Meanwhile,
Around this ancient formation stood sixteen domed towers, each at least six meters tall. The walls of every tower were covered in highly intricate runic patterns, and there seemed to be some kind of unique connection between each one.
In ancient times, tens of thousands of runic patterns had been passed down, each containing a certain unique power. When some of these patterns were combined, they could unleash unimaginable force.
Nie Li only had a rough understanding of these runic patterns.
However, from the layout of the ancient formation, he could glean a great deal. Moreover, in his previous life, Lord
Nie Li walked up to one of the towers and slowly ran his right hand over each runic pattern, eventually letting it rest on one that was slightly raised. He then channeled a wisp of Soul Power into the pattern, and it instantly burst into dazzling light.
That's the one.
Nie Li felt a thrill of excitement — he had finally found one of the sixteen runic patterns needed to break the barrier.
The light from the pattern gradually condensed into a beam and shot toward the barrier ahead.
Hummm.
The barrier trembled.
But it quickly returned to calm.
"What happened?" Everyone was startled and looked toward where Nie Li stood. Seeing the strange light emanating from the runic pattern, they were all amazed.
Could Nie Li really find a way to break the barrier? A sense of anticipation rose in everyone. They had all grown up in the
Nie Li smiled faintly and withdrew his hand. Then he walked over to the second domed tower.
Hummm — the second runic pattern was found by Nie Li as well.
Then the third, the fourth, the fifth—
One runic pattern after another lit up, each sending a pillar of light into the air. The beams converged on the barrier, which then bloomed with streaks of mysterious radiance. Eventually, they formed colorful specks of light, like an endless nebula.
"Come on, let's go in." Nie Li waved to the group.
The moment he finished speaking, the barrier grew thinner and thinner until it vanished entirely.
Nie Li was the first to step through, followed by Xiao Ning'er,
Moments later, the barrier re-formed behind them, solid once more.
It was as though they had traveled through boundless space.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Flashes of light swept past. Nie Li and the others appeared in the center of an ancient, dilapidated formation. In the middle sat something resembling a teleportation array, surrounded by massive stone pillars covered in mysterious runic patterns.
Cold rain drizzled down. Looking into the distance, they saw an endless gray wasteland, with the faint silhouettes of distant mountains looming through the gloom, and above it all stretched the vast, infinite void.
Roar… roar… roar…
Faint roars of monsters drifted over from the distance.
"Where… where are we?" Lu Piao and the others asked in alarm. Just moments ago they had still been in the City of Radiance — how had they ended up in this place in the blink of an eye?
Who would have thought that inside the barrier lay such a mysterious world.
"It's just like the Celestial Illusion Sanctuary," Nie Li said after a moment of silence. "This space was probably created by some powerful being." He studied the stone formation. The runic patterns on it had gone dim, and there were several slots that had apparently once held something — but they were now empty.
It must be the Radiance Stones. They needed to find the Radiance Stones and place them in these slots to activate the teleportation array back.
Giji giji.
Just then, a monkey-like creature appeared in the distance. It had no fur anywhere on its body — its skin was a vivid scarlet, its ears came to sharp points, and although its arms were extremely short, they bore long, razor-sharp claws. Its bulging eyes shone like blue gemstones, gleaming with a ghostly light.
"Giji giji!" The creature stared at them and seemed to cry out a few times. Moments later, several more of the same creatures emerged from the wasteland, all staring with wide eyes at Nie Li and his companions.
Seeing this, Nie Li felt his scalp tingle. He shouted to Xiao Ning'er, Lu Piao, and the others, "Those are Red Ghosts — run, now!"
"Red Ghosts? What are those?"
Everyone was taken aback, but seeing how tense Nie Li looked, they understood immediately that these things were extremely dangerous.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh — the group followed Nie Li as they raced off into the distance.
"Giji giji!" Behind them, the Red Ghosts seemed to have been provoked. They screeched wildly and gave chase.
Red Ghosts were only Silver-rank demon beasts, so named for their hideous appearance. Although the vast majority of them were only Silver One Star, Red Ghosts were creatures that hunted in packs. The one they had just seen was calling its companions — if they were even a moment too slow, hundreds or even thousands of Red Ghosts could swarm together, and that would be truly terrifying.