CHAPTER 119: CHAPTER 71: NALAN QING ESCAPES [FIRST UPDATE]

Hearing Si Lin’s words, Nan Hua and the others’ expressions all changed.

Jun Wu immediately shielded Gu Qingqing behind him, and Yun Ran and Zhuo Tingqiu also came to Gu Qingqing’s side.

"Jun Wu, take Geng Geng to the side, leave the bronze men here to us!" Si Lin kicked a bronze man away, turned, and said to Jun Wu.

"Okay." Jun Wu responded, pulling Gu Qingqing back directly.

"Geng Geng, open this array plate, protect yourself!" Nan Hua directly threw an array plate to Gu Qingqing, instructing her.

"Okay, Third Senior Brother." Gu Qingqing knew she couldn’t be polite to Nan Hua at this moment, so she caught the array plate and held it securely.

"Geng Geng, take out the talisman I gave you, don’t save them. Once they’re used up, Senior Brother will draw more for you!" Rong Ye summoned the Heavenly Awakening Record and, while the bronze men hadn’t attacked yet, shouted to Gu Qingqing.

"Got it, Fifth Senior Brother." Gu Qingqing nodded and shouted back at Rong Ye.

"Geng Geng, take out the turtle shell that Senior Brother gave you and hold it in your hand." While dealing with the bronze men, Yue Zhao shouted to Gu Qingqing.

"Okay, Second Senior Brother, be careful!" Gu Qingqing, at this point, had already retreated out of the Martial Arts Arena, and shouted to Yue Zhao.

Yun Ran and Zhuo Tingqiu followed closely by Gu Qingqing’s side, also retreating out of the Martial Arts Arena, then watched as Gu Qingqing activated the array plate and handed out a bunch of talismans to them, while holding a small turtle shell in her hand. The turtle shell appeared small, with very complex patterns on its back. When Yun Ran accidentally glanced at it, she immediately felt dizzy and quickly moved her gaze away.

"Top-grade Blast Thunder Talisman, top-grade Ice Talisman, top-grade Lightning Talisman... they’re all top-grade talismans!" Zhuo Tingqiu exclaimed in surprise when he saw the talismans in his hand.

Previously, they had received many talismans from Gu Qingqing and Rong Ye, but most were intermediate talismans, and occasionally getting a few high-level talismans was already surprising. They didn’t expect that Gu Qingqing had so many top-grade talismans!

"Fifth Senior Brother gave me all the top-grade talismans he’s drawn over the years!" Seeing Zhuo Tingqiu staring at her in wonder, Gu Qingqing explained directly.

Although they knew Rong Ye spoiled Gu Qingqing, every time they saw it, it refreshed their understanding of the matter! It seemed that Rong Ye didn’t have as many top-grade talismans as Gu Qingqing did!

"What’s this turtle shell?" Yun Ran asked curiously, looking at the turtle shell in Gu Qingqing’s hand.

"This is an Immortal Artifact, found by my Second Senior Brother in an Immortal Secret Realm. It’s said that this turtle shell can resist one Immortal Level attack." Gu Qingqing raised the turtle shell in front of her and explained casually.

Upon hearing this, Yun Ran and Zhuo Tingqiu were directly stunned!

The two exchanged a glance and saw envy in each other’s eyes!

"Geng Geng, doesn’t your master need any more disciples? I really want to apprentice under your master!" Although she had been rejected before, Yun Ran couldn’t help but ask again.

Gu Qingqing shook her head and gave Yun Ran an awkward but polite smile.

Yun Ran could only lower her head in disappointment.

While they were chatting, Si Lin and the others were fiercely battling the bronze men inside the Martial Arts Arena.

The bronze men not only had eighth-level cultivation, but they also felt no pain; even if their limbs were chopped off, they continued to fight, which was quite troublesome.

As someone proficient in Artifact Refining, Si Lin had tried several ways to disable the bronze men, but to no avail. He frowned, using the Dragon Capturing Sword to decapitate a bronze man, but its actions were unaffected, and its sword directly thrust toward him. Fortunately, his reflexes were fast enough to avoid being hit.

Suddenly, a thought flashed in his mind, and he directly stabbed the Dragon Capturing Sword into the bronze man’s heart, sensing a mechanism-like place inside, and used Sword Qi to destroy it. A screeching friction sound came from the bronze man before it shattered into pieces!

