Chapter 23: The Stone Chamber

Pang Jian was taken aback. He could not understand why the giant serpent would suddenly go mad when it was already on the brink of death.

There was no enmity between them, but the giant serpent acted as though it wanted to kill him before meeting its demise.

Pang Jian lamented silently. He could no longer afford to concern himself with the presence of the strange figure as he had no choice but to retreat, intending to withdraw to a safe distance.

The giant serpent's head was pinned firmly to the ground, meaning he would remain out of harm's way as long as he stayed out of reach.

After avoiding the attack, he could bide his time until the Celestial Phoenix's bone completely devoured the flesh from the giant serpent's head and killed it once and for all.

Bam!

A muffled sound rang out from behind the bone of the Celestial Phoenix while Pang Jian was retreating.

He stole a glance. The giant serpent's winding skeleton had encountered an obstruction at the bottom of the pond, causing its attacks to slow significantly.

Pang Jian soon spotted a figure hanging on to the giant serpent's thrashing skeleton.

The sight was truly astonishing.

Unexpectedly, the strange figure of unknown origin had suffered as it was caught in the giant serpent's attack, tangled in its skeleton, and dragged through the raging waters.

The strange figure had not anticipated the giant serpent's dying struggle. The figure fought fiercely, hugging the giant serpent's thick bones and using all his might to pry them apart.

Lacking rationality or any semblance of humanity, the strange figure had mistakenly believed the final assault from the Giant Abyssal Serpent was aimed at him.

He summoned all his energy to confront the Giant Abyssal Serpent.

Pang Jian took the opportunity to flee to an area beyond the giant serpent's reach.

He secretly rejoiced, grateful the strange creature had intercepted an attack on his behalf. Escaping in time would have been challenging otherwise, and the giant serpent's bones could have ensnared or impaled him.

Even after escaping to a safe distance, he noticed the giant serpent's eyes continued to burn with hatred.

Pang Jian was utterly perplexed.

It was his maiden voyage into Blackwater Pond and his first encounter with the giant serpent. Why would it, in its dying moments, choose to pick a fight with him?

***

The night drew to a close and the light of day once again revealed itself.

After a night of bitter waiting, the members of the Shadow Specter Sect were surprised to find the once pitch-black water of Blackwater Pond had lightened.

The pond water had turned from pitch-black to dark gray.

As they carefully examined Blackwater Pond, they noticed its once placid surface now rippling with disturbance, indicating large movements within it.

"There's something in the water!"

Even the most clueless observer could deduce from the pond's rippling surface that there was alive and moving in its depths.

Hong Tai knew about the Giant Abyssal Serpent in Blackwater Pond and had planned to evacuate once they had assessed the situation after dawn.

However, at this moment, he hesitated. Seeking the opinions of everyone present, he asked, "With a Giant Abyssal Serpent at the bottom of the pond, there'll be a risk of death if we descend. Moreover, it could come on land to hunt us down. Let's consider this carefully. Do we give up? Or do we wait and see?"

His gaze remained fixed on Jin Yang's face despite the open question.

Although the pond's unusual activity had also alarmed Jin Yang, he was unwilling to give up.

"I want to wait and see," he decided, releasing several Cicada Wing Swords. He set them up to watch the pond's surface from different angles. "I have a feeling the water will soon clear up. Perhaps it won't be long before we can see what lies beneath."

"Hmm, the pond water is indeed becoming lighter," Hong Tai affirmed.

Through his python, Hong Tai knew the pond water had become less corrosive. Drawing upon his experience with pythons, he speculated that the Giant Abyssal Serpent was absorbing the corrosive energy it had previously unleashed.

"It can't hurt to wait a while longer, but everyone needs to be careful. The Giant Abyssal Serpent may appear once the pond water clear,s" Hong Tai warned solemnly.

Jin Yang nodded.

Meanwhile, Ning Yao, still bound in the silver giant net, wore an expression of profound despair.

She struggled to sit up while entangled in the net, staring blankly at the gloomy sky as if she had already given up.

The group paid little attention to her, preoccupied with Blackwater Pond and the uncertainty of whether the Giant Abyssal Serpent would emerge.

Those who had coveted her, such as Zhang Heng, had mostly perished in the battle.

Still mourning Ning Yuanshan's death, Ning Yao cast a blank gaze toward Blackwater Pond. A figure suddenly appeared in her mind as she listened to the members of the Shadow Specter Sect conversing.

Pang Jian...is he still alive?

Ning Yao had long since succumbed to despair. She could not believe that Pang Jian could survive at the bottom of the pond after so many others had died.

Pang Jian only recently gained the ability to sense the presence of qi. How could he not have drowned after such a long time? That's not to mention the corrosive energy in the pond water. Even Jin Yang had suffered. Pang Jian had surely perished by now,

Ning Yao speculated helplessly.

The thought of eventually meeting a fate worse than He Ziren's made her resolve to bite her tongue and end her life before that moment arrived.

Everyone was lost in thought.

The ripples on the pond's surface gradually subsided. Although the black hue of the pond water had lightened considerably, it had yet to completely clear up, suggesting that the corrosive energy still lingered.

