Chapter 4: Spiritual Power Damage

  "Gourmand, look for where there are the most people nearby." A certain foodie's mouth was stuffed full, and upon hearing her words, the chewing motion in their mouth also came to a stop. Then, with a small pointing gesture, they continued eating with a crunching sound.

  Along the direction that Gluttony pointed, she accelerated lightly and walked away. At this time, her body seemed to have countless powers filling up, flowing slowly, wanting to break out of her body, but was suppressed by her.

  On the barren land, there was nothing, and seeing all this, she really didn't know how people here made a living. Thinking back to those people who always focused on her, their behavior was no different from that of bandits. Indeed, it's "dog-eat-dog", not one bit wrong, in this place if you don't have the strength, you can only end up with a tragic fate. What about her Ye'er? Is she safe now? Has she encountered any danger? No, no, it won't happen, her baby is very capable, and Ye'er is from the demon clan, how could these ordinary people possibly harm him? Repeatedly comforting herself, her restless heart finally calmed down. This was also the only thing she thanked that man for, passing on his talent and strength to Ye'er, allowing him to have the ability to protect himself.

  There is no sunlight, no water source, no day and night, nothing at all. All she sees and feels is oppression, endless oppression. It's really as empty as its name suggests. Even a normal person would go crazy here eventually. After walking for a long time, Ling Xiao had no way to tell the time, so he could only estimate in his heart that about three hours had passed.

  Until her feet were sore from walking, a dilapidated small city finally appeared in front of her. The broken and tattered city gate had a sign hanging crookedly on it, as if it would fall off at any moment. Upon closer inspection, there were bloodstains on it, both new and old, and the faint words "Red Su" could be seen. The city behind only had half of its buildings left.

  Step by step, she walked past, the entire Red Su City seemed like a giant beast with its mouth wide open, drooling and staring at every passerby, then swallowing them in one gulp! She shook off the negative emotions rising in her heart and stepped forward lightly. As soon as she reached the city gate, the dilapidated signboard suddenly emitted a glow, illuminating her from head to toe, before disappearing again, as if nothing had happened. Indeed, the injured man hadn't told her the truth earlier, and Qiankun walked in, still on high alert, unable to understand what was going on.

  The dilapidated streets, the sloping thatched cottages, as soon as she appeared, immediately attracted everyone's attention. No matter what they were doing, they stopped their movements and cast various glances at her - fierce, greedy, drooling, venomous... Indeed, compared to these tattered people, her white dress was truly a crane standing out among chickens. It's no wonder that it would attract the attention of these people. Moreover, in this desolate and treacherous world, there were only two kinds of people who could wear such clean clothes: one was those with high strength and power, who could snatch anything they wanted; the other was newcomers, naive and ignorant, who had just stepped into this filthy world.

  She didn't look very old, and people immediately judged her to be of the second kind. Recently, for some reason, many "new goods" have appeared in the void spirit realm, causing an explosion in every city. Following the principle that whoever strikes first is strong, these new goods are being frantically snatched up by everyone. Now that such a young and tender one has fallen into their hands, how can they not strip her of several layers to justify themselves?

  She moved cautiously, watching as these people crept closer and closer, their eyes gleaming with a wolfish gaze. Her heart suddenly filled with disgust, she had no intention of being treated like fresh meat. Anyone who wanted to devour her would have to see if they had sharp teeth first!

  Dozens of people slowly surrounded the young woman, they were all fugitives, what fairness could be spoken of? Without saying a word, they all thought of attacking her directly.

  "Halt!" A loud shout stopped the group in their tracks. "Is anyone here looking for food?"

  "Heh heh heh... Kill you, and everything will be ours..." A man with a scar on his face said sinisterly, taking another step closer to Qingkuang.

  "Kill me? You must have the ability to do so!" He took out a piece of cake from his spatial ring and bit into it, causing the people around him to turn green with envy, their expressions becoming even more ferocious. "Does anyone want some?"

  The heavy breathing grew louder, and everyone stared at what was in her hand, their eyes shining with excitement. They had forgotten how long it had been since they'd last eaten a proper meal, the metallic taste of blood having numbed them to it. Now, with this fragrant large pancake placed before them, how could they not be excited?

