Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Celestial Profound Array

Why did it always feel as though he had become a completely different person? I hesitantly ventured a question.

“Brother Wu, why does this place look exactly like the Immortal’s Tomb?”

Wu Xin was startled for a moment, but quickly regained his composure. With a hint of confusion in his voice, he replied, “What are you talking about? The Immortal’s Tomb and this place are nothing alike.”

After speaking, Wu Xin cast a disdainful glance at me. I thought to myself, this is definitely the real Wu Xin. Perhaps I was just overthinking things. Maybe Wu Xin was only now revealing his true capabilities, and I was simply taken aback.

Seeing me still in a daze, Wu Xin urged, “What are you waiting for? Get moving!”

I pushed aside my doubts about Wu Xin, nodded, and lunged toward the Soul Capturing Pearl fragment shimmering with seven-colored light.

Just as my hand was about to touch the fragment, the seven-colored light suddenly flared. In an instant, my vision was blinded, and I was thrown back by the radiance.

After several seconds, thankfully, my eyesight returned. As my vision cleared, I realized my body was no longer under my control.

A sense of dread washed over me. Surely, this was the work of the Crimson-Eyed Demon. He must have seized control of my body. I desperately wanted to let Feng Zi Mo and Lin Wei Yan know what was happening, but I couldn’t utter a word. In truth, they didn’t need me to explain; judging by their expressions, they had already noticed something was wrong.

From their faces, I could tell my eyes must be glowing red.

Feng Zi Mo timidly stepped back, likely still haunted by the shadow left on his heart.

Under the demon’s control, my body moved step by step toward the Soul Capturing Pearl fragment.

“What are you trying to do?” I asked inwardly.

The Crimson-Eyed Demon paid me no heed, but I could sense his excitement; my own heart was pounding wildly.

I watched helplessly as he guided my hand to grasp the fragment.

At that moment, the entire stone cave began to shake. Stones mixed with gold tumbled down, and it looked like the place might collapse at any moment.

Anxiously, I hoped the demon would quickly lead my body out of here, or else we’d all be doomed.

But I discovered he had no intention of leaving. Carefully, he tucked the Soul Capturing Pearl fragment into my pocket.

“What are you waiting for? If you don’t run now, it’ll collapse!” I reminded him again.

A strange laugh echoed—clearly the demon’s voice. I was about to lose my temper when suddenly my body went limp, and I regained control.

The mountain began to crumble in earnest. Lin Wei Yan rushed to shield me from the falling stones, afraid I might be injured.

Wu Xin, however, remained calm, as though waiting for something, his demeanor almost smug.

“Brother Wu, are you out of your mind? If you don’t run, you’ll be crushed!” I cried.

Wu Xin replied, “Don’t panic. Wait a bit longer. The exit will appear soon.”

As he spoke, five doors appeared on the shaking stone wall, each identical in size.

Wu Xin stared for several seconds, then pointed at one of the doors. “Here’s our chance. It’s this one. Let’s go!”

His words startled me. In this situation, any sensible person would run outside, not deeper in—wasn’t that courting death?

“Brother Wu, are you sure? If we go in, won’t we be crushed?” I asked.

Wu Xin smiled slightly. “You don’t understand. Follow me. I’ll get us out.”

He seemed so at ease that I was even more reluctant to trust him. It wasn’t that I didn’t believe in him, but running inside really felt suicidal.

Seeing us hesitate—Feng Zi Mo and Lin Wei Yan included—Wu Xin grew anxious, glaring at us. “What are you waiting for? If you don’t follow me now, it’ll be too late.”

He dashed into one of the doors, and after a brief hesitation, I gritted my teeth and decided to trust him this once.

The reason for my hesitation was that Wu Xin felt different somehow, his actions beyond what I thought possible for him.

Had I known he possessed such abilities, I would never have doubted him. If this was truly Wu Xin, he must have been concealing his full strength all along.

I followed Wu Xin into the door, and before leaving, picked up a chunk of gold stone from the ground.

Feng Zi Mo didn’t waste any time either; seeing me take one, he grabbed a piece for himself.

Though I wasn’t sure why he did so, I knew my purpose was to exchange it for cash once we got out. After all, Old Jiang’s money was nearly gone, and I still had his debts to repay.

After entering the door, darkness enveloped us. Despite my night vision, I couldn’t see a thing.

All I could hear was Wu Xin urging us, “Run forward, quickly! Don’t stop!”

I had no idea how long we ran; my legs felt numb, and we were still surrounded by pitch blackness. Wu Xin’s voice continued to urge us onward.

“Brother Wu, where are we?” I asked, anxiety mounting within me. I prayed Wu Xin was the real one, not some demon in disguise.

Wu Xin, breathing heavily, replied, “This is the Five Elements Array. Only by running through the portal of life can we truly escape.”

I knew nothing about formations, much less the Five Elements Array Wu Xin spoke of, so I could only run for my life.

Lin Wei Yan and Feng Zi Mo said little along the way, but when I checked on them, thankfully, they were still with me—we hadn’t been separated.

Finally, when exhaustion overwhelmed me, a dazzling white light appeared before us.

Stepping into the light, we found ourselves in a pine forest.

To our surprise, we had returned to the place where we’d lit a campfire last night, and it was already midday.

Lying on the grass, I exhaled deeply, completely spent and parched with thirst.

Looking around, there was no water in sight.

“Brother Wu, what’s going on? How did we end up back here?” I asked Wu Xin, who lay beside me.

Wu Xin waved his hand, signaling that we should rest before discussing it.

Five minutes later, Wu Xin said, “In truth, we never left this place. We merely entered the Celestial Mystery Array. The Nine Coffin Yin Valley is just part of the formation, and the Five Elements Array is within it as well.”

He paused before continuing, “To lay such a formation is beyond human capacity. At the very least, it would take a true immortal. It’s simply impossible otherwise, and the array consumes tremendous magical power.”