Chapter 49: Trapped
Mingyan also didn’t want to return alone. Doing so would put him in danger. Something was clearly following them, and traveling alone would make him an easy target. He couldn’t act recklessly without knowing the creature’s strength.
Besides, he had already entered the secret realm. Leaving empty-handed would be a waste.
The three continued deeper into the tunnel.
It was far deeper than Mingyan had imagined. He had thought a tomb, even a large one, wouldn’t be this extensive. He had misjudged.
They didn’t know how far they had descended, following the spiraling tunnel downwards. The deeper they went, the wider and darker it became. They relied on the light from the spiritual butterfly to see.
“This is too deep… Are we trapped in some kind of formation, lost and disoriented?” The young man felt uneasy. At their current speed and depth, they should be dozens of miles underground. The air at such depths should be incredibly thin, but although the air here wasn’t dense, it wasn’t suffocatingly thin either.
“Something is definitely wrong… We should stop and examine our surroundings,” Mingyan agreed, stopping in his tracks. “And this space is so vast, yet there’s no echo when we speak. Isn’t that strange?”
The young master nodded. They examined the tunnel walls, walking towards the edge.
The walls were rough and uneven, with many crevices and protrusions, ideal for climbing. Mingyan tried to break off one of the protrusions, but it was incredibly hard. Despite his immense strength, he couldn’t budge it. He was slightly surprised.
This meant that if something was climbing on the walls, it wouldn’t fall easily, making it stealthy and silent.
“A corpse? Why is it here?”
The young man suddenly exclaimed. Mingyan and the young master rushed over and saw the same corpse they had encountered earlier, lying in the same position.
“We’re definitely trapped in a formation. Continuing downwards is pointless. We have to break the formation.” The young master’s expression turned serious. “To break a formation, we need to find its core. Have you noticed anything unusual about this place?”
Both Mingyan and the young man shook their heads. “Let’s split up and search for anything out of the ordinary. But don’t go too far. If what Fellow Daoist said is true, that creature might attack us while we’re separated. Our priority is to break the formation. Losing anyone would make our situation even more dangerous. So, I hope you’ll put aside any other thoughts and help each other. If you encounter any danger, warn the others immediately.”
The young man nodded. Despite his earlier arrogance, he wasn’t foolishly overconfident. “If you’re in danger, I’ll do my best to help.”
“Likewise,” Mingyan nodded.
The young master nodded, and they split up, searching for anything unusual.
Mingyan examined the holes in the tunnel walls, pondering.
The creature might not be affected by the formation. Could it be using these holes to move around within the tunnel?
But the holes were only large enough for one person to crawl through. They couldn’t stand upright inside, and two people wouldn’t fit. There might be more than one creature. If other creatures lived within the holes, entering them would restrict his movements and be suicidal.
However, staying trapped in the formation was also a death sentence. The spiritual energy here was thin, and none of them had reached the Qi Sea Realm, so they couldn’t generate their own energy. Once their reserves were depleted, they would be vulnerable to attack. Staying here wasn’t a good option. Mingyan’s eyes flickered as he thought of a solution.
Suddenly, his hair stood on end, and he leaped back. In the dim light of the butterfly, he saw a dark red figure emerge silently from one of the holes, its cold claws reaching for him. If he hadn’t reacted quickly, it would have slashed his throat.
“Fellow Daoist?” The young master rushed over, hearing the commotion. “What happened?”
The young man also arrived, looking puzzled.
“Something attacked me from one of these holes. It was too dark to see clearly, but it seemed to be dark red.” Mingyan was calm. As a hunter, he had been attacked by wild beasts before and knew that panicking could be fatal. “There might be more than one creature in this tunnel… Perhaps many…”
“…Did you sense its strength?” the young master asked, frowning.
Mingyan shook his head. “No. And these creatures don’t seem to be affected by the formation. I suspect these holes allow them to bypass the formation and leave this area. But the holes are too small for us to pass through comfortably. Entering them would restrict our movements, and they’re likely the creatures’ lair…”
“Entering them would be unwise,” the young master agreed, deep in thought. “But we can’t stay here forever… Neither Zeng Qi nor I are at the Qi Sea Realm. The spiritual energy here is thin, and we can’t replenish our reserves effectively. If we wait too long, we’ll be drained and become easy prey.”
So, the young man’s name was Zeng Qi.
“We should use our remaining energy to try and escape through these holes,” Zeng Qi said, his eyes flashing. “Since these creatures only dare to attack stealthily, they must be weaker than us.”
