Chapter 23: A Perilous Barrier and the Gift of Primordial Stones

Li Chen and Lin Ying were overjoyed. Lin Ying laughed and said, “The owner truly is a kindhearted man. Back then, he used his divine powers and calculated that, after a certain number of years, a husband and wife named Li Chen and Lin Ying would fall into hardship here, lacking clothes and food. Therefore, he thoughtfully provided them with a small amount of source stones. Hee hee, hahahaha!”

Li Chen burst out laughing as well and, to show his appreciation, gave her a loud kiss.

Once they had laughed to their hearts’ content, they turned to serious business. Li Chen circulated his power and activated his spatial ring, directing it toward the source stones beneath the pit. With a roaring, clattering sound, the millions of source stones at the bottom vanished without a trace, all sucked into the ring. At the same time, the barrier and restrictions silently disappeared. Lin Ying’s method of breaking the formation had undoubtedly been the simplest and most effective.

Li Chen complained indignantly, “The owner designed this whole trap just to frame me!”

“How so?” Lin Ying asked.

“Experts always say that a man becomes wicked once he has money! Sigh, I’ve been schemed against by a treacherous villain!”

“That does make some sense,” Lin Ying said with a laugh. “I’d better keep the money safe for you.”

Yet when the two of them stepped out from the teleportation array, they could no longer laugh. The scene before them proved that they were in the very heart of the Primordial Great Forest!

Towering ancient trees blotted out the sky and covered the earth. Because of the area’s peculiar geography, flight was forbidden—not even birds could rise into the air.

Li Chen and Lin Ying exchanged a glance, both utterly bewildered.

All around them stretched a lush primeval forest. Ancient trees soared into the heavens, their branches and leaves dense enough that sunlight could only filter through the canopy in mottled patches. The air was filled with the fresh scents of earth and flowers. From time to time, the distant roar of some unknown beast echoed through the forest, deep and far-reaching.

They cautiously took a step forward. The fallen leaves beneath their feet gave a faint crackle, as though even this tranquil forest were watching and probing the intentions of the two outsiders.

Li Chen and Lin Ying continued onward. The ground gradually grew soft and damp, as if they were entering a secret realm untouched by mortal feet. The ancient trees around them became ever thicker, their trunks wrapped in vines like chains forged by time, recording the vicissitudes of countless years.

Suddenly, a strange radiance shone from deep within the forest ahead, flickering on and off as though the remains of an ancient teleportation array were calling to them. Their hearts began to race. Curiosity mingled with unease. Behind that light lay either a passage home—or an abyss concealing unknown terrors.

A faint scent of sulfur began to permeate the air, suggesting that a volcano or geothermal activity might lie ahead, adding still more mystery and danger to this unknown land.

Following the light, Li Chen and Lin Ying pressed forward. Amid the eerie darkness, all kinds of strange sounds rose around them.

“Gurgle… growl… howl…”

They walked until nightfall. Ahead, a crimson glow illuminated half the sky. It truly was a small volcano on the verge of extinction.

When they drew near, they saw that on a flat area beneath the mountain stood a large teleportation array, roughly ten yards across. After examining it carefully, they reached a conclusion: its energy had been completely exhausted.

The two repaired the minor damage, filled the array with a vast quantity of spirit stones, and activated it with a series of incantations. Amid a thunderous boom, brilliant light shot straight into the heavens.

Lin Ying held an ancient formation manual and spent a long time checking the coordinates. At last, she accurately confirmed the destination: the Starry Sky Continent.

Amid the rumbling thunder and flashing radiance, the two vanished once more.

Space twisted violently. With a series of popping sounds, Li Chen and Lin Ying came tumbling to the ground together.

“Ow!”

She clutched her backside and cried, “The ground is so hard!”

Li Chen immediately stamped down hard several times. “How dare you take liberties with my wife? Are you asking for a beating?”

Lin Ying shot him an exasperated glance, her beautiful eyes gleaming with amusement.

“Xiaoying, do you know where we are?”

The two rose into the air and looked around. The cold here pierced to the bone. On a high mountain stood a small, clear lake.

“This may be the location of the Heavenly Mountain Lake,” Lin Ying said.

“I’ve heard that the greatest expert on the Starry Sky Continent, Immortal Master Yang Yun, lives in seclusion and cultivates beside the lake. Let’s go pay him a visit!”