Chapter 466: Mysterious Voice
There must be something special hidden beneath this platform, or perhaps another space entirely. But as Mo Li said, with his strength, it was completely impossible for him to break open this platform.
Yun Che searched the surroundings but found no mechanism or switch-like object. He had no choice but to give up and walk back up the stone steps.
The stone steps were very long. Yun Che walked for a long time before he had only covered half the distance.
"You... are... who…………"
Yun Che's steps abruptly stopped, and he quickly turned his head to look around: "Who? Who's speaking!?"
"Ah... Brother Yun, what's wrong?" Feng Xue'er, who was quietly nestled in his arms, was startled by him and asked somewhat anxiously.
Yun Che swept his gaze around, focusing his mind on his ears. He said in a low voice, "Xue'er, did you hear any sound just now?"
"Just now?" Feng Xue'er shook her head in confusion.
Just now, Yun Che had clearly heard an extremely faint voice. That voice was very weak, seeming to be a woman's voice, and was exceptionally ethereal, making it impossible for him to tell from which direction it came, or whether it might be... an illusion?
"Mo Li, did you hear that voice just now?" Yun Che frowned and asked.
"Not at all," Mo Li replied. "What did you hear?"
"..." Even Mo Li hadn't heard it, which made Yun Che have to doubt whether he had just experienced an auditory hallucination. He composed himself, stood still, and swept his gaze around for a long time, but heard nothing more.
Yun Che continued to lift his steps and walk upward along the stone steps. After a long while, he finally reached the second floor of this ancient castle.
The walls, floor, and ceiling were all dark greenish-black, identical to the first floor in every way. Yun Che did not continue upward but directly walked toward an open stone door.
Behind the stone door, surprisingly, was a neat and simple place resembling a courtyard. Inside were stone tables, stone stools, and numerous earthen jars of the same dark color, most of which were already damaged. Behind the courtyard were seven or eight regularly arranged rooms. Yun Che walked in, stood before the stone door of one room, and tentatively pushed it with his hand.
Immediately, on the right side of the stone door, a small profound formation no larger than a palm flickered into view. As the formation rotated, the stone door slowly opened automatically.
"The doors here should all be set with such profound formations, used for easy opening and sealing. However, the profound energy of these small formations is already very weak, so weak that even you can easily destroy them. But it's extremely rare for them to have lasted from the ancient era until now. The strength of those who set up these formations is by no means ordinary," Mo Li said seriously.
"This place looks like it was used for living," Yun Che said as he walked into the stone chamber. Inside was a stone table, two stone stools, a stone shelf resembling a cabinet, and a stone bed wide enough. The layout of the other rooms should be roughly similar. This castle was so huge that if it were used for lodging, it could probably accommodate the entire population of the Cang Feng Kingdom.
Yun Che turned around and found a small profound formation flickering faintly on the back of the stone door, appearing and disappearing. Its position was the same as the formation that had appeared when he pushed the door open. It should be the same formation, but visible only from the inside; from the outside, it only appeared when the door was touched.
"Try using your profound energy to activate this formation," Mo Li suddenly said.
Yun Che extended his hand as instructed and sent a moderate amount of profound energy into the formation. Instantly, with a rumbling sound, the open stone door slammed shut at an extremely fast speed.
"Just as I thought," Mo Li said. "Activating this formation from the inside completely locks the stone door, making it openable only from within and not from outside. It's quite suitable for self-defense. In the ancient era, various demons, monsters, and beasts roamed freely. This basic self-defense measure should have been very common. However, if someone destroyed the formation from the outside, it would instead seal oneself inside."
"Xue'er, let's rest for a while."
Yun Che walked over to the stone bed and sat down against the wall. As his mind relaxed, a wave of fatigue surged over him like a flood. He did not let go of Feng Xue'er but instead adjusted his position, still holding her in his arms... He could have taken bedding from the Heavenly Poison Pearl and laid it on the stone bed, then let Feng Xue'er lie down, but he clearly was unwilling to do so. Because to hold the Snow Princess like this was a feeling that could make any man infatuated and unwilling to let go.
"You... are... who..."
Just as Yun Che sat down, his entire body gave a slight jolt, and his head lifted sharply. If the first time might have been an illusion or hallucination, then this time, Yun Che absolutely did not think it was an illusion! He had heard that voice clearly... it was exactly the same as before.
"Who are you? Who is speaking to me?" Yun Che concentrated his mind and shouted loudly. This towering ancient castle that had suddenly appeared within the Primordial Mystic Ark, a place Mo Li believed had no living beings since the ancient era, how could there be a woman's voice?
"You heard the voice again?" Mo Li asked in surprise.
Since Mo Li asked that, it naturally meant she still hadn't heard this voice. That meant... only Yun Che could hear that voice, which was conveyed solely to him.
Yun Che fell silent for a long time again, but heard nothing more. He frowned and said, "There must be someone in this castle! But the distance from me should be very far. Still, she knows of my existence."
"If it's not your illusion, then it can only be a remnant soul," Mo Li said slowly.
"Remnant soul?"
Mo Li's voice was very calm, as if she were long accustomed to such "remnant souls." "And it's likely an extremely weak remnant soul, otherwise it wouldn't be so difficult even to emit a soul voice. You don't need to look for her. Since she is willing to consume her weak soul power to speak to you, it means she is quite interested in you and will take the initiative to speak again. If you got no response, it's probably because her soul power is so weak that she needs to wait a long time between each sentence before she can say the second."
"Brother Yun, is there... someone else?" Feng Xue'er raised her head in his arms and asked softly.
Yun Che shook his head: "No, it's just that I seemed to hear some sound. Xue'er, you must be very tired. Get some good rest. In this place we're in now, no one can find us."
