Chapter 510: Mysterious Disappearance

When Zhang Nuo's body stood at the tip of the tower, his Divine Sense had already swept through the entire tower several times. What made him feel somewhat surprised was that there wasn't even a trace of a cultivator's aura in the tower!

"Could it be that someone is concealing their aura?"

Muttering to himself, Zhang Nuo did not dare to be careless. When he had just entered the Wilderness, he had encountered a Spirit Beast that could conceal its Spirit Power fluctuations, so in the Immortal World, there must certainly be cultivators who possessed such techniques!

With a flash of his figure, Zhang Nuo slipped in through a window on the top floor of the high tower! In the distance, Ling Hua and the other two watched Zhang Nuo enter the high tower, all of them breaking into a cold sweat for him!

After a period of time, the three discovered that there were no signs of fighting in the tower, and they couldn't help but become extremely curious. After another half an hour or so, Zhang Nuo walked out from the first floor of the black tower and sent a voice transmission to Ling Hua and the others in the distant sky!

"It's fine, you all come over!"

Upon hearing this, the three had their escape lights light up, and with a few flashes, they arrived before Zhang Nuo!

"Senior, what exactly happened inside?"

Ling Hua asked Zhang Nuo anxiously.

"The tower is empty, and at the same time, a portion of the items have disappeared, yet there are no traces of a struggle! Could it be that they went out on an external patrol?"

Zhang Nuo asked, looking at Ling Hua with suspicion.

"Impossible! External patrol squads are generally in groups of four, and every time they go on an external patrol, they always leave one person behind to guard the tower! Furthermore, they also knew that it was almost time for the handover; it is impossible for them to have gone out on an external patrol!"

Ling Hua said excitedly; the situation before him was something he could not believe! There were no traces of any fighting inside the tower, yet the cultivators in the tower had mysteriously disappeared!

Zhang Nuo took out a Jade Slip; it contained the information of the cultivators who were last stationed in this tower! Upon looking at it, Zhang Nuo's heart almost turned cold.

The cultivator leading the team was at the Spirit Transformation Mid-Stage, and one could imagine their strength. As for the three team members, they were all at the Nascent Soul Late Stage. In other words, the previous squad's overall strength was a large margin higher than Zhang Nuo and his group, and yet it was precisely such a squad that had disappeared in this tower!

If they had truly met with misfortune, then the strength of the person who acted could be imagined! Shuddering, Zhang Nuo felt a headache coming on; his luck was just too bad! To encounter such a thing on his first time out on an external patrol!

With a flick of his sleeve, a Golden Light flashed out, and after landing, it revealed the appearance of Xuan Jin! When Ling Hua and the others first saw Xuan Jin, they thought it was a cultivator, but after their Divine Sense probed it, they realized it was actually a Spirit Beast in its Transformation Stage!

"Xuan Jin, go underground and take a look! See if there is anything strange!"

"Yes! Master!"

After agreeing, Xuan Jin silently submerged into the ground! After a moment, he reappeared. Looking at Zhang Nuo, he shook his head helplessly, which meant that everything underground was also as usual, and there was no sign of it having been tampered with at all!

This time, all four of them fell into a panic. The cultivators in the tower had just disappeared silently like this; what exactly had happened?

"Forget it, don't think about them for now! Let's first activate the Restriction in the tower, and as for these matters, report them to Captain Kong in Gongyue City first!"

Zhang Nuo put on the airs of a leader and arranged the matters one by one! Two days later, the surface of the massive black tower emitted a five-colored glow, and the tower-protecting Restriction was activated!

Standing on the highest floor of the black tower, Zhang Nuo looked toward the Wilderness in front of him. Ahead was an endless desolate zone, and if one went further forward, it was a vast desert! That place was called the 'Nine Lives Desert' by Ling Hua and the others!

Upon first hearing this name, it didn't seem like much, but following Ling Hua's explanation, Zhang Nuo's expression could not help but change! The so-called nine lives referred to cats! Legend has it that cats have nine lives and can die nine times, and this 'Nine Lives Desert' meant that all nine lives would be thrown away inside, with no return!

In the desert, the scorching, unbearable high temperature was secondary; the most important thing was the countless Spirit Beasts hidden beneath the sand. Those Spirit Beasts had lived in this environment for years and had become extremely bloodthirsty and fierce!

As soon as they smelled the scent of human cultivators, they would immediately charge up! Even if they lost a few companions, they would still insist on keeping the human cultivators! Then they would eat their flesh and blood, and not even the bone fragments would be left!

Therefore, every time they went on an external patrol, the cultivators did not dare to step half a step into the 'Nine Lives Desert', fearing that they would provoke the troublesome Spirit Beasts!

After listening to Ling Hua's account, Zhang Nuo also became more cautious in his heart! Not to mention a small Spirit Transformation Stage cultivator like him, even if his cultivation had advanced to the Integration Stage, he would not dare to enter easily!

After staying in the black tower for a month, everything had been peaceful, and Zhang Nuo was also a bit confused. Where had the cultivators who were previously in the tower gone? Seeing that no one had returned, Zhang Nuo ordered Han Feiyi to record the matters here in detail on a Jade Slip, and then used a Ten Thousand Li Sound Transmission Fire Talisman to send it back to Gongyue City!

After arranging everything properly, Zhang Nuo let Ling Hua and Han Feiyi stay in the tower, while he took Zuoshi Kuo out to conduct their first external patrol!

