Chapter 285. To Give Birth to but Not to Own (2)

The search party for the Human-Faced Spider was assembled in secrecy.

Surprisingly, more experts than expected had gathered.

In particular, the Mount Hua Sect had mobilized its entire Plum Blossom Swordsmen. While that might have seemed excessive, they had a valid reason.

"According to the letter sent by Disciple Nephew Zhou, there's a high possibility that we'll be walking into a trap."

"A trap?"

“Avaricious Wolf, Tang Mingren, also knows about the location of the Human-faced Spider.”

"I see... so they might have already predicted that we would try to stop them from producing more Formless Poison."

It was quite possible.

In the Art of War, it was said to attack the enemy's weak points while reinforcing one's own.

For Zhou Xuchuan, the Formless Poison was his weak point.

No matter how much he insisted it was mere carelessness, the truth remained—it had been incredibly dangerous. He wasn’t taking action now without good reason.

He had nearly stepped into the underworld, faced the King of Hell, and crossed the Yellow Springs Road. It was only natural for him to be on high alert.

Considering their foe was the Dark Heavens Association, Blessed Existence—they should have fully anticipated this attack. Just in case, Zhou Xuchuan had requested the aid of experts.

***

If one followed the Yangtze River's course, they would eventually arrive at the Three Gorges.

Renowned for their treacherous terrain, the Three Gorges were also famous for their breathtaking scenery.

After passing the first gorge, Qutang Gorge, the next was the Wu Gorge, which was as beautiful as a famous painting.

After passing the two first gorges, one would enter the bizarre and eerie Xiling Gorge, which was completely different from the other two.

Because of the steep cliffs on both sides, the sun was blocked, making it dark even in broad daylight. From the thick bushes on the peak of both cliffs, the cries of monkeys or ghosts could be heard. Moreover, the river was so turbid at this point that nothing beneath the surface was visible. The current, raging with unrelenting force, was the very embodiment of violence.

“Miss, we’ve arrived!”

Tang Hui’s escort warrior, Yuan Dashi, smiled brightly.

There were sighs of relief from those around her.

They had endured countless hardships just to reach the meeting point of the expedition team—struggles that words could hardly describe.

I've heard a lot about the rapids of the Three Gorges, but I never thought that they would be this bad...

One wrong step and it would have all been over.

Ugh. I still feel chills.

Their hearts had sank when they saw a boulder as large as a mountain within Qutang Gorge, the Luhui Mound.[1]

The river was narrow, and the current was fast, making even the sturdiest ships, steered by experienced boatmen, feel unsafe.

They shuddered at the thought of the stories—tales of ships crashing into Luhui Mound or capsizing after merely grazing it. No matter how skilled a martial artist was, without specific training in water movement arts, they would be helpless against the powerful waves.

Despite facing several close calls along the way, they had somehow managed to arrive safely.

"It really is amazing when you look at it again."

"Are we really still within Xiling Gorge?"

"I can't believe this is the same place as before."

The party hadn't left the Xiling Gorge yet. Rather than being close to the exit, they were actually right in the middle.

The ship that had carried them all the way from the Jinsha River in Sichuan had now stopped in front of the curved cliffs of Xiling Gorge. Yet, the water where they had anchored was eerily calm—an unusual sight for the Three Gorges.

"They say a Nature Formation was created here by nature itself, but I never thought it could actually be true..."

Zhou Xuchuan was also amazed by the water surface under the ship.

It was said that in the early hours of the morning, the Three Gorges would be covered in mist, and heaven and earth came together to create a different world.

Whenever people heard this tale, they generally assumed that it was just a poem about how the scenery of the Three Gorges was dreamy and breathtaking.

However, the truth was completely different.

The rumors were actually true.

Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, Xiling Gorge.

The Three Gorges of the Yangtze were one giant Nature Formation.

Legend has it that the ancestors of the Tang Family had accidentally discovered a hidden location inside the Nature Formation, where they had found the Human-faced Spider.

"Secure the sails properly so they don't get caught in the wind, and check the anchors carefully."

“Understood.”

