Wang Jilong nodded slightly in greeting, acknowledging Zhang Qing’s introduction. His gaze swept past Lu Yu and settled on Lou Xiaoyu as he asked, “Is this the fifth person? Why can’t I sense the fluctuation of a mutated star soul?”
Zhang Qing said, “Don’t worry, it’s indeed a mutated star soul. There won’t be any problem to open it.”
“That’s good then.” Wang Jilong finally withdrew his gaze and began to focus on the storage bead in his hand. His eyes flickered with a red light, and then he put the item into his backpack.
Lao Wu chuckled and said, “You sent someone to the hotel at dawn with a message—does that mean the mission is accomplished?”
Wang Jilong’s lips curled slightly upward, revealing sharp, serrated teeth as he grinned, “Took a bit of effort, but we’ve got the person after all.”
Zhang Qing said with envy, “Sometimes, I really wish I could be a Blood Eye too. Tsk tsk, everything would be so much easier with that ability. But then again, the thought of eating people…”
Zhang Qing shivered all over, showing signs of fear!
Lou Xiaoyu immediately understood what Wang Jilong had been up to during his days outside the city, and her face turned pale.
Killing has already become commonplace in this world.
But sometimes, the idea of cannibalism is still difficult for people to accept mentally.
“Hmph. After you’ve eaten human flesh for the first time, you’ll realize it’s not a big deal,” Wang Jilong, accustomed to such looks, replied coldly, “Now that everyone’s here, let’s skip the unnecessary talk. Let’s begin.”
As long as you have the strength, no one will dare to look at you differently, no matter where you go.
Wang Jilong understood the principle of possessing strong power.
Therefore, he has always been very strong.
Even the three major organizations that stand at the pinnacle of Nanjing City know that although the Blood Eye is an outcast, no one dares to provoke them for this very reason.
“Alright, don’t waste time,” Zhang Qing nodded seriously and said, “Xingzangdi isn’t a pleasant place. The sooner we go in, the better, and we should come out as quickly as possible.”
Zhang Qing looked at the four of them and said seriously, “In a moment, I will open a passageway. Once you enter, don’t hold back, because right after the passageway lies our first trial. If we can’t even pass the first test, then it’s as if we’ve come here for nothing.”
Zhang Qing spoke and raised his arm.
On his arm, the blue veins bulged as power began to gather.
Lu Yu lightly furrowed his brows and said in a deep voice, “I don’t know about this place you’ve discovered. However, I think it’s better to clarify things. Zhang Qing, you seem very familiar with the inside. Have you been there before?”
Zhang Qing paused for a moment, then put down her hand and smiled at Lu Yu, saying, “It’s normal for you to have such a question. I won’t hide anything from you—we indeed entered. Lao Wu Lou, you, Xiao Yu Lou, and even Ji Long Wang didn’t go in. I found Lao Wu Lou first, then Ji Long Wang, and you already know what happened afterward.”
Lu Yu frowned and continued to ask, “Since you’ve been inside, you couldn’t possibly have gone in alone. So where are your other four companions?”
Zhang Qing spread his palms and shrugged helplessly, saying, “Dead! There were never four companions; there were only three people in total!”
He answered decisively, his face showing no emotion at all, as if the deceased had nothing to do with him. He smiled and said, “To enter the path leading to the Star Burial Ground, one does not need a mutated star soul; only at the final step are five mutated star souls required simultaneously to open the way!”
Lu Yu said, “What you’re saying is that you’ve actually reached the final step!”
“How could that be! We didn’t even pass the first trial—two people are already dead. It was only after I accidentally obtained a faint lingering consciousness left behind by someone at the first trial that I realized it was a Star Burial Ground and learned the conditions required to activate it. You must be wondering how we coincidentally gathered here. Let me tell you, the three of us aren’t even friends; in fact, we had some conflicts with each other before. Originally, it was a chase—those two were hunting me—yet we temporarily joined forces to enter the site after their attack accidentally struck the entrance of the Star Burial Ground. None of us had any idea what awaited us inside before we went in.”
Lu Yu said, “I have no more questions!”
He had almost all the information he needed. He could tell that Zhang Qing was hiding something, but Zhang Qing wouldn’t say anything.
As for what happens after you go inside, it’s up to you.
Wang Jilong also nodded and said, “We can begin. Don’t waste time. The current situation in Nanjing is unstable, and I don’t want my position to be taken over by someone else while I’m away.”
Zhang Qing smiled and said, “Then I’ll start.”
Zhang Qing suddenly raised his hand; there was absolutely no equipment here, yet he powerfully punched into the empty space.
Vroom!
The force of the punch landed on the empty space, and a “crack” echoed in everyone’s ears, as if glass had suddenly trembled and shattered. A series of cracks rapidly spread through the void.
Lu Yu was deeply shaken.
He remembered that in Fanggang, someone had also used such a method to shatter the void and brought him outside the city.
And now, could the so-called Star Burial Ground also be located somewhere outside the city?
Vroom!
Zhang Qing rotated his fist again and struck out.
Bang!
The punch’s force struck into the emptiness, as if piercing through the void itself.
Zhang Qing’s fist sank in.
The void shattered into pieces, with fragments as large as several zhang, resembling mirrors, falling down and revealing a darkness behind.
In the darkness, it seemed as if faint black mist had drifted through the fractured void, merging with the surrounding darkness.
Zhang Qing didn’t hesitate either and took a step inside.
Lou Xiaoyu took a step back in fear, feeling anxious about the darkness around her.
