As for what Chu Yang was doing?
As the owner of the Time Secret Realm [Li Huo Palace] ruins, Chu Yang naturally felt the changes within.
He was originally going to the plaza to see everyone's enthusiasm for climbing the tower, but found that some changes had occurred within.
There was no other way, so he could only sneak in and hide himself.
Bai Nianchen and the others guessed correctly, the forbidden land was the main reason for the destruction of the Li Huo Palace.
And this place held great danger for them, so Chu Yang still had to cover them. If something went wrong, it could endanger all the cultivators within the ruins.
"They opened the forbidden land so early? These guys, don't cause a great disaster..."
...
The quartet had been preparing for nearly a month. Although it seemed like a waste of time,
Bai Nianchen had solemnly requested that they must take the dangers within the forbidden land seriously!
They were not fools, and with Bai Nianchen's serious warning, they naturally dedicated twelve points of spirit to treating it with care.
During this month, Bai Nianchen had been busy creating formations.
A formation disk was a very magical item. With it, and after connecting to a formation, even someone who didn't understand formations could control it.
In addition, there were formation flags. Formation flags were also considered magical treasures, and they needed to be refined through a process of sacrificial offerings.
However, Bai Nianchen had not yet mastered this method. He used all the formation flags from the storage rings of these people.
If there weren't enough, they would have to use some spirit stones or magical treasures as substitutes.
When your raw power is not enough to guarantee safety, formations are undoubtedly the best means to compensate for combat power.
Now, Daoist Bai's strength had also reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment. The formation he had set up a month in advance could pose a life-threatening danger to cultivators in the late stage of Golden Core.
"When we go in, if we don't encounter any danger, then everyone fights based on their own abilities. If we encounter danger, then we do as I taught you!"
Luo Xiaowei patted his chest and said confidently, "Don't worry, Daoist. This month, we've also learned a lot about formations!"
Qin Xiaoxiao also said seriously, "I won't hold you back!"
Li Qingyun, holding a formation disk, nodded seriously.
There was no news from Meng Zibin and Wang Teng, so it was likely they had found a place to go into seclusion.
This ruin had been thoroughly swept, and further searching was of little significance. They should take advantage of the remaining year or so to digest what they had obtained during this period.
Basically, the active cultivators were those on the outer periphery who could not find anything.
"Since that's the case, this poor Taoist will now activate the formation!"
This last point was located in the council hall of the Li Huo Palace, where Li Qingyun had previously been in seclusion.
Inserting the last formation flag, Bai Nianchen then infused it with spiritual power.
Instantly, hundreds of points around the entire Li Huo Palace lit up with magical glows.
These points were sometimes represented by formation flags, sometimes by spirit stones, and some were even replaced by magical treasures or demon cores.
But it didn't matter, as long as the effect was achieved.
In the council hall of the Li Huo Palace, wisps of light converged from all directions, gradually forming a massive formation.
Finally, at the location of the last formation flag, a black vortex appeared!
Luo Xiaowei exclaimed excitedly, "It's here! The hidden dungeon!"
"Are we going to explore the truth behind the destruction of the Li Huo Palace? Damn it, I'm a little nervous!" Qin Xiaoxiao clenched her axe.
Li Qingyun reached out and touched it, then calmly said, "My cultivation is higher than yours. I'll go in and take a look first..."
After speaking, Li Qingyun stepped into it without hesitation.
Qin Xiaoxiao tugged Luo Xiaowei's clothes, "Look at him, how cool!"
Luo Xiaowei scoffed, "Hmph, that's a meaningless act of showing off. I usually disdain to do such things, after all, the protagonist always appears last!"
Bai Nianchen entered second. He turned to Luo Xiaowei and said, "It's impossible for there to be no danger. You must remember my words, this is not a joke!"
Luo Xiaowei's expression also became solemn. Holding the Candle Dragon Burning Heaven Sword, which glowed with purple fire, he followed Bai Nianchen into the vortex.
Qin Xiaoxiao was also very nervous. She grabbed Luo Xiaowei's shirt. This height difference made her look like a daughter following her father.
She was timid, and this personality was something Chu Yang had specifically emphasized she needed to overcome. This was a personality cultivated since childhood, and it would take some time to overcome.
Only when she was by Luo Xiaowei's side did she feel more secure.
After they entered, Chu Yang, who had hidden all his presence, also silently entered this "forbidden land."
The first thing that greeted them was a desolate graveyard.
Yes, this forbidden land was actually a graveyard!
The cold wind howled, as if evil spirits were roaring.
This was not the most frightening part. The most frightening thing was that a terrifying fluctuation was brewing in this graveyard!
An extremely eerie laughter rang out, "Hehehe... How many years has it been? Since I last devoured the souls of the entire Li Huo Palace, I was banished by an unknown power and sealed here. I can't remember how many years! I didn't expect someone to reopen the seal..."
A large amount of black energy permeated out. An old man with corpse spots all over his face and disgusting tumors on his head crawled on the ground. His gaze towards Li Qingyun and the others was filled with greed.
Li Qingyun took two steps back, his brows furrowed, "Are you... human or ghost?"
The oddly shaped old man let out a cackling laugh, "Heh heh... Whether human or ghost, it's not important. What's important is that I can achieve immortality! In these countless years, those righteous people, those hypocrites, have long turned to dust! Only I! I am immortal! Hahahaha!"
But Bai Nianchen adjusted his beard and said with a shake of his head, "Not so, not so. In fact, your time is running out. To be able to destroy an entire sect, your strength back then would not have been lower than the late Nascent Soul stage, but now you are merely at the Nascent Soul stage. I presume you have paid an extremely heavy price to resist the erosion of time?"
"And with your emaciated body, how much lifespan do you have left?"
The old man's pupils were bloodshot. His emaciated hands gripped the soil on the ground, his body trembled, and he gasped for breath, clearly angered by Bai Nianchen.
Then he let out a sharp cry, "Shut up! A trash at the Foundation Establishment stage dares to point fingers at me? I felt it when you opened the formation, a large amount of fresh souls! Today! I can feast!"
Endless black energy swirled around him...