In the southernmost part of the Southern Wilderness Continent lay a barren wasteland, inhabited by many half-human, half-beast creatures that had lost their sentience.
After all, not all human-demon hybrids mutated for the better.
Some were fortunate enough to inherit the superior bloodlines of both parents.
Others were less lucky, inheriting all the flaws of both parents while gaining none of the advantages.
It was known that demons, when their cultivation was low, possessed very little intelligence, not much different from ordinary wild beasts.
Many of these offspring, who inherited the flaws of both parents, lacked sentience and were like wild beasts.
They were then exiled to the southern part of the continent, left to fend for themselves.
However, as the number of such mutated offspring increased, they interbred among themselves and were culled.
It was like raising gu worms; only the strongest could survive.
Thus, over the years, the southern region of the Southern Wilderness Continent had become a paradise for monsters, a place of great peril.
Ordinary people dared not come here without a good reason.
Today, Xiao Fei and his three companions were cautiously traversing this dangerous land.
At this moment, Xiao Fei had grown three sharp horns on his head, and his face was covered with many green scales.
Huang Feifei and Xiao Lan had grown two furry beast ears, with a tail behind them.
As for Xing Wuming, he carried a large snail shell on his back and had two antennae growing on his forehead.
He then took out a map and checked the surrounding terrain.
"We should arrive in about a day's walk from here!"
"Roar, roar, roar..."
Just then, a earth-shattering roar echoed from nearby.
"Thump! Thump!"
Heavy footsteps approached them from a distance.
Then they saw a giant tiger, two to three zhang tall, walking towards them.
This giant tiger had six wings on its back and a ferocious, distorted human face on its tiger head.
Upon seeing the four, the giant tiger's mouth began to salivate. Its six fleshy wings vibrated, and with a roar, it lunged at them.
In the next instant, the giant tiger appeared right beside the four.
This giant tiger could also teleport.
The moment the giant tiger appeared, the four felt an immense force hit them, sending them flying several zhang backward.
Fortunately, all four possessed life-saving skills, and their injuries were not severe.
At this moment, Xiao Lan transformed into a black mist and rapidly dispersed.
Xiao Fei, already wielding two large hammers, also teleported to the back of the giant tiger.
He brought the hammers down towards the back of the tiger's head.
"Boom!"
With a deafening sound, the giant tiger's head burst open, and its spirit escaped, only to be trapped by a ball of black mist.
The black mist and blood threads converged, and soon Xiao Lan reappeared, still chewing as if savoring something delicious.
Xiao Fei examined the giant tiger's corpse.
"It seems its six wings possess teleportation abilities, which can be used to refine a magical treasure."
He said as he stored the tiger's corpse into his spatial dimension. The other three did not object.
"We've been walking for a long time. Why don't we rest here for a while?"
"Sure, I'm tired too!"
Huang Feifei was the first to support Xiao Fei's suggestion.
While resting, Xiao Fei entered his spatial dimension and began dissecting the giant tiger's corpse, extracting its six wings.
He immediately started refining a treasure within the dimension.
When the group resumed their journey the next day, Xiao Fei presented a pair of exquisite wings.
"Feifei, take these wings for self-defense!"
Huang Feifei received the wings and admired them with great affection.
The pair of wings were pink and exquisitely crafted, covered with tiny scales resembling sharp swords.
These scales were made from the petals of Xiao Fei's "Crimson Jade White Bone" flying sword, which he had melted down and refined into these wings.
These tiny sword-like scales contained potent poison and could be released to injure enemies in combat.
Combined with the teleportation ability of the wings, they offered offensive and defensive capabilities, allowing for both advance and retreat.
"Thank you, Young Master!"
Huang Feifei happily refined the wings on the spot, and a pair of wings appeared on her back, making her appearance more fitting for the Southern Wilderness Continent.
As they continued forward, they saw a familiar sight.
Ahead lay a world shrouded in darkness, as if they had reached the end of the world.
"The Absolute Spirit Locking Heaven Great Array!"
Xiao Fei exclaimed in awe.
"Indeed! This is also an Absolute Spirit Locking Heaven Great Array, which seals the inter-dimensional passage.
However, unlike the Absolute Spirit Locking Heaven Great Array in the West Sea, the world on the other side of this passage is a barbaric world.
It is said that in the barbaric world, there exist giants, each as tall as a mountain.
There is no spiritual energy in the barbaric world; their world is powered by an energy called 'Dominance,' and the physical bodies cultivated by the giants are called 'Dominant Bodies.'"
Xing Wuming, with his extensive family knowledge, explained these matters volubly.
"The world within this Absolute Spirit Locking Heaven Great Array was occupied by the giant race ten thousand years ago.
They have been constantly attacking the array, and even though the array is powerful, it cannot withstand day and night assaults. Thus, many parts of it have developed cracks.
The Dominance originating from the barbaric world has leaked out, polluting the spiritual energy of this world.
Therefore, the human race of the Heavenly Origin Realm found Spirit Transformation Grass and planted it in areas where the Dominance leaked, converting it into heaven and earth spiritual energy."
As Xing Wuming spoke, he led the way forward.
"We will fly along the Absolute Spirit Locking Heaven Great Array. As long as we can find places where Dominance leaks, we can find Spirit Transformation Grass."
The four flew along the edge of the darkness, occasionally hearing booming sounds emanating from within the great array.
The dark Absolute Spirit Great Array also swayed unsteadily, appearing on the verge of collapse.
It was as if a colossal entity was trapped within, ready to break free at any moment, making the journey a terrifying experience for the four.
"The Absolute Spirit Great Array continuously draws energy from within the array to replenish its consumption. A lack of energy within the formation will severely affect its combat effectiveness.
Therefore, although this array appears precarious and on the verge of being broken at any moment, it has actually persisted for thousands of years.
The giants, with all their might, can at most open one or two small fissures."
Xing Wuming continued to act as the narrator, leading the three along the edge of the great array in search of fractured areas.
The scope of this great array was also vast. The four flew along its edge for three days, during which they slew several more ferocious beasts.
Today, they finally spotted a faint glimmer of light emanating from the darkness ahead.
"Hahaha... We found it at last!"
Outside this fissure, five pure white spiritual grasses grew, swaying gracefully in the gentle breeze.
"Is this Spirit Transformation Grass?"
Xiao Fei rejoiced, as it matched the descriptions in ancient texts perfectly.
He hurried over, dug up two smaller Spirit Transformation Grasses, and stored them in his spatial dimension.
For him, size didn't matter; planting them in his dimension would allow them to multiply into a large number of Spirit Transformation Grasses.
"Rumble, rumble, rumble..."
As he was excavating the Spirit Transformation Grass, loud noises emanated from the great array, accompanied by tremors that shook the earth.
"It's fine, these giants are trapped inside and cannot get out.
They've been attacking for so many years; if they could get out, they would have done so by now."
Seeing Xiao Lan's slightly nervous expression, Xing Wuming comforted her.
However, no sooner had he finished speaking than another earth-shattering roar erupted from the great array, and then they felt a shadow fall over them.
Looking up, they saw the sole of a mountain-sized foot descending upon them...