Immortal Reincarnation Tribulation

Chapter 317 An Unexpected Joy

Xiao Yun took a deep breath, glanced apologetically at Du Fan, bowed slightly to him, and said:

"It was indeed my sister's fault, but I did not mean to hide it from you, Brother Du. This palace has been abandoned, and most of the cultivators who originally stayed here have moved to another place. Even if there are still some people, there will certainly not be many."

Moreover, this palace is enormous, with dozens of floors. I didn't expect to run into anyone else. I was worried that Brother Du might have some reservations, which is why I didn't mention it."

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, I don't care what you're thinking, the current situation is completely different from what you described back then. Even if I withdraw now, it won't be considered a breach of agreement." At this point, Du Fan naturally wouldn't give this woman a friendly look.

"Brother Du, you saw it just now too. Among the group of cultivators who just passed by, one of them clearly noticed our presence, but they didn't take any action. Instead, they quickened their pace and hurried past..." Xiao Yun's eyes showed unease upon hearing this, and she hurriedly spoke, fearing that Du Fan would really leave.

"What does this prove?" Du Fan frowned.

"The fact that these people appeared in the abandoned temple where fallen leaves return to their roots means that their purpose is roughly the same as my little sister's. They all have their eyes on something here and want to gain something before the array completely erupts."

Although they outnumbered my sister, Brother Du, there's no need to worry too much. After all, this kind of thing isn't exactly honorable, and nobody wants any trouble. Even if neither of us tries to hide, we'll probably get along fine.

Most importantly, the palace here is extremely large, with many remnants. The things that my little sister has her eye on are not particularly rare, and no one else would pay any attention to them.

"Of course, no matter what, I'm suspected of hiding things from you, Brother Du. Here are five hundred spirit stones as an apology. I hope you won't be too polite, Brother Du." Xiao Yun said quickly, and with a flick of her wrist, a leather pouch shot out.

Du Fan caught the leather bag, his eyes gleaming for a while before he took a deep breath, swung it into his storage bag, looked at the woman, and said indifferently, "Fellow Daoist Xiao is so sincere, if I were to still be petty, it would seem rather stingy. Besides, you didn't expect this either."

"Thank you for your understanding, Brother Du." Xiao Yun was delighted to see this and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Judging from their attire, those cultivators we just encountered should all be people from your 'Returning to Your Roots' group. I wonder if these people have any other way to enter and leave this place?" Du Fan's eyes flashed, and he suddenly asked this question.

"Absolutely not. From the moment the explosive arrays surrounding the palace were set up, all the passages in and out of the palace were sealed off. The only way to reach the palace is through a limited number of teleportation scrolls."

"By the way, Brother Du's question reminds me of something. When we teleported earlier, the spatial fluctuations were a bit unstable, which may be caused by the frequent teleportations of people recently." After a moment's thought, Xiao Yun's eyes suddenly lit up.

"I think so too. In that case, let's resolve this matter quickly so we can leave this place sooner. If the array outside really explodes prematurely, the two of us will be buried with this palace." Du Fan said solemnly.

"Alright, we're actually not far from the altar now. Brother Du, come with me." Xiao Yun nodded, moved, and headed straight for the depths of the corridor.

Half an hour later, Du Fan and Xiao Yun appeared at the entrance of a narrow staircase. The stone steps wound upwards in a circle, and it was unclear where they led.

Without saying a word, Xiao Yun stepped onto it, and Du Fan naturally followed closely behind.

After the two entered the next floor, they walked around seven or eight long corridors and arrived at an indoor plaza.

This place is similar to the previous stone hall, connected by long corridors extending from different directions, but its area is much larger, about a hundred acres in size, and more than thirty feet high. Moreover, there are thick stone pillars standing in the square, reaching all the way to the roof.

The number of these stone pillars is exactly one hundred and one, as if they are arranged in a certain specific orientation.

Each stone pillar is not only carved with various strange insects, fish, birds and beasts, but also inlaid with fist-sized yellow crystals that resemble luminous beads. Clusters of soft light emanate from them, illuminating the entire square with extraordinary brightness.

This place is much more spacious and bright than the dark and narrow passageway, sweeping away the previous oppressive and gloomy feeling.

Besides some strange carvings, there are dozens of tightly closed stone doors on the walls surrounding the square. Of course, there are protective magic arrays operating on the surface of each stone door.