  Noticing their expressions, she smiled lightly and strangely. "I have some here, but how should you divide it among so many people?" She said with a seemingly troubled tone, leaving the people of Red Su City unsure of her meaning.

  With a violent temper, he directly pounced on her. A ferocious face immediately appeared in front of her, "Kill you, and all these will be ours!"

  She narrowly dodged, her eyes cold as ice. "If you dare to come any closer, I'll make sure it's either you or me who ends up dead!" The golden-red flames in her hand instantly turned the large pancake from earlier into ashes. She also got to hear the shocked gasps that rose and fell in succession. "Want to kill me? Well, let's see whose move is faster - yours or mine! If I'm not in the mood, I'll burn this spatial ring to ashes, and you'll all end up with nothing!"

  Upon hearing this, everyone was taken aback. They had never met someone like him before! Every time it was a swift attack, finishing the job quickly, who would give "new goods" the opportunity to say so much?

  "Hum! Who are you trying to deceive? I don't believe you'd be willing to give it all up!" Some clever people looked at her with disdain, playing a psychological game, they weren't fools either. This was a place where food was scarce, and he didn't believe anyone would be willing to destroy it all.

  "Good grief! It seems you guys don't believe me! In that case, I have no choice." With a look of mock regret, she glanced at them and with her left hand, pulled out food from thin air. Her right hand directly set it on fire, one piece after another. The people around her gasped in shock. This girl was actually serious! Did she not know how precious food was in this desolate Ghost Realm?

  "What are you doing?! Don't burn it, don't burn it! Stop burning!" The scar-faced man's anxious roar, so much food, his heart was bleeding!

  "Do you want to eat? I'll ask you a question, if you answer correctly, I'll give it to you." Dammit, she's burning so much, of course she's heartbroken! But what hurts the most is still the glutton on her shoulder. The little eyes follow his movements with excitement, and the little paws are almost bitten bald by him.

  "Really? You'll just answer questions?" Is that really all there is to it? The scar-faced man looked at her skeptically.

  She tossed an onion pancake over, and the man caught it with a look of surprise, but he couldn't resist the temptation in front of him. He devoured the pancake in big mouthfuls, crunching loudly, making the people around them drool.

  Wait for him to finish eating, and then take out another piece, waving it in front of them. With so much food, she really had to thank Gluttony. If he hadn't insisted on a big cleanup back then, how would they have ended up with all this stuff?

  "Do you want more?"

  One pancake is not enough for him to eat? The man remembered the delicious taste just now and wanted more. "Is there anything you want to know?"

  "It's great, I like talking to people who are interesting. Have you guys seen a kid around my height, chubby, with red eyes recently?" She was now most worried about Yu'er.

  "No."

  "You didn't lie to me?"

  "I said no, and it's no!" The man retorted loudly, suppressing his own temper.

  "What about you guys?" Looking around at the people, he continued to ask with a hint of recklessness, but they all shook their heads in unison. Suddenly, his heart felt somewhat deflated.

  "Have you guys seen several men, all dressed up and with a cheerful face?" Can't find Xī ěr's whereabouts, finding Xī Mén Lù Shuāng is fine too!

  "This is your second question!" The scar-faced man also didn't eat plain food, took the second piece of pancake that flew over and said, "I've never seen it."

  It's as if nothing was said. Watching him devour his food, Leng Jian continued to ask, "What's going on with the light at the city gate?"

  "Can't even get in if you're not at the level of Huang Qian, and is there still no pastry?"

  Those who haven't reached the boundary of Huang Qian, how can they get in? What about Xi Men Lin Xue and others? Previously, she was promoted because of an opportunity, what about them? Thinking of opportunities, she carefully checked her body, where did the phoenix come from? Questions aside, as long as it can help her, that's all that matters.

  "I'm talking to you, can't you hear?" The man with a scar on his face suddenly became angry as he stared at the dazed and confused Light Yagami.

  "What's with all those lights, every city gate has them?"

  The man with the uneven scar on his face remained silent, while a sharp-mouthed and thin-cheeked person next to him smiled obsequiously and answered hastily, "That's called 'Death God's Arrival'. If one's strength isn't enough, they'll be smashed to pieces in an instant. Of course, every city has it, and it's also divided by level. Like our Red Su City, which is already the weakest. This is just the outer city, where only five-star Huang Qian realm cultivators like us can enter. The inner city? Forget about it! You know the 18th layer of hell, right? It's like that. Even in the inner city of Red Su City, you need to be at least a six-star Huang Qian realm cultivator to enter. As for higher levels... haha... " The thin man rubbed his hands together and looked at her with a flattering expression.

