Chapter 202: Chapter 174: Eerie Shadow
On the Eighth Sea Island where Jiang Yao was located, there were a total of thirty-six Tomb Explorers, among whom six were in the Half-Step Rotating Pill Realm, and now all had gathered here.
Seeing that the newcomers were also Half-Step Rotating Pill experts converging on Jiang Yao, the expressions of the three from the Flame Sect changed. The trio hadn't anticipated that the heritage black pearl, which seemed within their grasp, would encounter complications.
Although they were not afraid of the three newcomers, with everyone at the Half-Step Rotating Pill Realm, an actual confrontation would be troublesome.
"Is a mere heritage black pearl really worth the interference of three fellow Taoists from the Moon Concealing Sect?"
"There are many people on this island, and later you could join us in competing for other heritage black pearls."
The three from the Flame Sect began to lobby the three female disciples from the Moon Concealing Sect.
"Heritage black pearl?" The leading female disciple from the Moon Concealing Sect shook her head with a smile, "We're not here for the heritage black pearl; we've come for Yao. If you want to make a move against her, you'll have to get past the three of us first."
Yao?
The three from the Flame Sect glanced at the Taixuan Sect clothing on Jiang Yao: "Could it be that this young girl has ties with the Moon Concealing Sect?"
From the intent of the Moon Concealing Sect female disciple, it was clear that taking the heritage black pearl from Jiang Yao wouldn't be easy.
For a moment, the members of the Flame Sect hesitated.
After all, even if they managed to kill Jiang Yao and obtain the heritage black pearl, it meant confronting three other Half-Step Rotating Pill powerhouses—a prospect that hardly seemed worthwhile.
The Flame Sect trio hesitated, and Jiang Yao also looked towards the three from the Moon Concealing Sect with some confusion.
She did not recognize them and had not expected them to stand up for her.
Seeing Jiang Yao looking over, the three from the Moon Concealing Sect nodded to her with a smile, and the leading female disciple turned her gaze back to the three Half-Step Rotating Pill practitioners of the Flame Sect, asking with a smile, "So, do you want to take action, or will you leave just like that?"
"Fine, we'll give face to the three fellow Taoists today and let this little girl off this time!"
"The mountain does not turn, but the rivers flow, we shall take our leave!"
With a stern look cast towards several individuals at the scene, the Flame Sect members swept up their sleeves, shifted into a beam of light, and disappeared into the sky.
"Yao."
As the three Half-Step Rotating Pill figures vanished, the eyes of the three Moon Concealing Sect female disciples dimmed, and they walked over to Jiang Yao with a smile.
"Do you sisters know me?" Jiang Yao asked the three who had helped her, looking somewhat puzzled.
The three female disciples smiled gently: "Our master, Fairy Ni Xia, is good friends with your master, Fairy Jia Luo. Yao, since the heritage black pearl has caused unrest on this sea island, let us act together."
"Caused unrest."
Jiang Yao nodded; the chilling intent to kill her that she had felt from the three Half-Step Rotating Pill practitioners of the Flame Sect told her the situation had changed.
"I wonder how Ye Chen is now. I'm afraid that the heritage black pearl might involve all ten sea islands." The young girl gazed beyond the sea island, her eyes filled with concern.
Just as Jiang Yao had guessed, there was a killing spree on other islands as well.
On the First Sea Island, five Spirit Sea later-stage strongmen had just slain two others and, as they stood behind them, three Half-Step Rotating Pill experts suddenly appeared, walking towards them with a cold sneer.
On the Sixth Sea Island, four Spirit Sea mid-stage martial artists were sprinting madly into the dense forest of the sea island when from behind them came four sounds of "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh" as Sky-Shocking Arrow Lights shot towards them, piercing the four runners instantly!
"Heritage black pearl?"
```
"Could it be that this ancient tomb is the tomb of one of our Ten Great Demon Sects' Heavenly Saints?"
