HBWnovel Chapter 297 Strange Scenery.
Chapter 297 Strange Scenery.
After defeating the Dark Beast King, Jun Luochuan, Su Yao, Ye Ying, and Ling Shuang continued their journey deeper into the mysterious land towards the Heart of Darkness. With each step they took, the surrounding scenery became increasingly bizarre, as if they had stepped into a fantastical world beyond reality. Every scene assaulted their senses, leaving them awestruck by the strangeness and magnificence of this mysterious place.
Stepping into a wide-open area, the first thing that catches the eye is a stone forest suspended in mid-air. Huge rocks, seemingly weightless, float silently in mid-air, each with a unique shape: some like sharp swords piercing the clouds, others like winding dragons, and still others like contemplative giants. The surfaces of the rocks shimmer with iridescent light, these lights intertwining to create flowing scenes—sometimes like a vast galaxy, sometimes like an ancient battlefield, and sometimes like a fairyland in full bloom, a breathtaking spectacle.
"This...this is unbelievable!" Su Yao exclaimed, her eyes wide with amazement. Her face was full of surprise and curiosity, like a child stepping into a wondrous toy house.
Although Jun Luochuan was usually calm and composed, he couldn't help but be attracted by the scene before him, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes. "The spiritual energy fluctuations here are extremely complex and powerful. It seems that the levitation of these rocks is not a natural formation, but is controlled by some powerful force."
Nightshade gripped his longsword tightly, his gaze sweeping warily across the stone forest. "Such a strange sight might conceal unknown dangers. We should all be careful."
Ling Shuang nodded slightly, the dagger in her hand gleaming with a ghostly blue light. Her magical technique was ready to be used at any moment. "This light seems to contain some kind of spiritual energy information, but it is too complex to decipher for the time being."
The four cautiously entered the stone forest, the surrounding light growing increasingly dazzling, as if countless stars were twinkling around them. Suddenly, the ground beneath Su Yao's feet trembled slightly, and then a beam of light shot out from the ground, condensing into a phantom figure in mid-air. This figure resembled an ancient cultivator, dressed in a long robe, holding a staff, with a solemn face and profound gaze looking at them.
"Outsiders, you have trespassed into this mysterious place. It hides endless secrets and dangers. If you have not offended us, leave immediately." The voice of the illusory figure echoed in the stone forest, as loud as a bell, yet with an ethereal quality.
Jun Luochuan stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Senior, we have come to stop the conspiracy of a mysterious force. They are attempting to awaken a dark artifact and endanger the cultivation world. We humbly request that you provide us with some clues to help us complete our mission."
The illusory figure frowned slightly, scrutinizing the four as if weighing something. After a moment, he slowly said, "The ambitions of the mysterious forces have a long history. They covet the power of the dark artifacts to achieve their ulterior motives. Since you are so determined, I will give you some hints. Deep within this stone forest lies a Mirror of Time, capable of displaying fragments of the past and future. Perhaps it can help you find the key to stopping the mysterious forces."
After speaking, the illusory figure transformed into a beam of light and vanished into the air.
"The Mirror of Time? That sounds amazing," Su Yao said excitedly.
"Regardless, this might be an important clue for us. Everyone, proceed carefully and pay attention to your surroundings," Jun Luochuan said.
The four continued traversing the stone forest. The surrounding floating rocks seemed to follow their own rhythm, sometimes moving slowly, sometimes remaining still. Suddenly, a huge rock flew towards them at great speed, too fast for them to dodge.
"Watch out!" Jun Luochuan shouted, quickly casting a defensive spell to form a spiritual energy shield in front of everyone. The rock slammed into the shield with a loud bang, and the shield trembled violently, but fortunately it managed to withstand the attack.
"Why did these rocks suddenly attack us?" Nightshade asked, frowning.
Ling Shuang observed the surrounding rocks and noticed that their glow seemed to have changed. "It seems that our actions triggered some kind of mechanism, and these rocks are now under control and starting to attack. Everyone, pay attention to the rocks' movement patterns and look for their weaknesses."
Just then, several more rocks came hurtling towards them from different directions. Jun Luochuan quickly analyzed the rocks' trajectories and shouted, "Night Shadow, attack the one on the left; Su Yao, use your light magic to disrupt the flight path of the one on the right; Ling Shuang, use your illusion magic to confuse the one directly in front of us. I'll take charge of defense and ensure everyone's safety."
Everyone quickly followed Jun Luochuan's instructions. Ye Ying unleashed the Starry Sky-Splitting Sword Technique, slashing a sword aura at the rock on the left, creating a crack on its surface and slowing its flight speed. Su Yao used her Light Spiritual Power, shooting a beam of light at the rock on the right, causing it to deviate from its original trajectory due to the light's interference. Ling Shuang used her Illusionary Arts to create a phantom, confusing the rock directly in front of her and causing it to pause briefly.
With the four working together, they successfully avoided the rock attacks. They continued deeper into the stone forest, encountering several more similar attacks along the way, but they overcame them all thanks to their teamwork and individual abilities.
Finally, they arrived deep within the stone forest. On a vast platform, a mirror radiating a soft glow stood silently—the Mirror of Time. Its surface shimmered, as if countless images were flowing within it.
"Is this the Mirror of Time? It looks so mysterious." Su Yao stepped forward and looked at the mirror with curiosity.
Jun Luochuan looked at the Mirror of Time and said, "Everyone be careful. We don't know what the consequences will be if we use this mirror. But in order to stop the mysterious force, we must give it a try."
After saying that, Jun Luochuan slowly approached the Mirror of Time. The moment his hand touched the mirror, a powerful force surged into his body, and his consciousness seemed to be drawn into a vortex, with images appearing before his eyes.
