The Prison of the Cursed World

The earth of the Death World was cold and devoid of life. Leaden clouds hung thick and heavy, pressing down as if to crush the ground itself.

It took them several days to gradually resonate with this Primordial Demonic City. Several Ancestral Gods were preparing for a great battle; one could imagine the world-shaking scene that would soon unfold. Yet Xiao Chen felt that this was not their ultimate goal.

"We should go and bring some cultivators into this world," one of the Ancestral Gods finally decided three days later.

When Xiao Chen brought up the archipelago of sealed islands scattered across the seas of the Nine Provinces, Yan Huang, the Old Ancestral Dragon, and the others all shook their heads.

"That is a trap set by the Otherworld Ancestral Gods, meant to lure us in. The moment we use our power to collect those islands, they will sense it. We cannot go to rescue them yet."

A chill ran down Xiao Chen's spine. He had truly been in danger before; if he had recklessly tried to take those islands, he likely would not be standing here now. Killing the Otherworld Ancestral God Qiu Tian in that situation had been a desperate and perilous gamble.

Several days later, Xiao Chen and the Ancestral Gods set out for the Curse World, intending to rescue all the cultivators trapped there.

The great formation of the Curse World only suppressed the Otherworld Ancestral Gods. The Old Ancestral Dragon and the others all suspected that this forbidden formation, which used an entire world as its foundation, might have developed a soul of its own.

"Is this where you met that old stone tortoise?" When they arrived once more at the abyss, the Ancestral Gods all wore solemn expressions.

"Ya ya, it was right here that we met that old swindler!" Keke pointed at the pitch-black abyss and answered indignantly, still nursing a grudge over the old stone tortoise telling a story in just a dozen words.

"Just what kind of being is that old tortoise?" Xiao Chen asked.

"He is a legendary existence," the old farmer replied gravely. For a survivor of the previous civilization era to give such an appraisal, one could imagine how extraordinary the old stone tortoise truly was.

In the end, Yan Huang, the Old Ancestral Dragon, the old farmer, and the other Ancestral Gods decided to descend into the abyss to search for the old stone tortoise.

"Whether only a wisp of his primordial essence remains or not, we must see him," the Old Ancestral Dragon said. The three of them wore deeply solemn expressions as they vanished into the abyss in an instant. In their eyes, this was a matter of great importance.

Xiao Chen and Keke ventured deep into the Curse World, beginning their search for the cultivators who had fled here, intending to bring them all into the Death World.

Suddenly, fluctuations of divine power came from ahead, accompanied by the sounds of combat.

Whoosh! With a light tremor, Xiao Chen tore through heaven and earth, bringing Keke with him as he appeared in an ancient mountain range hundreds of li away in an instant.

Wu Ming, Bo Shi, Miaochi, Totti, and many other familiar faces came into view. They were surrounded by Otherworld cultivators, locked in a bitter struggle.

Even after fleeing to the Curse World, these cultivators were frequently hunted down. Fortunately, the Curse World had many mysterious and dangerous places where they could hide. But today, news had somehow leaked, and a large number of cultivators were surrounded here.

"I have tolerated you for far too long! You caused one of our Ancestral Gods to fall here. From today onward, we will trample the Curse World flat and crush every last one of you ants into dust!"

The leader was a Second Heaven Half-Ancestor, who swept his gaze over the crowd with cold cruelty.

The fall of Leng Xingyi had shaken all of the Otherworld's cultivators, making them realize that the Nine Provinces and the Four Worlds possessed beings capable of severely threatening them.

In recent years, the Ancestral God-level experts had been focused on trying to break the supreme forbidden formation of the Curse World, which was why they had avoided major conflict, fearing dire consequences.

But this time, some radical Half-Ancestors could no longer tolerate it. They volunteered to lead expeditions into the Curse World, with some even willing to act as bait to lure out the culprit.

"Who betrayed us?" Many cultivators were furious. They knew that someone must have informed on them; otherwise, even a Half-Ancestor would find it nearly impossible to locate them in the mysterious Curse World.

"Your time has come. Know that—"

The Second Heaven Half-Ancestor bellowed a command. His disciples and followers all retreated, and he reached out with a massive hand toward Wu Ming and the others, enveloping them all beneath it.

"Quite the display of authority!" Xiao Chen appeared in the air above the mountain range as if from nowhere.

The moment the Second Heaven Half-Ancestor reached for Wu Ming and the others, Xiao Chen also extended a massive hand, reaching for the Second Heaven Half-Ancestor himself.

The Otherworld Half-Ancestor quickly withdrew his hand to meet Xiao Chen's. With a thunderous BOOM, the two colossal hands collided.

