Stone patted his round belly and let out a burp: "That feels good! I'm finally full!"
The owner stood aside, looking at the empty kitchen, his lips twitching. In all his years of running the business, this was the first time he had ever seen someone manage to empty the restaurant.
Back at the inn, after resting for only a short while, there was a knocking sound at the door.
Xiao Chen opened the door and saw Shi Tou standing there, looking puzzled: "Senior Brother, where are we going next? There's nothing left to do in Wuya City, should we go check out other cities?"
Xiao Chen let him in, poured him a cup of tea, and said slowly, "No rush, I'm waiting for Lin Jingxing. He should come to see us in the next day or two."
"Why are we waiting for him?" Stone was even more puzzled. "We're not that familiar with him, and we even stole the treasure before..."
"The demons will soon make a big move; we need to increase our strength."
Xiao Chen explained, "Lin Jingxing is a direct descendant of the Lin family, so he must know some ways to quickly improve one's strength. He might be here this time to discuss an important matter with us."
Stone nodded as if he understood, "Alright then, I'll listen to Senior Brother."
Sure enough, footsteps could be heard outside the inn early the next morning.
Xiao Chen opened the door, and Lin Jingxing and Luo Qingyang were standing outside, their expressions solemn.
"Brother Xiao seems to have known we were coming all along?" Lin Jingxing was somewhat surprised to see Xiao Chen's calm expression.
Xiao Chen smiled and stepped aside to let them in: "I guessed. After all, the Demon Clan just deployed Creation Realm experts, so you must want to improve your strength as soon as possible to deal with the upcoming crisis."
Lin Jingxing nodded and, without beating around the bush, directly stated his purpose: "Brother Xiao is indeed clever. Brother Luo and I have discussed it and would like to invite you and Shi Tou to venture into the 'Forbidden Land of Souls' together."
"The soul returns to the forbidden land?" Xiao Chen raised an eyebrow.
"That is an ancient forbidden area on the border, which is shrouded in ghostly mist all year round."
Luo Qingyang added, "It is said that the souls of countless fallen cultivators gather there. Over time, some of these souls have absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and have developed strength, which is getting stronger and stronger."
"Because it is too dangerous, very few people dare to go in, and even if they do, very few come out alive."
Lin Jingxing continued, "But the greater the danger, the greater the opportunity. The souls within the forbidden area contain the cultivation insights from their previous lives; if one can absorb and refine them, one can rapidly improve their cultivation level."
"Moreover, some powerful souls leave behind 'soul crystals' after they die, which are treasures for cultivation. Now that the demon race is pressing in, we don't have time to cultivate slowly, so we can only try to break into this forbidden area."
Xiao Chen pondered for a moment. He and Shi Tou really had no further plans. Moreover, returning their souls to the forbidden land could quickly increase their strength, which was just right to deal with the impending demon crisis.
He looked at the stone beside him, and seeing the stone nod, he said to Lin Jingxing, "Okay, we agree. When do we set off?"
"Meet at the city gate first thing tomorrow morning." Lin Jingxing breathed a sigh of relief. "The forbidden area is dangerous. The more powerful the expert, the greater our chance of survival."
Luo Qingyang also said, "We have already notified the other prodigies, and we will set off together so that we can look out for each other."
Xiao Chen nodded: "Okay, see you tomorrow."
After Lin Jingxing and Luo Qingyang left, Shi Tou looked at Xiao Chen and said, "Senior Brother, this forbidden area sounds really dangerous. It's full of souls..."
“Danger is where opportunity lies.” A resolute glint flashed in Xiao Chen’s eyes. “If you want to survive the war against the demons and become stronger, you can’t be afraid of danger.”
Stone clenched his fist: "That's right! Wherever Senior Brother goes, I'll go! It's just souls, I'll take them all with one punch!"
Xiao Chen smiled as he looked at him. With this honest yet reliable junior brother by his side, he felt more confident even when venturing into the forbidden area.
The next morning, Lin Jingxing and Luo Qingyang were already waiting at the gate of Wuya City with five prodigies.
As soon as Xiao Chen and Shi Tou arrived, the group did not delay any longer and quickly set off towards the forbidden area where souls reside.
Passing through the dense ancient forest, the air ahead suddenly turned cold and gloomy. A dark barrier, ten feet high, stretched out before them, like flowing ink.
A thin layer of black mist lingered on its surface, within which countless distorted shadows could be vaguely seen flashing.
Before even getting close, you could hear a series of "wailing" sounds coming from behind the screen, like the wailing of thousands of wronged souls, which sent chills down your spine.
On the left side of the screen stands a black stone tablet covered in cracks, with four large characters engraved on its surface in bright red paint.
The words "The Place Where Souls Return" were dry but still glaring, as if they had been smeared directly with blood, exuding a suffocating sense of danger in the cold air.
“Such a heavy, sinister aura…” Luo Qingyang frowned, the threads on his white jade whisk trembling slightly, clearly sensing the strange power in the air. “I feel uneasy all over even before I go in.”
Lin Jingxing looked at the stone tablet and said in a deep voice, "I heard from the elders of the clan that six hundred years ago, six cultivators at the peak of the Creation Realm once ventured through this place together, but only two of them returned, and both of them became cripples."
"They say that the opportunities in the forbidden area are hidden in the deepest part, but the danger also increases exponentially with the depth. If you are not careful, you will be devoured by your soul and not even your spirit will remain."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions became more solemn. Four of the six peak Creation Realm experts had been lost, which showed just how dangerous this forbidden area was.
“Now that we’re here, there’s no turning back.” Xiao Chen gripped his rusty iron spear and glanced at the crowd. “Everyone be careful. Try not to get separated once inside. If anything happens, warn us immediately.”
Everyone else nodded in agreement, and no one hesitated any longer.
Lin Jingxing took the first step, passing through the dark partition. Golden dragon flames swirled around him, dispelling the chilling aura around him.
Luo Qingyang and the other prodigies followed closely behind, while Xiao Chen and Shi Tou brought up the rear. Shi Tou carried a spiked club and cautiously observed his surroundings.
The moment you pass through the screen, a strong stench of decay and putrefaction hits you, making you want to frown.
The scene before them was even more horrifying; the ground was littered with corpses, some long since reduced to bones, others still bearing traces of rotting flesh and blood.
Not only are there the skeletons of human cultivators, but also the bone spurs of demonic beasts and the black scales of demons, clearly indicating that countless fierce battles have taken place here.
Even more strangely, the surrounding spiritual energy was so thin that it was almost imperceptible, while the sinister aura permeating the air grew stronger and stronger.
"Everyone, use your spiritual energy sparingly!" Lin Jingxing immediately reminded everyone. "There's too little spiritual energy here. Once it runs out, we'll be lambs to the slaughter, and we won't even be able to protect ourselves!"
The cultivators nodded in agreement, withdrawing their outward spiritual energy and keeping it circulating only faintly within their bodies.
Only Shi Tou remained completely at ease; he was a body cultivator, relying on physical strength for cultivation and not needing to depend on spiritual energy.
Even when his spiritual energy is depleted, his fists are still lethal, making him the one in the team who has the least to worry about in terms of "endurance".
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