Chapter 291 - 262: The Abyssal Giant Shadow, Encountering the Dragon Again! (Double-Length) _2
And that was just the size he glimpsed in that instant.
The Thunder Pillar plunged into the blazing fog, its light vanishing in the blink of an eye, making it impossible for him to inspect closely.
Initially, he wanted to wait for another Thunder Pillar to fall into the Abyss, but the black clouds in the sky unleashed a massive thunderclap, with bolts of lightning blasting everywhere.
Seeing the might of the Celestial Thunder, to avoid being struck, Song Changming had no choice but to leave this Abyssal Land first.
He wasn’t sure how many noticed the presence of that shadow while crossing the Abyss.
No matter what that huge shadow was, it seemed to have existed in the Abyss for countless years already.
All those years passed uneventfully, so perhaps he was overthinking it and that shadow might simply be an ordinary rock formation at the bottom of the Abyss.
For now, whatever it was, Song Changming couldn’t probe its mystery.
It was impossible for him to descend into the Abyss to observe up-close; the terrifying energy currents there could severely hurt or even kill him.
Moreover, the presence of various Abyssal Fog Beast groups would undoubtedly target an outsider like him at every corner.
Song Changming temporarily set aside his thoughts on the matter, silently marking in his heart the ominous giant shadow at the bottom of the Abyss.
Crossing the Abyss, the land on the other side was still shrouded in thick fog, and the desolate scenery was indistinguishable from the Outer Realm at the Da Lai Dynasty’s border.
Alone, he plunged into that thick fog, heading for the world beyond the Abyss, suspecting that the pervasive fog was precisely caused by this Abyss.
The Abyss was indeed the center of the pervasive thick fog across both lands.
Of course, this was just his conjecture; whether it was true would require specific surveys in both regions to confirm.
But he wasn’t here for that and didn’t plan on wasting time in this foggy land.
After distancing himself from the Abyssal Land, he found a relatively safe barren mountain to rest and recuperate, recovering the Inner Qi consumed during his crossing of the Abyss and tending to his not-so-serious injuries.
Once his condition improved, Song Changming was back on the road.
Picking a direction, he traveled for three days, noticing many Fog Beasts along the way in this foggy land, but rarely any sign of humans.
He didn’t even catch sight of a shadow or trace of someone from the Ancient Abyss Country.
This made him suspect that people from the Ancient Abyss Country rarely ventured near this foggy land, near this Abyss.
Thinking back, it made sense.
According to ancient records, the Ancient Abyss Country was vast and boundless, comprised of the Nine Provinces and Eighteen Lands.
Every single province was significantly larger than the entire Da Lai Dynasty, excluding some marginal and wild lands; there were numerous places the Human Race could inhabit.
There was genuinely no need to linger in this remote, barren, and Spiritual Qi sparse fog land.
A strange wail erupted; in front of Song Changming lay a fog beast resembling a pig, covered in white fur and sporting tusks.
Many smart Fog Beasts and Fierce Beasts, sensing Song Changming’s formidable presence, would retreat immediately without daring to approach.
Only the less spiritually intelligent Fog Beasts dared attack Song Changming, offering themselves up as meat.
"This pork should be quite good." Upholding a principle of minimizing waste, Song Changming sliced open the massive boar, taking the part most abundant in Flesh Energy to use as today’s meal.
Thus, several more uneventful days passed before Song Changming finally emerged from the foggy land.
Upon exiting the fog, what appeared before him was a Red Earth Continent, barren mountain ranges layered and crackled, all in dark red, presenting an equally desolate view.
Yet compared to the foggy land behind, Song Changming sensed a change in the Spiritual Qi.
This Red Earth Continent appeared barren, but Spiritual Qi occasionally drifted through.
However, the Spiritual Qi would come swiftly and disperse just as quickly.
This place couldn’t retain Spiritual Qi, nor could the earth sustain life; this was the main reason for the desolation here.
According to the instructions from the Qi Family brothers, only after crossing this Red Earth Continent would he officially enter the territory of the Ancient Abyss Country.
"What exactly happened in the past to render this place devoid of life?"
Song Changming gazed at the red soil beneath his feet, the soil loose and between sand and dirt.
Nature wouldn’t nurture absolutely desolate and useless wasteland.
Even in deserts, oases or some sand-based vegetation exist, forming their own ecological system.
Even the foggy regions near the Abyss housed Fog Beasts, and places where Spirit Veins still existed could still be lush.
