The Legend of the Netherworld

Chapter 135 The three of them came to the ancient forest again

At the same time, Lin Xiao and Lin Jiao Ye Xuan had taken advantage of the early morning light and were quickly moving between the trees in the forest.

The fog around them had not yet completely dissipated, crystal dewdrops hung on the leaves, and the air was fresh, but their speed was not slow at all, and their movements were as swift as the wind.

At this moment, Lin Jiao caught up with Lin Xiao, a look of confusion on her face. She whispered, "Yu Fei wasn't assigned by Zhang Ning to monitor you, so how come he's now your eye?"

Lin Xiao's eyes flashed with a subtle cunning, and he chuckled and replied, "No, I just felt that he was too annoying to be in the back mountain every day, so I asked him to monitor Zhang Ning."

"Can you trust him?" Lin Jiao frowned slightly, with obvious distrust in her tone.

Lin Xiao smiled calmly, his eyes firm: "Of course not, but I believe Zhang Ning would not trust a double agent either."

Lin Jiao immediately revealed a smile of appreciation and nodded, a flicker of admiration in her eyes: "I see, what a counter-espionage tactic."

Ye Xuan overheard their conversation and interjected, "However, since Zhang Ning has also gone to the Ancient Forest, we're in some trouble now. He might have made it into the middle layer of the forest. Aren't you worried that he might attack us when we're not paying attention?"

Lin Xiao shook his head, looking confident. "I believe Zhang Ning has no reason to attack me with both of you present. After all, he is still a student of Feng Shui Academy. He is not stupid to attack me under your noses."

Ye Xuan replied with a hint of worry: "Not necessarily." There was a hint of uneasiness in her tone.

The three of them talked as they moved at full speed, their eyes fixed on the ancient forest ahead.

At the same time, Zhang Ning had successfully eliminated the cobalt guards at the outer and middle gates, and easily stepped into the core area of ​​the ancient forest.

Along the way, the sounds of wind and leaves rubbing against each other in the forest seemed extremely quiet and strange, and not even a single human monk was seen.

Zhang Ning stopped and looked down at the package on his back. After confirming that everything inside was intact, he confidently walked towards the cobalt guard standing in front of the middle gate of the ancient forest.

He was a powerful guard in the Jiayin fifth realm, wearing heavy armor. He had a powerful aura and held an extremely sharp axe in his hand, which was placed directly across the doorway, like an insurmountable barrier.

Zhang Ning approached the cobalt guard, smiled slightly, and said without hesitation: "I will challenge you."

When the Cobalt Guard saw Zhang Ning approaching, his expression suddenly became serious, and the spiritual power in his body surged instantly. In the blink of an eye, he had crossed a distance of several feet and rushed straight towards Zhang Ning.

The axe in his hand was like an overwhelming mountain, chopping down with the power to destroy the world.

Zhang Ning's eyes remained calm and his face expressionless. He was not at all panicked and did not even try to defend himself.

He slowly formed seals and his body swayed slightly. The next moment, a light shield spread out like water waves, blocking the oncoming axe.

The light shield was on the verge of exploding, and then it made a startling sound. Several cracks spread rapidly, and it seemed that it would break at any time.

However, just as the light shield was about to collapse, a sharp light blade suddenly appeared behind the Cobalt Guard, cutting through the air like lightning and hitting his armor and stomach hard.

The Cobalt Guard groaned, his blood boiling. He turned around in fear, trying to use all his strength to smash the light shield in front of him while fighting back against the threat behind him.

But the incoming blades of light didn't give him time to react. Two, three, four... until five blades of light, like arrows, pierced the air and struck his back without hesitation.

The Cobalt Guard swung the axe in his hand with all his might, trying to use his great strength to block the light blades one by one. However, as the light blades attacked continuously, his body finally couldn't bear it and he fell heavily to the ground.

Zhang Ning remained calm, his gaze unwavering, as if all this was within his expectations.

