Chapter 741: Loss of Contact

Just as Han Li and the Soul Devourer were about to rush into the passage, a sharp sound of breaking air suddenly rang out!

It was Su Liu's figure flashing over once again, his giant axe blurring slightly before transforming into a dense mass of axe shadows, shrouded in black qi, hurtling straight toward Han Li and the other.

Just as Han Li was about to swing his sword to meet the attack, an unbelievable scene occurred!

Su Liu's originally ferocious figure suddenly froze in place, as if unable to move, maintaining his original posture, and the漫天 axe shadows also came to a halt.

Upon closer inspection, wisps of black mist could be seen flowing out of Su Liu's mouth and nose, while a mass of black mist coiled in the hollow of his chest, restraining the metal sphere and preventing it from turning.

“Master, let’s go quickly!” the Soul Devourer shouted urgently, pulling Han Li as they charged into the Karma Fire passage.

In the next instant, a sky-covering mass of black ghost vines swept over, instantly covering Mo Guang's body and sealing the entrance of the passage.

“Rumble—”

Half of the mountain wall shook violently, rocks tumbling down, collapsing like a landslide.

The entrance to the Karma Fire passage was also buried.

Han Li and the other felt the void behind them tremble violently, but had no time to look back, only able to rush rapidly toward the other end of the passage.

Entering the suddenly narrowing passage, the surrounding black Karma Fire pressed in with doubled force, and a noticeably stronger baleful qi seeped through the Soul Devourer's spirit domain. Han Li immediately felt a stabbing pain in his mind, like needles piercing.

He clenched his teeth, not uttering a sound, while within his sea of consciousness, monstrous waves surged, as if a bloody mist had spread, and a feeling of mania and rage invaded him, filling his heart with unbearable irritation.

The Soul Devourer noticed Han Li's abnormality and the dark red light on her body grew brighter as she sped through the passage with Han Li.

However, the deeper they went into the passage, the thicker the Karma Fire became, and the purer the baleful qi within it, causing Han Li's pain to become increasingly pronounced.

“The closer we get to the Soul-Washing Zone, the purer the Karma Fire, and the stronger its corrosive power. I’ll have to focus all my strength on controlling the spirit domain, so I may not be able to look after you, Master. You must be careful,” the Soul Devourer cautioned.

“Don’t worry about me,” Han Li said hoarsely.

At that moment, he was already fully activating his Soul Refining Art, but his mind involuntarily grew drowsy, his heartbeat quickened like war drums, blood raced wildly through his veins, and the baleful qi dormant in his acupoints began to stir restlessly.

Within his sea of consciousness, it was no longer just bloody mist; countless faint blood-red figures appeared, colliding madly like soldiers on a battlefield, accompanied by heart-stopping screams and roars. Even his breath carried a faint sweet scent of blood. An ordinary person would have long gone mad.

He feared he wouldn’t be able to hold on until they reached the Baleful Cleansing Pool.

“Almost there, Master. Hold on a little longer,” the Soul Devourer said, a hint of anxiety on her face as she urged him.

By now, Han Li’s vision was growing blurry, his eyes becoming increasingly dim, and changes began to occur in his acupoints.

If the Soul Devouring Insect hadn’t eroded his divine soul earlier, he might have been able to endure with his strong soul and the Soul Refining Art, but now he truly couldn’t hold on. Once his consciousness was completely lost, he wouldn’t be able to activate the Soul Refining Art.

If the Baleful Tribulation took advantage of this to strike, he would likely be reduced to a Gray Immortal.

Just then, a red light flashed before Han Li’s brow, and a crimson glow appeared. It was the Soul Devourer holding a red orb the size of a dragon’s eye, pressing it against his forehead.

The orb was smooth and round, its surface gleaming with a moist luster, and inside it was the faint shadow of a small beast in a crouching posture, which seemed to be the Soul Devourer’s true form.

As the orb emitted waves of gentle light, a strange soul force seeped into Han Li’s sea of consciousness, like a vast hand smoothing the monstrous waves and gradually dispersing the pervasive bloody mist.

The anomaly in Han Li’s sea of consciousness gradually subsided, and with the Soul Refining Art operating at full power, he once again resisted the baleful qi’s intrusion.

His divine sense cleared, and when he saw the situation before him, he noticed that the Soul Devourer’s face was somewhat pale. Surprise flickered in his eyes as he quickly asked, “Soul Devourer, you…”

“It’s nothing. This orb is my soul origin. Once it returns to my body, I can recover after some meditation,” the Soul Devourer said, shaking her head with a slightly pale face.

Han Li’s heart stirred slightly, but he focused on guarding his divine sense and said no more.

The Karma Fire passage was not very long; after a thousand-odd zhang, they reached the end. The opening at the other end was dozens of zhang high, like a wide-open喇叭, but there were no restrictions set up.

The Soul Devourer shot out of the opening with Han Li, arriving at a vast underground lake of Karma Fire.

The two flew up, hovering above the Karma Fire, and looked around in all directions.