At her command, the Tang Family warriors sprang into action, ensuring everything was in place before they climbed up the cliff wall, which had grooves cut into it like stairs.

Since everyone in the party had at least reached the Peak Realm, climbing posed no real challenge. Standing on the cliff was far preferable to lingering over the treacherous waters.

After climbing the horrifyingly dangerous looking cliff wall, they reached the cliffside and came across a dense, ominous-looking forest.

It was reminiscent of the Southern Jungles, but something about it was far more unsettling.

They had barely taken a few steps when a sound echoed from within the forest.

"...!"

Tang Hui turned sharply and met Zhou Xuchuan’s gaze.

"The sound of metal," Zhou Xuchuan muttered, almost as if answering an unspoken question. Without hesitation, he dashed forward.

His movements were like lightning.

“Ugh!"

As soon as he pushed through the bushes, blood sprayed into the air.

A warrior, his chest pierced, collapsed. Zhou Xuchuan grabbed him by the back of the neck, pulling him away while simultaneously thrusting his sword forward with his free hand.

Screech!

He froze.

Was that a screech?

He tilted his head at the screech of a beast, but his confusion didn’t last long. The creature soon revealed itself.

He could see that its body was divided into a head, sternum, and abdomen. It had six glowing red eyes on its head and its eight legs—each segmented into seven parts—were attached to both its head and sternum.

It was a spider. However, it wasn't just any spider, as it was five chi tall.

Is that supposed to be a spider?

Spiders weren't supposed to be this big. Even the rare spiders that came from the west were only as big as the palm of one's hand.

A spider bigger than a child? He had never heard of such a thing.

No, I can be shocked later.

Pushing aside his disbelief, Zhou Xuchuan swiftly swung his sword.

No matter how monstrous the spider was, it was useless against the sword of the swordsman. Its body was torn to pieces with a few sword strikes.

"It's Zhou Xuchuan of the Mount Hua Sect!” Zhou Xuchuan shouted and looked around.

“Zhou Xuchuan?”

“Sword God!”

“It’s Great Hero Zhou Xuchuan!”

Cheering erupted from all around. The scene before Zhou Xuchuan’s eyes was a group of spider-shaped monsters and a group of martial artists fighting each other.

"Benefactor!"

A familiar face appeared.

“Wang Yi!”

It was the leader of the Gold Will Sword Sect’s Ten Gale Swordsmen, Gale Sword Wang Yi.

Zhou Xuchuan ran to Wang Yi and with a single slash, he cut down the spider that had been attacking him.

"

Gasp!

"

Wang Yi was delighted by Zhou Xuchuan’s appearance, but was also astonished by his incomparable sword skills.

“Have the others arrived yet?”

Incidentally, the expedition team hadn't actually ever gathered together after it was formed.

Although each force had successfully mobilized its experts, they were located far apart from each other.

Since Xiling Gorge was the optimal meeting point, they had simply decided to meet at their destination.

Of course, the method of entering and exiting the Nature Formation had been sent in advance using the Martial Alliance's revised encryption.

However, no forces other than the Gold Will Sword Sect were visible.

"Everyone other than your party, Benefactor, had gathered earlier. However, we've now all split up. It would take too long to explain everything in detail.

Ha!

"

Wang Yi was one of the strongest experts of the Gold Will Sword Sect, the strongest expert excluding the Sword Demon and the Phantoms. As he had also been supported with elixirs, his skills were quite good.

Although he wasn't as strong as Zhou Xuchuan, he was still able to cut through the spiders' legs with two or three swings at full strength.

"They aren't ordinary spiders!" a warrior from the Gold Will Sword Sect shouted in frustration.

Not only were they massive, they were also unusually strong.

“

Cough, cough!

"

Meanwhile, one of the warriors from the Gold Will Sword Sect clutched his neck, groaning in pain. His face rapidly turned red and blue..

It wasn’t because he was filled with emotions—it was a symptom of poisoning.

“Detoxification!"

"Understood!"

“Yes!”

