Serpent Ancestor

Chapter 163: The Gate of Earth, Zhou Family Pursuit

Xu Hei pondered for a moment, cupped his fists, and asked, "May I know your esteemed name, senior?"

"Don't call me senior, I'm just an old Taoist wandering the world. You can call me... Tianji Shangren," the old Taoist said with a smile.

Xu Hei had never heard of this name before.

However, many people in the square showed a change in expression.

"Tianji Shangren, the Tianji Shangren from Penglai Island?"

"I remember now. It's said that this person is skilled in divination, and even the Qin Kingdom treats him with respect."

Two cultivators whispered to each other.

In the Southern Region, the Snake Catchers Sect leads, followed by the Four Great Sects.

In the Eastern regions, Penglai Island stands alone in power, its mountain gate located on an overseas immortal island, far away and its strength unfathomable. Even the Qin Kingdom has never dared to offend Penglai Island.

However, judging by Tianji Shangren's tone, he seemed to be wandering and just happened to pass by, which is why he came to take a look.

"So it's Tianji Shangren, I've long admired your name."

Xu Hei flattered on the surface, but was actually wary inside, trusting this person only three parts.

"Haha, fellow Daoist, you've never heard of me, so how could you have long admired me?"

Tianji Shangren chuckled, pointing at the keyhole and asked, "Fellow Daoist, do you have a way to open this earth-shaped path?"

Xu Hei's heart tightened, and he countered, "Why do you think I have that ability?"

"I ask everyone who goes up to inspect, so there's no need for you to worry," Tianji Shangren said with a smile, his gaze flickering imperceptibly.

Xu Hei remained silent.

With such a cunning old fox, it's better to say less to avoid slipping up and revealing something to the other party.

Xu Hei didn't know if the key could open it, but he wanted to try. However, if it did open, it would inevitably cause trouble in front of so many people.

Xu Hei scanned everyone present with his Divine Sense.

There were thirteen cultivators in total, eleven at the Foundation Establishment Stage, one False Core cultivator, and Tianji Shangren.

He calculated whether he could immediately take action and eliminate all these people.

"No, the chance is too small, a few would definitely escape."

"Not to mention Tianji Shangren, especially that False Core cultivator, I seem to have seen him before."

Xu Hei glanced at the False Core cultivator.

The man had a fierce look, very familiar. Xu Hei immediately remembered that this was the only False Core cultivator who escaped from Rock Serpent City, Liu Buqun.

Xu Hei had experienced Liu Buqun's escape skills firsthand.

Now, Liu Buqun had become a rogue cultivator, likely due to having killed too many fellow disciples, leading to his expulsion from the Snake Catchers Sect.

"Do you have something to say?" Liu Buqun suddenly spoke, his senses extremely sharp, clearly noticing Xu Hei observing him.

Xu Hei remained silent, just calmly looking at him.

Liu Buqun was taken aback, squinted his eyes, and quietly summoned a Magical Treasure.

"You observed everyone just now and finally stopped your Divine Sense on me. What does that mean?"

Liu Buqun didn't say this out loud but transmitted it through Divine Sense.

Xu Hei still said nothing.

Liu Buqun's gaze flickered, and he sneered, "You want to join forces with me to eliminate everyone else here because you have a way to open that fourth passage. Am I right?"

One must admit, Liu Buqun indeed had an outstanding imagination in some aspects.

Although he was guessing, he was about eighty to ninety percent correct about Xu Hei's thoughts, and his logic was quite reasonable.

The only mistake was that Xu Hei didn't want to cooperate with him but wanted to eliminate everyone.

However, Liu Buqun's words did provide a new perspective. Xu Hei thought for a moment and transmitted, "What do you think?"

"Heh, your idea is not bad, but you also need to win over Tianji Shangren. The others don't matter," Liu Buqun sneered.

Xu Hei glanced at Tianji Shangren and found that he was also observing him with a smile.

Suddenly, a shadow rushed out from the second passage.

This person was dressed in black, masked, wielding a long sword, and moved like a ghost with incredible speed.

Behind him followed a beautiful and proud young woman, her eyes filled with hatred as she glared at Xu Hei. It was Zhou Wenjun.

As soon as Zhou Wenjun appeared, she pointed at Xu Hei and angrily shouted, "It's him!"

"Whoosh!"

The black-clad assassin charged at Xu Hei without a word, moving as fast as lightning, his sword like a bolt of electricity, his cultivation reaching the Core Formation Stage!

"Do it."

Xu Hei hurriedly transmitted to Liu Buqun, took out the key, and stabbed it into the keyhole.

"Boom!"

With a thunderous roar, the stone wall in front suddenly cracked open, revealing a deep passage.

This was the fifth door, the Earth Path!

The passage quickly opened, revealing an endless road inside.

At this moment, the entire crowd was in an uproar! Even the black-clad assassin was stunned, clearly not expecting Xu Hei to open a brand new passage.

What an astonishing event this was; besides the three paths, there was a fourth one!

This was a path that had never been explored before.

Zhou Wenjun and the black-clad assassin exchanged a glance. The former took out a communication talisman, while the latter paused for a moment before charging at Xu Hei again.

But Xu Hei had already pulled out the key, leaped into the deep passage, and disappeared.

"Ah!!"

Screams echoed as Liu Buqun had already taken action, killing two people instantly with one strike each.

Although a False Core cultivator was not as powerful as a Core Formation Stage cultivator, they could already use true essence, which was a qualitative change!

"Hey? Why kill? The more people, the merrier!"

Tianji Shangren chuckled, waved his sleeve, interrupting Liu Buqun, then leaped into the tunnel.

Liu Buqun's eyes flickered, and he followed into the passage.

The remaining rogue cultivators looked at each other, but thinking of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, they no longer hesitated and all gritted their teeth, rushing into the tunnel one after another.

In an instant, the square was empty, with everyone without exception pouring into the newly opened fourth path.

And those who came later would also unhesitatingly enter that fourth path.

…………

The scenery before Xu Hei rapidly changed, and he arrived in a new world.

This place was a vast desert, with an extremely dense earth-based Spiritual Qi, but the sky was black, filled with a chilling aura, like a desert of death.

He glanced at the key in his hand, which had shortened after opening the door, indicating a limit to its usage.

"Not eradicating the roots leads to this. Next time, I can't act lightly; if I do, it must be a fatal strike!"

Xu Hei harbored a deep resentment in his heart, remembering this lesson well.

Fortunately, his pursuer was only at the early Core Formation Stage, not too strong, so Xu Hei should be able to handle it.

However, in the ancient relic, one could face life-and-death crises at any moment, and Xu Hei didn't want to be in a disadvantageous position. If he had to counterattack, he couldn't let the opponent escape and had to ensure his absolute safety.

"Earth Escape Technique."

Xu Hei dove underground, speeding forward with all his might.