Chapter 960: The Lantern Bearer

The courtyard, which had originally been filled with violent energy fluctuations, suddenly fell silent; if not for the wreckage strewn across the ground, even Li Luo would have thought the earlier scene of drawn swords and taut bows was merely an illusion.

Three beams of light stood quietly beneath the stone platform, as if they had at this moment reined in every trace of aggression.

Emotions churned within Li Luo's heart, his gaze flickering; after a moment, he slowly walked toward the stone platform, at the same time extending his palm to keep the cluster of "Small Formless Fire" burning within it.

His body was taut, the dragon-shaped mark on his brow remained in an activated state, and the phase force within him ceaselessly surged, not daring to relax in the slightest.

Under such caution, Li Luo once again approached the stone platform, yet the three light-figures formed by the disciples of the Formless Holy Sect offered no obstruction whatsoever.

And so Li Luo smoothly reached the stone lamp.

With a sweep of his sleeve, the "Spirit Phase Golden Dew" within the stone lamp slowly rose; he swiftly took out a jade vial and poured the entirety of it inside.

The process went so smoothly it was almost hard to believe, and the three light-figures nearby showed no sign of making a move.

Joy welled up in Li Luo's heart as he examined the cluster of Small Formless Fire in his hand, a contemplative look surfacing in his eyes.

Judging from the reactions of these "Formless Holy Sect" disciples, it was clear that not every disciple possessed the qualification to cultivate "Small Formless Fire," and those who could cultivate this flame must certainly hold a rather high status within the Formless Holy Sect.

Moreover, the "Formless Holy Sect" disciples before him were merely energy projections, not real beings, so they lacked spiritual intelligence and took him for a high-ranking member of the "Formless Holy Sect," which was why they ceased their attack and even saluted him.

Li Luo thought it over, attempting to use the "Small Formless Fire" to control these Formless Holy Sect disciples, but after several tries, the latter did not stir in the slightest, forcing him to abandon such a naive notion.

"Enough, being able to avoid being attacked is already an enormous advantage." Li Luo smiled, then he lingered no longer, turned and left directly, and continued his exploration along the quiet corridor.

Although ten drops of Spirit Phase Golden Dew was not a small amount, it was still far from meeting his needs, so he had to keep pressing on.

Thus, in the following half hour, Li Luo discovered several more courtyards containing "Spirit-Gathering Stone Lamps," though some of the "stone lamps" appeared to have already shattered, losing their spirit-gathering effect, so after a thorough search, Li Luo only managed to gather a dozen or so drops of Spirit Phase Golden Dew.

Moreover, as time went on, Li Luo began to sense some movement coming from behind; clearly, this was the next wave of people beginning to pour into the Golden Hall.

Violent bursts of phase force also exploded from time to time, whether it was loose cultivators fighting over spoils or whether they had alarmed some "Formless Holy Sect" disciples in the area.

"I need to speed up."

Li Luo muttered to himself; although this Golden Hall was vast, as more and more loose cultivators poured in, they would inevitably claim a large share of the "Spirit Phase Golden Dew," so he had to get ahead and fill his belly first.

Li Luo's figure moved, Lei Guang flashing beneath his feet as he shot swiftly toward the depths.

And as Li Luo gradually pressed deeper, suddenly his footsteps halted sharply, every hair on his body standing on end, and the dragon-shaped mark on his brow emitted an intense stinging pain.

Li Luo's heart jolted with fright and he hurriedly stopped; this was a warning from his fleshly body, indicating that something capable of threatening his life had appeared here.

Li Luo's expression turned solemn, his gaze warily sweeping his surroundings, while his fingers touched the "Scarlet Bracelet" on his wrist, where the Three-Tailed Heavenly Wolf resided.

Within this "Spirit Phase Cave Heaven" there was a level suppression, so Li Luo normally did not dare to employ the power of the "Three-Tailed Heavenly Wolf," lest he draw the suppression of this space; but if it truly came to a life-or-death moment, he could not afford to worry about that, and as long as he kept the power of the "Three-Tailed Heavenly Wolf" somewhat restrained, it should not cause too great a commotion.

And just as Li Luo was on full alert, he heard a faint sound of footsteps coming from the end of the corridor shrouded in a thin mist; the footsteps were oddly insubstantial, and he could not tell what manner of being it was.

Li Luo's gaze fixed intently on that direction.

A moment later, from within the thin mist, a human figure slowly emerged; the figure's features were blurred, its body giving off a faint illusory quality—it was clearly not a real person.

Moreover, it wore the robes of the "Formless Holy Sect," though its garments were traced with golden thread, appearing far more splendid and exquisite than those of the earlier disciples.

"Another energy shadow of the Formless Holy Sect?" Li Luo's heart trembled slightly, but then he wondered—why would this energy shadow be wandering about here?