Swallowed Star 2: Origin Continent-Chapter 274 : Jiugang Holy Realm — Arrival

Chapter 274: Jiugang Holy Realm — Arrival

When they flew into the Dark Deep Pool, Luo Feng felt an invisible wave sweep past him. With his body at the early stage of the God Emperor Realm, he naturally resisted it with ease. Luo Feng also noticed that Emperor Ming’s expression remained calm, while Emperor Fu frowned slightly, seemingly under strain.

“Hu.”

A single droplet of water wrapped around Luo Feng, Emperor Qing, Emperor Fu, and Emperor Ming, and in an instant, they left the Origin Continent — the Source World itself.

That droplet of water was traversing through the Hunyuan Space at ultra-high speed.

Luo Feng had once used the Eye of Life and Death to observe the world beyond the Source World, yet this droplet that enveloped them left the Origin Continent behind in just the blink of an eye.

“My homeland, the Origin Continent.” Luo Feng watched as the immense Source World shrank rapidly, eventually vanishing from sight.

He knew — he had left home.

When he first came to the Origin Continent, he thought the Primal Universe was his home.

But now that he had reached beyond the Source World, he realized that the Origin Continent, that complete Source World, was truly his home. Leaving behind the avatar that resided there also meant losing the protection of the Supreme Laws.

“So fast.” Luo Feng and the others looked ahead.

In the distance, a vast Source World rapidly approached them — but in a flash, the droplet streaked past it.

Swish, swish, swish!!!

Ten worlds, twenty, fifty...

One after another, massive Source Worlds resembling the “Origin Continent” vanished from their sight within seconds, revealing the sheer speed of this droplet’s passage.

“Was that a natural Hunyuan lifeform?” Emperor Fu couldn’t help but speak.

Luo Feng also saw it — a massive, winding black serpent swimming leisurely through the Hunyuan Space. Its body was so long that it exceeded the entire size of the Origin Continent itself.

The Origin Continent and the surrounding Universe Ocean together formed one complete Source World.

And this black serpent’s body alone was nearly one-third the length of an entire Source World.

“Hm?” The serpent glanced toward the flashing droplet, but it disappeared in an instant, vanishing into the distant void.

“To move through the Hunyuan Space that fast? Could it be the master of a Source World skilled in void travel? Or perhaps one of the Hunyuan Lords using a teleportation technique?” the serpent pondered.

This vast territory belonged to the Cultivator Faction.

To travel at such incredible speed through the Hunyuan Space usually implied one of those two possibilities.

“Looks like my whereabouts have been exposed again. I’ll hunt another time.” The serpent’s massive body glided leisurely — then vanished into thin air.

Only a few breaths later—

A shadow descended into a region of spacetime, condensing into a black-robed youth.

The youth stood still. The surrounding vast spacetime bowed before him. Every trace, every past event within this realm was laid bare under his observation.

“It was the spawn of a world-level Hunyuan lifeform.” The black-robed youth’s gaze turned icy, murderous intent filling his eyes.

“The Infinite Serpent Clan — among the natural Hunyuan lifeforms, they’re the most troublesome. They can appear anywhere in the Infinite Hunyuan Space and vanish just as easily.” He murmured coldly, “The Infinite Serpent Clan is bold indeed, daring to wander deep into the territories of our Cultivator Faction. I must find a chance to crush a few of those snake whelps.”

Whoosh.

He disappeared without a trace.

……

“Judging from its size, that must have been a world-level Hunyuan lifeform.” The droplet continued its rapid flight through the Infinite Hunyuan Space as Emperor Qing spoke. “Fortunately, the teleportation droplet shields us, isolating all contamination. Otherwise, if you had looked directly upon a living world-level Hunyuan lifeform, Emperor Fu, you would’ve died instantly.”

Among the four present, Emperor Fu’s mental will was the weakest — he was still only at the Ultimate Stage of Divine King.

