The Dead Soul Abyss was the very definition of primordial terror, a vertical chasm leading to the deepest, most desolate parts of Kongsang Mountain. According to the most ancient legends of this world, the universe was once a chaotic void.
It was only after eighty-six thousand years—a span unfathomable to mortals—that the first divine essence appeared to divide the heavens and the earth. And it was said that the very first ray of light was born from the absolute darkest place.
This abyss, Lord Pig sensed, was a close approximation of that original darkness. The air was not merely cold; it was a soul-chilling chill that sought to extinguish all life force.
Lord Pig arrived at the bottom, which was a vast, mysterious plain of cracked rock and abyssal silt, completely hidden from the light of the outside world. Countless ghostly spirits—pale, flickering forms of residual resentment and malice—floated silently in the gloom, converging on him.
They were the hungry, mindless residue of souls who had fallen here, and they immediately circled the glowing golden figure, anticipating an instant, delicious meal.
"Should Yin spirits also yield energy value?" Lord Pig mused, his fat face entirely calm, prioritizing his system's efficiency over any sense of danger. He raised his little paw, and the black hole vortex of the Swallow the Sun magical power spun into existence.
Woo woo woo!
The sound was an overwhelming chorus of ghosts howling and wolves wailing, yet it was abruptly muffled as the inexorable vortex began to pull. The countless evil spirits, like the vampire bats before them, were utterly fearless. Driven by their desperate, primal hunger, they rushed into the devouring void, adding to Lord Pig's growing numerical wealth.
Energy +1, Experience +1Energy +1, Experience +1
For the next thirty minutes, Lord Pig performed an act of high-level, passive spiritual farming. He simply floated there, the center of a black, rotational vortex, methodically cleansing the abyssal plane of its spiritual pests.
The sheer volume of consumption was staggering. The spiritual density of this place is truly remarkable! A hidden gem for focused cultivation! Lord Pig thought happily. He was now operating with the efficiency of a high-speed experience grinder. When the last mournful howl faded into silence, Lord Pig checked his tally: 1.8 million energy points gained.
Satisfied! Time to locate the Bleeding Cave before someone else decides to leave a nasty surprise, he decided.
It was at this moment, across the dark expanse of the abyss, that two enormous, bright lights, flashing with a faint green luminescence, slowly ignited on the surface of what he now recognized as the Ruthless Sea.
The lights were chillingly strange, not circular like typical eyes, but long and thin, shaped like terrifying, vertical slits. In the center of each, a needle-thin black gap revealed an ancient, cold, and purely murderous intent.
A massive, overwhelming fishy odor, heavy and choking, replaced the abyssal chill. Slowly, with an unimaginable size that dwarfed the Water Qilin of Qingyun into a mere novelty pet, an extremely huge black serpent uncoiled and rose from the dark water.
"The Ancient Demon Beast Black Water Serpent," Lord Pig's mind registered the beast's identity with clinical precision.
The monster's lower body remained coiled, submerged beneath the sea's surface, but its upper body and head rose straight into the air, reaching dozens of feet high. It was a pillar of pure, black, scaly menace, its faint green eyes looking down upon the tiny, golden pig below. Lord Pig estimated its full length to be close to a hundred feet—a true leviathan.
"Dessert...!" The serpent's low, rattling hiss seemed to vibrate through the very rock of the abyss. Its green eyes narrowed with a spark of ravenous, uncomplicated joy. The small golden creature radiated a core of immense power, which, to the serpent's ancient, dim intellect, translated into one thing: deliciousness.
"Dessert? You overgrown earthworm! You dare to call Lord Pig a dessert? You need to observe Lord Pig's big sword! I will carve you into the actual dessert!"
Lord Pig's calm exterior snapped. Such blatant disrespect for his divine status was intolerable. He swiftly pulled the Zhu Xian Sword from his back.
CLANG!
In that instant, the world-splitting, sharp, terrifying sword intent that had been fully suppressed by Lord Pig's mastery soared into the sky. The sword's light illuminated the heavens, driving away the oppressive darkness of the abyss, pushing back the shadows that had reigned here for millennia. Seven-colored swords of condensed light materialized in the air, densely surrounding Lord Pig, transforming him into the undisputed God of Swordsmanship.
RROOOAR!
The Black Water Serpent was no simple beast. It felt the immediate, catastrophic threat radiating from the miniature blade. It let out a deafening, thunderous roar, and its massive, submerged tail swept out of the water with impossible speed, raising tidal waves of dark, foul water. The colossal snake tail, hidden within the wave, carried boundless, crushing force, intending to smash Lord Pig into oblivion.
"Zhu Xian!"
Lord Pig didn't move an inch. He simply brought the sword down in a gesture of absolute, effortless authority. The billions of seven-colored swords surrounding him instantly converged, consolidating into a single divine sword hundreds of feet long, stretching from the stone floor to the unseen ceiling.
This divine sword shone with unbearable brilliance, carrying a supreme sharpness that existed only to split the world and destroy all existence. It descended silently toward the Black Water Serpent.
Schwick!
There was no sound of a collision, no thunderclap of clashing power. The effect was akin to a razor-sharp iron sword effortlessly cutting through soft tofu. The colossal wave was sliced into two perfectly separated halves. The thick, powerful black snake tail, hidden within the water, was severed instantly, cleanly, and absolutely.
ROAR!
A thirty-foot section of the snake's tail fell into the Ruthless Sea, and its dark blood erupted like a spring, instantly dyeing the surrounding water a hideous crimson. The Black Water Serpent thrashed in agonizing pain, twisting its enormous body, stirring up waves of pure terror, but the injury was too catastrophic.
