CHAPTER 67: CHAPTER 67: PHANTASMAL POISON

A loud bang echoed, the ancient trees trembled, shedding dead leaves, while the barrier at the door twisted but did not shatter, appearing very resilient.

"Put more effort, continue."

Chen Xian said.

The group used the most primitive and clumsy method to break the array, continuously releasing attacks upon it, gradually twisting the barrier, consuming its energy rapidly.

This tedious and monotonous labor made Shen Wang frown. Amidst the attacks, he continued to observe the condition of the array, to see if it could be broken more ingeniously.

He discovered engraved array runes inside the door, indicating that this was a composite array, with both natural and artificial parts.

Natural and artificial were the simple distinctions he made for the two arrays. Since they were combined, this array was certainly not easy to break.

He glanced at the ancient tree. Although its leaves were withered, vitality remained, suggesting it was a crucial part of the array.

If he’s not mistaken, the array here should be the strongest in summer; now, in winter, the leaves have fallen, weakening the wood attribute, and the array has been considerably weakened.

"Everyone should try attacking with blades and swords. This is a wood attribute array, and since metal subdues wood, it may save some effort."

Shen Wang suggested, though he wasn’t sure if it would work, but it was worth trying.

"I’ll use a Flying Sword."

Wang Chuanfu formed a seal, and a golden short sword flew out, striking hard against the barrier, leaving a mark, then quickly getting repaired.

Shen Wang drew the Black Death Blade, slashing it fiercely. With a crack, a crack appeared on the array.

It felt like chopping at an old tree, very resilient, with only a bit of bark being cut through.

"Doesn’t this make us look foolish?"

Hou Shangcai was astonished. Earlier, so many attacked without effect, but using blades and swords showed obvious results.

"It seems we really need to consider attribute conflict."

Li Yuanning sighed, "I just read books to death and didn’t know how to be flexible."

"It’s not your fault. I also used the Flying Sword earlier, with the same results; just that the others didn’t use blades and swords, so it wasn’t visible."

Wang Chuanfu shook his head, out of the seven, only he used a Flying Sword, others’ magical artifacts weren’t sharp.

"We are indeed fools, acting without thinking, thanks to Younger Brother Shen."

Chen Xian was helpless, admitting they hadn’t considered much, thus falling behind.

"Would using the Fireball Technique work?"

Hou Shangcai wondered.

"Not very suitable, as the area is saturated with Yin Cold Power, which would counteract most of the Fire Attribute Power; using Gold Attribute attacks is best."

Shen Wang shook his head. He was the one who initially used the Fireball Technique, but its destructive power was limited.

At this time, with abundant Water Attribute Power, and in the high mountains, filled with Ice Qi, the power would be greatly reduced.

But Gold Attribute weapons are different, unaffected by the environment, and have a pinpoint break-through effect.

"Everyone who has a weapon should try to use it."

Chen Xian nodded at Shen Wang, clasping his hands and turning his palm into a blade, cutting diagonally with black energy gleaming, finding it also effective.

Liao Lie took out a claw-shaped magical artifact, controlling it to fly at the barrier, leaving marks.

He glanced at Shen Wang, "Doing it this way certainly saves effort."

"No, it shouldn’t only be your method saving effort, but also because the array here has weakened compared to the last time!"

Li Yuanning realized, "Last time it was hard to leave such marks even with a joint attack."

"Perhaps deep winter has withered the Wood Qi further, affecting the strength of this barrier."

Shen Wang speculated.

"This is a good thing."

Li Jian’an took out a pair of gloves with sharp spikes, landing a heavy fist on it.

Everyone took out sharp objects and attacked the same spot concurrently. In just a quarter of an hour, the array barrier shattered.

A putrid smell greeted them, assumed by the few to be caused by poor ventilation, and they excitedly filed in.

Shen Wang waited a moment, being the last to enter. Upon seeing the situation inside, he suddenly felt dizzy, with blurry vision.

"Not good, it’s poisoned!"

Those who entered ahead exclaimed in panic, while Shen Wang sensed something wrong and retreated without hesitation.

Even returning outside, he still felt extremely nauseated.

Most crucially, the scene before him changed—from an ancient cave mansion area to a black, decayed terrain.

It looked like a swamp, with the ground bubbling and twisted vines and plants around, giving off a strange odor similar to the previous rot.

This scene shocked Shen Wang. Immediately, he placed three Golden Light Talismans on himself, vigilantly observing his surroundings, finding the others had vanished.

What surprised him the most was that his Divine Thought seemed corroded, making it unusable.

"Could I have been transported to another place? Impossible, most likely hallucinating due to poisoning."

Shen Wang pondered, wryly smiling, "I anticipated danger, but not of this sort, which is completely unavoidable."

He shook his head helplessly, trying his best to activate his Spiritual Telekinesis, while cautiously holding a more advanced Vajra Talisman and gripping the Black Death Blade with the other hand.

Suddenly, the ground churned, and with a ghastly wail, a monster emerged, fixing its gaze on him.

Shen Wang frowned. If there were no outsiders here, this creature was most likely one of Chen Xian and the others.

If he acted now, it would simply be mutual combat.

He spoke, "Who are you?"

The other didn’t respond, but instead assumed an attacking stance, approaching the next moment.

Shen Wang had two choices: to fight this monster and kill it, or to dodge it.

With his senses distorted by hallucinations, unsure of who the other person truly was, Shen Wang chose to retreat, trying to distance himself as much as possible.

Bang!

He quickly bumped into a massive entity, looking up to see a giant towering coldly above him.

Meanwhile, more monsters emerged from the swamp, glaring at him fiercely.

Shen Wang pondered and surprisingly closed his eyes.

Knowing nothing of his surroundings, the first task was not to attack anyone, but to quickly restore normal perception.

With eyes closed, his Spiritual Power focused, directly visualizing Luo Shen.

As for being attacked, if three Golden Light Talismans couldn’t block them, there was still a Vajra Talisman, which could hold on for a few hits.

If it couldn’t, he’d never escape even if he restored his normal senses.

In the visualized spiritual world, a layer of black aura polluted his Divine Thought, making it hard to use.

"The highest good is like water, calm heart and concentrate spirit, break!"

Shen Wang concentrated all his Spiritual Power, relying not on the five senses but on Telekinesis, the sixth sense.

The prerequisite for using Divine Thought was purging the black aura from his spiritual world.

His relentless focus on Telekinesis gradually opened Luo Shen’s eyes in his visualization.

The sacred light burst forth, evaporating the black aura.

Shen Wang’s affected Divine Thought pierced through the corrosive force, feeling like a bucket of water poured over his head, instantly clearing his mind.

His smoothly spread thoughts revealed the true nearby situation.

Somehow, he had unknowingly backed onto the cliff wall. Hou Shangcai approached cautiously, holding a green fork affixed with a Defense Talisman.

"Ah!"

The cave mansion resounded with a scream; it was Wang Chuanfu. Shen Wang immediately took an Antitoxic Pill, holding his breath and speaking in a deep voice: "Hurry and stop, or you’ll end up killing each other!"

To Hou Shangcai, Shen Wang’s words were monstrous roars, entirely unable to hear what Shen Wang said. His eyes turned red, and he roared back, "Who are you? If you’re one of us, then move aside!"