Chapter 4584 — The Third Exit

This answer did not surprise Wei Zhao in the least; now that it was confirmed, he could not help but feel a stir of solemn respect. He and the Five-Venom Flood Dragon had never so much as crossed paths, but the creature had, after all, been a top-tier spiritual beast who once stood at the very summit—and this was the reverence one owed the strong. Especially since, dead as it now was, it still gathered about itself such a terrifying aura that the greatness of its living strength could well be imagined.

Wei Zhao sighed inwardly. Had it not fallen foul of the Vermilion Bird's treachery, this Five-Venom Flood Dragon would very likely have contended for the seat of the new Azure Dragon Elder—a transcendent being who stood at the very top of Cloud-Tier Island, summoning wind and cloud at a word. But now dust had returned to dust, and all of it had melted into drifting cloud.

"Why have you not built it a dragon tomb? Not even a decent gravestone—how is it to rest in peace after death, treated like this?" the ghost thing suddenly popped out of Wei Zhao's body and said to the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits in a severe tone.

The aura here would not disperse, and that was precisely because the Five-Venom Flood Dragon's obsession lingered. That being so, even though the beast was dead, it could never be released, and could only sink forever into endless obsession and resentment—surely the most pitiful fate a dragon could suffer.

"Senior Ghost, I wanted to build my master a dragon tomb too, but before he died my master gave me his orders: unless I set up his stele with the Vermilion Bird's bones, he would not close his eyes in death. Those were my master's last commands, and I dare not disobey them!" the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits said, both eyes red.

The ghost thing and Wei Zhao fell silent at once, and without any prior agreement both bowed deeply to the Five-Venom Flood Dragon. Then the ghost thing sighed and said, "Very well. Since your master left such a dying wish, bend yourself to that direction with all your heart, and do not make him wait too long. That Vermilion Bird bastard will not strut much longer, I promise you."

"I know. One day, sooner or later, I will use the Vermilion Bird's corpse to make offering to my master's spirit in heaven!" the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits said, drawing a deep breath, its tone firm.

To this day the Vermilion Bird was an opponent the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits was bound to destroy, whether for the Five-Venom Flood Dragon's sake or its own. Yet that opponent was far too strong, far too dreadful; even though the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits was now a being of the Earth-Splitting stage, it could still do nothing but hide here and play the shrinking turtle.

Endure and endure again—only when its strength was great enough could the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits burst forth like an evil dragon loosed upon the world, and make the Vermilion Bird pay in blood!

Wei Zhao stood to one side and said nothing. There was no real grudge between him and the Vermilion Bird, but if ever he gained sufficient strength, he too would inevitably strike at it. After all, both the ghost thing and the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits were locked with this Vermilion Bird in a feud that only death could end.

The party lingered a while at the Five-Venom Flood Dragon's grave, then took flight once more and pressed on. At full speed, the spiritual bird flew for a good half-hour before Wei Zhao finally caught up with the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits, which was waiting ahead.

This place was already very far from that stretch of Five-Venom Swamp, and even so Wei Zhao had found no trace of its borders or its end. The vastness of this mysterious space beneath him was truly beyond all reckoning.

"If I haven't misjudged, the third exit should be right above us," the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits said, pointing overhead.

Wei Zhao looked up at the sound of its voice. The sight was identical to before—still the ceaselessly drifting Five Elements killing qi, with not the slightest difference to be seen. Yet that was hardly strange; even back at the original place, Wei Zhao could not have pierced the Five Elements killing qi with the naked eye to see the Five-Venom Swamp above. The only way to know what lay overhead was to go up and see.

"Up there... where is it?" Wei Zhao could not help asking. Having finally found a possible exit, he could barely restrain the urge to try it.

"I don't know. My master would not let me go up, and it seems it never went itself. The only reason it knew of this place at all was word passed down from the old flood dragon of the previous generation. But be that as it may, one thing is certain: there is danger up there. So whether or not to leave by this route—you truly must think it over carefully," the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits said, its tone grave for once.

Danger there certainly was. Otherwise the Five-Venom Flood Dragon would never have warned the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits so; if beings of their strength had to be so cautious, then for Wei Zhao, whose strength stood only at the peak of the early Nascent Soul stage, the degree of danger could well be imagined.

The old Western Mountain Sect was dangerous, and the spiritual beast clan was dangerous, and yet this unknown land above might well be more dangerous than the two of them combined. If that proved so, Wei Zhao would not even be able to cry.

Wei Zhao gritted his teeth and turned to look at the ghost thing drifting beside him. He was unwilling to give up just like that. He knew full well how perilous this place was, but compared with the other two exits it at least offered a thread of possibility. After all, going out by either of the other two meant, nine parts out of ten, being killed on the spot or driven back; this one before him at least left room for some hopeful imagining.

"Judging by the distance and direction we flew just now, I can roughly work out what's above us. No wonder the Five-Venom Flood Dragon would not let the lad of five baleful spirits go up here—I'd have done the same myself," the ghost thing said, its tone somewhat complicated.

Though the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits was nominally master of this space, it knew nothing at all of what lay above. The ghost thing, by contrast, knew it like the palm of its hand; after all, the South Continent had once been its stronghold, and the whole map of the South Continent was stored in its mind. So long as the direction could be fixed, it could naturally find the corresponding place on that map.

Something in the ghost thing's tone made Wei Zhao's heart tighten. He asked hastily, "Above us is..."

"The Endless Sea!" the ghost thing said slowly, spitting out those four words.

"The sea?" Wei Zhao was struck dumb. He had assumed it would be somewhere like the core interior of South Island, and had even wondered whether it might be the territory of some top-tier spiritual beast like the Vermilion Bird—never had he expected such an answer.

Even the Dragon of Five Baleful Spirits beside him was somewhat taken aback. Since being transported here it had never once gone out, and the Five-Venom Flood Dragon had scarcely spoken of such things to it; of the sea around Cloud-Tier Island it knew nothing at all.

"There's no mistake. Judging by the position, up there is certainly no longer land. It is the Endless Sea itself, and some distance from South Island," the ghost thing said with certainty.

"Since it's the sea, what danger could there be?" Wei Zhao asked, puzzled. The most fearsome thing in the South Continent was undoubtedly the spiritual beast clan; so long as he could avoid them, and avoid the old Western Mountain Sect as well, Wei Zhao felt there should be nothing left to make him shrink back—at least, withdrawing in one piece should be no great problem. (To be continued...)