Chapter 1256: Stepsandflower Court

In fact, as soon as they approached the cave entrance, they could see the bright light shining from deeper inside—probably the moonlight pouring down from the heavens.

Here, there was no need to hold up glowing spores; the light from the Bright Light Well almost made the space behind the door transparent, except for a few protruding rocks that rudely blocked the light.

He Lingchuan muttered: "Looks simple enough."

Having said that, he winked at Dong Rui—his left eye.

The One-Armed Ghost didn't understand and asked them: "The Ghost King has already fled to the surface. Still chasing?"

"Chase!"

"Wait!" Dong Rui kept looking back at Crystal Mountain, his heart itching unbearably, until he couldn't help but say: "Let me take a sample first."

"We don't have time..."

Before He Lingchuan could finish speaking, Dong Rui shot a gray light at the One-Armed Ghost, which instantly pierced through its body.

It jumped in fright, its phantom form trembling, and instinctively turned around—only to see the gray light whoosh through the air, drawing an arc, and lightly, cleverly drill into the hole on Crystal Mountain.

This was a living thing—Dong Rui's bat demon puppet.

Everyone watched it drill along the tunnel into Crystal Mountain, and then—

It drilled into the belly of a heavenly demon.

Dong Rui chuckled: "I knew I wasn't wrong—this hole was punched out of its belly!"

He Lingchuan said sternly: "The Ghost King is about to escape far away! This specimen won't run—can't you come back later to take it?"

"It won't make a difference in a few breaths." Dong Rui rubbed his hands: "Fresh flesh and blood!"

This would be the freshest sample he had obtained, greatly helpful for his future research.

"Done yet?" Every five breaths, He Lingchuan asked him once.

Three people, two monkeys, and one ghost were all waiting eagerly.

When asked for the fourth time, that little gray shadow suddenly reappeared, then flew back along the tunnel in Crystal Mountain into Dong Rui's hand.

It held a large piece of tissue in its mouth; He Lingchuan wasn't sure whether it was membrane or meat, or from what strange part.

But Dong Rui took it in his hand and smiled with utmost satisfaction:

"Fresh!"

He Lingchuan said angrily: "Can we leave now?"

"Yes, yes." Dong Rui carefully placed the soft tissue into a wide-mouthed bottle, which already contained some suspicious transparent liquid: "Alright, let's go."

The One-Armed Ghost had long been impatiently waiting; it now led the group into the Ritual Gate.

It also said while introducing: "This place is called Stepsandflower Court—actually the passage between the main gate and the ritual gate."

Everyone looked left and right; although close to the surface, this place felt colder than the deeper parts of the underground palace.

He Lingchuan suddenly asked: "Is the main gate still intact?"

"No, it was destroyed long ago." The One-Armed Ghost drifted forward without looking back: "Hurry up—exit through the main gate, and you'll reach the surface!"

It darted away too fast; Fuliushan pulled the chain: "What's the rush? Slow down!"

The One-Armed Ghost had already stood in the shadow behind the stone; Fuliushan's pull was utterly unsympathetic, yet it didn't budge at all.

He felt as if he were pulling a wooden stake driven into the ground.

The One-Armed Ghost had always looked like a dying candle in the wind—its soul fire seemed about to go out at any moment—but now it suddenly solidified?

It emerged from the shadow, revealing half its face: large eyes, gaunt cheeks, the light making it look deathly pale and eerie.

"Aren't you in a hurry?" The One-Armed Ghost said impatiently: "What kind of incompetent Daoist priest are you, failing to catch the Ghost King—don't blame me!"

Its tone of speech was now different from before.

Dong Rui laughed: "You're more anxious than we are."

The One-Armed Ghost stared fixedly at the three, opened its mouth: "Enemy within reach—I wish I could devour its flesh and sleep on its skin!"

"Or perhaps the Ghost King never fled at all?" Fuliushan stared at it: "Think about it—before leaving, the Ghost King didn't forget to devour all the souls in the cage. How could it have left the enemy's descendants behind? Is your cultivation higher than its? Otherwise, how could you hide under its nose?"

The One-Armed Ghost looked utterly wronged: "You... you..."

But this expression lasted only about three or four breaths; the resentment on its face slowly faded, the corners of its mouth curled up, revealing sharp teeth.

"You're right—that short-lived ghost was indeed swallowed by me in one gulp, along with the other cage ghosts!"

Ghost King? Fuliushan raised his Multitreasure Pestle, its tip turning into a sharp spike.

"Its stubbornness meant nothing—it was still eaten by me in the end." The Ghost King giggled twice, rubbing its belly: "You... will be the same!"

The One-Armed Ghost suffered for over eighty years, never got revenge, and still became nourishment for its enemy.

This pain and despair are exactly what the Xuanlu Ghost King loves as seasoning.

So down-to-earth.

"You think you're smart?" The Ghost King said gloomily: "If you were truly smart, how could you dare follow me into the immortal's trap?"

Actually, behind the stone there was a tiny hole, not much thicker than a hair, but a faint beam of dark light shot in from outside, just as fine as a hair. This little mechanism, when they previously stood outside the Ritual Gate, was invisible to them.

The Ghost King raised its hand and pressed down on that light.

Although it is now a soul body, blocking such a weak beam of light is still within its power.

Immediately after, the Ritual Gate behind He Lingchuan and the others suddenly closed.

The light source vanished, and Stepsandflower Court fell into total darkness, except for a faint remnant of moonlight ahead, indicating the direction of the main gate.

Dong Rui cried out: "Oh no! A trap!"

"Stepsandflower Court—step by step, killing machines. Originally not meant for you." The Xuanlu Ghost King laughed loudly: "Dying in a trap set by the immortals themselves—what an honor for you!"

Its laughter echoed in this secluded, enclosed space.

It had already stepped outside the boundary; logically, the next second two decapitation stones should fall from the sky in succession, separating these people from it.

Once they appear, they will seal off escape techniques.

Afterward, Stepsandflower Court, now turned into a sealed chamber, would automatically activate its mechanism.

The original owner of this cave dwelling was even more skilled in torture than it was. Even if the remaining mechanisms were few, there were still four or five steps enough to dismember any living creature inside, separating flesh from bone.

It's a pity the decapitating stone's sealing effect was too good; back then it couldn't hear the wails and screams from the secret chamber, so it missed out on much of the fun.

But that doesn't matter now—it's about to obtain the Luo Sheng Armor!

These fools, thinking they could ward off killing intent, dare to chase into its underground palace?

This place has always been one-way—no one who enters ever leaves. When it first moved into the underground palace, it once carried away many battered demon remains from here, proof enough of how deadly the immortal's trap is.

Even if demons came, they couldn't get out—what merit or ability do these few have?

Though the light was dim, it could still see the opponent's complexion.

Fu Liushan's expression changed drastically; with a raise of his hand, he threw two yellow talismans and stepped forward in pursuit.

His talisman-throwing skill was up to par—the lightweight yellow paper flew through the air, not much slower than an arrow, and the moment it left his hand it transformed into two massive fireballs blazing like Xiong Xiong.

The Xuan Lu Ghost King's reaction was to reach out and flick the two fireballs away, as if swatting two baseballs.

Right hand.

The severed right arm instantly regrew.

(End of chapter)