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

227: Chapter 227: The Awakening of Taiyin and the Black Fiend’s ConspiracyAfter Elder Qing Lin left, a trace of tension remained in the valley’s atmosphere. The worry on Qing Zhi’s small face was evident; she was no longer as cheerful and lively as before, but sat on a bluestone clutching her knees, staring blankly at the sacred spring and sighing from time to time.

”The bad guys from the Black Fiend Forest are the worst,” she muttered softly. ”That stench on them can be smelled from far away, like a mix of rotting leaves and stinking mires... The Formations they set up make trees wither, streams turn black, and even small animals go crazy...”

Nangong Xuan and Zi Linger listened quietly. From Qing Zhi’s fragmented complaints and the previous words of the Grand Elder and Teng Shan, they pieced together a rough image of the Black Fiend Forest: a group of invaders who cultivated evil Evil Qi and used pollution and destruction as their means.

”Miss Qing Zhi, can you tell us more about the Black Fiend Forest and the Earth Fire Fortress? What kind of methods do they usually use? How strong are they?” Nangong Xuan asked. Since they had accepted the kindness of the Green Wood Clan and might stay in this realm for a while, it was necessary to understand their potential enemies.

Qing Zhi looked up, thought for a moment, and said, ”Those people from the Black Fiend Forest seem to be very afraid of sunlight and pure life aura, preferring to hide in dark places. They can control a kind of black, sticky Evil Qi that can pollute land and water sources, and even crawl into living beings’ bodies to make them violent and powerful, or even make them obey their commands! They also seem to have many skeletons and giant bugs... As for their strength, Uncle Teng Shan said they have several powerful ’Fiend Generals’ who seem to be equivalent to the Late Golden Core Stage or the Nascent Soul Stage. The most powerful one is their ’Black Fiend Venerable Lord’; he hasn’t appeared for a long time, but Grandpa says he’s very, very dangerous.”

”The people from the Earth Fire Fortress live in the volcanic range to the south. Every one of them has a terrible temper, like firecrackers that go off at the slightest touch. They can dig very deep holes and build large iron lumps that spit fire and explosive orbs. They are very strong and like to steal Ores and shiny things. Their Fortress Lord is also a very powerful old man, seemingly about as strong as the Black Fiend Venerable Lord.”

Nangong Xuan silently took note. Fiend Generals corresponded to Golden Core to Nascent Soul, while the Venerable Lord/Fortress Lord level was at least the Late Nascent Soul Stage or even the Soul Transformation Stage. Such strength would make them regional powerhouses even in the Xianxia world; no wonder the Green Wood Clan was so wary.

”Then that evil Formation aura we felt just now...” Zi Linger asked with some concern.

”It must be them up to no good again!” Qing Zhi said angrily. ”Every time they want to steal the sacred spring or the tree of life, they first set up those disgusting grand Formations at the edge of the forest, like spider webs, slowly seeping poison in!”

Just then, Su Muxue, who was lying flat on the moss by the shore, suddenly let out an extremely faint groan.

Nangong Xuan instantly flashed to her side. He saw Su Muxue’s long eyelashes tremble violently a few times before she slowly opened her eyes. Deep within her pupils, it seemed as if two cold, bright moons flashed by before returning to normal, but her entire temperament had become even more cool and ethereal, with a surge of pure and powerful Taiyin Star Power fluctuating around her.

Her cultivation had unexpectedly broken through to the Peak of the Late Golden Core Stage, only a step away from the Nascent Soul!

”Mu Xue, how do you feel?” Nangong Xuan asked with concern.

Su Muxue’s gaze was initially a bit dazed, but it quickly became clear. She sat up, feeling the surging power within her body and her completely healed injuries—even her Dao foundation was better than before. A flash of pleasant surprise crossed her beautiful eyes, and she then looked at Nangong Xuan and Zi Linger, revealing a relieved smile. ”I’m fine. Not only are my injuries fully recovered, but I seem to have... broken through quite a bit.” She then looked at the unfamiliar surroundings and Qing Zhi nearby, asking in confusion, ”Where is this?”

