Chapter 1059: Traveller Without Boundaries (Part 2)

"Sound of wind?"

Wu shi and Guild Leader Han were startled and quickly looked around.

The sound of the wind was very light, still rustling the leaves. Previously, they had found this gentle, tranquil sound relaxing, but now it sent shivers down their spines, making them tremble uncontrollably.

"Close your hearing..." they murmured, and both simultaneously shut off their sense of hearing, becoming impervious to sound.

However, for some unknown reason, that silent wind still permeated their minds, subtly controlling them.

"It's useless. This is a demonic tune. Even if you shut off your six senses, it can still infiltrate your mind. It's impossible to guard against!" Zhang Xuan shook his head and transmitted his voice to them.

If demonic tunes could be resisted so easily, they wouldn't be called "demonic," nor would they have branched off into a unique profession, enduring for thousands of years.

"What do we do then?" The two reopened their sense of hearing, their faces filled with anxiety.

They couldn't resist it, nor could they escape it. Were they, a group who had just entered the ruins, going to be lost here?

"Teacher Zhang... since you can detect the demonic tune, have you found a solution?" Wu shi asked urgently, looking at him.

"This is a demonic tune from an 8-star Demonic Tune Master. I can only barely resist it myself. To counter it and free everyone from this special illusion, we must 'break sound with sound'!" Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before replying.

The moment he entered, he knew it was a demonic tune. With his Heaven's Path zhenqi and his identity as a Demonic Tune Master, he could resist it personally, but he hadn't yet figured out how to break it... unless he himself reached the strength of an 8-star Demonic Tune Master, to "break sound with sound."

"'Break sound with sound'?" Both their faces paled.

Where would they find an 8-star Demonic Tune Master at a time like this? If someone truly possessed such strength, they wouldn't have allowed everyone to fall into this inescapable illusion in the first place.

"This 8-star level is only at the initial stage. Otherwise, your primordial spirits would also be agitated, and like everyone else, you wouldn't even know you were injured. However, I am only a peak 6-star Demonic Tune Master right now. Even if I use all my strength, it would be difficult to resolve..." Zhang Xuan shook his head.

This wind sound was only equivalent to a demonic tune played by an early-stage 8-star Demonic Tune Master. Otherwise, Guild Leader Han and Wu shi certainly wouldn't be able to withstand it and remain conscious as they were now.

Even so, it was beyond his current ability to contend with. His strength was still too weak.

"What then?"

"Does anyone have books on demonic tunes at the 7-star level?" Zhang Xuan asked.

If they had 7-star level books, he could form a cultivation technique from them. Even if he couldn't reach 8-star, he could at least reach peak 7-star. With that strength, combined with the inherent ability of Heaven's Path cultivation techniques to fight above one's rank, countering this demonic tune shouldn't be too difficult.

"Demonic tunes?" Looking at each other, Guild Leader Han and Wu shi both shook their heads.

One was a formation master, the other a master teacher. Although they had cultivated seven auxiliary professions, demonic tunes were not among them. Therefore, they hadn't brought any related books with them.

"That makes things difficult..." Seeing them shake their heads, Zhang Xuan frowned.

Without them, he couldn't learn higher-level demonic tunes, and breaking the current one would become exponentially more difficult.

"Alright, you two watch over everyone and try to prevent them from dying of exhaustion. If necessary, give them more pills... I'll go search for the source of this wind sound. If I can find it, there's a chance to resolve this..." Zhang Xuan hesitated for a moment before speaking.

If he couldn't break it by force, the only option was to find the root cause and destroy it.

"Yes, we'll trouble Dean Zhang then..." Both bowed simultaneously.

There was no other choice now; this was the only way.

"No need to be polite!" Seeing their attitude, Zhang Xuan shook his head and said no more. His body flickered, and he flew straight in the direction from which the sound resonated.

The sound was subtle but reverberated in his ears, making even him feel a bit dizzy. If his soul hadn't been further tempered by the lava, he might not have been able to withstand it.

"This demonic tune, while exhausting, isn't fatal... as long as pills are supplied in time, it shouldn't be a big problem..." He glanced back and saw that the battle masters who had just coughed up blood had recovered considerably after Wu shi and the other had given them pills.

However, their bodies remained out of their control, continuing forward.

At this moment, they were like puppets on strings, knowing they were in a passive situation and wanting to break free, but utterly helpless.

The reason Demonic Tune Masters could instill such fear and gain renown across the continent, even leading Hongyuan Academy to establish a dedicated department for them... was precisely because they made people aware of the danger, yet unable to escape or avoid it.

After flying for a while, Zhang Xuan frowned, noticing no change in the sound. At his speed, he should have covered at least several hundred kilometers by now, yet he hadn't left the range of the demonic tune, nor had he even found its source...

Was the sound's range perhaps too vast?

Taking himself as an example, playing the zither could drive people within several hundred meters insane, but to affect a larger area would be beyond his power... Even an 8-star Demonic Tune Master couldn't possibly play music that covered hundreds of kilometers, could they?

If that were true, such a powerful expert could simply play an instrument in the imperial city, and hundreds of millions of living beings would be mesmerized. Wouldn't that make them more terrifying in combat than even Master Teachers?

