Thus, Chen Ku and Qin Yuxian stood in place, watching Shan Lingguan walk into the wall.

They waited for the time it took an incense stick to burn.

One incense stick later.

Boom!

Sure enough, Shan Lingguan emerged from the Wind Raising Formation completely unscathed, surrounded by a gust of black wind, his aura seemingly even more powerful.

"Master?" Chen Ku inquired, "What was it like inside?"

Shan Lingguan stroked his beard with a smile and said, "It was a blessing. If other Seventh or Eighth Realm Martial Practitioners entered the Wind Raising Formation, they might not make it out. Fortunately, I have already mastered the 'Black Wind Body'; not only was I unharmed, but I also observed many 'Wind Central Array Patterns', inadvertently enhancing the power of my cultivation body by three more points."

At his age, unless he could break through to a greater realm, any slight progress was difficult.

Unexpectedly, this underground palace could bring such an opportunity.

"As long as you're okay." Chen Ku let out a sigh of relief and was pleased to hear of his master's cultivation breakthrough by three points.

"Even one of the Eight Gates Shocking Array formations has benefited me greatly, making me even more curious about what kind of wonders and opportunities lie within the Hero King Palace beyond this maze?"

Shan Lingguan stroked his beard, placed one hand behind his back, and said,

"Disciple, lead the way. Let's head straight to the Hero King Palace."

"Okay!"

Leading the way, Chen Ku posed a question as they walked, "Master and Senior Brother, if we encounter any mechanical objects or guardian creatures up ahead, could you severely wound them first and let me practice my skills?"

In truth, he coveted the Evil Qi of higher realms.

With these two powerful protectors by his side, if he could take advantage of the situation to gain some benefits, why not?

"Of course."

Chen Ku's suggestion was not too unreasonable, especially since Shan Lingguan also intended to assess Chen Ku's current strength.

So the three of them followed the correct path and soon left Shangguan Yun and the others far behind.

At this moment, looking from a high-dimensional perspective,

Shangguan Yun and the others were still lingering at one-third of the underground palace entrance.

Meanwhile, Chen Ku had already led his master and senior brother to the end of the maze, when suddenly a heavy breathing sound echoed ahead, as if some ancient ferocious beast awaited them at the corridor's end...

"Master, Senior Brother, be careful, there's something ahead!" Chen Ku immediately warned.

And with his warning.

Howl~~

A sound resembling a wolf's howl, piercing the sky and splitting stones, whipped up small whirlwinds at the end of the maze's corridor, stirring up dust and fog, obscuring their vision.

They could only faintly see, within the dust and fog storm, a giant beast standing about four or five zhang tall, resembling both a mastiff and a wolf.

[The Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff poses a threat to the master... Defeat it to gain Seventh Realm Evil Qi]

Almost at the moment of his Transformation Diagram's reminder,

the massive beast within the sandstorm dust roared fiercely again, as if embodying a thunder god's strike, deafeningly loud.

"Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff?"

But hearing Shan Lingguan's voice of amazement, he said,

"Isn't that one of the three pet beasts of Hero King Pei Dongliu from one hundred and fifty years ago?"

"It truly is..."

Qin Yuxian also observed the gigantic figure within the sandstorm, speaking softly, "The three great pet beasts under Pei Dongliu's command were the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff, the Six-legged Lightning Camel, and the Golden-eyed Jade Lion. They were strange beasts that followed Pei Dongliu across Jiangnan and the northern frontier. Particularly, the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff often, in large military confrontations, would be released by Pei Dongliu. Its roar, like a torrent of thunder descending from the heavens, could be heard for hundreds of miles, striking terror into enemies' hearts and collapsing their resolve."

Often, even before battles began, some fragile and feeble troops, upon hearing the Thunder Mastiff's roar, would find their military morale scattered, soldiers suffering from ruptured eardrums, dropping their armaments and fleeing.

"Hmm..."

Shan Lingguan mumbled, saying, "But it doesn't seem to be the one from back then. The Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff was at least ten zhang tall, a Tenth Realm Great Demon; this one is half its size. Could it be the descendant of the one from that time?"

