Ch. 103 – Eight Ghost Illusion Array

This realization instantly sent a shiver down the spines of Wang Wu and Zhao Yi, and the mild mountain breeze turned into an eerie, bone-chilling wind.

They no longer cared about being wanted criminals. All they wanted was to leave this place. To leave Longqiu. Although the government soldiers were troublesome, they were still a better option than encountering a ghost.

The two of them had clambered out of the pit, and Wang Wu turned around to retrieve the dog, which had followed them down. 

They hadn’t brought the dog when they buried the bodies the day before, and hadn’t intended to bring it today either. But the dog had finished eating the child’s body, and since they had just arrived in the mountains and had little food, they figured that they would take it along and do some hunting.

There was actually still some grain left in the wooden house, as well as some easily-preserved dried meat, enough to last for several months. 

But that dog of Wang Wu’s was extremely picky, and wouldn’t eat anything that wasn’t fresh and bloody.

Wang Wu also cherished his wolfdog, because it was indeed very fierce. In a fight, even two or three men working together wouldn’t be able to subdue it.

This wolfdog was Wang Wu’s trusty accomplice in robbery and pillaging, and the lives claimed by its jaws were no fewer than those taken by Wang Wu’s own hand.

Besides, the one advantage dogs had over people was their loyalty. Human bonds were inherently unreliable, and money-hungry mountain bandits were even less trustworthy. But this wolfdog was aggressive toward everyone. Even Zhao Yi, who had been Wang Wu’s partner for so long, would be barked and growled at when he got close.

It was relatively friendly to Wang Wu, who had raised it since it was a puppy. This made him very proud, as if his dog was comparable to some kind of divine weapon. This dog had saved his life several times from government soldiers, and even if Wang Wu was offered gold for it, he might not make the trade.

So when he fled, although he didn’t bother to take his savings, he did go to the trouble of taking his dog with him.

The present moment was no different. Although he felt that this place was exceedingly eerie, Wang Wu had no intention of abandoning his dog, and called out to the wolfdog waiting at the bottom of the pit.

This wolfdog was aggressive, yet intelligent, and could generally understand Wang Wu’s gestures and commands. It should have obediently jumped up so that Wang Wu could grab it and pull it out.

But this time was different. The wolfdog heard Wang Wu’s call, but didn’t turn its head, just staring motionlessly into the depths of the tunnel.

Standing behind Wang Wu, Zhao Yi urged him with a hint of impatience. The longer they lingered in these ruins, the more they gave him the creeps. All he wanted was to get out of there as quickly as possible.

Wang Wu was also losing his patience, and gave a few more loud shouts. This time, the wolfdog finally moved. But instead of responding to his summons, it rushed into the depths of the tunnel without looking back.

With a single step of its paws, it instantly vanished from sight.

Wang Wu was dumbfounded. This passageway led to places unknown. He and Zhao Yi had actually ventured inside for a while, and bits of rock and dust would occasionally fall from the passageway as they walked, making them wonder if it was about to collapse.

Their worry was not groundless. In fact, a collapse was highly likely.

When had the buildings in the royal city of Western Qiang been constructed? More than one thousand years ago. No matter how good the quality of the construction was, it had been buried underground for so many years. Just because it hadn’t collapsed yet didn’t mean that it wouldn’t collapse in the next second.

Plus, despite being mountain bandits, they had also raided tombs before and knew that while these underground places might seem safe, the air actually became thinner the deeper down you went. There was no way to tell when you might be knocked unconscious by the miasma in the tunnel and perish inside, eventually turning into a mummified corpse. There were countless examples of this exact thing happening.

So after walking for a while, they chose to return instead of venturing farther inside.

Yet unexpectedly, today the wolfdog suddenly dashed inside in a flash, vanishing so completely that not even its shadow remained.

After freezing in surprise, Wang Wu went to jump down and chase after the dog. He couldn’t bear to lose it.

But just as he was about to jump, he remembered that his place might be haunted. Where was the ghost that moved those corpses? It was very likely hiding in this passageway.

Just because he and Zhao Yi had emerged unscathed the first time didn’t mean they would be that lucky again.

He dared not chase after it, but couldn’t bear to abandon his wolfdog. He was caught in a dilemma.

But Zhao Yi was in no such dilemma, and when he saw that Wang Wu wasn’t leaving, he simply turned around and left on his own. Wang Wu hurled curses after him, which were ignored.

Sure enough, a bandit partner was simply unreliable. Although Wang Wu was well aware of this, he still continued to curse Zhao Yi until he vanished into the woods.

