Entry: I Secretly Cultivate Immortality in the Martial Arts World

165: Chapter 165 Ling Wuchen’s Journey to the Central Plains!Time flew by.

Whether it was the changes in the Spirit Realm or the Demon Realm, they were like the rivers and seas, sometimes calm, sometimes turbulent with crashing waves.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Creation Small Luo Grotto-Heaven remained consistent, as tranquil as still water.

Ten years passed.

In the Hall of Longevity, Gu Yan’s cultivation had risen from the Profound Immortal Third Level to the Profound Immortal Fifth Level.

Essentially one level every five years, neither fast nor slow, steady and solid.

Outside the hall, clouds rolled and unrolled; inside the hall, the years were peaceful and quiet.

...

Spirit Realm.

These ten years were neither long nor short.

On Heaven Burning Demon Venerable’s side, he had indeed become well-behaved.

However, the chaos in the Spirit Realm did not subside due to Heaven Burning Demon Venerable’s silence.

Because the Yao Race was unwilling to remain lonely.

The Western Wasteland, like the Northern Plains, had always been the traditional territory of the Yao Race.

Over the years, the great powers of the Yao Race had either died or fled. Although the Yao Race still occupied the Western Wasteland, they never amounted to much.

But now, a new Demon King had risen.

It was a Great Roc.

No one knew where this Great Roc came from or how many years he had cultivated; they only knew that when he emerged, he was already at the Tribulation Crossing Peak.

He unified the Yao Race of the Western Wasteland, and wherever his orders reached, all demons submitted.

The Human Race Cultivators in the Western Wasteland were either killed, driven away, or fled on their own initiative.

There was no helping it; this demon was too strong.

With a flap of his wings, the winds and clouds changed color, and the mountains and rivers shook.

The several Human Race forces that originally occupied the Western Wasteland were simply not enough to face him.

A Tribulation Crossing Ancestor took action but was torn to shreds by one of his claws.

A grand protection formation was activated but was directly blown apart by a single breath of his demonic wind.

Within a few short years, the Western Wasteland had completely become the world of the Yao Race.

And this Great Peng Demon King was entirely different from the Bull Demon King of that year.

The Bull Demon King acted overbearingly, coming and going alone, disdaining to join forces with any power.

But this Great Peng Demon King seemed to better understand how to judge the situation.

After his rise, he did not fight Heaven Burning Demon Venerable as the Bull Demon King had done back then.

On the contrary.

He took the initiative to send an envoy to the Northern Plains to form an alliance with Heaven Burning Demon Venerable.

The two joined forces, their target aimed directly at the Human Race’s Central Land.

The Central Land was the wealthiest and most prosperous place among the five provinces of the Spirit Realm.

It was rich in resources and was the true core region of the Spirit Realm.

Both the Great Peng Demon King and Heaven Burning Demon Venerable knew that to truly dominate the Spirit Realm, the Central Land was an unavoidable step.

As for the Eastern Continent...

They certainly remembered that the Eastern Continent was protected by a great power who could casually kill a Tribulation Crossing Peak existence.

How overbearing was that Bull Demon King? He was wiped out just like that.

Although they didn’t know if that great power was still in the Eastern Continent, in such matters, it was better to believe it than not.

So their plan was to take the Central Land first, strengthen their power, and finally decide whether to touch the Eastern Continent based on the situation.

What they didn’t know was that the Central Land was actually also protected by a mysterious Sword Cultivator whose power was not inferior to the one in the Eastern Continent.

...

Western Wasteland, a certain barren mountain.

Ling Wuchen was in a very pathetic state at the moment.

His robes were torn in several places, his hair was disheveled, his face was pale, and there were traces of blood at the corner of his mouth.

But his gaze was still sharp, and the long sword in his hand glinted with a faint, cold light.

Speaking of which, his luck had always been quite good.

He had encountered constant opportunities over the years, and his cultivation had progressed rapidly, now reaching the Void Refining Early Stage.

