262: Chapter 262 The Inner World and the Outer World

On the mountain peak, the cold wind howled past.

Everyone was either sitting or standing, discussing with solemn expressions.

Treasure hunters from other teams also cast aside past grudges, joining in groups of three or five.

At this moment, all the scheming, fighting, and killing of the past seemed insignificant.

Everyone was racking their brains, thinking about how to preserve their lives and successfully escape in such a near-desperate place.

Someone flashed a hint of hope in their eyes and said softly,

"How about waiting until dawn? Maybe the fog will disperse on its own, and by then, with a clear view, we can also see the way out of the mountain."

But someone immediately shook their head in rebuttal, saying with deep concern,

"This fog is extremely eerie; how could it disperse so easily? We might not even make it to dawn."

Others rummaged through their backpacks to find flare guns or wireless devices, attempting to transmit distress signals in the hope that external rescue teams would send planes to pick them up.

Everyone spoke one after another, expressing their own opinions, but none of them had much confidence.

Fang Cheng, Lin Chuqiao, and others also gathered in a circle to communicate privately.

"Judging from the current situation, we shouldn't be trapped by a simple Formation, but rather located in a special space connecting reality and consciousness, which is the so-called 'Inner World'."

Through the mental connection, the professor's thoughtful voice rang out in the minds of Fang Cheng and the others.

"Inner World? What is this?"

Dachui and Bailing widened their eyes upon hearing this, obviously hearing this novel and unfamiliar vocabulary for the first time.

"The Inner World is a supernatural dimension parallel to reality, corresponding to the surface world where we live."

The professor patiently explained,

"In this mysterious space, bizarre creatures that have long been extinct in the real world and cannot possibly exist, or certain supernatural phenomena that defy common sense, often appear."

"Simply put, if the surface world displays the superficial appearances of the world that people's shallow consciousness can perceive, then the Inner World is the hidden dark corner mapped out by deep consciousness."

"You've all heard folk tales about divine concealment, right? Those ghost stories of children getting lost for no reason and being snatched away by mountain ghouls are mostly stumbling into the Inner World."

After listening to the explanation, Bailing blinked her eyes and couldn't help asking curiously,

"Professor, according to what you say, does that mean the ghost-wall phenomenon we encountered earlier was the process of accidentally being dragged into the mysterious Inner World? No wonder back then it clearly felt like everything around was very familiar, yet no matter how we walked, we couldn't get out. This is too eerie."

"Indeed, the Inner World has many uncanny aspects."

The professor responded softly, and then continued,

"When we fall into it, the spatial dimensions have already quietly changed, but our senses are still limited to familiar appearances, which is why we have the illusion that the destination is very close yet we can never reach it."

"This precisely matches the characteristics of the Inner World; it can overlap real scenes with supernatural Domains without our noticing, plunging us into Chaos."

"However..."

Speaking up to this point, the professor paused slightly, tinged with a bit of thought:

"The existence of the Inner World cannot be directly perceived solely by our five senses; we must rely on special channels like Meditation and dreams to make a slight contact with it."

"If you deliberately search for it and want your physical body to truly step into it, it's a very slim chance, probably about the same as winning the lottery."

"Ah, then did we win the grand prize?!"

Dachui's mouth opened slightly, and he chimed in with a stunned look, obviously feeling extremely unlucky.

"In a sense, you could say that."

The professor sighed slightly upon hearing this, seeming to have a sense of yearning:

"In ancient times, the world was filled with powerful supernatural forces everywhere. Under the miraculous effects of millions of years, many Inner Worlds in parallel dimensions were birthed."

"These places are the blessed lands frequently mentioned in Daoist classics. Legend has it that they hide endless mysteries and Opportunity, but as time flowed, most of them became hidden in the river of history and are little known."

"Nowadays, such special spaces are already very few. Even if they are luckily preserved, they are basically controlled and occupied by various Families."

"Clearly, Miwu Mountain still has residual supernatural power. The Lu Family must have used some mysterious Formation for some unspeakable purpose to open this Inner World and trap all of us inside..."

Hearing this, everyone's hearts tightened.

The professor's voice continued to come over:

"In essence, the aristocratic Family's Legacy Secret Realm is actually a stabilized Inner World, but right now the condition of Miwu Mountain is so violently turbulent, and it completely doesn't belong to conventional phenomena."

"Could it be that the Lu Family has mastered some unique means and is preparing to open up a second Legacy Secret Realm..."

His tone was full of doubt, and after pondering for a long time, he let out a helpless sigh:

"No matter what, since the Lu Family went to such great lengths to use the golden bumpa bottle as bait to trap us here, wanting to find a way out is probably not an easy task."

