"Senior Brother Wu" was stunned for a moment, then a look of approval appeared on his cold face. He then whispered a few words to "Senior Brother Yu." After hearing them, "Senior Brother Yu" also gave Li Yan a slight thumbs-up.
The two of them had already agreed that since they were assigned to this team, they would build a better relationship with Li Yan and stay close to him. The only Foundation Establishment cultivator was from Little Bamboo Peak, and this was the only Qi Condensation disciple from Little Bamboo Peak here. Besides, they were not part of Wang Tian's direct lineage, so they would not be swayed by Wang Tian's instigation. So, after entering, the two of them formed a small team with Li Yan. Just now, "Senior Brother Wu's" casual question was just to break the ice and start a conversation. He didn't expect Li Yan to give a definitive answer. It made "Senior Brother Wu" pause, but after hearing Li Yan's reason, he realized it was true. Everyone knew this deduction, but few could think of it in such a tense atmosphere. Cultivator Yu also couldn't help but feel admiration. He had always prided himself on being resourceful, but his nervousness had made him miss this detail.
"Senior Brother Wu's" name was Wu Shixi. Cultivator Yu's name was Yu Yiyong. It was said that he had given himself this name in defiance of the saying "a scholar is useless," to show that he was at least of some use.
At the same time, Gong Chenying at the front had reached the first shop. Under the dim sky, the door of a cloth shop on the left was wide open. From the outside, one could see several bolts of brightly colored cloth on the counter. In the wooden shelves behind the counter, many more fabrics were piled up. There was a thin layer of dust on the counter, but the few bolts of brightly colored cloth on it were spotless. The room was empty. The dim light from the street sky shone in, making the scene look eerie and sinister in the silent environment where even footsteps sounded jarring.
Gong Chenying looked around, then stepped inside.
When Gong Chenying attacked, it was like a violent storm, often giving people the impression of an aggressive fire, like a dormant volcano. But she was actually meticulous. The moment she stepped into the shop, a green light flashed in her hand, and a nine-chi (TN: approx. 2.97 meters or 9.7 feet) long green poleaxe was already in her hand. Even with her tall, slender figure of over seven chi, the poleaxe looked a bit too long in her hand.
Gong Chenying was dressed in a long, dark green robe, cinched at the waist, accentuating her full buttocks and giving her a heroic air. She wore a pair of thin boots made from some unknown demonic beast. When she stepped into the shop, a pair of footprints were left in the light dust on the wooden floor. She stared at everything in the shop but saw nothing amiss. When her gaze fell on the few bolts of brightly colored cloth on the counter, she felt a sense of incongruity. The rest of the shop was covered in fine dust, but these few bolts were as clean as new. She slowly extended the poleaxe to lift the cloths. The "shh-shh" sound of the cloth stretching in the air was like a stooped, dying old man speaking. Behind her, outside the door, a group of cultivators was divided into several groups, keeping watch in different directions.
Although the light in the cloth shop was very dim, when Gong Chenying lifted and unfolded a bolt of cloth with her poleaxe, not a speck of dust fell. Yet, the rest of the counter where the cloth was piled was clearly covered in a layer of dust. Gong Chenying couldn't help but want to bring the cloth closer to look. Her feet naturally moved forward half an inch. Just then, she heard a soft "creak" from the wooden plank beneath her feet. At the same time, someone outside shouted, "Sixth Senior Sister, retreat!"
A great sense of alarm rose in Gong Chenying's heart. Without a second thought, she stomped her foot on the ground, arched her back high like a startled leopardess, and lunged towards the door. At that moment, a bizarre scene occurred. The cloth on her poleaxe suddenly came to life, twisting and tightening, wrapping itself around the poleaxe's head. The other colorful cloths on the counter suddenly spread out, the colored fabrics like a series of garish ghostly faces, letting out "heh heh" sounds. Amidst the laughter, they wrapped themselves around Gong Chenying's body. Even more fabrics from the wooden shelves behind the counter suddenly unfolded, their floral patterns dazzlingly bright, emitting a "huo huo" sound like someone being strangled. They flew towards the four walls and the door and windows, clearly trying to block Gong Chenying's escape. The shop door slammed shut automatically with a "pat" at the same instant.
The moment Gong Chenying stomped, arched her back, and leaped, the wooden plank on the floor didn't shatter under her foot but let out an even sharper "creak." Then the floor turned into a black hole, pulling her downwards.
The thin layer of dust in the shop was sent flying. In the dim light, it slowly gathered towards the center of the shop floor, forming a vague human figure in just a breath, which then began to solidify.
Gong Chenying's heart turned cold. She had a feeling that if this dust gathered into a solid human form, her chances of escape would be slim to none. In a flash, she held the poleaxe with her left hand, and the spiritual energy in her body circulated wildly. The green light on the poleaxe exploded. With a piercing tearing sound, the magnificent cloth wrapped around the poleaxe like a living thing "chi-ed" and burst apart. At the same time, her right hand slapped towards the counter a few meters away. A great force hit the corner of the counter. With a "boom," the counter was smashed to pieces. A powerful rebound force threw her high into the air, and her body "whooshed" away from the black hole on the ground.
Outside the shop, when Gong Chenying entered, they followed orders and remained fully alert. Li Yan was observing from the rear of the squad, occasionally looking behind him. Strangely, the giant black shadow from the descriptions had not appeared.
