Chapter 41: The Wandering Immortal Xu Nan, the Unknown Great Demon
“Something’s wrong.”
Perched atop Ao Run’s head, Su Yu felt increasingly uneasy. He was certain that Ao Run’s earlier perception was not an illusion.
“Someone must be following us.”
He pursed his lips and opened his interface, his gaze falling on the Invisibility Technique. Without hesitation, he spent 20 million cultivation points and 120 Dao Essence to upgrade the spell to the second level.
Then, he activated the Mustard Seed Concealment Technique to suppress his aura and spiritual energy, followed by the Invisibility Technique, causing his figure to vanish.
The moment he disappeared, Xia Ning behind them suddenly stopped and said,
“Strange, his movements have become vague all of a sudden.”
“Could it be some kind of aura-concealing or invisibility technique?”
“Probably.”
“But it doesn’t matter. If he can turn invisible and the flood dragon cannot, we just need to follow him…”
Before the sentence was finished, voices suddenly came through the team channel from Fang Zeyang and Kang Tianqi:
“Huh, why is there laughter?”
“Wow, so many beauties.”
“Captain, wait for me, I’ll be right back.”
Then, silence.
The group immediately halted, exchanging confused and suspicious glances toward Kong He’an. Kong He’an himself looked puzzled as he gazed at the clear river water ahead, where wavy, dreamlike colorful light ribbons began to drift outward.
Just moments ago, Fang Zeyang and Kang Tianqi, acting on his orders to cross this fissure and overtake Su Yu, had vanished into those colorful bands of light.
“Run!”
While others were still bewildered, Ao Run, who was circumventing the fissure, suddenly sprang up like a cat stepped on, turned around without a word, and fled.
Naturally, Su Yu didn’t hesitate. He immediately grabbed the dorsal fin of the flood dragon and fled as well.
Looking back, the fissure emitted streams of colorful, ethereal light, dazzling and beautiful, almost beckoning him to come closer.
“Hehe!”
A delicate female laughter echoed nearby:
“Young master, come and play.”
Su Yu’s eyes grew distant and unfocused. Unconsciously, he let go and turned, reaching out toward the colored light.
“Bang!”
A massive flood dragon’s tail swung around, smacking him back and snapping him out of his trance. Su Yu was shocked to realize he had unknowingly released his grip and was drifting toward the fissure.
“What just happened to me?”
A wave of fear washed over him. Turning back, he grabbed the blue flood dragon’s dorsal fin again and asked,
“Why did I let go?”
The blue flood dragon’s voice came softly:
“I don’t know what it is, but don’t look back.”
Su Yu fought his curiosity and asked,
“Is that an illusion?”
“Is there a demon king inside?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been in.”
He shut his mouth, suppressing his curiosity.
With the blue flood dragon’s warning, he was able to resist temptation, but Kong He’an and the others weren’t so fortunate. Almost everyone instinctively gazed at the dreamlike colored light rising from the fissure and then, with enchanted smiles, drifted toward it.
They quickly reached the fissure and without hesitation, flew into the dark abyss below.
After a long while, treasure light appeared inside, and dark currents surged, but then it quickly dissipated, and the water returned to calm.
Su Yu was unaware of all this. They had already moved seven or eight kilometers from the fissure and dared not look back, not knowing that the followers behind them were Kong He’an’s group, nor that none of them had escaped the fissure.
Yet this place left a deep impression on him. He deliberately opened his map and marked the spot with a skull symbol.
“I still don’t know what’s inside.”
He remained curious, but only curious—he would never dare to explore further, not before crossing at least one heavenly tribulation and gaining enough confidence.
Half an hour later, one dragon and one person circled around the fissure and resumed their journey.
Seven hours later, they finally crossed thousands of kilometers to a certain underwater area at the riverbed—a vast sunken canyon slanting deep into the riverbed, endless and unseen at its depths.
“So much spiritual energy!”
The valley floor was lush with thriving vegetation, various aquatic spirits and monsters circled within, and giant river snail spirits crowded the muddy crevices and soil—some the size of small round tables, others as large as tiny villas.
In the section of the sunken valley occupied by these river snail spirits grew clusters of turquoise cold lotuses.
Deep within that vast patch of turquoise cold lotuses was a...
“Huh?”
Su Yu suddenly stood up, eyes wide with surprise as he looked toward the edge of the river valley, where a distinct artificial stone cavern entrance nestled among the lotuses.
He pointed and asked,
“Is that a cave dwelling?”
Ao Run glanced over and shook his head:
“The cave dwelling is empty.”
“Ah…”
“Well then.”
