Abruptly, Lin Feng realized: although the enemy had fled, the inner chamber might still hold clues. He and Chang Gong Xiaojing hurriedly dashed back towards it.
The corridor they passed through was a gruesome gallery. Mutilated corpses lay strewn about, a sight that made Lin Feng's scalp prickle. Chang Gong Xiaojing's face turned deathly pale. There was no time to dispose of the bodies; they pressed on into the innermost room. Lin Feng's sweeping gaze took in the scene: utter chaos. The floor was littered with powdered stone debris – remnants of the shattered sarcophagus. The bodies of Mu Qingfeng and Zhou Lihu lay among several desiccated cadavers. The skeletal figure that had occupied the sarcophagus was gone, likely blasted to fragments. After a frantic search, Lin Feng finally unearthed a storage ring from beneath a pile of rubble.
It was the ring from the skeletal hand. Lin Feng's only hope now was that it contained useful clues. The moment he retrieved it, he eagerly probed its contents with his spiritual sense.
But swiftly, the anticipation faded from Lin Feng's face, replaced by deepening gloom.
This ring, the object of fierce contention earlier, held nothing like the legendary treasures they had imagined. Not even a single spiritual artifact!
Lin Feng emptied the ring's contents onto the floor before them: a collection of mediocrely graded natural treasures, a few Grade 2 and 3 elixirs, a handful of mid-grade spirit stones… This was, at best, the storage ring of a Golden Core cultivator, and a particularly destitute one at that.
It made no sense. Lin Feng pondered deeply, piecing everything together. A chilling deduction formed: This was all a trap!
The skeleton, the ring… they were nothing but bait. The true purpose? To lure someone close… to touch that sinister crimson dagger. The Luoming Sect cultivator had grasped it, then abruptly descended into madness. After slaughtering several companions, he'd used that very dagger to 'awaken' the 'zombie' within the sarcophagus.
In other words, everything was likely orchestrated by that 'zombie'. Judging by the few words he'd uttered upon 'awakening', he had probably been gravely wounded, employing some perverse method to heal here while setting up this elaborate snare. The crimson dagger had likely been imbued with a restriction curse, capable of inducing madness and seizing control of anyone who touched it, forcing them to perform a twisted 'ritual' akin to blood sacrifice, thereby reviving its master.
This storage ring? Probably just the spoils from some ordinary Golden Core cultivator the monster had casually slaughtered long ago. He'd placed it on the skeleton as bait. The grim irony was that Mu Qingfeng and the others had fought desperately for it, and Lin Feng himself had been consumed by the desire to seize it.
The cultivation world overflowed with tales of fortuitous encounters, yes. But it was equally rife with deadly perils. A true stroke of luck could propel one to greatness. But stumbling into a trap like this? It often meant the end.
Lin Feng recalled the dozens who'd entered these halls seeking grand treasures. Now, only he and Chang Gong Xiaojing remained alive… and they were still trapped. A wave of solemn realization washed over him; his understanding of the cultivation world's ruthlessness had deepened another notch.
…
"Lin Feng… look over there."
Chang Gong Xiaojing's voice, tight with apprehension, pulled Lin Feng from his gloomy contemplation of the scattered items. He looked up. She was staring, horrified, towards the chamber's right corner. Lin Feng followed her gaze… and his own expression froze.
Embedded in a chunk of rubble there was the crimson dagger!
That formidable treasure… the enemy had left it behind?!
This artifact was unquestionably extraordinary. Its owner wouldn't abandon it willingly. Lin Feng quickly reasoned it out: the monstrous cultivator, freshly 'awakened,' had immediately embarked on a killing spree. His words suggested he fed on the victims' blood, qi, and soul essence to nourish his own shattered spirit – likely a form of dark sorcery. He had utterly disregarded Lin Feng and the others, confident he could slaughter them all at his leisure before attending to other matters. He hadn't foreseen being panicked into flight by Lin Feng's appearance, leaving the dagger behind in his haste.
Despite knowing the dagger was likely a powerful artifact, Lin Feng dared not touch it – who knew if he'd suffer the same horrific fate as the Luoming Sect cultivator?
"Xiaojing! Whatever you do, don't touch that dagger!" Lin Feng warned, a tremor of residual fear in his voice. He scanned the chamber again, sighing heavily. "Sigh... We should thoroughly scour this place first. Maybe we can find the barrier formation's core... or some weakness."
