Chapter Sixty-One: The Celestial Hound Leaps to the Moon

Long Yi’s excitement did not escape Wu Yun’s notice, while Old Bear Three was quick to flutter his eyes in inquiry, convinced they had stumbled upon a great opportunity, perhaps a legendary treasure.

The latter replied triumphantly, “Indeed, there truly is a branch of my dragon lineage here—an Immortal King, one of this planet’s overlords. He was later cruelly suppressed, yet a fragment of his undying consciousness remains, hidden within a spatial rift. He has told me that if I help him open the portal and send him down to the lower realms, he will grant me an Immortal Dragon Soul in return!”

“Can you open it?” Wu Yun poured cold water on his enthusiasm, shaking his head. “Even if what this dragon says is true, I doubt that remnant consciousness can escape death. Whoever suppressed him was of the Immortal Emperor level—how could he allow this fish to turn the tide? I assure you, the moment you lure him out will be the day he perishes. Still, that means we can pick up the scraps. Perhaps, the Immortal Dragon Soul of this Immortal King could help me repair my physical body.”

Wu Yun’s face betrayed a hint of anticipation, while Long Yi’s expression darkened. This so-called senior would not let even a dead dragon clansman rest, calculating every step.

It was clear from the start how this would end. The fear was palpable.

Yet, despite such terror, this senior could not even walk without being carried.

Lines of every color crisscrossed his body: some belonging to Little Worm, some to Old Bear Three.

Were it not for these threads, the latter could not walk at all; sometimes Little Worm wondered if he might dissolve in the water.

The group pressed forward. With Long Yi’s guidance, they delved into the deepest depths. After a time, Long Yi halted them, listened intently, and said, “My friend warns there is danger ahead—we must be cautious.”

Before them, the terrain dropped off like a sheer cliff, abrupt and steep. Looking carefully, they spied a white, fleshy sphere in the distance.

“Golden Water Worm!” Wu Yun declared, seeing the others unacquainted with the creature. “No need to fear—just charge in with the Divine Blade!”

Long Yi shook his head. “With my current cultivation, I cannot wield that blade.”

Wu Yun rolled his eyes in exasperation, suggesting they turn back. His “One Heaven, One Earth” did not require such material for repairs; he was already saturated.

As they spoke, Little Worm manipulated his puppet immortal artifact, peering closer to compare sizes. In the next instant, the creature’s head spread like a fishing net, engulfing him, and then plummeted swiftly out of sight.

Everyone looked to Wu Yun, suspecting he had orchestrated this. Wu Yun snapped, “What are you staring for? Go save him! That Golden Water Worm feeds on Steel Fiends—if you delay, he’s done for!”

With a swish, Old Bear Three, bringing up the rear, scooped Wu Yun into his left ear to scare Yue Qi and lecture him on the Dao.

Often, these lessons, when heard by Old Bear Three, sent his cultivation soaring by the day.

The group hurried after their comrade. With Ancestor Dragon Six paving the way, the Golden Water Faerie Worms scattered like mist before a gale.

Long Yi had been right—if this continued, the Divine Blade would eventually become uncontrollable. Any new artifact spirit it spawned would inherit the original commands from its forging in the Divine Realm.

It was as if a system rebooted, returning to its initial state.

The Divine Blade grew ever more powerful, chasing relentlessly from start to finish. Tens of thousands of creatures slain along the way were reduced to vapor and absorbed, the fractured blade’s edge healing by another third, forming a half-complete treasure.

After a long pursuit, the Golden Water Faerie Worm seemed to cherish its prize, desperately seeking to hide. At the lowest level, black sludge finally blocked its way.

This was a dead end, the very bottom.

Wu Yun’s hands trembled, wanting to speak from Old Bear Three’s ear, but Yue Qi pinned him down with a foot, expertly employing the “Heavenly Dog Kicks the Moon” technique Wu Yun had just imparted.

With Wu Yun silenced, Long Yi gripped the Divine Blade and entered the black sludge, vanishing alongside the worm that had devoured Little Worm.

King Dou and Old Bear Three halted, heavy artifacts at the ready, voices hushed. “What now? Without treasures to protect us, we’ll be done for if we go in!”

Old Bear Three looked disdainful, glancing at King Dou’s uneven calves. Of all here, Old Bear Three was the weakest, though his demon core could repair his body and grievous wounds were nothing. But what if he was utterly pulverized?

The two companions jostled indecisively, waiting in vain for Wu Yun to speak. Old Bear Three shook his ear, dislodging both Yue Qi and Wu Yun.

Yue Qi promptly sat on Wu Yun’s face, grunting and groaning. Wu Yun, hands stretched—one supporting the sky, one pressing the ground—had already summoned his “Ten Heavens and Nine Earths” treasures, just waiting for Old Bear Three to free him from his woes.

“Senior, senior, I’ll guard him!” Old Bear Three grinned. In this Immortal Realm, no Dao treasure or heavy artifact could carry a living being, except for a few high-grade immortal artifacts—a far cry from the mundane worlds below.

Yet Wu Yun still did not speak but instead summoned his “One Heaven, One Earth,” swiftly carrying the group in pursuit.

The black sludge was but a ruse. Beyond it lay another world—a sea of molten lava, glowing red as fire.

“A Water-Fire Barrier!” King Dou exclaimed, recognizing it at once.

The so-called Water-Fire Barrier was akin to the polarity of yin and yang. King Dou and Old Bear Three observed for a long time but dared not leap into the magma.

Wu Yun spat out several teeth knocked loose by Yue Qi’s kicks, carefully reattaching them. “This is no barrier,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s a series of nested formations. Look there, the vanished ripples at the center—proof that Long Yi has entered.”

He sniffed the air, dog-like, and marveled, “The aroma of roast lamb!”

On alert, Wu Yun wrapped himself in “Ten Heavens and Nine Earths” and slowly edged toward the lava. Before he could get close, a dozen flaming beasts leapt from the magma, hurling fireballs in their maws.

These were no ordinary fireballs but several ranks above the legendary Samadhi True Fire—reaching the level of Six-Flavored True Fire, their core capable of temperatures in the hundreds of thousands of degrees, enough to melt even immortal artifacts.

Within the damaged formation diagram, “One Heaven, One Earth” appeared, and the barrage of attacks vanished, sucked inside. Moments later, the heat turned to cold, and from within, twenty ice balls shot forth, counterattacking.

Heaven and earth spun, sun and moon rotated—the array’s power was unleashed. The twenty ice balls were suspended in midair.

The first assault had barely ended when twelve fire beasts unleashed immortal arts; creatures resembling dragons dashed forth, accelerating as they charged, vanishing into the array upon impact.

Next, fire elements gathered and dissipated above Wu Yun’s head. Nameless fury, akin to karmic flames, also disappeared without warning.

With “One Heaven, One Earth” at his disposal, even a Mysterious Immortal would not deter Wu Yun from a confrontation. Such was the source of his confidence, his words naturally bold.

After a prolonged defense, Wu Yun pointed with a finger, and instantly, the fiery beasts vanished. But as the array absorbed them, the creatures were sucked back into the lava to be reborn.

“How interesting!” Wu Yun cackled, looking like a skeleton crawling out from the depths. The second time, he used a spell to sever the beasts’ path of return, and the twelve flames became twelve beads, floating within the formation, soon fully digested.

“Not good!” Wu Yun did not let delight cloud his reason and muttered, “If there are more inside, and the Divine Blade evolves its own consciousness, Long Yi won’t be able to control it—he’ll be devoured instead!”