A few months ago, he had accidentally obtained an Ancient Sword Manual in a Secret Realm. After meditating on it in seclusion, he finally comprehended an extremely powerful Sword Intent.

With his strength greatly increased, he was in high spirits.

However, when he emerged from the Secret Realm, he was completely stunned.

Why was this place the Western Wasteland?

The place where he entered the Secret Realm was clearly in the Eastern Continent!

And...

How did the Western Wasteland become like this?

There were Yao Race everywhere.

Flying in the sky, running on the ground, swimming in the water—there were demons everywhere.

Even more ridiculous was that these demons weren’t just scattered remnants but were organized and disciplined.

Patrol teams came one after another, even more formal than the mountain-patrolling Disciples of Human Race Sects.

Ling Wuchen realized something was wrong immediately.

He grabbed a minor demon at random for interrogation and only then learned that the Western Wasteland was now the territory of the Great Peng Demon King.

Human Race Cultivators had either died, fled, or been captured as slaves.

Ling Wuchen’s mood at the time could only be described with four words: absolute rotten luck.

Under the Great Peng Demon King, there were several demon generals just at the Tribulation Crossing Realm.

With his meager cultivation, he was just a piece of running meat in this place.

Even more unlucky was that the commotion he made while interrogating the minor demon was discovered by a nearby Yao Race patrol.

A Spirit Transformation Realm Eagle Demon led a group of subordinates and surrounded him.

Ling Wuchen slew the Eagle Demon with one sword strike and turned to run.

But once he started running, he couldn’t stop.

The Yao Race’s pursuit came much faster than he had imagined.

Western Wasteland, a certain mountain forest.

Ling Wuchen skimmed past the treetops at extreme speed.

But the pursuers behind him were even faster.

“Human Race Cultivator! Don’t run!”

A sharp screech came from behind.

Ling Wuchen looked back, his expression changing slightly.

Three Vulture Demon Birds were chasing him at extreme speed.

Every single one was at the Void Refining Realm.

The leader was even at the Void Refining Late-stage.

Ling Wuchen cursed under his breath and increased his speed.

But the speed of those three Vulture Demon Birds was simply too fast.

Seeing the distance closing, Ling Wuchen gritted his teeth, suddenly halted, and turned to draw his sword.

“Can’t run? Then I’ll fight!”

His long sword left its scabbard, and a sharp sword light cut through the sky, aimed directly at the leading Vulture Demon Bird.

The Vulture Demon Bird snorted coldly and flapped its wings, whipping up a gale that actually blew the sword light apart.

“A mere Void Refining Early Stage human dares to draw his sword before us?”

The Vulture Demon Bird opened its mouth and spat out a golden flame that surged forth, covering the sky as it rushed toward Ling Wuchen.

Ling Wuchen retreated rapidly, swinging his long sword repeatedly. The sword light wove into a net, barely blocking the golden flame.

But the high temperature of the flame still scorched his robes black in several places.

“You have some skill,” the Vulture Demon Bird nodded slightly, “but that’s all.”

The three Vulture Demon Birds attacked simultaneously.

Three streaks of golden flame attacked Ling Wuchen from three directions.

A cold light flashed in Ling Wuchen’s eyes.

He took a deep breath, and the long sword in his hand vibrated slightly.

An extremely sharp Sword Intent rose from his body.

This was the new Sword Intent he had comprehended.

He hadn’t fully mastered it yet, but at a time like this, he couldn’t care about that.

“Slash!”

Ling Wuchen swung his sword.

A silver-white sword light broke through the air, carrying a chilling killing intent. It directly sliced through the golden flame in front of him and, without losing momentum, cleaved toward one of the Vulture Demon Birds.

The Vulture Demon Bird was greatly alarmed and hastily dodged to the side.

But the sword light was too fast and still severed half of its wing.

Blood sprayed as the Vulture Demon Bird let out a shrill scream, its body swaying unsteadily.

“Seeking death!”

