CHAPTER 430: CHAPTER 0427: CAN I SAY, I’M REALLY GOOD AT THIS SORT OF THING?

An Immortal King barged in.

Another Immortal King barged in.

Immediately after, those Immortal Monarchs also entered the Ancient Mountain.

The allure of the Heavenly Cave Mansion was undeniable. This place held the essence of ancient powerhouses, shrouded in secrets hidden for hundreds of thousands of years. Who could resist such temptation?

Immortal Monarchs and Immortal King-level powerhouses had already entered the Ancient Mountain. How could the others hold back? Even if they could only pick up scraps, it would be enough for them to benefit for a lifetime.

Thus, the majority of immortals began heading inside.

Yi Chong roared, "You’re courting death! Why won’t you believe me when I say it? My understanding of arrays—who among you can surpass me?"

Lin Fan looked at Yi Chong and thought it was a pity. A perfectly fine individual had to suffer hardships he shouldn’t at his age.

It wasn’t entirely bad, though.

He even felt a faint urge to be merciful and help him escape his troubles, reincarnate, and start all over in the next life to reach new heights.

But there’s no way around it.

After all, the man had done nothing to provoke him.

Plus, enduring such a massive blow already was bad enough; without offering consolation, it wouldn’t feel right to make fun of someone’s misfortune.

"Brother Lin, what do you think?" Xiang Fei inquired.

The Ancient Mountain piqued his curiosity, but the hidden terrors within made his heart pound with unease.

After a moment of contemplation, Lin Fan said, "Let’s take a look. If it’s too much, we’ll retreat."

After coming all this way.

Not going in to take a look would leave him feeling dissatisfied. Besides, with the strong ahead blazing the trail, if they carefully followed behind, there shouldn’t be any issues.

Qin Yang frowned. "Brother Lin, I really think we should forget about it. This place is too eerie. I have a strong feeling there’s some ancient terrifying ghost at work. Anyone who goes in is courting death."

"What are you afraid of? Look at how timid you are. We’re not here to do anything crazy—just to take a look. Just one peek won’t hurt." Lin Fan glanced at Qin Yang, then strode toward the Ancient Mountain.

"Brother Qin, don’t be scared. Just be cautious and you’ll be fine," Xiang Fei said.

What else could Qin Yang say? Formerly cautious Xiang Fei had now become so bold. He had no words left and didn’t know how to respond.

Sigh!

As expected.

Those of humble origins, when encountering a place with hidden Immortal Treasures, couldn’t resist. Unlike him, born into an Immortal Venerable Family—with all the treasures he’d seen—these things didn’t excite him much.

Preserving one’s life, he thought, was the most important thing.

Inside the Ancient Mountain.

"How tragic."

Lin Fan sighed, able to understand just how severe the blows Yi Chong had suffered. The sight of corpses and blood staining the ground ahead sent chills down one’s spine.

Some of the corpses were smashed into pieces.

Others looked as though they’d suffered some mysterious attack; though their bodies were intact, their faces were frozen in terror and twisted gruesomely—they had clearly encountered something unspeakably horrifying.

Qin Yang thought to himself, "This is freaking terrifying."

Couldn’t anyone acknowledge how awful these deaths were? Utterly pitiful, without a shred of dignity?

If it were just him alone, he’d have already snuck away by now.

But now, he had no choice.

Both Brother Xiang and Brother Lin were so interested in this place—what could he say? He could only follow them.

As the saying goes: Share blessings together; put on a brave front when forced; bear misfortunes together. That was Qin Yang’s true philosophy.

When destined companions became brothers, they had to be cherished.

At least as long as you don’t wrong me, I, Qin Yang, even if frightened, will summon my courage to charge ahead with these two lunatics.

"So, in the end, we still have to rely on the Immortal Kings to handle the true arrays," Lin Fan remarked with a smile.

He observed the distant Immortal Kings breaking through one array after another.

One thing was clear:

The might of Immortal Kings was truly terrifying.

Qin Yang, eager, said, "Quick, let’s follow in the footsteps of the Immortal King seniors."

Lin Fan grabbed Qin Yang’s wrist. "Are you stupid? Didn’t you hear what Yi Chong said—these arrays, even when broken, can still reactivate. In my opinion, each new array spawns because of us latecomers. We’ll have to break through them again."

"But who among us can do that?" Qin Yang’s eyes widened.

Arrays were... complicated.

Truthfully, Qin Yang had once been a man with a love for learning—his interests extended beyond cultivation to alchemy, artifact refining, and array formation.

He had many hobbies.

Music, strategy games, poetry, painting, indulgent pleasures—he was proficient in them all.

But an overlooked elder in his family had once told him...

What’s the point of learning such things?

Have you ever heard of raw power breaking all laws?

As long as your strength is overwhelming, these so-called skills are nothing more than rubbish.

At the time, he was deeply moved, believing it to be golden advice, pearls of wisdom.

But later.

He finally realized why this elder had been cast aside by the family. Honestly, it made too much sense that he was marginalized.

"Step aside, step aside. When it counts, you have to count on me!" Lin Fan cleared his throat, confidently stepping forward and touching the first stone step with his finger.

[Taiyin Annihilation God Formation: Triggers upon activation. The Taiyin Soul Fire will incinerate the Divine Soul, turning the victim into a soulless corpse. The first of the Innate Killing Array series, extremely dangerous. Anything below Daluo Golden Immortal level is considered trash.]

[Note: This array contains flaws. The way to break it is...]

