After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

Mass graves in the western suburbs.

Ruins everywhere.

The remnants of the Black Dragon Society's formation lay scattered about, and the air was thick with the smells of sulfur and corpses.

The two stopped in front of the dry well in the very center of the mass grave.

The well opening was covered with dark red poisonous moss, and the bottom of the well had long since dried up.

This is the true entrance to the Dragon Vein Underground Palace.

Li Zhiyao pulled a yellowish white paper lantern from her sleeve.

She gently blew a breath.

A pale green candle flame burned inside the lantern.

Under the candlelight, the space above the dry well began to distort, rippling like water.

The bluestone steps, twisted and contorted, appear and disappear intermittently, stretching all the way into the bottomless darkness.

Zhou Ran had just broken through to the seventh level of Foundation Establishment, and the demonic energy in his dantian was surging and roaring through his meridians.

He strode forward.

The dark patterns on his left arm gleamed as he raised his fist, intending to use the absolute power of his Qilin Arm to tear open the distorted spatial passage.

The wind howled from the punch.

It crashed straight into the ripples of the water.

A gray wall of air appeared in front of the fist.

The fist struck the air wall, but instead of breaking through the passage, it generated an extremely strong repulsive force.

Zhou Ran was so shocked that he took two steps back, his blood churning in his chest.

Several blue bricks were crushed underfoot.

"You're strong, go carry manure."

Li Zhiyao stood to the side, her voice full of mockery.

"You really think this is your lousy gym?"

"Do they think they can act like tyrants just by wielding a lump of iron?"

She walked forward carrying a lantern.

"This is the boundary of death, where Yin and Yang meet."

"No matter how strong you are, can you be stronger than the sky?"

Zhou Ran put his fist away.

He ignored her sarcasm.

"You clear the way."

Li Zhiyao snorted and switched the white paper lantern to her left hand.

Then he extended his right hand.

That hand was fair and slender, but deathly pale, devoid of any color.

"hold."

She turned her face away, her tone full of reluctance.

"Don't think you're getting a free ride from me."

Without hesitation, Zhou Ran grabbed her hand.

It feels icy cold to the touch.

It's like holding a piece of cold jade buried in the snow.

The Yin-Yang Technique within Zhou Ran's body operated on its own.

The pure Yang demonic energy brought by breaking through to the seventh level of Foundation Establishment flowed continuously into his palms along his broad meridians.

It forcibly dispelled the invading chill.

Li Zhiyao had spent many years traveling in extremely yin places, and her body had long been accustomed to the cold.

This sudden surge of intense, masculine energy, caught her completely off guard, disrupting her vital energy flow and reaching her heart.

Her body trembled.

An unnatural blush appeared on that icy face that had remained unchanged for a thousand years.

It spread all the way to the roots of the ears.

She gritted her teeth and tried to pull her hand back forcefully.

But Zhou Ran held it tightly.

"Don't move."

Zhou Ran looked straight ahead, his voice steady.

"Want to die in a spatial rift?"

Li Zhiyao glared at him fiercely, then stopped struggling.

Carrying a lantern, I stepped into the rippling water.

The process of crossing the boundary between life and death is devoid of any changes in light or shadow.

The only tinnitus is caused by congestion of the eardrum.

After passing through the air wall, the scene before my eyes completely overturned the understanding of the living.

This is a vast and oppressive underground abyss.

It's about the size of several football fields.

At the bottom, a giant dragon made of golden rocks is coiled.

The dragon's energy was leaking out from the cracks in the rocks, turning into golden mist.

However, this giant dragon, which represents good fortune, is now firmly nailed to the bottom of the abyss by tens of thousands of thick bronze chains.

Countless honeycomb-shaped pits have been carved into the abyss walls all around.

Layer upon layer, countless.

That was a burial pit used to bury 80,000 artisans alive two thousand years ago.

The eerie green will-o'-the-wisps danced in the stone pits, illuminating the layers upon layers of withered bones.

