A Useless Person's Rise to Power

Chapter 27: The Ruins First Appear, Three Parties Lurk with Deadly Intent

A fierce wind howled through the forest, and poisonous fog churned endlessly.

Qin Zhan and the Black Mist Demon Ape were locked in fierce combat. The thunderous roar of their clashing fists shook the surrounding area, sending broken wood and shattered stones flying everywhere. The demon ape was thick-skinned and incredibly strong, its body shrouded in poisonous energy. Every punch it threw carried the power to shatter mountains and split rocks, but under the suppression of Qin Zhan's exquisite footwork and abundant vital energy, it could not gain the slightest advantage.

After dozens of rounds of fighting, the Black Mist Demon Ape's aura had become heavy and turbulent, and its crimson eyes held a hint of anxiety and fear. It had dominated the misty region for many years, and had never been forced into such a wretched state by a human boy. Its ferocity and resentment intertwined, making it increasingly violent, roaring repeatedly, and its moves becoming more and more reckless and suicidal.

Qin Zhan's eyes were cold, and he had already made up his mind to finish the battle quickly.

The outline of the ancient ruins is now faintly visible, and divine senses have detected three living beings approaching from the shadows. Delaying will only lead to more complications and unforeseen changes.

Qin Zhan no longer held back; the dormant primordial energy within his body surged forth, and the azure light around him suddenly burst forth, breaking through the layers of poisonous fog like a blazing sun. His meridians throbbed, his bones resonated, and an overwhelming aura that crushed his peers soared into the sky, causing the surrounding churning poisonous fog to freeze momentarily.

"It's time to end this."

With a low shout, Qin Zhan's figure suddenly transformed into a streak of azure light, moving with incredible speed to instantly dodge the giant arm sweeping out from the demonic ape. His footwork was exquisite, and in the blink of an eye, he was within inches of the demonic ape.

Before the black mist demon ape could react, Qin Zhan gathered power in his right palm, his palm energy condensed into a tangible substance, and with an unstoppable killing force, he heavily struck the gap in the demon ape's chest scales.

boom!

A dull, loud bang resounded.

The immense and unparalleled primordial energy surged wildly into the demonic ape's body along with the palm strike, instantly shattering the savage and malevolent energy flowing within it and dismantling the poisonous barrier that had been condensed around its body.

The massive body of the Black Mist Demon Ape suddenly stiffened, its eyes widened abruptly, and it let out a mournful roar. As if struck by a mountain, its massive body flew backward uncontrollably, crashing heavily into the towering ancient tree behind it.

click-

The ancient tree, as thick as a person's embrace, snapped and collapsed with a crash.

A deafening roar echoed through the forest as the massive body of the three-zhang-tall demonic ape slammed heavily onto the muddy ground. Its hard scales cracked inch by inch, and crimson blood gushed from its wounds. Its thick limbs trembled uncontrollably, its chest heaved violently, and the fierce light in its eyes quickly dimmed, leaving only endless fear. It no longer dared to look Qin Zhan in the eye.

After several exchanges, Qin Zhan had figured out the Black Mist Demon Ape's style. Although its brute strength was great, its moves were crude and brutal. It could still roam the misty region with its physical body and poisonous aura, but it was ultimately no match for Qin Zhan, whose movement techniques were exquisite and whose foundation was solid.

Qin Zhan stood still, his blue robe unstained by blood, his breathing steady as usual. He glanced indifferently at the fallen demonic ape, having no intention of finishing it off. A territorial beast had already lost its threat and was not worth wasting his energy on.

At this moment, the poisonous fog in the forest dissipated slightly, and the outline of the ancient ruins hidden in the mist in the distance became clearer.

The crumbling stone walls stretched endlessly, and giant stone pillars stood askew, their surfaces engraved with ancient, mysterious patterns that no one could decipher. Despite enduring countless ages of wind and rain, they still gleamed faintly. A vast, ancient, and profound aura of time slowly spread out, its spiritual energy far exceeding that of other places in the misty region. Inhaling it cleared one's mind and made one's meridians feel subtly throbbing.

This is the ancient ruin marked on the ancient map, a place of great fortune that countless cultivators in secret realms dream of. Such extraordinary phenomena are enough to prove that there must be an earth-shattering opportunity within the ruins.

Just as Qin Zhan's gaze locked onto the ruins, the three hidden auras he sensed suddenly stopped trying to conceal themselves and began to approach slowly from the left, right, and rear, forming a triangular encirclement.

Qin Zhan raised an eyebrow, instantly becoming wary.

Sure enough, there were others lurking there.

These people remained hidden deep within the mist, observing the battle from the sidelines. They clearly intended to sit back and watch the tigers fight, waiting for the Black Mist Demon Ape to become mutually exhausted before emerging to reap the benefits. How sinister and cunning their intentions were!

