Chapter 250: Mysterious energy depletion [I]
Thank you JinTian, DaoistTrumpet, DaoistMiRVYk, Weerea, FDHS, isaiah_man123, Sami_Akbas_6673, _The_Big_Dog_91, Sami_Hussain for your support with GT.
====
Xie Qing left his dwelling place after two hours. To his great fortune, he managed to leave before Xiao He arrived at the same location.
Xiao He looked around with an expressionless face and narrowed his eyes as he looked beneath the ground.
“This Qi… is depleted. How strange. Could there be some issues with the underground currents? But that can’t be, right?” Xiao He wondered.
Surprisingly, he didn’t even consider the possibility that someone might have simply absorbed this energy. After all, even he, as a cultivator at the Divine Transformation stage, did not possess the qualifications to even attempt to touch this energy.
The same applied to Hao Shen, who almost lost his arm during his first attempt to make contact. They conducted an investigation and realized that as long as they didn’t touch this energy, everything was relatively safe.
It was precisely because of this that Xiao He had the courage to use this energy as fuel for the formations. Therefore, seeing the sudden disappearance of the fuel, he was annoyed and surprised.
“This… is a problem. If I can’t restore the currents, then one of the four formations will go into sleep mode and become useless,” Xiao He thought, rubbing his chin. “I’ll have to resort to extreme measures.”
***
Xie Qing woke up early in the morning and yawned. His cultivation level had undergone changes, and he was now at the sixth stage of Spiritual Enlightenment. It seemed that his journey into the devilish world—let’s call the space beyond the barrier that—had brought him many benefits, despite the dangers.
Therefore, his mood was high from the very morning. He would have liked to drink a little to celebrate, but he thought that drinking alone was too lonely.
“Speaking of loneliness…” Xie Qing’s eyelids drooped as he remembered the female silhouettes and their warmth. He sighed, “I miss them. A bit of softness, but what can I do? I never liked being alone…”
Scratching his cheek, the young man stood up. Anyway, what was the point of sitting and complaining about life? He still had to figure out how to access the altar. That was his primary goal.
“Something that can transform people into demon hybrids. Even if it’s just a tiny part of the blood, I can’t be reckless. Even an ant can defeat an elephant if there are many of them,” Xie Qing thought and furrowed his brows, which met at the bridge of his nose. “After I destroyed the altar of the Sect of Bone Circle, the main altar is likely the one with Hao Shen. My goal is to figure out how to infiltrate there and destroy it as soon as possible. This time, it won’t be so easy.”
Xie Qing was not naive enough to think he could eliminate the danger alone. To be honest, the chances of success were so slim that it was even irritating. Moreover…
“Only one is left,” he couldn’t help but sigh.
Those who had infiltrated the devilish world with him. Only one of them was still alive. It seemed that this world was much more dangerous. Especially after his step, everything had likely become more complicated.
“I am partly to blame for their deaths. However, these are necessary sacrifices. I will also become a sacrifice if needed,” the young man thought, and his face darkened.
The thought of death scared him. Of course, he couldn’t hope that he would always be lucky. Someday, there would come a moment when he would be in such a bad situation that death would be the only salvation.
This was the life of a cultivator. On the edge of life and death, fighting to the end.
Xie Qing sat by the extinguished fire and pondered.
***
“And… depleted?” Hao Shen uttered a puzzled sound.
“Yes, Your Majesty. I think it could be due to changes in the underground currents, which is not uncommon for Qi. Of course, it’s hard to say if this is true for this new energy. But I will try to conduct an investigation and provide a report,” Xiao He said politely, bowing his head with a calm voice.
“Haaah… what an unpleasant incident. Could this be why my nerves are on edge?” Hao Shen voiced his thoughts aloud and shook his head.
He did not hesitate to show weakness to his assistant. After all, he had made a contract with him that was not easy to break. That was why Hao Shen did not restrain himself.
Looking intently at his servant, Hao Shen propped up his chin (in human form) and asked curiously, “Do you think we can restore the current to its previous state?” Hao Shen asked, although it was more of a rhetorical question.
Xiao He did not answer immediately—after all, despite his confidence, he could not know much about the mysterious energy that had been discovered only three hundred years ago. Such a period was quite short, and considering all the complexities, even a thousand years would seem like a brief time for research.
Therefore, Xiao He gave a brief but fair and honest answer.
“It’s difficult.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Hao Shen was not disappointed. He had not held much hope for this fleeting thought and did not intend to force Xiao He to work on it. In any case, the formation could always be powered using the souls of evil spirits, which would provide them with long-term energy.
Hao Shen sighed. Lately, his life had become noticeably more complicated. Besides the numerous problems that could not be easily solved, there was also the depletion of energy. Who knows, maybe other places would follow suit?
And while he was lost in thought…
“Your Majesty, a messenger from the Sect of Bone Circle requests an audience…” Xiao He said, looking surprised.
“Oh? Really? I thought they would wait a little longer… pfft,” Hao Shen scoffed and disdainfully curled his lips, looking towards the gate. Then he waved his hand, as if it was too much trouble to show anger. “Let him in, let him tell us why he has come. Although I already have a rough idea why.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
***
Following Hao Shen’s words, Xiao He admitted the elder of the Sect of Bone Circle. His name was Elder Mao.
He walked towards the throne and stopped at a distance of twenty meters, then respectfully bowed. His status allowed him to avoid the tedious formalities of kneeling and bowing to the ground the entire time.
Hao Shen looked at Elder Mao with an indifferent gaze. Although there was neither anger nor pressure in his eyes, the messenger from the Sect of Bone Circle still felt the pressure.
“L-lord… I have come to convey information regarding the Sect of Bone Circle. Our elders, together with the Sect master, respectfully request that Sovereign Hao grant mercy and allow a group of disciples to participate in the ritual,” Elder Mao announced and began to sweat and tremble towards the end.
After all, with each word he spoke, the pressure on his mortal body increased. This was not good for his old bones, but what could he do? The other elders had buried their heads in the sand like ostriches, afraid that they would be devoured, bones and all.
Hao Shen secretly smiled. As expected, these guys were not very restrained, and despite the trouble they had caused, they dared to behave so shamelessly and pitifully.
“Elder Mao, correct? As a representative of the Sect of Bone Circle, you should be aware of why I am so reluctant to open the altar to you,” Hao Shen finally spoke, and it seemed that with his words, the pressure on the old man only intensified. The man narrowed his eyes and continued, “For your information, even my patience obviously has its limits. Not only did you lose the precious altar, but you also ask me to give you access to the only remaining altar. Don’t you think this is too shameless?”
“This…”
Elder Mao could not find the words to respond to this accusation. Logically, Hao Shen was right. They had committed a serious sin, and even if it was the fault of a spy, the Sect of Bone Circle also bore responsibility for not adequately protecting their altar.
That was why they found themselves in such a difficult situation, almost having to beg their rival for help on their knees. Did it look pitiful? Of course, it did.
Elder Mao clenched his teeth. Even this simple action required a great deal of effort, given the immense pressure he was facing. However, this step was necessary.
“P-please, Your Majesty…” he finally managed to say, before collapsing onto the carpet, unconscious.
“Tsk.”
Hao Shen clicked his tongue. What he saw was so pitiful and disgusting that he felt no sympathy at all.
However, it would be foolish to simply reject their only ally, considering they were still in the minority.
“Xiao He, wake him up.”
