Grassroots Travel: The Star Lord of Another World

Chapter 172 Endless Darkness

The first rays of morning sun penetrated the clouds and shone on Gao Xingchen's resolute face. He gently stroked the ancient jade pendant in his hand. The warm touch seemed to carry the mysterious man's instructions and his promise to Nan Li.

"Cang, let's go!" Gao Xingchen climbed onto the broad back of the eagle, and the man and the beast soared into the sky, heading straight for the rolling mountains in the eastern sky. According to the guidance of the jade pendant, the first clue of the "Beast Taming Heavenly Scripture" was hidden in the ancient and mysterious mountains.

Along the way, the eagle soared in the sky, and the vast land was in full view. However, the closer they got to their destination, the heavier Gao Xingchen's mood became. The light emitted by the jade pendant became weaker and weaker, indicating that the road ahead was full of unknown dangers.

Finally, after climbing over countless steep mountains, a towering ancient ruins appeared before our eyes. The former glory could be vaguely seen among the broken walls, but now it was covered with vines and weeds, exuding a desolate and weird atmosphere.

Gao Xingchen stepped into the ruins carefully, and a cold and damp breath hit him. He was extremely cautious with every step he took, and the mysterious man's warning echoed in his ears: "Remember, you must be careful and don't trust anyone easily."

Suddenly, a deafening roar resounded throughout the ruins, and the ground began to shake violently. Gao Xingchen was startled, and a strong sense of crisis surged in his heart.

"Roar!"

A huge beast rushed out from the shadows, opened its bloody mouth, revealing sharp fangs, and pounced towards Gao Xingchen.

This giant beast looks like a tiger, but its body is several times larger than that of an ordinary tiger. Its body is covered with hard scales and its eyes flash with ferocious light. It is obviously a guardian beast that appears after being disturbed.

Gao Xingchen did not dare to delay and quickly summoned his pet Xiao Hei. The man and the beast joined forces to fight against this powerful guardian beast.

Xiao Hei was agile and kept dodging the beast's attacks, while spitting out flames in an attempt to force the beast back. However, the beast had thick skin and flesh, and the flame attacks posed no threat to it at all.

Gao Xingchen saw this and joined the battle. He held a long sword and used his exquisite swordsmanship to continuously attack the monster's weaknesses. However, the monster's strength and defense were far beyond his imagination, and even his full-strength attack could not cause fatal damage to it.

After a fierce battle, Gao Xingchen and Xiao Hei were both covered in wounds and severely exhausted. On the other hand, the giant beast, although it also had some scars on its body, was still extremely ferocious and had no intention of retreating.

"We can't go on like this. We are no match for it at all!" Gao Xingchen was extremely anxious. He had to find a way to get out of the current predicament, otherwise both he and Xiao Hei would die.

At this moment, he suddenly noticed that there seemed to be some ancient runes carved on the wall behind the beast. He thought to himself that perhaps these runes were the key to leaving here!

Gao Xingchen took advantage of the beast's inattention and ventured close to the wall to carefully observe the runes. Soon, he discovered that these runes seemed to be a starting device for a teleportation array.

"Xiao Hei, cover me!" Gao Xingchen shouted and injected all the remaining spiritual power in his body into the rune.

Xiao Hei also understood his master's intention, and tried hard to attract the giant beast's attention to buy time for Gao Xingchen.

Finally, before the behemoth attacked again, the teleportation array was activated. A dazzling light enveloped Gao Xingchen, and his figure instantly disappeared from the spot.

"Roar!" The giant beast missed its target and roared angrily, but there was nothing it could do.

Gao Xingchen only felt the world spinning, and when he opened his eyes again, he found himself in an unfamiliar wilderness.

"I... succeeded?" Gao Xingchen struggled to stand up, but felt dizzy and had a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down and saw that his body was covered with wounds and his clothes were stained with blood.

