Chapter Eighty-four: The Silent Marsh

  Chi Yan arrived two days later, and with his arrival, all the main characters for this expedition to the "Gate of Heaven" had assembled.

  In the silent marshes, there were thousands of large and small swamps everywhere.

  Those marshes have existed for tens of thousands of years, and anyone who sets foot on them may become deeply trapped in the marshes and be swallowed up by them.

  By the time they got here, the carriages could no longer move forward. The horses and carriages of the Liao and Shi families had to stop at the entrance of the Silent Marsh, and the group had to enter on foot.

  Having entered the silent marsh, Shi Yan also spoke very little, constantly paying attention to potential dangers that might suddenly arise.

  The silent marsh was everywhere green, and many of the marshes above were surrounded by colorful miasma.

  Those miasmas contain highly toxic substances, many of which are extremely potent. Ordinary people only need to take a sniff and they will quickly rot to death.

  Apart from swamps and miasma, dead silent marshes and dark forests are also where monsters roam!

  The monsters living here have long adapted to the dead swamp, often hiding in the mud and suddenly emerging from the mud when people pass by, attacking the warriors coming and going.

  Chi Xiao and Xia Xinyan walked ahead, always trying to avoid the swamp whenever they saw it appear.

  The Red Cloud Body is a realm of strong heavenly positions, can break through the air and fly, but is not afraid of the sticky mud in the swamp.

  However, he was not afraid, which did not mean that others were not afraid. Even Xia Xunyan could only reach the Tianwei realm and fly freely after using "Lunhui Wuhun".

  However, every time she used "Reincarnation Martial Spirit", Xia Xinyan would also be very hurt.

  Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, Xia Xinyan did not dare to easily use the "Reincarnation Martial Soul", so she was extremely cautious all along the way, always keeping an eye on Chi Ying leading the way in front.

  Shi Yan's cultivation was considered the lowest among his peers, and his understanding of this world was also the shallowest.

  So, after entering the Dead Silence Swamp, he had been taciturn and observing secretly all along, observing the dangers of the Dead Silence Swamp, and observing the countermeasures of Chi Hong and others.

  "In front of us is a three-mile-long green swamp, and we can't avoid it." Chi Xiao suddenly stopped and stood on a muddy patch of ground, frowning: "The surrounding area is all swampland, and this swamp is still the safest. Everyone be careful, we're going to take a risk this time."

  Shi Yan's expression was solemn, his brow furrowed as he gazed out at the marsh in front of him.

  The marsh stretches for three miles, with a vast expanse of green mud covering the ground. However, in the center of the marsh, there are also patches of dry land that can support people's weight. These patches of dry land are generally small, and some can only hold two or three people standing.

  There are distances of tens of meters between the dry lands, and some are only two or three meters apart. If you can keep walking on those dry lands, it should not be a problem to get through this swamp.

  However, one sentence under Chi Xiao shattered his beautiful plan.

  "Don't be fooled by those dry lands that seem to be able to hold people, because once you step on them, you might sink in even faster. Many of those dry lands are actually floating on top of marshes and can't bear any weight, so as soon as someone stands on them, they will immediately sink."

  Shi Yan's heart skipped a beat, his expression becoming even more solemn, but he didn't say anything else.

  "Don't worry, I'll tread on every step ahead and find a solid ground for you to land. Chi Xiao seemed to have noticed everyone's concern and smiled slightly: "You just need to follow my footsteps and see where I set foot on the dry land, it should be fine. However, some of the dry lands are very small, they may be able to bear my weight alone, but not necessarily three or four people's strength, so still need to be careful."

  Everyone's face was heavy, and they nodded slowly. Even Zuo Shi, who had been relaxed the whole way, felt a bit tense and also looked carefully at the dry land in front of them.

  "Miss Xia, it might get a bit dangerous later on. If you can mobilize the power of Tianwei's realm, could you also keep an eye out for me?" Chi Xiao hesitated for a moment before looking towards Xia Xinyan.

  Xia Xinyan's eyes, clear and bright outside her veil, showed a hint of hesitation. After a moment's pause, she said: "Mr. Chi Xiao, if you can handle it alone, it would be best for you to do so. If I were to use my heavenly powers, I would be weakened for some time afterwards. I'd rather conserve my energy for the Nine-Headed Heavenly Snake than waste it here."

  As soon as this was said, Zuo Shi and Wu Yunlian both furrowed their brows quietly.

  Everyone thought she didn't want to make an effort and didn't consider her own people as companions, so naturally everyone had some dislike in their hearts, but it wasn't easy to express directly.

  It turned out that Chi Xiao didn't mind, nodded and said: "Alright, this time I'll be a bit more careful. However, without Miss Xia's help, you all need to be even more cautious. Without my guidance, don't dare to set foot rashly, otherwise once you sink into the mire, it will be troublesome for me to rescue you."

  Everyone nodded solemnly together.

  "Uh, follow me." Chi Xiao took a light breath and suddenly floated out, stepping on the nearest dry land first.

  He stepped on it with one foot, and the dry land suddenly shrank, and actually sank violently into the muddy mud.

  Shi Yan's expression changed slightly, a hint of solemnity flashing in his eyes as he suddenly realized that this expedition was not going to be as smooth as he had imagined. It seemed that he needed to be even more careful from now on.

