Chapter 492: Wu Shi's Array Patterns
Over fifty black mountains stood side by side, giving off a powerful sense of oppression. Seeing them felt like re-entering the Immortal Mountain.
"Big Brother, is there Enlightenment Tea here too?" Little Nannan asked, looking up. The little one still remembered that bare-running old tea tree.
"There isn't any here, but there are more mysterious things." Ye Fan patted the little girl's head.
"What kind of strangeness is inside?" Li Heishui asked the Big Black Dog. This place was usually avoided by everyone, shunned like ghosts and demons.
"It's hard to say what's in there, but it's definitely eerie. You might die in some bizarre way after entering." The Big Black Dog muttered.
"What do you mean?" Li Heishui pressed.
"Specifically, you'd die without even knowing how you died. It's extremely strange and mysterious, leaving you completely baffled." The Big Black Dog added.
"So this is also a cursed land, where you don't even know what you'll encounter?" Ye Fan was surprised. This place was unusual; who knew what they might face.
Still, they weren't overly afraid. After all, they had a Saint with them. If even the Old Madman couldn't enter and leave this place, then no one in the current era could.
"Oooow..." A lone wolf's long howl rang out, shrill and mournful, echoing through the black mountain range.
"One of your relatives is here." Li Heishui poked the Big Black Dog.
"Woof!" The Big Black Dog bared its teeth and bit down on his wrist, refusing to let go.
"Dammit, I just stated a fact! What are you so worked up about? Let go!" Li Heishui screamed.
"Caw..."
Several deathly old crows flapped their wings on a withered tree outside the black cliffs, letting out chilling cries filled with sorrow.
"Why do I feel so uneasy about this place..." After shaking off Black Emperor's big mouth, Li Heishui felt a chill run down his neck.
"It's fine. I don't believe this black cliff can really be that evil. Sure, the Great Accomplishment Saint Body died here, but that was over a hundred thousand years ago. Even if some strange existence lingered, it would have faded under the power of time. Nothing can live that long." The Big Black Dog said, somewhat guiltily. Its only faith was in the Old Madman's combat power.
"Let's go!" Ye Fan picked up Little Nannan and placed her on Black Emperor's back, then strode forward.
"Thump"
A white rabbit darted out, followed by a weasel. Both were ancient beyond measure, their fur nearly all fallen out.
"Hiss"
Then, a gaunt giant snake, thick as a water vat, slowly crawled out, winding its way toward the distant cliffs.
"Why are there so many of these folk-legendary unlucky creatures..."
Everyone felt strange. These creatures meant nothing to them, but in folk tales, they carried great significance.
As they neared the black Sacred Cliff, the eerie aura grew stronger, as if they had entered a graveyard, sending chills through their bodies.
"Woo..." A sudden loud crying sound rang out, extremely mournful, traveling over ten li.
Beside them stood a withered old tree, so thick that five or six people couldn't wrap their arms around it, growing at the edge of the Sacred Cliff.
In the tree was a terrifying bird's nest, actually built from dried bones, half a person tall, dark and gloomy, wreathed in wisps of black mist.
"Dammit, what kind of bird is this?" Li Heishui exclaimed, feeling the chill on his body intensify.
Beside the nest made of human bones stood a strange, eerie bird. Its body was black like a crow's, but it had a human face with a bird's beak, a black hooked beak sharp as a knife.
It was over a meter long, pitch black, radiating intense yin energy, as if it had a dead person's head, making the entire withered old tree feel icy cold.
"This place is really damn creepy!" The Big Black Dog shuddered and couldn't help cursing. "This is an ancient bird, almost unseen even in ancient times. It feeds exclusively on the bones of the powerful. Legend says anyone it wails at won't live long."
"Flap flap"
The strange bird spread its wings and flew away, dropping a half-gnawed human skull from its mouth, its expression somewhat ferocious.
"I feel like we're off to a bad start, like some ill omen." Li Heishui muttered quietly.
"Whoosh"
A great wind arose. The Old Madman suddenly struck, his sleeve sweeping across heaven and earth, sending endless grass, trees, and rocks flying. In the distance, a low roar sounded, making their souls tremble.
Ye Fan and Li Heishui were shocked. A humanoid creature covered in long black hair, sending chills down their spines, flickered and vanished deep within the black Sacred Cliff.
"Dammit, there really is something! What kind of creature is that?" The Big Black Dog was startled.
