Li Chonglou found himself with too many questions, and after much thought, could only come up with a reluctant answer: that his presence here today, knowing these things, was likely not a mere coincidence.
Only then could its hidden nature be explained!
Just then, a faint light suddenly appeared ahead. Li Chonglou’s thoughts quickly retracted as, seconds later, the two emerged from a patch of forest.
It was truly a forest. The cave entrance behind them was overgrown with weeds, and the vista before them was nothing but grass and trees!
The difference was that everything here was tens of times larger than outside!
A single blade of grass was taller than his own height, let alone the trees, which were outrageously massive!
The smallest tree Li Chonglou could see would require ten men to embrace.
Beyond this, the most striking sensation for Li Chonglou was the air. Taking a gentle breath, an unimaginably potent spiritual energy coursed through his nostrils and into his heart, bringing an indescribable comfort.
“Is this air… sweet?”
It was the first time in Li Chonglou’s life that even breathing felt like a joyous experience. Ripples of emotion surged in his eyes, but at this moment, Meiniang poured a bucket of cold water on him.
“I advise you to inhale less, or perhaps only once every ten minutes. I won’t carry you if you get drunk halfway.”
Li Chonglou’s heart tightened. He quickly held his breath. What a joke! How could he not heed the words of a senior?
Seeing his reaction, Meiniang paid him no further mind and continued to lead the way.
Despite the poor visibility in this environment, the path underfoot was remarkably clear, as if it had been maintained for a long time. A small trail led straight ahead.
Since entering, Li Chonglou noticed Meiniang’s vigilance was even higher than in the cave. She kept her aura tightly concealed, relying solely on her physical speed to travel.
Although curious, Li Chonglou felt it inappropriate to ask too many questions and simply followed obediently.
“Could that Wei Yin also be in here?”
Li Chonglou’s expression suddenly turned serious. In fact, he had harbored suspicions ever since Meiniang had told him about the situation inside. If this weren’t the case, how could the esteemed Wu family, the second most powerful entity in the capital, be unable to deal with a traitor?
Furthermore, this could explain why the Wu family had shown him special consideration, allowing him to enter with the Red Coast members, as he would be helping them to purge their own ranks.
However, if this was true, then the mission was indeed very difficult. Within this place, his Divine Eye of Perspective ability, for some unknown reason, saw only a mist, as if something was obstructing it.
This feeling was different from the one in the Lost Land, but the outcome was the same: it was unusable.
Thinking of this, Li Chonglou suddenly remembered the people in his Soul Bottle and couldn’t help but ask them.
“By the way, do any of you have any leads? Senior Lin, Senior An?”
However, there was no response for a long time.
This truly frightened Li Chonglou. If the Soul Bottle was ineffective here, wouldn’t his power… Wait, wasn’t he currently merged with Ensi?
“Senior Ensi, can you hear me?”
Li Chonglou cautiously asked in his mind.
It wasn't until a while later that Ensi’s voice finally sounded.
“Little Li, Senior An and the others are in an emergency meeting. This news is simply too shocking for us. We are still discussing it.”
Only then did Li Chonglou deeply sigh with relief, a mix of exasperation and amusement on his face. “Even so, you could at least respond to me first. I almost thought you couldn’t get out of here.”
“No, it’s a bit strange in here. Your voice takes a while to get through. I might be faster because I’m merged with you first. I’m only able to recover normally by pulling my consciousness back.”
“So that’s how it is.”
Li Chonglou pondered for a moment and then said, “Then Senior Ensi, please inform them first. I need you to stay with me. You know the situation here.”
“Mm, I’ll inform them first.”
Following that, Li Chonglou carefully observed that Ensi’s consciousness had truly left, presumably returning to the Soul Bottle.
But all in all, it was still good. At least it was usable. Otherwise, he would turn back no matter what!
“But it’s also strange. The Soul Bottle was clearly something I obtained from the Lost Land, and according to Meiniang, it originates from this underground world.”
“When an item from the outside returns to its own territory, shouldn’t it function even better? Perhaps even unlock other functions? But now it’s clearly being restricted.”
Li Chonglou couldn’t fathom this point at all. Just then, Meiniang, who had been leading the way, suddenly stopped.
Li Chonglou looked ahead. The path still stretched out of sight, with no end in view. There wasn’t even a campsite, nor any sign of living beings.
“What is it?”
Li Chonglou secretly activated his internal energy. As the saying goes, an abnormality often signals trouble. In this unfamiliar place, he dared not be the slightest bit careless!
“I think I sense something ahead.”
Meiniang’s voice was very low. Li Chonglou thought to himself that something was indeed happening and took a step forward.
“What is it? Why can’t I feel it?”
Meiniang suddenly took out a palm-sized gray stone from her embrace. It was emitting a faint, almost imperceptible light.
Meiniang then explained, “This is a功石 (Gong Shi). Besides storing residual souls, it also serves to alert to enemies.”
Li Chonglou instantly understood that Meiniang’s vigilance was not because of him, but because of the stone in her hand.
Meiniang held the Gong Shi and pointed it forward. However, at that moment, the flashing light on the stone suddenly vanished.
“Hm?”
Meiniang was also startled. “Could it have been an illusion?”
However, for safety’s sake, she waited a while longer before finally confirming that there was no longer anything ahead.
“It must have left?”
Li Chonglou looked at Meiniang, who remained grave. “But this is a safe zone. Gong Shi usually only reacts to creatures outside of safe zones, and also to those guys’ mutated beasts.”
“But mutated beasts must have their masters present to be controlled. In that case, we shouldn’t be unable to sense enemies.”
Li Chonglou fell silent. If even she didn’t know, then he, as a newcomer, was even less likely to.
However, Li Chonglou became quite interested in the Gong Shi that Meiniang had mentioned.
“Can you tell me about this Gong Shi?”
Meiniang suddenly turned her head. “Sure.”
Li Chonglou’s expression instantly brightened.
“Pay me.”
The joy that had just arisen vanished instantly. Li Chonglou was speechless. “Then let’s talk about it later. I haven’t even touched any blood crystals yet, where would I get so much for you?”
He knew that Meiniang’s rule was that for every day the debt was overdue, one more crystal would be added as interest! Li Chonglou had no idea how precious this item was.
Meiniang waved her hand. “How boring. For a man to be so stingy, can’t you be a little more generous?”
Li Chonglou didn’t reply, his gaze fixed forward.