Chapter 185

Chapter 185: Ferocious

In the pitch-black space, Sixth Son was calling out for Wu Gang and Liu Tie.

Only silent stillness responded to him.

He gripped his broadsword fiercely, not daring to move at all.

He had heard that when trapped in an array formation, one must never act rashly.

Because doing so could easily trigger the array’s attacks.

At such times, staying put and waiting for companions to break the formation and rescue you was the best choice.

Sixth Son believed Wu Gang and the others would not abandon him.

They were sworn brothers, comrades bound by life-and-death bonds.

Swoosh—

Right then, Sixth Son heard a sound like flowing water. Frowning deeply, he released his mental strength.

His mental strength could only probe half a foot ahead.

The thick darkness brought him immense unease; he tried hard to stay calm, the better to face danger.

Suddenly, however, he felt the previously still water beneath his feet begin to stir strangely, as though something was swimming around.

"Stop playing tricks!"

Sixth Son shouted loudly, swinging his broadsword violently down into the water.

A pale blue blade light flashed through the darkness, slashing out fiercely.

Thud—

A heavy impact sounded, stirring a surge of water, but nothing else happened.

Sixth Son didn’t dare lower his guard.

Then, rustling sounds came from the darkness again, like indistinct voices whispering.

"Brother Gang? Brother Tie?" Sixth Son called out.

No one responded.

The water under his feet, having just calmed, began rippling once more. A black shadow flashed past within the reach of his mental strength.

The voices in the dark grew clearer.

Sixth Son listened carefully, and his face immediately paled with fear.

Because he knew those voices all too well.

Weren’t they the voices of his two dead companions?

It’s an illusion!

His heart lurched; a chill ran down his spine, and he forced himself back to calmness.

Swoosh—

Another surge of flowing water sounded. Something was coming toward him through the dark.

Sixth Son’s gaze darkened.

How dare a mere illusion try to disturb me?

…

Zhou Luo held the formation plate in his hand, studying the complex cluster of light rays.

He discovered that this magical formation’s offensive capabilities were rather simple, easily countered.

The main threat lay not in the formation’s attacks, but in the dangers emerging from beneath the water.

Within the area covered by his mental strength, he detected a type of magical beast, its entire body a shade of green.

This beast resembled the catfish he’d seen in his past life, but it sported razor-sharp teeth and was covered in black scales, darting through the water with incredible speed.

These magical beasts even attempted to launch attacks against him.

However, his mental strength enveloped an area ten feet around him, allowing him to effortlessly dispatch them the moment they appeared.

After slaying these catfish, Zhou Luo distinctly sensed the Illusionary Power within their bodies also burst forth, attempting to assail his mind.

It seemed these magical beasts, influenced by the Illusionary Forest, had essentially become "humanoid bombs," capable of unleashing devastating impact regardless of whether they were killed or not.

Zhou Luo could still withstand the invasion of Illusionary Power for now, but if he killed more beasts, he likely would face mental collapse eventually.

The urgent task was still to get out quickly.

Whoosh—

Water surged as a catfish-like magical beast leaped from the water’s surface, attempting to ambush Zhou Luo from the shadows behind him.

He initially intended to slash with his sword and eliminate it directly.

But watching this fish-like magical beast and the Illusionary Power within it, something suddenly occurred to him.

Right.

There was still that little fellow.

Upon realizing this, he immediately began calling forth Little White from the backpack.

Meow—

Little White, its fur snow-white, sprang out from mid-air, glowing conspicuously bright against the surrounding darkness.

Spotting the oncoming magical beast, without hesitation, it bared sharp claws and immediately pounced towards it.

The lethal claws whistled through the air, seizing the magical beast with perfect precision.

Spiritual energy surged around Little White’s entire body as it opened its jaw wide and began ferociously biting and tearing into the creature.

Zhou Luo’s eyes lit up.

He sensed Little White had grown considerably stronger than before it entered the backpack.

Could it be due to the Illusionary Power?

He recalled Little White’s introduction specifically mentioned it excelled at illusion-based attacks.

Could this Illusionary Power potentially serve as its nutrient source?

A bold speculation formed in his mind.

Zhou Luo instantly realized how to handle the pack of magical beasts lurking beneath the lake.

In the darkness, Little White had already bitten that magical beast to death. As Zhou Luo anticipated, it was now devouring the dissipating Illusionary Power.

"Little White, I leave the rest to you."

After giving the order, Zhou Luo began to search again for this formation’s exit.

…

Within the darkness, because of Zhou Luo’s intervention, the formation’s attacks had become ineffective.

Yet the darkness remained. Those fish-like magical beasts became new offensive capabilities, and what was most deadly was the constantly intensifying Illusionary Power.

Shangguan Qianxue sensed the formation had ceased its attacks and surmised that fellow named Xu Changsheng must have completed the first step in breaking the formation.

So now, all she needed to do was hold on a little longer.

Only the Illusionary Power was growing increasingly formidable.

Originally, she had planned to temper herself through combat, seeking a breakthrough.

But what constrained her now was that very Illusionary Power.

She was forced to halt her fighting, instead choosing to evade the magical beasts.

This, too, demanded tremendous mental fortitude.

Before her, the dense darkness began to change, transforming instead into a real, vivid outside world.

It was the place where she had grown up.

She once was an ordinary child from a small mountain village. By chance, she had earned the favor of an elder of the sect and was subsequently received into its ranks.

Twenty years had passed since then.

Five years prior, she had returned to her hometown, wishing to see her parents.

However, she discovered the entire mountain village had been attacked by magical beasts. All the villagers, including her parents, had perished.

Furious, she seized her three-foot long sword and charged straight into the magical beasts’ den.

Boundless rage made her extraordinarily fierce; her sharp sword energy mirrored the fury in her heart.

In that battle, she fought herself to utter exhaustion and exterminated that pack of magical beasts, successfully avenging her parents, and simultaneously advancing smoothly to the Qi Refinement seventh level.

From that moment onward, unburdened by attachments, she devoted herself wholly to cultivation, driven solely by the goal to eradicate all the magical beasts bringing calamity upon the common folk in this world.

Now, that familiar mountain village reappeared before her eyes, memories of childhood flooding her mind.

Even though she knew it was an illusion, she couldn’t help but yearn to gaze at it a little longer.

It was precisely that lingering glance that suddenly made her feel an intense pain.

Snapping back to reality, she found a magical beast clamped fiercely onto her arm. She swiftly swung her sword, killing it.

Her white dress became soaked with blood, leaving behind distinct bite marks.

She dared not let her guard down again. She swallowed a potion, steeled her mind, and continued evading the attacks from the magical beasts.

In the darkness, the other five were not faring any better.

Wu Gang was utterly exhausted, fleeing frantically through the murk.

Liu Tie had already descended into a frenzy, wildly swinging his magical artifact and recklessly discharging spiritual energy, stirring up vast waves of force.

Wei Qingtao’s face was deathly pale, his body covered in bloody wounds.

Wei Qinghong, tormented by illusions, had even hacked off her own left arm in madness; the dripping blood stained the surrounding water crimson.

As for Sixth Son.

He had already become a corpse, now being devoured by the magical beasts.

Time passed slowly. If this continued, they would likely all perish here.

BOOM—

At that precise moment, a tremendous explosion resonated through the darkness.

A point of light emerged before everyone’s eyes.