Following the pre-arranged path, this external patrol would take about half a month, but Zhang Nuo was not at ease about the Stationing Tower, so he adjusted the path! He would only go out for three days for the time being!

After Zhang Nuo left with Zuoshi Kuo, Ling Hua and Han Feiyi activated all the Restrictions and hid on the top floor of the high tower; if anything happened, they would flee immediately!

Driving his escape light, Zhang Nuo watched the ground rapidly receding below, and there was always a sense of unease in his heart. Facing such a large area of the Wilderness, how could a few Stationing Towers defend against it? At most, they could only serve the purpose of an early warning! But if powerful Spirit Beasts attacked, the cultivators in the tower would all perish in the blink of an eye, and it wouldn't even serve the purpose of an early warning!

Zuoshi Kuo followed right behind Zhang Nuo, and seeing Zhang Nuo deep in thought, he did not dare to make a sound, fearing that he would disrupt Zhang Nuo's train of thought!

Now, Zhang Nuo was the only one here with powerful cultivation, and if even he found it very troublesome, it must be particularly tricky!

On the second day of the external patrol, Zhang Nuo encountered a few Spirit Beasts, but he did not spend much effort and killed them directly! These Spirit Beasts had all taken the initiative to attack them; if they had remained quiet and not acted, they would not have brought about their own destruction!

After circling a large loop around the Stationing Tower, Zhang Nuo returned to the tower. Before he had even entered the tower, he saw Ling Hua and Han Feiyi looking toward the distant sky with longing, and only when they saw Zhang Nuo return did their hearts finally settle!

On this external patrol, Zhang Nuo had not found a single clue, and as for high-level Spirit Beasts, he hadn't encountered any either! The matter was becoming increasingly difficult to understand! Since there were no high-level Spirit Beasts nearby, and no strange things had happened, then where had the cultivators who were previously stationed in this tower gone?

Three months later, Zhang Nuo and the others finally received a reply from Gongyue City! The information obtained from the Ten Thousand Mile Sound Transmission Talisman, however, gave all four of them a great shock!

The Sound Transmission Talisman contained Kong Mu's voice, warning Zhang Nuo and the others not to act rashly, and that they did not need to go on external patrols; they only needed to hide in the tower. He would immediately report this matter to the 'Immortal Domain Sixteen Chambers', and wait for them to discuss it before making a decision!

Hearing the name 'Immortal Domain Sixteen Chambers' once again, Zhang Nuo's brows twitched slightly.

"Ling Hua, what kind of place is the 'Immortal Domain Sixteen Chambers' exactly? Why does the Protective Domain Seventh Team have to listen to their unified deployment?"

"Senior, you may not know! This 'Immortal Domain Sixteen Chambers' was jointly established by the Three Great Powers and is located in a hidden position in the center of the Immortal Domain. Cultivators with low cultivation like us don't even know where it is! In the Sixteen Chambers, there are sixteen cultivators who have reached the Refining Void Stage! The Three Great Powers each sent five cultivators, and as for the other one, according to rumors, it is very likely a Great Accomplishment Stage cultivator who does not belong to any faction! These sixteen people thus formed the 'Immortal Domain Sixteen Chambers'! Their main purpose is to ensure the safety of the Immortal Domain!"

Listening to Ling Hua's account, Zhang Nuo was already terrified to the extreme! Fifteen Refining Void Stage cultivators and one Great Accomplishment Stage cultivator—the strength of such a combination was just too terrifying!

However, in an instant, Zhang Nuo's expression changed because of this!

"Just as you said, the 'Immortal Domain Sixteen Chambers' is located in the center of the Immortal Domain, very far from Gongyue City. If we have to go back and forth to ask for instructions, it will take a long time! Captain Kong asked us to wait here, but when will it ever end? I think this matter must be very serious; if we happen to meet with an accident during this period, wouldn't we have no hope of escape at all!"

With his thoughts turning rapidly, Zhang Nuo pointed out the stakes involved! Upon hearing this, the three also revealed bitter expressions. It seemed that Kong Mu had abandoned them! Leaving them to fend for themselves!

"Captain, what should we do now?"

Ling Hua asked with a worried face. In the tower, Zhang Nuo was the highest commander, and at critical moments, he had to be the one to make the decisions! After lowering his head and pondering for a moment, since Kong Mu did not care about their lives at all, Zhang Nuo did not need to risk his life for him!

As long as he did his duty and completed this external patrol mission, that would be enough. Just now, Kong Mu also said in the Sound Transmission Talisman that they only needed to stay in the tower! In this way, things would be easier to handle!

At once, Zhang Nuo raised his palm, and several Array Disks appeared in his palm. He glanced at the three and said:

"You must immediately set up these Array Disks around the Stationing Tower. Remember, no matter how many Spirit Stones it costs, you must activate all the Array Disks. If the Spirit Stones are not enough, you can ask me for them! The opponent we are facing is very likely a Spirit Beast cultivator above the Integration Stage! If there is the slightest mistake, even I will not have my life to return to Gongyue City!"

Zhang Nuo voiced his conjecture! His words were not alarmist; how could the cultivation of a guy who could make a Spirit Transformation Mid-Stage cultivator and three Nascent Soul Late Stage cultivators disappear silently be weak?

After hearing this, the three's expressions turned ugly at the same time, and they went to carry out the task according to Zhang Nuo's instructions!