Nangong Xuan briefly recounted how they had escaped the Void Realm, fallen into the Cangmu Realm, and been saved by the Green Wood Clan.

After Su Muxue finished listening, she immediately stood up and gave a solemn salute to Qing Zhi. ”Thank you for saving my life, Miss Qing Zhi.”

Qing Zhi hastily jumped up and waved her hands. ”Oh, no need to thank me, no need. It was the sacred spring that saved you; I just led the way!”

Su Muxue looked at Nangong Xuan again. ”The pursuers from the Tiangong Sect...”

”They shouldn’t be able to track us to this realm for the time being,” Nangong Xuan said in a deep voice. ”However, we seem to have become involved in the local conflicts here.” He informed Su Muxue about the threat from the Black Fiend Forest and the Earth Fire Fortress.

Hearing this, Su Muxue’s delicate brows furrowed slightly, and a trace of chill flashed in her cool gaze. ”Another group of such wretched monsters; there is no peace to be found anywhere.”

Having just broken through, her spirit was full and her energy sufficient. Her Taiyin Star Power was at its Peak, and her Perception had become exceptionally keen. She suddenly turned her head, looking towards the eastern side of the valley—the direction where Teng Shan had previously mentioned finding traces of the Black Fiend Forest.

”Over there... there’s such a dense aura of filth and death, and it’s still spreading...” She raised her slender hand, and a wisp of extremely yin and cold Taiyin Star Power gathered at her fingertips. Tiny ice crystals immediately condensed in the air. ”And... there’s also an extremely subtle spatial fluctuation mixed in... very strange, it doesn’t seem like an ordinary pollution Formation.”

Hearing this, Nangong Xuan’s expression turned solemn. The Taiyin Star Power Su Muxue cultivated was most sensitive to negative energy and spatial fluctuations; her judgment was very likely close to the truth.

”Spatial fluctuations?” Nangong Xuan immediately associated this with the unstable heavenly rift scar they had come through. ”Could the goal of the Black Fiend Forest not be simply to pollute the forest, but to... stabilize or even expand the heavenly rift scar?”

This speculation made his heart shake. If the heavenly rift scar was expanded or even stably controlled, the Black Fiend Forest could continuously summon reinforcements from the outside world (likely their home base), or even draw in even more terrifying existences! At that time, the entire Qinglin Forest and even the Cangmu Realm would face a catastrophe!

This news must be told to Elder Qing Lin immediately!

Just then, the Green Wood Clan warrior who had left to report earlier came running back in a hurry. His face was even more unsightly than before, even carrying a trace of terror. ”Miss Qing Zhi! Young Master Nangong! This is bad! The Grand Elder, Captain Teng Shan, and the others... they’ve been trapped by a Formation from the Black Fiend Forest! That Formation is extremely wicked; it can devour life spiritual energy, and our people can’t get close at all!”

”What?!” Qing Zhi stood up abruptly, her small face turning pale. ”Grandpa...”

Nangong Xuan, Su Muxue, and Zi Linger looked at each other and made a decision in an instant.

”Take us there!” Nangong Xuan said in a deep voice. Whether out of sentiment or reason, they could not just sit by and watch.

”But... it’s very dangerous there...” The warrior hesitated.

”It’s fine, we might have a way,” Su Muxue spoke coolly, the Taiyin Star Power at her fingertips becoming increasingly icy.

Looking at Nangong Xuan, whose aura was unfathomable, and Su Muxue, who had just awakened but possessed an astonishing pressure, the warrior gritted his teeth. ”Fine! Everyone, please follow me!”

Led by the warrior, the group quickly left the valley and sped towards the eastern edge of the forest. Qing Zhi also followed without hesitation.

The further east they went, the thinner the fresh fragrance of vegetation became, replaced by a nauseating stench of rot mixed with sulfur. The surrounding trees also began to grow sparse, their leaves yellowed and curled, and large patches of moss and flowers on the ground withered and turned black.

