Chapter 135: Breaching the Volcano

As Meng Hao said, the Li Clan Patriarch had no choice but to trust him. If he didn’t, he would inevitably die. Trust Meng Hao, and he had a chance at life. If he didn’t trust Meng Hao, and Meng Hao left, he would have no chance whatsoever at a continued existence.

Even as Meng Hao spoke, the Li Clan Patriarch knew that his only choice was to stop resisting and allow the mastiff to consume him and take control of the mask. The mask flew into Meng Hao’s hand. He grabbed it, and then shot out through the rapidly shrinking exit.

As he flew out, a booming rang out as the Legacy zone was completely swallowed up by the vortex, gone forever.

In the volcano, Meng Hao shot through the air in a beam of light, the blood lake and the altar trembling around him. The massive stone head collapsed into fragments that sank into the lake. Within an instant, the lake itself had dried up.

The only thing left was a crater in the ground, as if all of it had been a mere illusion.

Even as the lake dried up, thunderous booms could be heard from overhead. Meng Hao lifted his head to look at the sky above the volcano. Thunder and lightning filled the air like silver dragons. They formed an enormous mass, as if they desired to smash downward, but instead, were blocked by a blood-red glow. The blood red glow seemed alive, as if it wished to do battle with the Heavens.

It was so far away that Meng couldn’t see it, but what he could see was that... the glowing shield at the mouth of the volcano was disappearing.

“All this strange celestial phenomena will definitely attract attention. I can’t stay here!” Gripping the mask in hand, he shot toward Chu Yuyan, at the same time sending some Spiritual Sense into the mask.

It had been completely taken over by the mastiff, who was now the Weapon Spirit. Having completely swallowed up the possessed Blood Dragon, the mastiff was now in a state of hibernation. The Li Family Patriarch’s Cultivation base was incredibly powerful, thanks to his initial incredible strength, added to which was the power of the Blood Dragon he had possessed. Even though the mastiff, also a Blood Divinity, could consume him, he would need quite some time to fully absorb him.

Meng Hao had no idea how long it would be before it awoke from hibernation. However, he could only imagine what it would be like when it woke up and emerged. It no doubt would have incredible power, which of course would be of immense help to Meng Hao.

It was asleep for now, but belonged to Meng Hao. The mask too, completely belonged to Meng Hao.

Meng Hao’s heart thumped, filled with anticipation. However, because the mastiff was sleeping, he was temporarily incapable of using the mask.

“How long will it sleep....” Meng Hao took a deep breath. Deep within the mask he also saw a tiny shred of the Li Clan Patriarch’s spiritual consciousness. It was very weak, as if Meng Hao could exterminate it with the slightest thought. He considered for a moment, and then decided not to blot it out.

Deep within the mask, he also saw a blood-colored book of scriptures. Next to the blood-colored book of scriptures was a flag with three streamers.

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

After a moment’s examination, Meng Hao recalled his Spiritual Sense and placed the mask into his bag of the Cosmos. He landed next to unconscious Chu Yuyan, who was wrapped up in the black net.

Meng Hao looked thoughtful as he glanced up at the thunder and lightning outside the volcano. The bloody glow and the glow of the lightning interlocked within the sky. Determination filled his face.

“I can’t stay here. I’ve got to get away. The Tribulation Lightning is here for me, but it’s provoked a response from the Blood Immortal’s sacrificial altar....” He flicked his wide sleeve to scoop up Chu Yuyan. Using the incredible power of his Perfect Foundation’s Spiritual Sense, he examined the surroundings. He let out a cold harrumph. In various cracks and fissures in the area, Chu Yuyan had hidden quite a few complete minor pills. He collected them together, then flew up and out of the volcano. This was the first time in half a year that he had been able to leave this place. Now that he was able to, his heart filled with anticipation regarding the future.

But the anticipation on his face quickly turned into shock. As he gazed off into the distance, he could clearly see a massive, ancient temple that had the appearance of a war chariot, currently in the midst of bombarding the heavens. Surrounding it were a myriad of figures emitting a shocking aura, locked in combat with the lightning from the Heavens.

The Tribulation Lightning was shocking to the extreme. Even one bolt of it was enough to cause Meng Hao to fill with a feeling of dread that caused his pupils to shrink.

“So... this is the Tribulation Lightning sent after me?” His heart trembled. He could only imagine what would have happened inside the volcano if he hadn’t entered the Legacy Zone after consuming the Perfect Foundation pill. The Tribulation Lightning had attempted to break open the Blood Immortal’s Legazy Zone, and in doing so had provoked the Legacy, which sent the Ancient Temple of Doom into war. Had he faced it alone with his Perfect Foundation, he would have been completely destroyed.

Breathing deeply, Meng Hao shot away as fast as possible, grasping Chu Yuyan in tow. His scalp was numb, and he felt incredibly anxious. This was because he had noticed that the blood-red glow was beginning to fade, and the image of the Ancient Temple of Doom was growing indistinct.

Thankfully, the Tribulation Lightning was also beginning to disperse; there seemed to be only one volley left, and then it would be gone.

