Here, the mountains tower into the clouds, cut by axes and chisels, continuous and unbroken, lush and verdant, brimming with poetic and picturesque beauty.
At the foot of the mountain, the great river roars with mighty waves, while the lake nearby is as still and peaceful as can be, crystal clear and murmuring gently.
There were many insects in vibrant colors up and down the grassland ahead of us, flitting and buzzing, in perfect harmony with the blossoms vying for attention. It felt as though we had stepped into a fairy tale.
However, at this moment, Chen Yun, Wu Kejiu, Qin Ming and others stood on the boundless grassland, appearing rather solemn.
Everyone thought that after taking the antidote pill, there would be no more trouble.
Who would have thought that as soon as everyone activated their Qi in their bodies to practice flight, not only did the signs of poisoning reappear, but the poisoning became even worse.
This extremely strange poison sends shivers down one's spine.
Everyone was very silent. Under this unknown situation, no one felt like talking about anything.
Chen Yun surveyed the group, then spoke slowly, "If I'm not mistaken, this poison should become more severe the more you channel Qi from your bodies."
Wu Kejiu looked at Chen Yun in astonishment, "Mr. Chen, you also used Qi just now, why didn't you get poisoned?"
Everyone else looked at Chen Yun, each one revealing a curious expression. It wasn't that they suspected Chen Yun of poisoning them, but rather that they found it unreasonable. They all used Qi just now, yet Chen Yun showed no signs of being poisoned.
If they could figure out why, they might be able to crack the bizarre situation in front of them.
Chen Yun shook his head, "I don't know why I wasn't poisoned either. Perhaps it's because my physical body is particularly strong, or maybe the internal elixir cultivation technique I practice is not easily poisoned. However, one thing is certain: if you take the antidote pill first and then use less Qi, you should no longer continue to be poisoned."
Long Nv smiled wryly, "If we cannot use Qi, how would we be able to practice flying techniques to speed up our journey?"
Hearing this, everyone nodded slightly. Dian Tian of Ruyuegou is vast and boundless, and if everyone cannot use magic flight to travel, they may never be able to cross Lalu Island and reach Ruyue Chuan.
Chen Yun said firmly, "Since I'm not poisoned, then later on, I will use the technique of soaring through the clouds and mist to take all of you away from here. I suspect that the poisoning has something to do with this land. Maybe leaving here will help."
"Very well."
"Thank you, Mr. Chen."
"Oh, we don't even know how we got poisoned; the whole situation is just too eerie."
A group of people sincerely thanked Chen Yun, and the tone in their voices finally recovered some of the lightness from before, no longer as heavy.
Quickly, everyone followed Chen Yun's advice and took the antidote pill, then sat quietly for a while longer.
As Chen Yun had guessed, it was almost exactly the same. As long as they didn't use their Qi from within, they basically wouldn't be poisoned again.
Alternatively, the fewer actions they took, the less severe the signs of poisoning became.
Seeing that the group was currently safe, Chen Yun didn't beat around the bush, directly using the technique of soaring through clouds and mist to lift up more than forty people and head northward.
Although carrying so many people was tiring and significantly slowed down the speed, at least they wouldn't have to stay there and die.
During the journey, perhaps because they no longer continued to be poisoned, the group began to chat more and more after initially being silent.
The group speculated about the situation that had occurred earlier.
Someone thought that the land was poisonous.
Others thought that there was some strange and sinister beast lurking in that area.
Well, there were all sorts of guesses.
However, none of Wu Kejiu, Qin Ming, Long Nv Sanjiu, or Gao Chen and the others noticed any sweat on Chen Yun's forehead as he used the technique of soaring through clouds and mist.
"Hmm?" Chen Yun appeared relaxed, his hands behind his back, flying through clouds and mist, but in reality, his brows had furrowed. "I think I'm also poisoned."
Just now, Chen Yun noticed that after he had heavily expended his true Qi, a strange toxin invaded his body, seemingly intent on rapidly consuming his true Qi and even paralyzing every cell in his body.
However, what surprised Chen Yun was that he didn't contract the poison because of his strong physical body, but rather because of the nature of true Qi.
He clearly felt that when the mysterious toxin touched the true Qi, it was instantly dissolved, not only not consuming the true Qi, but on the contrary, it seemed to have become a supplement.
"After the true Qi dissolves the toxins inside, it quickly converts them into the purest Qi and absorbs them?" Chen Yun's gaze became somewhat strange. "This is because the attribute of true Qi is pure Yang. The Qi of those foreign cultivation methods is not pure Yang, so they cannot resist the toxins."
This toxin seems to be a kind of "spirit Qi" with lethal potency.
When the pure Yang attribute of true Qi melts away the deadly toxins in "spirit Qi," only the most pure Qi remains, which is then assimilated by true Qi.
He roughly understood why the group's condition worsened the more they used their Qi.
It's simple. This toxic spirit Qi is similar to a respiratory infectious disease. Many cultivators' Qi comes from absorbing and transforming spirit Qi from the outside. When they consume a large amount of their internal Qi, they inevitably absorb external spirit Qi to replenish it, which naturally leads to poisoning.
His internal elixir cultivation technique is different; it is the transformation of internal energy, so it is not easy to get poisoned.
