Chapter 344: Activating the Mechanism

As Lin Dong’s spiritual energy continued to deplete, the protrusion of the massive iron block grew taller and wider. Eventually, the speed at which the Spirit Restoring Pill could replenish his energy could no longer keep up with the consumption, and the protrusion stopped at a height of fifteen meters. From a distance, the entire protrusion resembled a winding, rugged giant snake stretching upward.

When his depleted dantian recovered slightly, Lin Dong was eager to make it higher. With a loud crash, Dai Qingyi swung his sword and rushed out from the top of the protrusion. Iron shards flew everywhere, creating a strange spectacle.

“What kind of spiritual weapon is this?”
Dai Qingyi’s gaze toward Lin Dong was filled with deep astonishment. When the huge iron block fell, he saw no way to dodge it in time. He had to rely on the sharpness and power of his high-grade spiritual sword to carve out a hole at the bottom of the block in an instant. Only after the block hit the ground did Dai Qingyi have time to examine it thoroughly. To his surprise, aside from the sudden appearance of the massive iron block, his worries eased. Its height was only about three meters, enough for him to easily break through. Although the space was too small to use fully, after slightly adjusting by pressing the soil beneath his feet down a few meters with his spiritual energy, Dai Qingyi began to ascend. However, strange occurrences afterward sent him into anxiety again. As he neared the three-meter mark, the structure above started to rise, and the same happened in all directions.

Fortunately, after careful inspection, Dai Qingyi found gaps in various places. Moreover, the speed at which the protrusions grew wasn’t fast, so his mind settled again. Undoubtedly, the massive iron block was changing due to spiritual energy, and the opponent’s spiritual energy was clearly not fast enough to keep up with his breakthroughs.

Everything went as Dai Qingyi had predicted. But even though he managed to get out, the fear that surged in him the moment he saw Lin Dong was hard to control. If the opponent had been a few levels stronger, the consequences of his carelessness might have cost him his life.

Lin Dong watched Dai Qingyi quietly, trying to restore his spiritual energy while buying time. “A ninth-tier spiritual weapon—Transforming Bench.”

“A ninth-tier spiritual weapon?”
Dai Qingyi’s heartbeat quickened slightly. The Illusion Rain Sect only had one ninth-tier spiritual weapon in total. The BlueChen Sword in Yun Lan’s hands already made him extremely eager for it. If another ninth-tier spiritual weapon appeared and he could seize it all, the sect would suddenly have two such weapons.

The Heavenly Sword Sect is an established major sect that has dominated the Great Han Kingdom for hundreds of years. It is not surprising that its sect leader’s heir possesses a ninth-tier spiritual weapon. However, it is impossible for a peak-level expert to hand over a ninth-tier spiritual weapon to their disciple, unless such disciples are extremely rare and the expert already has two or three such weapons of their own.

Having two or three ninth-tier spiritual weapons while having only one or two disciples indirectly proves that killing them would have extremely serious consequences.

Suddenly, Dai Qingyi’s body trembled as he turned sharply to look outside the woods. A figure lying on the ground made his eyes burn with rage.

“Did you kill Elder Chang?” Dai Qingyi snapped through his teeth.

“He’s just seriously injured; we don’t know if he’s dead yet,” Lin Dong said nonchalantly.

Dai Qingyi’s spiritual energy surged forth and was shot at Lin Dong and the others.

“You overestimate his concern for his companions.”

Yun Lan quietly stood up, and the Blue Thunder Sword flew out, aiming straight at Dai Qingyi’s face.

Lin Dong was speechless. He had originally planned to use Elder Chang Qianren’s serious injuries to trick Dai Qingyi into checking on him and providing aid, but it backfired, causing Dai Qingyi to attack suddenly.

Clang!

With a crisp sound, the Blue Thunder Sword struck the spiritual sword in Dai Qingyi’s hand. After retreating several meters, it suddenly turned, like a slippery silver snake, and stabbed at Dai Qingyi’s side.

Immediately afterward, the large iron block disappeared. Lin Dong waved his right hand, and the Golden Leaf Sword along with the newly formed Ruyi Stool were sent flying into the battle.

The sound of clashing continued as Lin Dong and his companion remotely controlled the spiritual sword and Ruyi Stool to keep entangling Dai Qingyi. Dai Qingyi had already exhausted a great deal of his spiritual energy trying to break through the large iron block, and now he was under attacks from two high-tier spiritual weapons and a ninth-tier spiritual technique. Despite his strength that could reverse five levels of cultivation, it was difficult for him to get close.