Roar~~

As they spoke, all the dust and fog were forced away by a roaring thunder, the sound waves rolling forth.

"Not good, the ears..."

Chen Ku felt the terrifying roar, his eardrums about to give in, but luckily Qin Yuxian stood in front, expanding a ring of golden Gang Qi around himself, enveloping Chen Ku within it, instantly isolating them from the dreadful sound waves.

He curiously observed Qin Yuxian's golden Gang Qi, "Is this the 'Gang Qi' of a Seventh Realm Martial Practitioner?"

At this realm, the internal Qi transforms into Gang Qi, which can freely extend beyond the body.

Seventh Realm Martial Practitioners can even use Gang Qi to stay airborne for a hundred breaths.

Just as Chen Ku curiously examined Qin Yuxian's Gang Qi.

"Disciple, watch here. Let your master disable this creature, then I'll let you practice your skills on it."

Shan Lingguan said with a smile to Chen Ku.

Then, hands behind his back, he steadily approached the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff.

Roar~~

Under the protection of Qin Yuxian's Gang Qi, Chen Ku strained his vision and gradually discerned the monstrous figure emerging from the dust and fog.

It was covered in golden fur, reaching four or five zhang in height, resembling a gigantic golden Tibetan mastiff, the key feature being the blue lightning flashing between its fangs and eyes, continuously surging outward.

Boom!

After a mighty roar, the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff found that its renowned thunderous roar couldn't harm these three humans. It suddenly crouched down, launching off the ground with powerful hind legs, pouncing towards Shan Lingguan.

Crackle!

Its column-like thick front claws, crackling with electricity, emitted a scorching aroma in the air, reaching for the tall elder with a swipe.

Compared to the fifteen-meter height of the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff, Shan Lingguan was only a little over two meters tall, barely reaching the Mastiff's knee.

Who would've anticipated that facing the colossal claw of the mastiff...

Whoosh!

The tall old man, with his hands behind his back, suddenly left behind an afterimage in place, dodging the paw of the mastiff in an instant. He then lifted his front leg, stepping forward and kicking the body of the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff.

Boom!

The two-meter-tall man sent the fifteen-meter-tall giant mastiff flying a hundred meters away with one kick, smashing into the wall fiercely. Stones from the top of the cave fell like raindrops from the impact.

"Awoo~"

The Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff let out a painful howl, but before it could rise from a hundred meters away, it looked up to find Shan Lingguan already in front of it, reaching out a large hand towards it...

Lightning flickered!

Suddenly, a palm struck the vocal cords of the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff, disabling its most powerful 'Roaring Thunder Sound' ability.

Then, with another kick aimed at the mastiff's abdomen, the sound of bones shattering echoed from its belly, followed immediately by...

The fifteen-meter-tall giant beast, like a small building, flew towards Chen Ku.

Accompanied by Shan Lingguan's voice:

"Disciple, this beast's 'Roaring Thunder Sound' has been disabled and its realm suppressed by me. Show me your skills now!"

Chen Ku watched as the golden-haired mastiff came crashing towards him.

He was extremely excited and quickly responded:

"Master, watch closely!"

A Coiled Dragon Staff weighing thirteen thousand five hundred jins appeared in his palm. As the Golden Mastiff fell towards him, he stepped forward with several strides, delivering an upward diagonal sweep on the mastiff's body.

Boom!

With the strength of four dragons openly supporting Chen Ku, this sweep directly broke one of the mastiff's front paws, causing its body to fly a dozen meters like a giant scarecrow.

"Awoo~"

The Golden Mastiff, unable to support itself with its front paw, saw Chen Ku come again with the staff.

It reached out one of its other paws to strike at Chen Ku, but due to its injuries, it could no longer exert even thirty percent of its Seventh Realm Great Demon strength.

[With Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff intending harm to the master, subduing it can earn you Seventh Realm Evil Qi...]

