The Awakening of the Qiongqi Guardians

Chapter Ten, Section Seven: The Treasure Hall

This was a vast hall, utterly silent.

This silence had persisted for an inconceivably long period of time.

When Shaoyan Nong, Ji Ning, Mu Northson, Xue Hongyi, and the others finally entered the hall within the Golden Spirit Light Globe, each of them let out a sigh of relief. They had finally managed to escape.

“We finally made it inside. That Immortal Mansion world was absolutely terrifying. Those waves of Dao-soldiers of the various妖族 tribes… just looking at them sent chills down my spine.” Ji Ning wasn’t a coward, but everything he had just experienced left him feeling helpless. The disparity in power was simply too great, to the point where resistance was impossible.

“Senior apprentice-brother.” Mu Northson looked at Ji Ning.

“Hm?” Ji Ning looked at his junior apprentice-brother.

“Do you think we shouldn’t have come?” Mu Northson muttered. “Back at the start, when we entered the Immortal Mansion world, we encountered those Mermaid Dao-soldiers. There were over a thousand of them, enough to crush us with ease. And then those even more massive formations of ten thousand Dao-soldiers appeared, and those so-called Wu Jiang clan Yaksha Dao-soldiers… even that Fiendgod Xiangliu couldn’t withstand them. Coming here, I feel completely useless.”

Mu Northson was muttering out loud, not sending a mental transmission, so everyone else nearby heard him clearly.

The group was silent.

Indeed. Just moments ago, they had all relied on Shaoyan Nong’s retainer, the Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang. It was that Fiendgod who had killed the leader of the Mermaid Dao-soldiers, and it was the same Fiendgod who had gone to hold off the ten thousand Dao-soldiers. Ji Ning and the others could only watch.

“Everyone,” Shaoyan Nong said with a smile, “don’t be disheartened. No one could have predicted that such powerful tribes would have grown inside this Immortal Mansion world, and that they would all possess Dao-soldier armor. Regardless, we have now entered one of the subsidiary halls of this Wu Jiang Immortal Mansion.”

“One can only enter these halls with an Immortal Mansion Key. Since the death of Immortal Wu Jiang, in all the endless years that have passed, no other living being has entered this hall. It should be quite safe here. Of course… some of the measures left behind by Immortal Wu Jiang might still be active, so everyone, please don’t wander off. Wait for me to summon Uncle Fang inside, and then we’ll slowly explore this hall together.” Shaoyan Nong’s words calmed everyone down.

Regardless, Immortal Wu Jiang had been dead for over a hundred million years. There certainly wouldn’t be any living creatures inside this hall. It would definitely be much safer than outside.

“Whew.” Mu Northson immediately sat cross-legged on the ground, calling out to those around him, “Senior apprentice-brothers, senior apprentice-sisters, all of you, sit down and rest.”

Ji Ning smiled and also sat down cross-legged.

“That scared me to death.” Little Qing raised her serpentine head, blinking her eyes. The Whitewater Hound also lay down on the ground.

Yu Wei, Cangjiang Zhenren, Xue Hongyi, Buyou Zhenren, and the ten Wanxiang mortal deathsworn all either stood or sat down cross-legged.

Shaoyan Nong, however, focused his mind.

Whoosh.

A fist-sized hole appeared in the void in front of him. Through this hole in space, he could see back into the Immortal Mansion world, where large numbers of Dao-soldiers were still locked in battle with the towering Fiendgod Xiangliu.

“Uncle Fang!” Shaoyan Nong was worried as he watched from afar.

“Master, if that Fiendgod dies out there, we’re in big trouble,” Little Qing transmitted mentally to Ji Ning. “We’ll be trapped in this hall with no way out.”

“Don’t jinx it. A Fiendgod like Xiangliu isn’t so easy to kill. Besides, as the heir apparent of the mighty Shaoyan tribe, how could he possibly be trapped here?” Ji Ning was still quite calm. The tallest should hold up the sky. This was a trial for Shaoyan Nong from his ancient and powerful tribe, the Shaoyan clan. Shaoyan Nong might fail, but it was unlikely he would be trapped here forever.

……

Ji Ning’s group remained in that hall. They knew this subsidiary hall was enormous, with many unknown places within, but they didn’t dare to explore recklessly. Who knew which of the defensive measures left behind by Immortal Wu Jiang were still active? If they were unlucky and triggered a deadly restriction, a crowd of them might die.

So they waited, waiting for the Fiendgod Xiangliu to rejoin them.

Deep inside this enormous hall, on one of the corridors.

A row of massive statues was lined up on this corridor. At a glance, there were eighteen statues in total, all grey-black in color and carved in the shape of the legendary divine beast, the Qiongqi. They had been coiled here for endless years. But when Ji Ning’s group entered this ancient, silent hall…

Something was triggered.

A faint golden light began to glow on the surface of the eighteen Qiongqi statues. This light continuously merged into the statues, and gradually, the surface of each statue began to grow clearer.

Crack! The eyes of one of the Qiongqi statues suddenly opened.

It was a pair of eyes glowing with an emerald-green light.

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

One by one, the Qiongqi statues all opened their eyes. There was only coldness in their gaze. They began to stand up, one after another, and even spread their wings… Their bodies were like those of an ox, covered in dense spikes, with enormous wings. Their heads were like those of a tiger.

They were the most loyal guardians of this subsidiary hall—the eighteen Qiongqi golems.

