Chapter 317: Deep into the Desolate Land

Jufu flew into the Valley of the Barren Gods, with the entrance to the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land right before them.
Su Che knew he would bid farewell to Tianyin here, but he was worried that she might be retaliated against by Tai Xu and the others alone. So he asked, “Should we pause for now and wait until the three masters from the Wuji Gate arrive here before you reunite with them?”
“No need,” Tianyin replied with a shake of her head. “In Tai Xu’s eyes, only Jufu matters. They don’t have the time to take revenge on me now. Besides, I have my own ways to protect myself. You don’t need to worry about my safety.”
“Alright then.”
Su Che nodded. “Let’s say goodbye here. I’ll go to the Wuji Gate in two years to formally thank my senior sister.”
“I’m leaving. Be careful,” Tianyin said softly.
Jufu opened the exit, and Tianyin flew out at high speed in another direction.
Watching her figure vanish in the blink of an eye, Su Che was once again amazed by her flying speed, which was no less than that of a Yuan Ying cultivator. He also saw that Tai Xu and the others indeed didn’t bother chasing after Tianyin and continued flying toward him.
By this time, Real Master Huaguang had already entered Jufu Palace. Following Su Che’s instructions, Jufu suddenly shrank to the size of a palm and was placed in Su Che’s left hand.
Swish!
Su Che, holding Jufu in his hand, flew down to the entrance of the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land. Tai Xu and the others had already closed in to five hundred feet away, ready to use their powers to capture Su Che on the spot.
“Come if you’ve got the guts!”
Su Che waved at them and dived into the narrow entrance. Tai Xu and the others sighed inwardly. The various attacks they were about to unleash had to be retracted silently.
All these actions happened in the blink of an eye. It wasn’t until then that several figures rushed out from the small wooden houses in the valley in front of the entrance to the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land, with someone shouting loudly, “Who dares to intrude here?”
These people were all at the later stage of the Golden Dan cultivation level and had been stationed here for years to collect some rare treasures from the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land. Three years ago, when Su Che was forced into a desperate situation by Youlan Guiji, these people had even tried to take him as a slave to collect treasures for themselves…
Just now, they had been cultivating inside their houses when they suddenly sensed a strong fluctuation in spiritual energy outside and rushed out to check. What they saw was Tai Xu and the other eight Yuan Ying elders approaching.
Ah!
“How could so many Yuan Ying elders arrive all at once?”
The five Golden Dan cultivators were stunned like dumb ducks.
“Greetings, esteemed elders,” the five quickly bowed and respectfully greeted them. However, Tai Xu and the others ignored them completely.

The five of them dared neither turn around to go back into the house nor slip away quietly; they could only stand there motionless, not daring to breathe a word.
The Patriarch of Taixu asked the Leader of the Illusion Demon Sect and the Holy Patriarch of the Blood God Sect, “Should we go in?”
“Go in!”
The Holy Patriarch of the Blood God Sect replied without hesitation, “I will never give up until the last moment. I must go in and capture him!”
The Leader of the Illusion Demon Sect nodded as well and said in a low voice, “There is only one entrance and exit to the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land. If we block this place, he will be trapped inside and unable to leave.”
“Very well. Leave two people here to guard it, and the rest of us will go in,” said the Patriarch of Taixu. “Over a hundred years ago, I went in once. The fierce winds and thunder inside are extremely terrifying. Everyone must be extremely careful.”
But the Holy Patriarch of the Blood God Sect shifted his gaze to the five treasure hunters who had been stationed there all along and said coldly, “You five, lead the way!”
The five of them groaned inwardly. From the conversation just now between the Patriarchs of Taixu, they knew they were about to enter the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land to capture someone, so they were forced to serve as guides.
“Oh no!”
Despite their reluctance, they didn’t dare to protest even a bit. They could only obediently bow together and say, “We are at your service, seniors.”
They vaguely recognized the identity of the Patriarch of Taixu. After all, these powerful figures were highly renowned; their portraits could often be seen, and they could even watch their battle scenes against opponents through some vision crystals.
Especially the alluring woman who had made the request seemed to be the legendary Holy Patriarch of the Blood God Sect, known for her mercilessness in killing. The five of them didn’t dare refuse at all.
The only consequence of refusing was certain death on the spot.
Thus, Tai Hao, the chief elder of the Taiyi Sect, along with an Yuan Ying elder from the Illusion Demon Sect, guarded the entrance to prevent Su Che from escaping. The six members of the Patriarch of Taixu, along with those five treasure hunters, immediately entered the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land.
Before entering, the Patriarch of Taixu and the others thought that Su Che would surely escape without a trace, and it would take a lot of effort to find him.
But unexpectedly, as soon as they entered the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land, they saw Su Che standing in an open area hundreds of feet away, seemingly waiting for them on purpose.
“Such arrogance proves the rumors are true. He must possess some powerful advantages in the storm and thunder to be so confident and dare to confront us head-on,” the members of Taixu speculated in secret.

