Chapter 924
Chapter 924
He hadn't gone far when the ground ahead suddenly exploded, and several "bone centipedes" made of white bones, resembling centipedes, darted out, opening their mouths covered with bone spurs and biting at him! These bone centipedes possessed an aura comparable to the early stage of the Golden Core realm, moved swiftly, and had incredibly hard bones.
Fu Shaoping, not wanting to get entangled, raised his hand and gestured: "Contract - Suppression!"
The pale golden power of the contract transformed into an invisible pressure, instantly pinning several bone centipedes to the ground, their bones cracking and unable to move for a moment. He continued forward without stopping.
Along the way, he encountered several attacks. There were "vengeful war spirits" leaping out of the shadows, "spirit-devouring demonic vines" lurking beneath the scorched earth, and swarms of "evil contract flying insects" like locusts. Most of these monsters were corrupted by evil energy, but traces of contract rules remained at their cores, clearly related to the ancient contract wars.
Fu Shaoping used the power of contracts to deal with the situation, achieving twice the result with half the effort. The power of purification was clearly effective against the evil monsters, the power of judgment could sever their contract core, and the power of protection could resist mental erosion. He gradually adapted to the battlefield environment, and his speed increased.
Two hours later, a mountain peak appeared ahead, as if it had been cut off by a giant sword—Broken Sword Peak.
The peak faintly glowed with the light of an array, but it appeared extremely dim.
Fu Shaoping reached the summit and saw the ruins of a makeshift camp. Several tattered tents, some extinguished campfires, and broken magical artifacts and dried bloodstains scattered on the ground. In the center of the camp was a small teleportation array, but it seemed to have run out of energy and was no longer functional.
"It seems Elder Tianquan and his group were stationed here, but were attacked and forced to evacuate or relocate." Fu Shaoping carefully inspected the camp and found a broken jade talisman engraved with the Tianji Pavilion's mark in a corner. Infusing it with a wisp of spiritual energy, the jade talisman emitted a fragmented and disruptive message from Elder Tianquan:
"...The Broken Sword Peak stronghold was attacked by a large number of battle spirits and evil contract beasts...With the secret guidance of cultivators from the Myriad Contracts Alliance...they were forced to break out towards the ruins of the 'Contract Temple'...Be careful...the 'Fallen Contract Source Pool' at the core of the battlefield...The Myriad Contracts Alliance's goal may be...to activate the 'Evil Contract Seed' in the source pool...to recreate the ancient times..."
The comments section ends here.
"The ruins of the Temple of Contracts? The Fallen Pool of Contracts? The Seed of Evil Contracts?" Fu Shaoping memorized these keywords. It seemed the Myriad Contracts Alliance had a grand scheme this time, actually intending to activate the ancient, evil source of contracts!
He carefully put away the jade talisman and looked at the malfunctioning teleportation array in the center of the camp. With his expertise in array formations, combined with the "Heavenly Secrets Disc," he might be able to temporarily activate it and obtain some teleportation records or directional information.
He took out the Heavenly Secrets Disc, placed it at the core of the teleportation array, and began to deduce and repair it.
As expected of the Heavenly Mystery Disc, a treasure of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, combined with Fu Shaoping's power of contract, it quickly deciphered the teleportation array's last direction—the ruins of the "Contract Temple" in the northwest!
"go!"
Fu Shaoping put away the Heavenly Secrets Disc and, without hesitation, sped off in the northwest direction.
The closer one gets to the interior of the battlefield, the harsher the environment becomes. Grayish-black "rain of evil contracts" begins to fall from the sky, the raindrops corroding the protective aura; large areas of "cursed swamps" appear on the ground, emitting a dizzying stench; the space itself becomes more unstable, with occasional brief "rule vacuums" or "contract turbulence" appearing, where even the slightest carelessness can result in severe injury.
Along the way, he began to encounter cultivators from other forces. There were teams from the five major powers, as well as scattered groups of independent cultivators or small sects. When they met, most exchanged wary glances before quickly distancing themselves to avoid conflict. However, there were also a few teams that exuded a distinctly malevolent aura or had greedy eyes, clearly members of the Myriad Contracts Alliance or desperate outlaws with malicious intentions.
Fu Shaoping didn't want to cause any unnecessary trouble and tried to avoid it as much as possible.
Three days later, he finally arrived at an even more magnificent ruin.
It was a colossal palace complex ruin that occupied almost the entire field of vision, more than half of which had collapsed. Even in its dilapidated state, its former glory was still evident. The palace was made of neither gold nor jade, but a dark gold color, and its surface was covered with extremely complex contract runes. Even after countless ages, it still emitted a faint but pure contract fluctuation.
This is the ruins of the "Temple of Contracts"!
However, at this moment, the ruins are not peaceful.
Shouts of battle, the roar of spells, and the howls of various monsters echoed from the depths of the ruins. The air was thick with the stench of blood and an eerie atmosphere.
Fu Shaoping quietly sneaked into the ruins.