  Give him some food, and immediately provoked the dissatisfaction of the scarred man. "Hou San, are you looking for death?" After finishing speaking, he quickly took action, and the two men entangled together. Both were ruthless characters, Huang Qianjing's four-star realm! If the people here went to Lingyin Continent, wouldn't they turn the world upside down?

  And that damned man, who cheated her out of food and medicine, actually dared to lie, he's guilty enough to die!

  "If what you said is true and there are different levels, then why would someone from the Earth Realm be able to come and go as they please?" That yellow-haired old man, she definitely won't let him off!

  "Of course, there's a distinction, but that's only for us small fry. The masters can go wherever they want, and whatever good things there are, it's up to them to decide." Monkey Three snorted at this phenomenon, unable to counter with his inferior skills, he had nothing to say.

  The strong can shuttle back and forth between several cities at will, without restraint or constraint. It seems that good treatment is reserved for those with high strength, just like the law is a mere formality for high-ranking officials and wealthy merchants. It turns out that in any world, there is no such thing as fairness or justice.

  "Hey, give me another one!"

  "Why don't those strong people stay in their own place and come here to do what?" In fact, she had already thought of it, but still wanted to hear what they said, and confirm again.

  "It's not for your sake, you new goods! md, can't you just stay in your own place and not come to our place to grab things? I spit, all of them are stinky dogs! Saying this, whether it's Monkey Three or the others, they were all filled with righteous indignation. In the past, they didn't interfere with each other, but now those people rely on their strong strength to bully them, and after they spent a lot of effort to subdue those new goods, they still let others take advantage of them, how can they not be angry?"

  "Last one!" Having gotten what she wanted to know, Qing Kuang didn't plan on staying any longer. This place wasn't exactly filled with good people, and if she stayed too long, they wouldn't even leave her the dregs. She tossed out the last piece of flatbread, and the crowd instantly erupted into a scramble. Just now, they had been watching Knife Scar and Monkey Three eat, and who knew how envious they were? The girl had baked so many before, and given them to those two, but now this really might be the last one. They just had to fight for it to taste the flavor.

  Taking advantage of the crowd's chaos, he quietly slipped away. The glutton said that Xi'er was not here, and those people also said they had never seen Xi'er, so where could Xi'er be? Or maybe on which floor?

  Qing Kuang was walking along, when she suddenly stopped in her tracks, staring at the five people who had appeared before her. How powerful! And those cruel eyes were clearly directed at her. She had indeed been too careless!

  "Little doll, hand over everything and we might let you leave with your whole body!" The leader was a whiskered guest, looking at her with ill intentions.

  "Hehehe, boss, don't be so fierce, look at how pale little sister's face has turned... Ah, ah, it's really heart-wrenching for me..." The speaker was wearing a colorful robe, and the shrill voice made her get goosebumps.

  "Who are you?" Carefully finding a way out, Leng Qiang also knew that there was little hope of escaping at this time.

  "Cut the crap, let's get on with it!" A pale-faced, thin man gritted his teeth, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

  "Oh my, Old Three, you must be gentle, don't hurt Little Sister's face. I still want to have a romantic relationship with this little sister, can't hurt her face......" The man with the duck-like voice said so, but his eyes were full of lust.

  "This damned world is indeed devoid of a single normal person! Upon hearing the man's words, she glared at him with an icy gaze, as if wanting to poke several holes in his body."

  "Up!" The bearded guest didn't say another word, and directly summoned the remaining four people to attack Qing Kuang. They had just seen it earlier, this girl's body was full of good things, who would believe that there wasn't?!

  When Qing saw the formation under the feet of these five people, she couldn't help but change her expression. What kind of luck was this?! A uniform group of Earthly Boundary strong practitioners, it's as if she had been cursed with bad luck for eight lifetimes! Previously, that old man with yellow hair alone was already more than she could handle, and now there were five of them! Was heaven trying to destroy her?