Indeed, Su Che intended to take advantage of the natural strengths of the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land to carry out a proper revenge against them, so as to vent all the frustration he had endured today. At this moment, Su Che’s spiritual energy fluctuations had taken on the form of a Desert God Rat as he moved through the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land, feeling fearless. Back then, to harvest the Black Domain Immortal Lotus, he had even braved the most terrifying Wind and Thunder Eye. Coming here again today, he felt as if he were back home, feeling extremely relaxed. “Wind and Thunder Desolate Land, welcome you all as guests.” Su Che shouted loudly at Tai Xu and the others, who were hundreds of feet away, through telepathy. “You brat, don’t get too arrogant! You’ll see what happens soon!” The Patriarch of the Blood Divine Sect couldn’t stand it anymore and retorted in the same way through telepathy. Crack! A bolt of lightning struck, just a few feet away from Tai Xu and the others. One of the five treasure hunters, a bearded man, quickly lowered his voice and warned softly, “Elder, we can’t shout loudly inside the Desolate Land—it’s very dangerous!” “If he can do it, why can’t we?” The Patriarch of the Blood Divine Sect had never entered the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land before and truly didn’t realize its severity. “Um…” The bearded man hesitated, unable to come up with an answer right away. Since Su Che had changed his appearance, these five treasure hunters didn’t realize he was Tian Yu from the Celestial Xuan Sect, who was now so famous. Tai Xu, being meticulous, immediately reminded them, “That man is Tian Yu from the Celestial Xuan Sect. He once harvested the only Black Domain Immortal Lotus in the cultivation world right here in the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land. You’ve been stationed here for years—shouldn’t you know about this?” “It’s him?” The five treasure hunters suddenly understood. The bearded man quickly reported, “Now that you mention it, I get it. Tian Yu was able to disguise his spiritual energy fluctuations as a Desert God Rat, tricking the local divine punishment forces…” After his detailed explanation, Tai Xu and the others finally understood the mystery and all marveled inwardly, “Tian Yu is truly the greatest genius in the cultivation world, with endless extraordinary abilities. Such a person must be stopped at all costs before he grows strong enough to threaten us…” On the other hand, Su Che was extremely patient, moving slowly deeper into the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land as if taking a post-meal walk, giving them plenty of time to devise a plan. Seeing his relaxed demeanor, the Patriarch of the Blood Divine Sect became furious, speaking with murderous intent, his words sharp as blades: “You have ten breaths to come up with a way to capture him. Otherwise…”

What would happen otherwise needn’t be said—already, the five treasure hunters were trembling and drenched in cold sweat under her intense killing aura. If they fell into the hands of the Blood God Sect, such a fate would be worse than dying instantly… In less than ten breaths, one of the treasure hunters dressed as a scholar came up with an idea and immediately said, “We can divide into five groups and surround him from five different directions. Otherwise, if we just chase behind him, we’ll never be able to match his ease in the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land.” This seemed like a decent plan. The leader of the Taixu Sect said in a deep voice, “Dividing into five groups would spread our strength too much. How about three groups, each relying on their own opportunities?” The Taiyi Sect, the Illusion Demon Sect, and the Blood God Sect could form three groups, with each group led by its leader and an elder, advancing toward Su Che from three different directions. Outside the Desolate Land, the strong winds and thunder weren’t as intense. Those treasure hunters, who had explored this area for years, could guide the Taixu Sect members to avoid dangers in advance and gradually move deeper in. Although the Taixu Sect members knew Su Che had certain advantages in the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land, they still refused to let him escape easily, clinging to the hope that since the area was limited, if they could corner him, he would have nowhere to go… Boom… As they went deeper, the strong winds and thunder grew more intense. Among them were terrifyingly powerful Purple Sky Divine Thunder and even Supreme Pure Divine Thunder. The last time he entered the Storm and Thunder Desolate Land, Su Che was still young and ignorant; he had only heard of these high-level divine thunders without ever seeing them, unaware of their true power. But now, he knew exactly what to expect. After walking for over a quarter of an hour, Su Che found a Storm and Thunder Eye—where thunder rained down like rain and winds blew like tides, with terrifying forces capable of destroying everything in the world raging wildly. “Even with my current strength, touching some of these thunders and winds would be fatal. How could I have dared to wander among them and dance with them for so long back then?” Even now, Su Che secretly admired his own reckless courage. “This place is perfect. Since guests have come, let’s welcome them with thunder!” Su Che slowly turned around. Behind him lay the terrifying Storm and Thunder Eye, with winds of various forms swirling around him and colorful thunders flashing incessantly. At this moment, Su Che resembled an angel of punishment carrying heavenly wrath to destroy the mortal world. Facing the Taixu Sect members approaching from three directions, he said with a smile, “I’ve had you travel thousands of miles to bring me here. I should express my gratitude.” Boom…

Faced with the infinitely terrifying Eye of Wind and Thunder, the five explorers leading the way were already pale and terrified. They knew best just how dreadful the Eye of Wind and Thunder was; if not forced by several Nascent Soul ancestors, they would never have dared to venture this far. Taixu and the others, however, were skilled and bold. They also understood the terrifying power of those gale winds and thunder bolts, but they thought it was sufficient to simply avoid them carefully. They never imagined, nor did they believe, that Su Che had the ability to wield the power of divine punishment against them.