"The weakness is in the heart; you must stab inside, there’s a mechanism!" He immediately shouted to the others after finding the weakness.

Yue Zhao, being the closest, was not playing his melody but plucking single notes. The destructiveness was similar to playing a tune. Hearing Si Lin’s words, he adjusted his direction, plucking the strings, and the Sound Blade, under his control, directly severed the bronze man’s heart.

The bronze man shattered instantly, turning into a pile of scrap metal.

Nan Hua and Rong Ye, following Si Lin’s instructions, used their methods to destroy the bronze men’s heart areas, and the bronze men’s bodies quickly fell apart, turning into components.

A quarter-hour later, all the bronze men had turned into components, lying on the ground.

Si Lin and the others surveyed the area. After confirming no intact bronze men remained, they allowed themselves to relax.

Gu Qingqing deactivated the array plate’s protection, ran to Si Lin’s side, "Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother, and Fifth Senior Brother, are all of you okay?"

Although she had been inside the protection shield, Gu Qingqing had been worried about Si Lin’s safety. Fortunately, Si Lin and the others, being battle-hardened, didn’t sustain any injuries.

"We’re fine." Seeing Gu Qingqing’s concerned look, Si Lin felt warmth in his heart, gently patting Gu Qingqing on the head and comforting her softly.

Gu Qingqing looked towards Yue Zhao and the others, and upon seeing them shake their heads, she immediately smiled.

"I knew my senior brothers were the best!" She smiled so broadly that her eyes turned into crescent moons and gave Si Lin and the others a thumbs-up.

Seeing her like this, Si Lin and the others felt all their exhaustion vanish, suddenly filled with energy.

After a brief rest, the group continued their exploration.

...

Nalan Jin and his group went in the opposite direction of Gu Qingqing’s group, leaving through another passage that led to a different hall.

Compared to the palace they had just been in, this one was noticeably more dilapidated and very vacant, with nothing but a few bookshelves, leaving them puzzled.

"Brother, isn’t this palace a bit too rundown?" Nalan Xin looked at the somewhat weathered curtains and couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose in disdain, saying.

Nalan Jin did not speak but surveyed the palace’s situation, then turned to the other disciples of the Nalan Family and said, "Everyone, see if there’s any secret here, and be careful."

"Yes, Second Young Master!"

Faced with Nalan Jin’s order, the others naturally didn’t refuse. They started rummaging through the hall, and even Nalan Xin ran over to sift through the bookshelves.

Just as her hand was about to touch a particularly beautiful vase, a flash of light passed by. Suddenly, the once brightly lit palace became dim, causing everyone to panic.

Nalan Jin swiftly stepped to Nalan Xin’s side, cautiously looking around, and asked her, "Xin’er, are you okay?"

"I’m fine, brother. Did I cause trouble?" Nalan Xin stood still, her hand still in mid-air. In the darkness, she couldn’t see the expressions of those around her, and her tone carried a hint of guilt.

"How could it be? This isn’t your fault." Nalan Jin extended his hand, gently patting Nalan Xin’s head, soothing her softly.

Nalan Xin knew Nalan Jin was comforting her, yet her spirits remained low. At this moment, a cold wind suddenly attacked her from the side. Instinctively she wanted to dodge but wasn’t fast enough, resulting in a scratch on her neck. Fortunately, it wasn’t on a vital spot, leaving only a little blood.

"Xin’er?" Nalan Jin couldn’t see Nalan Xin’s condition, but he smelled the scent of blood and asked worriedly.

"Brother, something just attacked me. My neck is injured!" Nalan Xin held her neck, cautiously watching her surroundings, while speaking to Nalan Jin.

Nalan Jin was taken aback, looking toward Nalan Xin, but he couldn’t see anything. In the darkness, his brows knit tightly together.

"Xin’er, protect yourself!" Fearing to act rashly and possibly harm Nalan Xin by mistake, Nalan Jin could only caution her.

Nalan Xin couldn’t see Nalan Jin either, so she instinctively nodded, recalling that he couldn’t see her and replied, "I understand. You take care too, brother!"

Other members of the Nalan family also started speaking with those beside them, ensuring that everyone was still present.

In the pitch-black environment, people’s eyes were useless, while hearing and smell became more acute. Nalan Xin heard a muffled grunt not far away, and the scent of blood in the air thickened, causing her to shudder involuntarily.