With another crisp sound, after one of his swords struck the tip of the Blue Thunder Sword and forced it back, Dai Qingyi ignored the combined attacks from the Golden Leaf Sword and Ruyi Stool, flipped over, and retreated a few steps.

Lin Dong frowned slightly, confused about Dai Qingyi’s intentions. With the spiritual energy in his dantian, if pressured for another half an hour, it would be completely exhausted. Dai Qingyi should be aware of this—once his spiritual energy was gone, without the Golden Leaf Sword and Ruyi Stool as obstacles, his strength would be enough for him to get close.

Yet now, he suddenly stopped advancing and retreated.

“Bad news—someone’s coming,” Yun Lan suddenly said as she opened her right hand, and the Blue Thunder Sword flew back into her hand.

“Someone?”
Lin Dong remembered the cylinder Elder Chang Qianren had used before the battle and was shocked.

In just a moment, Lin Dong’s mind expanded outward, and he could sense that nearly a hundred figures were approaching here. In the next blink, many people emerged from all directions, their numbers clearly exceeding what Lin Dong had sensed—among them were quite a few who had reached the Heart Reversal stage.

“Patriarch!” After forming a siege, over thirty elders in their fifties, with one of them rushing toward Chang Qianren, nodded at Dai Qingyi. The nearly a hundred younger disciples then bowed to Dai Qingyi after the elders did so.

“Patriarch, Second Elder…” The elder who had been checking on Chang Qianren raised his head in anger and said resentfully, “His dantian has been destroyed; he’s useless even if he lives.”

Dai Qingyi frowned slightly before waving his hand and saying, “Take the Second Elder back to the sect.”

A few disciples flew up, lifted Chang Qianren, and flew away.

“Patriarch, who are they…” An elder with a pale face stared coldly at Lin Dong and the other person.

“One is at the third stage of Heart Reversal, and the other at the ninth stage of Mind Control. It was they who injured the Second Elder. Also, they know the location of the Wuyou Cave.”

The first part of Dai Qingyi’s words filled everyone with shock and anger, while the second part brought them great joy. For a moment, even Chang Qianren’s few direct disciples showed smiles, forgetting about his situation.

The Wuyou Cave, which the sect had searched for hundreds of years across generations, was now right nearby.

Looking at the covetous disciples of the Fantasy Rain Sect around them, Lin Dong’s expression darkened. With these thirty-some strong fighters of varying abilities and nearly a hundred warriors, it would be difficult to leave—even if he and Yun Lan were together, or even if Old Ding were present, carrying two burdens would make it hard to escape.

“Hey, why is this tree sinking?”

A cry of surprise drew everyone’s attention to the source of the sound. There, a disciple of the Fantasy Rain Sect was pointing at a large tree in front of him, looking astonished.

The weakest among the present was at the third stage of Mind Control, and with a slight sense, they confirmed the disciple’s words.

The tree seemed normal, and the soil beneath it showed no changes, but the trunk was indeed sinking, though slowly. Without careful inspection, it would be hard to notice anything unusual.

“It’s the Wuyou Cave!” Dai Qingyi exclaimed in shock.

Immediately afterward, several elders trembled. Then, Yun Lan’s mind also detected something strange.

“This tree is a trap. As it sinks, the soil also keeps sinking,” Yun Lan explained. “Since the Fantasy Rain Sect knows that the Wuyou Cave is on Bai Sha Peak, they must have checked every place, including underground. This means that within at least ten meters above the ground, there’s no empty space to be found. If it weren’t a trap, no matter how soft the soil is, it couldn’t be soft enough to allow a tree to sink without any visible signs from the outside. It must be the large iron block you created earlier that triggered the trap.”

“Where is the entrance?” Lin Dong was overjoyed and quickly asked.

Another chance appeared! If they could enter the Wuyou Cave first and find an entrance that’s not wide with hard soil, then at most three or five elders from the Fantasy Rain Sect could use their powers at the same time. Although it still wouldn’t last long, with the Wish Bench, it wouldn’t be hard to hold out for a minute or two.

If they could hold out a bit longer, their chances of the Old Man Ding arriving would increase.

“I’m not sure. It’s probably not under the tree,” Yun Lan said, frowning and shaking her head. If it were under the tree, they’d have to destroy the entire tree to get in. In that case, it wouldn’t be possible to restore it to its original state after exiting.

