Chapter 725: Feint to the East, Attack to the West

"By the way, although this talisman is marvelous, it has a time limit and can only last for half an hour. We must thoroughly investigate this place within that time." Shi Chuankong said, then opened his mouth and swallowed the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talisman.

The black and white light on his body rippled for a moment, and then his entire body slowly merged into the surrounding void, disappearing from sight.

Seeing this, Han Li and Hu San also opened their mouths and swallowed the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talismans.

A flash of black and white light appeared on their bodies, and their figures quickly vanished into the void.

Since the three of them used the same talisman, there was a subtle connection between them, so they could still see each other.

"Let's go! Both of those corner towers and the main hall in the middle might contain the core formation of the spatial restriction. We'll search them one by one." Shi Chuankong waved his hand, and the three figures shot out, silently landing in front of the left corner tower above the city gate.

Many armored Nether Slaves stood near the corner tower, but their cultivation levels were very low, so naturally they couldn't detect Han Li and the others.

The three figures flew into the corner tower and quickly searched everywhere.

The space inside the corner tower was not large, and they soon finished inspecting it.

Inside were several living quarters, all empty at the moment, but from the items left behind, it seemed to be the residence of a few guard leaders at the city gate. There was no trace of the core restriction.

Han Li and the others quickly flew out.

"The other corner tower is probably the same. No need to waste time; let's go to that main hall." Shi Chuankong transmitted his voice.

Han Li and Hu San shared the same opinion. The three figures flickered and landed at the entrance of the black main hall.

Han Li looked at the main hall before him, his pupils slightly contracting.

The interior of the hall was dim, like a terrifying demonic mouth ready to devour everything that entered.

He raised an eyebrow, then realized that this was the pressure from the Great Luo cultivator of the Netherworld Domain who might be inside, causing a mental illusion. He took a deep breath and immediately cast aside this distracting thought.

"Let's go."

Shi Chuankong seemed to have experienced a brief daze as well, but now he came to his senses. After saying this, he took the lead and flew into the main hall.

Han Li and Hu San followed closely behind, flying into the hall.

Inside the hall was a cylindrical chamber, extremely large, with a diameter of forty to fifty zhang and a height of four to five zhang. The walls and floor were pitch black, and several human-head-sized black crystals were embedded in the walls, flickering with faint black light, looking quite eerie.

At the far end of the hall were three passages: two leading to the left and right side halls, and one leading upward, seemingly to the second floor.

Shi Chuankong made a gesture, and the three did not immediately go up to the second floor but split up to investigate the two side halls.

However, they soon returned and came to the passage leading to the second floor.

The two side halls were warehouses, filled with numerous suits of armor and weapons, clearly not their target.

"It seems it should be upstairs. The perception of a Great Luo cultivator is far sharper than we expected. Be extremely careful." Shi Chuankong transmitted his voice with a grave tone.

Han Li and Hu San nodded solemnly.

The three then slowly walked upward and soon arrived at the second-floor hall.

The situation on the second floor was similar to the first; it was also a circular room, but with several thick stone pillars, each coiled with a relief of a demonic dragon roaring skyward.

At the far end of the hall, there were also three passages: two leading to the left and right side halls, and another leading to the third floor.

"Spatial fluctuations! It's here!" As soon as he stepped onto the second floor, Shi Chuankong looked toward the left side hall, his eyes lighting up.

Han Li and Hu San also looked there, joy appearing on their faces.

But at that moment, a white shadow suddenly shot out from the third-floor passage—a furry white beast.

The beast was only about a foot long, covered in soft white fur, resembling a civet cat, but its eyes were extremely large, occupying almost half of its face, looking quite strange.

The white beast opened its mouth slightly, making cooing sounds, and darted around the second-floor hall as if playing by itself.

Han Li and the others were startled by the sudden appearance of the white beast, but then seeing it darting around playing, they relaxed.

"It's fine, ignore it..." Shi Chuankong transmitted, about to step toward the left side hall.

But at that moment, the playing white beast suddenly stopped, its two eyes looking toward Han Li and the others. A white ripple emanated from its eyes, sweeping toward the three.

"Not good, retreat!" Shi Chuankong's expression changed, and he grabbed Hu San beside him, shooting backward into the second-floor passage.

Han Li moved even faster than Shi Chuankong; the moment the white beast looked over, he immediately retreated swiftly.

Fortunately, the three had just been standing near the passage, so they instantly shot into it.

But the white ripple did not stop; it immediately chased into the passage, continuing to sweep toward them.

The three dared not use immortal power, so their speed was limited, and they were about to be caught by the white ripple.

Seeing this, Shi Chuankong grew anxious. He gritted his teeth, waved his other hand to grab Han Li's body, and quickly chanted an incantation.

Boom!