"Could this be the peculiarity of a formation space? I'm clearly moving forward, yet it feels like I'm circling within the same area?" A thought suddenly struck him, reminding him of the 'ghost wall' phenomenon from legends of his previous life.

Was it possible he felt certain of his direction, but was actually just going in circles?

This situation was quite common in formations.

Many maze formations inherently possessed special powers that caused one to lose their sense of direction. Once inside, one would lose their bearings, even compasses would become useless, making you believe you were going east when in reality you were heading in the complete opposite direction, or significantly off course.

"Since this place makes people lose their way, I'll set up a formation to clarify direction..." Halting in mid-air, Zhang Xuan raised an eyebrow. With a flick of his wrist, a pile of formation flags reappeared in his palm.

His Demonic Tune Master strength was still at peak 6-star, comparable to early 7-star, insufficient to counter the wind sound. However, his formation ability had reached peak 7-star. He could fully set up a grand formation that clearly discerned direction and resisted the opponent's attacks.

Numerous formations flowed through his mind, and soon, a formation diagram appeared. He raised an eyebrow and smiled faintly.

The formation flags floating before him immediately shot out, landing on the ground in specific positions.

With a rumble, the formation activated. Zhang Xuan stood within it, paused for a moment, and then reopened his eyes.

"The direction was indeed wrong..." A faint smile touched his lips.

Through this formation, he immediately discerned the true direction. His previous perception had indeed been mistaken.

It seemed this formation space not only contained demonic tune ambushes but also elements that disrupted direction, making it impossible to discern one's bearings.

Unable to discern direction, combined with the demonic tune, cultivators who entered would walk endlessly, potentially even exhausting all their internal power without realizing it.

"The old principal and his group must have brought the Direction-Seeking Needle left by Senior Wu Yangzi back then. Though not a Sacred Artifact, it's superior to one in finding direction, making it unparalleled. That's how they managed to get out smoothly..." Realizing this, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but nod.

The old principal had clearly made it out. If he had truly died here, his remains would have been discovered long ago.

Their cultivation was much lower than Wu shi's group, yet they could exit. He estimated they used some kind of treasure.

Through the numerous books in the Artifact Forger Guild, he knew the academy once held one of Wu Yangzi's proudest creations: the Direction-Seeking Needle!

This was a special item forged from a unique 'direction-seeking wood'. Although not a Sacred Artifact, it was countless times more effective than one when it came to finding direction.

However, it was completely unnecessary unless one encountered a place that inverted yin and yang and the five elements. So, after it was successfully forged, it wasn't taken seriously and was given to the Master Teacher Academy.

When he had come, he had specifically checked the treasure vault but hadn't found it. He presumed the old principal had taken it when he left last time.

It was precisely with this item that they managed to exit this area.

Of course, he didn't know how long it had taken them. It could have been an hour, or possibly three or five days, before they realized the problem. In any case, it certainly wasn't as quick as his current realization.

After all, even Wu shi had only found it strange and hadn't discovered the root cause. It was only he, unafraid of the demonic tune, who could see things clearly as an outsider.

Having confirmed the direction, Zhang Xuan leaped out of the formation. Following the position he had just found, he flew straight ahead. After flying for over ten li, he knew he must have gone wrong again, so he once more drew out his zhenqi and set up an identical formation.

He pinpointed the direction and continued forward. Repeating this process several times, he finally broke free from the endless circling, and a massive stone tablet appeared before him.

Carved from an unknown material, it stood over three meters tall and two meters wide, having remained there for an unknown duration. Weathered by wind and rain, it had turned slightly pale.

It trembled slightly, emitting a melodious hum that captivated and entranced everyone.

He took a few steps closer and looked up to see three large characters, majestically written, as if they could fly off the tablet at any moment. It was unclear who had inscribed them.

"'Boundless Realm'?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows furrowed.

He continued reading and saw a line of smaller characters written after the large ones.

"'Boundless Realm,' where travelers find no boundaries. Anyone who enters will be affected by a demonic tune, unable to distinguish directions, endlessly circling, and finding it difficult to leave. Only those with unwavering resolve can remain unbewildered."

"If one can discern directions, identify the demonic tune, and find this place within three days, they will receive a unique secret art of mine. If completed within ten days, they will gain a fortuitous encounter I left behind. If it takes longer than ten days, it signifies mediocre talent; our paths crossed, and I advise you to return as soon as possible!"

After reading the content, Zhang Xuan blinked.

"From the moment I entered the portal until now, it shouldn't have been... even half an hour! There are rewards for discerning directions and reaching this place within three days. Is this assessment too simple? Could there really be someone so foolish that they wouldn't realize the problem in three days?" he mused.

Muttering to himself, he turned and walked behind the stone tablet, continuing to read downwards. He saw characters written in a different style from before.

"I, Zhang Yinqiu, led a group here and was lost within for over half a month. Having no claim to the rewards, I only seek to stop the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe..."

"It took over half a month to figure it out?" Zhang Xuan's mouth twitched, his face filled with embarrassment.

"I didn't expect anyone to actually be that foolish..."