Chapter 1281
: Method of Escape
Chapter 1281: Method of Escape
Galloping all the way.
After landing, Lin Fan noticed that Ao Hen's waist knife was missing a person, and his brows furrowed sharply. But when his gaze fell on Shen Xiuyuan's lowered head, he only sighed inwardly and didn't ask anything more.
The sky in the secret realm was always a dark red. But as the group ventured deeper, the sky gradually rose higher.
When they returned to where they came in, they discovered that the sky at the bottom of the lake was incredibly low.
It's as if you could reach it directly by simply stretching out your arm and jumping up.
After such a long journey, Ao Heng was clearly exhausted and asked Lin Fan and the others how they got down.
We hadn't had a chance to chat earlier, but now that we're standing below the entrance trying to find a way out, we naturally want to look for any gaps in the clues we've gathered.
“That fragrance…” Ao Hen rubbed his forehead, “I smelled it too.”
He had a keen sense of smell and was quickly caught in the trap. But he regained consciousness the instant he fell into the lake.
But at that time, Ao Heng was trapped in the viscous lake water full of spirits and couldn't react to where he was. He was dragged down and kept falling.
“But strangely, the smell disappeared after entering this place.” Ao Hen looked at the surging red river above his head. “Using a spirit as a seal to isolate the two places… it’s truly an ingenious idea.”
Such a large number of spirits can both strengthen the sealing energy and form a defense, cutting off the chance of life for those who mistakenly enter.
He was saying that such an important place as the Lingzhen Pavilion treasure vault didn't even have proper defenses.
They previously said they wanted to avoid being seen, but now it seems there's no need to worry at all.
Given this layout, coupled with the unique environment below, without proper methods of entry and exit, even someone specializing in soul techniques would find it easy to enter but difficult to leave—unknowingly succumbing to poison and dying silently.
Ao Hen looked at Du Xingyu.
Du Xingyu's head was swollen like a dead tree, and his eyes were so bulging that he couldn't see anything.
Although he was usually boisterous, he knew what was important when it mattered. Even when he was in great physical pain, unable to see and inevitably panicked, he would simply hold onto the two unconscious people in his arms, listen carefully to what others were saying, and analyze the clues without saying a word.
After Shen Xiuyuan took Mu Jingjing from him, Du Xingyu breathed a slight sigh of relief and asked Ao Hen.
"Brother Ao, are you saying that you saw the stone door in that lake full of spirits, inserted the key, and then landed here?"
Ao nodded hard: "That's right. Unlike the last one, that door was laid flat at your feet. I don't know if it's because I have the key, but it just happened to fall into the groove."
Having learned from his previous experience, Ao Hen didn't hesitate and directly inserted the key. Sure enough, after a bright white light, he felt a sense of relief and fell into the spot.
What was thought to be a golden opportunity has unexpectedly led to such a dangerous situation.
“There’s a problem here.” Lin Fan knew what Du Xingyu was going to say and picked up where he left off. “If we entered this place because you opened the door, what about the people from Lingzhen Pavilion? They shouldn’t have the key, so they shouldn’t be able to get in here at all, right?”
They had previously assumed that the treasure vault's entrance was somewhere in the lower world, and that the people from Lingzhen Pavilion had come in, looked around, and then left.
No matter what kind of secret method they possess, as long as there is a way in and out, they can always come up with another way.
But now, according to Ao Hen, the gate is in the river and surrounded by spirits.
If that's the case, then the people from Lingzhen Pavilion don't need to come down at all. They can simply use some method to disperse the spirits in the river, reveal the gate, take a look, and confirm that it hasn't been opened before leaving.
“If they never even came in…” Shen Xiuyuan’s face was full of worry, “then this place might not have an exit as we think…”
But in this vast secret world, where is the exit?
Even if they knew, given their current situation, it would be difficult for them to get there in time.
“It’s alright.” Ao Hen seemed to have overlooked this issue before, but after being reminded, his voice carried a resolute determination, “Since we can get in from here, why can’t we get out from here? If there’s no road, we’ll make one.”
Shen Xiuyuan paused, looking up with worry: "But isn't this river a seal? If we really break through it, the spirits inside will escape, or the unseen poison below will spread out..."
Ao Hen chuckled and smiled at Shen Xiuyuan: "You still have the heart to worry about those things?"
Du Xingyu reassured Shen Xiuyuan, saying, "It might not break the seal. The most urgent thing is to try to get out first. The poison here is unique, so we must inform the sect first. If we accidentally break the seal... we can find a way to fix it later. We can't just do nothing."