At that moment, she felt as if something was behind her. She quickly swung her sword but didn’t hit anything, which made her even more tense.

What the Nalan family members couldn’t see was that besides them, the palace was filled with many transparent humanoid entities, or perhaps it’s more apt to call them ghosts ready to act!

Their expressions varied and their appearances were completely different. Some had lost their heads, which they held in their hands. Some wore red with blood tears on their faces, while others donned armor, the ghost bodies battered as if they suffered many injuries in life...

These ghosts had lingered in this palace for many years, unaware of why they were here. After all, their memories significantly faded after becoming ghosts.

Currently, they gleefully moved through the bodies of the Nalan family members, some even patting others’ heads or pinching their hair, and some made ghostly faces at Nalan Xin and the others, but regrettably, they couldn’t see them!

The one that scratched Nalan Xin was a Fierce Ghost, now greedily eyeing her, evidently contemplating how to devour her soul to become stronger!

Nalan Jin, though unable to see the ghosts, could sense their presence. He thought for a moment and bit his finger, letting his blood run along the sword he held. Quickly, the sword absorbed the droplets, flashing a red gleam, and after feeling a cool sensation, he thrust it forward.

This time, he finally felt he had struck something tangible. The ghost he hit was bewildered, completely unprepared to be struck!

However, although Nalan Jin had stabbed the ghost, it didn’t cause much harm, as he couldn’t even catch the scent of blood.

Frowning, he remembered that it all started when Nalan Xin attempted to touch the vase. It must be some kind of mechanism, so he walked toward the vase using his memory.

The Fierce Ghost fixated on Nalan Xin sensed something was amiss. Turning its gaze to Nalan Jin, it saw him approaching the vase and immediately became furious. Blood tears flowed from its eyes as it extended its sharp claws towards Nalan Jin.

Nalan Jin’s perception was much sharper than Nalan Xin’s. Just as the Fierce Ghost’s claws were about to reach his face, he suddenly raised his sword to block the attack.

Feeling the force against the sword, Nalan Jin raised an eyebrow, forcefully repelling the attack. The Fierce Ghost’s hand was flung away, and Nalan Jin swiftly grabbed the vase, lifting it up.

Instantly, the hall was once again illuminated, and those ghosts vanished without a trace!

"Brother," Nalan Xin quickly approached Nalan Jin’s side. Seeing the vase in his hand, she was surprised, "Was that situation just now caused by this?"

"Indeed." Nalan Jin nodded, looking at the vase in his hand.

He raised the vase high, inspecting the patterns on it carefully, trying to discern some clue but finding nothing.

Others gathered around Nalan Jin, also looking at the vase in his hand, but similarly, they discovered nothing, feeling somewhat dejected.

"Oh no, Nalan Qing is missing!" someone suddenly exclaimed while everyone was examining the vase.

Everyone immediately looked over, only to see that Nalan Qing, who was originally watched by Nalan Yin and another, had disappeared. A search in the hall revealed nothing, leaving everyone astonished.

Nalan Jin and Nalan Xin both looked displeased. This place was the Immortal Secret Realm, filled with opportunities and treasures. Although Nalan Qing had her cultivation crippled by them, the methods of an Immortal were beyond their imagination. If she obtained some opportunity and regained her strength, she would undoubtedly seek revenge!

Having Nalan Qing as a hidden enemy was indeed unsettling!

"Second Young Master, it was our negligence. Please punish us," Nalan Yin and the other approached Nalan Jin, apologizing with guilt.

"There’s no need. It’s normal for her to escape in such a situation. You two don’t need to blame yourselves," Nalan Jin waved them off, not intending to hold them accountable.

Nalan Qing’s escape was certainly premeditated, and the recent darkness merely provided her the opportunity. Even if it hadn’t happened here, she would have eventually found a way to escape!

"Everyone, search around here and see if there’s anything else, but remember not to mindlessly touch things!" he turned and told the others.

"Yes!"

Everyone immediately followed his instructions, continuing to explore the hall, searching for the traces of treasures.

Nalan Jin then examined the vase in his hand. Aside from feeling particularly cool, he sensed nothing else. So, reluctantly, he placed the vase into his storage ring, deciding to study it further later, in hopes of discovering something!