Chen Ku launched a fierce sweep that slammed onto the opponent's front paw, then with a swift pull of the staff, it transformed into a Skyward Strike, imbued with the forty-meter blade technique of the Dragon Subduing Refining God Sword.

Clang!

After breaking open the massive front paw of the Golden Mastiff, the Skyward Strike was unleashed a dozen meters away from the mastiff, and the two-meter or so long staff seemed to extend tenfold in this move, forming a staff swung fiercely with blazing flames, carrying the Li Fire Body and Chen Ku's Four Dragon Power, and crashing directly onto the head of the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff!

Bang!

The Golden Mastiff's head was struck open by this blow, and its massive body was slammed into the ground by the overwhelming force.

Chen Ku seized the moment, thrusting downward with the staff!

He seemed like a meteor descending from the sky, and with a 'thud', he pierced through the head of the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff as if slicing through tofu.

[The Diagram Master has subdued the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff and obtained a strand of Seventh Realm Evil Qi]

"The power of four dragons!"

Qin Yuxian watched the strength displayed by Chen Ku and couldn't help but praise: "Master Uncle, have you taught the God Shaking Decision to our young junior brother?"

Even though Chen Ku was able to kill the Seventh Realm Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff entirely because the elders intentionally maimed it to test his strength.

The staff technique Chen Ku exhibited, already at perfection, and the wild, fierce power that surpassed four dragons were not to be underestimated by the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff.

"I haven't taught him the God Shaking Decision yet..." Shan Lingguan looked at Chen Ku incredulously.

Qin Yuxian's pupils slightly contracted: "You haven't taught him the God Shaking Decision?"

Without even cultivating the God Shaking Decision, he already possesses the strength of four dragons. If he were to achieve the fifth or sixth level of the God Shaking Decision, wouldn't he be able to compete with him on equal footing?

Chen Ku delightfully gazed at the strand of Seventh Realm Evil Qi within the Transformation Diagram.

At this time, the Transformation Diagram suddenly displayed a reminder:

[The Diagram Master has met one condition for cultivating the Eighth Transformation Diagram: a strand of Sixth Realm or higher Evil Qi]

[Eighth Transformation Diagram cultivation conditions: a strand of Sixth Realm or higher Evil Qi, two hundred thousand taels of Pure Gold, one hundred thousand jins of Gold Silk Jade, three Ultimate Skills to Perfection realm, three pieces of Spirit Jade]

Chen Ku was slightly taken aback.

The conditions for the Eighth Transformation Diagram had appeared.

Looking again:

[Do you wish to sacrifice this Seventh Realm Evil Qi]

Chen Ku immediately refused:

"What are you daydreaming about? Your condition requires only a Sixth Realm Evil Qi, so I don't need to give you a Seventh Realm Evil Qi, do I?"

However, just as Chen Ku was ignoring the Transformation Diagram's notification...

"After we leave this underground palace, I intend to teach you the 'God Shaking Decision'..." Shan Lingguan seriously said as he walked over: "Otherwise, it would be a waste of your divine power and root bone."

Not having cultivated his school's God Shaking Decision of Ten Dragons and Ten Elephants, he already possesses such divine power.

If he were to master it and reach the Great Perfection realm.

Wouldn't he easily claim the title of Qiu Dragon Mansion's, no, even You State's number one in immense strength?

"It's up to Master to decide." Chen Ku smiled happily and bowed.

He also wanted to see how much greater his strength would be if he cultivated the God Shaking Decision.

Rumble~~

While the three of them were speaking, the passage guarded by the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff opened with a loud rumble.

"Let's go; up ahead should be the Hero King Palace Group." Shan Lingguan instructed Chen Ku to retrieve the corpse of the Golden Shocking Thunder Mastiff, then led the way towards the vermillion palace doors.

.....

Boom!

And the sound of the opening door resonated through other parts of the labyrinth.

Shangguan Yun, although having found the location of the Cloud Pendant Formation, changed his expression at the sound of the ancient palace doors creaking open:

"Who is it? Who managed to enter the Hero King Palace before me?

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