Chapter 262: The True Face of the Ruin
"This cave is the entrance to the ruin."
As Fang Linglong spoke, she turned to look at everyone.
Instinctively, the group extended their divine senses into the cave. But what their senses encountered was total darkness.
Only a few hundred feet in, they all discovered a formation that blocked their divine senses completely.
Everyone, including Fang Mu, promptly retracted their spiritual sense.
A female disciple asked, "Senior Sister Qinghe, did you investigate this cave earlier?"
Fang Linglong replied, "I went in alone once before, but was stopped at the formation. It's a mid-grade Five Element Defensive Formation. Unless all five formation flags are destroyed simultaneously, it will launch a counterattack. The stronger your attack, the more terrifying the retaliation."
Despite her warning, not a trace of hesitation appeared on anyone's face. They all answered in unison:
"Let's go, Senior Sister Qinghe."
Though Fang Mu still felt something was off about the cave, everyone had agreed, so he could only follow along to investigate.
If something truly went wrong, he'd simply retreat immediately.
"Very well."
With that, Fang Linglong took the lead and walked into the cave. The rest followed closely behind.
Upon entering, Fang Linglong took out a luminous pearl from her storage ring, illuminating the pitch-black cave as if it were daylight.
The cave was narrow at first, but after several hundred paces, it suddenly opened up.
Along the way, Fang Mu studied the stone walls. This was a natural karst cave—there were no signs of artificial excavation.
There were also no footprints indicating human presence.
It was far too quiet.
Although this was Fang Mu's first time exploring a ruin, he had heard many stories from fellow disciples at Yunlan Sect.
Even ancient residences of cultivators at the Heavenly Origin Realm were fraught with danger. But this journey had been far too smooth—so quiet it was eerie.
Moments later—
They arrived at the edge of the Five Element Formation.
The formation completely blocked the path forward. To proceed, it had to be broken.
Fang Linglong halted and spoke. "Fang Mu, Li Bin, Yang Min, You Daniu."
"Here."
The four responded in unison.
Fang Linglong continued, "The five of us each hold a treasure representing one of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. I'll use a Sky Eye Talisman so everyone can clearly see the five formation flags inside the array. Once I give the signal, we attack simultaneously. Remember—if anyone hesitates and causes the disruption to fail, I will not forgive them."
Yang Min said, "Don't worry, Senior Sister Qinghe. This isn't our first time out training. We won't let you down."
Though the words sounded ordinary, everyone could hear the subtle implication.
Fang Mu smiled. "Rest assured, Senior Brothers and Sisters. Among the outer sect disciples of Pillfire Peak, my fire control is second to none. I won't slow you down."
"Good."
Fang Linglong then pulled out a high-grade talisman from her storage ring. With a flick of her fingers, she formed a hand seal and shouted, "Heaven's Eye—Open!"
As her voice fell, the talisman in her hand radiated light, and a massive eye manifested in mid-air.
With the appearance of the Heaven's Eye, everyone immediately saw the five formation flags within the array.
"Prepare to strike."
As Fang Linglong spoke, she drew the sword at her waist.
Clang!
With a crisp sword cry, she positioned herself before the Wood Flag.
Fang Mu ignored the others and walked toward the Metal Flag. At the same time, he summoned his spirit flame.
Quietly, he began communicating with it using divine sense.
The other three also revealed their elemental treasures.
"Is everyone ready?"
Fang Linglong asked deliberately.
The four replied in unison, "Ready."
"Three… two… one—strike!"
Fang Linglong swung her sword straight at the Wood Flag of the formation.
At the same moment, Fang Mu directed his spirit flame in a fierce burst, and the other three also launched their attacks simultaneously.
Boom!
A thunderous roar shook the entire cave violently.
But there was no collapse, nor did the formation retaliate.
"We did it!"
Someone in the group shouted, and everyone immediately turned to look at the formation.
Yet before they could even clearly see what lay beyond it—
Fang Mu's heart suddenly rang with alarm. Just as he opened his mouth to warn the others, a strange green phosphorescence began to glow from within the pitch-black cave.
In the blink of an eye, their surroundings underwent a complete transformation. The once-empty cave floor was now littered with corpses and gleaming white bones.
The natural karst cave had turned into a mountain altar.
Everyone present was now standing in the center of this altar.
Torches around the perimeter illuminated the stone walls, revealing murals clearly visible in the flickering light.
The murals depicted hideous demons, creatures none of them had ever seen before.
Even though everyone here was an inner sect disciple of Yunlan Sect, they were all shaken at the sight.
"This is bad… that was an illusion formation. We're in serious trouble now," You Daniu said with terror on his face, instinctively stepping back.
Crunch!
His foot accidentally crushed a bone, making everyone jump—and snapping them out of their shock.
"We can't stay here. Retreat, now!"
Fang Linglong quickly made her decision, showing no intention of lingering to search for treasure.
Just as she spoke, a ghostly green barrier shimmered into existence, enveloping the entire altar.
In an instant, the dozen or so cultivators on the altar became trapped like birds in a cage.
"This is bad—it's a trap! Senior Sister, where did you hear about this ruin?" Yang Min asked anxiously as she stared at the glowing barrier surrounding them.
Fang Linglong remained calm. "This isn't the time to argue about that. What matters now is getting out of here."
Li Bin chimed in, "Senior Sister Qinghe is right. Let's all stop holding back and give it everything we've got—break the barrier!"
Though everyone was upset, this wasn't the time for infighting. They agreed, "We have no other choice."
The cultivators unleashed their full power, each casting their strongest techniques.
Boom… Boom…
With thunderous blasts echoing through the altar, the expressions on everyone's faces grew increasingly grim.
The green barrier before them didn't budge in the slightest under their combined assault.
If this continued, even without further complications, they'd be sealed to death atop the altar.
And worse, there was no telling when the altar might activate.
Half an hour later, Yang Min was the first to stop her attack. "Senior Sister, let's stop wasting our strength on the barrier. We should try using a messaging talisman to contact the sect for help."
At that, everyone paused their attacks and turned toward Fang Linglong.
Before she could speak, a despairing voice came from within the group: "It's no use. I already tried using a message talisman earlier—nothing went through."
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