All around, the ominous sights disappeared. The sounds of the old crows and lone wolf faded, and the black mountain range fell silent.
"Let's go. Let's go in and take a look. We'll rely on your array pattern skills soon." Ye Fan said.
The group finally stepped into the Immortal Mountain. Ye Fan took out the ancient scroll he had obtained in the Northern Domain's Li Prefecture and searched for the location marked with the Nine Secrets.
"It's at the deepest part of the Sacred Cliff..."
They gathered together to examine it closely, then frowned simultaneously. The moment they stepped into the Sacred Cliff area, they felt as if they had entered the Immortal Mountain—no difference at all.
"We can't fly!" Li Heishui noticed the anomaly first. They couldn't leave the ground or leap into the void.
"There are ancient Great Emperor array patterns here. They weren't inscribed by Emperor Void, but by someone else..." The Big Black Dog's eyes flickered with strange light.
"We have to be careful. Even Red Dragon Daoist was trapped at the deepest point for a full fifteen hundred years, nearly refined to ashes." Ye Fan warned.
"Don't worry. This time, I'm absolutely confident. With my array pattern skills, I can walk through here like it's empty land!" For some reason, the Big Black Dog suddenly gained immense confidence. "Follow me."
"Crack!"
The Big Black Dog stepped forward first, but as soon as it took two steps, ten-thousand-foot lightning bolts descended from the clear sky, striking it until it foamed at the mouth, stumbled, and fell to the ground, smoking black.
If Ye Fan hadn't felt it was unreliable and pulled Little Nannan back in time, the little one would have been struck too.
"Doggy, are you okay?" Little Nannan blinked her big eyes, genuinely frightened.
"It hurts so much..." The Big Black Dog lay there, its four big paws twitching constantly, muttering, "Great Emperor... why did you strike me too?"
"I knew it. This dead dog is always ridiculous. It said it would be like walking through empty land, and what happened? You're just pretending, and you got struck by lightning!" Li Heishui taunted.
"Woof, dammit!" The Big Black Dog wanted to bite him, but struggled for a long time and couldn't get up. It was severely injured, with many bones broken.
This made everyone's hearts tighten. The mysterious and terrifying Sacred Cliff was even more sinister than they had imagined. They had barely stepped inside, and Black Emperor, with his deep array pattern skills, was nearly killed.
"Swish"
The Old Madman pointed a finger, and a ball of light enveloped the Big Black Dog. In an instant, its bones crackled, and its injuries healed rapidly.
It scrambled to its feet, cursing, "Dammit, why did it strike me too? Where did the array pattern go wrong? Let me think carefully."
After studying it closely, the Big Black Dog looked puzzled, then relieved. "Oh, there's a slight modification. I know where I went wrong. This time, it'll be fine."
It stepped forward again. At first, there was no problem, but when it took its thirteenth step, another thick bolt of lightning descended from ten thousand feet.
"Crack!"
This time, the Big Black Dog was worse off. Its entire body was charred black, white smoke pouring from its ears, and sparks of electricity coughing from its mouth. Its whole dog body was nearly cooked through.
"Ooow... It hurts so much, this Emperor! Dammit, woof!" The Big Black Dog howled in pain, every inch of its flesh twitching.
"Oh my god, this dead dog is going to kill itself. Good thing it wasn't us this time." Ye Fan was dumbfounded. He'd seen unreliable things, but nothing this unreliable.
"Doggy, are you alright? I smell roasted meat..." Little Nannan asked with concern.
"It smells so good!" Li Heishui was utterly shameless, unable to resist swallowing his saliva at such a moment.
The Big Black Dog was furious. "Dammit, you black ghost! What kind of look is that? What do you mean? Woof!"
When these two extreme characters got together, peace was impossible. They would endlessly bicker, no matter the situation.
Once again, relying on the Old Madman's healing, the Big Black Dog staggered to its feet. But its silky fur looked like someone had plucked it, patchy and no longer smooth.
"No justice! Why did it strike me too? This Emperor has the worst luck!" The Big Black Dog fumed.
"Do you know who set up these array patterns..." Li Heishui looked at it suspiciously.
"These are Wu Shi's array patterns. I clearly saw how they evolved in an ancient text, so why did I still get struck..." The Big Black Dog ground its teeth.
"Nonsense! How could a Great Emperor's array patterns be recorded in an ancient text? They can't exist in the world. And even if they were left behind, even a Great Power studying them for ten lifetimes wouldn't understand them." Li Heishui didn't believe it.
