Devour

Chapter 279 72 Pillar Demon General

In the early morning, the dark wind dissipated and Jiaoshi Town regained a bit of vitality.

Cheng Bai smiled and invited Leng Yi to have breakfast together, and served out the carefully prepared steamed centipede meat.

The dishes are beautifully presented, with the snow-white meat slices sprinkled with chopped forget-me-nots as chopped green onions, a few drops of Ice Flame Thunder God wine poured on them, and a brand-new forget-me-not sauce made with Ice Flame Thunder God wine. The meat is full and mellow, tender and smooth in the mouth, with a fresh and sweet taste, producing an alluring aroma that goes straight to the soul.

"People who practice cultivation should seldom eat meat. If they need it occasionally, the Bigu Pill is enough... But the fragrance is really fascinating, so it doesn't hurt to try it."

After Leng Yi finished speaking, he couldn't help but take a bite. It was such an extreme enjoyment that he almost swallowed his tongue. He immediately forgot about the discussion of cultivation and started to enjoy the meal.

Cheng Bai invited the others to the table and said with a humble smile, "It's rare to see wild game delicacies. It's a good opportunity to cook and share them to improve your skills that are almost rusty."

Only eight dishes were cooked in total, one for each of the seven people in the team and Leng Yi. Cheng Bai couldn't bear to use more real ingredients.

Blackfly and Smoker's mouths were drooling, knowing that it would be very beneficial to eat it, so they chewed slowly, one mouthful after another, in silence.

Zhai Xufei didn't take it seriously at first. He stuck his head out to take a bite, then swallowed the whole thing along with the plate.

Beitingjun said with a smile: "Is it so delicious? Let me try it." Then he lowered his head and enjoyed it without saying a word.

Lu Xiaoxi tasted it and praised it with her mouth full of saliva. She shouted to the second floor of the accommodation: "Gou Yifan, come down to eat quickly."

Gou Yifan opened the door upstairs, looked in, sniffed and said, "It smells very fragrant, but unfortunately my heart is not here, I am busy practicing. I have already used the fasting pill today, so I am not hungry at all. You guys eat, I will not go downstairs."

He turned and went into the house, closed the door, and sighed, "What's the point of satisfying your appetite? If your mind is not at peace, you won't be able to enjoy the food. Diligence can make up for lack of talent, and if you work harder, maybe you can restore to the middle stage of the Heavenly Man Realm today."

Leng Yi licked the empty plate, and upon hearing that, he quickly grabbed the plate left for Gou Yifan and shouted, "He said he doesn't want it, so this one should be mine." He swallowed it in two or three mouthfuls, as if he was afraid that someone would go back on his word.

After eating and drinking, everyone felt as if they had taken a magic medicine. They felt refreshed and relaxed, and sat around chatting lazily.

After enjoying the perfect meal, Cheng Bai decided to go down to the lower level to inquire about the road: "Excuse me, senior, how can I get to the floating ice city?"

Leng Yi was in a particularly good mood, stroking his beard and smiling, "Young friend, you stayed indoors yesterday. Do you want to go to the third level so soon? Previous candidates mainly stayed in the Jiaoshi Mountains. Few of them continued to move to the lower levels without staying there for a month or so."

Cheng Bai said with a smile: "The most valuable thing in the surrounding area is the mining rights of Feiying Stone. The price of the rough stone is 100,000 taels of black gold a day, but the remaining inferior products are waiting for people. There is no need to delay. Besides, the Nine-Layered Abyss is vast. It may take several years to explore all the places in the continent. We might as well get straight to the point."

The deeper you go into the secret realm, the more precious the treasures become.

Yong Yao and Cai Youling are both looking for the best resources, and there is also a mysterious A Pu whose purpose is unknown, so it is naturally better for them to get ahead.

Zhai Xufei interrupted and said, "The easiest way to get to the top three levels of the Nine-Layered Abyss is to find the gatekeeper and pay a fee to pass through. The other levels are not so convenient."

Cheng Bai asked curiously, "I heard that some people jumped directly from the abyss. Has anyone of you tried it?"

Leng Yi dissuaded him, "Young man, don't try any dangerous moves lightly. Even with my cultivation level, I don't dare to jump randomly. It's ok to fall to other levels. But if you accidentally break into Prince Night Demon's Temple of Life, you will be courting death."

Bei Tingjun was surprised and said, "You know the Temple of Life in the Deep Abyss, so you must have been there."

Leng Yi shook his head and said, "With your abilities, you two can explore the other eight floors. But I advise you not to enter the ninth floor without permission."

Cheng Bai said: "There are no gatekeepers in the six levels below the Nine-Layered Abyss. Is there any other way to get through?"

Leng Yi pointed outside the window and said, "Do you see those stone pillars connecting the upper and lower continents?"