"Ah, so that’s how it is," Lin Fan said with a nod.

Qin Yang stared at Lin Fan, dumbfounded. "Brother Lin, if you don’t mind, could you explain a little? You keep saying, ’so that’s how it is,’ but I’m completely in the dark here. It feels like we’re not even on the same wavelength."

Lin Fan gave Qin Yang a glance, saying nothing. Explaining an array to him would be like playing the lute to a cow.

Currently, his understanding of arrays wasn’t advanced—not even comparable to Yi Chong’s—but it had at least entered the beginner’s level.

And with the flaws of the Taiyin Annihilation God Formation clearly visible, if he couldn’t manage to break it, he might as well quit altogether.

After carefully working at it for a short while...

"Alright, follow my lead," Lin Fan said, stepping onto the first stair. His words exuded confidence, yet his step forward was comically small.

Xiang Fei found it strange. He had been watching Lin Fan work on the array closely.

While it didn’t seem particularly miraculous...

The formation embedded within the stair did indeed undergo changes.

One step per array. Looking ahead, the number of formations layered on the steps was mind-boggling. He couldn’t even fathom who would have laid so many arrays—it was terrifying just to think about it.

Whoever it was, they must have been far beyond his imagination.

"This is now the second step. Let’s take it one step at a time. Don’t focus on how quickly others move; before long, we’ll catch up to them." Lin Fan said.

As before, he lightly touched the second step.

Hmm?

He discovered a concealed mechanism within the array—it could open a secondary pathway, entirely separate from the one the Immortal Kings used.

"This could actually be pretty useful," Lin Fan thought, imagining himself quickly scaling to the peak while the Immortal Kings were still stuck, struggling with the arrays below. The notion filled him with satisfaction.

"Let’s take the other path to separate from them," Lin Fan decided. "Otherwise, instead of us following behind others, we’ll have them trailing in our wake."

He had no intention of letting his hard work pave the way for others.

Xiang Fei muttered to himself. Brother Lin’s understanding of arrays was extraordinary—he’d been hiding it all this time in plain sight.

Time passed without notice.

The Immortal Kings came to an abrupt halt before an immense array. They had run into a problem. This formation was too profound; even as Immortal Kings, they found themselves at a loss.

"The individual who crafted this formation must have been at the Immortal Venerable level. Such a figure could effortlessly create a naturally seamless array. Yet this one—it’s clearly been painstakingly arranged."

"If I’m not mistaken, this is the Jiu Jiu Unity Array."

"Does anyone have any thoughts? Perhaps we should brainstorm. We can’t just stay stuck here forever."

Among the Immortal Kings, following their lead was another group—small fry trailing behind. These individuals stayed close, relying on the Immortal Kings to clear the way. All the Immortal King-level figures present were renowned across the Immortal Realm, and their reputations didn’t allow for them to casually lash out—lest they invite gossip.

For an Immortal King to strike at juniors? That would be embarrassing.

"King Qing, it’s rumored that you acquired the essence of the ’Break’ character from an Immortal Venerable’s inherited treasure trove. Why not step forward and deal with this formation?" a fellow Immortal King suggested.

Their stature within the Immortal Realm was second only to the Immortal Emperors.

And nowadays, how often did Immortal Emperors move about freely? Most were secluded in life-or-death meditation, striving for breakthroughs to reach the Immortal Venerable Dao Fruit, or studying the marvels of nature, seeking enlightenment.

"Very well."

This Immortal King, known as King Qing, was of striking beauty and youthful appearance. But no one dared to truly think of him as a mere youth—this was an Immortal King who had lived for ten thousand years.

In an instant.

King Qing’s lips moved slightly as he extended a finger toward the stone steps. It seemed a simple point, yet it carried supreme Dao intent.

"Break!"

Buzz!

A faint vibration rippled outward.

The formidable formation that had stumped all present dissolved into nothingness before King Qing in the blink of an eye.

The juniors following from behind had never seen an Immortal King personally act before. They were awestruck and full of admiration—such power exceeded anyone’s wildest imagination.

They couldn’t help but envy and long for the day when they themselves might match such prowess.

The other Immortal Kings couldn’t help but covet the ’Break’ Dao intent King Qing had mastered, a treasure even Immortal Venerables might not possess.

The purpose of these staircase formations.

It wasn’t to stop people from climbing the Ancient Mountain.

If Lin Fan had been here, he would have said, "Wrong, completely wrong. These obstacles weren’t meant to block the way but to sift through rubbish, selecting capable individuals to ascend the mountain."

On the alternate path...

"Brother Lin, you’re incredible! Breaking arrays is as effortless for you as drinking water—just a touch, and it’s done. Once we’re out of here, could you teach me? I’m very eager to learn," Qin Yang said enviously.

"With your level of intelligence, you’d never learn," Lin Fan declared mercilessly, striking down Qin Yang’s confidence without hesitation. He had his reasons for doing so.

Qin Yang had provoked quite a few enemies in his time. Someday, when they inevitably came seeking revenge, preemptively crushing his self-esteem now might prepare him for the worst, helping him to face it with composure rather than despair.

Unhappy, Qin Yang protested, "Brother Lin, you might say my charm with women doesn’t rival yours, but don’t insult my intelligence. My ability to secure a place in an Immortal Venerable Family has everything to do with my brains!"

Just then.

They sensed peculiar gazes directed toward them.

Someone was watching them.

No...

It wasn’t spying—it was blatantly, brazenly observing them.