Transmigrating Into a Fantasy World: Signing in During Pregnancy, Reaching the Summit with My Childhood Sweetheart

77: Chapter 77: The Wasteland Rift and the Lingering Memories of the Sword ScarThe earth vein passage opened by Yan was stable and swift. Earth-yellow light enveloped Su Muxue and Lin Mo, as if they were riding a subterranean shuttle, silently traversing through thick rock layers at a speed far exceeding their own flight.

The inner walls of the passage were smooth, flowing with gentle Earth Vein Primordial Force that isolated them from all external spying and interference. This was undoubtedly the safest and most convenient path the Earth Spirit Clan guardian could provide.

Su Muxue seized the time to consume that incredibly precious drop of earth mother spiritual saliva. As the spiritual saliva hit her throat, it instantly transformed into an indescribable warm current—not scorching, but a majestic energy containing endless vitality and the profound virtue of the earth, rapidly surging toward her limbs and bones, nourishing every inch of her Meridians, flesh, and even her Divine Soul.

All hidden injuries and fatigue from the previous fierce battle and escape were swept away instantly. Her cultivation even showed signs of subtle progress under the push of this power, and her comprehension of the Lingxiao Sword Intent became increasingly profound and clear. Her state was better than ever before.

Lin Mo was also silently digesting that wisp of ”Innate Earth Essence Qi.” This strand of Origin energy was surprisingly compatible with his nirvana star core, especially the Concept of ”growth within nirvana,” deepening his understanding of the complete dark pattern on the star Core’s surface. The star Core’s light became more restrained and deep, like a sleeping dark star containing immeasurable power.

”According to the path Yan indicated, at this speed, it will take about three days to reach the edge of the western wasteland.” Lin Mo’s thought transmitted, perceiving the direction the passage extended.

Su Muxue nodded, her ice-blue eyes flashing with determined light. Three days—she could afford to wait; she only hoped Senior Brother Nangong could also hold on.

However, the variables of the underground world far exceeded imagination.

Just about a day after they had set out, the originally stable passage suddenly shook violently!

It wasn’t an external attack, but rather as if the entire earth vein was trembling! The earth-yellow light on the passage walls flickered uncertainly, and even fine cracks appeared!

”What’s happening?” Su Muxue immediately became alert, the zhenyuan sword already in her hand.

”Not good! It’s a large-scale earth vein energy riot!” Lin Mo’s thought came urgently, ”The scope is extremely broad, and the energy level is incredibly high! This passage probably won’t hold!”

His Perception far exceeded Su Muxue’s, allowing him to better sense the terrifying energy surge coming from deep within the earth, like the roar of a prehistoric behemoth! This riot was ten or a hundred times more violent than the one they had encountered at the entrance of Black Wind Cave!

Rumble—!

Before he could finish speaking, a huge gap suddenly exploded in the passage wall ahead! It wasn’t broken by external force but was forcibly demolished by a violent turbulence mixed with dark red earth fire and grayish-black deathly energy!

The terrifying turbulence, like a flood breaking a dam, instantly poured into the passage!

”Watch out!” Lin Mo shouted. The nirvana star core’s light surged, and the gray-blue nirvana force field instantly expanded, firmly protecting Su Muxue in the center, forcibly withstanding the first wave of impact!

But the power of that turbulence was too strong, and it contained extremely chaotic tearing energy. While the nirvana force field could annihilate its energy properties, it was difficult to completely offset that pure physical impact!

Bang!

The two of them, as if hit by a giant hammer, were violently swept up by the raging turbulence along with the shattered passage fragments, rushing toward an unknown direction!

The world spun; all around was destructive energy and crumbling rocks. Su Muxue could only desperately circulate her Sword Intent for protection, holding onto Lin Mo tightly. Lin Mo operated the star Core with all his might, pushing the nirvana force field to its maximum, struggling to maintain a small safe zone in the turbulence, but he was completely unable to control their direction.

This sudden earth vein riot completely disrupted their plans and threw them into even deeper danger.

After being swept along for an unknown distance, the violent energy around them finally began to weaken. Lin Mo spotted an opportunity, and the nirvana star core jolted, forcibly tearing a hole. He led Su Muxue out of the main turbulence, and they crashed heavily onto a hard, cold floor.