Now he was all alone. Wang Wu pulled his collar tighter, feeling unexpectedly frozen under the bright sun and broad sky. He looked around again, the rustling of the branches and leaves in the wind magnified in his ears. Anything even slightly louder would make him jump, certain that a ghost was about to attack him.

After waiting for almost a shichen, Wang Wu finally couldn’t delay any longer. Although he hadn’t seen any ghosts, he had already scared himself half to death. If he stayed any longer, he would surely lose his life.

Although the wolfdog was his treasure, it was ultimately not as important as his own life. Thus, Wang Wu hardened his heart and prepared to leave.

But when he made it just two meters away, he heard a faint bark.

Wang Wu immediately rushed back to the edge of the pit. Looking down, he saw his wolfdog run out of the passageway again with something shiny in its mouth.

It was a brilliant, glittering ruby. Wang Wu was momentarily dazzled by its red gleam, and it took him a moment to regain his sight. Upon seeing that gemstone, all fear of ghosts and ghouls was cast to the back of his mind.

Judging by the quality of this gemstone, it was definitely not cheap. He had struck it rich! Wang Wu’s eyes were fixed on the gemstone, but after the initial surge of elation, a question arose in his mind: where had this gemstone come from?

The wolfdog had carried it out of the tunnel, but where did the tunnel lead? To the ruins of Western Qiang.

This reminded Wang Wu of the legend, which said that the royal city contained priceless treasures that the Southern Chu army hadn’t had time to take away.

He had never taken it too seriously before, but today, his wolfdog had fetched a gemstone from the ruins.

Wang Wu temporarily set these thoughts aside and called out once more to his wolfdog at the bottom of the pit. This time, it obediently jumped up, and Wang Wu pulled it out of the pit by its paws.

He took the gemstone from the dog’s mouth and examined it closely in his palm. It had been polished, and was engraved with patterns he had never seen before. This couldn’t have been done recently, so it must be a product of ancient times.

All signs indicated that the legend of treasure hidden inside the ruins of the ancient city was true. Heat surged through Wang Wu’s chest. The wind no longer felt cold, and the rustling sounds were no longer frightening. Who cared about ghosts? For the right amount of money, he would dare to take a gamble even if the king of hell was standing before him.

But while he was willing to gamble, he wouldn’t be too reckless. After all, it was his own life at stake.

He first took his wolfdog back to the house, where he found Zhao Yi packing his things in preparation to leave Longqiu.

Although he was thoroughly aggravated about Zhao Yi abandoning him, Wang Wu also knew that going it alone presented numerous inconveniences. He needed a helper.

So he took out the gemstone and told Zhao Yi the truth about what had just happened, as well as his speculations. To be able to associate with him, Zhao Yi had to be a kindred spirit, both of them willing to risk their lives for money.

Upon hearing that there was really treasure here, he immediately dropped his luggage and prepared to explore the tunnel again.

However, Wang Wu stopped him and explained his plan.

They still didn’t know if the tunnel was dangerous, so they couldn’t just enter rashly. Thus, they caught a wild pheasant and a rabbit, tied ropes around their feet, and lowered them into the tunnel.

They had prepared a very long rope, and when it had been lowered about fifty meters, the other end fell slack. The two immediately pulled it back up, only to find severed limbs at the end of it. 

The pheasant and rabbit limbs were rough at the edges, as if they had been torn by some enormous force or bitten off. 

When they saw the still-dripping bloodsoaked limbs, Wang Wu and Zhao Yi realized just how lucky they had been to emerge from the tunnel unscathed last time, and didn’t dare consider venturing back in.

Yet despite their reluctance to go inside, they still couldn’t bring themselves to abandon the treasure, and continued to linger in the area. The government troops had long called off their pursuit, but the two bandits still didn’t leave Longqiu, waiting for the day they could devise a way to retrieve the treasure.

It wasn’t until today, when they met Feng Ye and his group, that the two of them steeled themselves and decided to take the gamble.

Regardless of the outcome, at least they wouldn’t waste any more time here.

Although the current result was different from the three Wang Wu had listed at the river, they indeed had no need to stay here any longer. Judging from Feng Ye’s cold expression just now, it was even uncertain if they could leave with their lives.

“Hero, we’ve given you the truth. Not a single lie was told. Look, can’t we…..” Wang Wu craned his neck up to look at Feng Ye at the edge of the pit above, speaking in a fawning, ingratiating tone.