  At this time, Qing Kuang fell into a predicament, and even Bao Yu, Yao Er, and Lan Ling came out to help.

  "Oh my, little sister is so formidable, you actually have so many divine beasts! Come into good brother's arms quickly, I'm going to pamper you......" After saying that, she made a series of ruthless and swift moves, directly attacking Tiangou.

  Even with the help of those gluttons, she was outnumbered four to five and had no chance of winning! Moreover, for these desperate fugitives, what's the point of not hitting women or bullying the minority? The only truth is that whoever wins is right, and the loser loses their life!

  "Phoenix Slash!"

  The fiery phoenix soared into the clouds, its sharp eyes fixed intently on the two people in front of it, and charged towards them. The whiskered guest looked at the fiery flames and was also shocked, retreating repeatedly. The powerful dragon vortex directly entwined the phoenix, and the dark wind system's spiritual energy trapped the phoenix, making it cry out in distress. The bright red color and the oppressive dark color formed a stark contrast. Meanwhile, the thin man rushing forward used all his spiritual energy to attack her, and the thing he conjured up seemed like a mud monster, its disgusting large mouth open as it crawled up her arm.

  The danger on this side is not to be underestimated, and the situation with Tianyi and Yao'er is also not easy. Fortunately, Tianyi's speed was fast enough, and all that could be seen were flashes of black shadows. The man who had been leering at them just moments before was now covered in bruises and cuts, with bloodstains that were already starting to turn black. In an instant, the man's face changed, "You little beast! Are you looking for death?"

  The little monster was swinging its roots wildly in the air, but the person it was fighting against was also a wood-type, desperately suppressing it. For the time being, it was hard to tell who would win or lose.

  Lan Ling, with only one soul, was even more restricted and could only spray out waves of water dragons to stop people from approaching the master, but how long could she resist?

  At this moment, the black storm's fire phoenix let out a mournful cry and was strangled to pieces in the blink of an eye. The flames slowly disappeared from view. Seeing this, Qing Kuang's expression finally changed, what could be done about it now?

  "Volcanic eruption!"

  Even the fire phoenix was defeated, and the true light was really at a loss. As expected, before the magma approached them, it was blown away by that black storm, leaving nothing behind.

  No matter how you look at it, she is now restricted from all sides, as if the predicament has never left her. Dodging the thin man's arm, she directly confronted him with a fierce and crazy expression, but her spiritual power was no match for his. However, she still had martial skills. Each move aimed at the man's weak points, like an unsheathed treasure sword, either stabbing or chopping, with cunning techniques that immediately triggered the man's impatience.

  When spiritual power came attacking, lightly mad one after another somersaulted far away, set up a barrier, bitterly propped it up.

  "Third sister, quick battle and swift victory!" Jumping to Qing Kuang's back, Qiu Rou Ke and the thin man attacked her from front and back, the screen that had been supporting her was becoming more and more unstable, finally collapsing with a loud crash.

  The long sword in the guest's hand mercilessly pierced into her abdomen, the skin was pierced, and she could even feel the pattern on the sword, slowly tearing through every inch of her flesh and blood, causing her to tremble with pain. However, this was still not enough, the dark spiritual energy followed the sword into her spiritual energy, suddenly bursting out, finding the location of her spiritual base, stirring it up wildly for a moment, and finally piercing into her fire-type spiritual pearl.

  "Ah……" A severe pain came, and Qing Kuang's vision blurred. The bearded guest coldly laughed and ruthlessly pulled out the sword, fresh blood dripping onto the ground with a "drip-drip" sound. He looked at Qing Kuang with contempt, as if looking at an ant, thinking that he was just a Huang Jian realm after all, what kind of ability did he think he had?!

  Is it still not enough? She clutched her stomach, which was bleeding profusely, and her small face turned pale with pain. Ling Kuang's enthusiasm had somewhat dampened, as she had just recently advanced to the Yellow Dry Realm, but before she could even celebrate, she encountered these people again - was she going to fail once more? Her cultivation, her spiritual power, all gone? Now she was truly weak, unable to do anything except be at the mercy of others. All her efforts over such a long period of time had been for nothing! This damn place, and the people here, one more abnormal than the last!

  "Master!"

  "Master!"

  "Master!"