Luo Feng and Emperor Ming were curious. Through the droplet, they had only glimpsed a faint image of the winding serpent before it vanished, feeling no sense of danger.

“During teleportation across the Infinite Hunyuan Space, it’s not rare to see natural Hunyuan lifeforms. But such powerful ones are rare indeed,” Emperor Qing said with his seasoned calm. “We’re almost at the Jiugang Holy Realm.”

After passing 125 Source Worlds, the droplet finally reached its destination.

“Jiugang Holy Realm.” Luo Feng, Emperor Ming, and Emperor Fu carefully observed it.

It was an enormous oval-shaped world, slightly smaller in scale than the Origin Continent’s Source World.

Even from the Infinite Hunyuan Space, they could see nine winding rivers encircling the world like chains. Each river shimmered faintly with countless secret patterns, forming a grand formation that completely sealed the world.

“Hu.”

The droplet carrying the four of them flew straight into the Jiugang Holy Realm.

At the center of the Jiugang Holy Realm stood a towering sacred mountain.

At its base lay a dark deep pool. A single droplet of water fell into it, and Emperor Qing, Luo Feng, Emperor Ming, and Emperor Fu emerged from within.

“Hm?” Luo Feng immediately noticed more than two hundred figures already gathered at the foot of the mountain. Some stood in small groups, others alone, all patiently waiting.

“They must belong to different cultivation systems,” Luo Feng thought, noticing their vastly differing auras.

There was a burly man silently sitting with a great bow on his back.

An old man in long robes and glasses curiously turned his gaze toward them.

A giant, as if carved from stone, sat motionless as though asleep.

A half-transparent creature hid among the crevices of the rocks, cautiously observing Luo Feng’s group.

And a woman composed entirely of flame blended into the void itself.

“Ah—my body.” Emperor Fu’s face changed. His skin began to peel in fine layers, energy dispersing from his form.

Emperor Qing, Luo Feng, and Emperor Ming all turned toward him.

“My body is collapsing,” Emperor Fu said anxiously.

“Don’t panic,” Emperor Qing replied calmly. “Any complete Origin Path is compatible with all Source Worlds. However, this ‘Jiugang Holy Realm’ isn’t a Source World — it’s a special cultivation world created by Senior Yuan and the others. The core of your physical structure, the ‘Origin Path of Space,’ is somewhat incompatible with the Jiugang Holy Realm, causing your body to destabilize. You just need to abandon the incompatible parts and reconstruct your body’s system. Your strength may decline a bit, but at least your body won’t collapse.”

Emperor Qing spoke from experience, offering guidance.

Emperor Fu nodded and began restructuring his physical body.

A Seeker’s body was entirely self-constructed from the most fundamental level, so naturally, it could also be modified.

“Brother Luo He,” Emperor Qing said in surprise as he looked to Luo Feng. “Emperor Ming’s body is built upon the Hunyuan bloodline, which naturally harmonizes with the Hunyuan Space and many worlds. But you, Luo He... you didn’t cultivate a Hunyuan bloodline, did you?”

Luo Feng smiled.

The various avatars he had cultivated were indeed complete transformations of Hunyuan-blooded beings, so adapting to the Jiugang Holy Realm posed no difficulty.

“I didn’t cultivate a Hunyuan bloodline, but coming to the Jiugang Holy Realm hasn’t affected my strength,” Luo Feng said.

Emperor Qing was curious but didn’t press further.

“A body constructed purely from the mysteries of the Origin Path collapsing upon entering a new world...” Luo Feng mused as Emperor Qing added, “For a Seeker, adapting to new worlds is also a form of cultivation.”

Luo Feng nodded thoughtfully.

Suddenly—

The sacred mountain behind them rumbled: “New cultivators, each era a flying boat will arrive to take you to one of the cities of the Jiugang Holy Realm.”

Luo Feng and Emperor Ming turned to the towering mountain, where a stone path led upward to its peak.