Actually, to flee to the world outside the volcano wasn’t really the best choice; but Meng Hao had no choice but to do so, and flee as quickly as possible. He knew that the Tribulation from the Heavens would attract widespread notice. Surely there were already many people in the surrounding areas; as soon as the Heavenly Tribulation ceased, the area would be crawling with Cultivators. Under those circumstances, it would be very difficult to escape.

Only if he made his move now, would he be able to take advantage of the chaos.

Exactly as Meng Hao had suspected, the surrounding area was already filled with nearly a thousand Cultivators, who had been attracted to the area by the Tribulation from the Heavens. Of course, none of them dared to enter the area, instead choosing to watch from a distance. Now that the Tribulation was fading, their eyes began to glitter. It wasn’t clear who went first; in an instant, all of them flow forward from all directions, filling the Tribulation zone.

Meng Hao was fleeing as fast as possible. He suddenly frowned, his eyes flashing. He stopped in his tracks, muttering to himself for the space of a few breaths. Then his eyes filled with determination.

“If I keep going, I’ll definitely run into some Cultivators. Their first reaction will be to doubt me.... If I don’t continue flying in this direction... Then I can do this!” He turned around. Instead of flying toward the border of the Tribulation area, he headed directly toward its center. This was opposite of his original direction.

He didn’t fly quickly, however. And as for Chu Yuyan, he had long since deposited her into the bag of the Cosmos. It was not a bag of holding, after all, and its insides were an entire world. It was capable of temporarily holding a living person inside.

Meng Hao flew along, carefully observing his surroundings. After about the space of about ten breaths, his expression flickered. Ahead of him had suddenly appeared a group of about ten Cultivators. Like prismatic beams of light, they shot through the air toward him.

The group of ten split up. Three or four of them shot forward at top speed, their gazes fixed upon Meng Hao.

Their gazes immediately passed over him. He gave off the impression that he was doing exactly what they were, searching the Tribulation zone.

Currently, his eyes were fixed on the ground, not looking up toward them. Were it the opposite, they would have moved to bar his way.

It was at this exact moment that the Temple of Ancient Doom completely disappeared. As the bloody-red glow faded away, the thunder and clouds also began to break apart. But... there was one lightning bolt that did not seem willing to abandon its mission. Even as everything disappeared around it, it shot down from the sky, directly toward Meng Hao.

As it descended, it was clearly fading. However, it was still incredibly fast; it would without doubt fall onto Meng Hao.

When it landed on him, regardless of how minor the injuries, it would most definitely arouse the notice of the surrounding Cultivators. If they started to make speculations, then Meng Hao would definitely be in danger.

At the moment, the ten or so Cultivators were gaping in shock as the lightning bolt approached from the distance. They immediately began to retreat.

At this critical juncture, Meng Hao’s mind was spinning. He suddenly let out a hearty laugh. Instead of retreating, he rushed forward. In a loud voice, he said, “So, there are some Tribulation Lightning aftershocks! Finally I, Wang, get some good fortune from the Heavens for me!”

Continuing to laugh, he charged onward. He waved his right hand, and instantly, the lightning mist appeared around him. Amidst the shocked gazes of the surrounding Cultivators, he shot directly toward the Tribulation Lightning bolt.

“Is this guy crazy?”

“He called himself Wang. Maybe he’s from the Wang Clan?”

From their perspective, rather than seeing the Tribulation Lightning seek out Meng Hao, they saw him rushing toward it. And this was exactly what Meng Hao wanted.

Boom!

A massive explosion radiated outward. The Tribulation Lightning slammed into the lightning mist surrounding Meng Hao. A rumbling roar rose up, and Meng Hao’s body trembled. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, and within him, his Three Dao Pillars narrowly escaped being destroyed.

This was only one Tribulation Lightning bolt, that had been weakened by who knew how much. Furthermore, it had grown more and more weak is it descended down. Thankfully, it had occurred in this way. Meng Hao knew in his heart that he had gotten lucky. Without the Blood Immortal sacrificial altar, and without the Temple of Ancient Doom, the moment he had achieved Perfection, he would have perished.

As the Tribulation Lightning dissipated from Meng Hao’s body, it turned into innumerable arcs of electricity, which were then absorbed by his lightning mist. It seemed the Lightning Flag had also been damaged by the Tribulation Lightning. However, it was now able to reinforce itself. The lightning glow increased in intensity, as if it had undergone some sort of baptism.

This left Meng Hao shocked, but he still managed to let out a loud laugh.

“I didn’t come here in vain, after all!” he said, flicking his sleeve and laughing. “With the help of the Tribulation Lightning, my magical treasure has become complete! Excellent! Excellent!” With that, he shot forward, looking for all appearances as if he were seeking more Tribulation Lightning.

“Ah, this guy is refining treasures!”

“Refining treasures with Tribulation Lightning! This Wang fellow is really daring!”

“You were only looking at the treasure refining, you weren’t looking at him. When the Tribulation Lightning hit him, it was like a baptism. For people who practice Lightning type Cultivation, this kind of thing is extremely beneficial!” The ten Cultivators charged onward, looking for more signs of Tribulation Lightning aftershocks.

-----

This chapter was sponsored by AM