Yi Qing brought Shen Ying a bit closer.
Lonemoon frowned, trying to suppress his anger. Awhile later, he said, “The purple gaseous clues are gone now. If we want to find it-”
“No!” Shen Ying interrupted.
“What?”
Lonemoon paused. Shen Ying suddenly handed the box containing the purple gas over. A thin line drifted out of the box. There it was again! This time, though, it was leaning toward the west.
“Holy shit! Why is it here again?”
“I don’t know.” Shen Ying tilted her head. “I just realised it was there.”
Lonemoon took the box and studied it closer. “Forget it, let’s try to search in the direction it’s leading us.”
Once he finished speaking, he followed the direction of the purple line. Yi Qing tried to catch up.
“Master, just now…” Yi Qing started saying, but realised that Shen Ying was looking in the direction of the Fertility and Marriage tree once again. She looked deep in thought. “Master? Master!”
“Yes?”
“But it seems inappropriate.”
Shen Ying faced Yi Qing. After pondering for a moment, she said, “Chef, don’t you think that-”
“I found it!” Lonemoon, who was in front of them, suddenly shouted. He looked at the box once more, then pointed below. “It’s right there!”
Indeed, the box containing the purple gas began to glow very faintly with purple light. It looked like something was pulling it downward.
The few of them landed. Surprisingly, it was a forest. All around them were tall, sturdy trees. It did not look like many people came here before. The moment they entered the forest, the light disappeared. Their surroundings became pitch black.
All three of them felt slightly surprised. Initially, they had found the purple gas in different dharma artifacts which resembled accessories. Naturally, they thought they would be led to other similar-looking artifacts. Yet, it did not look like this forest contained any similar-looking artifacts.
Lonemoon quickly used his divine perception to scan the forest, but he found nothing. Frowning, he asked, “Why can’t I find anything?” If the purple gas was correct, they should find something over here.
The three of them split up to look around.
“Father Niu, don’t you feel…” Yi Qing pointed to the trees around them. “Don’t you feel that these trees are all grown in quite unique positions?”
The trees!
It was then that Lonemoon realised the suspiciously tall trees all around them. On closer inspection, his eyes widened. “This is an array!”
Yi Qing’s and Lonemoon’s eyes twinkled with surprise. Arrays required some kind of force to sustain – spirit Qi, immortal Qi or demonic Qi would normally do the trick. Yet, this array looked like it was being supported by the natural trees. The roots of the trees were buried deep in the soil, where the immortal meridians flowed. Naturally, the array would be able to obtain some by seeking support from the trees. This was the reason this array was camouflaged so well. It would give outsiders the impression that this place was filled with immortal power. However, nobody would realise that there was an array standing right there.
This was the first time either of them was seeing an array like this. Indeed, the person who set it up was creative.
Lonemoon walked toward one of the trees and activated some immortal Qi. Using the immortal Qi’s force, he changed the flow of the array and broke it open.
At once, the dense forest shook before their eyes. As if curtains had just been opened, the forest disappeared. A majestic palace stood in its place.
The immortal Qi around them surged, making them feel like they were standing inside an immortal meridian.
“I think this is an ancient monument.” Lonemoon surveyed the palace, which was practically engulfed by immortal Qi. “Let’s go in and take a look. Be careful.”
He stepped forward with Yi Qing following close behind him. Shen Ying was right behind them.
“Eh?” Just as she stepped through the door, she halted, turning around to look at the forest behind them.
“Master?” Yi Qing noticed Shen Ying pause. He turned around quizzically.
Shen Ying lowered her gaze, then turned back to the front. “That’s alright. Let’s go!”
A small jade-like staircase appeared in front of them, leading the short way to the front hall which was floating in mid-air.
The three of them began to climb the stairs. A short while later, they arrived at a huge field. The field was so vast that they could not find its boundaries. Immediately, they mounted their swords and flew across the field to the front of the hall.
On top of the hall hung a red signboard. On the signboard was written three words: Purple Night Palace. The font was bold and strong, commanding some sort of authority. It caused both Lonemoon and Yi Qing to frown. They looked away and did not look at it again.
Shen Ying, on the other hand, raised her head and looked at it for a long while.
Hey!
The gate to the hall was shut tight. Lonemoon had thought that it would be protected by one or two arrays. To his surprise, however, the gate creaked open when he gave it a light push.
When the three of them entered the hall, they noticed that it was completely empty, just like the outside. Immortal Qi over here was so thick that it was comparable to the heavenly palaces in the immortal realm. Yet, for some reason, they had an eerie feeling while inside. It looked like this place had been deserted for a long time. The strange thing was that everything was in perfect condition. There was not a speck of dust inside the house. There was no sign that anyone had ever been here.
“Quick, look in the middle!” Yi Qing exclaimed as he pointed to the center of the hall where the immortal Qi felt the thickest.
Lonemoon turned to look. Faintly, they saw a purple light in the middle of the hall. His chest tightened as he walked briskly toward it. Indeed, there in the middle stood a stage made out of white jade. There was a lamp on it that was lit up, not with fire, but with the purple gaseous mass that resembled smoke.
“We found it!” Lonemoon exclaimed. He picked up the lamp. “There is indeed a purple-”
“Father Niu!” Before he could finish speaking, Yi Qing’s eyes widened in shock. “Put it down!”
Huh?
Lonemoon paused. He saw the purple gas turn into purple flames, which spread at top speed. They swallowed his lower arm and threatened to swallow his entire body.
He tried to loosen his grip on the lamp, but found that he could not. His arm was now numb.
Yi Qing activated his sword Qi and directed it at Lonemoon, causing the purple flames to retreat back down his arm. The lamp fell to the floor with a clank. Lonemoon’s sleeves were entirely burnt off and his lower arm looked badly scarred.
His heart thumped. What kind of technique was that? He couldn’t feel his arm at all.
Before he could figure it out, the gate to the hall closed itself back with a loud bang.
The entire hall lit up. The darkness turned into a blinding white light. A beam of light was shining down on the hall from above, causing a big hole to appear right in the middle.
An emotive male voice sounded.
“You’re finally here, Manager.”
