Chapter Fifty: The Golden Skeleton

The forbidden pressure at the entrance to the staircase was even more intense.

Nervously, Bian Jizhong followed behind Liu Junhuai, several times wanting to speak, but seeing Liu Junhuai’s confident bearing, he could only grit his teeth and keep close.

“Senior Brother, stay close to me. I’ll take the lead; if I can’t manage, then you’ll step in,” Liu Junhuai said.

Mobilizing his true essence to shield his body, Liu Junhuai quietly performed his Heavenly Perception Severing Technique, slicing open a crack about a foot wide in the resistance before him.

He didn’t proceed immediately, instead testing how long the crack would last.

After a single breath’s time, the crack began to heal—barely enough time for one person to pass.

He then drew out the Five Elements Chaos Blade and slashed at the barrier, following up with the Severing Technique. This time, the crack widened to two feet and held for two full breaths.

Liu Junhuai was pleased. Turning back, he called, “Senior Brother, get ready. Place your hands on my shoulders and move with me.”

With this method, as the techniques were repeatedly executed, the entrance to the ninth level was surprisingly traversed without incident.

Bian Jizhong was astonished. He realized he had greatly underestimated this new friend. Even though Liu Junhuai’s cultivation realm was lower than his own, his true power likely far surpassed him.

Night had already fallen, and only one day remained before the closure of the Taifeng Mansion.

Liu Junhuai had completed the task assigned by the old steward, and the trial of the ninth level now seemed optional to him.

Thus, he sought Bian Jizhong’s opinion. “Senior Brother, we’ve successfully entered the ninth level. Tomorrow, when time runs out, we’ll be sent out. What do you think we should do next?”

“The spiritual energy here is so dense,” Bian Jizhong marveled. “If we cultivated here, the results would be doubled with half the effort.”

After a moment’s thought, he suddenly asked, “Brother Liu, if I use the Void-Breaking Talisman here, will I be able to leave?”

Liu Junhuai shook his head. “I’m not sure if your talisman would work here, but I advise you not to try. If you fail, you might be trapped here forever.”

Bian Jizhong replied, “Brother Liu, I’ve always felt this ninth level is anything but simple. On the eighth level, I inherited the legacy of a Golden Core cultivator, which included such a Void-Breaking Talisman. It can break any restriction or barrier of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator. I’d like to stay here a few more days—perhaps we’ll gain even more.”

Liu Junhuai mused to himself: the restrictions here surely weren’t set by a Nascent Soul cultivator; perhaps only an immortal could break them.

“Senior Brother, I don’t think this mansion could have been built by anyone below the Divided Spirit stage. Such a vast and intricate structure isn’t something lower realms could accomplish. Besides, who knows where this mansion will hide once it closes? Even if you could break the restriction, could you also break through space itself?” Unable to explain the master’s true cultivation, Liu Junhuai could only offer such reasoning to dissuade him.

Bian Jizhong thought it over—once the mansion closed, even if it stayed hidden in place, it was no ordinary existence; otherwise, why had no cultivator above the Nascent Soul stage forced it open in thousands of years?

Nascent Soul cultivators might be supreme on the Xing Tian Continent, but in the broader cultivation world, they were still of the lower realms.

Realizing the flaw in his own thinking, cold sweat broke out on Bian Jizhong’s back. If not for Liu Junhuai’s warning, he might have been buried here forever.

Having entered the ninth level, the two found themselves above a roaring, rushing river.

Spotting a cave in the cliffs, Liu Junhuai suggested, “Since we have no map, let’s just go wherever the path leads.”

This cave was not particularly special, except that the spiritual energy at its entrance was far denser than elsewhere in the forbidden grounds.

In fact, the two saw streams of spiritual energy pouring from the cave.

“With such dense spiritual energy, there must be a spiritual vein inside. Let’s check it out,” Bian Jizhong said excitedly as he gazed at the surging energy.

The cave wasn’t very large, spanning only a few dozen yards, but its depth was impenetrable, stretching into darkness.

As they ventured deeper, the spiritual energy grew ever richer, confirming their guesses.

After some time, the cave shifted from horizontal to vertical, sloping directly downward.

They continued down without knowing how far they had traveled before eventually, after what felt like days, they reached the bottom.

There was still a cave, but it turned horizontal again. Liu Junhuai was at a loss for words.

After a while, the passage opened into a cavern resembling a grand hall.

Two further caves branched ahead; from one, spiritual energy poured forth, rolling out, while the other was relatively calm.