  Chi Yan didn't worry, watching the dry land sink into the mud, and said to himself: "Everyone has seen it, this piece of dry land can't withstand the force of one person. If you really jump up vigorously, I'm afraid it will sink into the mud with the dry land."

  As he spoke, Chi Xiao's body flew up again and landed on another dry land beside him. After he landed, that piece of dry land was stable and didn't show any signs of sinking.

  "This place is safe, but be careful, I may be fine standing alone, but with more people, accidents can happen." Chi Xiao said, lightly stomping his foot.

  He stamped his foot and the dry earth beneath him shook violently, then slowly sank again.

  "This block can hold the weight of three people. Be careful, when passing through this block, do not exceed three people standing on it at the same time." Chi Xiao explained and flew out again, using the same method to guide everyone's way forward.

  When the red glow flew out a hundred meters away, Xia Xinyan said faintly, "We can leave now."

  With that said, Xia Xinyan's slender figure lightly swayed and landed softly on the dry land that could hold the weight of three people.

  She stopped for a moment, then moved forward again, shifting to another safe dry land ahead, following the trail of Chi Xiao's rapid advance.

  The two towering giants who had been following her also charged out without hesitation, trampling the dry earth and closely following behind her.

  Zuo Shi and Wu Yunlian, Chu Ping followed suit, following the route that Xia Xinyan and others had taken.

  "Please go first, young master." Han Feng bowed and said to Shi Yan: "Be careful, young master."

  "Hmm." Shi Yan nodded and also jumped out, following Zuo Shi, slowly heading forward.

  Above the marsh, there is a faintly sour smell in the air.

  A mile into the marsh, Shi Yan discovered that "gurgling" green bubbles were emerging from the marsh. Once those green bubbles burst, wisps of green oily smoke flew out.

  "Be careful, this green gas is toxic, don't inhale it." A voice came from the front, "Everyone's cultivation level isn't low, holding your breath for a short time shouldn't be a problem. I'll clear the road as soon as possible, all of you follow closely."

  Hong Qi said, his body didn't stop moving, swaying on the dry land, from time to time shouting: "This piece can't be walked on, this piece can bear feet, but pay attention, here can only withstand the weight of two people, all take note..."

  Shi Yan's eyes stared unblinkingly at Chi Xiao, remembering every place he walked, not daring to be the slightest bit careless.

  At this time, he suddenly envied the warriors of the Heavenly Rank, if they had the ability to fly through the air, it would not be so troublesome in this regard, and could fly directly over.

  Shi Yan increasingly yearned for even greater power! He increasingly yearned for an even higher and more profound realm of cultivation!

  There is a red cloud road, and everyone is much more relaxed. Along the way, except for some trouble with the red cloud, everyone else is relatively relaxed.

  In this marshland where countless warriors were buried, everyone had been safe and sound all along without any mishaps.

  But just as they were about to leave the marsh, Chi Xiao's face suddenly changed and he exclaimed: "Be careful! There is movement in the mud!"

  "Pffft! Pffft! Pffft!"

  A three-headed monster covered in mud suddenly emerged from the muddy pit and pounced towards Shi Yan and Xia Xinyan, who were standing on dry land.

  This monster is like a catfish, with a row of sharp thorns on its back, a fish-like head, and dense teeth, like steel needles.

  Three-headed monster flew out of the muddy water, two heads charged towards Xia Xinyan, and one head shot straight at the stone cliff.

  Shi Yan's expression didn't change, his eyes fixed on the approaching demon beast. Suddenly, he stretched out his right hand, and his right arm immediately petrified. He secretly used the Finger Gun Technique, stabbing straight at the demon beast with a fierce thrust!

  "Hiss!"

  The monster bit down on Shi Yan's right arm, but couldn't pierce through his petrified martial soul. Instead, it was Shi Yan's five fingers that pierced through its brain, and with a splatter of green blood, it fell into the swamp.

  "Pong Pong!"

  From Xia Xinyan's side came two muffled explosions.

  Shi Yan turned his head and saw that the two-headed demon beast near Xia Xinyan suddenly burst into pieces without getting close to her, and directly fell into the swamp.

  A numbing sensation came from his right palm, which was stained with green blood. Shi Yan furrowed his brow slightly and took out a soft cloth from his backpack to wipe the green blood off his hand clean.

  One by one, strange and weird beasts suddenly emerged from the marshes emitting green bubbles, roughly counting, there were no less than a hundred heads.

  These monsters, one by one, looked at Shi Yan and his group with hatred, as if they were about to pounce on them.

  "Shi Yan, have you been stained with the green blood of the Green Wolf Beast?" Suddenly shouted Chi Xiao, who was in front of the team.

  Shi Yan casually wiped off the green blood and looked up at Chi Xiao with a nod, "Is there anything wrong?"

  "These green goblins have inhaled too much of the toxic miasma, their fresh blood contains potent toxins that can rot a person's body!" Chi Xiao regretfully said: "I was planning to tell you after we passed this swamp, because there are rarely any green goblins appearing here, I thought they wouldn't appear in this area."

  "Chi Xiao, what are you doing here again?"

  A grotesque figure, covered in mud and without a single hair on his body, slowly emerged from the mud. Half of his body was still submerged in the mud, while the other half was exposed to the outside. He gazed coldly at the sky and growled: "Last time you stole my Bi Xiang Cao, what do you want to do this time?"

  ……