We bear people have power

The fields are strewn with bones and corpses; this is not a mass grave or an ancient battlefield, but inside the belly of the Void-Bellied Ghost King.

Guan Bo and Ying Cao were trying to find a way to leave when they heard someone say in a sinister tone, "Only one person can leave and one person can stay here. The one who leaves lives, and the one who stays dies."

The place was dark, and Guan Bo could only see things about ten feet away. Therefore, he could only hear the sounds but not see the people.

"Who's playing tricks? Dare to come out and explain themselves clearly?" Guan Bo held Yingcao in his arms, cautiously sensing his surroundings.

A short while later, a figure as thin as a skeleton approached within ten feet, allowing Guan Bo to see his appearance clearly.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say this person was skin and bones; he was practically a skeleton covered in skin. His eyes, however, appeared enormous due to his extreme thinness, with prominent red veins, making him look quite frightening.

Compared to Guan Bo's enormous size, this fleshy skeleton looked exceptionally small, not even much taller than the little girl Yingcao. It was the kind of skeleton that looked like it would fall apart at the slightest touch.

"Was it you who was speaking just now?"

Guan Bo wasn't afraid of ugliness, but he was wary of the guy's underhanded tactics. After all, this was a dangerous place where anything could happen.

“That’s right, I’m the only one in this godforsaken place. There’s no other living thing here.” The eerie fleshy skeleton laughed.

"Were you also swallowed by the Void Belly Ghost King?" Guan Bo asked again.

"Yes and no," the fleshy skeleton said mysteriously.

"Will I die if I don't use witty banter?" Guan Bo asked.

"..."

Guan Bo's unconventional approach made it impossible for this skeleton to maintain its facade any longer. Just as it was about to turn and leave, Guan Bo pressed it down with a bear paw.

"You think you can just run away before you've even explained yourself? Do you really think your Grandpa Guan is a pushover? Pandas are ferocious beasts, you know that?" Guan Bo cursed.

Suddenly, there was nothing under the bear's paw. Guan Bo lifted the bear's paw and saw that the fleshy skeleton that had been pressed to the ground was gone.

"This spell looks like a land-遁术 (earth-遁术, a type of magic that allows one to escape into the earth)?" Guan Bo asked curiously.

"That's right, it's the Earth Escape Technique. I am the local earth spirit." The fleshy skeleton appeared not far away and said.

“Isn’t this the belly of the False Belly Ghost King? How come there’s earth here?” Guan Bo asked curiously.

At this moment, Lingxiu spoke up: "The belly of the Void Belly Ghost King is a world unto itself, so it's not surprising that it can give birth to land."

"Hehe, this little girl is quite knowledgeable. I'm almost reluctant to let you die," the fleshy skeleton laughed.

Upon hearing this, Guan Bo immediately retorted angrily, "You've been cooped up in this lousy place for too long, haven't you become a pervert? I'm an expert in treating mental illnesses with physical methods. Do you want me to treat you? One course of treatment will show results, no charge if it doesn't work!"

"..."

This fleshy skeleton couldn't keep up with Guan Bo's leaping thoughts at all, and even couldn't quite understand whether Guan Bo was actually cursing him.

Faced with this unpredictable monster, even the lonely skeleton didn't want to talk to him. So, he simply explained, "This is a small part of the underworld refined by the Void Belly Ghost King. These piles of white bones are all transformed from the enemies he devoured. And I am the earth spirit born from the combination of these corpses and fragments of this underworld. You could say I'm a piece of land."

"Then what did you mean when you said that someone would die if we left here?" Guan Bo asked.

“Besides me, there is no other living thing in this world, not even any spiritual energy. If you stay here any longer, you will starve to death sooner or later. And no matter who you are, even a Great Luo Golden Immortal would become a mortal if he entered this world. Try it and see if you can’t use any magic power at all.” The fleshy skeleton continued.

Lingxiu nodded. Her ghostly body had also transformed into a mortal body. If she continued, she would starve to death and become a pile of bones.

But Guan Bo shook his head, snapped his fingers casually, and gusts of demonic wind surrounded him and Lingxiu, lifting them up.

"No, my magic power is perfectly normal," Guan Bo said, puzzled.

This time, it was the fleshy skeleton's turn to stare at Guan Bo in shock, trembling as it asked, "What kind of monster are you? How could you possibly use magic here?"

"To be honest, judging by your appearance, you look more like a monster. And you just said that there is no spiritual energy here, but I feel that the spiritual energy here is much richer than in blessed lands," Guan Bo asked.

This is not bragging; Guan Bo genuinely felt that the spiritual energy of this land filled with bones was extremely rich, to the point that a single breath could turn small animals into monsters.

This situation was probably beyond the comprehension of the flesh-and-skeletal being, shattering his old worldview. Therefore, it took him a long time to recover from his dazed state.

However, he did not press Guan Bo further about why he was different from others, because Guan Bo himself seemed confused about the situation.

The flesh-and-skeletal figure adopted a businesslike tone, saying, "Leaving this small world isn't actually difficult. Every so often, a void passage appears. However, this passage is extremely unstable; forcing your way in would be certain death, even for a Great Luo Golden Immortal. The passage must be filled with flesh and blood for anyone to pass safely. Therefore, I say one person dies, one lives. If someone is willing to sacrifice themselves, they can create a chance for their companions. If no one is willing, then we can all wait to die here. The next void passage won't be long; you can decide for yourselves."

After saying this, the fleshy skeleton burrowed into the ground, probably afraid that Guan Bo would do something else that would shatter his worldview. Even as the land itself, it was afraid it would be scared to death.

Guan Bo wanted to ask more questions, but this guy was like a ghost, appearing and disappearing without a trace, and Guan Bo had no way to deal with him.

Guan Bo naturally wouldn't believe everything others said, regardless of whether one person lived or died. The fact that his magical powers remained completely unaffected in this place already showed that things hadn't reached the worst stage yet.

As for why he received such special treatment, Guan Bo couldn't help but recall what Bodhi Patriarch had told him. He was not under the jurisdiction of the laws of heaven and earth, so he would not be burdened with any merits or sins. Moreover, this world was a fragment of the underworld, and the laws within it naturally had no effect on Guan Bo.

Therefore, Guan Bo's magical powers were not sealed.

"Hmm, could it be that this incredibly rich spiritual energy of heaven and earth is actually the overflow of demon cultivators and immortals who died here?" Guan Bo thought about it more and more and felt that this explanation was reliable.

Whether they are demonic beasts or cultivators, they have all undergone countless trials and tribulations, their bodies infused with countless spiritual energies. After death, these things will naturally return to heaven and earth, but the belly of the Void-belly Ghost King is self-contained, and these spiritual energies have been accumulating here, forming a strange and blessed land.

After being absorbed, the others were affected by the laws of heaven and earth and lost the ability to absorb spiritual energy. Therefore, no matter how much spiritual energy they had, it was useless. Only Guan Bo, who did not play by the rules, could thrive in this environment.

However, Guan Bo had no intention of waiting idly before that void passage appeared. Looking at the piles of bones in this place, he suspected countless people had died. And those who could be swallowed by the Void Belly Ghost King were no ordinary people; surely they carried some treasures?

Without hesitation, Guan Bo began searching through the pile of bones.