“Restore it to its original state… So that means…”

Lin Dong’s gaze swept quickly around. When it touched a pile of rocks outside the forest, his shoulders tensed, and Yun Lan grabbed him and flew away.

The target was actually that pile of rocks.

“Bad! They’re trying to escape!”

A few disciples blocking the way shouted. Next to them, an elder leaped up and threw a punch with a cold sneer.

A fierce wind suddenly arose. The leaves, driven by the wind, quickly gathered into a leaf ball about a meter in diameter, which then rushed out with the wind’s force.

“Lin Dong, block the wind!” As soon as Yun Lan’s voice reached Lin Dong’s ears, he swung his right arm, and the Wish Bench flew out, heading straight for the center of the wind blast.

Boom…

The Wish Bench was shattered like by artillery fire, turning into pieces that flew everywhere.

Amid the fragments, the Lan Chen Sword shot through and plunged straight into the leaf ball, disappearing inside it instantly.

Boom…

A roar ten times louder than before erupted as the ball exploded. The strong wind generated by the explosion even uprooted several large trees in the vicinity.

“Damn it!”

The elder of the Fantasy Rain Sect froze, his cold sneer turning stiff.

Could those two control objects to attack?

The Lan Chen Sword, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, aimed straight at the elder’s throat.

“Block them! It’s the Wuyou Cave!” Dai Qingyi screamed, completely losing her image as a sect leader.

Unfortunately, it was too late to warn them. As Lan Chen’s sword struck, the elder of the Fantasy Rain Sect did not resist head-on but swiftly moved aside. Yun Lan grabbed Lin Dong and followed Lan Chen’s sword as they charged at the other disciples. With the sword moving at lightning speed, those disciples, whose strength was only around the fourth level of the Mental State phase, with the strongest being at most at the sixth level, dared not risk their lives to block them and quickly created a path for them to pass. A flash of delight crossed Yun Lan’s eyes—her judgment had been correct. After trembling for a while, the pile of rubble began to fall rapidly. Without hesitation, Yun Lan grabbed Lin Dong’s shoulder and plunged into the void formed by the falling rubble. “Chase them! Among them is someone of unknown identity, known only to have studied under a reclusive top-tier expert. If they master spirit arrays, the consequences will be disastrous,” Dai Qingyi shouted as he pursued them, his voice filled with spiritual energy, shaking the entire small forest. Everything went dark before Lin Dong’s eyes, and he felt his body falling continuously. After falling rapidly for twenty or thirty meters, his body stopped, and his vision cleared slightly. “It’s the entrance!” The first thing he saw was a straight passage over two meters in diameter leading forward. “There’s a spirit array—stay close to me!” Yun Lan warned. “Understood!” Lin Dong was overjoyed. The Fantasy Rain Sect, being a pill-making sect, surely knew little about spirit arrays. At the very least, they couldn’t compare to Yun Lan, a seventh-level spirit array master. Rather than damaging the spirit arrays, their presence alone—even if they were just first or second-level arrays—could buy them significant time. If there were higher-level arrays, by the time Old Ding arrived, there would be little hope left. The two continued forward, with Dai Qingyi and the others chasing behind. Although the distance between them narrowed from a hundred meters to just over twenty meters, the joy in Yun Lan’s eyes grew deeper. The spirit arrays in the passage gradually became stronger—the first one was just a first-level array, the fifth had become a second-level array, and by the tenth, it had risen to a third-level array. “He really is a spirit array master!” Behind them, Dai Qingyi’s eyes turned red with rage, not realizing that it was Yun Lan who could break the arrays. The Sky Sword Sect was also a pill-making sect, but Yun Lan, as the heir to its leadership, was stronger in spirit arrays. In terms of pill-making, she was not only a sixth-level pill master but had also improved through sheer skill, yet her proficiency in pill-making was far inferior to that in spirit arrays.

With Dai Qingyi and two elders combining their strength in a single strike, they could easily break through a first-tier spirit array. Their speed was even faster than that of Yun Lan, a seventh-tier spirit array master. But the further they went, the harder it became to break the arrays, and the less time they had to outpace Yun Lan.

By the time they reached the area of the fourth-tier spirit arrays, the situation had begun to reverse. Yun Lan’s time to break the arrays was gradually decreasing compared to the time it took Dai Qingyi and the others to force their way through.

When they broke through the last fifth-tier spirit array, no matter how much spiritual energy Lin Dong poured into his eyes, he couldn’t see Dai Qingyi and the others in the straight passage.