But before Feng Ye could speak, Fang Yang jumped out and angrily rebuked him: “You’ve committed so many evil deeds and you still expect to leave?!”

He had clenched his fists several times throughout Wang Wu’s account, desperately suppressing his anger. How could these two people be so vicious?! That couple and their child, barely five years old…..these two actually murdered them so nonchalantly!

And their methods were so ruthless. Fang Yang had only read about such villains in storybooks, thinking that such people were just fictional. He never could have imagined that reality was so much worse than the stories.

Fang Yang’s fury grew as he spoke, and he abruptly pulled out his iron sword, pointing the tip toward Wang Wu down in the pit.

Seeing this, Cao Zirui went over and patted Fang Yang on the shoulder soothingly, while unobtrusively pressing down to keep him from going anywhere. He was equally furious, but he also knew that cultivators should not casually take the lives of mortals.

Mortals were bound by the laws of the mortal world, and cultivators should not interfere. These two bandits had also committed crimes worthy of death. Send them to any government office, and they wouldn’t be able to avoid their belated execution. It really wasn’t worth breaking their discipline for the sake of these two.

With Cao Zirui holding him down by the shoulder, Fang Yang put up a brief struggle before finally calming down somewhat. He took a deep breath and turned to face Feng Ye: “Shixiong, what should we do with them?”

Feng Ye crossed his arms, tapping his fingers a couple of times as he thought. “Tie them up first, and we’ll hand them over to the authorities when we leave.”

Hao Chen was a little surprised to hear this. He had thought that Feng Ye would simply deal with these two people on the spot.

How did these two end up being classified among Feng Ye’s third-tier criminals? After confirming what Lu Chengye had done, Feng Ye hadn’t hesitated to remove his head from his body.

But on second thought, Feng Ye’s actions were understandable. He probably didn’t want to reveal that side of himself in front of the two younger ones.

The ruthless, brutal God of War, just like the rumors described.

Everyone but the two bandits agreed with Feng Ye’s decision.

But their opinions didn’t matter, and the two were tied tightly with ropes and thrown back into the pit.

Although Fang Yang was still seething with indignation, he knew that this was actually the best course of action. But he secretly clenched his fists, deciding that he would wait until this trip to Longqiu was over, then stay for a while and wait until the two bandits were convicted and executed by the authorities before leaving.

Having dealt with those two, Feng Ye glanced into the dark, seemingly endless tunnel and knew that it was time to head inside.

His decision to descend into the underground ruins was not entirely because of the Living Soil.

Feng Ye was very surprised, extremely surprised, to find the royal city of Western Qiang here.

He had always believed that the royal city didn’t exist, that it was just a fabricated illusion like all the other illusions he had experienced in the Emberless Horizon.

He never could have imagined that such a city existed in reality. Even the serpent god and the eight ghost generals led by the Ghost Mask Priest were exactly the same as in the illusion.

Tracing the chain of events back to the beginning, why had Feng Ye ended up here? Because he had sensed a problem with the Emberless Horizon, and set out to discover the truth about its connection to Jianmu a century ago.

Yet in the same location as the Living Soil, he found the royal city of Western Qiang, which he had previously seen within the Emberless Horizon.

Rather than calling it a mere coincidence, it would be more accurate to call it a trap.

A trap prepared just for him.

But he wasn’t afraid at all. Regardless of whether this royal city was the same as the one he’d seen in the Emberless Horizon, he was no longer the powerless youth he had once been.

Feng Ye took the lead and entered the tunnel, with Hao Chen following close behind him. Before entering, Fang Yang suddenly turned back and gave Wang Wu and Zhao Yi one kick each before catching up with the group under Cao Zirui’s helpless gaze.

The two bandits had never expected that after they laid the facts out, Feng Ye and his group would still so boldly and nonchalantly enter the tunnel. They didn’t know whether to call them daring or suicidal.

Nevertheless, they continued to shout after the group’s retreating backs. It really didn’t matter if Feng Ye and the others went inside, as they were the ones walking to their deaths. But the two of them absolutely didn’t want to stay here, ah!

Wang Wu and Zhao Yi first cast cries for mercy toward their backs, but when those people remained unmoved, they began to hurl insults at them instead, using the most crude and offensive language possible.

Hearing this, Fang Yang almost wanted to run back and shut the two of them up.

But they were already inside, and Fang Yang worried that running back and forth would separate him from his shixiong and the others, so he ultimately didn’t go back.

