The Divine Nine-Dragon Cauldron

"How stubborn!" Shangguan Qinger crinkled her nose.

From her experience, unless Su Yu's Ancient Bloodline was extremely unique and could counter the petrification, there was no way that he could pass the stone statue forest, much less bring along another person!

But, she could not look on and watch Su Yu die. Hence, she had no choice but to personally send them to the end.

A figure of light flickered. Shangguan Qinger took to the skies, flying beside them, while she attempted to bring them over.

This action gripped the hearts of everyone present. Shangguan Qinger has made her move! That meant that there were only two of the five places left!

Zheng Zhijing had an anxious expression, saying with a deep voice, "Senior, I'll head there first."

Getting the approval of his senior, Zhou Jin, Zheng Zhijing immediately took out a white necklace out from his robes. It seemed to have been carved out of a strange wood. It released a cool aura, making people feel instantly relaxed.

Zheng Zhijing wore it on his neck, while he formed seals. The long sword on his back flew out from its sheath, elongating its length. It then floated under his feet.

With a tap of his feet, Zheng Zhijing leapt onto the sword. The long sword carried him, turning into an afterimage, before vanishing into the horizon.

His speed was no slower than Qian Lixiang. In fact, it might have even been a little faster than him!

"The secret technique of the Yufeng Faction, the Evasive Blade Technique!" Someone exclaimed in shock.

"The Yufeng Faction is adept at controlling weapons, especially through their Evasive Blade Technique and Evasive Sword Technique. They could use these to easily claim the head of someone, who was a thousand miles away! Also, they are incredibly fast!"

The speed of Zhou Jin's sword technique was still fresh in Su Yu's mind. It was so fast, an average human could not even determine what he had done. It was no wonder that the faction was named Yufeng!

Shangguan Qinger, who was about to bring Su Yu into the stone statue forest, slowed down, now patiently waiting. "Let him pass first, as the seal in the stone statue forest is incredibly perceptive. With more people entering, the petrifying worms will become more powerful. Thus, there is no reason to compete and amplify the risk."

Surveying the surroundings, there was no other person, who would enter the stone statue forest, at least not after Zheng Zhijing had entered it. Zheng Zhijing's movement technique was incredibly fast. He seemed to be a little faster than Qian Lixiang, despite having been slowed down by the stone statue forest.

In just the blink of an eye, he had already covered a third of the area! The bugs behind him could not keep up with his movement techniques. Thus, their petrifying energy was not able to touch him.

Just as he entered the middle area, the bugs, which were twice as large now, appeared, just as he had expected. They opened their mouths to release a large amount of petrifying energy. The energy seemed to have come from a volcanic eruption, taking to the skies and blocking his path.

Wasn't this the same scene that Qian Lixiang had encountered? The only difference was that Zheng Zhijing did not retreat. Instead, he released the vital energy in his body.

He injected his vital energy into the necklace around his neck. In that moment, a white air current formed a ripple-like shape, slowly spreading into the surroundings.

The white air current was special. Even those that were far away at the Divine Sparrow Stage felt a breeze sail pass their souls at that very moment.

They became more energized, their fatigue receding. It was incredibly strange!

What was even more shocking, was that the petrifying energy voluntarily retreated, wherever the white air current passed! This scene shocked many.

The petrifying energy ignored most substances. People were mystified, wondering just what was this white necklace, for it to have such a counter effect on the petrifying energy!

Zheng Zhijing was excited. He made it past the wall of petrifying energy, then quickly entered the central region.

Buzz ——

The scene that now faced him was indeed daunting. He could hear something that was like the hiss of a snake. It was a mass of alarmed petrifying worms, which he had scared with his entrance.

The fog billowed, as a worm that was three times the size of a normal worm led ten other worms, all of them spewing petrifying energy into the air. Luckily, the petrifying energy could be easily dispelled by the white air current.

However, the petrifying energy spewed by the petrifying worms was quite thick, nearing a liquid state. It was also extremely dark.

The white air current blew past it, but could only slow the spread of the petrifying energy. It could not completely counter it!

Zheng Zhijing had a serious expression now. He did not dare stop, but seized the opportunity of the slowing petrifying energy to fly past instead. He passed the central region, by the skin of his teeth!

In just a short moment, he had managed to pass the central region and cover two-thirds of the area. This alarming result caused many at the Divine Sparrow Stage to exclaim.

"In the previous generations, there were only a rare few that could reach that stage. Zheng Zhijing is more powerful than we had imagined!" Someone exclaimed in shock, as he stared at Zheng Zhijing, who was in the fog.

Zheng Zhijing took a deep breath, having arrived at the last third portion of the area. He had to make it past this portion in just one shot. But, at this moment, a stone statue moved amid the fog!

The crowd had already noticed this stone statue, which was at the end of the stone statue forest, the very moment that they had arrived at the Divine Sparrow Stage. It was larger than an ordinary stone statue.