"Xiao Hei?" Gao Xingchen looked around, but could not see Xiao Hei. His heart sank. Could it be that Xiao Hei and he were separated during the transmission?

Gao Xingchen endured the pain in his body, dragged his exhausted body, and walked in one direction. He didn't know where he was now, nor did he know where to find Xiao Hei. He only knew that he couldn't fall down, he still had to find the "Beast Taming Heavenly Scripture" and rescue Nan Li!

However, he didn't know that what was waiting for him was an even more cruel test...

Endless darkness seemed to swallow Gao Xingchen, he struggled, but found himself stuck in the quagmire. His chest was burning with pain, it was the scar left by the giant beast, reminding him of the danger he had just experienced.

"Xiao Hei..." He called out weakly, his voice so hoarse that it was almost inaudible. The only response he got was the whistling wind and the low growls of unknown beasts in the distance.

Gao Xingchen closed his eyes in despair. Was he really going to die here? He hadn't found the "Beast Taming Scripture" yet, and hadn't fulfilled his promise to Nan Li...

At this moment, a wet touch gently licked his cheek, and Gao Xingchen opened his eyes suddenly. Xiao Hei! It was circling around him anxiously, making a low humming sound.

"Xiao Hei! You're okay, that's great!" Gao Xingchen hugged Xiao Hei and cried with joy. He then realized that Xiao Hei was also injured, but he was still strong enough to accompany him.

"Cough cough..." Gao Xingchen coughed violently, his throat was so dry that it seemed to smoke. He had not eaten for a day and a night, and his physical strength was severely overdrawn. He urgently needed to replenish water and food.

As if sensing his predicament, Xiao Hei nudged his body with his nose, then turned and ran in one direction. Gao Xingchen endured the pain in his body and struggled to catch up.

I don’t know how long I walked, but suddenly an oasis appeared in front of me. Clear spring water gurgled out from the cracks in the rocks, looking particularly precious in the desolate wilderness.

"Water! It was Xiao Hei, it was Xiao Hei who found it!" Gao Xingchen was extremely excited. He staggered to the spring and drank it in big gulps. The sweet spring water moistened his throat and rekindled his hope for life.

However, his food and medicine were lost during the transfer, and his wounds began to become inflamed because they had not been treated for a long time. Gao Xingchen knew that he had to find a way to leave here as soon as possible, otherwise only death would be waiting for him.

He looked up at the sky, the sun was setting, and night was about to fall. The night in the wilderness was full of dangers, and he had to find a safe hiding place as soon as possible.

Xiao Hei seemed to sense the danger as well. He paced back and forth restlessly, looking into the distance from time to time.

At this moment, a gust of wind whistled by, the sky was covered with dark clouds, and raindrops as big as beans fell down with a crackling sound...

A strong wind suddenly blew up, and the dark sky was instantly covered by thick dark clouds. Raindrops as big as beans fell down mercilessly, and soon gathered into a downpour. Gao Xingchen and Xiao Hei hid under a huge rock, and the cold rain flowed down through the cracks in the rock, soaking his clothes.

"Boom boom--" the deafening thunder exploded in my ears, as if it was going to tear the whole world apart. In the distance, the originally calm river began to become turbulent, and the muddy flood roared and washed the river bank, rolling up mud and gravel, rushing down with a devastating force.

"Oh no, it's a flash flood!" Gao Xingchen's face suddenly changed, he realized that danger was approaching. The oasis where they were located was low-lying, and once a flash flood broke out, it would become a swamp.

He didn't have time to think about it, so he picked up Xiao Hei and ran towards higher ground. However, the mountain torrent came too fast, and the roaring flood instantly swallowed up the road they came from. Gao Xingchen felt his feet go empty, and the whole person was swept into the flood.

"Xiao Hei!" Gao Xingchen tried his best to catch Xiao Hei, but the rushing torrent separated them mercilessly. The cold flood water poured into his mouth and nose, and the feeling of suffocation made his eyes go black, and his consciousness gradually blurred...

