It wasn’t until some time later that everyone recovered their wits. Danxia Zi could not help but ask, “Why does this maggot stink so much?” “Heh. Do you even need to ask? Just imagine what they’ve been feeding on this whole time,” Old Man Profound Firmament teased him. Feng Qingyou: “...” Danxia Zi: “...” The trio were speechless for a moment. Oh, their stomachs were starting to churn once more. Even an idiot knows what a maggot ate inside an intestine. The problem was that the timing of Old Man Profound Firmament’s answer was absolutely horrendous—or excellent, depending on how you looked at it. “Hahaha... Anyway, let’s get out of this place already.” Old Man Profound Firmament knew better than to let a joke go too far and wisely changed the subject. Ye Qing maneuvered the Ghost Dragon Boat forward at high speed. Although the maggots were innumerable, they were only Phenomenon-class. They were no different from ants to them. No amount of ants could topple a tree. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ɴovᴇl(ꜰ)ir(e).nᴇt Every maggot disintegrated into dust as the Ghost Dragon Boat passed through them. They could not stop it or slow it down even a little. It was annoying though. The maggots seemed to lack intelligence and kept charging them without fear. The intestine they were following was thick and long as well. The Ghost Dragon Boat could not reach the end of the road even though it had been travelling for an entire teatime. Not only that, the number of maggots blocking their way were still increasing over time. “How much longer is this going to take?” A hint of impatience flickered in Old Man Profound Firmament’s eyes. Seemingly gotten tired of the endless swarm of maggots crawling here and there and spitting disgusting liquid in their direction, the Sage finally removed a calabash from his waist, swallowed a mouthful of wine, and spat. The wine instantly caught on fire and transformed into a fire dragon. It was about three hundred meters long and fully equipped with scales, talons, teeth, and everything one might expect from a dragon. It looked mighty impressive. The next moment, the fire dragon flew up and circled around the sky. Wherever it went, the maggots were burned into ash, and its filthy, tainted aura evaporated in an instant. Not only that, even the surface of the intestine was covered in a layer of enduring fire. It too burned the maggots into ash as soon as they poked their heads out. Strangely, the flame did not harm the intestines in the slightest. In just the blink of an eye, the sea of maggots cleared up in an instant. It felt like a new day after sunrise; a clear sky after a downpour. Everyone felt better even though logically speaking, Old Man Profound Firmament’s action had not improved their situation in their slightest. “Phew... this is much better.” Old Man Profound Firmament looked way happier as he gulped down another mouthful of wine. As if on cue, a strange noise suddenly came from the intestine beneath them. It sounded like a wail or a laugh, but was neither. As soon as the noise appeared, space distorted, and a dark, filthy aura permeated the air. The fire dragon soaring in the sky disintegrated inch by inch, and the flames covering the intestine abruptly went out. Even the profound light surrounding the Ghost Dragon Boat was wobbling violently and flickering erratically. The next moment, a section of the intestine slowly began wriggling. There was a loud boom, and what looked like a bulge slowly emerged from it. As that section of the intestine swelled bigger and bigger, and rotten flesh was flying all over the place, a fat, white body slowly came into view. The ordinary maggots were already big enough, but this was one tens of times, no, hundreds of times bigger than tham. It was almost as thick as the intestine, and its length was immeasurable. It looked like the entire intestine was wriggling. A few breaths later, the gigantic maggot lifted its head next to the Ghost Dragon Boat. The rest of its body was still wriggling on the “ground”. The maggot looked identical to the other maggots. However, its aura marked it as a Disaster-class Stranger. The maggot did not attack them in a hurry despite catching up to them. All it did was look at them. Its small, narrow eyes—at least compared to its humongous face—reflected everyone’s figures. Its humanoid face was also wearing a cry that wasn’t a cry; a smile that wasn’t a smile. Slowly, its expression changed. The corners of its lips were curled up slightly into a smile. The smile looked both exaggerated and celebratory. At the same time, the faces of Ye Qing and everyone else’s reflection in its eyes turned weepy. Their faces were contorted in sorrow and pain. Suddenly, a familiar stench hit the group once more. The maggot hadn’t spat sticky liquid at them, nor could not detect anything wrong with themselves. The Ghost Dragon Boat was still surrounded by a layer of profound light that kept out the anomalous aura and smelly fluid. And yet, they could smell it. Objectively speaking, the stench was almost non-existent compared to the waft they had accidentally caught earlier. However, it smelled far worse. If the previous stench was so bad that it made them ponder about the meaning of life, then this one could make the world shudder in horror, and bring ghosts and gods to tears. Everyone’s face twisted horribly the instant they smelled it. Their stomachs rebelled inside their bellies, and even their consciousness were blurring slightly. Ye Qing and everyone else hurriedly sealed off their sense of smell, but still they could not stop the stench from invading their senses. On the contrary, it was getting worse by the second. “Gah... hurk... I can’t stand it any longer!” Old Man Profound Firmament growled and fired off an upward slash with hishand. His hand was like a saber, and his intent desired to break the sky. Hence, a waterfall of light shot upward with enough strength to break all nine heavens. And yet, it was as if the maggot was a phantom. The immense saber light passed harmlessly through it and failed to inflict even a single scratch. “What the hell?” Old Man Profound Firmament exclaimed in surprise. Seeing that the old man had failed, Danxia Zi took his turn. He waved his sleeve and summoned nine heaven gates and many celestial palaces. The nine heaven gates could suppress god and Buddha, whereas the celestial palaces could subjugate demons and darkness. An ultimate art of the Xixa Abode known as the “Supreme Suppressing Heaven Gates In My Sleeve”, it was famed for its offensive prowess and especially potent against illusions and phantoms. But still, the attack passed harmlessly through the maggot. It failed to do any damage just like before. “It’s not an illusion?” In his opinion, the reason Old Man Profound Firmament failed to wound the maggot was because it wasn’t real. That was why he used his ultimate art, “Supreme Suppressing Heaven Gates In My Sleeve”, in hopes of dismantling the illusion. And yet, he failed. He couldn’t understand why. At the same time, the stench was still growing worse. Even with their strength and mental fortitude, they were seriously losing it and growing incredibly dizzy. “Close your eyes. Don’t look at the maggot. Don’t think about it either.” It was at this moment Feng Qingyou spoke up. Seemingly realizing something, Old Man Profound Firmament and Danxia Zi did as she said. They closed their eyes and calmed themselves. They stopped looking and thinking about the maggot. Strangely, as soon as they closed their eyes, and their minds regained its tranquility, the thick stench suddenly became much fainter. Almost non-existent, even. As if on cue, Old Man Profound Firmament and Danxia Zi attacked again.