”Cough...” Su Muxue landed staggeringly, a sweet taste in her throat. Although not seriously injured, her blood and Qi were churning from the shock. She quickly looked around, and her heart immediately sank.

This was no longer the stable earth vein passage, but a completely unfamiliar underground environment.

The sky (if it could be called that) was a low, constantly twisting and writhing dark red rock layer, as if it could collapse at any moment. The earth was parched, appearing a deathly grayish-black, with almost no Spiritual Qi. Instead, it was permeated with a suffocating sense of decay and despair. In the distance, huge pale fossils like monster ribs were thrust into the ground, and further away, distorted spatial fissures could be vaguely seen, emitting a dangerous glow.

Desolate, deathly, oppressive.

The aura here was exactly the same as the Nirvana Wasteland marked on Yan’s map!

That sudden earth vein riot had unexpectedly sent them near their destination early, albeit in an extremely crude manner! But clearly, they had deviated from the safe landing point and fallen directly into a more dangerous area deep within the wasteland.

”Lin Mo, how are you?” Su Muxue asked immediately with concern.

”I’m fine. The star Core consumed some power, but the Foundation is unharmed.” Lin Mo’s ball of light was slightly dimmed but remained stable. ”This is the Nirvana Wasteland. It’s even more... unsettling than described.”

His nirvana star core felt a strange ”comfort” here, like a fish back in water. The aura of withered silence and ending permeating this place resonated subtly with the Dao of Nirvana. At the same time, he also perceived that deep within this deathly land, even more unspeakable dangers lay hidden.

After a brief moment of meditation to regulate their breathing and confirming there was no immediate danger, the two began to survey their surroundings, trying to determine their location.

”According to Yan’s description, Senior Brother Nangong’s crash site should be to the west-northwest... From here, it’s likely still quite a distance.” Lin Mo sensed the faint remaining fluctuations of the earth vein and made a rough judgment.

This wasteland was extremely vast and the environment harsh. Flying too high was impossible, as it would easily trigger the distorted rock layers or spatial fissures above. Speed by foot or low-altitude flight would be greatly affected.

Su Muxue pursed her lips, her gaze resolute: ”No matter what, we must find him as soon as possible!”

She spread her Divine Thought, cautiously exploring forward. The space here seemed extremely unstable, and her Divine Thought was heavily interfered with, unable to reach far.

The two identified their direction and began their difficult journey across this deathly wasteland. The ground beneath their feet was hard as iron but filled with cracks—some bottomless, from which cold, Soul-freezing winds blew. Ash-like dust floated in the air, carrying a smell of rot as they inhaled.

Occasionally, they saw fragments of broken weapons and huge, non-human skeletal fossils half-buried in the grayish-black soil, indicating that this place might have once been an ancient battlefield.

After traveling for about half an hour, they still found nothing but deathly silence.

Suddenly, Lin Mo’s ball of light vibrated slightly.

”Stop! Something’s happening!”

Su Muxue stopped immediately, her Sword Intent held in reserve.

”To the front-left, behind that huge fossil... there’s an extremely faint energy reaction... very strange, doesn’t seem like a living thing, more like... a residual mark?” Lin Mo’s thought carried a hint of uncertainty.

The two cautiously approached the giant rib fossil that looked like a small mountain.

As they drew closer, a faint yet extremely pure and sharp residual thought was gradually perceived.

That was a Sword Intent! A Sword Intent filled with unyielding spirit, sorrow, and the determination to cut through everything!

Su Muxue’s heart leaped! This Sword Intent... she found it somewhat familiar!

Rounding the fossil, the scene before them left both her and Lin Mo stunned.

On a relatively flat grayish-black rock wall behind the huge fossil, there was a massive, bottomless sword scar!

The sword scar was smooth as a mirror, with fine, jumping electric arcs still remaining on the edges, emitting a sharp aura that made the skin sting. The ground around the sword scar showed a strange crystallized state, completely different from the deathly silence of the rest of the wasteland.

Within a hundred-foot radius of this sword scar, there were surprisingly no other energy traces, as if an invisible force had repelled all filth and chaos, forming an absolute ”pure land.”