“This time, it’s a matter of life and death!” Although Lao Wu was already old, his courage had not faded at all.
He laughed heartily and took a step forward into it.
Wang Jilong glanced at Lu Yu, then stepped in as well.
Lu Yu nodded slightly at Lao Xiaoyu and said, “I told you before, your safety here is my responsibility. You won’t come to any harm—as long as I’m still alive.”
Lu Yu stepped into the darkness as he spoke.
Lou Xiaoyu lightly bit her lower lip and took a step forward into it as well.
The ruptured void began to heal, as if no one had ever entered.
…
Before the five people, the sky was pitch black; you couldn’t tell whether this was a starry sky or if a dome was blocking out the darkness!
In the darkness, there was not even the light of the moon or stars.
It was as if the human eye could barely penetrate the darkness, discerning the outlines of objects ahead.
Here’s an alternative version that’s slightly more literary:
It seemed as though the human eye could only just manage to pierce through the darkness, barely making out the faint outlines of what lay ahead.
Their feet stood upon a vast plain composed of endless gravel and ravines.
It seemed as if a terrifying war had once erupted here an endless age ago; the air still carried an aura of grimness and icy coldness!
A thousand meters ahead of the group was a mountain, a thousand meters high and unknown how many zhang wide! Behind the mountain, there were two even taller peaks.
Zhang Qing said earnestly, “Everyone, hold your ground! If we can’t even get through this, we have absolutely no hope of passing the first level.”
Just as Zhang Qing finished speaking, the mountain ahead of the five seemed to awaken, as if it had opened its eyes.
There was red light, blue light, and eerie greenish glow…
Colorful lights shimmered on the mountain, layer upon layer, patch upon patch, densely covering the peaks.
These glimmers flickered uncertainly, like a pair of eyes blinking.
Lao Wu Lu was the first to grit his teeth and glare fiercely at Zhang Qing, angrily saying: “Zhang Qing, why didn’t you mention that this damn mountain is full of monsters?”
Zhang Qing laughed proudly and said, “Isn’t this amazing?”
Lu Yu, Wang Jilong, and Lao Wu were all deeply moved.
These eyes blinked, millions of them!
Lou Xiaoyu had also seen large groups of monsters in the city before. However, she had never encountered so many monsters at once.
Her heart was also trembling slightly, showing a hint of fear.
But at this moment, Lu Yu stood in front of her, making her feel safe.
Although Lu Yu didn’t say anything, he didn’t turn around either.
However, the tall, retreating figure left by Lou Xiaoyu made her heart beat a little faster.
A breath drifted in from the distance, carrying the aura of a level-four monster, and even the terrifying howl of a level-five monster!
Zhang Qing laughed! The mountain collapsed!
A mountain collapsed like an avalanche. What fell from the mountain was not debris, but monsters!
The monstrous group rolled like a snowball, pressing toward the five of them.
Wang Jilong angrily said, “Zhang Qing, are you trying to get us all killed here? How can we possibly hold off so many monsters?”
“Haha,” Zhang Qing laughed loudly, “If we can’t withstand these monsters, what qualifications do we have to continue forward?”
Lao Wu said solemnly, “Complaining won’t help anymore. Either withdraw, or push forward and fight.”
Zhang Qing grinned mischievously and said, “Tsk tsk, the possibility of withdrawing now is practically gone! Because, you see, I won’t tell anyone the way to exit. That leaves no way out—we’ll all have to keep moving forward together.”
“Damn it!” Lu Yu couldn’t help but change expression slightly.
Zhang Qing actually had such intentions, forcing everyone to walk to the very end.
At this moment—the monster had already pressed down.
The first to arrive were more than ten meters of densely packed monster groups, which all lunged out upon reaching Lu Yu and the others.
Even the originally dim sky was completely covered by countless monsters.
“Open!” he roared, his bloodshot eyes turning even redder.
His body was continuously growing larger, tearing through his clothes, and his muscles were bursting through his skin.
“Bang, bang, bang—”
With bloodshot eyes, he roared in agony as sharp bone spines pierced through his muscles one by one, eventually merging and transforming into a thick layer of white bone armor that covered his entire body.
Eventually, the Blood Eye transformed into a monstrous creature nearly ten zhang tall.
His large hand pressed down toward the charging horde of monsters. Violent power erupted from his palm, crushing more than ten creatures to the ground. Blood gushed from his hand, and monsters wailed in agony beneath his palm!
Boom!
Lao Wu also sprang into action. From between his five fingers, thousands of cold, shimmering threads erupted forth, each one shooting forward like an arrow released from its bowstring, charging toward the monstrous horde ahead.
One by one, arrows struck the monsters, their cold gleam piercing through the creatures’ bodies before continuing onward to impale the next monster.
A cold, shimmering light pierced through six or seven monsters before finally fading away.
“An area attack skill!” Hongyan couldn’t help but exclaim enviously, “I thought Situ was the first person to have an area attack skill a few days ago. I didn’t expect you to have one as well.”
“That kind of showing off is useless!” Old Five Lao sneered. “Real combat is the most important.”
Zhang Qing drew out a battle saber, laughing loudly, and said, “You guys are the best; I can only strike blow after blow!”
As soon as Zhang Qing finished speaking, she had already slashed out with her blade.
The war blade dragged a blade beam of several zhangs through the void, slicing all the monsters along a straight line into two halves.
“Roar!”
The smell of blood spreads, inciting the monster’s rage!
Behind them, thousands, even tens of thousands, of monsters surged forward together.
Zhang Qing took a small step back and said, “Lu Yu, it’s up to you now.”
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