Tang Hui, who had followed Zhou Xuchuan, was momentarily stunned by the sight before her. However, she quickly assessed the situation and issued orders.

The Tang Family warriors, allied with the Gold Will Sword Sect, immediately sprang into action. Some protected the poisoned and focused on detoxification, while others used their hidden weapons to support the fight from behind.

“Hmph.”

If Tang Hui were an ordinary woman, she might have screamed and fainted at the sight of the disgusting, five chi tall spiders. However, she was a famous female warrior of the

murim

. Moreover, she was a woman of the Tang Family, which dealt with all kinds of poisonous insects. She dealt with the rampaging spiders without blinking an eye.

Even when the spiders twisted their bodies furiously and lunged at her after being struck by the hidden weapons from her fluttering sleeves, she remained unfazed. She just calmly dodged to the side and subdued them, or even knocked them down by hitting them with her palms.

Screech!

Screech!

Meanwhile, the spider swarm seemed to be displeased with the humans and screeched fiercely. Despite it being broad daylight, eerie red eyes flashed in the shadows—lurking in the darkness where not even a sliver of sunlight could reach.

The number of spiders increased rapidly, and before Zhou Xuchuan and the others realized it, they had completely surrounded them.

“Everyone! Protect your ears!”

Zhou Xuchuan took a deep breath, his chest expanding as he gathered his energy.

The air he inhaled cycled through his body, transforming as it mixed with his qi. Then, with explosive force, he released it.

"ROAR!!!"

Zhou Xuchuan used Dragon Roar with a volume so loud that it shook not only the surrounding area, but the Three Gorges itself.

ROAR!!!!!

The Dragon Roar echoed through the dense forest and throughout the Three Gorges.

Screech! Screech!

Screech!

The spiders, which had seemed ready to pounce, suddenly hesitated.

"Oho, so you're not going to back down?"

His roar had contained enough qi to make most martial artists lose their fighting spirit.

He had used Dragon Roar with the intention of driving the spiders away, but they seemed to be on guard and wary, without even thinking of fleeing.

"Are they all spiritual beasts, then?"

Zhou Xuchuan’s eyes sparkled with desire.

"Oho, then let's see if you have any neidans!"

He had no intention of playing around. Since the situation didn’t seem good, he moved personally to finish things quickly.

Zhou Xuchuan drew on his ocean-like qi, wrapped his blade with not just sword qi but sword aura, and swung it brilliantly.

Woosh!

There was no need for him to use a proper technique. Even though the spiders were spiritual beasts, that would have been completely overboard.

Zhou Xuchuan became a ray of light and moved his sword between the spiders hiding in the darkness.

Squelch!

The spiders' bodies were cut in half as if they had been split with an axe. His cuts were so clean that their corpses fell without spilling a single drop of blood.

Forgetting to even breathe, Zhou Xuchuan slaughtered every presence that entered his keen senses.

"Is this, is this what it means to be the Sword God?"

"I can't even see him."

"Ha, wow."

"It makes me feel stupid to have been fighting them so hard all this time."

Even the Gold Will Sword Sect and the Tang Family couldn’t help but be surprised.

With every blink, the warriors heard the agonized cries of the spiders. The battle was over in an instant.

Zhou Xuchuan moved with such impossible speed that even his afterimages were imperceptible, leaving the others struggling to comprehend what they were witnessing.

Even more absurdly, as if he were concerned about preserving the neidans within their bodies, except for the first few, Zhou Xuchuan killed the rest with a single, precise stab.

Screech!

Screech, screech!

Only then did the spiders feel fear, and those who had been wondering whether to help or not from afar also started to run away.

After cleaning up the surrounding area, Zhou Xuchuan put away his sword and approached Wang Yi without even a hitch in his breath.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

"T-thanks to you, I'm fine."

"That's a relief. So, what happened here?"

"Well..."

Wang Yi continued, his expression darkening as he recalled the events leading up to this battle.

1. You will not find a single mention of this mound in English. It was a massive boulder that stood nearly 30 meters above the water, and was blown up roughly in the 1950's because it blocked shipping routes. ☜