After coming out, the three of them finally formally headed to their destination. Li Chonglou, without concerning himself with anything else, followed the two and left the camp from another exit.
After coming out, they dove into the woods in another direction. The journey was similar, but the speed of travel was clearly several times faster, presumably without any danger.
Li Chonglou felt a bit more at ease and took a look at the Gong Shi he had just obtained.
It was the size of his palm, grayish all over, and in appearance, it was not much different from the stones by the roadside. However, when held in hand, a slight warmth could be felt.
Beyond that, there was no other anomaly.
Mei Niang had said earlier that it had many uses, and Li Chonglou was curious about its inner workings. He subconsciously channeled a little spiritual energy into it.
Unexpectedly, it suddenly vibrated, emitting a gray light. Immediately after, Li Chonglou felt a blank space appear in his mind.
"What is this?"
The two leading the way ahead sensed something and looked back. Seeing the Gong Shi in Li Chonglou's hand emitting a gray light, Mei Niang immediately understood what was happening and couldn't help but explain, "Don't be surprised. That is where residual souls are stored. It won't affect you."
Li Chonglou's attention returned to the present as he looked at Mei Niang. "You mean it can really absorb residual souls of dead things? Not by recording them?"
"I've always said it can absorb them, but I need to clarify one point: not just any dead thing will do. It must be something you killed with your own hands, and no more than three hours must have passed."
Even so, Li Chonglou was still internally shocked. This was because this item confirmed one thing: besides the formation of soul bodies in the Lost Land, there truly were remnant souls existing in this world!
Otherwise, where would this stone absorb them from?
Li Chonglou had always thought that the reason Old Lin and the others existed was due to the Lost Land. In other words, it wasn't that everyone who died in this world had a soul.
Rather, Old Lin and the others had exchanged a different way of survival for the mysterious power within the Lost Land.
But the appearance of this Gong Shi now shattered his thoughts!
However, it was at this moment that En Si, in his mind, suddenly spoke, "Little Li, Elder An asked me to pass on a message to you. Try out the effect of absorbing residual souls as soon as possible. This might be related to our soul energy."
Li Chonglou's expression froze instantly, and then he understood En Si's meaning.
Well, if that were true, wouldn't he never have to switch people again? And as long as Old Lin and the others didn't want to reincarnate, they could stay forever?
Thinking of this, Li Chonglou's eyes lit up.
In the soul bottle, his most trusted wasn't Elder An, but Old Lin. It was just that Old Lin didn't have the same authority as Elder An, so they didn't communicate much.
If Old Lin could live forever, he would naturally be very willing!
The three of them had been moving for about ten minutes when Xiong Da, who was in front, suddenly stopped, just like Mei Niang had earlier.
This time, without the two needing to speak, Li Chonglou felt the change in the Gong Shi in his palm.
It was a high-frequency vibration, as if it were warning of something! No wonder Mei Niang had suddenly behaved that way before.
"Be careful!"
Xiong Da's experience seemed to be richer. He immediately retreated and shielded Li Chonglou behind him, clearly preparing for battle.
Mei Niang explained, "Xiong Da, I encountered this before I came to Number One, but it was gone in a moment."
"No!"
Xiong Da's expression turned serious. "This is an Invisible Beast! It can leave its host for a certain distance."
"Invisible Beast?"
Mei Niang's voice suddenly rose, as if she were startled. Li Chonglou asked curiously, "Mei Niang, what is an Invisible Beast?"
Mei Niang's expression had become somewhat flustered, but she still instinctively explained, "An Invisible Beast is a type of beast that can become invisible. They are about the size of a wild cat, and adult ones usually have a strength of three layers."
Li Chonglou asked, puzzled, "Three layers of strength, and you're still this nervous?"
Mei Niang calmed down a bit upon hearing this. She took a deep breath and then said gravely, "You don't understand, so you don't take it seriously. Invisible Beasts are gregarious. If one appears, there are at least eleven more companions around it! This is a species that forms groups of twelve!"
"Twelve extremely fast, invisible beasts. What do you think?"
Li Chonglou swallowed.
"Troublesome."
Mei Niang said bluntly, "More than troublesome! One careless mistake and you could die by their hands in minutes!"
"They're here!"
The two who had been about to wait for confirmation, as soon as they finished speaking, Xiong Da issued a warning. Their expressions changed drastically, and all three simultaneously released their fifth-layer aura.
Xiong Da stared intently ahead and quickly asked, "Newcomer, how are your combat skills!"
Li Chonglou also responded quickly, "Just call me Xiao Li. No problem, don't worry about me."
In such a situation, the worst thing was to be distracted. Li Chonglou clearly understood this and did not want to be a burden to the other two.
Xiong Da and Mei Niang both breathed a sigh of relief. Mei Niang volunteered, "I'll take the left side."
Li Chonglou also chimed in, "I'll take the right side."
The three quickly adjusted their positions, forming a triangular stance, but they still left an empty space behind. After all, with only three people, if they had to cover the entire area, their attention would be too scattered.
Facing beasts that could become invisible and assassinate, one couldn't be careless at all!
"Die!"
Xiong Da, who had already announced their arrival, finally detected a trace of anomaly. He suddenly stepped forward and punched into the air at a spot in front of him. His fist was still in mid-air, but a deep pit suddenly appeared on the ground.
"Bang!"
Unfortunately, no solid object appeared. This punch had clearly missed.
"Careful!"
Mei Niang suddenly moved forward. A long whip had appeared in her hand, and it turned into an afterimage in the air, streaking towards Xiong Da's forehead.
Li Chonglou's expression changed, not because he feared Mei Niang would ambush Xiong Da, but because her position had shifted.
It wasn't that she was acting recklessly, but that he hadn't kept up.
Li Chonglou silently grumbled, "They should at least say something when adjusting positions during combat."
Then he quickly tried to catch up.
But as soon as he moved, a sense of impending death washed over him from behind. It was a very strong sense!
"So fierce?"
Since leaving the Lost Land, he hadn't experienced this feeling for a long time. However, Li Chonglou's reaction was extremely fast.
He turned, lowered his waist, gathered his energy, and swung his palm, all in one fluid motion!
The entire process took less than half a second! The next moment, the two behind him only heard a bang, and then the crisis suddenly vanished.
"Huh? What happened?"
The two subconsciously looked towards Li Chonglou's side. The strange noise had come from there just now.
As soon as they turned their heads, they saw a pool of blood on the ground, but no trace of any entity.