The outer sea beyond the known world was an absolutely mysterious region.
Back when Su Min had just entered the Golden Core stage, she had already known of its existence but dared not approach it.
Now, however, the environment here had grown even worse.
Splat!
Facing the oncoming demonic beasts, Su Min casually swatted one into a bloody mist. Tian Hao was doing much the same—he was a dedicated body cultivator, while Su Min's cultivation was more eclectic. But both had exceptional physiques.
Back during the Golden Core Avenue, Su Min had taken pills to fight him. Though she had relied on external aids, it was still her strength—ordinary cultivators wouldn't stand a chance even with the same pills.
Thus, the two of them were effortlessly slaughtering the swarming demonic beasts, reducing them to pulp with single strikes. In the blink of an eye, the ocean before them had turned a deep crimson.
At this level, demonic beasts no longer cared whether they were in the sea or the sky. They charged mindlessly at the two, throwing their lives away without hesitation.
"What the hell are these things? A horde of Nascent Soul-stage beasts charging at us like this?"
After casually obliterating an early-stage Nascent Soul beast, Tian Hao wiped the cold sweat from his brow and looked at Su Min.
He was genuinely unsettled. In the current era, Nascent Soul cultivators weren't exactly rare, but they were far from being as common as cabbages. Even in Su Min's immortal sect, which had access to vast quantities of pills and a complete cultivation environment, there were only a few dozen Nascent Soul cultivators.
Under normal circumstances, no sane Nascent Soul being would launch a suicidal charge against two half-step Dao Comprehension experts just passing by. Yet these demonic beasts were doing exactly that—and their numbers seemed endless.
The sheer quantity was staggering. Tian Hao had already crushed seventy or eighty of them, and Su Min had killed just as many. Fortunately, both were body cultivators, so slaughtering these weaker creatures consumed very little energy.
"This is just the beginning. Further in, we'll run into Divine Transformation-stage beasts. The ancient battlefield isn't a place you can just waltz into. Many Unity and even Mahayana experts died there. That's why the White Tiger left its inheritance there—to suppress the evil."
Su Min was fully aware of the dangers. If not for the fact that the passage could only accommodate Divine Transformation-level beings, she would have delayed this trip for decades until she reached the Dao Comprehension stage.
As for these demonic beasts, they were all insane—literally. There was no reasoning with them. The reason was simple:
Their power came from being tainted by the corrupted blood seeping from the ancient battlefield. That blood had been flowing for who knew how many years, and every drop carried madness and slaughter. They hungered to devour everything around them.
Even an insect that took a single bite would instantly reach the Body Refining stage. A few more bites, and it would jump straight to Qi Refining. These creatures were the products of endless slaughter, and now they had completely lost their sanity.
Or perhaps they still had some, but the moment they sensed fresh, untainted flesh, they would charge like frenzied zombies.
This situation gave even Su Min a headache. Based on the information from her past life's "game," further in, there would be swarms of Divine Transformation-stage beasts. One or two wouldn't be a problem, but if they came in large numbers, things would get dangerous.
No matter how strong the two of them were, fighting Divine Transformation-stage beasts would still consume spiritual energy. If too many came, they would die. And the ancient battlefield itself was even worse—there were even mutated Dao Comprehension-stage beasts inside. Those things would fight to the death the moment they spotted prey, with no room for negotiation.
An ordinary Divine Transformation cultivator coming here would be delivering themselves to their doom. Only freaks like Su Min and Tian Hao, who far surpassed their cultivation level in combat power, could survive. That was why Su Min had been willing to pay such a high price to keep Tian Hao with her, even ignoring threats from certain sects.
"This…"
Hearing Su Min's words, Tian Hao felt his scalp tingle. He glanced at the dark red seawater below and realized this wouldn't be an easy journey. A seventh-grade high-tier pill, with Su Min providing all the materials and refining it for him. No matter how many batches were ruined, she would keep supplying them until success.
Just then—
ROAR!!!
A massive fish monster, over three hundred meters long, erupted from the sea. Its grotesque body, reeking of decay, lunged at the two, its maw gaping wide to swallow them whole.
"What the—?!"
Even though Su Min had been prepared, she couldn't help but curse. She raised her hand and slammed it down with immense force.
BOOM!!!
A deafening impact echoed as the beast was sent flying, heavily wounded but not yet dead. It immediately charged again.
"Five Elements Slash!"
Su Min drew her weapon and cleaved downward. A brilliant sword beam engulfed the monster, slicing even the seawater apart before it quickly closed again.
After finishing it off, Su Min took out a small gourd and absorbed the beast's corpse. The twisted flesh of these corrupted beasts had no medicinal value—it could only serve as nourishment for the gourd. Even a Divine Transformation-stage beast provided less essence than a normal Nascent Soul beast.
"We're already facing Divine Transformation-stage beasts?"
Tian Hao's expression darkened. The situation was worse than expected. They hadn't even reached the core area yet.
"A single early-stage Divine Transformation beast isn't a big deal, but it forced me to use spiritual energy. The road ahead will be much harder. And worse than the beasts are the people—our competitors."
"There are others coming here? At the Divine Transformation stage? Other than us, who else would dare?"
