Chapter 204: Trapped in the Force Shield

Ji Chen felt his eyes blur, as if he had been teleported to an extra-dimensional space.

Everything was chaotic, with only a transparent barrier emitting ghostly light trapping him and Ceng Yue firmly, like a giant glass cover, or an invisible cage.

"Holy crap, what the hell?" Ji Chen cursed in a low voice, attempting to mobilize the ability within him; surges of surging energy poured toward his hands, he clenched his fists tightly and slammed them toward the seemingly weak light shield.

"Bang!"

With a dull roar, as if hitting a hard rock, the light shield remained unmoved, not even a crack appearing, only ripples appearing.

Ji Chen frowned, feeling his ability like a mud cow entering the sea, completely absorbed by this force shield.

"Don't believe this!" Ji Chen was not to be outdone, increasing the output of his ability, every attack carrying the power of thunder and lightning; however, the force shield was like a bottomless pit, no matter how he bombarded it, there was no reaction.

As time passed, Ji Chen's face became increasingly solemn.

He could clearly feel the surrounding space constantly compressing, like a gradually tightening noose.

His and Ceng Yue's range of movement grew smaller and smaller; the space where they could stand was now so small that even turning around became difficult.

"Hiss..." Ji Chen gasped, his body feeling waves of stinging pain, as if being squeezed by a thousand-pound weight; he tried hard to maintain a standing posture, not letting himself fall, but felt every breath becoming difficult; that powerful sense of oppression almost crushed his bones.

He looked at Ceng Yue beside him; she was also frowning, a hint of unease on her face, but she was still holding on, only gripping Ji Chen's hand tightly, as if seeking reliance.

"Damn, what the hell is this thing?" Ji Chen was burning with anxiety; he didn't want Ceng Yue to suffer any harm; this emotion turned into a powerful driving force, making his ability erupt again.

However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake the force shield in the slightest.

The sense of oppression in the space grew stronger, as if wanting to swallow them completely.

Ji Chen felt his lungs being tightly gripped by a giant hand, every breath carrying tearing pain.

He wanted to say something but discovered his voice had been suppressed to the limit.

He could feel Ceng Yue's palms becoming cold, and a sense of despair spread between the two.

Just then, Ji Chen suddenly felt that this seemingly flawless force shield appeared to have a faint energy fluctuation, like a ripple under a calm lake.

"Hmm?" Ji Chen's eyes froze; he didn't speak, only silently sensing the tiny change.

Ji Chen took a deep breath, trying hard to calm his pounding heart.

Panic was of no use; he had to calm down.

The previous violent attacks were just a futile consumption of ability and didn't find the key to breaking the situation.

Now, he had to change his thinking.

Closing his eyes, Ji Chen raised his perception to the limit, carefully sensing everything around him.

The sense of oppression still existed, like a maggot on a bone, unable to be shaken off.

However, in this suffocating oppression, Ji Chen captured a trace of abnormality.

The energy of the force shield was not unchanging but was fluctuating at an extremely regular frequency, like a heartbeat, one beat after another, weak yet clear.

"There's a chance!" Ji Chen was secretly happy; this tiny fluctuation might be the key to the breakthrough!

He held his breath and focused, silently activating the ability within his body.

Different from the violent output of the past, this time, he condensed his ability into a thin needle, carefully probing toward the source of the energy fluctuation.

As if touching the water surface, a ripple spread out.

Ji Chen could feel that the fluctuating energy was actually flowing into his body along his ability "needle."

At first, this energy was so weak it could almost be ignored, but as time passed, it gradually grew, turning into a trickling stream, finally converging into a galloping river.

Excitement flashed in Ji Chen's eyes.

The sense of oppression around him seemed to ease, and the light of the force shield dimmed slightly.

Ceng Yue had been watching Ji Chen silently; seeing hope reignite on his face, her tense nerves finally relaxed.

She leaned gently against Ji Chen's shoulder, her soft hair brushing against his cheek, a faint, lingering fragrance wafting toward his nose.

Ji Chen felt Ceng Yue's reliance, and a warm current surged in his heart.

He knew that no matter what kind of predicament they faced, they would move forward hand in hand and never give up.

He became even more determined to break through this damn force shield.

Suddenly, Ji Chen felt Ceng Yue's body tremble slightly. He looked down at her and found her

"Ji Chen..." Ceng Yue's voice trembled, "Look..."

Before Ceng Yue could finish, the chaotic space around them began to twist, and blurry energy phantoms appeared out of thin air; they had various forms, some like wild beasts clawing and scratching, some like warriors holding sharp blades, exuding an unsettling aura.

These phantoms had no physical form but could emit sharp screeches, making one's scalp tingle.

"Holy crap, playing dirty, huh?" Ji Chen cursed, shielding Ceng Yue behind him, his eyes locked on the phantoms constantly approaching.

He could feel that the attacks of these phantoms carried a strange energy, seemingly able to penetrate the body directly.

The phantoms moved; they were erratic like ghosts, their speed astonishing.

Ji Chen felt his eyes blur, and an energy phantom was already close at hand, slamming into his chest with a sharp whistling sound.

"Pfft!"

Ji Chen groaned, his body feeling intense pain, as if hit by a heavy hammer, a bloody wound appearing on his chest.

He gritted his teeth, not letting himself fall, roared, mobilized his ability, and threw a punch at the phantom.

The fist passed through the phantom's body but felt like hitting the air, having no effect.

The phantoms gathered again, launching even more violent attacks.

Ji Chen tried his best to dodge, but the number of phantoms was too large and their speed too fast; new wounds constantly appeared on his body.

"These ghosts are really tricky!" Ji Chen wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his heart burning with anger; his peripheral vision caught Ceng Yue on the side, her eyes calm, her hands condensing streaks of ice cones, shooting toward the phantoms.

Although the ice cones couldn't directly eliminate the phantoms, they could briefly hinder their actions, winning some time for Ji Chen.

"Good job!" Ji Chen roared, seizing the gap, and began to carefully observe the actions of these phantoms.

He discovered that the phantoms' attacks seemed related to the energy fluctuations of the surrounding force shield.

"So that's it!" Ji Chen's heart moved, and he quickly adjusted his ability, no longer attacking blindly, but synchronizing his ability with the frequency of the force shield's energy fluctuations, forming a reverse energy flow.

"Boom!"

Ji Chen's body seemed to turn into an energy transmitter, sending a strong shockwave toward the phantoms.

This time, the attack worked!

The phantoms twisted and deformed in the shockwave, finally turning into nothingness.

"It worked!" Ji Chen waved his fists excitedly, pursuing the victory, and broke the remaining phantoms one by one.

After the energy phantoms disappeared, the oppression of the force shield significantly weakened, and the ghostly light became dim.

"Done!" Ji Chen let out a long breath, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly, revealing a proud smile.

He could feel the energy of the force shield receding, and the surrounding space began to return to normal.

"Crack!"

A crisp breaking sound came, and the force shield wrapping them shattered like glass.

Ji Chen and Ceng Yue regained their freedom; they looked around, only to find themselves in a completely strange environment, the surroundings filled with an even more eerie aura.

Ji Chen and Ceng Yue stood side by side, observing their surroundings vigilantly. ===== CHAPTER 205 =====