figure.

Facing the onslaught, the dark figure roared, its body trembling violently, and the surrounding dark power became even more ferocious.

"It's absorbing our attack power!" Dongfang Yuqing shouted. "We have to change our strategy!"

"Attack its core! I feel the core is in its abdomen!" Hua Qiangu shouted, using her keen senses to find the shadowy figure's weakness.

The group adjusted their attack direction, concentrating their power to strike the shadowy figure's abdomen. Sensing the threat, the shadowy figure began a frenzied counterattack, unleashing waves of black energy towards the group.

"Watch out!" Bai Zihua shouted as he swung his sword to block an energy wave that was heading towards Hua Qiangu.

After a fierce battle, the shadowy figure finally revealed a weakness.

"Now! Attack with all your might!" Sha Qianmo shouted.

With everyone working together, they launched their strongest attack on the shadowy figure's abdomen. The shadowy figure let out a shrill scream as the dark power in its abdomen began to dissipate, and its body gradually became transparent.

"We did it!" Youruo shouted excitedly.

"Don't be too happy yet, this is just the beginning," Bai Zihua said, watching the disappearing shadows with a vague unease in his heart.

Just then, an even stronger dark aura emanated from the depths of the valley, as if something even more terrifying was awakening.

"What...what's going on?" Ni Mantian's face turned pale.

"It seems this place is more complicated than we imagined." Dongfang Yuqing frowned, his expression grave.

"No matter what happens, we cannot back down." Hua Qiangu clenched her fists and walked resolutely into the depths of the valley, with the others following behind.

As they ventured deeper into the valley, they discovered a massive, dark altar upon which rested an artifact radiating an eerie light, guarded by numerous dark creatures.

"The divine artifact is over there!" Youruo exclaimed excitedly, pointing to the altar.

"These dark creatures are not easy to deal with, everyone be careful," Sha Qianmo warned.

Upon seeing Hua Qiangu and her companions, the dark creatures roared and pounced. They came in various shapes and sizes; some resembled giant bats, while others looked like spiky lizards, their eyes flashing red and radiating aggression.

"Everyone, form a circle and protect each other!" Bai Zihua shouted.

The group quickly formed a circle, back to back, and engaged in a fierce battle with the dark creature.

"Attack their eyes! That's their weak point!" Shuofeng shouted, swinging his weapon and stabbing at the eyes of a bat-like dark creature that lunged at him. The creature screamed as it was struck and fell to the ground.

"I'll deal with these lizards!" Sha Qianmo shouted. He cast a powerful spell, and beams of light shot into the eyes of the lizard-like dark creatures, temporarily rendering them unable to move.

Hua Qiangu focused on dealing with the dark creatures attacking from the sky. Her sword flashed with dazzling light, repelling the approaching dark creatures one by one.

"There are too many of these dark creatures! We need to find a way to break through their defenses and get the artifact!" Dongfang Yuqing shouted as he cast spells to defend against the attacks while observing the surrounding situation.

“Let’s try to rush over from that side!” Hua Qiangu pointed to one side of the altar, where there were relatively fewer dark creatures.

"Alright! Everyone, follow me closely!" Sha Qianmo shouted, leading the charge towards one side of the altar.

The group followed closely behind Sha Qianmo, rushing towards the altar. The dark creatures sensed their intentions and swarmed around them.

"Hang in there! We're almost there!" You Ru shouted, her forehead covered in sweat, but her eyes were determined.

With everyone's efforts, they finally broke through the dark creatures' defenses and arrived at the altar.

"This artifact looks very dangerous. How are we going to take it away?" Ni Mantian asked worriedly, looking at the artifact that was emitting an eerie light.

"Let's not worry about that for now, let's try it first." Hua Qiangu said, reaching for the divine artifact. The moment her hand touched the artifact, a powerful dark force surged into her body, and her eyes became somewhat glazed.

"Xiao Gu!" Sha Qianmo exclaimed. He wanted to go forward to help, but was pushed away by an invisible force.

"I...I'm fine." Hua Qiangu gritted her teeth and resisted the erosion of the dark power. "This artifact has been corrupted by the dark power. We have to purify it."

"How do we purify it?" Dongfang Yuqing asked anxiously.

"Let's cast a purification spell together, using our power and faith to dispel the darkness," Hua Qiangu said.

The group sat around the divine artifact, hand in hand, and began casting purification spells. Streams of white light surged from their bodies, converging on the artifact. The artifact trembled violently under the white light, as dark and purifying forces collided, creating a dazzling spectacle.

"Hold on, everyone! Don't give up!" Bai Zihua shouted. His face was a little pale, but he still used all his strength to cast spells.