All everyone could do was wait anxiously.

***

Having retreated to the rock wall bordering the bottom of the pond, Pang Jian observed as the resentment in the giant serpent's eyes drained away with its strength.

The more the giant serpent struggled, the quicker its strength depleted, and the faster the bone of the Celestial Phoenix consumed it.

Pang Jian watched as the bright olive-green scales disappeared from the giant serpent's head. The bone of the Celestial Phoenix was absorbing its flesh and blood.

Finally, the giant serpent was entirely consumed.

After the fierce battle, the strange figure on the other side of the Celestial Phoenix's bone gasped heavily. Bubbles of air rose from its mouth in streams.

Its body was covered in wounds, but not a drop of blood flowed from them.

The strange figure continued to gasp heavily, causing more and more bubbles to rise from its mouth. Its dark red eyes remained fixed eagerly on the bone of the Celestial Phoenix as it waited for the faint light to form.

It was like Pang Jian did not exist in its eyes.

Pang Jian, however, felt no resentment in being overlooked.

Perhaps it's just my lucky day.

The giant serpent finally died and the anticipated changes within the bone of the Celestial Phoenix had yet to occur. Having no choice but to wait, Pang Jian could only ponder where to go from here.

As he surveyed his surroundings for an escape route, he noticed an open stone door in the rocky wall he was pressed against.

The stone door was far from the bone of the Celestial Phoenix, obscured amidst a pile of jagged rocks. Despite this, the contrast between the smooth, glossy surface of the door and the rugged rocks around it made the door easy to spot.

It's man-made!

Pang Jian could not resist his curiosity and decided to investigate.

He arrived at the open stone door with his Dragonwood Spear in hand. Feeling somewhat nervous, he entered and discovered a narrow stone passage that appeared to lead toward the other side of the mountain.

After a moment of hesitation, he walked down the stone passage and discovered a small stone chamber.

The stone chamber contained a stone table, a stone chair, and a stone bed; there was nothing else.

As he stared at the small stone chamber in the middle of the stone passage, the expression on Pang Jian's face grew increasingly peculiar.

The layout of the table, chairs, and bed was identical to his house. As such, Pang Jian could not help but feel a sense of familiarity.

His stone house had been his residence ever since his father disappeared.

Due to their young age, he and Pang Lin shared the same stone house before his father disappeared.

This is...

Pang Jian was stunned.

Had his father been here before? Did he carve out this stone chamber?

The stone chamber was undoubtedly underwater where normal people could not breathe and survive, so how did his father carve it out?

Pang Jian did not know the answer to his questions.

Nevertheless, the narrow, deep stone passage, with its mysterious stone chamber and unknown destination, offered him a chance at survival.

After careful consideration, Pang Jian decided not to explore the stone passage first and instead went back through the stone door.

As he went to shut the stone door, he noticed the rugged, jagged texture on its front. Once closed, it blended seamlessly with its surroundings, camouflaging it completely.

The smoothness of the stone door was only apparent when opened.

It was a simple concealment method.

Pang Jian was certain it would be difficult to locate the door if he shut it from inside. Even if the members of the Shadow Specter Sect later descended to the bottom of the pond, they would have a hard time spotting the camouflaged stone door.

He could seize this opportunity to flee right now, shutting the door behind him and venturing into the depths of the narrow, winding stone passage.

However, the corrosive energy in Blackwater Pond seemed to affect his cultivation, so he decided to take a risk and stayed.

In front of the stone door, Pang Jian gazed at the bone of the Celestial Phoenix and the massive skeleton of the giant serpent.

The faint light had yet to form in the bone of the Celestial Phoenix. The flesh and blood of the giant serpent likely held more essence than the ancient vines and required a longer time to assimilate into the bone.

The strange figure continued to fixate on the bone of the Celestial Phoenix and ignore Pang Jian.

Pang Jian still had time to absorb the black corrosive energy from Blackwater Pond, cultivate the Qi Nurturing Divine Cauldron Art, and use the whirlpool in his navel region to refine spiritual power.

Thus, he once again entered a state of cultivation.

Time slipped away, and in the blink of an eye, several days had passed.

Throughout these few days, Pang Jian dedicated almost all his time to cultivation, only pausing to retrieve some dried meat to satiate his hunger.

He firmly seized this rare opportunity to cultivate.

***

On the surface, the members of the Shadow Specter Sect watched as the pitch-black pond water lightened by the day.

One day the pond water finally cleared.

"The water is no longer imbued with corrosive energy," Hong Tai said, gesturing to his python. Gazing at the clear pond water, he remarked, "The pond is so deep I cannot see the bottom. Who among you is willing to explore its depths?"

His gaze swept over the faces of the members of the Shadow Specter Sect, but no one dared to answer him.

"Is everyone truly this timid?" Hong Tai then turned his calculated gaze to the still-bound Ning Yao. "I kept you around because I wanted to use you as bait for the Giant Abyssal Serpent. The flesh of a young girl is extremely alluring to it. It can't resist such a delicacy."

Ning Yao was filled with dread.