Feng Xue'er gently shook her head: "I'm not tired... Brother Yun is the one who's really tired."
"I'll recover after just a short rest," Yun Che said with a smile. With the Dragon God's Body and the Great Dao Pagoda Art, his profound energy and physical strength recovered several times faster than ordinary people.
They fell silent. After several hours of non-stop escape, their hearts finally settled. Yun Che could finally savor the warmth and softness in his arms. Holding the Snow Princess like this, so gently, was probably a dream scenario that no man would dare to imagine. And the Snow Princess lay on his chest like a docile kitten, without struggle or resistance, only peace.
"Xue'er, has your Fenghuang God Sect's Phoenix God truly passed away?" Yun Che asked softly. The answer to this question, Mo Li had told him, and the words of Ye Xinghan and Feng Feiyan had further confirmed it.
Feng Xue'er was silent for a moment, then nodded gently: "Three years ago, Lord Phoenix God ascended to immortality. Sixteen years ago, the reason Lord Phoenix God chose me after my birth was because He knew His life was nearing its end and needed a successor with sufficient aptitude. I followed Lord Phoenix God for thirteen years and received His entire inheritance... His source force, His soul force, all the Phoenix Blood in His body, and all His memories."
Feng Xue'er's words made Yun Che suddenly understand... No wonder she, only sixteen years old, possessed the strength of a Half-step Emperor Lord. No wonder she could easily identify his bloodline and knew so clearly about the grudges between the two Phoenix Spirits back then. Although the Fenghuang God Sect's Phoenix God had died, He had passed on His source force, soul force, and even memories entirely to Feng Xue'er! This made Feng Xue'er's foundation terrifyingly high. Her growth speed and the height she could reach in the future would undoubtedly be astonishing.
It was also no wonder that Feng Xue'er held such an exalted position in the Fenghuang God Sect. Having inherited everything from the Phoenix God, once Feng Xue'er fully matured, she would essentially become the second Phoenix God of the Fenghuang God Sect! As the future Phoenix God, the sect naturally had to protect her to the utmost! They could not allow even a slight possibility of her perishing before she grew up.
"The passing of Lord Phoenix God is known only to my Father, the Grand Elder, Crown Prince Brother, Grandfather, Great-Grandfather, and me... a total of six people. Father said this is the greatest secret of our sect and must never be leaked, not even to fellow sect members. However, in the second year, the Four Sacred Grounds constantly sent sound transmissions to probe about Lord Phoenix God, as if they all knew that He had departed. Father was both furious and puzzled, always guessing that the Sacred Grounds might have sensed the disappearance of Lord Phoenix God's aura and thus probed... Who would have thought it would actually be..."
Feng Xue'er's voice was filled with sorrow. She still hadn't recovered from the Grand Elder's betrayal and couldn't help but worry about the future of the Fenghuang God Sect. Without the deterrence of the Phoenix God, the Fenghuang God Sect would surely struggle under the unrestrained suppression of the Four Sacred Grounds. For five thousand years, the Fenghuang God Sect had developed so rapidly under the watch of the Four Sacred Grounds, to the point of almost reaching the level of the Sacred Grounds. The existence of the Phoenix God was the sole reason.
Yun Che sighed inwardly but wasn't too surprised. In any force, the one most prone to disloyalty is often the person who is above millions but below one or a few. Such people know the most, are closest to the pinnacle, and even understand all the strengths and weaknesses of the entire force. At a suitable moment, disloyalty can easily arise. If the Fenghuang God Sect had continued to flourish, Feng Feiyan's disloyalty might never have awakened until his death. But the Phoenix God's passing made him panic about the sect's future and also about his own future. After weighing the options, he chose to pledge allegiance to the Sun Moon Divine Palace as early as possible.
If not for Yun Che and Xia Yuanba being present, he would have already helped Ye Xinghan achieve his goal. Feng Xue'er, who carried the greatest hope of the Fenghuang God Sect, would have fallen into Ye Xinghan's hands, with disastrous consequences.
"It's okay. This is actually better. This time, they not only failed but also completely exposed themselves. Otherwise, the later they were exposed, the more dangerous it would become," Yun Che comforted her.
"Mm..." Feng Xue'er responded softly. "It's all because of Brother Yun. If not for Brother Yun, I would have already... already... When Father learns of this, he will surely be very grateful to Brother Yun."
"Your Father would do well not to kill me," Yun Che chuckled. He didn't believe that Feng Hengkong had sent Feng Feiyan alone merely to protect Feng Xue'er. Killing him was certainly one of the goals. But then he thought again... After learning about today's events, Feng Hengkong would inevitably feel increased pressure and might even have to break off relations with the Sun Moon Divine Palace. At that point, he might not have the mind to pursue Yun Che.
"Now that the Four Sacred Grounds know of the Phoenix God's passing, they should also know that you have inherited the Phoenix God's body. Ye Xinghan has designs on you, and the other three Sacred Grounds might also set their sights on you," Yun Che said, closing his eyes with some worry and concern. "But ultimately, my strength is still too weak. I have no ability to protect you. Otherwise... I might just snatch you straight from your Father's hands and make it so that your sect and the Sacred Grounds can never find you."
"Hehe..." Feng Xue'er smiled radiantly. "Brother Yun wants to protect me so much... that makes me very happy. If Brother Yun were to snatch me away, I might not resist, you know."
"Xue'er said that herself!" Yun Che also laughed. "If one day I really want to snatch Xue'er away, Xue'er must not..."
"Heavenly... Poison... Pearl..."
Yun Che's words abruptly stopped. The mysterious, ethereal woman's voice sounded for the third time. And this time, what she said was no longer "Who are you?" but clearly...
Heavenly Poison Pearl!?
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[These two days, this Mars has some~~big~~news~~to announce.]
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