Cheng Bai humbly asked, "What's the secret?"

"There are seventy-two stone pillars between the upper and lower levels of the Nine-Layered Abyss, commonly known as the 'Seventy-Two Pillars'. There used to be a demon general guarding each of the important roads, called the 'Seventy-Two Pillar Demon Generals'. If you master the rules, you can travel back and forth."

Leng Yi was halfway through his speech when he pretended to be mysterious and remained silent.

Cheng Bai was a little surprised and waited patiently for him to finish.

Leng Yi poured a cup of tea to moisten his throat and continued, "The seventy-two demon generals are nobles of the Night Demon Clan. Most of them are of different realms, but some are more than that. They were the best in the clan and had long lifespans. Unfortunately, they could not survive the vicissitudes of time. Their bodies have long disappeared, and their ghosts have possessed the stone pillars and transformed into ghost generals, unwilling to die."

Cheng Bai asked: "Should we call them the Seventy-two Ghost Generals now?"

Leng Yi shook his head and said, "They believe that demons are superior to ghosts, so it's easier to talk to them if they call each other demon generals. It is said that there is a demon commander who leads the demon generals, and even I have never seen him."

Zhai Xufei said, "The 72 pillar ghost generals have a lot of messy rules. If you meet someone who is easy to talk to, you can run errands and do some work in exchange for passing conditions."

Bei Tingjun added: "If you encounter a tough guy, even if you say nice things, he may not let you pass, which is very troublesome for candidates."

Seeing Leng Yi's mysterious expression, Cheng Bai asked, "Senior Leng, what's your plan?"

Leng Yi did not answer directly, but narrowed his eyes and said: "My friend, your cultivation level may not be high, or you may be deliberately concealing it for some reason. Your real strength may be outstanding. But without the guidance of an expert, the 72 Pillars of Ghosts will be a very difficult opponent to deal with!"

Cheng Bai thought to himself, "That means it's at least not inferior to the Thousand-Eyed Centipede. Old man Leng is keeping us in suspense. Let's wait for him to finish."

Leng Yi took out a parchment scroll and said leisurely, "I have gone through a lot of trouble to find out the details of the operation of the seventy-two pillars on each level, as well as the abilities of the ghost generals. I have recorded them all here, named "The List of Ghost Generals of the Nine-Layered Abyss". Now I am giving it to you, which is also the destiny."

"It's true that human nature is hard to change. How can he let go of the opportunity to make a lot of money?" Cheng Bai suddenly realized and asked bluntly, "What's the price?"

Leng Yi said solemnly: "Five thousand taels of black gold for one book. There are 576 ghost generals in the Nine Layers of the Abyss, with detailed records. I guarantee you will be able to easily control them. It's just a small price."

Cheng Bai used his Phoenix Power to probe and sensed a pile of identical sheepskin rolls of names at the old man's feet. He said slowly, "I'll pay two hundred and fifty taels of black gold. To be honest, I'm not very interested in ghost generals. I just want to try something new and avoid them if I can."

Leng Yi immediately slammed the table and shouted: "Deal!"

Seeing his happy face, Cheng Bai felt a little regretful: "It seems that my bid was too high."

With this volume of flower list, with detailed illustrations and text, it is of great significance to master the important passages to each layer of the Nine-Layered Abyss! It is not expensive and worth buying.

Cheng Bai consulted a volume related to the Jiaoshi Mountains and learned: "The seventy-two towering pillars on the ground lead to the upper level, and the entrances to the lower level are distributed in seventy-two caves, each with an altar for teleportation."

The team set off to leave Jiaoshi Town. Cheng Bai chose a nearby altar: "His name is Sha Ke, he is kind and gentle by nature, and he is the ghost general who is most likely to pass through the second level without fighting."

Entering the deep cave, there are stalagmites and stalactites everywhere. A little light refracts in from outside, projecting colorful brilliance on the cave wall, and the sound of light dripping lingers, playing soft music in the tranquility.

The ancient altar, carved with various totems and symbols, covers a large area and has a stepped circular structure with three levels, each only about one person high.

It stood quietly in the center of the cave, seemingly unattended. That was only the surface calm. As soon as everyone stepped onto the first level of the altar, they alarmed the guardian.

A dark crack appeared on the ground of the third-level altar, and a puff of black smoke came out. A burly man in a black robe and with a gloomy face came out, and the altar surface returned to its original state.

The head of the guarding ghost general was shaped like an inverted triangle, and green light was burning in his eye sockets. He shouted, "Stop! You who are about to bring misfortune to the Nine-Layered Abyss, the Pillar of Sand will not allow you to pass."

Cheng Bai started the conversation and said, "I heard that Demon General Sha Ke is a loyal and honest person who supports the younger generation. How about giving him a favor and opening a smooth road for him?"