A cold law power surged from his body, injecting into Han Li and Hu San, entering the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talismans within them.

"Mustard Seed, Heaven Escape Spirit Attachment!"

The Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talismans inside the three suddenly trembled and shattered, turning into a peculiar power that circulated within their bodies.

Han Li and the others' bodies suddenly sank into the walls of the passage, disappearing without a trace.

Just as their bodies sank into the wall, the white ripple shot over, filling the entire passage and the adjacent walls, but there was no abnormality.

The white beast shook its head, a hint of confusion flashing in its large eyes.

"Yun Tuan, what's wrong?" A figure walked out from the third-floor passage—a tall, thin middle-aged man.

This man had narrow, long eyes and a pale complexion without a trace of blood, looking like a corpse just pulled from water, quite eerie.

A dense, cold, and sinister aura emanated from him, making anyone who saw him tremble inwardly and want to keep their distance.

At that moment, a black figure flew up from the first-floor passage—a black-robed Nether Slave.

Black gas emitted from the man's black robe, enveloping his body, making his figure somewhat indistinct, like a ghost.

The tall, thin middle-aged man saw the black Nether Slave, and a hint of understanding flashed in his eyes.

"Lord Gui Mu, the Domain Lord has sent a message." The newcomer was momentarily stunned by the scene before him, but then immediately knelt down, took out a black communication talisman, and presented it with both hands, speaking respectfully.

The white beast tilted its head to look at the black-robed Nether Slave, the white ripple in its eyes disappearing. It then turned into a white shadow and darted into Gui Mu's arms.

Gui Mu held the white beast in his arms, gently stroking its soft head with one hand while taking the communication talisman with the other, his divine sense entering it.

A strange light flickered in his eyes, and he crushed the communication talisman with force.

"Tell the Domain Lord I understand. Everything at the Puppet Fortress has been arranged." Gui Mu said, his voice dry and unpleasant.

The black-robed Nether Slave acknowledged, then turned into a shadowy figure and flew downward, disappearing in an instant.

Gui Mu, holding the white beast, paced back and forth in the hall a couple of times, as if considering something, but soon returned to the third floor.

Only after his figure disappeared for a while did Han Li and the others emerge from the passage wall.

The three did not go up to the second floor again but silently retreated to the first floor, hiding in a side hall.

Only then did Han Li and the others breathe a sigh of relief.

"That was close. What kind of strange beast was that white civet cat? It could actually sense us. We were almost discovered." Hu San said with lingering fear.

"Probably some kind of exotic beast from the Gray Realm. We were still a bit careless." Han Li said, then took out a pill and swallowed it.

"The abilities of a Great Luo cultivator are truly beyond our imagination. Even a small beast by their side is so formidable." Shi Chuankong sighed.

All three looked somewhat solemn. They had thought that with the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talisman, sneaking in to find the spatial restriction core wouldn't be too difficult, but they hadn't even seen the core and were almost discovered.

"Fellow Daoist Shi, what happened to the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talismans inside us? They seem to have shattered?" Han Li suddenly asked.

"The situation was urgent just now, so I fully activated the power of the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talisman and performed the Mustard Seed Spirit Attachment Technique. However, this will halve the remaining duration of the talisman. It will probably fail in about another quarter of an hour." Shi Chuankong said solemnly.

Han Li frowned upon hearing this.

"Only a quarter of an hour! Then we need to hurry. That white beast has been taken away by Gui Mu. Should we try going up again?" Hu San said anxiously.

The difficulty of sneaking in was far beyond their expectations. If they lost the Mustard Seed Heaven Escape Talisman, they would be completely unable to move.

"No, it's too dangerous." Shi Chuankong immediately rejected the proposal.

"With Gui Mu there, going up is indeed dangerous. It seems we have to lure him away." Han Li said slowly.

"Lure him away? Fellow Daoist Li, do you have a good idea?" Shi Chuankong's face lit up, and he pressed for an answer.

Hu San also looked over.

"The idea is actually simple. On our way here, we passed by that black fortress. Inside, it's actually the Netherworld Clan's puppet refining ground, and there are some unspeakable secrets. If we can cause some commotion there, Gui Mu will likely rush over. Once he leaves, things will be much easier for us." Han Li said solemnly.

"You've investigated that fortress? It's actually a puppet refining ground? Tsk tsk, I'd love to see what it's like inside." Hu San looked at Han Li in surprise, clicking his tongue.

"Your plan is feasible, but we're quite far from that area now, and time is tight. We might not make it in time." Shi Chuankong pondered for a moment, then said.

"It would be more appropriate to send Fellow Daoist Mo Guang and Fellow Daoist Bai Li Yan. They are closer to that place. After they succeed, they can directly use your Small Teleportation Wheel to come here." Han Li shook his head and said.