  Weakly panting, she clutched her stomach and glared at them, outdone by their skills, she had nothing to say!

  "Laosan, kill her! We still need to find the next target." The whiskered guest was indifferent to Qingkuang's serious injury, for this was the survival rule of this world.

  "Yes!" He walked step by step towards Qing Kuang, his eyes full of brutality.

  "Hey, hey, won't you leave some for me to play with?" The man with a duck-like voice, entwined by the beauty, still didn't forget his lust.

  Watching the man step by step closer to herself, Lian Huang really didn't want to give in, just like a person who had just obtained countless gold and silver treasures, but before she could even spend a single piece, all these treasures suddenly disappeared. This was the fire-based spiritual power she had been cultivating since she arrived on this continent! Was it all gone? Her ears still seemed to hear the sound of shattering, with a "pa" sound, it hurt her heart so much that it trembled. From now on, would she become a useless person? No, no, there was no future for her, this man was going to kill her! She couldn't even save her own life!

  The footsteps of death seemed to be trampling on her heart, why did she come here, and why did she have to suffer such hardships? Her belly was still bleeding, her clothes were already soaked, but what pained her the most was that her fire-elemental spiritual power had vanished. She couldn't bear it, really couldn't bear it! Just a moment ago, she could still see the fiery phoenix, and the joy in her heart hadn't dissipated yet...

  "Go die!" The thin man no longer put her in his eyes, with his hands turned into claws, directly aimed at her chest.

  "Ah...... you... deserve to die!" The man looked at his injured hand, glaring furiously at the girl. He had underestimated her! Truly underestimated her! He hadn't expected that she would be a dual-system user, and the sharp stings in his hand were making him want to scratch his heart out. It had been so long since he'd been injured, he'd almost forgotten what pain felt like, but thanks to this girl in front of him, the blood on his hand was dripping drop by drop, hurting him so much that he wanted to go mad.

  "Hmph, hmph......" Want to kill her? It's not that easy. Even if she wants to die, she'll have to take a few down with her as human shields.

  At the moment when the two were confronting each other, Qingkuang directly knelt on the ground, panting heavily, her fire-type spirit pearl! Fire-type spirit pearl! A majestic and domineering phoenix cry suddenly echoed in everyone's ears, it was the fire phoenix that had helped her before, flying around in a circle, then stopping in front of Qingkuang, looking at her with sorrow, as if reluctant to part with her, as if bidding farewell. The fiery wings wanted to touch her face, and its eyes seemed to be looking at a child who was about to leave. In the end, it flapped its huge wings, leaving behind a fiery afterimage that circled in the air for a few times before silently flying into Qingkuang's body.

  "Fire Phoenix... Fire Phoenix..." The soul was shaken, the sorrow in the heart spread, are you leaving too? Don't you want me either? Asking again and again in my heart, but there is no answer.

  She thought she still had some tricks up her sleeve, but seeing her desperate and sorrowful appearance, he knew he was overthinking it. The man known as Old Three didn't use his hands this time, instead pulling out a treacherous dagger with a sinister gleam in his eye - an eyebrow-shaped blade. Afraid that wouldn't be enough to kill her, he even infused it with spiritual energy and aimed directly at the throat of the arrogant woman. "Go to hell!"

  As the murder weapon was about to reach her eyes, the Dragon Ring once again showed its divine power and saved her from danger. However, this time it didn't just unleash a powerful aura, but also revealed an illusory figure from within. The strong pressure intimidated the remaining people, causing them to stop in their tracks, even the gluttonous creatures were instinctively fearful. The shadowy figure stood protectively in front of Qingkuang, and even she was shocked by this scene. Was there something inside the Dragon Ring? Was it this shadow that had been protecting her each time?

  "Explode!" Regardless of the frantic thoughts, this phantom directly swung its hand, raised it to grab at the air, and the man who had just tried to kill her, with a pale face, instantly turned bright red, exploded in mid-air, and transformed into a bloody mist.

  The other four people stared at this scene with their eyes wide open, Old Three, Old Three is gone just like that? Just as they were about to run away, they found that their bodies couldn't move at all. Although nothing was visible, their throats were being strangled. To think that they were actually strong practitioners of the Earth Realm! What kind of ghostly thing is this?!