Inside the ruins, several teams were engaged in a chaotic battle! One side consisted of cultivators from the five major factions dressed in uniform (seemingly belonging to different factions, but temporarily joining forces), while the other side was a larger number of cultivators from the Myriad Contracts Alliance, along with the evil contract monsters and battle spirits they controlled! In addition, there were some rogue cultivators who were attracted by the battlefield treasures and were taking advantage of the chaos.
The battle was extremely fierce. Many corpses lay on the ground, including those from the five major forces, the Myriad Contracts Alliance, and many more rogue cultivators and monsters.
Fu Shaoping's gaze swept across the area, and he quickly spotted the Tianji Pavilion's team at the edge of the battle! It was led by Elder Tianquan, and consisted of about seven or eight people. At this moment, they were being besieged by more than ten Golden Core cultivators from the Wanqi Alliance and two ferocious "Evil Contract Giants," and their situation was extremely precarious! Elder Tianquan was at the early Nascent Soul stage, but he seemed to be injured, and his aura was unstable. He was being held tightly by an early Nascent Soul cultivator from the Wanqi Alliance (who was wielding a bone knife burning with black flames).
"Save them first!" Fu Shaoping made the decision instantly.
He moved like lightning, cutting straight into the battle!
"Contract Judgment - Purifying Rain!"
As his cold voice rang out, a pale golden rain of light suddenly fell from the sky! The rain of light carried a strong purifying power, enveloping the Myriad Contract Alliance cultivators and the Evil Contract Giant who were besieging the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion team!
"Aaaaah!" The Wanqi Alliance cultivators screamed in agony as the purifying light burned away the evil energy on their bodies, their movements instantly slowing down. The two Evil Contract Giants were even worse off, as if they had been doused with sulfuric acid, thick smoke billowing from their bodies as they roared in pain.
"Who goes there?!" The Nascent Soul cultivator from the Myriad Alliance who was holding Elder Tianquan turned around in shock and anger.
Fu Shaoping ignored him and formed hand seals: "Contract Protection - Starlight Barrier!"
A dazzling wall of starlight instantly rose up, protecting the Tianji Pavilion members behind it and temporarily isolating them from the attack.
"Fellow Daoist Lu?!" Elder Tianquan was both surprised and delighted to see Fu Shaoping.
"Elder Tianquan, heal your wounds first. Leave this to me." Before Fu Shaoping finished speaking, he had already appeared in front of the Nascent Soul cultivator from the Myriad Contracts Alliance!
"You're courting death!" the Nascent Soul cultivator from the Myriad Alliance roared, his bone blade slashing towards Fu Shaoping's head with a mournful ghostly howl! Black flames roared on the blade, as if it could devour even the most powerful souls.
Fu Shaoping neither dodged nor evaded. He brought his right index and middle fingers together, and at the tip of his fingertips, he condensed the power of the primordial contract, which was chaotic and gray and contained seven-colored light.
"Qiyuan Finger".
With a gentle touch, the fingertip clashed with the tip of the bone knife.
There was no earth-shattering sound.
That seemingly formidable black flame bone blade shattered and vanished like fragile glass, starting from the tip! The gray-haired finger force swept through the opponent's arm with unstoppable momentum, instantly penetrating along the blade!
The Nascent Soul cultivator from the Myriad Alliance let out an incredulous scream as his entire right arm, along with half of his shoulder, instantly turned to ashes! His eyes were filled with terror, and without hesitation, he burned his essence blood, transforming into a streak of black light as he retreated rapidly, disappearing instantly into the depths of the ruins.
One strike, severely injuring a Nascent Soul cultivator of the same level!
The surrounding cultivators who witnessed this scene all gasped in shock! Their gazes toward Fu Shaoping were filled with awe and reverence.
Fu Shaoping did not pursue them, but turned to look at the Golden Core cultivators and Evil Contract monsters of the Myriad Contracts Alliance who had been weakened by the Purifying Rain and were terrified.
"Get out or die."
His words were plain, yet they contained an undeniable authority and murderous intent.
The Wanqi Alliance cultivators were overjoyed and dared not linger. They scattered and fled in all directions, even abandoning the two wounded Evil Contract Giants.
Fu Shaoping waved his hand, unleashing two sword energies of judgment that completely shattered the two out-of-control giant statues.
The fighting has temporarily subsided.
Elder Tianquan, supported by his disciple, stepped forward and said gratefully, "Fellow Daoist Lu, thank you for your help! If you hadn't arrived in time, we might have..."
"It's only right for fellow disciples to help each other." Fu Shaoping waved his hand. "How is the elder's injury? Do you know where the main force of the Myriad Contracts Alliance is? Have they already gone to the 'Fallen Contract Source Pool'?"
Elder Tianquan took the pill and meditated for a moment. His expression eased slightly: "My injuries are not serious. I was just slightly injured in spirit by that guy's evil weapon. I need time to recover. According to our previous investigation and the confessions of the prisoners, the main force of the Myriad Contracts Alliance has indeed headed towards the 'Fallen Contract Source Pool' at the core of the battlefield. They seem to have mastered some special method that allows them to avoid many dangerous areas at an extremely fast speed."