“But these holes were clearly made by the creatures. They’re likely a labyrinth. Even if we enter, we might not be able to find a way out.” Mingyan shook his head. “It’s too risky. We should try to find another way to break the formation. If there are no other options, then we can consider this.”
The young master nodded. “I agree. Let’s try to conserve our spiritual energy. This butterfly is made with a special technique and only provides light. It doesn’t consume much energy, so don’t worry. Conserve your strength in case of emergencies.”
After Mingyan’s encounter, they decided to stay together and search for clues about the formation.
They searched for a while but found nothing. The tunnel was dark, damp, and seemingly endless, with only the faint glow of the moss and the mysterious holes in the walls.
Mingyan carefully observed their surroundings. After cultivating the Wind Spirit Scripture, his sensitivity to air currents had increased significantly.
There was a faint airflow within the tunnel, which was why the young man had been able to smell the blood. The air was clearly flowing in a particular direction. Mingyan started walking against the current, and the other two, although unsure of his reasoning, followed him.
The airflow was strange, bending and twisting within the vast space, as if blocked by invisible walls, forced to flow through small crevices…
Mingyan realized the airflow wasn’t coming from the holes in the walls. To confirm this, he stood at the entrance of several holes and sensed the air inside. There was no flow. These holes were likely contained within the tunnel, not leading to the outside. Entering them would only lead them in circles, potentially to their deaths.
So, where was the airflow coming from? Mingyan thought for a moment. Either there was an opening to the outside world somewhere, or it was coming from the entrance where they had entered.
He shared his discovery with the other two.
“Is that so? I’ve heard that following certain paths within a formation can lead you out without breaking its core,” the young master nodded. “We can try.”
“Let’s not waste any more time,” Zeng Qi said impatiently. Being trapped here wasn’t a good idea.
Seeing they agreed, Mingyan began tracing the airflow, the other two following closely behind, cautiously scanning their surroundings.
The airflow twisted and turned, as if colliding with invisible walls. Mingyan followed its path, leading them in circles, seemingly random, but there was a pattern.
He realized there was a hidden maze within the tunnel, and the airflow was coming from its entrance. This strengthened his conviction. He quickened his pace. After about half an hour, he felt a sudden change. The spiritual energy density increased dramatically. He looked around, surprised. Their surroundings had completely changed.
“This is…? Weren’t we just in the tunnel? How did we get here?” Zeng Qi, who had been following him closely, was also surprised.
“It means we’ve left the formation… This is likely the true secret realm,” the young master said.
Before them lay a vast, open space, resembling an underground cavern. The area gradually brightened, although there was no visible light source. A faint medicinal fragrance filled the air, and the spiritual energy was abundant, a stark contrast to the tunnel.
“Look out!” Zeng Qi suddenly pushed Mingyan forward. He stumbled, regained his balance, and turned around to see the young master stomping on a dark red creature, its head crushed, its brains splattered everywhere.
The creature was small, about the size of a monkey, covered in red fur. Its blood and brains mixed together, creating a foul stench. Its claws were short and black, looking incredibly sharp.
“Hmph, that despicable creature tried to sneak attack us while we were distracted,” Zeng Qi snorted.
“Thank you,” Mingyan said, surprised by Zeng Qi’s actions. His first impression of this young man had been negative. He seemed arrogant and condescending. And now, even after leaving the formation and no longer needing Mingyan’s help, he had saved him…
“It was just a simple push. There’s no need to thank me,” Zeng Qi shook his head. “Besides, although we’ve left the formation, there might be other dangers ahead… Having another person increases our chances of survival. Life is more important than treasures.”
“That’s the right attitude.” The young master lifted his foot. His boots were clean, untouched by the blood and brains. He chuckled. “There’s no need to fight to the death. Opportunities are for those who are lucky… We don’t need to kill each other.”
Mingyan looked ahead, observing the cavern. The spiritual energy here was dense, but he still saw small holes in the walls, similar to those in the tunnel. These creatures could also access this area…
“This creature wasn’t very strong, probably around the Great Brook Realm. But a surprise attack could still be dangerous, even for an Illuminating Sea Realm cultivator, especially since our strength is still suppressed… We need to be careful.” The young master examined the creature’s sharp, black claws, flicking one with his finger. It produced a metallic sound.
“Let’s continue. There must be some spirit herbs in this cavern. We seem to be the first to arrive. Let’s gather them before anyone else does,” Zeng Qi said.
Leave a Reply