After stepping out of the carriage and confirming their location, Zhu Chen nodded slightly.
"This is just a dried-up lake. Why are we here?"
Huo Ling'er asked in confusion.
Zhu Chen turned, about to explain....
When suddenly, a thunderous roar echoed from the distance.
The sound reverberated through the valley, and the oppressive aura it carried shattered barren mountains within dozens of miles.
Countless ferocious beasts and birds fled in panic.
"What terrifying pressure! The owner of that roar must be a Venerable-realm existence! Zhu Chen, we need to leave—now!"
Huo Ling'er instinctively grabbed Zhu Chen's arm, fear written across her face.
"Don't be afraid. I'm here."
Zhu Chen gently stroked her hair.
With a thought, he manifested his Divine Ring Cave Heaven and stored the celestial carriage inside.
After all, the carriage had been stolen...they couldn't afford to damage it.
Huo Ling'er stared in disbelief as even the two celestial horses vanished into his cave heaven.
"My heavens! Zhu Chen...your cave heaven can even store living creatures?"
"Yes."
Zhu Chen nodded calmly.
Ordinary cultivators could only store inanimate objects within their cave heavens.
But after merging with Pangu's essence blood, his Divine Ring Cave Heaven had mutated, allowing it to contain living beings as well.
Moreover, he sensed that as his cultivation advanced, the world inside his cave heaven was slowly expanding.
"I once read an ancient legend from the Immortal Ancient Era," Huo Ling'er said thoughtfully.
"It spoke of cultivators who refined a nascent universe within their bodies.
If that universe continued to grow, it could eventually evolve into a true world.
Your cave can hold living beings—could it be a budding universe?"
Her eyes were filled with shock.
Zhu Chen, however, had no time to dwell on such thoughts.
He quickly took out a Spirit Concealing Veil and draped it over Huo Ling'er.
Then, activating his transformation technique, he turned into a cucumber and hid within the 'empty space' before her chest.
"Ah—Zhu Chen, where are you going?!"
"I—I didn't mean it like that…"
"You, you come out right now!"
"Shh—don't speak.
Quickly suppress your aura. Something terrifying is approaching."
"No, no—you come out first!"
Huo Ling'er was flustered beyond measure, her face flushed red.
She clutched the cucumber he had transformed into, biting her lower lip as she was about to pull it out....
When suddenly.....
A colossal white-headed ape, barefoot and towering like a mountain, descended from the heavens and crashed down near the dried lake.
—BOOM!
The earth shook violently.
Rock layers collapsed, the ground split apart, and cracks spread like monstrous serpents, racing outward and nearly reaching Zhu Chen's position.
"It's Zhu Yan!"
Huo Ling'er's heart leapt into her throat.
She covered her mouth, her voice trembling with undisguised fear.
Zhu Yan was an ancient ferocious beast rivaling the Fire Kingdom's sacrificial spirit, the Vermilion Bird.
Its strength had already reached the peak of the Venerable Realm.
Even her father, the Emperor, would avoid provoking it.
This was an existence they absolutely could not afford to offend.
Under the Spirit Concealing Veil, Huo Ling'er curled herself up tightly.
Perhaps out of fear, she subconsciously hugged "Zhu Chen" close to her chest, gripping him firmly with both hands.
Zhu Chen could clearly feel a dense, oppressive pressure.
Though not particularly large, it was undeniably soft...and astonishingly bouncy.
He hadn't expected that this girl, who looked so slender and delicate, would actually be so… well-endowed.
"Zhu Chen… what should we do now?" Huo Ling'er whispered nervously, her grip unconsciously tightening.
"This Zhu Yan's cultivation has already reached the Venerable Realm…"
She had always lived under the protection of her father, the Fire Emperor.
Even when she went out to play, she was either accompanied by powerful experts from the Fire Kingdom or secretly guarded.
When had she ever faced a situation like this....isolated, helpless, and cornered by a terrifying ancient beast?
At this moment, the only person she could rely on was Zhu Chen beside her.
"Don't be afraid. Look carefully at this Zhu Yan," Zhu Chen said calmly.
"It's already suffered severe injuries. Its current strength is probably less than one-hundredth of its peak."
Hearing this, Huo Ling'er forced herself to calm down and carefully observed Zhu Yan through the Spirit Concealing Veil.
She saw that Zhu Yan's massive body was covered in countless cracks.
Though the blood on its wounds had already congealed, the sight was still horrifying.
This Zhu Yan was indeed gravely injured.
Moreover, its aura flickered intermittently, as if it might dissipate at any moment—a clear sign that its Dao body was on the verge of collapse.
Realizing this, Huo Ling'er finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Even so, she didn't dare entertain the thought of attacking it.
No matter how injured it was, a being of such a level was still far beyond what they could handle.
"This place is too dangerous. We should leave immediately, before Zhu Yan notices us," Huo Ling'er whispered, cautiously retreating.
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