Alchemy Emperor of the Divine Dao
chapter-1173

Not only were the teeth of these insects razor-sharp, but their saliva also contained a strange secretion that could induce severe pain in their victims. In fact, it could even paralyze their victims to a degree.

Ling Han discovered that his body had become a little clumsy and inflexible. Moreover, the strange substance had entered his bloodstream and spread throughout his body, causing even his nerves to become slightly paralyzed.

As a result, the might of his flames instantly dropped by a significant margin. The dazed and unconscious “black snakes” rapidly recovered and started to swoop toward him again.

Ling Han channeled the Indestructible Heaven’s Scroll, and a profound aura of heaven and earth circulated around his body. The progressing paralysis was instantly dispelled. He laughed loudly as he reignited the might of his flames.

Ling Han drew his Divine Demon Sword, and said, “Let’s see who’s more powerful, hey?”

Boom!

His Divine Demon Sword also released a boundless flame. Flames worked extremely well against these insects.

Weng!

He continued to unleash his Seven Kill Subduing Soul Technique, and after another attack, a large number of insects dropped to the ground. Ling Han stowed them into his Black Tower. Perhaps these insects could become a secret weapon of his.

Ling Han’s wounds rapidly recovered as he channeled the Indestructible Heaven’s Scroll. Although there was an occasional insect or two that breached his defenses and sunk their teeth into his flesh, such a small number of insects couldn’t trouble him at all.

They were too small, after all, and they were only terrifying if they swarmed in droves of thousands or even millions. If they did so, they would be able to devour a human in a flash.

“Master, Little Asura admires you so much!” the Asura Demon Emperor said in flattery.

He was residing in a puppet that was at the Sun Moon Tier, yet he had still been brutally defeated by the swarm of insects. However, Ling Han was currently enjoying an advantage over them. The contrast between them couldn’t be more obvious.

This wasn’t to say that Ling Han was more powerful than Sun Moon Tier elites. Rather, this result signified that his abilities were more effective against these insects. His physique was freakish, and he also possessed an impressive recovery ability thanks to the Indestructible Heaven’s Scroll. These qualities made him the most apt person to deal with these insects.

Black clouds blotted out the sky, yet these insects had a clear area of activity that they definitely wouldn’t fly out of.

It was already impossible to see Ling Han’s body. However, the others could still vaguely discern the flashes of flames among the black cloud. This signified that an intense battle was still raging on.

However, the black cloud gradually faded as the battle dragged on. This was because large swathes of the insects were being killed or thrown into the Black Tower by Ling Han. Piles or insect corpses lay by his feet.

Finally, no more insects swooped toward Ling Han. Instead, the last remaining insects all flew back to the small hill. The surroundings suddenly became silent.

Ling Han gazed at the peculiar flower. Then, he stopped his breathing, closed all of the follicles on his body, and used the Indestructible Heaven’s Scroll to guard his divine sense. His body started to emit a golden glow. Only then did he walk toward the flower.

He didn’t pluck the flower when he neared it, but instead started to dig around it.

He dug the peculiar flower up along with its roots, and then placed it into his Black Tower. He only exited the Black Tower after planting the flower in a suitable location.

“Let’s go!” He didn’t place the small hill into his Black Tower, as he had decided to give the black insects a slim chance at survival.

The three people and one puppet continued forward. They didn’t return to the bank of the Yellow Spring, as it would be fine as long as they continued in their current direction. There was no need for them to follow the riverbank. After tens of thousands of years of experience, one thing was for certain—one should definitely, definitely not enter the river. In fact, even the water in the river shouldn’t be touched.

Why was the river called the Yellow Spring?

This wasn’t simply because it looked eerie. That was genuinely a deadly river that would take one’s life. If one came into contact with the river, they would die even if they didn’t have any health complications. Meanwhile, their soul would be swallowed by the river and end up flowing through it for all eternity.