He didn't stop, nor did he even glance at the fallen Cobalt Guard. He picked up the package on his back and walked calmly towards the door.

Zhang Ning walked deeper into the core layer of the ancient forest until he reached the Forgetful Valley. He stopped, raised his brows slightly, as if thinking about something, and then walked into the valley.

At this time, Lin Xiao and the other three finally reached the outermost layer of the Ancient Forest. They were much faster than ordinary cultivators, but they did not rush to challenge the cobalt guards at the gate. Instead, they walked towards some stalls at the gate, looking for suitable equipment.

They stopped at a shoe and hat stall, each of them selecting suitable clothing. After all, wearing the Taoist robes of the Feng Shui Academy to challenge the Demon King directly would be too conspicuous and not in line with their low-key style.

A few minutes later, the three of them had chosen their favorite clothes. After Lin Xiao paid, he walked up to the stall owner and asked, "Stall owner, has anything strange happened in the Ancient Forest recently? We haven't been here for a while, so we don't know much about the current situation."

The stall owner looked Lin Xiao and the others over from head to toe, seeming to sense that they were not ordinary cultivators. He smiled slightly and asked, "You three have extraordinary bearings. Are you heading to the middle level of the Ancient Forest?"

"Why does the stall owner ask that?" Ye Xuan asked back coldly with a hint of vigilance in her eyes.

The stall owner raised his eyebrows, his smile still lingering, and then whispered, "Since you don't want to talk about it, I won't ask any more questions. I'll just remind you that if you really want to go to the middle level, now is not a good time for human monks to go."

"Why?" Lin Jiao couldn't help but ask, curiosity flashing in her eyes.

The stall owner paused briefly, his expression becoming serious. "A few days ago, for unknown reasons, two demon kings from the middle levels of the Desolate Ancient Forest—the Green Forest Flower Demon and the Ancient Tree Spirit Master—started slaughtering the human cultivators from the middle levels overnight. Even the disciples of Tianci Cave and Jinhai Temple were not spared. The elders of the two major sects came to demand an explanation."

"What's the result?" Lin Xiao's heart moved, realizing that if the two demon kings were killed by other cultivators, the treasure map in his hand would be lost, so he asked hurriedly.

The stall owner frowned slightly, a hint of worry in his eyes. "The outcome is unknown. After that, the two demon kings intensified their slaughter of mid-level cultivators. For a short period of time, almost no one dared to easily enter the middle level."

Hearing this, Lin Xiao felt a little relieved. He recalled the Tianci Cave disciple token he had found in a tree hole in the middle level, and a thought suddenly emerged in his mind - could these people be important disciples of Tianci Cave?

"Thank you for the reminder, stall owner." Lin Xiao smiled slightly, said goodbye to the stall owner, and left the stall with Lin Jiao and Ye Xuan.

The three of them walked out of the stall and prepared to go to the cobalt guard in front of the gate. Lin Xiao turned to the two of them and asked, "After hearing what the stall owner said, what do you think? Do you still dare to go?"

Lin Jiao and Ye Xuan's faces remained calm, unmoved by the stall owner's words. They replied in unison, "We have no feelings at all, so why would we be afraid?"

Lin Xiao was stunned. At first he thought they would have some concerns, but the result was this answer.

He smiled helplessly, a hint of confusion on his face, and asked, "What sects are the Tianci Cave and Jinhai Temple mentioned by the stall owner? Why have I never heard of them?"

Ye Xuan replied casually, "Those are some relatively ordinary sects. They are not very powerful, even more ordinary than the Feng Shui Academy."

Lin Xiao suddenly understood, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and he understood in his heart - no wonder he had never heard of it. After all, Feng Shui Academy's status in the entire Zhenwu Continent is already very ordinary.

As soon as he finished speaking, the three of them had already stood in front of the outermost gate of the Ancient Forest, and in front of them was the Cobalt Guard of the Jiazi Fifth Realm.