Grinding EXP From a Demon Hunting Ship

Chapter 509: Chapter 460: Tier 5 Evil Creature

"The door-opening technique..."

Qin Wuyou looked up at the bronze door, hesitating slightly.

But at a time like this, hesitation was useless. Qin Woyou glanced to his side.

The Golden Core cultivators were holding up, but the Crystallization cultivators looked drained, even with the protection of fire talismans.

The omnipresent, chilling aura within this temple was corrosive to outsiders—not just to the Crystallization cultivators, but to the Golden Core cultivators as well.

Previously, they hadn’t been here long, and the Golden Core cultivators’ high resistance, coupled with the intensity of their battles, had kept them from noticing.

But now, after several days, every Golden Core cultivator could clearly sense a cold, decaying aura eroding them.

They felt like ice cubes dropped into water.

This forced the Golden Core cultivators to constantly expend their own Magical Power to counteract the erosion.

And the intensity of this erosion was steadily increasing with time. This meant that if they didn’t take action and escape these temple ruins...

...the only thing awaiting them was death.

Or...

...a fate more tragic than death.

’So... no matter what, my only choice now is to trust Mr. Su.’ Qin Wuyou sighed, stepping forward. He placed his right palm against the door, and his Magical Power surged, tracing the door-opening technique.

VMM!

Opalescent orbs of light appeared one by one.

The points of light connected into lines, and the lines intertwined, forming a profound and intricate pattern!

A Magical Power sigil floated out and imprinted itself upon the bronze door, which flashed with a brilliant light.

CLICK.

The sound of turning gears echoed.

The long-sealed door slowly creaked open, showering down dust.

And at that very moment, the expressions of Qin Wuyou and Chen Xuankong—the two Golden Core cultivators from the Jade Void Sword Sect in the group—simultaneously lit up with excitement!

"Mr. Lu!"

The two exclaimed in unison.

The Heart-Sword Reflection, a Secret Technique of the Jade Void Sword Sect!

Golden Core cultivators of the Sword Sect could all sense each other, a connection that not even these ruins could completely sever. Right now, according to the guidance of the Heart-Sword, Four Extremes Sword Lu Chen was nearby!

"Let’s go!"

Qin Wuyou’s spirits lifted.

...

「At the same time.」

「On the second basement level.」

In a wide, circular plaza, Lu Chen, who was sitting cross-legged, opened his eyes with a flash of surprise.

’These brats came looking for me?’

Then, his expression changed, becoming urgent.

’Why are they looking for me? The thing here isn’t something they can handle.’

With four swords on his back, Lu Chen stared grimly toward the center of the plaza. At its heart, the architects had constructed a high platform from piled Obsidian.

And upon this stone platform sat a ten-foot-long golden sarcophagus, which was emitting a strange, chilling aura.

Suddenly.

VMM.

A muffled thud came from within the sarcophagus.

It was followed by a continuous series of thumps! BANG! BANG!

It was as if something inside was constantly striking and beating against the coffin lid!

"Not good!"

Lu Chen’s pupils contracted violently.

At the same time.

WHOOSH!

As the commotion in the sarcophagus started, the golden sarcophagus seemed to heat up instantaneously, and a dazzling Crimson Gold Flame began to flow along the patterns carved into it!

The vast and magnificent flame, like the brilliant sun, dispersed a good portion of the lingering, bone-chilling aura that permeated the plaza.

However, it seemed that after eons of time, the patterns on the sarcophagus had worn down significantly.

The Crimson Gold Flame could no longer fully envelop the sarcophagus, appearing somewhat weak and isolated.

"Suppress!"

Nearby, Lu Chen wore a solemn expression as he formed a hand seal and cast a spell.

Around the circular plaza, several hundred array flags materialized!

They interconnected, seeming to use the plaza’s shape to form a Tai Chi Yin-Yang Fish. Black and white light flowed, radiating an aura of balance and peace.

Under the combined effect of the Crimson Gold Flame and the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Fish, the thing inside the sarcophagus struggled for several dozen breaths before finally, gradually, calming down.

"Huu..."

Lu Chen let out a sigh of relief.

After being swept into the temple, he had opened his eyes to find himself in this place.

An empty, circular plaza, with only Lu Chen and the golden sarcophagus on the high platform.

That in itself wasn’t a problem.

However, the thing inside the sarcophagus wouldn’t give him any peace.

Ever since he arrived, it had been acting up frequently.

At first, it would go berserk once a day.

But now, the frequency had increased, and the entity within the golden sarcophagus would go berserk almost every two to four hours!

Lu Chen didn’t know what exactly was in the sarcophagus.

But just from the one or two wisps of aura it leaked while struggling—an aura that reminded him of the oppressive might of the sect’s Nascent Soul elders—he was filled with dread.

The only fortunate thing was that the sarcophagus also served as a seal.

The wards within it were still effective to this day... however, the long passage of time had inevitably weakened their strength.

This was especially true now that the being inside the sarcophagus had sensed the presence of the living and grown increasingly restless.

Lu Chen had no choice but to study it and add another layer of sealing Array outside the sarcophagus.

There was nothing wrong with this Array.

Anything Lu Chen made was guaranteed to be of the highest quality.

As a peak fourth-rank Array Master, his attainments in Arrays were such that one could count on one hand the number of his peers across the entire Yaoguang Islands who could surpass him.

The problem was... even the most skilled craftsman can’t work without materials.

After suppressing the latest outburst, Lu Chen reached into his Storage Ring to take out Spirit Stones to replenish the array flags.