Lin Chuqiao frowned slightly, then took over the conversation and expressed her insights:

"Wanting to safely enter and exit the Legacy Secret Realm usually requires the guidance of someone with the direct Bloodline of the aristocratic Family to work. We currently have two methods: first, find the person in charge in Lu Family Manor and force him to lead the way for us."

"But this method has extremely high risks. Right now we are trapped on the mountain, and there are only the professor and Crow in the manor. Moreover, the person in charge of the Lu Family must have unfathomable strength; a slight carelessness will plunge us into a more dangerous situation."

"Second, try to find the connection point between the golden bumpa bottle and the spatial energy fluctuations, and start from here. Maybe we can find the flaws in the Formation set up by the Lu Family and crack the exit of the Inner World."

"After all, since the Lu Family used the golden bumpa bottle as bait to lure us into the game, it's impossible for it to have no connection with the changes in the surrounding environment."

The professor's side fell silent for a moment, and then his voice came over:

"Xiaochu, I understand your idea. Using the golden bumpa bottle to crack the Formation is indeed a method worth trying."

"But it is currently hanging high in the air, with black fog surrounding below. How on earth can we approach it and manipulate it? That is the tricky part."

Pausing, the professor let out a rare bitter laugh and added emphatically:

"Unless someone among us knows Flight."

These words were like a basin of cold water, extinguishing the trace of hope that had just ignited in everyone's hearts.

"Sigh, if I knew Flight, I would have smashed it down with a hammer long ago..."

Dachui scratched his head and muttered helplessly.

This matter was obviously unrealistic.

Let alone people like them, I'm afraid not many masters with the ability of aerial Flight could be found among all the aristocratic Families in Xia State.

For a moment, everyone fell into silence, with only the wind howling in their ears.

Fang Cheng stood at the edge of the mountain peak, the cold wind like a knife, making his face hurt from cuts.

Yet he was completely unaware, his eyes fixed tightly on the golden bumpa bottle hanging high in the air, emitting a mysterious glow.

That light flickered regularly, and the churning black fog around it also seemed to be guided by it, presenting a certain indescribable rhythm, forming a swirling black sea of clouds.

Fang Cheng's gaze narrowed slightly, continuously observing through Eagle Eye Vision, and the thought in his heart grew stronger.

The golden bumpa bottle had intricate connections with the eerie changes of Miwu Mountain, and it was very likely the key to cracking the current predicament.

Just as everyone was racking their brains, an exclamation suddenly came from the consciousness channel:

"Not good, a fight has broken out inside the manor!"

The speaker was Li Dingjian, who had deliberately remained silent just like Fang Cheng earlier.

Fang Cheng's heart tightened upon hearing this, and he immediately asked through the mental connection:

"What's the situation? Who is fighting?"

"I... I can't see clearly either..."

Li Dingjian seemed to be running with the professor to dodge the aftermath of the battle, describing intermittently:

"I just heard a boom, and then saw a thin old man wearing a black robe and a man dressed as a lama crash through the wall of a nearby building and jump straight out."

"They fought like they went crazy, and their Aura was very scary. That old man could summon a large cluster of tree branches and vines to whip towards the lama, and that lama was even more outrageously fierce, his whole body looking like it was on fire, constantly releasing light to bombard the other party."

"In just this short while, many trees and buildings in the manor suffered, being destroyed beyond recognition by them..."

Li Dingjian's voice carried a bit of panic and shock, broadcasting the on-site situation through the mental connection like a frontline reporter.

Afterwards, the professor added somewhat calmly:

"The old man in the black robe should be the person in charge of the Lu Family. As for that lama, I recognize him; it is Venerable Roger of Lingquan Temple."

"Both of these people are prominent figures. Fighting fiercely at this time, there must be hidden reasons, which might be beneficial to us..."

On the mountain peak, Fang Cheng and Lin Chuqiao quickly exchanged a glance, both of them revealing surprise and doubt in their eyes.

Just at this moment, relying on his exceptionally keen hearing, the professor captured key information and then added a sentence:

"Wait, I seem to have heard them mention the golden bumpa bottle."

As soon as these words came out, everyone immediately cheered up, hurriedly holding their breath to listen to the commotion coming from the manor.

Meanwhile, the battle inside Lu Family Manor had already entered a white-hot stage.

Lu Shihua danced with both hands, chanting incantations, and those vines burst out of the ground from all directions like spring bamboo shoots.

Then, like python snakes, they crazily writhed and twisted, wrapping towards Roger with bared fangs and brandished claws.

Roger was not to be outdone either, letting out a loud shout as the demon god phantom behind him became increasingly clear and recognizable.

The three heads and six arms each wielded Magical Artifacts, some resisting the vines attacking like pythons, and others emitting black and red lights.

