Chapter 70

It was not night, but it was also not the bright daylight outside.

It seemed as if a thin mist existed, causing the view to the distance to be not so clear, only allowing the outlines of some mountains to be seen. The area of the forbidden zone was larger than expected.

Kinsang immediately held his breath upon smelling a strong odor of decay. He looked around; in front of him was a swamp emitting a foul smell, and behind him was a dark, endless forest.

The forest was filled with branches, and it was shrouded in thick mist, whether it was water vapor or miasma, making the shadows of the trees resemble countless demons with their fangs and claws bared.

After entering the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Zone, where one landed was entirely a matter of luck. If one happened to land in the lair of a beast, it could only be blamed on fate.

This place did not look like a good place at all. Kinsang pondered for a moment, and then a pair of wings appeared on his back. The wings generated clouds, enveloping his figure, and then he vanished into thin air.

He climbed a tree and waited for a while. Seeing no unusual movements around, Kinsang silently leaped down from the tree, using the Cloud Escape technique to move in the direction he had chosen.

After traveling a considerable distance through the forest without any major incidents, Kinsang finally arrived at the foot of a mountain. The mountain was not large, but according to Kinsang's observation, it was the highest point in the vicinity.

However, just before reaching the summit, Kinsang quietly hid behind a large rock.

A moment later, another Kinsang walked out from behind the rock, boldly climbing up. Just before reaching the summit, 'Kinsang' suddenly turned into a puddle of water, soaking the ground.

After a while, the real Kinsang walked out from behind the rock.

The previous one was naturally a clone created by the Shape-Shifting Spell, a technique he had practiced more for the Ascension Ceremony.

Due to limited time and energy, he did not choose the more difficult Water Barrier or Fog Lock spells.

Although Kinsang's mastery of the Shape-Shifting Spell was not perfect, the clone he created was not flawless. However, if the opponent was not careful, they might easily be deceived by Kinsang.

As Kinsang's realm improved, his perspective broadened, and he realized that each spell had its unique uses. The Shape-Shifting Spell, which he originally thought was not very useful, actually had many applications, such as scouting and luring enemies.

Such cautious actions would inevitably waste a lot of time, but in a place filled with danger, it was unavoidable.

The mountain seemed to be free of danger, but Kinsang's vigilance did not decrease in the slightest. The mountain provided a broad view of the surroundings, which was a significant advantage, but it also hid dangers. If there were others around, they might have the same thoughts as him.

Kinsang held the Purple Soul Bell in his hand, and his divine sense was always ready to activate the Ice Silkworm Armor. Although this armor was only a mid-grade magical tool, it could help block a surprise attack and buy some time.

After making all the necessary preparations, Kinsang continued to use the Falling Cloud Wings, quietly approaching the summit. He cautiously looked around every few steps, taking a considerable amount of time to reach the peak.

The view suddenly became vast. Within the visible range, the terrain was varied and strange.

The place he had just come from was on the left, at the boundary between the swamp and the forest. Both the swamp and the forest were extremely vast, with no end in sight.

Occasionally, he could see the treetops in the forest swaying, unsure if it was due to something below or the wind.

The swamp was even more treacherous. The edges were relatively calm, but the deeper parts seemed to be boiling, constantly bubbling with mud, and above them, colorful mists gathered, likely containing toxins.

Those two places were absolutely off-limits!

Kinsang was afraid that he would be eaten by the beasts or poisonous insects before even encountering anyone.

It was known that the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Zone contained beasts in the Mortal Beast stage.

Birds, beasts, plants, ghosts, and even rocks and objects, if blessed with good fortune or enlightened, could absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and the essence of the sun, moon, and stars, becoming what was known as beasts.

All the spirits, ghosts, and monsters spoken of in the mortal world were like this.

These beasts had only the instinct to seek good and avoid evil, with no intelligence, and were called Mortal Beasts. Some Mortal Beasts were very weak and could be killed by mortals using special methods.

However, long-lived beasts often had considerable intelligence and various strange abilities, making them very challenging for Qi Condensation stage cultivators.

At the peak of the Mortal Beast stage, just before giving birth to a spirit, the beasts had the strength equivalent to a thirteenth-layer Qi Condensation stage cultivator.

When a beast conceived a true spirit, it began to develop intelligence, known as the Spirit Beast stage, comparable to the Foundation Establishment stage for human cultivators.

Fortunately, there were no Spirit Beasts in the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Zone, but it was said that there were late-stage and even peak Mortal Beasts. Even with an excellent magical tool, Kinsang did not dare to provoke them lightly.

The Demon Yin Sect did not have a map of the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Zone, and Kinsang did not know which area he had been sent to.

He could go in any direction. Only after collecting the jade tokens would he know the direction of the core area. Before that, his only goal was to survive and seize the jade tokens.

After observing the terrain around him, Kinsang pondered for a moment and decided to go to the right, where there was a large mountain range. The mountains were covered with lush vegetation, but not as dense as the dark forest, making this complex terrain the most suitable for him.

Just as Kinsang was about to descend the mountain, he suddenly felt something was amiss and looked up at a bird resembling a yellow oriole in the sky.

Not long after he climbed the mountain, the yellow oriole had flown over. There were wild animals in the forbidden zone, so Kinsang had glanced at it and then ignored it.

However, the yellow oriole did not land to eat. Instead, it circled the mountain peak like a hawk, especially around the summit, making several rounds.

Kinsang stared at the yellow oriole, feeling increasingly uneasy. After some thought, he looked down the mountain, searching inch by inch, but found nothing.

Just as Kinsang was beginning to doubt his own suspicions, the yellow oriole suddenly spread its wings and flew down the mountain. Kinsang's eyes lit up as he followed the oriole with his gaze, watching it land in a patch of tall grass and disappear.

That was a mountain hollow, covered with grass as tall as a person, very well hidden.

Then, the patch of grass swayed, and a figure emerged from it, with the yellow oriole perched on his shoulder, preening its feathers.

The person looked around and then quickly moved toward the summit.

"Fortunately, I didn't put away the Falling Cloud Wings."

Kinsang was secretly relieved by his caution, not expecting that someone had landed so close to him. At the same time, he felt a sudden tension.

He had killed countless people, but this was the first time he encountered an opponent who was also a cultivator.

Kinsang hurriedly used the Qi Perception technique and found that the person's cultivation was similar to his own, so he did not need to avoid him.

However, cultivators had many strange and unpredictable abilities, so he could not be careless.