'Has the trial already begun, and we just didn't notice?' As Li Yan pondered, he released all his divine sense to expand outwards. As his divine sense spread, the five spiritual energy cylinders in his body became even more active than they had been outside the valley, especially the earth-element cylinder. It was originally ranked fourth in Li Yan's body, but now the spiritual energy within it was boiling, as if it wanted to surpass the fire-element cylinder in front of it, as if it had encountered something incredibly exciting. At the same time, Li Yan's divine sense felt that the spiritual energy in this world was also arranged according to the five elements, only with earth spiritual energy being the strongest.
Just as he was about to increase the circulation of the True Scripture of Gui Water to feel it again, he heard a crisp "creak" in the silent space. Then, the earth spiritual energy in his divine sense suddenly went berserk, showing a tendency to annex the other four elements. The next moment, the True Scripture of Gui Water in his body began to race through his meridians, somewhat out of his control. Li Yan's heart pounded with fear, and the source of this unease was the cloth shop to his side. He quickly turned his head and shouted, "Sixth Senior Sister, retreat!"
With a loud "boom," the shop door was smashed to pieces from the inside. Wood splinters shot out in all directions with a piercing whistle. Li Yan and the other Qi Condensation cultivators quickly reinforced their protective spiritual light to block the flying debris. A human-shaped object shot out from the broken doorway. It was described as human-shaped because the object was completely wrapped in cloth. Just as everyone was wondering what to do, the bundle of cloth "chi-ed" and turned into a rain of fabric. A person holding a poleaxe, its green light pulsing, stood on the ground. It was none other than the escaped Gong Chenying.
"Go quickly, I'll cover the rear!" With a clear shout, Gong Chenying glanced around. Seeing that everyone was temporarily safe, she swung her poleaxe. A ten-zhang long green light cut fiercely across the world towards the cloth shop. The Qi Condensation cultivators also reacted quickly. The six teams formed small formations and rushed forward along the street.
The giant green light descended from the sky, cutting towards the cloth shop with world-destroying power. With a loud bang, dust flew everywhere. The shop was split in two by the green light, and several rooms were instantly reduced to powder. Seeing her attack succeed, Gong Chenying didn't bother to check the result. She dragged her green poleaxe, creating a shower of sparks on the stone street, and chased after the others.
Less than two breaths after everyone left, a figure slowly walked out from the dust of the ruined rooms. It slowly stepped out of the swirling dust and stood in the middle of the street. This person was several tens of zhang tall, standing between heaven and earth. Its body was semi-ethereal, and its face was unclear. It faced the street and let out a low, muffled roar. Then it spread its arms and looked up to the sky. Like two giant bat wings, wisps of black qi began to rise rapidly from its arms. In just three breaths, half the sky behind it had turned pitch black. Accompanied by the dim light, a giant black shadow was cast at the beginning of the street. Then, the giant's arms flapped forward like wings, and the giant black shadow in the sky pressed down on the entire street.
At the same time, as Li Yan and his group were running down the middle of the street, they suddenly heard a crisp "creak." The spiritual energy in Li Yan's body boiled again. He turned his head and saw a slat on a butcher's block outside a shop to the side seem to sway in the wind. He couldn't help but blurt out, "Not good!" Before anyone could react, the originally silent and peaceful street was filled with "swish-swish" sounds. A clamor like popping soybeans erupted from the shops on both sides. Countless finished and half-finished weapons, even blocks of steel, burst out from the blacksmith's shop. From the steamed bun shop, both the steamers and the buns, each wrapped in a layer of black and yellow light, shot out. From the coffin shop, the massive lids shot out first, followed by the wooden coffins, which emitted a heavy "weng weng" sound. The various shops were in an uproar. All sorts of items, wrapped in a black and yellow light, shot towards the group. How could they see these as ordinary items and food now? The sinister black and yellow light on them was enough to tell them that these were not friendly.
While releasing their protective spiritual light, everyone had also brought out their spirit artifacts and spirit treasures. Fortunately, they had already set up simple defensive formations in groups of six before coming. Although they were in a sorry state, they could still hold on.
Seeing this, Gong Chenying shouted clearly, "Three teams to the left, three to the right. Don't get entangled in the fight." After speaking, she soared into the air. But the moment she took flight, her figure faltered. Yellow light flashed around Gong Chenying's body as she stabilized herself, but a look of horror appeared in her eyes. The moment she flew up, she had felt a tremendous pressure from the sky. After channeling sixty percent of her spiritual energy, she had only managed to fly two zhang high. She quickly deduced that there must be a no-fly restriction in this space.
After managing to fly above the others and stabilizing herself, she held her poleaxe in one hand and formed a seal with the other, attacking both sides of the street simultaneously. With the screech of a giant green light and a yellow giant blade, they struck both sides like roaring thunder. With two loud bangs, two areas were reduced to rubble and dust. But her brow furrowed. The feedback from the force of her hands shattered her plan.
When Gong Chenying attacked, she felt the force acting on the shops on both sides, but it couldn't extend any further back, as if there were a layer of steel behind the shops, and the force bounced right back. She had originally planned to lead everyone off the street and find another path. It seemed this place might have a forced, restricted area. Could it be that they could only stay on the street?