Chapter 493: Chapter 493: Fengdu
The sky was pitch black, with a full moon hanging high, casting shadows of layers upon layers of mountains.
Li Rui looked around, unable to discern where he was.
He glanced at the task panel.
[&￥@%#￥#)].
"...."
More trouble appeared.
Li Rui really wanted to curse. As long as the Prophets didn’t control it, the Secret Realm would start going berserk.
Without prompts, he didn’t even know where he was and had to think of a way to explore for now.
The problem was, this place seemed darker than usual; even with a full moon, it was still hard to see the surroundings clearly.
He activated stealth, making himself hard to spot, then ran to higher ground and found a watchtower with flying eaves on a hilltop.
"Is it guarded?"
He observed closely and discovered two dark figures on the tower, seemingly humanoid.
He crept over, relying on the powerful stealth ability of the Golden Scale White Dragon talisman to stick to the base of the watchtower, hoping to eavesdrop a little.
But unfortunately, the two figures up there were very dutiful; even on this deserted, pitch-black mountain, they remained silent, just standing guard.
Li Rui had no choice but to take action.
He blinked onto the watchtower, using both hands to press them onto the ground.
Right now, Li Rui could even challenge world NPCs alone; ordinary mobs, even if their level was close, were no different from bugs to him.
After subduing them, Li Rui finally saw clearly by the lantern light that what he controlled were not humans, nor did they seem like demons or Barbaric Beasts, but two blue-faced, fanged creatures.
"What is this place?"
He asked gruffly, slightly loosening his grip on their throats, but the moment he relaxed, he felt them gathering strength to roar.
Yet at the same time, he realized these two wouldn’t be able to talk because they had no tongues.
There’s something eerie about this place.
Blue-faced, fanged, neither human nor demon, their armor intact.
Li Rui had some guesses, but before he could speculate further, he felt the bodies he was holding stiffen and saw them turn into dry corpses.
He sighed, stood up, and looked around into the boundless night, countless murderous intents targeting him.
He understood.
This place was Fengdu, and the sentries on the tower were indeed not living beings but revenants, much like Guan Gui’s corpse-driving technique.
While he had been trying to interrogate, the enemy had already noticed him.
"Howl—"
A beast-like roar echoed through the endless night as the tongueless revenants used this method to transmit signals.
Li Rui drew out the Yin Yang Umbrella, preparing for battle.
In Fengdu’s night, darker than the night itself, a silhouette filled with golden light sliced through.
Faced with the approaching Fengdu army, he chose not to back himself against the watchtower but to charge forward into their midst.
This place was among the hardest in all the Secret Realm sequences, usually inaccessible except to consultants or higher-level provincial chairpersons and vice-chairpersons.
But the current Li Rui was no ordinary person. Sun Qian, who once competed with Cui Jiu’an for the northern throne, had to seek help from Zuo Qiutian, fleeing to Demon Wind Temple, only to be slain by Chongxu.
Now, Li Rui had reached such a level that in Fengdu, unless the Nether Emperor appeared, few had the qualifications to face him.
The key was, he knew two things.
After the Hidden Sect and Zuo Qiutian connected the real world, time inside and outside the Secret Realm ran parallel, so the timeline in the Secret Realm now matched reality.
At this point in time, Fengdu’s gates were wide open, and the army had already been dispatched.
This meant that the city was currently undefended.
Although he couldn’t understand the gibberish in the task panel, he knew that by battling through Fengdu and smashing this Secret Realm, he would surely find a way out.
Boom Boom Boom!!
Golden lightning was particularly conspicuous in the night.
This place, which even Shenxiao Palace had never set foot in, now shone with the light of Divine Thunder.
Outside the encircling army of the dead, an armored warrior’s face darkened.
As the general guarding the south of Fengdu, he controlled all the dead scattered across the mountains; he alone formed the entire line of defense.
Now, with the city empty and the situation tense nationwide, he hadn’t expected any issues, yet a Shenxiao Palace rat dared to launch a nighttime raid.
But he couldn’t figure out who it was.
"Chongxu Zhenyue excelled in talisman techniques, unlike this person; Old Man Fuhai wielded a sword, and Jichuan wasn’t good at frontal assault. Could it be Chongxu’s disciple?"
He frantically brainstormed, unconsciously trying to mask his anxiety while finding an excuse for his reluctance to advance.
Just the mental impressions from the besieged dead conveyed to him that he wasn’t this person’s match.
Boom—
Another All Heaven Great Thunder Fire Seal Spell flashed, causing the general’s heart to tremble slightly.
"Why hasn’t Judge Liang arrived yet?" His voice was frantic.
"General Wang, please remain calm. That person isn’t from Shenxiao Palace, so it’s normal for you to be outmatched."
A young man wearing a black gauze cap and a brocade robe approached.
Having spoken the truth, and barely evading the general’s angry embarrassment, he quickly added, "Before leaving, the king mentioned a young expert now excelling in Divine Thunder and Community Thunder, who also went to Golden Scale Marsh to seek Dragon Thunder."
"This person has power close to the four highly skilled Daoists of Shenxiao Palace and is not to be underestimated."
The general finally found a point to attack, sneering, "Daoist? You’re really good at boosting others."
Though he panicked inwardly and sought out this Judge Liang, once he arrived, he found every way to argue.
Judge Liang smiled, saying, "Whether or not boosting others, it’s undeniable, this is reality, General. Right now, focus on dealing with the strong enemy."
"How should I respond?" the general asked. "Those minions won’t last long, and I’ve already lost more than half of my ten flag officers!"
Judge Liang laughed, "Just wait a moment longer, and... oh, here they are."
As he spoke, several figures arrived on the wind, dressed like Fengdu judges as well.
"General, we will join forces to bind the person using a seal evil technique, then you’ll finish him off."
The general was overjoyed, "Good!"
Their figures disappeared in an instant.
....
Li Rui had already charged in and out of the enemy ranks seven times.
He didn’t feel much pressure, even having the leisure to pay attention to changes in the task panel.
Though mostly gibberish, one could see many tasks and events appearing and disappearing, followed by changes in the inventory and experience bar.
No doubt, the recent battle triggered many side quests, unknowingly completing them.
"If it weren’t for the rush, I’d farm this place to level seventy."
Thinking so, a prickle of murderous intent came from several different directions, putting him slightly on guard.