A cold wind swept through the space.

Blowing on those thick bronze chains.

The metal clashed against each other, producing a piercing sound that echoed endlessly in the abyss.

Bai Xuan, who had been hiding in Zhou Ran's collar, didn't dare to make a sound at this moment.

He curled himself up into a ball.

The yin energy in this place is too heavy.

Heavy enough to crush its intelligence.

Zhou Ran activated his Purple-Gold Demon Eye, scanning the entire abyss.

He had just broken through to the seventh level of Foundation Establishment, and his spiritual sense range had increased dramatically.

Dozens of hidden, malevolent nodes were identified.

These nodes are frantically draining the dragon vein's energy.

"Song Zhentian has already made his move."

Zhou Ran spoke in a deep voice.

"He's drawing dragon energy."

Li Zhiyao released Zhou Ran's hand.

The arrogance and awkwardness on her face had completely vanished.

His eyes were empty, filled only with chilling coldness and murderous intent.

She raised her hand and pointed to the suspended black platform above the dragon.

"My brother's bones are right there."

Following the direction she pointed, Zhou Ran activated his Purple-Gold Demon Eyes and saw the scene on the high platform.

It was an operating table carved from a single piece of white marble.

On the platform lay a skeleton exuding an ancient, primordial aura.

The bones have a jade-like luster.

Beside the skeleton stood an elderly man wearing a white coat.

The old man's body was twisted and deformed.

They can't even be called human.

His left arm was covered with blue scales.

His right leg was as thick as an elephant's.

Its back is high and bulging, covered with a row of sharp bone spurs.

He was using a specially made scalpel to scrape away the powder from the bones, bit by bit.

Hearing the commotion below, the old man stopped what he was doing.

He turned his head.

A smile spread across his face, which was covered in stitches.

His teeth, covered in yellow stains, were exposed.

"You're too late."

This repulsive Frankenstein's monster is none other than Song Zhentian.

Zhou Ran squinted.

The purple-gold demonic eyes swept over Song Zhentian's body.

The old man's breathing was chaotic and disordered.

The body contained organs from at least a dozen different organisms.

However, his cultivation level is stuck at the peak of Foundation Establishment, and he has been unable to break through.

"Frankenstein's monster, you really value your life."

Zhou Ran spoke coldly.

"Your ragged clothes, can they withstand one punch from me?"

Song Zhentian stood on the high platform, looking down at the two people below.

The smell of formaldehyde mixed with the stench of rotting flesh emanated from him.

He grabbed a handful of bone powder with his hand covered in blue scales and sniffed it greedily.

"Perfect...it's absolutely perfect!"

"The remains of a body cultivator who has been immortal for two thousand years, paired with this suppressed dragon vein."

"If I can just smash this Qilin bone, fuse it into my spine, and then absorb all the dragon energy below..."

He opened his arms.

The bone spurs behind me made a creaking, grinding sound.

"I can skip the Foundation Establishment stage and directly form the Supreme Golden Core!"

"Even to the point of becoming an infant!"

"At that time, not only will the capital city be at my feet, but the entire world will have to grovel before me!"

Li Zhiyao stood at the bottom of the abyss.

Staring at the skeleton on the high platform.

That was the brother she had waited for and guarded for over a thousand years.

Back then, in order to suppress the rampaging karma, Li Chengfeng voluntarily became the core of the formation and was nailed to this spot.

Now, however, this inhuman scum is placed on the chopping board and cut up at will.

Two lines of bloody tears slid down Li Zhiyao's empty eyes.

The drops fell onto the moon-white cheongsam, creating a striking red plum blossom effect.

"Give my brother back to me..."

Li Zhiyao pulled out a white paper banner from her sleeve to summon the soul.

Bit the tip of your tongue.

The essence of blood was sprayed onto the paper banner.

The originally pale white paper banners turned scarlet.

She shook her wrist frantically.

The mournful incantation for summoning the soul echoed in the abyss.

Zhou Ran stood beside her.