Chapter 175: The Bizarre Soul-Crying Secret Realm

"Just luck."

Ye Lin gave a faint smile, unwilling to say more.

Han Huizhen did not continue to press him; she was a little afraid that Ye Lin might suddenly start singing.

After sweeping her gaze over the five of them, Han Huizhen instructed them in a deep voice.

"Before we enter the Soul-Crying Secret Realm, I will give a brief self-introduction. My name is Han Huizhen, I am your sophomore senior, a Level 36 Wood-type Mage, and the safety officer responsible for your group's safety."

"Remember, if you encounter life-threatening trouble, you must ask me for help. I will intervene; you must never try to be a hero."

"As long as the green hills remain, there will be wood to burn. It is just an assessment; if you fail, you fail. Preserving yourselves is what matters most. Do you understand?"

Hearing the seriousness in Han Huizhen's tone, the five of them all nodded solemnly.

At this moment, the entrance to the Soul-Crying Secret Realm finally opened under Yan Lanbing's manipulation!

A massive, vortex-shaped portal appeared on the plaza, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

"Let's go!"

Han Huizhen led the group and stepped directly into the portal.

As the scene before their eyes shattered and reassembled, the sound of dripping water echoed in their ears.

When everyone raised their eyes, what appeared before them was an endless underground karst cave. Aside from a bit of light filtering through sinkholes in the ceiling, everything in sight was pitch black.

"It's so dark. Where are we supposed to find the Soul-Devouring Demon Beast?" Ji Lingyu asked, looking toward Han Huizhen.

"Think for yourselves. Aside from your personal safety, you must discuss and solve everything else as a group."

As she spoke, Han Huizhen pointed to a miniature camera on her chest, signaling that everything at this moment was being recorded.

"Fine, fine."

Ji Lingyu drew his long sword.

"Boss, stay close to me. This place isn't easy to walk in; it's very slippery, full of pits and bumps, and there are many stalactites."

Ye Lin nodded, though he was pondering how to break away from this group. After all, being with Ji Lingyu and the others meant he had to hold back.

At this time, Xu Yu volunteered to step forward.

"I'll take the lead. My defense is high, so if we encounter any danger, I can hold out for a while."

Everyone nodded, offering no objections.

The air was filled with a damp, decaying scent that was very unpleasant after a long time.

Moreover, what was strange was that they had been in the Soul-Crying Secret Realm for so long, yet they hadn't seen a single demon beast.

At first, Xu Yu, who was walking in front, was very vigilant, but as they walked, he began to feel that something was wrong.

"Why do I feel... like we've been walking in circles the whole time?" Xu Yu couldn't help but say.

"I have that feeling too," Ji Lingyu nodded as well.

"Should I go ahead and take a look? I'm fast," Lin Wenyu whispered.

"Too dangerous. According to the logic of domestic horror movies, the one who strays from the group gets killed," Ji Lingyu replied, shaking his head.

"It is possible that we have already fallen into the Soul-Devouring Demon Beast's illusion," Ye Lin suddenly spoke up. He had long since sensed that something had been following them.

Hearing this, Han Huizhen couldn't help but glance at Ye Lin.

She had only just realized that a Soul-Devouring Demon Beast was targeting them; that Ye Lin could react to it was truly beyond her expectations.

He was worthy of being the man who survived a month under Professor Shen unscathed.

"What? We're in an illusion? Why didn't I notice anything?" Ji Lingyu asked in surprise.

"That's impossible, right? We all got caught at the same time?" Xu Yu also found it hard to believe.

"We'll know if we verify it."

Duan Ling, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. She raised her hand and scattered a handful of powder, which drifted over and landed on Ye Lin and the others.

"Hey, what are you doing!"

Knowing Duan Ling's profession, the others were all startled and scrambled to dodge, but Duan Ling's move was too sudden, and some powder inevitably landed on them.

Duan Ling didn't speak, but stared straight at them. After a moment, she said.

"You show no signs of the poison taking effect, which means we are indeed in an illusion."

"No, sister! You're being way too reckless! What if we weren't in an illusion? Wouldn't we have been poisoned to death by you?" Ji Lingyu questioned, somewhat annoyed.

"It wouldn't kill you. The poison just now would only paralyze the whole body for a few dozen seconds," Duan Ling said flatly.

"You still can't just poison your teammates like that!" Ji Lingyu retorted.

"If I wanted to kill you, even with that Han woman here, the four of you wouldn't survive. If you don't believe me, you can try." Duan Ling shot a cold glance at Ji Lingyu, who instantly felt a sense of extreme danger, as if he were being watched by a venomous snake.

At this moment, Ye Lin stepped directly in front of Ji Lingyu and asked with a kindly smile.

"Then take a guess: before the poison takes effect, how many forbidden spells can I cast?"

Duan Ling narrowed her eyes, a cold glint flashing in their depths.

"We're all schoolmates, let's value harmony! We're still trapped in this illusion, so let's think about how to break it first."

Seeing the tension rising and the two sides ready to fight at any moment, Xu Yu hurriedly acted as a peacemaker.

Duan Ling turned her head away with a cold face, and Ji Lingyu muttered about his bad luck; if he had known Duan Ling was so adept at poisoning her own teammates, he never would have invited her to join the group.

However, after calming down, the group began to worry about the illusion before them.

It would be fine if the Soul-Devouring Demon Beast just appeared, but this creature was hiding in the dark and refusing to show itself, merely creating illusions to exhaust them, which was very troublesome.

The corners of Han Huizhen's mouth couldn't help but curl into a beautiful arc. She remembered that when she first entered the Soul-Crying Secret Realm as a freshman, she had encountered this and was trapped for a full half-hour before she managed to escape.

She wondered how long this group of freshmen she was leading would take?

"How about I lead the way?"

Just as Han Huizhen was curious, Ye Lin suddenly spoke, pointing to his own empty eye sockets.

"This illusion that keeps us walking in circles is likely something like a 'ghost wall,' probably confusing us through our vision. As it happens, I don't have vision."

After hearing this, Ji Lingyu and the others felt it was feasible.

Thus, Xu Yu and Ye Lin swapped positions, and Ye Lin took the lead.

But just as Ye Lin walked a few steps, Ji Lingyu and the others realized something was wrong.

"Boss! Something's wrong! Why are you walking into the sky!"

The scene before them was extremely bizarre; Ye Lin was stepping through the air, walking higher and higher as if he were floating.

"Walking into the sky?"

Ye Lin was also surprised, as he was walking in a straight line based on his own senses; there was no such thing as walking into the sky.

Ye Lin quickly realized what was happening and warned them.

"Don't trust your eyes! Your damn eyes are lying to you!"