Chapter 240

"Theoretically it's possible, but this is my first time encountering such a teleportation array—I've only seen it described in texts, so I need to inspect it further before I can confirm." Xi Men Mei replied with a smile.

"Fortunately, Sister Xi Men is an array apprentice; otherwise, a regular Qi Condensation disciple trapped here would be in serious trouble." Wang Yu felt a wave of relief upon hearing this.

"I thought the same—thankfully I asked you, Brother Wang, to come with me; otherwise, I might not have handled this situation alone." Xi Men Mei whispered back, the slight coldness between her and Wang Yu seemingly vanished in an instant.

Wang Yu chuckled, saying nothing more.

At this moment, Xi Men Mei had already examined the entire stone platform, especially the three prismatic pillars; after touching some hidden mechanism, each pillar's surface revealed a recess, each holding a fist-sized crystal—two blue, one green—all glowing brilliantly, brimming with abundant spiritual energy.

"These are top-grade spiritual stones."

After a brief inspection of the three spiritual stones, Xi Men Mei suddenly let out a surprised exclamation.

"That one stone can be exchanged for ten thousand ordinary spiritual stones." Upon hearing this, Wang Yu couldn't help but lean in for a closer look.

"Indeed, top-grade spiritual stones are far rarer than mid-grade ones—often only a few can be mined from an entire small spiritual stone deposit."

"Top-grade spiritual stones have extremely wide applications—they're used in forging, arrays, and alchemy, and even high-level cultivators sometimes require them to assist in breakthroughs."

"Using top-grade spiritual stones for cultivation—only Golden Core elders would have the privilege to do so," Wang Yu said, clicking his tongue, his envy unmistakable.

"You're overestimating—even Golden Core elders rarely waste top-grade spiritual stones on daily cultivation. But once spiritual stones reach top-grade, their spiritual energy becomes so pure it's nearly free of impurities; cultivators can absorb them directly with no side effects."

"As for the exchange rate you mentioned—one top-grade stone for ten thousand low-grade ones—that's just the official price."

"In reality, the actual exchange rate for top-grade stones is doubled; if it's an exotic-element spiritual stone, the price could even double again."

"It seems this teleportation array demands tremendous spiritual power—only top-grade spiritual stones can sustain its consumption." Xi Men Mei gave a brief explanation, then walked to the center of the platform, rotated her ring several times, moved to a corner, pressed her palm against a spiritual rune, and slowly infused it with her cultivation energy.

The next instant, the entire platform trembled, and the three prismatic pillars slowly opened outward.

The spiritual runes on both the platform and the pillars began to glow and flicker; streams of multicolored spiritual light converged toward the platform's center, faintly forming a massive circular pattern.

Xi Men Mei watched intently, then after a moment released her hand and exclaimed excitedly to Wang Yu:

"This teleportation array is perfectly functional—we can activate it anytime to send us out."

"Then what are you waiting for? Let's go now," Wang Yu replied, equally delighted.

"But have you considered where the other side of the teleportation array might lead?" Xi Men Mei glanced at the now-illuminated array, hesitating again

By now, Sister, do you still think you have a choice?

No matter where the other side of the teleportation array leads, we must use this array to leave.

"I'm actually worried—could this teleportation array send us straight outside the secret realm?" Wang Yu replied without hesitation.

"Outside the secret realm? That's impossible.

This teleportation array only has three auxiliary transmission axes—clearly, it's only a short-range array. According to the classics, its maximum range doesn't exceed a hundred li.

To cross an entire secret realm, a teleportation array would need at least five or more auxiliary axes to maintain stability; otherwise, it couldn't withstand the immense pressure of the void.

But you're right, Brother—right now, we truly have no other options. And once we leave here, we'll regain our ability to cast spells. Brother, come up." Xi Men Mei first shook her head, then gave a bitter nod.

Then, as Wang Yu stepped onto the center of the array, she walked over too, one hand forming a seal, and lightly pointed at the spiritual runes on the platform.

The array, which had begun to dim, hummed again. The three high-grade spirit stones on the prismatic pillars blazed with light simultaneously, causing the pillars to blur and twist.

Wang Yu felt a blinding flash of light swirl before his eyes—he closed them instinctively, his body floating as if in zero gravity, while a powerful wave of dizziness washed over him.

"Puff."

Wang Yu suddenly broke free from the weightless state, his feet touching solid ground again. He staggered, nearly falling, but beside him came Xi Men Mei's soft cry.

Wang Yu quickly opened his eyes and scanned his surroundings.

He found himself in another stone chamber, roughly the same size, with an identical teleportation array beneath his feet—and the same three prismatic pillars humming softly.

Had it not been for the white stone door tightly shut at the chamber's entrance, he might have thought he was still in the original room, never having moved an inch.

The spiritual runes on the floor of the array still emitted various hues of light, but they were fading rapidly.

Xi Men Mei sat down heavily on the ground beside her, with no regard for decorum.

Seeing Wang Yu look over, she blushed deeply and forced herself to stand, but her body swayed unsteadily—she had clearly not yet recovered from the teleportation's side effects.

Wang Yu pondered briefly, then stepped off the array, formed a seal with one hand, murmured incantations, and a wisp of flame appeared atop his fingertip.

He couldn't help but feel immense joy.

"There are no spell seals here at all. That means, as long as we don't encounter something overwhelmingly powerful, we at least have a chance to defend ourselves." Xi Men Mei also pulled out a bronze mirror, glanced around briefly, and spoke with equal delight.

"True—but Sister, don't forget this could still be a dangerous place. We must remain extra cautious." Wang Yu said solemnly to her.

"You're right. Let's first determine where we are and who might be around.

But before that, let's activate the Xiao Mi Yun Flag talisman and conceal ourselves." Xi Men Mei snapped to attention, thought for a moment, flipped her hand, and a piece of beast hide appeared in her grasp—the Xiao Mi Yun Flag talisman.

"That's certainly safer, Sister. I'll open this door first." Wang Yu nodded vigorously in agreement.

Then Xi Men Mei drew forth a faint green banner from the beast hide, waved it once, and a large swath of green aura enveloped both of them again.

Seeing this, Wang Yu walked confidently to the stone door, glanced at it briefly, estimated its weight, then gripped it firmly with both hands and shoved sideways.

A deep rumbling echoed—the stone door was incredibly heavy; even with Wang Yu's current strength, he could only push it open slowly.

Fortunately, the entire area lay within the Xiao Mi Yun Flag's protective field, so there was no need to fear that the noise might alert anyone outside.