But Ye Fan's heart jumped. He remembered some things the Big Black Dog had said before—that Emperor Wu Shi had once come here to pay respects.
If that was true, then these really might be Wu Shi's array patterns. But this dead dog knew too much. Had it once followed Emperor Wu Shi? But how could it have lived to the present? Even ancient Great Emperors couldn't!
Throughout this, the Old Madman said nothing. He stood to the side, staring at this ancient land, as if deep in thought.
The Big Black Dog didn't dare walk at the front anymore. It urged Li Heishui to go ahead while it guided the way.
"Dammit, you unreliable dog won't even go yourself, and you want to kill me!" Li Heishui flatly refused.
In the end, the Big Black Dog had to steel itself, taking a jar of Divine Spring Ye Fan gave it and leading the way.
"Boom," "Crack"...
Almost every dozen steps, the Big Black Dog would let out a miserable scream, getting struck by lightning repeatedly, twitching countless times.
"Great Emperor, you were struck by lightning often back then. Is your resentment really this strong? Even the outermost array patterns are this terrifying, almost turning me to ash!" The Big Black Dog grimaced, muttering endlessly.
Finally, they crossed a black mountain and arrived at a void-like area. This region had no array patterns, but the aura was very strange.
It was a wide valley between black mountains, with a lake in the middle, smooth as a mirror.
By now, the evening glow had dyed the sky red, coating the lake in a layer of golden light.
"Divine medicine, over twenty thousand years old!" Li Heishui pointed at a blue plant in the lake, shimmering with dreamlike radiance.
The Big Black Dog also ran over. They were about to pick it when the lake suddenly exploded with a loud boom, sending waves skyward.
A humanoid creature emerged, with white hair like snow and pale skin, as white as snow without a trace of blood, like a zombie. It extended a large claw toward them.
"What is this thing?" Everyone was alarmed and quickly retreated.
"This is an ancient corpse, dead for at least tens of thousands of years. It's recently become sentient, with the cultivation of a Half-Step Great Power!" The Big Black Dog shouted.
"Uncle, save us." Little Nannan was nervous, grabbing the Old Madman's sleeve and shaking it.
If Ye Fan and the others had come in alone, they would have been in grave danger. With their cultivation, they couldn't fight it.
"Chi!"
The Old Madman lightly pointed, and a green light shot from his fingertip. The ancient corpse was instantly frozen, unable to move.
"Boom!"
But at that moment, the lake surged. The sound of iron chains clanking echoed, and there were more terrifying creatures below.
Everyone's eyes shot divine light as they peered into the lake. They all gasped. Three more ancient corpses surged up from below, each also comparable to a Half-Step Great Power.
And deep in the lake's center, there was a huge shadow—an iron sedan chair. The carrying poles were wrapped in iron chains, eerie and terrifying.
"These four ancient corpses are just sedan bearers. What kind of existence is in that iron sedan?" Everyone was shocked, their scalps tingling.
"Chi"
The Old Madman raised his hand again, freezing the three ancient corpses. Then, staring into the depths of the lake, he lightly shouted, "Ha!"
His tongue burst like thunder, carrying a mysterious, mighty force, like a heavenly god subduing demons. The boiling lake instantly calmed. The black iron sedan shook a few times, as if unwilling, but eventually stopped trembling.
Ye Fan and the others felt a chill. They sensed this journey wouldn't be smooth. They had just entered and already encountered such powerful creatures. Who knew what lay ahead.
"Hehehe..." A sinister, cold laugh, like a ten-thousand-year-old ghost, came from the black mountains ahead. They vaguely saw a humanoid figure flicker and vanish.
The Old Madman's hollow eyes shot out two beams of light, piercing into the black mountain range. The humanoid creature let out a venomous, cold laugh and completely disappeared.
They climbed a great peak and looked ahead. Their hearts jumped. Ahead, there was a broken black mountain. Seeing this, the Big Black Dog was even more shocked.
"What's going on? Who destroyed that peak? I remember... no, legend says Emperor Wu Shi once inscribed a 'Seal' character there, sealing a terrifying creature. Did it escape?"
"It's fine. Over a hundred thousand years have passed. Even if some extraordinary existence was there, it would have turned to ashes. No one, no matter how great, can withstand the power of time." Ye Fan said.
"That's true, but we should still be careful. I have a bad feeling about this." The Big Black Dog showed rare signs of nervousness.