There was no Spirit Vein here, so the several hundred array flags all required Spirit Stones for power.

But when he reached in, he came up empty.

"What?" Lu Chen swept his Divine Sense through it and couldn’t help but give a bitter smile.

He saw that his once full reserve of Spirit Stones in his Storage Ring had, without him realizing it, dwindled to only thirty or forty percent. The consumption was immense!

’Damn it...’

’They’re being used up this quickly?’

Lu Chen frowned deeply. Even if the other Golden Core cultivators had arrived, it was unlikely they had many Spirit Stones.

In these strange ruins where one couldn’t recover Spiritual Power, Spirit Stones were exceptionally precious.

’After several days of observation, I can only confirm that this sarcophagus is the core of these ruins. But a method of escape is still nowhere in sight.’

’Could it be... that the only way is to open the sarcophagus and try to kill the thing inside?’

Lu Chen murmured to himself, his eyes filled with contemplation.

...

While Lu Chen was lost in thought, footsteps echoed from a distance.

Seven Golden Core cultivators, along with a group of Crystallization cultivators, arrived and rendezvoused with Lu Chen.

Seeing Qin Wuyou, Lu Chen’s worries subsided slightly, and he laid out all his thoughts.

"Kill the evil creature in the sarcophagus?"

"Mr. Lu, are you confident?"

Before Qin Wuyou could speak, Wu Yiling jumped in fright and interrupted.

She was truly terrified. The previous battles against the armored Corpse Refinement and the Thousand-legged Demon Centipede had left a deep impression on her. And now... they were supposed to kill the master of the sarcophagus?

This... Could it even be killed?

Lu Chen glanced at her, frowning slightly.

’Do people really get more timid as they get older? No... If it were a cultivator from the Sword Sect, they would press forward, resolute and decisive, even in their twilight years.’

’Profound Light Cave... truly a generation worse than the last,’ Lu Chen thought to himself.

But right now, they were short on manpower and supplies. Besides, Wu Yiling was also quite accomplished in the dao of Arrays, and her full support was needed to realize his plan.

Therefore, Lu Chen explained patiently, "Based on my observations and deductions over the past few days, the creature inside this sarcophagus should be a fifth-rank evil creature."

"Fifth-rank?"

At these words, the hearts of all the cultivators present skipped a beat.

A fifth-rank evil creature was comparable to a Nascent Soul True Monarch!

Was something like that an enemy the few of them could handle?

Seeing their expressions, Lu Chen continued, "It’s not as terrifying as you think. First, this volcanic Grotto Heaven has been sealed for a long time, perhaps nearly ten thousand years."

"Even though evil creatures have long lifespans, much longer than humans, a fifth-rank evil creature is still far from reaching a state of true immortality."

"At the same time, this sarcophagus possesses the power of a ward."

"Over this long period, with the power of the sealing ward and no external replenishment, the evil creature’s own power has certainly been weakened to a great extent."

Lu Chen’s tone was calm and quite persuasive.

"Besides..." He took a deep breath, a hint of helplessness in his voice. "You are also an Array expert. Can’t you see that this golden sarcophagus is the core of the ward here?"

"If we don’t destroy it, trying to escape this place will be... difficult, difficult, difficult!"

Lu Chen repeated the word ’difficult’ three times.

"In that case, Mr. Lu, what’s your plan? How do we kill this evil creature?" Zheng Yunzhe asked from the side, his arms crossed.

Lu Chen smiled and said, "For cultivators like us to defeat a stronger opponent, it comes down to one word."

"Array!" Zheng Yunzhe, being quick-witted, blurted out.

"Precisely." Lu Chen nodded.

"We’ll use the power of an Array to detonate the ward here, causing the Crimson Gold Flame within to erupt all at once for maximum damage..."

"Then, we kick it while it’s down and finish off the evil creature!"

"With eight Golden Core cultivators here, how could we not kill a single evil creature?"

Lu Chen’s tone was chilling, like a sharp blade being unsheathed.

Unlike other true disciples of the Sword Sect, Lu Chen had started out as unremarkable. He didn’t have an Innate Dao Body, nor even a Celestial Spiritual Root.

He had clawed his way up bit by bit, relying on his own aptitude and the sword in his hand to accumulate merits and seize resources, climbing from the outer sect to the inner sect, and from the inner sect to become a true disciple!

Beneath his Four Extremes Sword lay mountains of bones!

"Alright."

A man’s reputation is like a tree’s shadow—it precedes him.

With Lu Chen having spoken, the other Golden Core cultivators were convinced and voiced their agreement.

"In that case, we will also need Yehai’s cooperation," Qin Wuyou reminded him.

"Su Ye?" Lu Chen glanced over. From Qin Wuyou, he had already learned about the unique dual-space setup of this secret realm.

"Fine. You can let him know."

"Tell him to wait for us to make our move, then find the right opportunity to coordinate his attack."

Lu Chen said, then added another sentence.

"As for the specific plan and the timing of our attack, we’ll tell him when the time comes."

"Why is that?" Qin Wuyou asked, looking confused.

"It’s a precaution."

Lu Chen said dismissively.

"Who can be certain that this ’Yehai’ you’re in contact with is actually him?"

"At a critical juncture like this, any bit of carelessness could cause the entire plan to fail when success is just within reach. We cannot be negligent."

"Besides, no matter how strong he is alone, he’s at best a match for a Golden Core Perfection cultivator. Against the evil creature itself, his chances of winning are slim. It’s better to wait for our side to achieve a decisive victory before notifying him to clean up."

Lu Chen finished, "Alright, let’s begin the Array Formation."

...

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