After traveling a bit further, intense energy fluctuations and the sounds of shouting and fighting came from ahead.

In a forest clearing, a massive Formation composed of pitch-black, viscous Evil Qi was operating. Within the Formation, countless twisted black runes flickered, emitting an evil power that devoured life force. At the edge of the Formation, dozens of Green Wood Clan warriors were desperately attacking the Formation’s light shield. Various emerald vines, wooden spikes, and light arrows bombarded it, but they only stirred up ripples and failed to shake it in the slightest; instead, their own spiritual energy was being rapidly drained by the Formation.

In the center of the Formation, Grand Elder Qing Lin sat cross-legged, holding an Ancient Vine Staff and propping up a green light shield to protect Teng Shan and several other wounded warriors within. However, under the continuous erosion of the Formation, that green light shield was constantly shrinking and dimming. Elder Qing Lin’s face was pale, clearly struggling immensely to maintain it.

On the periphery of the Formation stood a dozen or so Cultivators dressed in black robes, their bodies shrouded in surging Evil Qi. The leader was tall and wore a Ferocious Ghost Mask, revealing only a pair of crimson eyes. His aura had unexpectedly reached the Nascent Soul Early Stage! He was letting out a raspy, triumphant laugh:

”Old man Qing Lin, don’t waste your energy! This ’Soul-Corroding Life-Devouring Formation’ was personally bestowed by the Venerable Lord, specifically to counter you wooden lumps! Hand over the Sacred Spring Core and the Seed of the Tree of Life obediently, and perhaps I’ll leave you an intact corpse! Otherwise, today I’ll let you, the Grand Elder of the Green Wood Clan, become nourishment for my Formation!”

”Black Fiend scoundrels! Don’t even think about it!” Teng Shan roared from within the light shield, but due to his injuries and the Formation’s suppression, he found it difficult to charge out.

”Stubborn and foolish!” The masked Fiend General snorted coldly and struck out with an even denser wave of Evil Qi, injecting it into the Formation. The Formation’s operation immediately intensified, its devouring power surging. The light shield Elder Qing Lin propped up suddenly shrank inward, its light dimming a bit more.

Just at this critical moment—

”Buzz—!”

A cold, bright pillar of light, like moonlight, suddenly descended from the sky, striking one of the nodes of the pitch-black Formation with pinpoint accuracy!

The extremely yin and cold Taiyin Star Power clashed violently with the extremely evil and filthy Evil Qi, making a loud sizzling sound! The black Qi at that node was actually frozen and purified in an instant, causing the entire Formation’s operation to stall!

”Who is it?!” The masked Fiend General turned his head sharply, his crimson eyes looking toward the source of the attack.

Nangong Xuan, Su Muxue, Zi Linger, and Qing Zhi had arrived. Su Muxue floated in mid-air, the moon wheel Illusory Shadow behind her exceptionally clear, emitting a piercingly cold radiance. That strike just now was her handiwork!

”Excuse me, but this path is closed.” Nangong Xuan took a step forward, his aura suddenly erupting. The power of the Four-Key Cycle operated; although he was still in the Late Golden Core Stage, that vast and majestic pressure was not inferior to the Nascent Soul Fiend General opposite him! His Nirvana Sword Intent was held back but not released, yet it already caused the surrounding space to slightly distort.

Zi Linger pressed her hands to the ground, and an emerald halo spread out from her as the center. The plants that had withered due to the Evil Qi’s erosion actually tenaciously regained a faint trace of life, barely resisting the Formation’s devouring. Qing Zhi also produced an emerald short staff, which emitted a pure aura of nature.

”Outsiders? And... such a pure Wood Spirit?” The masked Fiend General was first startled, then showed a look of greed. ”Good, good, good! I didn’t expect an unexpected harvest! Capture them, and the Venerable Lord will surely reward me handsomely! Attack!”

At his command, the dozen or so Black Fiend Forest Cultivators behind him immediately roared, manipulating rolling Evil Qi to transform into various ferocious beast forms and lunging at Nangong Xuan and the others!

The great battle broke out in an instant!