Disappointed, Su Yu clicked his tongue and said,
“Let’s get to work. First, clear out the nearby monsters.”
---
Ao Run opened his mouth and spat out a blue orb like a shooting star, carving a clear path through the water.
“Bang!”
A river snail spirit’s shell was smashed open, its body matter sprayed out as the meteor orb pierced through.
The blue flood dragon pounced, smashing with its thick tail. The shell cracked, and with both claws, it pressed the fissure, shattering the shell into pieces.
Meanwhile, Su Yu was busy too. Using the Sun-Covering and Ice Soul swords in tandem, he ensnared a level 82 giant-mouth fat fish spirit not far off, weaving his swords around its body in an intricate dance, blood splattering continuously.
However, the level 82 monster had over 100,000 health points and strong defense. The Ice Soul sword cut like scraping weeds on its sturdy scales.
Fortunately, the Sun-Covering sword dealt enough damage—roughly six to seven thousand per strike—to slowly wear it down for eventual defeat.
The downside was the low efficiency; for leveling, monsters around level 60 were more suitable.
Unconsciously, they fought until dusk, and the underwater world darkened further.
Su Yu considered briefly, summoned Ao Run, and circled toward another abandoned cave dwelling deeper in the valley.
Suppressing their aura and using invisibility, they approached. The blue flood dragon took out a few wandering fish spirits and river snails nearby while Su Yu stood carefully before the stone door, then pushed it open.
Good news: no monsters had taken over the cave.
Bad news: it was empty, nothing inside.
Better news still: at the center of the main hall’s stone pillar hung a stone tablet inscribed with a line of words:
“Behind the stone tablet in the pillar lies a Water-Repelling Pearl. It allows temporary refuge; do not remove the pearl.”
Su Yu removed the tablet, revealing a recess in the pillar where a blue orb was embedded. He pressed his hand on it and infused it with magic power. The Water-Repelling Pearl activated, creating an invisible force that expelled all water, draining the entire cave.
“Such a thoughtful soul!”
Clearly, someone had left it behind to assist others.
Su Yu immediately decided not to leave tonight but to stay and deal with matters here.
He took some food from his storage space, closed the stone door, and lay down on the stone bed.
As for Ao Run, nighttime was her most energetic period; she was outside wreaking havoc.
Closing his eyes and ignoring the outside world, Su Yu drifted into sleep.
---
How long passed, he was suddenly jolted awake by violent trembling.
“An earthquake?”
He got up, listening carefully, then heard furious roars outside. His expression changed:
“Did Ao Run provoke a BOSS?”
He quickly pushed open the door. Blue light from elite Water Spirits illuminated the surroundings, divine water thunderclaps erupted repeatedly, and Ao Run weaved through the blue cloud of Water Spirit elites, continuously releasing blue lightning pillars that crackled across the water.
Su Yu looked upward. The sporadic bursts of divine water thunder illuminated the depths above, revealing a figure protected by an invisible light sphere, standing unmoved despite the relentless lightning strikes.
The figure wielded a white banner, waving it as countless sword energies rained down in a vast storm.
Above them, suspended a thousand meters underwater, was a colossal cauldron encircled by red flames, continuously radiating waves of fire that did not extinguish in water but boiled the river itself.
Beneath the giant cauldron, Ao Run’s blue orb shone with infinite blue light, spreading layers of protection that blocked the fiery cauldron and flames above.
Above, the raging flames consumed the sea; below, the water lay pure and green—two worlds distinctly separated.
“Who is this expert?”
At that moment, the figure noticed Su Yu emerging and let out a soft “hmm,” followed by a refined, gentle voice:
“Is this flood dragon your pet?”
Su Yu paused, then nodded:
“Yes.”
“That’s a misunderstanding. Tell your pet to stop.”
The man retracted his banner and, with his right hand, gestured as a wave of flames flowed toward the giant cauldron.
Su Yu quickly sent a message to Ao Run:
“Stop fighting. This is a misunderstanding.”
Seeing the opponent withdraw his weapon, Ao Run retracted her orb and slowly descended beside Su Yu.
The middle-aged man landed gracefully. Su Yu cupped his fists in greeting:
“Qianyu Guild, Su Yu, greetings, senior.”
The man returned the gesture warmly, his voice magnetic and gentle:
“Danxia Sect, Xu Nan.”
His gaze briefly flicked to the nervous Ao Run and nodded in approval:
“Your spiritual pet is impressive.”
Su Yu quickly withdrew the knowledge of Xu Nan’s level 142 and replied respectfully:
“You flatter me, senior.”
Xu Nan smiled, changing the subject, looking behind Su Yu:
“This is a temporary refuge I set up.”
