The Mysterious Sarcophagus

"Xiyan!"

In that critical moment, Chen Shuo swiftly caught Su Xiyan as she fell.

However, unable to maintain his balance, Chen Shuo also stumbled and fell. As they went down, he managed to twist their positions mid-fall.

"Thud!"

As they hit the ground, Chen Shuo felt a sharp pain in his back.

"Huff!"

Chen Shuo let out a heavy breath. After carefully checking, he found that Su Xiyan had no injuries, which finally put his mind at ease.

Just as Chen Shuo was about to help Su Xiyan up from the ground, something caught his attention.

Where there had been no exit on his side before, now there was an open door.

A cold, sinister energy emanated from within the doorway, its immense power surprising even Chen Shuo.

How could it be this intense?

After helping Su Xiyan up and finding her a place to sit, he approached the door. The cold energy emanating from within spoke of great power.

Just as he had suspected, this secret cave wasn't created by Demon King Xiao Mingchen.

He hadn't realized it before, but someone else was behind this place's creation.

Sensing the powerful protective forces, Chen Shuo stepped inside.

A tremendous force crashed toward him like a tidal wave, but Chen Shuo merely flicked his sleeve, instantly dissipating the seemingly overwhelming energy.

This was a specially set barrier - anyone without proper authorization who tried to enter would perish instantly.

At least, that would be true for anyone below Demon King level, but Chen Shuo's power was far beyond what this barrier could handle.

For such a modest place to have such powerful protections, there must be many secrets hidden within.

With this thought in mind, Chen Shuo continued forward.

There was nothing else inside except for a massive stone coffin in the vast space. Complex runes were carved into its surface.

Precious gems adorned its edges, giving it both an extravagant and ancient appearance.

The sight alone commanded reverence - ordinary vampires would likely fall to their knees just looking at it.

However, someone of Chen Shuo's caliber could maintain his composure in the face of such pressure.

It seemed the secret must lie within this stone coffin. With this speculation in mind, Chen Shuo approached it.

As he reached the coffin, the ambient energy suddenly intensified dramatically.

It seemed to be rejecting Chen Shuo, trying to force him away.

But against absolute power, all resistance was futile.

Chen Shuo merely circulated his internal cold energy and lightly touched the coffin. The previously surging energy immediately began to subside until it completely quieted down.

Taking advantage of this moment of calm, Chen Shuo grabbed the coffin, but just as he was about to uncover its secrets, a gloomy voice interrupted him.

"Who are you? Why have you intruded upon this place?"

Chen Shuo paused and turned to look at the speaker.

Even in the darkness, Chen Shuo could clearly see the figure - a one-eyed man with a half-foot wide, worm-like scar on his face. Pus oozed from the wound along with fresh blood.

The sight alone was nauseating, and viscous fluid dripped from around his body, causing chemical reactions wherever it hit the ground.

Chen Shuo observed all this, particularly noting how the fluid corroded the ground where it fell.

The drops sizzled as they hit the ground, releasing faintly poisonous fumes.

This was the first time Chen Shuo had encountered such a vampire. Without hesitation, he opened his system interface and performed a complete scan.

[Name: Sang Biao]

[Race: Vampire (Mutant type, contains deadly poison)]

[Level: Demon King]

[Personality: Blood-thirsty and violent, grows stronger when enraged]

Well, well, a being that grows stronger with challenge. Chen Shuo couldn't help but marvel at this system analysis.

What surprised him more was finding another Demon King in this place.

He wondered why this Demon King hadn't appeared when Xiao Mingchen showed up earlier.

Perhaps this Demon King served a different purpose? His unique characteristics certainly intrigued Chen Shuo.

A mutant type - this was something beyond his current knowledge.

The only mutation he knew of was his own, granted by the system, which allowed him to exist without drinking blood.

But this Sang Biao's mutation was entirely physical, dramatically increasing his potential strength.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that despite being only at the Demon King level, if Sang Biao went all out, even a half-step Demon Saint might not be his match.

"You have three seconds to remove your filthy hands!"

Sang Biao roared, viscous fluid dripping from his mouth onto the ground, causing more smoke to rise.

Sensing the other's rage, Chen Shuo remained unmoved.

No matter how strong, he was still merely an ant. Chen Shuo didn't want to waste too much time with such an insect.

Originally, Chen Shuo had considered transferring Sang Biao's experience to Su Xiyan, but she was currently unconscious.

Moreover, this creature was highly dangerous - one wrong move could harm Su Xiyan.

After considering various factors, Chen Shuo decided to eliminate him on the spot.

With this thought, Chen Shuo's invisible pressure enveloped the surroundings.

He simply raised his hand and pressed downward forcefully.

A shriek rang out as Sang Biao collapsed to his knees in agony.

Sang Biao couldn't understand what had happened. In just one moment, before he could even act, he had lost all ability to resist.

"Who... who exactly are you?!"

Sang Biao shouted in rage, desperately trying to break free from Chen Shuo's pressure, but no matter how much he struggled, he remained helpless on the ground like a dog.

"You don't need to know who I am. I'm keeping you alive only because I want to know who you are, why you're here, and what secrets this place holds."

Chen Shuo asked coldly, sitting on the stone coffin while gradually increasing the pressure.

With each increase in pressure, Sang Biao's suffering intensified, and the poisonous fluid secreted from his body corroded the ground more severely.

"You... you won't get any information from me."

Sang Biao persisted through gritted teeth. Even as blood vessels burst in his eyes, he continued resisting Chen Shuo's pressure.

He couldn't fathom what kind of power could render him so helpless.

Such strength reminded him of his master... Could it be that this person before him possessed power equal to his master's?