Chapter 41: Exploring the Mystery

Deep in the fissure, purple light flickered, as if something terrible was about to break the seal.

Ji Chen licked his lips, excited light flickering in his eyes, and clenched his fists.

Ceng Yue gripped her ice sword tightly, her eyes firm, but there was still a hint of unease in her heart.

The two looked at each other, took a deep breath; the surrounding darkness seemed to want to swallow them, but there was only firm light in their eyes.

Ji Chen said in a deep voice: "Let's go, since we're here, there's no way back."

The two stepped toward the fissure, every step firm and powerful.

Cold wind came from the fissure, carrying a hint of chill; they seemed to have walked into a brand-new world.

The surrounding rocks became exceptionally smooth, and the purple light became increasingly intense, seemingly warning of something.

Suddenly, Ceng Yue slipped and accidentally touched a mechanism.

A harsh sound of a mechanism rang through the fissure, and countless sharp stone spikes shot out from all directions, shooting toward the two.

Ji Chen reacted extremely quickly, instantly maximizing his fire supernatural ability, forming a Flame Shield, blocking in front of Ceng Yue.

"Be careful!" Ji Chen roared, the Flame Shield shaking violently, and the stone spikes hitting the shield like raindrops, emitting "ding-ding-dang-dang" sounds.

Ceng Yue reacted quickly, her ice sword turning into a cold light, blocking several missed stone spikes.

"I'm sorry, I..." Ceng Yue whispered, her eyes full of self-reproach.

"Don't let your imagination run wild, now is not the time for self-reproach." Ji Chen frowned, a sharp pain coming from his wound, but he didn't retreat, instead becoming even more firm in his will, "We are partners, we must face these together."

The two continued forward; traps in the fissure emerged one after another, but they gradually found ways to deal with them amidst crisis after crisis.

Ceng Yue froze the mechanisms with her ice sword, Ji Chen melted the obstacles with flames, and the two cooperated increasingly tacitly.

As they went deeper, the environment in the fissure became increasingly harsh, the surrounding air became thin, as if some force was suppressing their supernatural abilities.

Ji Chen's flames were no longer as scorching as before, and Ceng Yue's ice sword became somewhat sluggish.

"What secret is here? It feels increasingly wrong." Ji Chen frowned.

Ceng Yue nodded, gripped the ice sword in her hand, and said firmly: "No matter what we encounter, we face it together."

The two continued forward; the purple light deep in the fissure became increasingly intense, as if something was waiting for them.

Suddenly, a huge Stone Gate appeared before them, carved with complex runes, emitting eerie light.

Ji Chen took a deep breath, clenched his fists, and firm light flickered in his eyes: "Get ready, Ceng Yue, we're going to open this door."

Ceng Yue nodded, her eyes full of trust and determination: "I'm ready."

Ji Chen pushed the door open gently, and the purple light instantly soared into the sky, shrouding the entire fissure within it.

The two's heartbeats accelerated, and an oppressive aura permeated the air.

"Everything starts here." Ji Chen said in a low voice, his tone carrying unquestionable firmness.

They stepped toward the unknown depths, welcoming new challenges.

Behind the Stone Gate was not the paradise they had imagined, but a long, narrow passage; purple light still permeated, and a strange smell permeated the air, like moldy old books mixed with the smell of rust, nauseating.

Even more eerie was that the surrounding air seemed to have frozen, breathing became difficult, and every step felt like stepping on cotton, light but exceptionally strenuous.

"Holy crap, what kind of crappy place is this? The air quality is too bad, even worse than my college dorm!" Ji Chen couldn't help but complain, feeling like a ball of wet cotton was stuffed in his lungs, stuffy.

Ceng Yue didn't speak, only frowned slightly; she could feel that it wasn't just an air problem here—some unknown force was suppressing their supernatural abilities, and the energy flow in their bodies became sluggish, like an old network, lagging to the point of doubting life.

As they went deeper, this sense of suppression became increasingly strong; Ji Chen felt his fire supernatural ability was like being splashed with a basin of cold water, wilted, unable to even spark a flame.

"No way, playing with me? How did my supernatural ability become an old-man machine?" He made a bitter face, feeling as if he had instantly turned from a max-level big shot into a rookie.

Ceng Yue's situation was no better; the chill on the ice sword weakened visibly, even beginning to melt, dripping onto the ground, emitting "sizzling" sounds, as if silently protesting.

Her face was also somewhat pale, and her steps became heavy.