His expression was solemn: "We were ambushed here because they deliberately leaked the false information that 'the Temple of Contracts contains ancient contract artifacts' to attract all sides. Then they set up an ambush here, intending to weaken or even eliminate the vital forces of the five major powers, buying them time to activate the 'Seed of Evil Contract'."
Fu Shaoping nodded; this matched his assessment. "Do you know the exact location and condition of the 'Fallen Contract Source Pool'?"
Elder Tianquan produced a more detailed map (clearly drawn during their exploration of the battlefield) and pointed to a blood-red area at the very center of the map: "It's right here. According to fragments of ancient texts and the clues we've uncovered, this was once an important source of contract power during the ancient contract wars, but it was corrupted by evil contracts during the wars, turning into the 'Pool of Corruption.' The pool may be harboring extremely dangerous 'Seeds of Evil Contracts,' which, once activated, could release terrifying evil power capable of corrupting large areas and even affecting the entire battlefield's contract rules. The Myriad Contracts Alliance's goal is probably to control this power, or detonate it to create chaos and achieve their ulterior motives."
Fu Shaoping looked at the map. The source pool was still quite a distance from the ruins of the Contract Temple, and several extremely dangerous areas were marked along the way.
"What about the teams from the other four major powers?"
"They received similar messages and should be on their way to the Source Pool as well. But the Myriad Alliance will surely set up obstacles along the way, and the battlefield itself is fraught with danger. It's hard to say whether they can arrive in time," Elder Tianquan said with a wry smile. "We originally planned to go as well, but we were blocked here and lost several disciples..."
“Elders can rest here and prepare to receive those who come later. I will go ahead and head to the Source Pool to stop the Myriad Contracts Alliance,” Fu Shaoping said decisively.
“It’s too dangerous for Fellow Daoist Lu to go alone! The Myriad Alliance must have a large force guarding the Source Pool, with at least mid-Nascent Soul cultivators, or even late-Nascent Soul cultivators, stationed there!” Elder Tianquan said anxiously.
"It's alright, I know what I'm doing. If things become unmanageable, I'll retreat first and wait for reinforcements." Fu Shaoping wasn't a reckless man, but time was of the essence, and there was no room for hesitation.
Seeing that he had made up his mind, Elder Tianquan stopped trying to persuade him. He gave him a copy of the map and then warned him, "Fellow Daoist Lu, please be very careful! If you encounter the leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance... do not fight him head-on! That person's cultivation is unfathomable, and he seems to be extremely familiar with the rules of the battlefield!"
“I understand.” Fu Shaoping put away the map, nodded to Elder Tianquan and the others, and then his figure transformed into a light golden streak, shooting towards the “Fallen Contract Source Pool” on the map.
The cultivators from other factions in the ruins of the Contract Temple looked in the direction where Fu Shaoping had disappeared, their expressions complex. Some admired him, some worried, and some even gloated.
But everyone knows that the final battle on the battlefield has already begun in that most sinister place.
Lu Ping, the "Contract Venerable" who has just demonstrated astonishing strength, is undoubtedly one of the most eye-catching variables in this competition.
At the heart of the ancient battlefield, a decisive battle is about to unfold.
After leaving the ruins of the Contract Temple, Fu Shaoping traveled at a rapid pace.
He could usually sense and bypass most of the dangerous areas marked on the map in advance, thanks to his Nascent Soul cultivation and profound understanding of the contract rules. Occasionally, when avoidance was impossible, he would forcefully break through using swift and decisive methods.
He traversed the "Cursed Forest," shrouded in an "eternal curse," using the power of the Purifying Heavenly Stele to resist the curse's erosion; he crossed a "Corruption River" flowing with "Contract Poison," using the Contract Transfer Grafting Technique to temporarily transfer the poison to a spare magical artifact; he even encountered a charge from a troop of "Ancient War Soul Cavalry" formed from the remnants of battle spirit, and he severed their causal link with the battlefield with "Contract Judgment," causing them to disintegrate and disperse.
Three days later, he arrived at the area marked "outer perimeter of the source pool" on the map.
The scene here is completely different from other parts of the battlefield.
The sky was no longer dark red, but instead displayed an eerie, ever-changing mix of gray-black and dark gold, as if two immense, contractual forces were tearing at and devouring each other. The earth cracked completely, spewing forth dense malevolent energy and faint purifying light from the fissures. A nauseating stench and sharp, grating sounds filled the air.
In the distance, a massive basin, resembling a meteorite crater, lay silently in the center of the wasteland. The basin was over a hundred miles in diameter, its edges jagged with dark golden rocks. Deep within the basin, a vast, irregularly shaped pool of water could be vaguely seen. But this water was no ordinary liquid; it was composed of a thick, almost solidified black evil energy, churning and bubbling like boiling asphalt, emanating a chilling, malevolent aura.
"The Source Pool of Fallen Contracts!" (End of Chapter)