Ao Hen was too lazy to offer any words of comfort. After catching his breath, he grabbed his waist knife and leaped up, slashing straight at the sky above him.
His waist knife was incredibly powerful; once activated, it could even slay a soul. Its red-glowing edge crashed fiercely into the sky under everyone's watchful eyes.
After the roar, the sky swayed like jelly, dissipating all the force.
Ao Heng was stunned for a moment, then slashed and thrust several more times.
Sparks flew everywhere, scattering like fireworks as they fell from the sky, yet the heavens remained unbroken. The spirits within, however, seemed to sense someone's presence, swarming and pressing forward, gathering before Ao Heng and writhing menacingly.
After several unsuccessful attempts, he landed dejectedly.
"It seems that brute force and superpowers are useless." Shen Xiuyuan was worried that he would damage the barrier of the sky, but he really couldn't shake it. He was filled with heavy disappointment.
If even a Golden Core cultivator like Ao Hen can't break through, then do they still have a chance to get out?
"Lin Fan," Du Xingyu felt a tightness in his chest, and subtly pressed one hand against his shirt, "Do you still remember when we fell down..."
Lin Fan remembered, of course. When she was being squeezed and bound by the spirits, she chanted an incantation to repel them, and they automatically moved away from her, creating some space. She even saw Du Xingyu next to her, and then she just kept falling into the viscous river, feeling empty...
"I understand what you mean." Lin Fan nodded. "I'll give it a try."
As he spoke, he stepped onto the flying leaf and quickly rose to the front of the sky.
She recited the incantation to ward off spirits and tried to reach up.
The flat sky dipped inwards in the direction of her hand, as if it were truly afraid of her magic and wanted to avoid her.
Lin Fan was overjoyed and urged the flying leaf to continue upwards.
Really useful!
As Lin Fan entered, the river parted like Moses parting, forming a space around him that tightly enveloped him, yet dared not get too close.
She probed in about ten meters, and apart from the flying leaves seeming to slow down as if they had become sticky, there was nothing else wrong.
Fearing that going too far might cause other changes, and with time running out, Lin Fan decided to return immediately and risk bringing everyone with him.
Upon learning that the spirit-avoidance spell was effective, everyone who was conscious breathed a sigh of relief.
Although both Lin Fan and Du Xingyu are skilled, there are many of them, and even if they each stand at the front and back, it would be difficult to protect everyone. Moreover, Du Xingyu is clearly not in good condition.
But at this point, it's impossible to consider everything thoroughly.
If they continue to stay, Du Xingyu might not be able to hold on for much longer. At that point, relying solely on Lin Fan will make the situation even more difficult.
"I guarantee he'll make it ashore." Ao Hen could tell at a glance that Du Xingyu was in terrible condition and looked like he could faint at any moment. He grabbed Du Xingyu's wrist and transferred spiritual energy to him.
Even if I tough it out, I'm not much better off, but compared to others, I'm at least able to move around freely.
Because the protection provided by the Spirit Avoidance Technique has spatial limitations, Lin Fan carried Yu Sinian on his back and held Mu Jingjing in his arms.
Shen Xiuyuan helped her tie the two of them up, leaving room for her to move her hands and feet.
Du Xingyu insisted that Shen Xiuyuan be in front of him, while Ao Heng, who was there to sustain his strength, was behind him.
Ling Yichen was caught between Yu Sinian and Shen Xiuyuan, in the weakest position of protection, feeling unwilling but helpless.
The group was so close together that they were practically crammed into one person, and Du Xingyu even used the Immortal Binding Rope to tie them up.
It must have been uncomfortable, but at least I was standing right on the flying leaves.
Lin Fan held his swords in both hands, assuming a defensive stance. He glanced back at Ao Heng, who was at the very end, and drew his waist knife, ready to unleash his power, propelling himself into the air with a flying leaf.
One must press on with full force, for a second attempt will be less effective. This time, success is the only option!
The dark red sky was almost within reach, and Lin Fan loudly reminded Du Xingyu, who was blind.
"Senior Brother Du, let's begin!"
The tiny green leaf fell into the dark red river and quickly disappeared without a trace.
My neck feels like it's stuck. Although I can move it, it feels like there's something stuck in the middle.
I pulled out my neck brace and put it on to correct my posture, but it felt... even worse.
Hopefully I'll feel better after a good night's sleep tomorrow morning.
Look at Su Chao!