"Looks like this place is even trickier than we imagined." Ceng Yue's voice was somewhat hoarse, carrying a hint of exhaustion.

Ji Chen took a deep breath, trying to adjust his breathing, "Don't panic, we'll definitely find a way." Although he said so, he had no bottom in his heart; this sense of powerlessness made him very unhappy.

Just as the two were about to despair, Ji Chen noticed with sharp eyes that embedded in the rock walls on both sides of the passage were some crystals emitting faint light; they were of various colors, like stars flickering in the night sky.

"What is this thing?" He curiously reached out to touch a red crystal.

The next second, a strange energy surged into his body along his fingertips; the originally wilted fire supernatural ability instantly fully recovered, even more powerful than before!

"Holy crap! This thing is also a Charging Treasure!" Ji Chen exclaimed in surprise, feeling he could do it again.

He immediately told Ceng Yue about this discovery, and the two began to crazily collect these energy crystals, like starving ghosts reincarnated, wishing they could stuff all the crystals into their pockets.

As they absorbed more and more energy, Ji Chen's supernatural ability climbed continuously, faintly showing a trend of breaking through the current realm.

"These crystals..." Ceng Yue looked at the blue crystal in her hand and looked at Ji Chen.

Ji Chen also noticed this; he clenched his fists, feeling the surging energy in his body, the corners of his mouth curling into a confident smile: "Perhaps, we can find a greater opportunity here."

Suddenly, a heavy sound of footsteps came from the end of the passage, accompanied by the clanging sound of metal collision, from far to near...

"Holy crap, these footsteps—who's clubbing?" Ji Chen complained, the flames in his hands already eager to try.

At the end of the passage, a group of Guardians wearing heavy armor and holding giant axes slowly appeared; they emitted a powerful sense of oppression, like a group of muscle-bound men who had just come out of the gym, their bodies full of explosive power.

"Looks like they're here to send their heads." Ji Chen curled his mouth.

"Be careful, they aren't simple." Ceng Yue whispered, the chill on the ice sword surging, and the surrounding temperature plummeted.

The battle was about to erupt!

The Guardians roared and charged, their giant axes carrying the momentum of splitting mountains and cracking rocks, slashing fiercely toward the two.

Ji Chen's flames turned into a fire dragon, roaring toward the Guardians, colliding with their giant axes, emitting a deafening roar.

Ceng Yue's ice sword was like a flexible ice snake, shuttling between the Guardians, every swing bringing up streaks of cold light, freezing a layer of frost onto their heavy armor.

Both sides' attacks went back and forth, the surrounding space constantly flickering with energy light, and a dangerous aura permeated.

The Guardians were powerful, every attack carrying huge strength, shaking the passage until it was on the verge of collapse.

But Ji Chen and Ceng Yue fought more bravely as they fought, stimulating stronger potential on the edge of life and death; the flames became more scorching, and the ice sword became sharper.

Suddenly, a Guardian's giant axe broke through Ji Chen's defense, leaving a deep wound on his chest that reached the bone.

Blood instantly stained his clothes red, and the intense pain made sweat seep from his forehead.

"Ji Chen!" Ceng Yue exclaimed, her eyes full of worry.

She erupted with powerful supernatural ability, the ice sword turning into countless ice blades, temporarily forcing the Guardians back.

Then, she flew to Ji Chen's side, her eyes full of heartache, gently checking his wound, and stopping the bleeding with chill; her gentle movements formed a sharp contrast with her usual coldness, and thick warmth permeated the air.

"I'm fine, don't worry." Ji Chen grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, "This small wound is just a sprinkle!"

Ji Chen's flames were like a volcanic eruption, burning the Guardians until they were in a sorry state; Ceng Yue's ice sword was like a polar storm, freezing them into ice sculptures.

Finally, the Guardians fell to the ground one by one, turning into a pile of gravel.

"Phew, these guys are really hard to deal with." Ji Chen spat out a turbid breath; the battle just now consumed a lot of his physical strength.

Ceng Yue didn't speak, only silently supported him, the tenderness in her eyes almost overflowing.

"Let's go."

The two continued forward, passing through the place where the Guardians had fallen, and saw a huge Stone Gate, carved with complex runes, emitting eerie light.

When they pushed open the Stone Gate, the scene before them shocked both of them.

"So... the crisis of the Supernatural World is actually..." Ji Chen's pupils contracted suddenly, muttering in a low voice. ===== CHAPTER 42 =====