Chapter 168: Dark Night

"What! Is this... the Phoenix Force?"

The Giant Scorpion had no idea that these suddenly appearing humans possessed such extraordinary power. What was the status of the Phoenix lineage? They were the imperial beasts worshipped by all beast spirits across the entire continent. In an era where the True Dragon's power had vanished, the Phoenix Force held dominion over all beasts.

With Long Kun unleashing such power, even the mighty Giant Scorpion dared not act presumptuously again.

"Retreat!"

With that single word, the Giant Scorpion swiftly retreated, leading its few remaining tattered soldiers. Long Kun felt extremely satisfied by this display of power and was about to pursue them relentlessly, but Xu Yang stopped him.

"We are unfamiliar with this place. On the contrary, it's their home ground. If you want to fight, you could stay here for a hundred or eighty years and still not kill them all. Our goal is to find the Dragon's Treasury exit as quickly as possible!"

Long Kun nodded spiritedly; clearly, this battle had completely restored his confidence.

Xu Yang and his group continued forward. Because the journey was incredibly tedious and the quicksand in the desert was highly engulfing, Little Tuantuan had a flash of inspiration. She drew several camels, which greatly reduced the burden of travel for Xu Yang and the others.

"You little rascal are truly extraordinary!"

Long Kun instinctively gave Little Tuantuan a thumbs-up. He was the only one in the entire team who knew the little girl's true identity.

After traveling for three days and three nights, the Golden Light Clay Bodhisattva's glow intensified, and the accompanying little dragon python's ability to sense dragon energy continuously strengthened. Yet, they still couldn't locate the true entrance to the Dragon's Treasury.

"Strange... I feel like the destination is very close, even within reach, but we just can't seem to get there!"

Bai Lianxue carefully examined the small clay figure in her palm, staring intently at its wildly flickering light, but ultimately found no answer.

"The Dragon's Treasury is of great importance, and its entrance must be extremely well-hidden. To find the answer, perhaps relying solely on sight isn't enough."

Ling Yao seemed inspired. She suddenly pointed towards the sky, and the brilliant sword light of the Heavenly Sword behind her rapidly condensed.

"What?! Ling Yao, you... you've summoned your Sword Heart??"

"No, I can only fuse the Heavenly Sword with my own cultivation technique. My true Sword Heart hasn't fully awakened yet."

Even so, Xu Yang and the others were genuinely startled. This Heavenly Sword, after all, had slumbered in the sacred land for tens of thousands of years. Not one of the Ten Elders, who were once astonishingly talented sword path prodigies, had managed to conquer it—yet this young girl had.

*Rumble!*

The fierce, massive beam from the Heavenly Sword slashed down from the sky, as if intending to completely shatter this world. Indeed, the moment that sword struck, a faint mark was truly left between the vast desert and the boundless sky!

"How can this be? Could it be that this desert we're in is also an illusion? That's impossible!"

Ling Qingshu looked bewildered, even starting to question reality. After walking for three days and three nights straight, if this truly was a trap, then where the path forward lay remained unknown.

"No, this vast desert is certainly not an illusion, but there's something strange about the sky. That crack has proven everything!"

Xu Yang had clearly discovered something amiss. As he pointed diagonally towards the clouds, everyone realized that the crack Ling Yao had cleaved showed no signs of healing.

"In the desert, we've almost always been disoriented. If not for the guidance of the Golden Light Clay Bodhisattva and the little snake, we would probably be trapped here forever. The reason lies in this sky! Just imagine, under what circumstances could we be caught in a maze without even realizing it?"

Long Kun foolishly looked up at the sky. Vaguely, he seemed to see his own reflection in the firmament!

"A mirror!! I understand now, this firmament is nothing but a giant mirror!"

Long Kun's words were a sudden enlightenment, instantly waking up everyone in the team.

"We are in the real underground space of the Yuanyang Empire, but the sky is fake. It's also the sole source of light in this underground world. Therefore, everything we see before us has a false component. That's the real reason we haven't been able to find the entrance!"

Xu Yang exchanged a glance with Ling Yao. Both simultaneously shot into the sky, and under the impetus of their Sword Intent of Cloud Contemplation at the peak of sword mastery, they unleashed an earth-shattering sword cry that shook the entire space!

In an instant, an unparalleled, sky-splitting sword beam materialized behind both of them. This massive blade, tens of meters high, surged straight towards the very top of the dome!

"Oh my god... this is too cool, isn't it? Two people, two swords, are they going to cleave the sky?"

*Rumble!*

The two sword beams simultaneously surged upward, colliding at a central point in the cloud ceiling, tearing an irreparable rift across the firmament.

"Hah!!"

The moment sword energy burst outwards, Xu Yang and Ling Yao simultaneously chanted the Cloud Contemplation Sword Art. Countless scattered sword energies in the sky re-converged, transforming once again into thousands upon thousands of smaller sword beams, launching a second assault on the already fractured firmament!

"Shatter!!"

*Rumble!*

The crack lines expanded relentlessly until the enormous sky-mirror completely shattered, plunging the entire desert world into a pitch-black darkness.

"Uh... am I blind? Why can't I see anything??"

"Don't panic, me too."

Ling Qingshu's voice was right next to Long Kun's ear, but he couldn't even make out the outline of a person.

"Where's Tuantuan? Quick, quick, draw something that can glow!"

Long Kun chattered incessantly like a child who had lost his sight. Among the four girls in the group, not one was as helpless as he was...

"Please, I can't even see where my drawing board is, do you think I can still draw? You silly brother!"

Everyone was speechless.

"This is terrible. The mirror is shattered, but the light is gone too. We're now blind with our eyes open; it's even worse than before!"

Long Kun helplessly sat down where he was, but unexpectedly, the quicksand beneath him emitted faint, rustling sounds.

"Oh no, snakes!"

Xu Yang, who had just landed, possessed extraordinary hearing. He instinctively blurted a warning, but it was too late. Long Kun, already identified as the primary target, was instantly ensnared by three venomous pythons.

"Black Tortoise True Art!"

Long Kun activated his cultivation technique purely by instinct, which allowed him to withstand the first wave of attack from these venomous snakes. However, where there was one, there were more. These venomous creatures had likely targeted Xu Yang's team long ago and immediately launched their assault while the group's movements were hindered.

Although Long Kun's technique was formidable, it wasn't a supportive one. It offered no benefit to others; it only rendered him immune to all poisons. Seeing that this fellow's body had suddenly become as hard as iron, the snakes stopped wasting their time and decisively shifted their attack to the young ladies nearby.

"Look out!!"