"Pop."
In the black poisonous swamp, an enormous black gas bubble rose, burst, and the foul-smelling poisonous gas slowly dispersed, thickening the poisonous mist that enveloped the air.
At that very moment, in a place almost devoid of life, a small boat wrapped in crocodile skin carefully and slowly glided across the water.
On the small boat, everyone stood still and motionless, not daring to make even the slightest sound. Their eyes intently watched the black swamp water around the boat, while the spiritual energy within their bodies quietly circulated.
These people had, of course, adopted Mu Chen's solution. Seeing Mu Chen's confidence, most of the people from Mu Territory also put their trust in him. However, they were still traversing a perilous land, and even a slight carelessness that capsized the boat and sent them into the black mud of the swamp would be far from pleasant.
Compared to their anxiousness, Mu Chen was much calmer, though his gaze also carefully scanned their surroundings. Currently, everyone on the boat was an elite from Mu Territory; losing even one person due to carelessness would be a great loss.
Mu Feng stood beside Mu Chen, his usually stern face looking quite serious, poised to act immediately should any situation arise.
The small boat slowly penetrated the swamp. Gradually, beneath the black muddy water, there was movement. The black mud, filled with poisonous gas, suddenly churned, and an extremely ferocious Black Poison Alligator surfaced, slowly swimming towards the small boat.
Everyone on the boat saw this, their eyelids twitching, their hearts beating like war drums.
Silence reigned on the boat. More than ten Black Poison Alligators circled the small boat, their blood-red eyes piercing through the mud, looking up ferociously.
Everyone's gaze involuntarily became extremely tense.
The boat, controlled by Mu Chen, maintained its slow, gentle, and silent speed as it passed through the swamp. Unexpectedly, those Black Poison Alligators showed no signs of attacking the boat. Looking closely, their eyes seemed hazy and confused. The group of experts led by Mu Feng also breathed a sigh of relief.
Evidently, these low-intelligence Black Poison Alligators vaguely sensed something strange, but couldn't comprehend what that strangeness was or where it came from.
The small boat finally successfully passed through the encirclement of the Black Poison Alligators, but no one dared to breathe too heavily. It wasn't until half an hour later, when they all saw the other side of the swamp, that they dared to exhale with relief, casting away all their worries, anxieties, and fears.
"Hehe, that was truly easy to pass through! Young Master is amazing!"
The atmosphere on the boat became relaxed, and Duan Wei praised him joyfully and incessantly.
Mu Chen, feeling relieved, brushed his hands together and turned to Mu Feng with a smile, saying, "Father, how was it? Didn't lose face, did I?"
Mu Feng laughed and scolded, "You stinky brat!"
Mu Feng laughed and scolded, but it was hard to hide the joy in his eyes. His son had unexpectedly matured so quickly, already able to lend him a hand. His many years of raising a child alone had not been in vain.
Zhou Ye also sighed with nostalgia. "Little Mu is indeed different from before."
Zhou Ye also sighed with nostalgia. Since Mu Chen's return from the Spiritual Road, he had indeed changed quite a bit. If before he was merely considered a rather intelligent, pure, and talented young boy, he could now be described as a broad-shouldered, capable man, ready to shoulder great responsibilities.
Mu Feng nodded slightly, gently patted Mu Chen's head, then suddenly leaped up, directly plunging into the swamp water and moving forward:
"We should also speed up, otherwise, we'll be left far behind by the people from Liu Territory."
"Yes!"
The elite of the Mu Region bravely accepted the order, disembarking one after another. Maintaining their vigilance, they reorganized everything, then began to accelerate deeper into the dense forest of the Black Underworld Abyss.
As Mu Feng and his group escaped the black poisonous swamp, several cold gazes observed them from a distant cliff high above.
"I can't believe those guys managed to cross the black poisonous swamp safely! How did they do it?"
Liu Ming watched the disappearing figures, muttering in disbelief.
"It seems the Mu Region was prepared."
Liu Zong frowned. He had originally planned to ambush Mu Feng's group as they struggled out of the black poisonous swamp, having suffered heavy losses, but he hadn't expected them to overcome the obstacle so easily.
Liu Qingtian also observed coldly. The Mu Region's thorough preparation would pose an even greater threat to them. Those people absolutely had to be eliminated, and the Nine Nether Sparrow must belong to the Liu Region. As long as they obtained the Nine Nether Sparrow, the Liu Region would truly become the overlord of the Northern Spirit Realm, and he, Liu Qingtian, would no longer be called the Liu Region Lord, but rather the Northern Spirit Realm Lord!
Ambition burned fiercely in Liu Qingtian's eyes.
"Big Brother, what do we do now?"
Liu Ming asked, as Mu Feng's group had quickly vanished from sight.
"No rush."
Liu Qingtian chuckled faintly:
"How long have we been preparing this plan? We've been scouting the Black Underworld Abyss for ages. Does the Mu Region really think they can compete by blindly rushing in one direction?"
