173 Truth of the Secret Place Revealed
In midair.
Although Liu Hongshan was caught off guard the moment Thunderball disappeared, he quickly reacted and regained his footing in the air. He stood on the Dragon Roar Dagger and flew up again.
When he turned around and saw the cross-shaped sword slash descending from the sky, Liu Hongshan’s expression turned solemn but only for a moment.
This sword energy intertwined and covered a length of dozens of feet. However, it was not precise enough. Liu Hongshan only turned his body slightly and the cross-shaped sword energy swept past his chest and hit nothing.
The clothes on Liu Hongshan’s chest were cut open by the sword energy, revealing a muscular chest that was covered in scars.
!!
He smiled teasingly at Lin Ran. “I didn’t know a Half-Saint would actually stab people in the back.”
“Cut that crap. I deliberately missed this strike. Otherwise, do you think you can dodge it?”
Lin Ran sneered, and the Yin-Yang Sword turned into a white light and disappeared. “I told you that before I leave this place, I’ll try my best to kill you. That strike just now is just a warning.”
“In that case, why don’t you let me die knowing why?”
Liu Hongshan looked up at Lin Ran with a faint smile. It was impossible to tell if he was teasing or really asking.
Lin Ran hesitated for a moment and nodded. Liu Hongshan looked at the array formation that was getting more and more complicated on the ground. “You said that you already know the truth of this place. What is that?”
“That’s a defense. The last defense.”
Lin Ran replied honestly. He knew that Liu Hongshan was trying to get information, but he was already confident that he could keep him here, so he was not worried that this information would be known to the outside world.
“This secret place is the greatest secret of the Heavenly Saint Dynasty. Not only is it the place where all the secrets are stored, but it’s also the most important foundation of the dynasty.”
“In the Heavenly Saint Dynasty, only the emperors know of the existence of this place. Along with this secret is an ancestral rule—one is not allowed to enter unless the country is under siege.”
Hearing this, Liu Hongshan’s eyes widened. Then, he continued after Lin Ran, “When the country is under siege, the current emperor can bring people in.”
“These Undying Army will protect them, and the secrets hidden here will help the emperor to make a comeback?”
“That’s right.”
Lin Ran nodded and took out a ruby necklace from his waist. “This is a holy item passed down from generation to generation in the Heavenly Saint royal family. It’s also the key to controlling the undead and the armor. Unfortunately, only the blood of the royal family can activate it.”
“The arrangement of a genius!”
Liu Hongshan couldn’t hide his excitement and shouted, “The Undying Army will hold back those who can’t fly on their swords, and the armor can bring down those in the air.”
“Two Half-Saints like us are not a match for the armor. If a martial artist with a lower cultivation level than us was here, he would probably be instantly killed!”
“How did the people at that time think of using this secret place to defend and counterattack at the same time?”
“That’s not all!”
Lin Ran chuckled and looked at Liu Hongshan meaningfully. “Didn’t you notice any changes in your body?”
“Change?”
Liu Hongshan looked puzzled. He looked down at his body, still not understanding what Lin Ran meant.
Lin Ran retreated higher and said with a faint smile, “Try unleashing all your strength in one strike.”
Liu Hongshan looked hesitant. His first reaction was that Lin Ran wanted to find out more about him.
However, Liu Hongshan was too curious. After hesitating for a long time, he finally grabbed the hilt of his sword and slashed out.
Clang!
With a dragon roar, tens of millions of sword energy instantly formed an invisible torrent that roared and surged into the distance!
Liu Hongshan was instantly shocked by this scene. It had to be noted that he had only used 30% of his strength in this strike, but the might produced by this strike was almost comparable to his full strength strike!
“Did my realm increase again?”
An idea suddenly popped up in Liu Hongshan’s mind. However, after checking, he realized that his cultivation was still at the seventh level of the Half-Saint Realm. There was no sign of him breaking through to the eighth level.
Seeing Liu Hongshan’s shocked expression, Lin Ran knew that he had already discovered it. He chuckled and said faintly, “In this world, there’s a mysterious array formation. I don’t know what it is, but it can allow a martial artist to unleash strength that far exceeds their own level.”
“This change happens subtly, so unless one knows in advance, it’s very difficult for ordinary people to notice it. At the same time, this magical increase is related to the time one stays here… Do you know what this means?”
“It’s another layer of protection.”
Liu Hongshan narrowed his eyes and looked at Lin Ran. “The people from the Heavenly Saint Royal Family will enter first. After using this array formation to increase their strength, they can catch the enemy off guard the moment the enemy enters.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Lin Ran nodded with a smile, but he was more or less shocked.
After entering the secret place for the second time and going through many things, he finally figured this out. However, Liu Hongshan had only been here once, but he could already come up with so much. It was obvious how quick on the uptake he was.
For some reason, Lin Ran felt sad that he had to be enemies with Liu Hongshan.
If not for the fact that he and Liu Hongshan stood on different sides, the two of them would definitely have become very good friends. However, at the same time, if not for the fact that the two of them stood on different sides, they wouldn’t have had these common experiences.
Thinking of this, Lin Ran retracted his thoughts and held Thunderball in his hand. “You know everything you want to know. Now, I’ll give you some time to adapt to your increased strength. After that, we should end this once and for all!”
Liu Hongshan clenched his fists and narrowed his eyes to feel the surging power in his body. Suddenly, his lips curled into a cruel smile. “Thank you for your kindness, but I like to adapt while in battle.”
“Alright.”
Lin Ran agreed. Their gazes collided in the air, and then they raised their swords and flew towards each other!
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