"The Immortal Execution Sword is indeed magnificent! It is truly deserving of the title of the number one divine weapon in this realm!" Lord Pig gloated, holding the blade. The colorful sword energy still pulsed around him, making him look like a peerless immortal of the sword, having just performed the most casual act of gardening.
"You foolish, overgrown lizard! You dare attempt to consume Lord Pig? Such arrogance shall not be tolerated!"
Before the serpent could muster a retaliatory strike, Lord Pig delivered the final judgment. He flew directly toward the beast's head and, with a casual sweep of the sword, decapitated the Black Water Serpent.
Energy +1000, Experience +1000.
The serpent's eyes went dark, and the enormous, lifeless body slumped into the Ruthless Sea.
After ensuring the death was permanent, Lord Pig performed his second necessary chore: he neatly compressed the entire hundred-foot-long snake carcass and deposited it into his space ring. Excellent. A massive supply of premium demon beast meat for later snacking. Waste not, want not.
With the abyssal guardians disposed of, Lord Pig began his search for the Bleeding Cave.
The Bleeding Cave was a legendary relic. It had been established eight centuries prior by the infamous Black-hearted Old Man, the former leader of the Blood Refining Hall. In its heyday, the Blood Refining Hall was the dominant faction of the Demon Cult, possessing untold treasures and powerful masters. Though the faction was destroyed in a great war between good and evil, lore persisted that its founder had sealed all his ultimate secrets, magical artifacts, and the original Heavenly Book in its foundation beneath the Wanfu Ancient Cave.
For eight centuries, every ambitious member of the Demon Cult had searched the Wanfu Ancient Cave and even the Dead Soul Abyss, always returning empty-handed, fueling the legend of the cave's impenetrability.
But Lord Pig was armed with both plot knowledge and invincible strength. After an hour of systematic searching—a process that required him to blast open several inconveniently placed false walls—he located the entrance to the Bleeding Cave.
A single blast of wind and thunder energy cleared the path. He walked into a circular stone chamber. The chamber featured two tunnels: the one he entered, and one leading deeper inward, confirming the complexity of the hidden fortress.
To his left stood two massive stone statues. One was benevolent and smiling, draped in flowing robes, highly reminiscent of the Buddhist Guanyin Bodhisattva. The other was its terrifying mirror opposite: ferocious and grotesque, with a black face, ghostly horns, eight arms, and four heads, a trace of blood carved at the corner of its mouth—a chilling display of dualistic worship.
A stone table stood before the statues, covered in millennia of dust, with a rusted incense burner and packets of petrified incense. Eight hundred years without a single offering! Truly an insult to the art of villainy! Lord Pig thought, disgusted by the Demon Cult's lack of dedication.
He moved quickly, following the inner passage, which soon opened into a spacious cave system, unlike the uniform stone chambers outside. This area was natural, adorned with strange, multi-colored stalactites and bizarre rock formations.
At the entrance to a smaller stone alcove, a massive monument stood. On it, ten enormous characters, carved in a vigorous, almost wild style, proclaimed:
"HEAVEN AND EARTH ARE NOT BENEVOLENT, AND TREAT ALL THINGS AS STRAW DOGS!"
The sheer, raw power of the inscription momentarily stunned Lord Pig. This was the definitive declaration of the Demon Cult's philosophy, a powerful expression of Taoist indifference. His little fat face immediately broke into a smile of immense joy. He knew exactly what lay behind it.
He trotted into the small stone chamber next to the monument. There were no statues or decorations, only the walls, which were covered in densely packed, flowing script.
"The First Volume of the Heavenly Book"
The scripture began with the primordial essence of creation: The creation of heaven and earth refers to the time of chaos, when ignorance and indifference were not yet established. The sun and the moon contained their brilliance, and heaven and earth were mixed in their bodies. After the universe changed, the clear and the turbid became separated.
The text went on, detailing the principles of the Dao, the nature of self, the illusory nature of life, and the secret path to enlightenment—the very foundation of all cultivation in this world.
The first volume of the Heavenly Book has been found. It costs 1,000 energy and 1,000 experience points to collect it!
"Collect!"
A wave of pure, absolute knowledge surged into Lord Pig's consciousness. The complex text was not merely memorized; it was imprinted and fully understood. He felt an immediate, profound enlightenment, as if he had spent decades meditating on the highest truths of the universe.
"Two volumes of the Heavenly Book secured! Only three more to go!"
Lord Pig exited the stone chamber and surveyed the natural cave one last time. Behind a hanging curtain of stalactites, his eye caught a glint of metal: an exquisite iron box.
If my plot memory serves, this must be the Hehuan Bell—the infamous magic weapon that brought great fame to Madam Jinling and the Hehuan Sect, now merely a hidden relic.
Whoosh!
He launched the iron box into the air. Before it could fall, a flash of sword energy from the Zhu Xian Sword shattered the box. Instantly, a plume of foul black smoke—the ancient corpse poison trap left by the Black-hearted Old Man—erupted from the fragments.
"He is indeed a petty, Black-hearted Old Man, but his simple poisons are entirely useless against Lord Pig!" Lord Pig dismissed the smoke with a wave of his paw.
He deftly caught the treasure—a small, delicate golden bell—in mid-air. It was exquisitely crafted and radiated a subtly potent magical energy, far more refined than the rough weapons of the demonic monks he had just dispatched.
With his second volume of the Heavenly Book collected and the legendary Hehuan Bell and Binding Immortal Rope secured, Lord Pig, the golden menace with the miniature Zhu Xian Sword on his back and the Mountain and River Fan tucked away, concluded his profitable expedition deep into the abyss.