Fortunately, as they ventured deeper underground, the voices of Wang Wu and Zhao Yi grew fainter and fainter, until they disappeared completely.

When the racket finally subsided, Fang Yang was finally able to calm down and observe the passageway.

The tunnel was pitch black so deep underground, and Hao Chen took out a glowing pearl after entering. Although it wasn’t as bright as sunlight, it still provided sufficient illumination.

The pearl’s illumination range was limited, so in order to prevent the other two from lingering too close to Feng Ye, Hao Chen cleverly took out another pearl. Wearing a magnanimous look, he tossed it to Fang Yang and Cao Zirui. Thus, sharing one pearl between them, Hao Chen and Feng Ye ended up next to each other.

Hao Chen held the pearl in his left hand while Feng Ye walked to his right. Their shoulders were close together, and their hands would occasionally brush as they walked.

When they brushed against each other again, Hao Chen suddenly reached out and grasped Feng Ye’s hand. Facing Feng Ye’s questioning gaze, Hao Chen said boldly: “It’s creepy in here, and I’m a little scared.”

Feng Ye: “……”

This was clearly a lie.

Fang Yang overheard this and felt that it was reasonable. He also found this place a bit eerie , so he quickly grabbed Cao Zirui’s hand and suggested: “Let’s hold hands. That way, we can look after each other if there’s any danger.”

Cao Zirui glanced at their clasped hands and nodded.

Feng Ye: “……”

Since Fang Yang and his friend had done the same thing, he would look heartless if he were to shake Hao Chen off.

He heaved a sigh, resigning himself to the warmth of another person radiating through his palm.

Hao Chen’s body temperature was slightly higher than that of ordinary people. It was unknown if this was due to the thick layer of fat coating his true form, but it gave him an exceptional ability to withstand the cold.

Walking through such a cold and gloomy tunnel, holding that hand gave him an unfamiliar sense of peace and warmth.

Although Feng Ye would never admit it, he felt that this fish’s hand was pleasant to the touch, smooth and glossy.

But he didn’t focus too much on their clasped hands, quickly shifting his attention to the passageway beneath his feet.

The tunnel wasn’t wide. It was just right for two people to walk side by side, but any more than that would be too crowded.

The ceiling was quite high, nearly three meters above their heads. The tunnel sloped downward the entire way, and Feng Ye counted his steps. Finally, after about a hundred steps, the ground leveled out. They must have reached the bottom of the underground structure.

Although the tunnel was still narrow at the bottom, a number of stone carvings had appeared on the walls.

These patterns were chaotic and haphazard, looking much like scribbles.

Fang Yang lamented upon seeing this: “So people in ancient times also liked to scribble on walls?”

Cao Zirui also inspected the patterns. Although he didn’t feel that Fang Yang’s conjecture was entirely correct, he couldn’t seem to come up with any other explanation. The patterns of these carvings were indeed incomprehensible, being neither text nor murals.

Feng Ye observed these patterns very closely. Although they appeared chaotic and meaningless, Feng Ye felt that this shouldn’t be the case. The people of Western Qiang wouldn’t have carved such pointless things, so there must be some significance to these patterns.

With his free right hand, he traced over the patterns on the wall, feeling them as he moved his palm along the contours. The more he looked at these patterns, the more familiar they seemed. After walking more than a dozen steps, Feng Ye came to an abrupt stop.

Ignoring the surprised looks from the others, he shook off Hao Chen’s hand and took the pearl he was holding to light the way.

Without offering any explanation, he walked briskly ahead with the pearl in hand. Then, after a few steps, he turned back and peered at the wall on the other side.

This was the side Hao Chen had just brushed against. After walking several more steps, Feng Ye then crouched down and looked at the ground.

“Shixiong, what are you doing, ah?” Fang Yang finally couldn’t help but ask.

Feng Ye didn’t look up, simply raising a finger in a shushing gesture.

He stared intently at the ground, brow furrowed. Amidst the chaotic patterns on the wall, one particular line led down to the floor and continued to extend across it.

These seemingly arbitrary patterns were not entirely random at all. These were array patterns – and not just one, but several large array patterns intertwined.

That was why they appeared so messy and disorganized.

Feng Ye attempted to untangle one of the lines, mentally tracing the array patterns he had just passed before, and was able to form a vague picture of a corner of this great array.

Although only this small corner was visible, it was enough to let Feng Ye identify exactly what sort of array this was.

His pupils contracted, and he murmured: “This is…..”