After nearly half a day, when they stepped out of the first seventh-tier spirit array, Yun Lan stopped. These spirit arrays were all lost ones, and breaking them without damaging them required a tremendous amount of spiritual energy. By the seventh tier, even if they kept taking spirit-restoring pills, they couldn’t keep up with the energy consumed in breaking the arrays.

“Although these spirit arrays are just non-lethal illusion arrays, combined, they’re enough to keep the Fantasy Rain Sect occupied for a whole day,” Yun Lan said. “You practice here. I’ll go back and pick up the old master.”

“Why not take me with you?” Lin Dong asked in confusion.

Yun Lan shook her head. “On my way back, I’ll have to break another spirit array. Although we already have a method, it will take about one-fifth of the time it took to get here. But if I take you with me, and if the old master gets trapped by the Fantasy Rain Sect inside the spirit array, with Yu Linglong by his side and you added as well, it’s likely we won’t be able to break through. If the Fantasy Rain Sect splits into two groups—one to attack the old master and the other to break the array—things will be even more critical if you go with us.”

“Be careful!”

Lin Dong had no choice but to admit that his strength was too weak; he would only be a burden.

Yun Lan nodded, took a few quick steps, and entered the seventh-tier spirit array behind her.

Watching Yun Lan leave, Lin Dong let out a long sigh. Without wasting time, he immediately sat cross-legged, channeling the remaining spiritual energy in his dantian into his meridians and beginning to circulate it continuously.

One cycle, two cycles, three cycles…

Two hours later, just as Lin Dong was becoming too restless to continue practicing, a graceful figure appeared at the end of his sight.

Soon, the figure drew closer, and Lin Dong’s anxious expression gradually relaxed.

By Lin Dong’s sense, this figure was undoubtedly Yun Lan. As for the two figures following her, he couldn’t see clearly the smaller one, but the figure that occupied half of the passage could only be Yu Linglong, aside from anyone else.

Sure enough, as the three of them got closer, Lin Dong’s vision gradually became clearer.

The one at the front was indeed Yun Lan. The two behind her were Old Ding and Yu Linglong.

After waiting another half hour, the three of them finally emerged from the seventh-level spirit array and appeared before Lin Dong. Immediately, Old Ding grabbed his dust- and blood-stained clothes with both hands, held them up toward Lin Dong, and shouted, “Kid, I want to raise the price! If not for Girl Yun arriving, I would have been exhausted to death in this cave in less than a day. You didn’t say there was a risk to my life before we came!”
“Fine! Whatever amount the old man wants, I’ll agree to it,” Lin Dong said with a smile.
“At least five jars!” Old Ding stretched out his dirty palm and waved it at Lin Dong.
“Just five jars?” Lin Dong replied without hesitation, “Add two zeros—500 jars.”
“500 jars?” Old Ding stared at Lin Dong in shock.
Lin Dong paused for a moment before regaining his composure. 500 jars of top-quality wine was merely a small cost in terms of spirit stones for him, but it was a huge benefit for Old Ding. Giving him so much at once might make it harder to ask for further favors in the future if his expectations grew too high.
Thinking quickly, Lin Dong said with a chuckle, “Of course, I can’t give them all at once. With my abilities, I can manage to provide about ten jars per month. How about increasing by five jars each month for ten years?”
Old Ding looked at Lin Dong skeptically.
“You’d better not hesitate too long. I just blurted out an exorbitant price because I was happy to see Yun Lan back,” Lin Dong said casually. “Once my excitement fades, don’t blame me for going back on my word.”
“Alright! Ten jars per month then.” Old Ding didn’t press further. Getting five more jars was already beyond his expectations, so he saw no need to be greedy. If he got top-quality wine every day, he might get tired of it and find life meaningless later on.
“Old man, you should rest for now. I suspect there’s a ninth-level spirit array ahead. Since they’re all lost spirit arrays, I alone might not be able to break them. We’ll need your help then,” Yun Lan said.
Old Ding nodded and immediately sat in seiza position, with Lin Dong and the others following suit.
An hour later, they moved on to the next seventh-level spirit array. As Yun Lan had predicted, after breaking five seventh-level arrays, there were five different and previously unheard-of eighth-level illusion arrays, followed by five ninth-level illusion arrays.
Faced with these ninth-level illusion arrays with no available information, even with the help of a peak-level expert, Yun Lan’s skills as a seventh-level spirit array master made it difficult to break them—after all, they were non-lethal illusion arrays. Each one could take more than a day to break.