The Thorne of Destiny-Chapter 93: The Danger of the Hollow Vein

The metallic stench of blood filled the air as Julian’s mind raced. The puppet, now an active predator rather than a passive guardian, stood motionless over the pulverized remains of his comrade. Its glowing blue eyes dimmed slightly, as if sated, for now.

The young man beside Julian trembled, his sword shaking in his grip. "S-Senior Brother... what do we do?" His voice was barely a whisper, raw with terror.

Before Julian could respond, the puppet straightened his body and turned to face them. The full form of the puppet could now be seen.

The core could be seen peeking out from the chest, where various cracks could be seen.

The pale blue eyes locked on both men, which made them tense up. Luckily, the puppet didn’t seem to want to attack them again. It just stood there, staring at them.

The two who were initially tense relaxed a bit when they saw that the puppet didn’t attack them again. The two men became confused as to why the puppet was just staring at them.

Its actions seemed to have reverted to the previous mode, where it only attacked when its space was invaded.

Julian and the young man glanced at each other, and they could see the relief in each their eyes. Even though they weren’t completely safe yet, they could at least breathe.

"S-Senior Brother, what do we do now?" The young man asked, his tone shaky. The brutality of what had just transpired left him shaken.

Julian didn’t respond to him. His gaze remained locked on the puppet. Or rather, the core peaking out of its chest.

If they could just reach it, there was a chance for them to survive, or rather for him to survive. Julian didn’t care about his team members.

He couldn’t care less whether they died or lived. In fact, he even faintly hoped that they wouldn’t make it. That way, he could monopolize everything in this mystic realm.

He turned towards the young man, his eyes gleaming with something unknown. An idea had formed in his mind, and he was going to use him to test it.

Suddenly, a faint smile appeared on his face as he began to address the young man beside him.

"Don’t worry, the situation isn’t hopeless. As long as we can break the core in its chest, we’ll surely be able to succeed."

He said it with a tone so casual and comforting that it would make anyone believe what he was saying.

The young man who was already a bit jittery seemed to calm down upon hearing his words.

The tone in which Julian used to address him was one of confidence. As if everything was under control.

However, the next words he heard made his face pale.

"I need you to distract it, so that I can destroy the core."

Julian stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

"B-But Senior Brother. I’m too weak. Perhaps-"

"There’s no other way. Or do you think you can unleash enough damage to destroy the core of the puppet?"

Julian spoke with a tone of finality, completely ending any thoughts of rebuttal from the young man.

"Don’t worry. I’m not asking you to throw away your life. You’re just going to distract it until I can strike it once. That’s all the time I need."

Julian spoke a bit softer now to pacify the young man. His use of soft and harsh tones was masterfully used to influence the young man, making him willing to do his bidding.

"Now get ready." With that, both of them turned their attention back to the puppet in front of them.

Both of them started channeling their Qi, ready for the next round. Moving according to the plan, the young man dashed out first, in an attempt to distract the puppet.

When he entered the puppet’s range, the pale blue eyes of the puppet shimmered brightly. It cocked its fist back, readying itself to throw another punch.

Just as it was about to throw a punch towards the young man. Julian suddenly appeared right beside in a blinding speed.

He had timed his attack perfectly. The puppet was already overextending itself, so it didn’t have enough time to adjust its position.

His sword shone with a pale grey Qi as he slashed at the core of the puppet with all his might.

"Razor’s edge!" He yelled. This was his second Gold rank martial skill. While its grade was not as high as the Gale Edge. It was still far more powerful than any Silver rank martial skill.

The reason he was using this instead of the Gale Edge was simple. He simply didn’t have enough Qi left in his body.

In order to reach the puppet quickly, he had used his movement technique, Tempest Steps. Using the technique rapidly drained his Qi, leaving him with just enough for him to unleash the Razor’s edge.

It could be said that he was taking a massive gamble here. If he wasn’t able to destroy the puppet’s core, he likely wouldn’t be able to escape from its grasp.

However, it seemed he was quite lucky this time. His sword struck the core of the puppet at the exposed point.

Kckak!

A cracking sound could be heard as the core of the puppet shattered under Julian’s sword strike.

The eyes of the puppet dimmed a little as the energy that was powering it was lost. The punch that it was throwing lost significant power, drastically reducing its lethality.

However, it still sent the young man flying. The puppet collapsed to the ground as the lights in its eyes flickered briefly before dimming down permanently.

Julian collapsed right next to it, breathing rapidly, trying to catch his breath. He had completely run out of Qi.

Suddenly, the whole arena like room started to shake. At the other end of the room, the walls parted ways, showing the exit from the arena.

It seemed they had truly completed this challenge. He collapsed on his back, trying to rest. He wasn’t going to leave this area so quickly, especially when he didn’t know what danger awaited them going forward.

From the corner of his eye, he could see the young man stirring from the ground. Evidently, he was still alive. However, he was clearly injured and could be a liability going forward.

******

Back in the outer regions of the Misty Mountains, the Vyre group was slowly making its way through the Hollow Vein. The weakest of them was at the third level of the Golden Core realm, so the issue wasn’t their strength.

However, they couldn’t afford to rush in this area. Danger was everywhere, and there was no clue what was lurking in the depths.

They reached a marshy area when suddenly Elder Glenda glanced in a particular direction. Behind her, the group instinctively drew their weapons.

A low croak reverberated through the stone walls, echoing off every surface. The sound wasn’t loud, but it was deep, carrying a weight that made the ground tremble ever so slightly.

Then came the slick, wet squelch of something massive dragging its weight across the ground.

"Positions!" Belladonna ordered, stepping forward to lead the team. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

And at the center of it all sat the beast.

A massive toad, its body bloated and pulsing with veins that shimmered with poisonous green light. Warts the size of fists covered its slick, mucus-glazed flesh. Each breath it took expelled a puff of noxious gas from its nostrils, which hissed upon contact with the damp stone.

Its eyes opened, bulbous, golden, and filled with primal malice.

It didn’t roar.

It croaked, a deafening sound that vibrated their bones and shattered the silence of the Hollow Vein.

"Poison Toad," one of the cultivators whispered.

"That’s a Rank 3 Beast!" another chimed in.

"No," Bella said coldly, "that’s a Rank 4 magical beast. The announcement sent a wave of shock through everyone present.

They had only entered the Hollow Vein for a few hours, but they were already encountering a Rank 4 magical beast. It seemed that this trip wasn’t going to be an easy one.

As soon as it got close enough, the toad shifted, and its massive tongue lashed out, whipping toward them with unnatural speed.

"Scatter!"

Bella moved first, blurring into a shadow as the tongue slammed into the ground where they had stood, leaving behind a crater and sizzling venom.

Two of the cultivators narrowly dodged, but the slowest, a man in grey robes, screamed as a single droplet of the beast’s saliva landed on his arm. Within seconds, the flesh blackened and bubbled, his screams turning guttural.

"Cut it," Bella ordered immediately. One of the team members near the man didn’t hesitate and immediately slashed the arm of the poisoned man off, just as the venom was about to reach the shoulder.

With a thud, the severed arm landed on the ground, and the whole skin became completely black before it started bubbling.

The man’s arm could be seen melting as both skin and bone turned into a puddle of mush on the ground.

The eyes of everyone present widened as they witnessed the horrific scene. They finally realized the terror of the Hollow Vein and why very few choose to explore it.

A simple mistake had cost the man his arm, and his future potential had most likely been destroyed.