After an unknown amount of time, Gao Xingchen woke up in a daze and found himself lying on the river bank, soaking wet and freezing cold. He struggled to sit up and looked around, but there was no sign of Xiao Hei.

"Xiao Hei! Where are you?" Gao Xingchen shouted loudly, his voice hoarse and desperate, while enduring the pain in his body. The only response he got was the deafening sound of the flood and the wailing of unknown beasts in the distance.

Gao Xingchen's heart sank to the bottom. He had lost Xiao Hei, all his luggage and equipment, and even no dry food. Endless despair surrounded him, and he collapsed to the ground powerlessly, letting the cold rain wash over his scarred body.

"Am I really going to die here? I haven't found the "Beast Taming Scripture" yet, and I haven't fulfilled my promise to Nanli..." Gao Xingchen murmured to himself. Nanli's beautiful face appeared in his mind, and two lines of tears unconsciously slid down the corners of his eyes.

Just when he was discouraged and almost gave up hope, his hand suddenly touched something cold and hard. He opened his eyes with great effort, and with the weak light, he saw the object clearly - it was the jade pendant that Nanli gave him!

"Nanli..." Gao Xingchen held the jade pendant tightly, feeling the remaining temperature on it, and a warm current surged in his heart. He remembered what Nanli once said to him: "No matter what happens, you must persevere and live!"

"Yes, I can't give up. For Nanli, I must live!" Gao Xingchen rekindled the flame of hope. He struggled to stand up, looking into the distance with a firm gaze.

At this moment, a familiar figure suddenly appeared in his sight...

"Kid, are you okay?" A deep voice sounded in Gao Xingchen's ears. The voice was old and deep, with a hint of imperceptible concern.

Gao Xingchen raised his head suddenly, and saw a figure in a black cloak standing in front of him, but he couldn't see his face clearly. This figure was not unfamiliar to him. It was this mysterious ally who had lent him a helping hand again and again in his most critical moments.

"It's you..." Gao Xingchen's voice trembled a little. He didn't know what to say. He could only look at the benefactor in front of him with gratitude.

"I know what you are looking for," the mysterious man said, taking out a package from his arms and handing it to Gao Xingchen, "Here are some food and medicine. You should recover your strength first."

Gao Xingchen took the package and opened it. Inside was some simple dry food and a few bottles of medicine. Although there were not many, they were as precious as a life-saving straw to him.

"Thank you for saving my life, senior!" Gao Xingchen struggled to stand up, but fell to the ground again due to exhaustion.

"You are seriously injured, don't move," the mysterious man stretched out his hand to support Gao Xingchen, and said calmly, "I feel that what you are looking for is on the mountain ahead."

Hearing this, Gao Xingchen suddenly raised his head and looked in the direction the mysterious man pointed. He saw clouds and mist in the distance and a towering mountain piercing the sky, like a sharp sword piercing the sky.

"That mountain..." Gao Xingchen felt a glimmer of hope, but it was soon swallowed up by endless fear. The mountain was towering into the clouds, steep, and shrouded in thick fog all year round, full of unknown dangers.

"Go, kid," the mysterious man patted Gao Xingchen on the shoulder, with a hint of encouragement in his tone, "I believe you can find what you are looking for."

Gao Xingchen took a deep breath and looked at the mountain with a determined gaze, his heart filled with anxiety and fear. He didn't know what was waiting for him, but he knew that this was his only hope.

He struggled to stand up, dragging his exhausted body, and walked towards the mountain step by step. With every step, he felt as if his body was about to fall apart, but he still gritted his teeth and persisted, because he knew that he could not give up, nor could he disappoint the mysterious man and Nan Li's expectations of him.

The fog became thicker and thicker, completely engulfing Gao Xingchen. He seemed to be in a chaos, unable to see the direction or hope... Could Gao Xingchen really find the legendary beast taming secret book on this dangerous mountain?