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

80: Chapter 80: The Leyline Path and the Star Core’s GuidanceDarkness, a suffocating darkness.

The terrifying roars and explosions coming from the Stellar Main Hall behind them rapidly weakened, soon replaced by absolute silence. Only the two’s hurried breathing and the rustle of clothes rubbing against the stone walls echoed in the narrow space.

The passage was not straight but winding and twisted, sometimes wide and sometimes narrow. The four walls were rough and uneven, covered in scratches left by some creature’s drilling. The air was permeated with a faint earthy smell and the unique scent of certain minerals.

Su Muxue pushed her movement technique to its limit, advancing in the darkness entirely through her Perception. Lin Mo’s light orb stayed close to her front, the light of the nirvana star core retracted to its lowest, emitting only a faint gray-blue halo that barely illuminated a range of about ten feet ahead, serving more as a sensor than a light source.

“Safe for now...” Su Muxue’s transmission carried a hint of breathlessness and the lingering shock of a narrow escape. “That thing... and City Lord Bai He...”

“Let them fight each other; it has nothing to do with us anymore.” Lin Mo’s thoughts were unusually calm. “That old dog thought he was being clever by forcibly breaking the dome, but instead, he completely awakened that contaminated Core. He’s got his hands full now. We must find a way out as quickly as possible.”

His Perception, like invisible tentacles, spread deeper into the path ahead.

“This passage... is very strange.” Lin Mo continued, “It wasn’t carved by human hands. The residual aura is ancient and violent, yet mixed with a hint of... faint Stellar fluctuations? It seems it was excavated long ago by some underground creature influenced by Stellar Power, and was later abandoned.”

“Can it lead to the outside?” Su Muxue was most concerned about this question.

“The direction is generally upward, and the airflow is coming from ahead, so there’s hope. But...” Lin Mo’s thoughts paused, carrying a hint of solemnity, “My star Core senses that the depths of this passage seem to connect to a more complex underground network, and... there’s more than one faint energy reaction. They are very subtle, making it hard to judge whether it’s a blessing or a curse.”

Just out of the wolf’s den, and now lost in an underground maze.

Su Muxue pursed her pale lips, her eyes becoming increasingly determined. Compared to facing that completely insurmountable contaminated Core and City Lord Bai He, an unknown underground passage actually seemed safer.

“Continue forward, investigate carefully.” She made her decision.

The two spoke no more, maintaining the highest level of vigilance as they silently moved along the passage.

The passage constantly extended downward, then climbed at times, and the number of forks began to increase like a labyrinth. Had it not been for Lin Mo’s nirvana star core, which had an extremely keen Perception of energy flow and spatial orientation, they would have likely lost their way long ago.

Along the way, they found some scattered, fossilized giant scales, as well as some skeletal remains that had long since lost their spirituality, confirming Lin Mo’s guess about this place being excavated by creatures.

The deeper they went, the more concentrated that mineral scent became, and even some moss and fungi emitting a faint fluorescence began to appear, providing a bit of light.

Suddenly, Lin Mo’s light orb vibrated slightly.

“Stop!”

Su Muxue stopped immediately, her Sword Intent hidden but ready to strike.

“The third fork on the left, about a hundred yards away... there’s movement! It’s not a Yao Beast, it’s... Cultivator spiritual energy fluctuations! Very faint, but moving!” Lin Mo’s thoughts came hurriedly, “Two people, cultivation level around the Foundation Establishment Early Stage, their state seems... very panicked?”

In this mysterious passage deep underground, they actually encountered other Cultivators? And they seemed to be running for their lives?

“Can we avoid them?” Su Muxue didn’t want to cause unnecessary trouble.

“It’s difficult; this is the main road, and they are running in our direction. Behind them... there seems to be the aura of pursuers, which is sharper.” Lin Mo analyzed quickly, “Prepare to react; act as the situation dictates.”

Sure enough, after only a dozen or so breaths, the sound of hurried, chaotic footsteps and heavy breathing came from around the corner of the passage ahead.

Two staggering figures appeared in the dim light.

They were two young Cultivators, a man and a woman, wearing identical blue-gray Daoist robes. However, the robes were now torn in many places and covered in stains, their faces filled with terror and exhaustion. The man held a broken magical sword, while the woman held a small shield with dim spiritual light, supporting each other as they fled for their lives.

They spotted Su Muxue and Lin Mo in the passage at once. Startled, they instinctively raised their Magical Artifacts. After seeing that Su Muxue was also a human Cultivator (though her aura was restrained and they couldn’t see her depth) and that she held only a strange light orb rather than a monster, they relaxed slightly, though their vigilance did not decrease.

“Two... Fellow Daoists!” The male Cultivator panted, saying urgently, “Run! Behind us... behind us, a Sha Chi Clan patrol is chasing!”

Sha Chi Clan?

Su Muxue and Lin Mo were both stunned; they had never heard of this clan’s name.

The female Cultivator added with a sob in her voice, “They capture everyone they see! Senior Brother Wang and the others... they’ve already been taken!”

Before she could finish, dense and rapid rustling sounds along with a sharp, insect-like whistling noise came from behind the passage, approaching quickly!

“It’s too late!” The male Cultivator’s face turned ashen.