“That voice came from the sacred mountain,” Emperor Qing explained. “The sacred mountain guards two teleportation channels.”

“Two?” Luo Feng asked.

“The one at the foot leads back to the Origin Continent,” Emperor Qing said, then pointed up the path. “Following that road requires at least a Seeker at the late stage of the God Emperor Realm to reach the summit. There lies another deep pool, through which one can teleport to the Dark Holy Realm. The Two Kingdoms’ Ancestors are in the Dark Holy Realm.”

Luo Feng and Emperor Ming understood, while Emperor Fu continued stabilizing his body.

“Wait for me.”

Emperor Qing stepped toward the crowd of over two hundred figures. “You should all know the rules of the Jiugang Holy Realm.”

A formless aura spread from him, enveloping heaven and earth — and the two hundred cultivators.

Emperor Qing, after all, had reached the early stage of the God Emperor Realm back in the Origin Continent! Though his time in the Jiugang Holy Realm was short, his accumulated strength made his presence even more terrifying here without the world’s suppression.

The gathered figures turned pale, realizing that even if they joined forces, they couldn’t stand against him.

Emperor Qing smiled. “The Jiugang Holy Realm has thirty-five cities. I plan to go to Yulan City. Anyone wishing to join me may do so now. Each participant must pay a fee of one hundred Hunyuan Crystals or equivalent valuables. This is the standard rate.”

“I’m willing.”

“I’ll join.”

Voices rose one after another. Some were long-time residents of the Jiugang Holy Realm who had merely returned home for a time and were now coming back.

Lacking sufficient strength to travel alone, they had been waiting for transport.

“This senior at the God Emperor Realm dares to lead the way — he must be confident.”

“The thirty-five cities of the Jiugang Holy Realm aren’t all that different. You newcomers can safely head to Yulan City.”

“Who knows how long we’ll have to wait if we don’t go?”

Encouraged by others, ninety-six cultivators chose to follow. Most could afford the one hundred Hunyuan Crystals; those who couldn’t offered equivalent items.

“Nearly ten thousand Hunyuan Crystals earned.” Emperor Qing smiled, glancing at Luo Feng, Emperor Ming, and Emperor Fu. “In the Jiugang Holy Realm, Hunyuan Crystals are everything. Without them, you can’t even qualify to live long-term in a city. Perhaps Senior Yuan and the others designed it this way — to force us all to fight for survival.”

With a wave of his hand—

A cyan metallic flying boat appeared. Though marked with scratches, its aura was fearsome enough to make everyone tremble. Luo Feng realized that without the Star Tower or the Eye of Life and Death, there was still some gap between him and Emperor Qing.

“Let’s go.”

With a thought, Emperor Qing arranged for the ninety-six cultivators to settle in the rear compartments, while the four of them stayed in the front cabin.

Whoosh.

The cyan flying boat merged into the void, traveling at extreme speed toward Yulan City.

“The most dangerous parts of the Jiugang Holy Realm are those nine rivers,” Emperor Qing said from the front hall, gazing into the distance. “Those nine rivers are like chains, sealing the entire world. They also serve as the world’s energy core, drawing immense Hunyuan Power into their flow.”

“Therefore, within the nine rivers, the energy is the most concentrated! The low-level Hunyuan lifeforms live inside those rivers, absorbing energy to sustain themselves long-term,” Emperor Qing explained.

Luo Feng gazed afar. “There are many low-level Hunyuan lifeforms within the nine rivers?”

“Countless — beyond measure!”

Emperor Qing nodded. “No one knows how many low-level Hunyuan lifeforms Senior Yuan and the others threw into the nine rivers. They’re our main hunting targets here in the Jiugang Holy Realm. Of course, those low-level Hunyuan lifeforms also hunt us.”

As the flying boat sped through the void, Emperor Qing continued to share various common truths about the realm with Luo Feng and the others.