```
On the Seventh Sea Island, within a secluded valley, a disciple of the Cloud Soaring Sect, who was at the later stage of the Spirit Sea realm, murmured to himself while holding a black bead in his hand.
Strangely, this disciple of the Cloud Soaring Sect actually referred to himself as a disciple of the Ten Great Demon Sects!
Moreover, when he touched the black bead, the originally blue-colored Protective True Qi around his body turned into strands of eerie black light.
"Brother Xue, we should hurry and leave... Brother Xue, this black light on you…"
As the disciple was muttering to himself, another young man suddenly burst in behind him. When he saw the strange black light around Brother Xue, he couldn't help but cry out.
Boom!
Brother Xue turned his head to see the young man who had intruded suddenly, his expression changed, then his face turned cold instantaneously, and he shot out a sky-shocking black radiance from his hand, piercing towards the young man instantly.
"Brother Xue... you..."
The young man, who was also at the later stage of the Spirit Sea realm, had no ability to defend himself against the black radiance's attack. He was pierced through his body in an instant, only managing to spit out a few words before he breathed his last.
This Brother Xue of the Spirit Sea realm had burst forth with combat power that was on par with many who were at the Half-Step Rotating Pill stage, not the slightest bit weaker!
"Too bad you saw what you shouldn't have seen."
Brother Xue looked up at the young man who had fallen to the ground, spread his hand wide, and another black bead flew towards him.
"With the ancient tomb of the Demon Sect opening at such a time, perhaps the plan that our Ten Great Demon Sects have been preparing for hundreds of years may advance ahead of schedule due to this opportunity presented by the ancient tomb!"
"Let's wait and see, to find out what this ancient tomb really holds!"
Brother Xue, with the black bead in hand, had a flash of cold light in his eyes. The black light in his body suddenly disappeared, returning to the normal Protective True Qi, and his figure vanished in a flash, disappearing into the valley.
The cursed artifact, the black bead, had spurred endless killings across the ten islands.
Of the three hundred forty-nine people who entered the ancient tomb, more and more died, many were disabled and turned into cripples, their Spirit Seas destroyed. The number of those still holding their wooden plaques was dwindling.
As more people died or were disabled, all those who had entered to explore the tomb were unaware that in the deepest part of the ancient tomb, at the very heart of the colossal island surrounded by the ten islands, a giant bronze coffin tightly locked by eight massive iron chains in the great swamp—carved with the images of eight green-faced, fanged demons—was beginning to glow faintly on the sculpture of a green-faced, tiger-headed demon.
Boom!
When the number of dead and disabled on the ten islands reached thirty-three, the bodies of the deceased and the disabled, spread across the ten islands, were suddenly enveloped in a sky-shocking black light.
Then, all these bodies and disabled people disappeared without a trace! Even Wang Luocheng, who had been left in a daze by Ye Chen on the Fourth Sea Island, completely vanished.
As these thirty-three people disappeared, the eyes of the green-faced, tiger-headed demon on the giant bronze coffin suddenly flickered with a strange, ghostly green light.
"Not enough, this deathly aura is not enough for me, 'Tiger Demon Teng,' to awaken!"
"More must die, many more must die!"
In the end, the tiger-headed demon sculpture, whose eyes suddenly flickered with ghostly green light, actually emitted a voice!
Above the giant coffin in the ancient tomb, this demon named 'Tiger Demon Teng' was able to produce human speech!
This ancient tomb, which had been buried for thousands of years, still contained a voice!
If Ye Chen and the others, as well as the Rotating Pill realm powerhouses from outside the tomb in the Heavenly Wind Kingdom, knew about this, they would be extremely surprised and vigilant, and might even seek the help of the two Heavenly Saints from the thirteen countries of the Southern Heavens to investigate this ancient tomb!
Unfortunately, nobody knew about the anomalies happening inside the tomb.
Meanwhile, over the Fourth Sea Island, Ye Chen, who was flying in the sky, had already glimpsed the boundary of the "Fire Elemental Spring" indicated by the cursed artifact, the black bead.
```