From behind the passage, several dark shadows dashed out! They were five humanoid creatures clad in dark yellow carapaces, short and stout with hideous faces. They had compound eyes and sharp mouthparts, arms like mantis blades, and lower bodies like segmented centipede limbs. They moved swiftly and silently, emitting Demonic Qi of the Foundation Establishment Middle to Late Stage!

These were exactly the “Sha Chi Clan” the male Cultivator had mentioned!

They immediately locked onto the two fugitives and Su Muxue’s pair, letting out excited hisses as their blade-arms rose, lunging forward!

The pair of young Cultivators closed their eyes in despair.

A cold light flashed in Su Muxue’s ice-blue eyes.

She didn’t want to cause trouble, but the other party clearly saw them as targets too.

In that case... at the very moment the first Sha Chi Clan warrior’s blade was about to strike—

Su Muxue moved!

Her figure seemed not to have moved at all, but a black-green sword light, refined to the extreme, struck first, like a flash of cold lightning across the dark night!

Squelch!

A soft sound.

The Sha Chi Clan warrior rushing at the front suddenly froze, his compound eyes filled with disbelief. In the next moment, his hard carapace split open along a perfectly smooth line, green blood sprayed, and he crashed to the ground!

Silence!

A sudden silence!

The remaining four Sha Chi Clan warriors abruptly stopped, their compound eyes looking at Su Muxue with uncertainty. Their hissing now carried obvious vigilance and a hint of fear.

The pair of young Cultivators also opened their eyes in shock, looking at Su Muxue as if looking at a Heavenly God descended to earth.

Su Muxue stood with her sword. Her hood had slipped slightly during the movement, revealing a strand of ice-blue hair and half of a cold, stunningly beautiful, yet expressionless face. The zhenyuan remnant sword pointed diagonally at the ground, a drop of demon blood slowly dripping from its tip.

She hadn’t used any flashy sword techniques, just the most basic speed, precision, and ruthlessness, combined with her newly enlightened Lingxiao Sword Intent to kill the enemy in one strike!

“Begone.”

A single word, bone-chillingly cold and imbued with a sharp Sword Intent pressure, slammed into the four Sha Chi Clan warriors like a physical force.

The four Sha Chi Clan warriors looked at each other, their compound eyes flickering with fear and reluctance. After exchanging a few hisses, they finally retreated slowly, quickly disappearing into the dark passage, not even daring to take their companion’s corpse.

The threat was temporarily resolved.

The two young Cultivators slumped to the ground, gasping for air, their eyes filled with gratitude and awe as they looked at Su Muxue.

“Thank... Thank you, Senior, for saving our lives!” The two hurriedly bowed.

Su Muxue sheathed her sword, pulled her hood back up, and said indifferently, “Who are you? What is the Sha Chi Clan? Why were they chasing you?”

The male Cultivator steadied his breathing and quickly replied, “To answer Senior, this Junior is Zhao Ming, and this is my Junior Sister, Li Han. We are Cultivators of ‘Diyan Market.’ The Sha Chi Clan is one of the overlords of this underground region. They are cruel and bloodthirsty by nature, often capturing us Human Race Cultivators to serve as laborers or even... blood food! Our market team went out to collect supplies and unfortunately encountered their patrol...”

Diyan Market? Human Race Cultivators? Underground region?

Su Muxue and Lin Mo’s hearts stirred.

“Where is Diyan Market? How far is it from the surface? Do you know how to return to the surface world?” Su Muxue threw out a string of questions.

Zhao Ming and Li Han were stunned for a moment, appearing somewhat bewildered by the phrase “return to the surface.”

Zhao Ming said cautiously, “Senior... you came from the outside? Diyan Market is near the ‘Molten Rift Valley,’ about a day’s journey east of here. As for returning to the surface...” A hint of bitterness appeared on his face, “It’s hard, too hard. It is said that only the Sha Chi Clan Royal Court and a few top-tier underground Yao Races possess the ancient paths to the surface, and they all guard them extremely strictly. Loose Cultivators like us have no way of knowing.”

Lin Mo, who had been silent, sent his thoughts into Su Muxue’s mind: “It seems we’ve accidentally stumbled into a massive underground world. Let’s go with them to that Diyan Market first. There will be many people and much talk there; perhaps we can gather more useful information. At the very least, we can get our bearings.”

Su Muxue gave an imperceptible nod and said to Zhao Ming’s pair, “Lead the way. To Diyan Market.”

Zhao Ming and Li Han were overjoyed to hear this. With this unfathomable Senior accompanying them, their safety was undoubtedly guaranteed!

“Yes! Yes! Senior, please follow us!”

The two hurriedly led the way, their steps much lighter.

Su Muxue carried Lin Mo and followed behind, her mind continuing to communicate with him.

“The nirvana star core seems to be reacting to some deep-level energy here...” Lin Mo’s thoughts carried a hint of inquiry, “It’s very subtle, similar to Stellar Power yet different. It’s hotter, more... like an earth vein.”

“Let’s get to the market first,” Su Muxue responded.

The group of four soon disappeared into the depths of the dark passage dotted with fluorescent moss.

And they failed to notice that in a high rock crevice in the shadows, a tiny, imperceptible pale gold rune light flashed quietly before vanishing.