Su Yu was surprised:
“You created this, senior?”
“For a while, I trained here long-term. There are no nearby towns, so I made a temporary cave to save time.”
Su Yu quickly said:
“If it belongs to you, senior, it shall be yours.”
Xu Nan waved his hand:
“No need. I’m just passing by and wanted to check in.”
Su Yu was speechless.
Xu Nan simply left—just passing through, indeed.
Su Yu waited at the door for a while, reminded Ao Run to stay alert, then turned back inside to rest.
---
He couldn’t sleep—he didn’t dare.
Who knew if Xu Nan was truly just passing by? What if he had designs on Ao Run?
After pacing back and forth for a while, Su Yu decided to leave, taking Ao Run with him.
Minutes later, they surfaced and flew toward the shore.
In the air, Su Yu opened his map; no towns nearby. He took out his spiritual fish flying shuttle, dove in, and hovered silently near the shore, waiting for dawn.
The shuttle’s interior was spacious enough—five meters long when unfolded, with a diameter of one and a half meters—just enough for one person and a shrunken flood dragon to lie comfortably.
Windows ringed the sides, and through the transparent light barrier, the night sky was clearly visible.
Cool night breezes stirred ripples along the shore. The starry sky shimmered, with massive bands of light stretching across the horizon like a celestial river. A huge moon hung like a jade disk in the firmament, its radiance mingling with countless stars, illuminating the distant world.
“So beautiful.”
Not a trace of pollution—this world was breathtaking.
“In the future, once powerful enough, I can travel eastward across the seas and lodge in Cangwu by night.”
He rested his hands behind his head, quietly watching the starry sky, colorful lights flickering from time to time.
“So beautiful!”
“No.”
Suddenly alert, he sat up. The spiritual fish shuttle turned around, and he saw from the southeast direction of the Yuan River faint streams of colored light shooting skyward, brightening that stretch of water.
“What’s that?”
He twisted the sleeping blue flood dragon, holding it up to the window and shook it:
“Look quickly.”
Ao Run drowsily awakened, then straightened, dashed out, and flew high to take a look. Returning, she said:
“Let’s go check it out.”
Su Yu asked curiously:
“What’s happening over there?”
“Looks like someone entered the fissure.”
“Someone challenging the existence inside the fissure?”
“Most likely.”
Su Yu immediately urged the spiritual fish shuttle to fly toward the scene.
As they approached, the colored light became clearer. They saw a huge fiery vortex in the water, where flames mixed with the river, steam rising in billowing clouds.
“This is…”
It felt familiar.
Su Yu controlled the shuttle to ascend, observing from above. Soon, he saw the vague outline of the giant cauldron beneath the boiling river water.
“That’s Xu Nan’s magic treasure.”
“Is he challenging something inside the fissure?”
At that moment, Ao Run circled behind Su Yu and came to his front, eager and excited:
“Do you want to go down and see what’s inside the fissure?”
Su Yu shook his head firmly:
“No, too dangerous.”
“I’ll go check!”
Su Yu immediately grabbed her by the neck:
“You’re not going either.”
What a joke—if she got caught up in a misunderstanding down there, what then?
The blue flood dragon instantly drooped, lying beside him, lazily swaying her tail.
“Boom!”
A muffled rumble came from the water. Terrifying waves of energy exploded beneath the riverbed, sending surging dark currents outward that formed towering waves crashing in all directions.
“Boom!”
Within a thousand-meter radius, the water surface arched upward. Columns of blazing fire shot through the river, some even piercing out sharp sword energies.
“What a powerful treasure.”
Su Yu estimated silently—the fiery cauldron was at least an eighth-rank artifact.
At that moment, a spiritual-winged flying boat approached from the horizon, paused briefly, then flew toward him. It stopped beside the spiritual fish shuttle. About fifty people were aboard, and a young man at the center approached, cupping his fists politely:
“Brother, do you know what’s happening here?”
Su Yu returned the greeting:
“A wandering immortal expert is farming a BOSS underwater.”
“Thanks!”
“No problem.”
The young man returned to his flying boat, spoke briefly to his companions, and they began to watch the spectacle.
Soon after, another flying boat arrived from afar, learned the situation, and also stopped to watch.
Over time, more and more night owls were drawn by the unusual phenomena, gathering nearly a hundred people.
“Boom!”
The river water suddenly bulged. Flames exploded, and the giant cauldron was blasted from the riverbed by overwhelming force.
Then, streams of colored light surged from the water. Beautiful singing and laughter echoed.
Countless people who heard the laughter grew dazed, unconsciously leaping from their boats and flying toward the river surface.