Even after a significant amount of time had passed, this sword scar still emitted such a powerful meaning, inspiring awe.

”It’s Senior Brother Nangong’s Sword Qi!” Su Muxue blurted out, her voice trembling with excitement! This Thunder Sword Intent, as majestic as heavenly power yet filled with determined sorrow, she could never mistake it!

Lin Mo also said solemnly: ”Indeed, this aura is consistent with Yan’s description and your memory. This sword scar... must have been left when he fought some enemy after falling here. Looking at the concentration of this Sword Intent and its residual power, the opponent was extremely strong, forcing him to go all out.”

Su Muxue stepped quickly to the sword scar, her fingers trembling slightly as she touched the smooth rock wall, trying to sense more information from it.

When her fingertips touched those jumping fine electric arcs, a fragmented image suddenly rushed into her mind!

— In a dim world, Nangong Xuan was covered in blood, his Daoist robes tattered, his face pale as paper, but his posture remained as upright as a pine tree. He held an ancient longsword flashing with lightning, his gaze sharp as an eagle’s, facing a rolling, formless shadow! That shadow emitted a cold, all-consuming evil aura, originating from the same source as the soul-eroding miasma but even more condensed and terrifying!

”...Don’t even think about it...” Nangong Xuan’s raspy voice seemed to ring directly in Su Muxue’s Soul, filled with exhaustion yet unwavering will.

In the next moment, he suddenly raised his sword, and a brilliant, dazzling lightning light erupted from his body, as if he were an Incarnation of the Nine Heavens thunder god, striking out with a single sword! That sword light was glorious and overbearing, yet it held a determination to burn everything!

The image ended abruptly there.

Su Muxue pulled her finger back sharply, her face pale and her breathing rapid.

”Senior Sister... what did you see?” Lin Mo asked urgently.

”Senior Brother Nangong... he was fighting a terrifying enemy made of miasma... he was heavily injured...” Su Muxue’s voice carried uncontrollable heartache and anxiety, ”We must find him even faster!”

This sword scar proved that Nangong Xuan had indeed appeared here and experienced a tragic battle. But that was all; the direction pointed to by the sword scar had long been smoothed over by time and chaotic energy, making it impossible to determine where he went afterward.

Just as they were filled with anxiety, Lin Mo’s star Core vibrated again.

”Hmm? No... this sword scar... isn’t just a residual mark...” His thought was full of alarm and doubt, ”Deep within the sword scar... it seems... something is Sealed?”

The nirvana star core was extremely sensitive to energy. He perceived that at the very Core of that sharp Sword Intent, it wasn’t just pure Sword Qi, but something wrapped inside—a small, extremely faint yet exceptionally resilient... fragment of consciousness?

It wasn’t Nangong Xuan’s consciousness, but belonged to another being, filled with endless malice and coldness, yet firmly suppressed by the Thunder Sword Intent, unable to break free or dissipate.

In that final, earth-shattering strike, Nangong Xuan had not only repelled the enemy but had also forcibly stripped and Sealed a sliver of the opponent’s Origin consciousness?

Why did he do that?

Su Muxue and Lin Mo looked at each other, seeing the shock and confusion in each other’s eyes.

And just as they tried to further investigate the Sealed consciousness fragment—

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Several sharp sounds of breaking air suddenly exploded from the distance, approaching at an alarming speed!

A cold, greedy Divine Thought carrying a thick aura of miasma unceremoniously swept over this area, firmly locking onto Su Muxue and Lin Mo by the sword scar!

A sharp and mocking voice, accompanied by a powerful pressure, descended from the sky:

”Tsk tsk tsk, it seems today’s luck is really good! Not only did I find the sword scar left by that fellow Nangong Xuan, but I even caught two unexpected little fish!”

”Obediently hand over the thing Sealed in the sword scar, and perhaps, this Envoy can give you a quick death!”

In the gloomy sky, three figures clad in black robes and wearing deathly white faceless masks appeared silently like ghosts, surrounding the two in a triangular formation.

The leader’s aura had surprisingly reached the Late Golden Core Stage! At the corner of his mask’s forehead, a strange dark purple flame totem was carved!

The pursuers from Dark Flame City had finally arrived!