In a short while, the fog on the left slowly parted.

A middle-aged cultivator dressed in black robes with a sinister expression slowly walked out, his sleeves fluttering, a faint aura of coldness swirling around him. His eyes were narrow and serpentine as he looked Qin Zhan up and down with a mixture of curiosity and disdain.

"At such a young age, you've managed to overpower the Black Mist Demon Ape; you do have some skill." The black-robed man's voice was hoarse and piercing, his tone condescending. "However, for a young man, being too sharp-tongued is not a good thing. This ancient ruin possesses extraordinary fortune; how could you possibly monopolize it all?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a burly figure leaped down from the right side of the mountain wall.

This man was eight feet tall, clad in animal hide armor, his muscles bulging, his aura domineering and powerful—clearly a valiant cultivator whose physical body had been refined to its peak. His landing sent dirt flying, his eyes fixed on Qin Zhan like a hawk's, his tone rough and domineering: "Boy, if you know what's good for you, step back! We've been waiting here for the ruins to open for a long time; it's not your turn, a junior, to hog it!"

The two men, one cunning and the other domineering, one treacherous and the other forceful, exerted pressure step by step with their words, clearly intending to force Qin Zhan to relinquish his initiative.

Only the aura behind remained hidden in the deepest part of the thick fog, refusing to reveal itself. Its aura was elusive and extremely well-controlled, like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, silently observing the entire scene, its true nature unknown.

Qin Zhan stood with his hands behind his back, facing the combined pressure from the two powerful figures, his expression remained cold and indifferent, without the slightest fear.

"The ruins are unclaimed, and heaven and earth bear witness." His voice was not loud, but every word was firm and resounding. "I set foot here first and killed the guardian monsters, so I have the right to enter first. You all hid in the shadows and watched without making a move, but now you want to reap the rewards out of thin air. This is too domineering and shameless."

The man in black robes' expression darkened upon hearing this, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes: "This junior is ignorant of his own limitations! In the Misty Domain, strength is paramount. Reasoning is useless; only power matters!"

The burly man in the animal hide could no longer contain himself. His fists cracked, and his inner energy surged, unleashing a chilling aura that swept across the surroundings: "Stop wasting words with him! Just attack and repel him, then we'll enter the ruins ourselves!"

For a moment, the three sides were locked in a tense standoff, with a chilling killing intent hanging over the entire perimeter of the ruins.

The black-robed cultivator secretly gathered malevolent energy, while the burly man in animal hides poised to strike from both sides. The mysterious figure in the mist behind them remained hidden, like a sharp blade suspended in mid-air, elusive and impossible to defend against.

Qin Zhan was on edge, secretly mobilizing his inner energy, ready to face the two powerful enemies at any moment. At the same time, he sent out a wisp of his divine sense to lock onto the dark area behind him, guarding against a sudden sneak attack from the mysterious person.

Facing three opponents alone, with no idea of ​​the third person's strength, the situation was extremely perilous.

But there was no sign of retreat in his eyes, only an increasingly fierce fighting spirit.

Opportunity lies ahead, but powerful enemies lurk all around. To seize this opportunity and explore ancient sites, the only way is to carve out a path through sheer strength.

Just as a major battle was about to erupt, and the two sides were about to clash—

hum...

A deep, ancient sound suddenly emanated from the depths of the ruins.

The ground trembled slightly, and the mysterious patterns on the ancient, crooked stone pillars lit up with a pale golden light. Ancient runes rose into the air, swirling and flowing in mid-air. The colossal stone door at the very center of the ruins, sealed for millennia, slowly emitted a dull creak as its heavy hinges turned, and the cracks in the thick stone door gradually opened inward.

Within the crack of the door, pitch black and deep, like the maw of a colossal beast devouring all things, faintly emanated an aura of ancient desolation, along with wisps of extremely pure primordial spiritual energy overflowing outwards, mixed with a faint, eerie whisper that inexplicably stirred the soul.

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to the stone gate, their faces filled with greed, shock, and awe.

But at that moment, Qin Zhan's divine sense suddenly jolted, and he sensed an extremely terrifying phenomenon: deep within the ruins, an incomparably vast, sinister, and ancient terrifying aura was slowly awakening. The terror of that aura far exceeded that of the black-robed man and the strong man in animal skin by more than a hundred times, as if a primordial beast that had been sleeping for countless ages was about to break free from its seal and escape its cage!

What made his heart sink even more was that the mysterious figure behind him, which had been hidden all along, finally made a move. The figure appeared and disappeared in the fog, and the profile of that person gave Qin Zhan a strange sense of familiarity.

Who exactly is the mysterious figure?

The stone gate has been opened, and an ancient mechanism has appeared. Is the awakened subterranean being a guardian spirit or a ferocious beast from the primordial era?