“One likely leads to a chaotic spiritual vein, but the other…” Liu Junhuai frowned. “Let’s take a look.”

The cave wasn’t long, and its walls were inlaid with many unknown gemstones, casting a faint light throughout.

“These look like marks of construction—could there be cultivators here?” Liu Junhuai wondered, pausing not far from the entrance.

After only a few miles, they came upon a stone chamber. It was spotless, not a speck of dust, and at its center sat a skeleton bathed in golden light.

He probed the chamber with his divine sense for a long time, and only after confirming there was no danger did Liu Junhuai stride inside.

The stone chamber was bare save for the golden skeleton at its center, giving off an eerie and ominous aura.

“A skeleton, and golden at that. I wonder what level of expert this was,” Liu Junhuai remarked after examining it.

“An expert? Just how powerful?” Bian Jizhong asked curiously, reaching out to touch the golden bones.

“Wait—” Liu Junhuai started to warn him, but it was too late.

Boom!

The skeleton suddenly erupted in a blinding golden radiance. A terrifying killing intent burst forth, sweeping in all directions and slamming into Bian Jizhong.

After he vanished, the golden light and killing intent faded, and the chamber returned to complete stillness, as if nothing had happened.

The skeleton remained seated, flickering with a faint golden glow, sinister and strange.

Liu Junhuai was at a loss. Bian Jizhong had been consumed by the light, and he had no idea what would happen next.

After about the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn, the void suddenly twisted, and a cloud of blood mist sprayed out, like a rain of blood—unnaturally eerie.

Almost simultaneously, Bian Jizhong’s figure was flung from the void and crashed to the ground, utterly silent—his fate uncertain.

Liu Junhuai hurried over to check Murong Yu’s injuries.

Bian Jizhong still had a faint breath, but had slipped into deep unconsciousness. His clothes were shredded, his body slashed as if by countless blades, the wounds so deep that bone showed through—horrific to behold.

Most of his bones were broken; fortunately, his meridians were only severed, not shattered, though his cultivation had been destroyed.

Looking at the battered, near-lifeless Bian Jizhong, Liu Junhuai’s face was filled with worry.

A trace of guilt flashed in Liu Junhuai’s eyes. He felt he should have warned Bian Jizhong sooner; things wouldn’t have come to this.

He quickly took out a Blood Lotus Pill, placed it in Bian Jizhong’s mouth, and used his true essence to heal him.

Though Bian Jizhong was unconscious, his true essence still circulated slowly. With Liu Junhuai’s infusion of energy, the process quickened considerably.

Delighted, Liu Junhuai guided even more true essence into him.

With this support, Bian Jizhong’s injuries began to heal at an astonishing rate.

Time passed slowly. After several hours, Bian Jizhong finally stirred with a faint groan.

His consciousness remained cloudy, but Liu Junhuai helped him sit up in meditation posture, and his cultivation method began to operate more smoothly.

Another two hours passed before Bian Jizhong’s mind gradually cleared.

Looking at Liu Junhuai, who was visibly relieved, Bian Jizhong’s eyes grew moist. “Many thanks, brother, for your wholehearted help. Without you, I would not have survived. From now on, we are as one family. No matter what you need, I will risk life and limb to aid you.”

Liu Junhuai quickly waved his hand. “No need for such words, Senior Brother. It’s only right to help each other when traveling. No need for talk of gratitude. But tell me, what happened to you to cause such severe injuries?”

“I’m not sure. I just felt myself sucked in by the golden force; an overwhelming power kept attacking my spiritual sea, and then, with a thunderous explosion in my mind, I knew nothing more,” Bian Jizhong replied with lingering fear.

“Senior Brother, try circulating your cultivation. See if there’s any improvement,” Liu Junhuai urged.

At his suggestion, Bian Jizhong carefully circulated his energy, and before long he opened his eyes in excitement. “Yes, brother, I feel my true essence is much richer than before. My dantian and meridians are broader, and I sense the bottleneck to the Golden Core stage loosening. I think I’m about to break through.”

Liu Junhuai was genuinely happy for him but cautioned, “Congratulations, Senior Brother. But I think it’s unwise to attempt a breakthrough here. With less than two hours before the mansion closes, advancing to Golden Core is no small matter. Wouldn’t it be safer to wait until we’re outside and everything is settled?”

Bian Jizhong nodded in agreement. Once the breakthrough began, the mansion’s closing and the force of teleportation would surely disrupt him. Safety must come first.