"Alright," Chang Gong Xiaojing nodded, falling into step beside him as they began their search. Her resilience was far less than Lin Feng's. The relentless, brutal events of the past few hours – culminating in the life-or-death confrontation – had left her mentally reeling and physically drained. Only Lin Feng's presence provided an anchor; she relied on him completely now, trusting his lead implicitly.
They worked methodically, clearing debris and searching. Mu Qingfeng's and the others' corpses were respectfully moved aside. They checked the two previously unexplored rooms: one appeared to be a bedchamber, the other seemingly a potion laboratory, though it contained only decaying, useless herbs.
Lin Feng even meticulously inspected every pillar in the main hall. Hours of exhaustive searching yielded nothing. No formation core. No discernible weakness. No clues hinting at the hall's origins or its former master's identity.
Frustration gnawed at Lin Feng. Driven by desperation, he returned to the sealed entrance. He unleashed another barrage of attacks with his flying sword and explosive talismans, hammering the invisible barrier until his true energy reserves were utterly depleted. Only then, exhausted and defeated, did he slump against a pillar once more, trying to recuperate while racking his brains for a solution.
Watching Lin Feng's brow furrow with worry, Chang Gong Xiaojing's heart clenched. She knelt beside him, gently taking his hand in hers. "Lin Feng," she said softly, "don't push yourself so hard. We'll find a way out... eventually."
Lin Feng looked up at her, forcing a weak smile. "Heh, don't worry, Xiaojing. We will get out. I was just thinking... since the barrier was inactive when we arrived, maybe it shuts down cyclically? If so, it might deactivate again, letting us leave. But..." His expression soured. "...that's far too passive. Even if it's true, who knows how long we'd be trapped here?"
"But it's still a possibility, isn't it?" Chang Gong Xiaojing offered a small, encouraging smile. "We can wait and see. And while we wait, we can keep thinking of other ideas. Even if nothing comes to mind... cultivating here wouldn't be wasted time. Heh, the spiritual energy here is incredibly rich! It's a rare opportunity."
"Mm." Lin Feng felt some of his agitation ease. He looked at Xiaojing, who was clearly anxious herself yet still trying to comfort him. A wave of tenderness and guilt washed over him. "Xiaojing..." he said gently, "...I'm sorry. I'm the one who brought you to such a dangerous place... time and again, dragging you into peril..."
Chang Gong Xiaojing's smile widened, genuine warmth touching her eyes. "What are you saying? If it weren't for you being here these past times... I might not even be alive... You've always protected me. I should be thanking you..."
Her words about him always protecting her stirred Lin Feng's memory – specifically, the moment she'd bravely stepped forward, prepared to shield him from the enemy. Profound gratitude warred with fierce self-reproach. If only I were stronger, he thought bitterly, we wouldn't have been reduced to such desperation...
"..."
A comfortable silence settled between them. Caught in Lin Feng's unwavering gaze, Chang Gong Xiaojing felt a blush rise to her cheeks. She gently withdrew her hand from his. "Lin Feng," she murmured, ducking her head slightly, "focus on recovering your energy. I'll go cultivate too. Since we can't think of a solution right now, we should seize this chance to train in such an energy-rich environment."
Lin Feng snapped out of his daze, coughing awkwardly. "Right, that makes sense. Let's cultivate here and wait to see if the barrier lifts on its own... Here, Xiaojing." He produced items. "Take these Spirit Gathering Pills for your cultivation. And this vial... it's Spirit Spring Water. It'll greatly aid your progress."
Chang Gong Xiaojing gasped at the sight of seven or eight bottles of Spirit Gathering Pills and the precious vial of Spirit Spring Water. "You... how do you have so many Spirit Gathering Pills?! And Spirit Spring Water...? This... you keep them! You need them for your own cultivation..."
Lin Feng grinned, pulling out several more bottles of pills and another vial of Spirit Spring Water and shaking them lightly. "It's fine, take them. I have plenty. More than I can use."
…
Still wide-eyed with astonishment, Chang Gong Xiaojing took the pills and the vial of Spirit Spring Water and moved off to a corner to begin cultivating. Lin Feng, meanwhile, gathered a small pile of storage rings before him. These were taken from the corpses of Mu Qingfeng and the others. He intended to meticulously inventory their contents, hoping to stumble upon anything useful.
"Huh? What's this…?"
To Lin Feng's immense surprise, the very first ring he examined yielded a significant discovery…