The Sword God of the Universe

Chapter 2202: Chapter 2202: Ways to Walk the Netherworld Road

If the Black River Heavenly Monarch is willing to give him some face, then perhaps he could swallow his pride to plead for Jing Yan. The problem is, it’s unlikely the Black River Heavenly Monarch would grant face to Yuantong Immortal Venerable. In such a situation, sending a message to intercede would only embarrass oneself without saving Jing Yan’s life.

“Clan Chief Xin Si, I too wish to protect Jing Yan, but he is within the Yellow Spring Cave, and my reach does not extend there!” Yuantong Immortal Venerable shook his head helplessly.

If it were outside the Yellow Spring Cave, Yuantong Immortal Venerable wouldn’t hesitate to fight the Black River Heavenly Monarch. However, for matters happening within the Yellow Spring Cave, Yuantong Immortal Venerable cannot enter to seek the Black River Heavenly Monarch.

Clan Chief Xin Si knows what Yuantong Immortal Venerable said is true, and indeed, what Xin Si and even the Xin Family truly care about is not Jing Yan’s life, but the two parts of Netherworld Crystal Stone. If Jing Yan dies within the Yellow Spring Cave, the large Netherworld Crystal Stone vein he obtained will surely be taken by the Black River Heavenly Monarch, leaving the Xin Family with nothing.

“It seems now that little friend Jing Yan can only rely on himself. Hopefully, he has some hidden means that can help him survive at the hands of the Black River Heavenly Monarch.” Clan Chief Xin Si can only accept this reality.

Even Yuantong Immortal Venerable is helpless, so the Xin Family has even less recourse. Though he speaks thus, deep down he truly does not believe Jing Yan can save himself in the hands of the Black River Heavenly Monarch.

“Indeed! That kid Jing Yan really shouldn’t have provoked the Black River Heavenly Monarch. The Netherworld Heart within the Netherworld Map is indeed a treasure, but no matter the treasure faced, one’s own safety must be considered first. Jing Yan is still too young!” Yuantong Immortal Venerable shook his head lightly.

Both Gong Zhi Buddha from the Shadow Tower and Li Feng War God from the Ancient Land of Morning Light received news from within the Yellow Spring Cave. Though Ying Tian and Luan Jie from the Ancient Land of Morning Light left the Netherworld Map first, they were aware of the matter soon after Jing Yan rushed in, promptly informing Li Feng War God.

The cultivators from the Shadow Tower and Ancient Land of Morning Light were indifferent; even if Jing Yan dies at the hands of the Black River Heavenly Monarch, it would have no direct impact on them. Thus, these two forces’ cultivators merely discussed the matter briefly before moving on.

Before the Netherworld Map in the Yellow Spring Cave.

“Black River Heavenly Monarch, you may not know, but Jing Yan recently obtained a large Netherworld Crystal Stone vein.” Lu Chun said to the Black River Heavenly Monarch, rolling his eyes.

“Hmm?” The Black River Heavenly Monarch had calmed down significantly and turned his white-dominated eyes, shot with black, to look at Lu Chun.

“It appears the Black River Heavenly Monarch truly did not know this. Ha, that little brat Jing Yan is fiercely cunning; just a few years ago, he snatched a large Netherworld Crystal Stone vein. If the Black River Heavenly Monarch decides to kill this brat, make sure to thoroughly search his storage magical treasure, it’s a large vein!” Lu Chun squinted as he spoke.

He brought this up to deepen the Black River Heavenly Monarch’s resolve to kill Jing Yan.

Could the Black River Heavenly Monarch not care about a large Netherworld Crystal Stone vein? Impossible!

Knowing there’s a large vein on Jing Yan, even if he hadn’t provoked him earlier, the Black River Heavenly Monarch might force Jing Yan to surrender it.

“Humph!” The Black River Heavenly Monarch let out a cold snort and said no more.

His current avatar stood before the Netherworld Map, blocking Lu Chun and others from passing.

“The Netherworld Road!”

Upon entering the Netherworld Map, what Jing Yan saw was a yellow road extending before him. This road seemed endless. Jing Yan released his Divine Soul Power, encountering no obstacles, yet he could only explore the road beneath his feet.

Before entering the Netherworld Map, Jing Yan saw many Netherworld Roads within, intricately woven and impossible to count. Yet within this map, his Divine Thought could explore only the road beneath him. The Divine Thought wasn’t suppressed or bound, but it sensed no other Netherworld Roads.

“Let’s walk forward and see.” With this thought, Jing Yan moved.

All around was extremely silent, no sounds emerging. Walking this Netherworld Road met no hindrance; it seemed easier than outside the Netherworld Map. Inside the Yellow Spring Cave were endless sands, yet within the Netherworld Map, not even a breeze was felt.

“There’s a fork in the road!”

“Ahead are three paths, which should I choose?” Jing Yan stopped, observing the three roads ahead.

Jing Yan knew almost nothing about the Netherworld Map, nor did the Four Great Forces’ cultivators likely know much. The Yellow Spring Cave opens tens of times before the Netherworld Map appears once. This means the last time the Four Great Forces entered the Netherworld Map could have been billions of years ago. Though billions of years apart, with the chance to enter the Netherworld Map once, Jing Yan discovered through discussions with Xin Ruikun and others that their understanding of the Netherworld Map was superficial at best.

At this moment, the three paths before Jing Yan seemed identical, even after using his Divine Thought to explore, no distinct discoveries emerged. It seemed… any road could be chosen.

Jing Yan frowned in thought, pondering for a long time without a clue.

Shaking his head, Jing Yan moved, randomly choosing a Netherworld Road and quickening his pace.

Four hours later, in front of Jing Yan, three seemingly identical Netherworld Roads appeared again. This time, Jing Yan merely frowned, then quickly chose a path without much thought.

Another hour later, another fork in the Netherworld Road appeared.

Three hours later, Jing Yan saw again the division of three roads stretching into the distance.

After more than ten days, Jing Yan had passed through dozens, even hundreds of Netherworld Road forks, yet still, the Netherworld Road seemed endless.

“Something’s not right!”

“It shouldn’t be like this.”

“Continuing this way, when the Netherworld Map closes, I still won’t find the Netherworld Heart!”

“To find the Netherworld Heart, the path must relate to the Netherworld Road’s traversal method. There must be some method, I just don’t know it yet.”

“I also don’t know the Black River Heavenly Monarch’s current state.”

At a trifork junction, Jing Yan halted. He realized if he didn’t find the correct method, he might never find the Netherworld Heart.

Jing Yan sat down cross-legged, releasing his Divine Thought. This time, he explored meticulously, probing every aspect of the Netherworld Road bit by bit.

Starting with the Netherworld Road beneath, Jing Yan then explored each of the three branching paths ahead one by one. He compared them bit by bit, even down to the rules that formed the Netherworld Road.