Golems are non-living entities, capable of truly existing for endless years. Immortal Wu Jiang’s servants and subordinates had all grown old and died, but these golems still obeyed the commands Immortal Wu Jiang had given them in the distant past, guarding this palace.

“Outsiders have entered the Treasure Hall,” one of the Qiongqi golems said in a low voice.

“They are not the master.”

“Nor are they the master’s heir. These outsiders used an Immortal Mansion Key to force their way in.”

Some powerful golems even possessed intelligence. Ji Ning had encountered a similar situation back in the aquatic palace when he was clearing the third trial; the black-furred monster golem he had met was actually a living soul bound into it, with even higher intelligence.

“They are not the master, nor the master’s heir… An intruder is to be killed without mercy,” one of the Qiongqi golems declared.

“Kill without mercy.”

All eighteen Qiongqi golems spoke in unison.

There were two ways to truly take control of the Wu Jiang Immortal Mansion. The first was to carry the Immortal Mansion Key and know the incantation passed down by Immortal Wu Jiang. This would allow one to command the formations, restrictions, and golems to obey. The second method was to carry the Immortal Mansion Key, find the central hubs of the five subsidiary halls, then personally refine and bind them. By refining all five central hubs, the entire Immortal Mansion would be refined and truly controlled.

Shaoyan Nong’s trial was precisely to refine and take control of the entire Immortal Mansion!

Of course, Shaoyan Nong was not yet the master of the Immortal Mansion… and so the Mansion began to retaliate.

……

In the outermost hall.

Shaoyan Nong was watching through the spatial hole, his gaze fixed on the great battle taking place in the Immortal Mansion world. The Fiendgod Xiangliu was roaring in fury, spraying blood as it fought and fled.

“Hurry, hurry, hurry.” Shaoyan Nong was filled with worry.

Ji Ning, Mu Northson, Yu Wei, and the others were standing behind him, also watching through the spatial hole.

“Based on his current strength, it seems very difficult for the Fiendgod Xiangliu to escape back. Those Yaksha Dao-soldiers are just too powerful,” Yu Wei transmitted mentally.

“He’s caught between two forces now. One is the giant formation of ten thousand Dao-soldiers, the other is the even stronger Yaksha Dao-soldiers… both sides are more powerful than he is,” Cangjiang Zhenren said, frowning as he watched.

Nine Lotos transmitted mentally, “This Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang is Shaoyan Nong’s personal guardian. He must be carrying many treasures. Right now, he’s only using those two long spindles in combat, without deploying any other treasures. He probably hasn’t reached the truly dangerous point yet.”

The group watched the battle through the spatial hole.

The ten Wanxiang mortal deathsworn were on full alert around them.

“What’s going on?” Ji Ning’s expression suddenly changed drastically.

The space around them suddenly shifted.

One moment they had been in the hall; the next, Ji Ning and his entire group were plunged into a vast, boundless void. They could no longer tell east from west, south from north, or even up from down.

“Not good.” Shaoyan Nong’s expression also changed. The spatial hole in front of him had vanished.

“It’s a formation restriction!” Cangjiang Zhenren transmitted urgently, “This hall has formation restrictions left behind by Immortal Wu Jiang. The formation has just been activated. The area it covers must include the hall we were in. Although we’re still physically in the hall, we are now trapped within the formation!”

“The space around us is being sealed and twisted. Even with the Immortal Mansion Key, I can’t open a passage to the outside world,” Shaoyan Nong transmitted anxiously. “Fire Rainbow Immortal, Cangjiang Zhenren, Ji Ning… I can’t open a passage to the outside, so Uncle Fang can’t get in. For now, we have to rely on all of you.”

Ji Ning’s heart sank.

Yes, with no way to open a passage to the outside world, the Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang couldn’t enter, and they had lost their greatest source of strength.

Ji Ning activated his divine sense, trying to probe their surroundings, but all he sensed was an endless, hazy void. The powerful formation completely blocked his divine sense, preventing him from even sensing his junior apprentice-brother Mu Northson, who was right beside him.

“One more piece of bad news for everyone,” Ji Ning transmitted. “Inside this formation, divine sense is also useless.”

“What?” Cangjiang Zhenren was shocked. He tried it himself, and his face turned pale. “Divine sense really is blocked. If even divine sense is useless, this is no ordinary formation…”

Ji Ning’s group instinctively moved closer together.

The ten Wanxiang deathsworn quickly formed a battle formation.

“Is anyone here skilled in formations?” Shaoyan Nong transmitted. “We need to break this formation quickly.”

“Uncle White?” Ji Ning sent a mental transmission to the Whitewater Hound beside him. Uncle White had spent almost all his effort in recent years studying formations, and his accomplishments were far greater than Ji Ning’s own.

“This is a very dangerous formation.” The Whitewater Hound gently shook his head, continuing his studies.

Just then…

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! A dense rain of icy arrows appeared out of nowhere, each one carrying a terrifying and awe-inspiring power, raining down on Ji Ning’s group within the formation.

They were too close. The arrows were too fast.

Boom! The Water-Fire Lotus blooming around Ji Ning was struck by three arrows directly, shattering and collapsing.

“Watch out!” Ji Ning’s expression changed dramatically. The power of these arrows was immense. Just three arrows were enough to be this terrifying… Ji Ning had a bad feeling. Trapped within this deadly formation restriction, some of them, Wanxiang Adepts all, were likely about to fall.

——(To be continued.)