"If you can help me break free and leave this cursed place, I'd be willing to be your bodyguard for life!" The elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan said excitedly.
Here, he was nothing more than a tool of the Nether Emperor, with no freedom at all. For so many years, he had guarded this cursed place, nearly driven mad.
The condition Long Chen proposed now was not a condition for him at all. Long Chen was already at the Immortal King realm, and at the human cultivation rate, advancing to Realm King would take as long as the blink of an eye for him.
As long as he could leave this place, he could do anything, because his true form was the Undying Dragon Pagoda, trapped in the Milky Way, whose laws relentlessly corroded his body, causing him unbearable pain.
For countless years, he had risked his life, barely managing to maintain his cultivation without falling, with no progress in his cultivation.
If he left here, he could continue cultivating, which would be a tremendous blessing for him.
"No need. Once I have the ability to protect myself, you can return to the Undying Realm and help me pass a message to the Undying Nether Willow clan. Help me find out the whereabouts of one friend—no, it should be two."
Long Chen had a feeling that Liu Ruyan would definitely be with Chu Yao. The two of them would never separate from the weight, and when Liu Ruyan returned to the Corpse Demon Forest, she would definitely bring Chu Yao along.
"Get ready. It might hurt a bit, so bear with it." As Long Chen spoke, he took a deep breath and lifted the left eyepatch.
"Buzz!" Long Chen's
left eye opened, and the Purgatory Flower appeared in his pupils once again. This time, Long Chen used his eye technique, and the Hell Flower spun within his eyes, unleashing a terrifying death force.
The Hell Flower mark on the altar rapidly lit up, and at the same time, strange patterns erupted on the elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan.
The elder of the Undying Dragon Huai clan couldn't help but let out a painful groan. His whole body trembled, but he endured it hard. Compared to freedom, this pain was nothing.
"Rumble... The
entire Demon Eye trembled, endless black energy forming death ripples, absorbed by Long Chen's Purgatory Eye.
Long Chen's eyes began to bleed again, this time more painful than before, but he was not afraid. He knew that this absorption would increase the upper limit the Purgatory Eye could endure and wouldn't cause much harm.
As long as he could hold on, the Purgatory Eye would grow stronger and stronger. The elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan was also in a tough spot, as if his entire soul was being stripped away. Yet he held back hard, refusing to make a sound.
Because he knew that the pain Long Chen endured was no less than his. As a powerful member of the Undying Dragon Huai clan, he had his own pride. He couldn't afford to be looked down upon in front of a junior.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, with a loud explosion, the entire Demon Eye trembled violently, and endless black energy surged into Long Chen's gaze in an instant.
Long Chen hurriedly closed his eyes. At this moment, half of his face was covered in black bloodstains, like a black spider web, making him look extremely frightening.
Long Chen's left eye burned with pain, as if the pupil was about to split open, and half of his head felt like it was about to burst.
"Master, are you alright?"
The elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan asked with concern.
At this moment, the elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan had eyes full of gratitude. Long Chen had actually removed the Nether Emperor's mark from him, finally breaking free and regaining his freedom.
"No need to call me Master. There's no need to be so formal. Just call me Long Chen." After a long while, Long Chen finally felt a bit better and signaled that he was fine.
"That won't do. Your great kindness is something I can never repay in my lifetime. You let me be your bodyguard. During this period, you are my master. The Undying Dragon Huai clan is definitely not ungrateful." The elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan said solemnly.
The Undying Dragon Locust Clan is also a renowned race in the Undying Realm, and they value their own reputation highly.
Having received such great favor from Long Chen, the elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan was filled with gratitude and had resolved to protect Long Chen to the death.
At this moment, Xia Chen, Guo Ran, and the others also arrived. Yu Qingxuan looked at Long Chen's painful expression, her face full of concern, but she didn't know what to say. She personally fed Long Chen a healing pill to ease his pain.
After taking a pill, Long Chen's pain eased considerably. The elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan said, "
Master, do you really want to accept this life crystal?" Once the Life Crystal is collected, the Demon Eye will collapse, likely attracting the Underworld Attendants to hunt them down. "
Senior, for the convenience of addressing you in the future, I'll call you Uncle Huai!" Uncle Huai, this life crystal is very useful to me. I must take it.
As for the rest, I can't worry about it anymore. Please help me protect it, and I'll use something to collect it. As
Long Chen spoke, he walked beneath the Life Crystal, formed hand seals, and as the void trembled, a bronze cauldron appeared—it was the Qiankun Cauldron.
Originally, the Qiankun Cauldron had always been like a lifeless object, and Long Chen could only use it to strike people and defend. But today, as soon as it appeared, countless runes around him trembled, as if it had come alive.
"Buzz!"
It actually leaned toward the massive life crystal, and the endless life force inside the crystal vanished in an instant.
You have to understand, that was an elder of the Undying Dragon Locust clan. Over countless years, he had collected the life force here, gathering the life essence of billions of powerful beings, and it actually drained it all in one gulp.
After absorbing the life crystal, many copper rusts fell off on the surface of the Qiankun Cauldron. The parts that fell off emitted a strange luster, and through that luster, one could see its mysterious patterns.
"Wow, with so much life force, only a third of it has rusted off. To truly reveal its true form, it needs at least two more life crystals like this." Long Chen was shocked. The Qiankun Cauldron truly lived up to its reputation as a chaotic artifact. It seemed restoring it would be no easy task.
"Buzz"
After some of the rust on the Qiankun Cauldron peeled off, Long Chen clearly felt a faint soul connection to it within himself.
"This ..." Long Chen's heart pounded wildly.
"That's right, you already have the ability to use it." said the dragon clan expert.
"Really?" Doesn't that mean I can use it to suppress the Celestial Venerable? Long Chen said excitedly.
"Yes, theoretically yes." said the dragon clan expert.
"What do you mean? "What do you mean... Long Chen couldn't help but ask.
"I said I had the ability to use it, not that you had the power to use it. You didn't hear clearly.
It is the Kun Cauldron within the Qiankun Cauldron, not a combat-type weapon. It mainly focuses on defense, but your current power is insufficient; you can't even activate a single rune, let alone activate its defensive power. The dragon clan expert said.
"Doesn't that mean you didn't say anything?" Long Chen said irritably, feeling happy for nothing.
"It can't be used for fighting, but it has other uses!"
"What is it used for?"
"For example, alchemy."
"What?"
Long Chen jumped up instantly.