Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest-Chapter 651 - Demon Den (Part 1)

Chapter 651: Chapter 651 Demon Den (Part 1)

The Demon Den is a part of the Yongle Dungeon, yet it stands independent from the nine-tiered dungeon.

For Wang Chen, who had just arrived, his first impression of the Demon Den was entirely negative.

Filthy, dirty, eerie, cold…

The space here had very weak nature’s spiritual energy and was filled with an abundance of Yin Sha Energy. Cultivators, if they did not fortify themselves with spells, or utilize talismans and artifacts for protection, would quickly find their bodies corrupted by it.

At the least, their Taoist Foundation would be damaged; at worst, they would fall into demonhood!

To cultivate in such an environment, unless one practiced evil or demonic arts, was akin to courting death!

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Therefore, only members of the Forbidden Prison Department who had committed grave errors were dispatched here to guard the place.

Wang Chen had suffered collateral damage this time, and the price was truly severe!

However, being just a minor cultivator from the Purple Mansion tier and a Loose Cultivator who had smuggled himself from the Lower Realm, he could only “settle in since he had arrived.”

No matter how tough life was, he had to continue!

The cultivator in charge of the overall Demon Den was a high-tier Golden Core named Cloud Crane True Person.

But this Golden Core usually secluded himself in deep meditation within the cave, leaving all the major and minor affairs of the Demon Den to three jailers at the peak of the Purple Mansion tier to manage.

Although Wang Chen was sent to guard the Demon Den, the tasks he actually performed were all the arduous and dirty jobs.

The Demon Den was vast, similar to a honeycomb structure, consisting of numerous caves. Cloud Crane True Person occupied the core position, controlling the Demon-Subduing Grand Array.

This high-tier Golden Core also used the array to cultivate, so as long as the imprisoned demons didn’t stir trouble, he did not wish to waste a moment of time.

Of course, such benefits were exclusive to him alone.

The three jailers beneath him still managed to get a share of the spoils, but for a prison guard at Wang Chen’s level, there was truly nothing to be had.

The treatment was far worse than what he had before!

As such, the number of prison guards in the Demon Den was quite small, and each one of them was deadpan and morose, with most having gloomy faces and an ashen complexion.

They were taciturn and did not form cliques, resembling those who had utterly lost hope in life, merely living to stay alive, disinterested in everything.

There were even prison guards who would suddenly collapse while walking and never managed to get up again.

The other guards were unphased by this; they would perfunctorily check the body and hastily dispose of it to prevent the soul from turning into an Evil Wraith.

Others liked to talk to themselves. Without anyone to converse with, they would speak to themselves, murmuring incessantly like an incantation, provoking an inexplicable fear and shudder in those who heard it.

This had been Wang Chen’s observations since being dispatched to the Demon Den over the past three days.

His direct superior was Changsun Yong, one of the three jailers managing the Demon Den, with hundreds of prison guards under his command.

The tasks assigned to Wang Chen were far from easy. He had to inspect the nodes of the Demon-Subduing Grand Array daily, ensuring that each mana node was functioning correctly.

Additionally, he had to deliver food to a group of demons and ghosts.

These two tasks were scheduled for the morning and afternoon, and at night, he was required to take shifts on duty along with other guards.

Above and below, left and right, the numerous prison caves of varying sizes within the Demon Den were interlinked by tunnels. Even though Wang Chen was only responsible for a small part of it, he was busily toiling every day.

Forget about cultivating, he barely had time to rest.

At night, the concentration of the evil Yin Sha Energy within the Demon Den peaked, making patrol work particularly strenuous.

And dangerous!

“This is a Green Sun Lantern.”

An old guard leading the way held up a lantern and prattled on, “Remember this, the lantern shines with the living, it extinguishes with the dead; don’t let this lantern go out!”

Wang Chen nodded in response as he followed behind, “Understood.”

He too was carrying a similar Green Sun Lantern in his hand.

The conditions in the Demon Den were extremely harsh; influenced by the Yin Sha Energy, the connecting tunnels would become extremely dim at night, with the Luminous Stone lamps embedded in the stone walls barely casting any light.

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Hence, the prison guards must always carry a lantern during their inspections.

The Green Sun Lantern is a special Spiritual Artifact issued by the Forbidden Prison Department, designed to disperse Evil Qi, suppress Evil Wraiths, and also helps its bearer to stay calm of mind, not easily bewildered by illusions.

Most of the Evil Qi and Evil Power that filled the Demon Den originated from the imprisoned demons, even though the high-ranking members of the Forbidden Prison Department came down regularly to clear it, it could never be eradicated completely.

Unless all the demons were killed off!

This made life difficult for the guards of the Demon Den, with very few meeting a good end.

Only to hear the old prison guard ask, “Young Wang Chen, how did you end up in the Demon Den at such a young age?”

Wang Chen replied with a bitter smile, “It’s a long story.”

The same question, the old prison guard had asked him three times already.

Each time Wang Chen answered, it didn’t take long for him to forget, and then suddenly remember to ask Wang Chen once more.

Wang Chen suspected that his brain had been corroded quite a bit by the Yin Sha Energy.

“Survive.”

The old prison guard did not press further and said, “As long as you’re alive, there’s hope, and with hope, you can return.”

Leaving the Demon Den, returning to Yongle Immortal City, or even the dungeon, was perhaps the unanimous wish of most prison guards dispatched here!

Yet, very few ultimately got their wish.

“Here we are.”

The old prison guard suddenly stopped, turned to Wang Chen and said, “This cell holds a Great Monster tier Mountain Xiang, and it has a terrible temper, make sure you don’t get too close.”

With that, the old guard lifted up the Green Sun Lantern in his hand.

The light flared, its rays piercing through the dense prison bars and illuminating the pitch-dark cell within.

A black-furred creature appeared in Wang Chen’s line of sight.

Mountain Xiangs were creatures that dwelt deep in the mountains, long and black of body, mighty and boundless in strength, fighting prowess extremely formidable; even the mountain lords and fierce tigers would retreat from their path, daring not to provoke them lightly.

A Great Monster tier Mountain Xiang, that was no ordinary level of formidable!

But even the most formidable being, when its power was sealed, could only curl up pitifully in the corner.

Shone upon by the light of the Green Sun Lantern, the Mountain Xiang seemed to abruptly wake from a deep sleep.

It leaped up with a sudden movement, turning in the air and lunging toward Wang Chen and the old guard!

Neither the old prison guard nor Wang Chen showed the slightest sign of panic.

The next moment, the Mountain Xiang was stopped by the prison’s iron bars.

Each of these bars was as thick as an adult’s arm, closely spaced, and their surfaces were engraved with Talismans.

When the Mountain Xiang collided with the iron bars, all the Talismans lit up at once.

“Argh!”

The violent Mountain Xiang immediately let out a yelp of pain, white smoke rising from the palms that grasped the bars, releasing them and falling to the ground due to the severe pain.

“These beasts…”

The old prison guard said with schadenfreude, “They never learn their lesson, suffering time after time and still not giving up, serves them right!”

“You’re the beast!”

No sooner had the old guard’s words fallen than the Mountain Xiang on the ground suddenly lifted its head and glared at him, dangerous light flickering in its blood-red eyes, and it spoke human words, “Your whole family are beasts!”

The old prison guard laughed.

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The first update is here.