They had at first thought that it was a powerful genius, who had died with much spite! But, since it was actually a stone statue, it should be able to move!

Shangguan Qinger had a serious look. "It looks like it has finally appeared, the king of the petrifying worms! Whether or not you can pass the stone statue forest, that will depend on this worm!"

Could the king of the petrifying worms be that female worm?

The spiritual serum that it excretes could remove the effects of the petrification. It was the key to enabling Sheng Ge to regain her physical body.

But, this worm was frighteningly large. Even a worm that was thrice the size of a normal worm was only as thick as a wrist. However, this worm king was larger than an average human! Thus, it was hard to imagine what kind of petrifying energy it would excrete!

Creak ——

The giant pertifying worm shook, then let out an ear-piercing scream. In that moment, the entire stone statue forest was covered by a petrifying energy!

The expressions of the talents at the Divine Sparrow Stage changed, all of them taking multiple steps back, as they looked at the scene in the forest.

This worm could cover the entire forest with its petrifying energy! Furthermore, a grey liquid now erupted into the surroundings, with the worm king at the center!

Such power awed everyone present. A person would be hit by this outpouring, no matter which angle they approached from.

Zheng Zhijing had a nervous expression, watching a drop of the liquid, which was now being shot toward him. In fact, he could see now, that it was not exactly any normal liquid, but liquified petrifying energy!

That petrifying energy was ten times richer than normal. As such, even coming within three meters of it would instantly petrify a person!

Furthermore, it was rumored that those, who were personally petrified by the worm king, could never return back to normal. In other words, there was only certain death awaiting a person, if they were to get to close to it!

At the most critical moment, Zheng Zhijing's heart was thumping wildly. But, his hands still did not slow down. He grabbed the white necklace from his neck and crushed it.

With a dull thud, the necklace turned into a sky full of snow white fragments, falling onto Zheng Zhijing's body. That liquified petrifying energy was absorbed the very moment that it came into contact with the white powder, its power depleting quickly.

Zheng Zhijing had given up the necklace to create an opportunity for himself. His figure flashed repeatedly, carefully avoiding the liquified petrifying energy, as he passed the area.

He had successfully passed the stone statue forest, despite the angry roars of the worm king. Then, he safely reached the other side.

There was a sacrificial altar, not unlike the Divine Sparrow Stage, on the other side, keeping him safe. Zheng Zhijing was pale, his breathing heavy. Sweat laced his forehead.

It was only now that his palms started shivering. He had been in a state of full concentration. Now that he relaxed, his palms shook uncontrollably.

Thinking back to his two near death experiences just now, Zheng Zhijing's face turned white. But, feeling the ground under his legs now, he could not help but let out a maniacal laugh.

"Hahaha… I made it!"

There were not many people who had managed to charge pass the stone statue forest in the previous generations. So, Zheng Zhijing had the right to feel proud of himself!

Those that witnessed this miraculous feat at the Divine Sparrow Stage had complicated feelings. Some were in shock, while some were cautious, and others felt a sense of injustice.

"Not bad! He only took twenty seconds." Bai Yijian finally smiled.

Shangguan Qinger sighed. "It's a pity that he had to sacrifice that necklace. It was a necklace that could defend the soul, making it one of the rarest treasures that one could find. The value of that necklace might even match a half-manufactured spiritual artifact."

Su Yu nodded in agreement.

"Since my junior has already passed, it is time for me to pass as well." Zhou Jin laughed, taking the black sword off of his back for the first time, grabbing it in his hands.

His figure was like the wind, charging forward with just one step. With his speed, clearing the first of the three portions of the forest was like child's play. Quickly, the worms showed themselves.

But, they had not even released their petrifying energy, when the black sword in Zhou Jin's hands flashed. He instantly accelerated, making his way past them to arrive at the central region.

The worms that were here, which were three times the normal size, were not as easy to pass. They spewed out thick petrifying energy. This time, there were no gaps left for Zhou Jin.

But, Zhou Jin was unafraid. He sliced down with his black sword. A blade aura, which was hard to capture with the human eye, pierced through the clouds. It was a physical attack, but had managed to sliced open a giant slit in the thick petrifying energy.

Su Yu raised his brows. "What a powerful blade technique. It harbored some form of a soul attack."

Shangguan Qinger tapped her chin. "That is the Soul Slicing Blade Technique of the Yufeng Faction. He has a certain level of mastery over it. The blade technique would have some shreds of a soul attack, making it very troublesome to deal with by fighters of a similar cultivation level to him."

Indeed, it was already hard for one to deal with an overbearing blade technique that was as fast as lightning. Now that there was another dimension that was an indefensible soul attack, which could make them dazed and leave gaps in their defenses, this technique could spell their death!

Zhou Jin had easily made it to the last third of the forest by now. The worm king was already livid. It let out a long roar, releasing a large amount of liquified petrifying energy. It sprayed into the surroundings, coming at Zhou Jin from all angles.