In the scene, the leader of the mysterious force stands before a dark artifact, a sinister smile on his face. The dark artifact radiates powerful dark energy, distorting the surrounding space. Members of the mysterious force surround the artifact, chanting eerie incantations, attempting to awaken its full power. Nearby, countless cultivators engage in a fierce battle with the dark forces, blood staining the earth and deafening cries of agony.
Then, the scene shifts to Jun Luochuan and his companions battling a mysterious force. The four of them fight valiantly, but the force is too powerful, and they gradually find themselves in a difficult situation. Just as they are about to collapse, a mysterious light appears, illuminating the darkness and repelling the mysterious force.
Jun Luochuan snapped out of his daze and told everyone what he had seen.
“It seems we are about to face a fierce battle, and that mysterious light may be the key to our victory over the mysterious forces,” Nightshade said.
"But how do we find that mysterious light?" Su Yao asked, frowning.
Ling Shuang pondered for a moment and said, "Perhaps we can look for clues around here and see if there are any hints related to that light."
So the four of them began to search carefully around the Mirror of Time. Suddenly, Su Yao discovered a hidden rune in a corner of the platform. The rune emitted a faint light, seemingly conveying some kind of information.
"Look, this rune seems a little different from the ones we've seen before," Su Yao exclaimed.
The crowd gathered around, and Jun Luochuan carefully examined the runes. "These runes seem to be a guide. Let's follow the direction of the runes and see what happens."
The four followed the direction indicated by the runes, passing through a dense forest of spiritual plants. These plants were of various shapes and sizes; some shimmered with fluorescence, some emitted strange fragrances, and some vines grew wildly in the air, as if they were alive.
Deep in the jungle, they discovered an ancient temple. The temple walls were covered with runes and patterns, and the temple doors were tightly closed, exuding a mysterious aura.
“This temple looks very old; perhaps it holds the clues we’re looking for,” Jun Luochuan said.
Nightshade stepped forward and tried to push open the temple door, but it wouldn't budge. "This door seems to be sealed. We need to find a way to break the seal."
Ling Shuang closed her eyes and focused her mind on sensing the spiritual energy fluctuations around the temple. "The spiritual energy fluctuations of this seal are very complex, and it seems that a specific combination of spiritual energy is needed to break it."
Su Yao's eyes lit up. "We can try using the spiritual energy fluctuations we sensed in the stone forest, combined with our respective spiritual energy, and maybe we can solve it."
Jun Luochuan nodded, "Su Yao makes sense. Ling Shuang, you direct us to inject spiritual energy."
Ling Shuang nodded slightly and began to direct everyone. "Jun Luochuan, you first inject the sword energy of the Spirit Control Divine Sword into the gate to trigger the first spiritual energy fluctuation. Ye Ying, you follow up with the sword energy of the Starry Sky Rift Sword Technique to enhance the fluctuation. Su Yao, you then inject the power of the fusion of light spiritual energy and fire element. Finally, I will use the Spirit Illusion Technique to stabilize the entire spiritual energy field."
Following Ling Shuang's instructions, everyone took turns channeling their spiritual energy into the gate. As the energy flowed in, the runes on the gate shone brightly, and the gate began to tremble slowly.
"Looks like it's working, keep it up!" Jun Luochuan shouted.
With everyone's efforts, the gate finally opened slowly, and an ancient and mysterious aura wafted out. Inside the temple, a colossal statue stood in the center, its face indistinct, but radiating a powerful aura. At the statue's feet lay a box that emitted light.
“That box might contain something crucial,” Nightshade said.
The four cautiously entered the temple and approached the statue. Just as they got close, the statue's eyes suddenly lit up, and a powerful force surged towards them.
"Watch out!" Jun Luochuan quickly cast a defensive spell, forming a spiritual energy shield in front of everyone. The powerful force struck the shield, causing it to tremble violently and develop cracks.
Su Yao hurriedly cast a healing spell to repair the shield. Ling Shuang then used illusion magic to try and disrupt the statue's attack. Ye Ying seized the opportunity and unleashed her strongest sword move, a sword aura imbued with the power of stars shooting towards the statue.
The statue, under attack, flashed with light. It raised its arm, and a beam of light shot out from its hand towards Night Shadow. Seeing this, Jun Luochuan flashed in front of Night Shadow, blocking the light with a swing of his Spirit Control Divine Sword.
“This statue is very powerful. We can’t fight it head-on. We need to find its weakness,” Jun Luochuan said.
The four of them fended off the statue's attacks while observing its movements. Suddenly, Su Yao noticed that before each attack, the runes on the statue would light up in a specific sequence.
"I've discovered it! The order in which the runes light up before the statue attacks is its weakness. If we attack in that order, we might be able to defeat it," Su Yao shouted.
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately paid attention to the order in which the runes on the statue lit up. As the statue prepared to attack again, Jun Luochuan unleashed a powerful sword aura according to the rune sequence, striking the statue's weak point. Ye Ying, Su Yao, and Ling Shuang also followed suit, casting their respective spells and sword techniques.
Under the combined attack of the four, the statue let out a muffled roar, its light gradually dimmed, and finally it collapsed to the ground with a thud.
The four breathed a sigh of relief, walked to the foot of the statue, and picked up the glowing box. Jun Luochuan opened the box, inside which was a bead emitting a soft light, the very source of the mysterious light they had seen in the Mirror of Time.
“It seems we’ve found the key. This bead might be able to help us stop the mysterious force,” Jun Luochuan said.
The four of them left the temple with the bead. They knew that a final showdown with a mysterious force awaited them, and that the bead might be the key to their victory.
End of this chapter