Meanwhile, outside the tunnel, Wang Wu and Zhao Yi were still bound hand and foot. The two cursed and hollered for a long time, only stopping when they realized that Feng Ye and the others had gone so far away that they were just shouting into the void.

Zhao Yi spat, cursing Wang Wu instead: “Laozi told you we shouldn’t mess with these people, but you insisted. Now look at what’s happened! We’re going to die here!”

Wang Wu remained silent. He craned his neck to peer down the tunnel, and once he determined that Feng Ye and the others were far away and wouldn’t be returning anytime soon, he immediately began to struggle.

Zhao Yi looked at his writhing appearance and said disdainfully: “You think you can break free from a dead knot? Keep dreaming.”

Without even looking up, Wang Wu retorted with a curse: “Cut the bullshit. Do you want to live? If so, then hurry up and help me.”

Zhao Yi was taken aback. From Wang Wu’s words, it seemed he had a means of escaping. Now that there was hope, Zhao Yi set aside his complaints and moved next to Wang Wu, using his bound hands to take out something hidden in the other’s clothes.

After much effort, Zhao Yi finally retrieved the whistle that Wang Wu had hidden in his belt. Holding it in his hand, Zhao Yi asked: “What is this? Do you want to blow the whistle and call those people back?”

Wang Wu rolled his eyes in response: “Don’t be stupid. This is a dog whistle, humans can’t hear it. If I blow it now, my wolfdog will hear it and come looking for me!”

A dog whistle? Zhao Yi had heard of such whistles before, but never knew that Wang Wu had one. He had been partners with Wang Wu for so long, but the other man had never told him about this.

But that wasn’t too strange. Such a life-saving measure must naturally be reserved for a critical moment.

And this was the most critical moment imaginable. With this in mind, Zhao Yi immediately lifted the whistle to Wang Wu’s lips. His hands and feet were tied together, so he wasn’t able to reach his own mouth.

Wang Wu puffed out his cheeks and blew hard on the dog whistle.

The high-frequency sound waves traveled in all directions, undetectable to the human ear. But behind the wooden house, the wolfdog’s ears suddenly twitched.

It twisted its head around and gnawed off the rope tethering it, then took off on all fours through the forest, heading toward the source of the sound.

Wang Wu blew the whistle for about a quarter of a shichen before he heard footsteps and the panting of an animal above the pit. Overjoyed, he looked up and saw his beloved wolfdog.

“Come down here and bite through this rope!” Wang Wu called out to it. The wolfdog obediently jumped down, then snapped its teeth together and ripped apart the rope on Wang Wu’s hands with a few tugs.

Wang Wu flexed his wrists, then quickly untied his feet.

Seeing this, Zhao Yi urged him anxiously: “Quick, untie me too!”

Wang Wu, however, turned his head and sneered at him: “Like hell!”

He went over to Zhao Yi and gave his face two hard slaps, saying in a tone of feigned pity: “We’ve been holed up here for so long and all we have to show for it is a single gemstone and a gold bracelet. That’s not even enough to fill the gaps in our teeth. It’s really not enough to share between us, so it’s better for you to just stay here.”

“You’re going to fucking keep it all to yourself?!” Zhao Yi was both furious and frantic.

But no sooner had he finished speaking than Wang Wu stepped onto his shoulder and jumped out of the pit. He then turned back to help the dog up. It truly seemed as if he was planning to leave him there.

Zhao Yi immediately changed his tone and pleaded for mercy: “Wait! I don’t want the money anymore! Just get me out of here, I don’t need anything else! You can have it all!”

Standing beside the pit, Wang Wu shook his head and said disdainfully: “All the money’s still mine even if I don’t save you, so why would I waste the effort? The fact that I’m not finishing you off with my own hands is in consideration of all the time we’ve spent together.”

With that said, he turned his back.

When Zhao Yi saw this, he glared with bloodshot eyes and screamed Wang Wu’s name at the top of his lungs, the veins in his neck bulging from the sheer force of his exertion. His shout echoed throughout the forest, startling a great flock of birds into flight. Judging by his expression, he wished he could devour Wang Wu alive.

Wang Wu remained unmoved. He stroked his wolfdog, intending to head back to the house. So much had happened in a single afternoon that dusk had already fallen. He needed to hurry up and gather his belongings, then make a run for it.

However, he had barely taken two steps, Zhao Yi’s shout still ringing through the trees, when a man’s low chuckle suddenly reached his ears.

Just going by the sound, the man’s voice was deep and melodious, yet both Wang Wu and Zhao Yi broke out in goosebumps from head to toe.