Someone had tried to collect water from the Yellow Spring before, yet they had become a soulless corpse once they neared the river.

This was a forbidden river, and it could only be used as a landmark. One definitely couldn’t near it.

Ling Han communicated through the Black Tower as he walked, and he asked Notionless Saint about the peculiar flower as well as the black insects.

“Might this be the Misty Soul Capturing Flower?” Notionless Saint pondered for a moment before saying, “This is a peculiar plant that has no benefit to humans. However, its effects are extremely terrifying. In fact, it can even affect the mind of Eternal River Tier elites.”

Ling Han nodded, and said, “This Misty Soul Capturing Flower isn’t even able to affect me at the moment. Does this mean that it’s still a fair way off from becoming mature?”

“Most likely,” Notionless Saint replied.

This Misty Soul Capturing Flower could have great effects if used properly. Ling Han had the Black Tower, so he could completely unleash this Misty Soul Capturing Flower and then hide back into the Black Tower. That way, he would be able to sow chaos among his enemies.

However, this Misty Soul Capturing Flower was still far from becoming mature, and this was reflected in the fact that it could barely affect him. As such, it would definitely be useless against Sun Moon Tier elites—even if it were somewhat effective, it would need a very long time to entrance them.

“What about those insects?” Ling Han asked.

“Those are Saintly Scarabs!” There was a hint of astonishment in Notionless Saint’s voice.

Ling Han was puzzled, and he asked, “Those flesh-eating insects are referred to as ‘Saintly’?”

Notionless Saint—or rather the light orb that he had transformed into—flickered as if it were experiencing some deep feeling. He remained silent for a while before saying, “It’s because these insects emerge from the corpses of Saints.”

“Hmm?” Ling Han was surprised to hear this. Such strange insects would emerge from the corpses of Saints?

“This doesn’t happen with every Saint,” Notionless Saint continued. “It depends on the great dao that they’ve cultivated. Some might have Saintly Firebugs emerge from them, while others might have Saintly Ice Worms emerge from them. Moreover, not all of the insects are this small in size. I’ve seen a saintly insect that was tens of thousands of meters in length. Its strength was profound, and even I didn’t dare to battle against it.”

‘Tens of thousands of meters long? Can that still be classified as an insect?’

“Since that’s the case, it’s possible that this is the abode of a Saint, then?” Ling Han asked.

“Impossible!” Notionless Saint instantly shot down Ling Han’s speculation. “If this was a Saint’s abode, how could a mere Eternal River Tier elite deal with the formations? Of course, this is unless the Saint is purposefully allowing others to enter.

“It’s more likely that the brat who owns this place found some Saintly Scarabs somewhere and slowly raised them in such a huge number. Moreover, if those were first-generation Saintly Scarabs, they would have been able to kill even Eternal River Tier elites. How could you have possibly taken them away?”

Ling Han nodded in understanding. He had also received some Saintly Scarabs now, so he could also slowly breed them. However, he needed to be extremely careful when raising these insects. If he lost control of them, they could potentially cause catastrophic damage.

Saints were invincible in life, and they could still cause a huge commotion after death.

However, there were two sides to a coin, and these Saintly Scarabs could benefit him greatly if used correctly.

They stopped to set up a camp and rest after walking for a day.

There was night and day in this place, though the difference between the two could only be determined by the brightness or darkness of the surroundings. There were no visible suns, moons, or stars. It was evident that Eternal River Tier elites weren’t powerful enough to capture suns to place them into this Mystery Realm.

They had half a year’s time; the restriction in this Mystery Realm would gradually become stronger again after this time passed. At that time, even Venerable Trinity wouldn’t be able to open a passageway.

Thus, they had to return to the entrance before half a year passed. When the time limit expired, Venerable Trinity would open another passageway to let everyone who had entered out.

They had to plan their time well. If they missed their opportunity to leave, they would be killed by the restriction that became stronger by the day. They had never heard of anyone surviving until the next 100 years.