Above, the vault was pitch black, with countless pitch-black crystalline stalactites hanging down. In the surrounding lake of Karma Fire stood many enormous stone pillars, hundreds of zhang tall, connecting to the vault above.

At the farther edge of the lake, a ring of embankments surrounded it, connected to nearly a hundred roads that radiated outward toward the surrounding mountain walls.

On the mountain walls were neatly constructed, smooth gateways that looked like those of a massive underground palace, but the interior was somewhat empty, unexpectedly devoid of ambushes.

"It seems that before Guimu pursued us, he didn't notify the Soul-Washing District," Han Li said, withdrawing his gaze.

"With the Karma Fire passage collapsed here, even without his notification, the Yinxu Elder guarding this place will soon discover it," Ti Hun said with a frown.

At that moment, from a gateway in the mountain wall on one side, a faint voice suddenly came, as thin as a mosquito's hum.

Hearing this, Han Li pulled Ti Hun's hand, flickered, and landed on the nearby embankment. Concealing their auras, they hid inside a gateway and peered out sideways.

From that gateway, two Netherworld Clan children, who looked like young boys, floated out and arrived at the Karma Fire Lake's shore.

They wore identical black robes, and their appearances and figures were almost the same, even the amplitude of their body swaying while walking showed little difference—they seemed to be twins.

"Lian-di, although the elder said there's an important matter in the city today and no one is supervising, so we can pause our cultivation for a day, we're already ten years old. In a few years we'll come of age. If we don't cultivate diligently, we won't pass the final trial," said the slightly taller child.

"Brother Yin, you've said that so often my ears are about to grow calluses. Cultivation without ceasing is the way to excel. Don't worry, I won't let that Yin Chang surpass me," the other Netherworld Clan child said with a grin.

Compared to adult Netherworld Clan cultivators, these two children had much more facial expression and didn't look as repulsive.

Talking, they both sat cross-legged on the Karma Fire Lake's shore, forming a strange hand seal. Black light flared around them, and wisps of pure baleful aura rose from the lake, winding around their bodies.

With each breath, two streams of black air, like earthworms, continuously extended and retracted from their nostrils—quite peculiar.

"At just ten years old, their aura is already close to the Core Formation stage, and they can cultivate safely so close to the Karma Fire. These Netherworld Clan are truly fearsome," Han Li said in a low voice.

"The Netherworld Clan's tolerance for Karma Fire is inherently different from other races, and they are naturally gifted. These two children are merely of mediocre talent," Ti Hun said.

Han Li withdrew, moving deeper into the passage with Ti Hun. He waved his hand, and a silver light door appeared.

Bai Liyan and Hu San and the others were sitting cross-legged in the bamboo building's first floor, eyes closed in meditation. They all opened their eyes and stood up from the ground.

The Revered Fire Immortal was bound by a silver light chain, his body trembling slightly, but he couldn't make a sound—a purple talisman sealed his mouth.

Chi Rong leaned against the wall beside him, his eyes bitter as he looked at Han Li, his expression complex.

"What happened?" Han Li asked as Bai Liyan stepped forward first.

"Having been eroded by baleful aura for too long, he lost his mind. He suddenly went berserk earlier and was subdued by Hu San and Brother Shi," Bai Liyan explained.

"Given his condition, if he goes berserk once or twice more, he'll likely ruin his cultivation and truly become a Gray Immortal," Hu San said, frowning as he also came out.

Han Li listened, pondered for a moment, and said nothing more.

As soon as they left the Flower Branch Cave Heaven, Hu San and the others frowned and immediately activated techniques to resist the Karma Fire baleful aura, while also casting spells to conceal their figures.

"We should now be in the Soul-Washing District. This area is the most special among all the districts of Asura City. Ti Hun has only been here a few times, and the terrain is not marked on the map. How do you suggest we find the Soul-Washing Pool?" Han Li said, closing the silver light door.

"Aren't there two little brats over there? Grab them and search their souls—won't we know?" Shi Chuankong said, glancing through the passage entrance.

"Last time, just killing a puppet alerted Yin Kuo. Who knows if these Netherworld Clan have special restrictions on them or some special connection among themselves? We can't take that risk," Bai Liyan shook his head and said slowly.

Han Li opened his mouth to speak, but his expression suddenly changed, and he was silent for a long while.

"Master, what's wrong?" Ti Hun, thinking Han Li's baleful decay had flared up, quickly asked.

"Brother Li…" Bai Liyan's expression also changed as he spoke.

"By the way, where is Fellow Daoist Mo Guang?" Shi Chuankong frowned and asked.

"Just now, the connection between Mo Guang and me completely broke… I tried to communicate with him through spiritual link, but I can't sense him at all," Han Li said, his gaze dimming as he shook his head.

"What?" Shi Chuankong exclaimed in surprise.

"Could it be that Fellow Daoist Mo Guang has already fallen…" Hu San said, his face full of disbelief.

"Earlier, he said he would buy us the time of an incense stick. No matter what, he has done his part…" Han Li didn't give a definite answer, only said this.

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.