How could there possibly be anyone else here other than them?!

The wolfdog beside Wang Wu immediately crouched low, baring its sharp fangs as it ferociously scanned its surroundings.

Wang Wu also looked around warily, but saw no sign of anyone.

Could it be a ghost?!

It was not a ghost, for Zhao Yi saw that at some point, a man had come to stand directly in front of him.

He wore a long black robe, his face covered by a mask. Devoid of any emotion, a pair of cold black eyes stared icily at Zhao Yi, who lay bound hand and foot before him.

This man might not be a ghost, but he was certainly close enough to one. Zhao Yi realized that not only did this person not make a sound when walking, but even more remarkably, he didn’t seem to be breathing.

He had materialized out of thin air inside the underground pit. Meanwhile, having just climbed out of the tunnel, Wang Wu was completely unaware that someone else had appeared down below, and continued to observe the surroundings with his wolfdog.

He swept his gaze around, then turned back to look at the dilapidated stone platform.

And this single glance terrified Wang Wu so much that he immediately recoiled several steps.

For that stone platform, which had only a short moment ago been in ruins, had suddenly transformed into a fully intact stone pillar.

Standing twenty meters tall, it was now stripped of the moss and vines that had blanketed it over the course of one thousand years. It looked pristine, as if it had just been newly constructed.

Space and time were rent asunder under the setting sun. The serpent god upon the stone pillar was no longer shattered, its massive form now intact and coiled around the column. Its eyes, positioned at the very top, gazed down coldly upon the mortals standing at its base, just as it had one thousand years ago within the royal city of Western Qiang.

Wang Wu tilted his head back, gazing up into the serpent’s eyes. For a fleeting, disorienting moment, he even thought he saw them move.

He abruptly realized that this was no illusion – the serpent’s eyes were actually moving!

The snake’s carven eyes suddenly blinked, and when they opened again, they contained a crimson hue. They were as dazzling as the colossal red sun sinking toward the west behind it, or the ruby he had retrieved from the ruins that day.

As the serpent opened its eyes, the rest of its massive form began to uncoil, chunks of stone peeling away to reveal the distinctly textured body of the snake hidden beneath.

The giant serpent slithered down from the stone pillar and extended its head right in front of Wang Wu.

As the serpent’s tongue flicked out, Wang Wu once again heard that low, masculine chuckle.

He finally realized where that laughter was coming from. It was the giant serpent right in front of his eyes!

A drop of cold sweat trickled down his forehead. As the snake’s head drew even closer, he retreated farther and farther back, the wolfdog at his side mirroring his movements. This wolfdog acted aggressively toward the weak, but when faced with this giant serpent, it could only back away with its tail tucked between its legs.

Behind them lay the earthen tunnel they had just climbed out of, but Wang Wu had no time to pay it any mind.

The entirety of his attention was focused on the serpent before him. His image was reflected in its crimson eyes, and within those eyes flickered a human emotion.

Mockery.

Wang Wu was given a sudden start. With his life hanging by a thread, his mind raced, recalling the legendary serpent god in the legends about Western Qiang.

He immediately fell to his knees at the very edge of the pit. One more step back, and he would have fallen in.

Wang Wu begged the giant serpent for mercy: “Serpent god, spare….spare my life!”

The serpent advanced no further. Tilting its neck back slightly, it fixed its gaze on the mortal groveling in the dirt and spoke: “But the Grand Array is about to be activated, and I am missing one key ingredient to trigger it.”

“W-what’s missing?” Wang Wu asked, lips trembling.

“It’s missing you two, ah.” The giant serpent chuckled again.

The moment its words fell, Wang Wu realized that something was wrong. He watched as the scales on the giant serpent’s neck contracted, before it suddenly lunged forward. Seeing that he was about to be swallowed whole, Wang Wu recklessly threw himself backward, dragging his wolfdog along with him, and tumbled back into the pit.

And just as he fell, the stone gate slammed shut.

Accompanying the dull thud of the door closing came the sound of mechanisms activating one after another.

The earth trembled, and the royal city stirred to life. Having slumbered beneath the earth for a thousand years, this ancient city awakened once again the moment the sun set, like a resurrected phantom.

Watching this scene, the giant serpent let out a satisfied chuckle, then dissolved into wisps of black mist and slipped through the crevices in the stone gate, descending beneath the earth.

And just as the earth beneath his feet began to vibrate, Feng Ye uttered the name of this array:

“Eight Ghost Illusion Array!”

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Chapter 102 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 104