Chapter 248

Someone is launching a large-scale attack on the Mist Sea formation!

Wang Yu immediately understood what was happening.

The only ones who could gather so many people within the secret realm were almost certainly the demonic cultivators.

But he had no time to dwell on it.

Because not long ago, swarms of spider demonic beasts had emerged from both above and below the white mist—each with a different form, nearly all at the Entry Grade, forcing him to retreat to the surface and engage in successive battles.

At this moment, Wang Yu cast a deep glance at the distant, faintly visible massive flames, held the white formation disc in one hand, and turned sharply to stride into the deeper white mist in the opposite direction.

But before he had taken a hundred meters, the ground nearby trembled, and one after another giant spider emerged from the soil.

These spiders were a full circle larger than the previous ones, each covered in thick black carapace, with long fangs protruding from their mouths; as soon as they appeared, they rushed forward with a wave of foul stench.

Seeing this, Wang Yu could only stop in frustration, flipped his palm, and the "Wind and Fire Chant" artifact materialized, then he lightly pointed it at the giant spiders.

A chorus of "chit-chit" sounds erupted as a dozen red streaks shot out in rapid succession.

"Boom-boom-boom!"

Clusters of fireballs exploded among the spiders, unleashing rolling flames that engulfed the demonic beasts entirely, filling the air with the scent of roasting meat.

But before Wang Yu could retract his artifact, a "swish-swish" sound came from both sides of the Mist Sea, and more and more spider demonic beasts surged forth—there was no telling how many.

Wang Yu's face turned pale; he moved his foot and shot toward the other side of the Mist Sea like a released crossbow bolt, the white mist parting before him.

The surrounding spider demonic beasts swarmed after him in a frenzy.

…

From high above the temple ruins, dozens of colorful demonic flying vessels were moving low across the Mist Sea from all directions toward its center.

From within the Mist Sea, swarms of giant and small spider demonic beasts kept surging forth—some spewing fire, others exhaling freezing breath, still others sprouting twin wings, all attacking the flying vessels in a mad frenzy.

On these vessels, figures moved rapidly, launching all manner of artifacts and spells to swiftly slay the surrounding spiders, and most had already gained the upper hand, wiping clean the spiders nearby.

Then, several demonic cultivators would descend from the vessels and, on the ground nearby, paint intricate formation patterns with colorful paint, burying spirit stones and formation discs and flags into the earth.

In a hidden corner of the Mist Sea, a row of ten black giant bone vessels lined up, their decks covered with colorful formation patterns, each spot occupied by disciples of the Black Soul Sect clad in black robes.

Each disciple held a hand seal, murmured incantations, and channeled their entire cultivation energy into the formations.

In the empty air before the bone vessels, clusters of luminous orbs, each several feet wide, appeared and shot forth like giant projectiles, striking fixed locations within the nearby Mist Sea.

Immediately, massive bursts of colored light erupted across the Mist Sea, accompanied by continuous, earth-shattering roars that made the white mist churn violently; faintly visible were enormous multicolored runes appearing, shattering, then immediately reforming and coalescing as if alive.

High above these black bone vessels, a colossal four-armed white bone skeleton sat upon a massive bone chair wrapped in black mist, its eye sockets flickering faintly with glowing flames.

Beside the bone chair, a gaunt middle-aged man, as if receiving a message from his communication disc, immediately bowed respectfully to the giant white bone skeleton and reported:

"Ancestor, the time is nearly ripe—you must act now."

The giant white bone skeleton grunted, rose from its chair, and with a single wave of its four bone-white arms, four weapons materialized in its grasp—a blade, a hammer, a shield, and a banner—then its form drifted slowly forward into the Mist Sea.

…

Xi Menmei stood silently before the broken entrance of an ancient temple, gazing at the pitch-black double doors tightly shut, her expression uncertain.

Above the temple entrance hung a tattered plaque, on which the three characters "Jia Lan Temple" could still faintly be made out.

"Girl, be careful—this place is thick with demonic aura. If there are demonic beasts here, they won't be ordinary ones," a golden miniature toad perched on Xi Menmei's shoulder suddenly whispered a warning.

"A temple within a temple is never ordinary, especially one bearing the name 'Jia Lan.' But since we've come this far, there's no turning back," Xi Menmei replied in a silent voice, then lightly waved her green small banner, enveloping herself in a swirl of green light that lifted her gently upward, silently gliding over the gates.

But the moment her form passed through the temple gates, the air around her tightened, her body grew impossibly heavy, and she plummeted straight down to the ground.

Only then did the golden toad's urgent warning reach her ears: "Watch out—the space here is under a flight-prohibiting seal!"

The moment the words ended, Xi Menmei's feet slammed hard onto the temple's courtyard floor.

"Crack—crack—crack!" A series of crisp snapping sounds came from beneath her feet.

Xi Menmei gasped, looked down, and saw the ground covered entirely in white, shattered bones—some human, others bizarrely shaped, belonging to unknown beasts.

Near the temple entrance, however, several fresh skeletons still clad in tattered clothing and bearing patches of decayed flesh lay scattered, emitting a faint stench.

Xi Menmei nearly vomited, immediately held her breath, formed a hand seal, and waved her green banner repeatedly to block the foul odors; only after exhaling several deep breaths did her complexion begin to recover.

"Girl, that corpse looks like one of your Xuanwu Mountain disciples?" came the whisper from the golden toad.

"Where?"

Xi Menmei froze, turned her gaze to the fresh skeletons, and indeed spotted the Xuanwu Mountain emblem on the remnants of one's clothing.

She sucked in a sharp breath, then looked around—and realized she stood in an open courtyard.

The ground was littered with all manner of shattered bones; directly opposite the temple gates, a gray stone hall loomed, ancient and strangely shaped, its interior shrouded in faint black mist that blurred everything within.

"Why does this place feel so familiar…?"

Xi Menmei stared at the hall, her brow furrowed in suspicion—then, in a flash of insight, she cried out:

"This is the temple hall from the last two bas-reliefs underground!"

No sooner had the words left her lips than the black mist inside the hall surged outward as if alive, and a soft footstep echoed—then a blurred black figure stepped out from within the darkness.