Du Fan stood there and glanced around. His eyes narrowed slightly. In this square, the most eye-catching thing was the 108 thick stone pillars. Apart from that, there was only one huge stone gate on one of the walls, which was five or six zhang wide and tall.

The protective array on this stone door is distinctly different from those on other stone doors. Not only is it more than four times the size of other arrays, but it also emanates a terrifying spiritual pressure.

In Du Fan's view, the strength of this spiritual pressure was absolutely no less than that of Liu Zhongtian, the great protector of Crescent Island.

"Brother Du, behind this giant gate lies the location of the Concealing Spirit Technique. The altar that my sister mentioned also requires passing through this gate, and then walking a little further in, you will arrive at it." Xiao Yun looked at the massive stone gate and spoke in a low voice, a strange glint flashing in her eyes.

"Could the magic array on this stone gate be the place where Fellow Daoist Xiao wants me to lend a hand?" Du Fan looked up at the magic array on the huge stone gate, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

"Brother Du is joking. This formation is a high-level protective formation. Even a senior at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage would not be able to break it in a short time."

"This magic array is powerful, but I naturally have ways to deal with it. I invited Brother Du here for another matter." Xiao Yun shook her head and said with a wry smile.

"I see. If Fellow Daoist Xiao really wants me to forcibly break this formation, I might have no choice but to turn around and leave." Du Fan breathed a sigh of relief and smiled slightly at the woman.

"Brother Du, time is of the essence, let's go." Xiao Yun smiled and spoke softly.

"Okay." Du Fan agreed and walked towards the huge stone gate with the woman.

Just as Xiao Yun flipped her wrist to take out an ancient token, preparing to infuse it with a spell, Du Fan suddenly changed his expression and turned his gaze to a stone door of ordinary size next to him.

Upon seeing the stone door, Du Fan was slightly taken aback, then his eyes widened abruptly, his breathing quickened, and he hurriedly said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, wait a moment!"

"Hmm? Brother Du, what's wrong?" Xiao Yun asked, somewhat puzzled. She stopped what she was doing and followed Du Fan's gaze. Then, as if she had just realized something, her delicate brows furrowed slightly.

Du Fan didn't speak immediately. Instead, he took a deep breath and walked slowly toward the stone door.

"Brother Du, apart from a few specific locations and some remaining items, everything else in this palace was completely emptied by our organization decades ago."

"I swear on my life, this stone chamber is definitely empty right now. Let's get down to business." Xiao Yun frowned, quite dissatisfied with Du Fan's behavior.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, you misunderstand. What I'm after isn't the things inside the stone chamber, but the magic array itself." Du Fan said with delight, not bothering to hide his expression, but also revealing a strange look on his face.

"The magic array itself... what exactly does Brother Du mean by this?" Xiao Yun asked in astonishment.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, do you have a way to shut down this formation?" Du Fan's eyes were bright, his face was smiling, and he was full of energy, his previous gloomy expression gone.

"No, Brother Du, you don't mean to take this formation away, do you?" Xiao Yun's mouth dropped open, her face showing disbelief.

"This magic array will be of great use to me, and I am determined to obtain it!" Du Fan looked at Xiao Yun, his tone resolute.

The magic array in front of Du Fan was constructed from more than thirty array-setting tools, along with countless other materials, all contributing to the creation of this rather impressive protective array.

What really excited Du Fan was that among the magical tools used to construct this array, seven or eight were the same magical tools required for the Lesser Five Elements Demon Extermination Array. Furthermore, many of the auxiliary materials also met the array setup requirements of the Lesser Five Elements Demon Extermination Array, so they were definitely worth trying.

If this magic array can be successfully dismantled, Du Fan's Lesser Five Elements Demon Extermination Array will be much complete. How could he not be tempted by such an unexpected surprise?

Xiao Yun was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, but Du Fan's attitude seemed quite firm, so she couldn't refuse outright.

The woman hesitated for a moment, then said, "I see. But Brother Du, this protective array is specifically designed for Foundation Establishment cultivators. Its defensive strength is self-evident. Would you like to reconsider?"

"Judging from the spiritual pressure emanating from this array, it is indeed at the Foundation Establishment level, but the energy fluctuations flowing over it are not too strong."

"It seems that because this palace has been abandoned and has not been maintained for many years, the power of this formation has been greatly reduced. Therefore, with the combined strength of the two of us, it should not be difficult to forcibly break it." Du Fan took a deep breath, looked at the woman, and spoke solemnly.

"Brother Du, have you made a decision?" Xiao Yun still frowned.