  "Boom!" With a majestic voice, four more blood mists spread out, splashing everywhere, and then completely disappeared, leaving only the thick bloody smell floating in the air.

  Qingkuang kept watching the movements of the illusory figure, seeing him slowly turn around, and a thread of disappointment suddenly emerged in his heart.

  The vague shadow in front of me couldn't see the face, only vaguely made out to be a human figure, with no facial features at all, just staring intently at Qing Kuang. Finally, it spat out a word, "Stupid!" Then, with a swish, it returned to the Zhi Long Ring, and there was no sound again.

  Watching the dragon ring on her wrist slowly disappear, but the weight still reminded her that it was still on her wrist. The pain in her lower abdomen came, and her heart was filled with sorrow, her spiritual power...

  "Master~"

  "Master!"

  "Master."

  Three little guys ran to her side, carefully looking at her wound, their big eyes dropping golden beans, "Master, it hurts, right? It's all because of me being useless, it's all because of me being useless~" After saying that, they started wailing and crying. It was all his fault for only knowing how to eat normally, if he were a bit stronger, the master wouldn't have gotten hurt.

  "What's the use of crying, I'm not dead yet?" Although she comforted herself with these words, her heart was also at a loss. How should she survive in this cruel world now?

  A faint noise came, lightly alert and looked this way, no wonder she was on high alert, now that she was seriously injured, if a few more people came, she would definitely not be able to withstand it.

  But will good fortune descend?

  A large group of people came, led by a one-armed old man with an expressionless face, directing the people behind him to set her up on a flatbed cart without saying a word.

  "What kind of people are you?" It was only then that she saw that the group of people who came were either missing an arm or a leg, and not one of them was intact.

  "Go!" The one-armed old man waved his hand and everyone followed him, wanting to pull Qingkong away.

  "What kind of people are you? Why take me away?" She struggled to get up, she didn't want to be taken away without knowing what was going on.

  "Master!" The three little ones fluffed up their fur and were about to charge over.

  The one-armed old man suddenly took out an elliptical iron box and placed it on the Light Crazy's head, enveloping her entire body in a brilliant light, forming a perfect, beautiful cage. In an instant, the Gluttony, the Youling, and the Blue Spirit all lost control and returned to their respective domains, no matter how she called out to them, there was no response.

  "Where are you taking me?" He was seriously injured, and even the gluttonous ones couldn't help. Just as Qing Kuang thought of using his wood-elemental spiritual power, he found that it had all been sealed away. Forget it, when a man is at another's mercy, he can only await his fate, if the worst comes to the worst, he'll just have to fight back with whatever means necessary.

  The wooden cart creaked and groaned as it moved, a group of people escorting her like they were transporting a prisoner. The road was bumpy, jolting her wound into pain. If not for these people being here, she really wanted to return to the Life Spring Water to soak in it, taking out the medicinal herbs and pills from the spatial ring to stop the bleeding first!

  Covering her wound, a faint sadness permeated her entire being, her spiritual power... and her Fire Phoenix...

  She was wounded on her stomach, and it was inconvenient for her to apply medicine herself. Every time she wrapped gauze around her back with both hands, she felt a sharp pain that made her whole body tremble. However, even though she was in such agony, the group of people who had "kidnapped" her remained unmoved and silent, walking in one direction.

  Nor did she know how long they had walked, but this group of people still didn't put her in their plans, and they stopped to sit on the ground, eating what seemed to be some kind of monster meat that looked dry and unappetizing.

  Now that they were resting, Liang Kexin naturally rested too. When she took out the food, it immediately attracted everyone's attention and they all looked over.

  "Hmph!" The one-armed old man let out a cold snort, and no matter how thirsty or hungry they were, they lowered their heads and obediently gnawed on the hard meat blocks, not daring to glance at him again. It was clear that in this group of people, they still feared this one-armed old man.

  But why did they catch her? She didn't offend them, and these people don't seem to be like the previous group who wanted to rob and kill her. Looking at their attitude, it's clear that they want to take her somewhere! So where do they want to take her?

  "Hey, where are you taking me? Who are you people?" Looking at the one-armed old man, Liangcui shouted loudly, but the old man pretended not to hear and instead picked up a piece of tough meat from his bundle and started eating it, completely ignoring Liangcui.

  What does this person mean?