Chapter Thirty-Four: The Netherworld Fox

It seemed that here in the Abyss of Gods and Demons, apart from endless training, Chu Jie had no other way forward. The Mad Dog Battalion’s thirty brothers had begun their training once more, this time with an extended cycle, for Chu Jie knew that the leaders of the Five Heavenly Lords would soon be their next opponents.

By the fourth day, the brothers were nearly exhausted, their thunderous shouts echoing across the hills and fields.

"Boss, if we keep this up, I fear the brothers won’t last," Chen Long, dripping with sweat, hurried to Chu Jie’s side, glancing worriedly at the others.

Chu Jie frowned deeply, at a bit of a loss himself. "For the sake of your lives, this is the only way to grow stronger."

"But everyone seems to have hit a bottleneck," Liang Bo approached from afar.

Chu Jie was troubled. He knew well that the brothers’ cultivation had reached its limit; after all, they were ordinary men, now at about the sixth or seventh stage of the Body Tempering Realm.

He understood that haste makes waste.

"There’s no room for sentimentality now. Tell the brothers to rest, adjust themselves, and then continue to prepare for battle."

That was all Chu Jie could do—he feared that pushing them further would only backfire.

Chen Long’s face lit with joy. He turned and ran toward the training brothers.

The Mad Dog Battalion, who had been training by carrying giant boulders weighing several thousand pounds, cheered in relief. They were truly exhausted, and this call for rest was the greatest reprieve imaginable.

"Well, isn’t everyone here?"

Suddenly, a soft, almost languid voice floated down from the sky. Startled, everyone turned toward the source.

A young man in white drifted down from midair. He was strikingly handsome, with features almost delicate, giving him an androgynous air. Though a man, he seemed neither masculine nor feminine.

A flash of murderous intent flickered in Chu Jie’s eyes. "Who are you?"

"So you’re their leader?" The youth’s gaze locked onto Chu Jie, absentmindedly toying with a black fox cradled in his arms.

The fox was no larger than a housecat, its entire body jet-black, with glowing crimson eyes that were almost frightening.

Almost without realizing it, Chu Jie grasped his treasured Wheel of Heaven and Earth. Instinct told him this youth was an enemy, not a friend.

"No good intentions—attack!" Chu Jie suddenly shouted, hurling his shattered sword like a rainstorm at the youth.

But the young man retreated two steps with unhurried ease. Before him, a powerful black shield of light appeared, enveloping him in a sphere.

"Ha, another defense shield," Chen Long chuckled dryly. "Seems all anyone in the Abyss of Gods and Demons does is put up shields."

A chilling laugh erupted from the young man. "What a pack of fools," he sneered, making everyone around him uneasy.

"Something’s wrong—hold your breath!" Chu Jie warned, sensing danger, but it was already too late.

The black shield was releasing thick black gas, and most of the brothers had already inhaled it. Now, after their grueling training, their bodies were greedily absorbing whatever came their way.

The black vapor quickly made them dizzy and faint.

"Boss… I'm feeling light-headed…"

"Me too…"

One after another, the brothers began to feel unwell. Having just finished brutal training, their lungs desperately drew in the poison.

"Who are you?" Chu Jie demanded. As a second-level Spirit Convergence cultivator, his constitution was a bit stronger than his brothers’, so he wasn’t poisoned as easily.

The young man laughed wildly, stroking the black fox. With each stroke, a thick poisonous gas was released.

"You dare ask who I am, after killing my three brothers?" The young man’s expression turned sinister. "But I suppose it doesn’t matter if you know. My name is Lord Heavenbane."

The second among the Five Heavenly Lords.

Chu Jie regarded him—he looked much younger than expected, but now was not the time for such thoughts. The Mad Dog Battalion could not afford any delay.

Any mistake now would mean death by poison.

"Boss, he’s the alchemist among the Five Heavenly Lords—the most formidable poison master in the Abyss of Gods and Demons," Jiang Ziwen shouted as he rushed over. "I heard Chen Meng say that Lord Heavenbane’s poisons are especially deadly, but all his poison is released through that fox. If we kill the fox, the poison will stop!"

Chu Jie was startled. "Is that true? How do we kill it?"

"Heh, I didn’t expect any of you idiots to know that much," Lord Heavenbane snorted. Realizing he was exposed, he quickly put the black fox away. Floating into the air, he declared, "But it matters not. This is my Netherworld Fox—within the Abyss of Gods and Demons, only the Wind-listening Panther can break its poison. But now, you’ve all been poisoned. If you don’t find the Wind-listening Panther within half an hour, only its breath can save you. Otherwise, you’ll all die."

With a sneer and an air of effeminacy, Lord Heavenbane drifted away.

He didn’t wait for Chu Jie and the others to die because he was convinced his poison was unbeatable, and that the Wind-listening Panther was impossible to find.

Chu Jie dared not pursue him, as he didn’t have the confidence to defeat the Netherworld Fox. Any mistake would mean poisoning himself as well.

"Boss, what do we do?" Liang Bo looked anxiously at his comrades.

It was like a nightmare—just moments ago everything was fine, and now they were all poisoned. If he hadn’t witnessed it himself, he would never have believed it.

This Abyss of Gods and Demons truly teemed with formidable foes. He’d thought the Five Heavenly Lords were all about brute strength, never expecting an alchemist among them.

"Find the Wind-listening Panther," Chu Jie commanded. "Leave a few healthy brothers here, the rest will come with me to search."

The Wind-listening Panther had vanished during Chu Jie’s previous battle with the Sword Lord and hadn’t been seen since. That cursed beast—why had it disappeared?

At least seventeen brothers of the Mad Dog Battalion were already deeply poisoned, black marks spreading across their bodies. They felt as if their flesh were being torn apart, burning with pain.

"I, Chu Jie, swear that not a single brother will be sacrificed."

With that silent oath, Chu Jie led his men away.

Since the Wind-listening Panther had last been seen at the fourth terrace, it would surely reappear there.

Chen Long stayed behind to care for the poisoned brothers, while Liang Bo, Jiang Ziwen, and Chu Jie split into three groups to search. Yet this was the Abyss of Gods and Demons—unpredictable dangers lurked everywhere, so no one dared stray too far.

The Wind-listening Panther had been terrified of Chu Jie before and likely wouldn’t attack again; it was probably just hiding somewhere.

But a greater worry gnawed at Chu Jie—Lord Heavenbane had said that if the Wind-listening Panther wasn’t found within half an hour, all the brothers would die.