The leading Vulture Demon Bird was furious. With a flap of its wings, it turned into a streak of golden light and lunged at Ling Wuchen.

Its sharp claws extended, carrying the momentum of tearing through the void.

Ling Wuchen raised his sword to block.

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing was deafening.

Ling Wuchen was knocked flying, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

He looked down and saw several cracks had appeared on his long sword.

Void Refining Late-stage was indeed not something he could face head-on right now.

Ling Wuchen didn’t dare linger and used the momentum of being knocked back to turn and run.

Behind him came the angry screech of the Vulture Demon Bird: “Chase! Chase him! I want him alive or dead!”

Ling Wuchen gritted his teeth and pushed his speed to the limit.

He wove through the mountain forest, using the terrain to evade the pursuers.

But the three Vulture Demon Birds were in the air with a wide field of vision; he simply couldn’t shake them off.

Chasing and fleeing like this, the wounds on Ling Wuchen’s body grew more numerous.

First, he was struck by the Vulture Demon Bird’s claw, leaving three bloody gashes on his back.

Later, he was hit by a golden flame, leaving his left arm scorched black.

After that, he took another hit, breaking two ribs.

But he stubbornly refused to die.

Every time it seemed he was about to be caught, he would either suddenly erupt with Sword Intent to force back the pursuers or use the terrain to narrowly escape.

The three Vulture Demon Birds grew angrier as they chased.

“Is this human a loach? How can he run so well!”

“His wounds are getting heavier; he won’t last much longer!”

“Give it more effort!”

They chased for another half-day.

Ling Wuchen finally saw hope.

Ahead was the border between the Western Wasteland and the Central Land.

As long as he crossed that Boundary River, he would be in the territory of the Central Land.

Although the Great Peng Demon King had unified the Western Wasteland, he had not yet extended his reach into the Central Land.

Once in the Central Land, these demons wouldn’t dare to pursue him so blatantly.

Ling Wuchen used his last ounce of strength to rush toward the Boundary River.

Behind him, the three Vulture Demon Birds also discovered his intention.

“He wants to escape to the Central Land! Stop him!”

The three Vulture Demon Birds accelerated simultaneously, turning into three streaks of golden light as they lunged at Ling Wuchen.

Ling Wuchen looked back, a flash of determination in his eyes.

He bit the tip of his tongue and spat a mouthful of essence blood onto his sword.

The long sword hummed, and the sword light flared brilliantly.

He swung his sword, and a hundred-foot-long sword light swept out, forcing the three Vulture Demon Birds back for a moment.

It was during this brief moment.

Ling Wuchen dove headfirst into the Boundary River.

Splash.

The cold river water swallowed him up.

The three Vulture Demon Birds flew over the Boundary River and circled a few times, but in the end, they didn’t dare cross the border.

“Hmph, consider him lucky.”

“Let’s go back. Report to the Demon King that a Human Race Cultivator has escaped from the Western Wasteland to the Central Land.”

The three Vulture Demon Birds turned around and flew back into the depths of the Western Wasteland.

In the Boundary River, Ling Wuchen was washed downstream by the current.

There wasn’t a single spot on his body that didn’t hurt, and his consciousness began to blur.

But he knew he was temporarily safe.

After an unknown amount of time, Ling Wuchen was washed ashore.

He struggled to crawl onto the bank and lay on the riverbank, gasping for breath.

He looked up at the sky.

The sky was very blue, and the clouds were very white.

In the distance, there seemed to be the figures of Human Race Cultivators on patrol.

Ling Wuchen twitched the corner of his mouth, letting out a bitter smile.

He had thought that after emerging from the Secret Realm and comprehending a new Sword Intent, he would be able to show off his skills in the Spirit Realm.

But as soon as he came out, the Spirit Realm had changed.

He had become the prey first.

He lay there for a while, recovered some strength, and then laboriously sat up.

He looked at the wounds on his body and then at the long sword in his hand, which was now covered in cracks.

“Truly... absolute rotten luck.”