The Otherworld Half-Ancestor's expression twisted in horror. His hand, which had blotted out the sky, instantly shattered, turning to ashes.

The next moment, Xiao Chen's palm covered him, gripping him in a crushing hold. With a twist of his fingers, the Second Heaven Half-Ancestor screamed in agony, his flesh instantly turning to pulp, his body and soul utterly annihilated.

Such was the immense gap in their power!

Xiao Chen struck out with his hand, sweeping it across the sky. All of the Otherworld cultivators who had been pressing down so arrogantly moments ago were now trembling in terror. In an instant, dozens of Otherworld cultivators turned to ash and vanished.

Wu Ming and the others stared in stunned disbelief. Xiao Chen's current strength left them deeply shaken.

"Ya ya! Keke, quickly open Paradise Lost and gather all the cultivators within these mountain ranges!"

"Let's go!"

Xiao Chen, with Keke in tow, rushed deep into the Curse World. Energy fluctuations pulsed through the air from time to time; clearly, fierce battles were erupting in more than one location.

"Huh?"

Xiao Chen was startled. Ahead of him, a hazy Taiji Diagram swept across the sky. Dense clusters of Otherworld cultivators fell like ants, dying in droves.

By the time Xiao Chen reached the scene, the Taiji Diagram had already vanished, leaving behind only a group of Nine Provinces cultivators who had narrowly escaped death.

"Taiji... Zhang Sanfeng!" A strange light shone in Xiao Chen's eyes. He had always felt deep reverence and admiration for this brilliant, extraordinary figure of a thousand generations.

He knew that if this incredible man did not fall, becoming an Ancestral God was only a matter of time. In the Half-Ancestor realm, Zhang Sanfeng had already comprehended most of the universe's origins and the divine laws of the myriad worlds, much like the ancient Zhuangzi. He did not merely possess a single Ancestral God battle suit through sheer effort like Xiao Chen.

This extraordinary man should have been able to leave on the Ancestral Dragon Ship, yet he had chosen to stay. One could imagine he intended to attain the Ancestral God position in this perilous, death-defying environment.

Clearly, Zhang Sanfeng had sensed Xiao Chen's arrival and departed. A powerhouse of this level had his own code of conduct.

Xiao Chen moved swiftly through the Curse World, gathering nearly half the cultivators into Keke's Paradise Lost. Just then, Yan Huang, the Old Ancestral Dragon, and the others burst forth from the abyss, appearing in the same mountain range where Xiao Chen stood. All of them wore expressions of extreme gravity.

"Let's go!"

The old farmer said in a low, urgent voice to Xiao Chen.

"We've only taken a small portion of the cultivators. There are still many we haven't collected," Xiao Chen replied.

"There's no time! Quickly, take out the stone skull and conceal all our auras!" Yan Huang said with solemn determination.

Startled, Xiao Chen let the stone skull appear in his palm, hiding the presence of the Ancestral Gods present.

"The entire Curse World has been sealed off. It will be very difficult for us to return to the Death World."

As he spoke, the Ancestral Gods and Xiao Chen shifted horizontally across thousands of li, appearing in another stretch of ancient mountains.

"A Supreme Ancestral God of the Otherworld has made his move!" the Old Ancestral Dragon announced, delivering such grim tidings.

This was enough to make one's scalp tingle. The dreadful power of a Supreme Ancestral God was too terrifying. Once they acted, it would surely be earth-shattering, ensuring an enemy's fall.

"It seems the Dead City we prepared won't be needed. We've already alarmed the Otherworld's Supreme Ancestral Gods. Their strength is truly horrifying," Mo Xiaowang sighed in such a manner.

"It was originally meant to draw their attention, but we didn't expect them to come so quickly..." Yan Huang's words were strange. This made Xiao Chen think even more about the Ancestral Gods' hidden intentions. It seemed there was indeed another purpose.

Just then, three divine lights appeared in the sky over the Curse World. The Immortal Shield, the Demonic Blade, and the Thirty-Three-Layered Pagoda manifested simultaneously.

"Three Supreme Ancestral Gods have struck at once!" The old swindler, the Martial Imprint, suddenly changed color. At this moment, he was no longer as lackadaisical as before.

Nine figures appeared in the sky over the Curse World in an instant. Otherworld Ancestral Gods had descended, about to strike at them!

The situation had reached its most dire extreme!

Right then, a Heavenly Stele in the direction of the abyss began to expand violently, towering above all the giant peaks. In an instant, it pierced the heavens, not only forcing back the nine hazy figures but also surging madly upward toward the supreme treasures of the three Supreme Ancestral Gods.