Wherever they passed, bricks and stones shattered, and smoke and dust filled the air.

Only to hear Lu Shihua roar as if in thunderous fury:

"Roger, don't even think about getting your hands on the golden bumpa bottle! This is the lifeline for the Lu Family to revitalize its glory. I think you might as well just stay and become nourishment to nurture the Lu clan's ancestral spirits!"

While speaking, he waved both hands, and a thick vine appeared out of thin air, fiercely whipping across.

Accompanied by a series of crackling explosions, deep gullies were left on the ground.

Roger's figure continuously flashed rapidly, letting out a wild and unrestrained laughter:

"Hehe, back then you stole the Formation learning from my Black Sect just to wait for this day, right?"

"Now that the sacred artifact has emerged, it should naturally be returned to its original owner. What qualifications do you have to monopolize it? I am going to take down the golden bumpa bottle right now; let's see how you can stop me?"

His words were full of mockery and banter, seemingly deliberately provoking Lu Shihua, while flexibly blocking left and right, sprinting towards the center of the manor.

Lu Shihua's face was gloomy, obviously poked in the vital spot by Roger's words.

Instantly summoning more thorny vines and briers like a surging green wave, they swept towards Roger, as if to completely submerge him and thereby block his steps.

"What a move of the Sea of Trees technique, but unfortunately I am no longer that little lama of yours back then!"

Seeing this, Roger hooked a cold smile at the corner of his mouth, and steadily stood his ground unhurriedly.

The demon god phantom behind him stared wide-eyed, and the Magical Artifacts in its six hands instantly rang out in unison with a buzzing sound.

A flash of fire passed, and surging flames instantly spewed out from the Magical Artifact, sweeping towards Lu Shihua. Wherever they went, the vines were instantly ignited and blown up, turning into piles of ashes drifting in the air.

The two chased each other, neither yielding verbally, and every move in their hands was fatal with immense power.

Under this powerful energy impact, the buildings and trees in the manor were on the verge of collapse, with bricks constantly falling and branches snapping.

The strong wind howled, whipping up all the dust and gravel on the ground, flying straight at people's faces.

Such a life-and-death duel between top masters, with its terrifying destructive power and majestic Aura, made other guards and treasure hunters intimidated.

How dare they get close? They could only hurriedly dodge, look for hidden bunkers, and watch from afar, fearing being swept by the aftermath and ending up shattered to pieces.

On the mountain peak, everyone couldn't help widening their eyes, looking towards the direction where Lu Family Manor was located.

However, those black fogs were like a heavy curtain, blocking everything tightly so that the situation inside couldn't be seen clearly at all.

Even though Fang Cheng and Monkey possessed reconnaissance abilities far surpassing ordinary people, their vision still couldn't completely penetrate it.

Hearing the intelligence transmitted by the professor and Crow, everyone was anxious yet helpless, able only to act as eavesdroppers.

Just at this moment, a subtle vibration came from the ground under their feet.

The entire Miwu Mountain seemed to have undergone some other changes.

Following closely, a faintly extremely low chanting sound came, as if it were an ancient sigh emanating from the depths of the earth, carrying a mysterious and majestic Aura.

Then, deeper in the heavy fog, the shadow of a towering giant tree faintly emerged.

That tree towered into the clouds, almost breaking through the sky, and its trunk was so thick that it would take at least dozens of people hugging each other to surround it.

The branches were like winding giant pythons, wantonly extending in all directions, forming a massive canopy that shrouded a region of heaven and earth.

Vaguely discernible in the fog, there were also countless firefly-like spots of light floating and flying within that tree canopy, resembling twinkling stars in the night sky, emitting a soft glow and giving people a dreamlike feeling.

Gazing at this scene, everyone couldn't help holding their breath, full of shock and amazement.

As if immersed in a dream, they forgot the predicament they were currently facing.

At this time, through the mental connection, Fang Cheng suddenly asked:

"Professor, the most effective way to crack the Formation is to destroy the Formation core, right?"

The professor pondered slightly and responded calmly:

"Under normal circumstances, that is the case. The operation of the Formation relies on the Formation core as the core hub; destroy the Formation core, and the Formation will lose its Foundation, naturally collapsing on its own."

Following closely, as if realizing something, he immediately pursued:

"Do you want to break the golden bumpa bottle?"

"Yes."

Fang Cheng replied with a single, crisp word.

Hearing this, Lin Chuqiao, Bailing, and Dachui all froze together, waking up from that intoxicating wondrous sight.

The professor fell silent for a moment and asked that question again:

"How do you plan to approach it?"

Fang Cheng's eyes shone brightly, and he said word by word:

"Naturally, by using Flight."