His gloomy gaze fixed on the deep forest, he spoke.
"Let's go. When we get there, I'll prepare a grand gift for them."
...
As they delved deeper into the Black Underworld Abyss, Mu Feng's group became even more cautious. This area of the Black Underworld Abyss already showed signs of high-level spirit beasts. If those ferocious beasts set their eyes on them, it would be extremely troublesome, especially since they still needed to be wary of the Liu Region's people.
The team silently traversed the dark forest. Along the way, they occasionally encountered spirit beasts, but dared not strike first, instead choosing to make a wide detour and quickly leave.
After about half an hour under such tense pressure, Mu Feng finally led everyone out of the dense vegetation and towards a cliff face bordering a pitch-black abyss. The cliff was riddled with large, intricate cracks, looking like the gaping maw of a demon.
Mu Feng looked down into the dark abyss, his brows tightly furrowed, his expression serious.
"We are very close to the depths of the Black Underworld Abyss..."
Mu Feng slowly said:
"This area is the true Black Underworld Abyss, teeming with high-level spirit beasts."
"High-level spirit beasts."
The subordinates all looked serious. Spirit beasts of that level were comparable to Mu Feng, powerful experts of the Divine Soul Realm.
"On the way here, I didn't allow any spirit beasts to be killed, because high-level spirit beasts are extremely bloodthirsty. Even a faint scent of blood can easily attract their attention, and with our current formation, if just two high-level spirit beasts attacked simultaneously, we would suffer disastrous losses."
Mu Chen also nodded. This place was far more dangerous than the Northern Spirit Plains.
"Let's go, everyone increase your vigilance."
Mu Feng waved his hand, leading the way, and stepped into the pitch-black mountain crevice on the cliff face. Behind him, Mu Chen, Zhou Ye, and the subordinates carefully followed.
In the Black Underworld Abyss, poisonous mist constantly shrouded the air, making the atmosphere gloomy and damp. Occasionally, the roars of ferocious beasts echoed from afar, carrying a threatening scent of death.
Mu Feng carefully walked in the darkness, avoiding all places that showed signs of spirits. Mu Chen also noticed that the spiritual energy within Mu Feng and Zhou Ye was steadily circulating, always ready to respond to unexpected situations.
Walking carefully, the group had not yet encountered any difficulties. The smooth journey secretly relaxed Duan Wei's group behind them; at this pace, it wouldn't be long before they reached the deepest part of the Black Underworld Abyss.
But as they relaxed, Mu Chen was different; the more quiet and smooth things were, the more uneasy he felt.
Arriving at another mountain path, Mu Chen subtly glanced at Mu Feng. Their eyes met, and he clearly saw a flicker of vigilance in his father's eyes. Evidently, even someone as experienced as Mu Feng felt this same unease.
After passing that mountain path, the view ahead suddenly became open, revealing a vast clearing on the mountainside. This terrain was the junction of three large mountains, surrounded by sheer cliffs.
Mu Feng looked at the clearing ahead, his eyes suddenly focusing, then he raised his head to stare intently at a mysterious spot on the cliff face. There, several figures slowly emerged.
"Ahaha, Mu Feng, you all walk quite fast." On the cliff face, Liu Qingtian smiled faintly as he looked down at Mu Feng's group.
"The Liu Faction, be careful!" Zhou Ye also saw them, shouting a soft warning to everyone, powerful spiritual energy surging within his body.
"Liu Qingtian, what are you planning?" Mu Feng asked in a deep voice. The Liu Faction seemed to know the Black Underworld Abyss like the back of their hand.
"Seeing you all walk so worriedly and carefully, it's not very pleasant, so I wanted to help you with a few things." Liu Qingtian smiled, but his smile carried malice. He waved his hand, and the Liu Faction subordinates behind him lifted large jars, throwing them down fiercely.
"Clang, clang!" The jars shattered upon hitting the ground, suddenly splattering dark red liquid. Unexpectedly, it was fresh blood; the strong smell of blood filled the air, spreading far and wide.
Mu Feng's expression changed instantly at the sight.
"It's a bit regrettable that spirit beast blood doesn't seem to be very effective." Liu Qingtian sniffed the fresh blood, commenting indifferently, his eyes malicious. Suddenly, he waved his hand, and more than ten Liu Faction subordinates were unexpectedly sent flying off the cliff, screaming in terror.
"Boom." Liu Qingtian, his face unchanged, struck out several streaks of spiritual energy light, fiercely shooting them at the descending subordinates.
"Bang!" A crisp sound rang out, and more than a dozen unfortunate Liu Faction members exploded in mid-air, blood raining down like a shower, an utterly gruesome scene.
Mu Feng's eyes involuntarily darkened.
"Graoooow!" From the Black Underworld Abyss, fierce roars suddenly echoed, and violent spiritual energy surged intensely.
High-level spirit beasts!
Mu Feng's face finally turned pale. Liu Qingtian's methods were truly vicious!