Tian Hao was stunned.
"Who told you there's only one world? If the Heavenly Dao lifted its restrictions, you'd realize something if you flew high enough."
Su Min's expression turned grim. In the game, this had been a solo dungeon—just fight your way to the White Tiger's inheritance. But reality was different. The endless hordes of beasts were one thing, but the ancient battlefield was a spatial node.
There was no telling what lurked inside, nor what existed in the distant worlds beyond. The term myriad realms often just referred to different planets. Records spoke of countless Great Emperors, yet only a handful of their legacies remained. Some sects had been destroyed, but most had simply… vanished. Where they went was a mystery. In the game, it had been for balance. But this was reality—there was no such thing as fairness here.
"Hiss—"
Tian Hao took a sharp breath. As a casual cultivator, his knowledge was limited. Su Min, however, knew because of her past-life memories—especially the hidden dangers buried in fragmented lore.
"Stop gasping. More are coming—two, no, three Divine Transformation-stage beasts. You handle this one. Your energy consumption is lower."
Su Min suddenly warned. Her perception far surpassed Tian Hao's, allowing her to sense the disturbances beneath the waves.
"Got it."
Though not an alchemist, Tian Hao's senses were still sharp. At this level, one had to excel in all aspects. Within seconds, he too detected the approaching threats. His soul force, while inferior to Su Min's seventh-grade alchemist level, was around mid-to-high sixth-grade. Unfortunately, his elemental affinities prevented him from alchemy.
A moment later—
CRASH!!!
A colossal crab, a monstrous lobster, and a giant turtle burst from the depths. All seafood, but Su Min had no appetite for them. These things were tainted by the corrupted blood. Only her innate spirit treasure, the gourd, could safely refine them—and even then, much of their essence was wasted.
"Hah!Great Desolate Heaven-Destroying Fist!!!"
Tian Hao's arm blurred as a massive phantom appeared behind him. With a single punch, the phantom sent all three beasts flying.
But they immediately charged back, undeterred.
Tian Hao frowned. These creatures had absurdly tough exoskeletons. Even he couldn't kill them effortlessly.
So…
"Here are three seventh-grade Spirit Recovery Pills and a dozen sixth-grade ones. Use them sparingly."
Seeing Tian Hao panting after tearing the beasts apart, Su Min tossed him several bottles. She had prepared extensively for this ordeal.
"Let's move. No stopping. At our level, going months without rest isn't an issue."
With that, she turned into a streak of light and shot forward. Tian Hao followed closely. Along the way, more Divine Transformation-stage beasts attacked, but the two evaded them with sheer speed. Yet the beasts pursued relentlessly, like parasites clinging to their prey.
Three hours later, the two halted simultaneously.
Before them, everything had changed.
A massive spatial rift loomed, its dark maw exuding an aura that made even two late-stage Divine Transformation experts shudder. It was a primal fear, a biological instinct screaming of danger.
Below the rift, black blood oozed endlessly. And beneath that—
The ocean was a writhing mass of monstrous bodies. Countless enormous figures tangled together, some consuming the black blood, others devouring each other.
"You see? Those things can't even be called living beings anymore."
The chaotic scene reminded Su Min of a movie from her past life—Anaconda. One installment had a swarm of giant snakes entwined in a mating ball. This was that, but a thousand times worse.
"All Divine Transformation-stage. Dozens of late-stage ones. But they're only using brute strength—no laws. I wonder if any have comprehended laws."
Tian Hao's face was grave. If things were this bad outside, then Su Min's warnings were true. Inside, there would indeed be Dao Comprehension-stage beasts.
Given the environment, it was inevitable.
But none were here now. Nor were they rampaging elsewhere. That meant only one thing—they had entered the rift. Not as Dao Comprehension beings, but as creatures that had consumed enough black blood to instinctively crawl inside and then break through. Of course, this was just speculation. Normally, nothing above Dao Comprehension could enter—the rift would block them. But for these abominations, the rules might not apply.
"Let's go in. And be careful."
Taking a deep breath, Su Min plunged into the rift. She hadn't consumed the black blood, so it couldn't corrupt her. Tian Hao followed.
But the moment they crossed the threshold, everything changed.
Before, no matter how chaotic the sea was, the sky had remained normal—beautiful, even.
Now, the entire sky was a bloody black. The earth was littered with corpses—human and demonic alike—each towering thousands of meters tall. Some were like pillars holding up the heavens.
"Are these… Unity-stage experts?"
Though he had expected it, Tian Hao was still stunned. Those mountain-sized corpses were undoubtedly human. Upon reaching the Unity stage, cultivators forged their Dharma Bodies, transforming their physiques into something transcendent.
If they died while in their Dharma Body form, their corpses would remain gigantic.
These were all Unity-stage powerhouses. And those titanic remains stretching into the horizon? Possibly Mahayana experts.
All dead. All fallen here.
ROOOOAR!!!
Suddenly, the earth trembled. A monstrous presence erupted from below, shattering the ground.
A Dao Comprehension-stage demonic beast had appeared.
"Shit!"
Both Su Min and Tian Hao paled.
Their worst fear had come true.
A Dao Comprehension-stage beast—right at the entrance.