The suction force doubled. The giant snake began to change. The thick, beautiful black scales that covered its body quickly lost their shiny glass-like color. They turned dull and grey. The massive, thick muscles that made up the snake’s heavy body started to shrink. The snake was literally melting from the inside out. Its life force, its flesh, its blood, its demonic core—everything was being sucked into Li Chen’s body. Li Chen felt like he was standing under a waterfall of pure power. The Chaos Root ate the massive amount of beast energy, purified it instantly, and flooded Li Chen’s meridians. The dark Qi inside him grew rapidly. It filled his stomach. It filled his chest. It filled his arms and legs. He was overflowing with power. In less than a minute, the giant, thirty-foot-long Shadow Viper was completely drained. It stopped thrashing in the mud. Its glowing crimson eyes flickered once, twice, and then turned completely black and empty. The terrible, roaring suction force

"SKREEE—" The beast’s scream was cut short. Its massive body shook once, and then collapsed heavily into the mud. It was dead instantly. Li Chen stood there, his arm covered in green blood. He looked at his fist in pure amazement. "That... was incredible," Li Chen whispered. "Hmph. It was barely acceptable," Old Kui grumbled in his mind. "But it will keep you alive. Now, use the Devouring Art. Find the core."Li Chen reached deep inside the dead beast's ruined head. His fingers touched something hard and round. He pulled it out. It was a glowing green stone, about the size of an apple. It pulsed with rich, wild energy. "A Beast Core," Li Chen smiled. Demonic beasts gathered all their spiritual energy into these cores over hundreds of years. Li Chen placed his hand over the core. "Swallowing the Heavens' Breath."The dark vortex in his palm opened. The massive suction force instantly drained the green stone. In three seconds, the glowing core turned into a handful of grey ash. A

The terrifying scream of the woman echoed loudly in the dark, ruined temple. The sound bounced off the giant, black stone walls. It was a scream of pure, absolute terror. Li Chen did not hesitate. His black eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. He moved forward, stepping into the pitch-black crack of the open iron doors. He was completely silent. Because he had spent a whole month hunting deadly monsters in the dark, he knew how to walk without making a single sound. His bare, metallic feet touched the dusty stone floor perfectly. He moved like a ghost made of shadows. The inside of the temple was massive. Giant stone pillars held up a ceiling that was lost in the darkness. Statues of ancient sword masters lined the walls, their stone faces looking down with angry eyes. Thick vines and purple moss grew over the broken rocks. The air smelled like old dust and dried blood. Li Chen followed the sound of the crying. He ducked behind a large stone pillar. He peeked around the edge and lo

"How do I get out of this chasm?" Li Chen asked her, his black eyes fixing on her face. "The cliff outside is too smooth to climb. Is there a way up?"The girl quickly pointed to the back of the massive temple hall. "Yes, my lord!" she said eagerly, wanting to be useful. "This place is the ancient Temple of Penance. In the old days, monks used to come down here to meditate. Behind that giant statue of the sword master, there is a hidden tunnel. It is called the Stairway of the Forgotten. It is a secret path carved directly inside the rock of the cliff. It leads all the way up to the edge of the Outer Sect forest. But it is very dangerous. The steps are broken, and it goes straight up for thousands of feet."Li Chen smiled. It was a cold, confident smile. A broken stairway was nothing to the Void-Iron Physique. "Thank you," Li Chen said. He pointed to the back of the cave. "You should stay here in the temple. The purple fog outside will melt your skin. Wait here until I deal with the

The morning air on the Azure Sword Sect mountain was freezing cold. The sun was just beginning to rise in the east, painting the dark sky with faint colors of pink and orange. But the sunlight could not break through the thick, white morning fog. The fog rolled across the ground like spilled milk. It covered the trees, the wooden houses, and the massive stone paths of the Outer Sect.Today was not a normal day. It was the day of the Outer Sect Tournament. For the thousands of disciples who lived in the Outer Sect, this was the most important day of their lives. If a disciple did well in the tournament, they could win spirit stones, magical pills, or high-level weapons. If they were truly amazing, an elder from the Inner Sect might notice them. That meant they could leave the miserable, poor life of the Outer Sect and become true, powerful cultivators. Because of this, the energy in the air was electric. Everyone was awake. In the very center of the Outer Sect grounds was the great