But this Red Earth Continent was different, appearing as a dead land completely severed from life, unable to retain Spiritual Qi or nurture Spirit Veins.
I always feel that this place doesn’t seem to be innately like this, but rather formed later.
"Not being able to fly is really inconvenient, especially in such a vast expanse, just walking is truly too slow..."
Song Changming continued to move forward while pondering secretly.
The few flying talismans left in his hands could be considered as his plane tickets to and from the Abyss, extremely important, and he was reluctant to use them casually just for traveling.
Although controlling the Wind Dragon could fly, it consumed a lot of his Inner Qi. It was fine for short distances, but couldn’t fly for long distances.
Therefore, Song Changming could only choose to walk through on foot at the moment.
He had considered using mist gold to create a flying mount out of mist beasts as an option.
He indeed had mist gold, and he had already learned from the foreigners how to transform Fierce Beasts into mist beasts.
But unfortunately, perhaps the Fierce Beasts here were too strong, just like the Abyssal Gluttonous Beast he had encountered before, all had evolved.
So much so that after crossing the Abyss, in the Land of Great Fog, he had repeatedly tried to transform suitable flying Fierce Beasts into mist beasts using mist gold.
But all attempts resulted in angering the opponent, ultimately becoming his reserve food.
The idea of mist gold transforming a mount came to nothing.
"Forget it, once beyond the Red Earth Continent, I’ll see the towns of the Human Race, then I can settle down officially in the Ancient Abyss Country, by then, I’ll have all kinds of mounts..." Song Changming comforted himself.
Upon confirming the Red Earth Continent truly was empty, Song Changming immediately began to press on day and night, occasionally summoning the Wind Dragon to fly a bit to speed up.
Just by crossing the Red Earth Continent for three more days, his reserve food on hand was visibly about to run out, yet he hadn’t walked out of this seemingly endless Red Earth Continent.
Just as he hesitated whether to use the flying talisman, unsure how long until he could walk out of the Red Earth Continent, he suddenly heard a beast roar sounding unexpectedly from the distant sky, completely breaking the dead silence of this place.
"That sound!" Song Changming’s spirit was shaken, and he immediately raised his eyes to look.
After three days, he hadn’t seen any life on the Red Earth Continent, neither plants nor animals.
As if there was a absurd loneliness with only him in the world, and he didn’t expect his first feeling near the Ancient Abyss Country would be like this.
He was originally about to accept this fact, not struggling, just wanted to quickly leave the Red Earth Continent.
However, a variable appeared at this moment...
This beast roar sounded infinite, constantly shaking the heavens of this place.
Song Changming heard clearly, it wasn’t an ordinary beast roar, but rather resembled a dragon’s roar.
In the distance, the sky was clear, not a single cloud drifting by.
The sun was hanging unshielded at the zenith, roasting the entire red earth.
A creature over a hundred meters long was flying fast in mid-air.
Dragon’s head, dragon’s horn, dragon’s beard, dragon’s body...
No matter how you look at it, this was indubitably a True Dragon, a mythical creature from legend!
Moreover, Song Changming only took one glance and felt this flying dragon seemed familiar.
He didn’t need to think much, very soon he had an impression.
Wasn’t this True Dragon the protagonist of the snake dragon transforming into a dragon incident he encountered before, the snake dragon that successfully transformed?
However, he couldn’t be one hundred percent sure, given that such snake dragons might look the same, it’s hard to discern with naked eyes whether it’s the same snake dragon.
It’s worth mentioning, the snake dragon that once appeared during the Da Han Era entered the Da Lai Dynasty and disappeared ten years ago, without showing any trace.
Hence, back then the snake dragon crossing the Abyss, seeking a better cultivation environment in the Ancient Abyss Country, was also very normal.
Just at present.
That snake dragon seemed wounded, roaring continuously, dragon blood scattering from its body.
Though it’s actually far from Song Changming’s location.
Nor did it have any intention of flying toward Song Changming, just rushing frantically past, quickly disappearing from Song Changming’s field of view, no trace to be seen.
Song Changming sensed something was wrong, this place was the Ancient Abyss Country, even a powerful snake dragon seemed to be fleeing in a hurry, there might be a greater danger drawing near!
Just in case, Song Changming decided not to continue going toward the direction the snake dragon flew, opting to detour.
However, at this time, a voice suddenly came from above his head, making his hairs stand on end in an instant!
"Wonderful, not only is there snake dragon’s aura, but also hundred-refined essence blood, surely a perfect ingredient..."