The reason why they began to show signs of poisoning as they traveled further north was that the toxicity increased as they moved towards the north. In other words, the toxic gas in the air became more prevalent. When Chen Yun inhaled, he inadvertently absorbed more toxin-infused spirit Qi into his body, which accumulated and caused a poisoning reaction.
Initially, I should have been poisoned as well, but the poisoning was very mild, and it was dissolved by the true Qi before I even noticed it.
As the invisible toxic gas becomes increasingly potent, the speed at which true Qi dissolves it isn't as fast, and it takes effect more gradually.
Thinking about this, Chen Yun turned his head to look at Wu Kejiu, Qin Ming, and the others, and said calmly, "Hold your breath. Only breathe when you can't help it anymore."
"Ah?"
"Hold your breath?"
The group did not understand what Chen Yun meant by his statement.
Wu Kejiu was very decisive. He knew that Chen Yun must have sensed something, so he quickly said, "We'll do as Mr. Chen asks without any further talk."
The group did not dare to be lazy. Each one of them held their breath.
Chen Yun did not hold his breath like the others, because with the existence of true Qi, the intangible toxins in the air could not hurt him. In fact, even if he inhaled these toxins and had them converted by true Qi, he felt somewhat rejuvenated.
Of course, he didn't need to hold his breath.
Additionally, Chen Yun wanted to see just how much toxic gas his true Qi could withstand.
……
Carrying forty or more people, the speed of flight was about half of what it normally was, and the consumption was frighteningly high.
Fortunately, the toxic gas had been transformed into true Qi to replenish it, so Chen Yun was able to fly for almost a whole day without feeling too exhausted.
And as they moved further north, he felt that the intangible toxins in the air had become increasingly dense.
As a result, his consumption of true Qi for replenishment became even more rapid.
After flying for several dozen hours, the group had traveled tens of thousands of miles.
Chen Yun could deduce that the speed at which he was currently flying through clouds and mist was about twenty thousand miles per day.
However, as they flew further north, the land became increasingly barren. Not only did grass become increasingly scarce, but there were also many gullies that looked like riverbeds, but without any water.
Chen Yun didn't think much about it. He was just about to find a place to rest for the night and continue the journey with everyone tomorrow.
Suddenly, Wu Kejiu seemed to recall something and exclaimed in alarm, "No good! I know why we were poisoned before!"
"What's going on?" Long Nv Sanjiu hurriedly looked in the direction he was pointing.
Chen Yun couldn't help but stand up straight, listening carefully.
Wu Kejiu said with a serious tone, "Look at the land below. Can you feel anything unusual?"
Qin Ming also didn't react, and said, "When we passed here last time, it was a grassland and a never-ending river. Now it's barren with no grass, and the river is dry. There's nothing unusual about it. Perhaps some powerful cultivator is fighting here."
"Wu Kejiu cut to the chase, "This is not how a duel looks like!" He said with certainty, "There must be some kind of beast causing this scene!"
Chen Yun knew that Wu Kejiu wouldn't say something like that without reason, so he asked proactively, "Wu Master, don't keep us in suspense. Just tell us the situation directly."
"Yes, Wu Master."
"Just say what you've noticed."
Several people spoke up simultaneously.
Wu Kejiu didn't beat around the bush anymore. He said bluntly, "I remember that there is a kind of beast called 'fei', which looks like a cow with a white head, one eye and a snake tail. Wherever it goes, water dries up and grass withers. When it appears, a great plague spreads across the world. If my guess is correct, the poisoning we suffered before was entirely due to the 'fei' that was nurtured in the Moon Day Lake Daohe. Its toxic gas is too powerful, covering an area of over one hundred thousand miles, causing us to be poisoned by inhaling its gas. Now here grass is destroyed and rivers are dry. Unless there's an unexpected situation, it's nearby!"
Fei?
Fei? Is this a legendary beast?
Chen Yun didn't expect to find such a beast in the Moon Day Lake Daohe.
However, he didn't know how powerful this legendary beast was. If it was very strong, it might pose a great danger to his group traveling through this area, and it would be better to take a detour.
Just thinking about it, Zhang Ling, who didn't know much about the 'fei' beast, asked curiously, "Is the 'fei' beast very powerful?"
"It may not have too strong strength on its own, probably equivalent to that of an upper-stage cultivator at the mid-stage level." Wu Kejiu explained carefully: "But the toxins it emits are terrifying. They can quickly dissolve a person's Qi, so even high-level cultivators are reluctant to confront the 'fei', as getting poisoned and losing their Qi would leave them helpless."
Chen Yun agreed with this point wholeheartedly. With such a terrifying poison, ordinary people wouldn't even be able to fight using their Qi. They might as well deepen the signs of poisoning by using their Qi, and then they would die of poison without even needing the 'fei' to intervene.
The toxins of the 'fei' beast are very strange. They are not like the toxins of a centipede-type spiritual beast, which can be resisted by Qi. Its toxins cannot be blocked.
Chen Yun was about to say something.
Suddenly, Chen Yun caught a glimpse of a peculiar creature walking slowly in the valley basin ahead. It had a white head, a cow's body, one eye, and a snake-like tail.
Chen Yun was taken aback for a moment, thinking to himself, "Could this be the 'fei'?"
(End of this chapter)
