401: Reappearance of the Will-O-Wulf Skeleton

He certainly knew about secret treasures, but secret treasures that could increase one's strength were extremely rare.

"This is a type of secret treasure that rapidly enhances one's strength. It is a one-time use item with no side effects!"

Zhou Xun continued to explain.

"Brother Chen, feel free to use it. It won't have any impact on your body or future cultivation. Rest assured, I would never harm you over this matter!"

After speaking those few sentences, Zhou Xun stared firmly at Chen Tianming, hoping he would believe his words.

Chen Tianming accepted the secret treasure, his actions conveying to Zhou Xun that he indeed trusted him.

The use of the secret treasure did indeed boost Chen Tianming's strength by a notch. At the same time, this meant Chen Tianming could utilize his peak strength without arousing suspicion, as it could all be attributed to the secret treasure.

The man in black also had his own goals and ideas.

Chen Tianming composed himself and channeled his mental energy into the secret treasure.

The face of the man in black darkened. Chen Tianming had already been difficult to deal with without the secret treasure, and now that he had obtained one, he would be even harder to handle.

He decided to strike directly before Chen Tianming could use the secret treasure. After all, he was not a good person himself, so there was no need to worry about etiquette or morality.

"Swish!"

A white, cold light flashed as the man in black launched a ferocious attack at Chen Tianming.

"Whoosh!"

Chen Tianming held his longsword and lunged toward the man in black. His figure swayed, dodging the man's attack like a ghost.

They crossed paths, each brandishing their longswords.

However, under these circumstances, both were wary and dared not use their true strength.

"Bang!"

Another fierce collision occurred as their palms slammed together, emitting a loud boom.

The man in black took a step back, and Chen Tianming was also forced back by the impact.

"Chen Tianming, do you have any other tricks?"

The man in black looked coldly and arrogantly at Chen Tianming, feeling that Chen Tianming's strength was slightly weaker than his own.

Yet, every time he was about to crush Chen Tianming, the latter would bounce back and counterattack. It was clear enough now that Chen Tianming, like him, had been hiding his true strength. Now that he had the secret treasure, how could he possibly defeat him?

"Damn it!"

Clearly realizing his strength was insufficient, the man in black cursed aloud, but he had no way to continue the entanglement.

Chen Tianming's attacks were like a storm, impossible to defend against.

Furthermore, the gap between their strengths was too great; if the fight continued, he would definitely lose.

The man in black left, gnashing his teeth in frustration.

"Hoo~"

Chen Tianming let out a sigh of relief, his face turning noticeably paler.

This display was, of course, intentional, making others think he was somewhat exhausted after using the secret treasure.

"Brother, you really are something. If it weren't for you, we might have already fallen into his clutches."

Zhou Xun snorted coldly, speaking with annoyance.

Chen Tianming smiled bitterly and said, "I was just lucky. Without you all, it would have been hard for me to win."

"Hmph!"

Yue Xiaojie snorted disdainfully, "That guy runs fast. The moment he knew he couldn't win, he fled immediately!"

Wu Wenlong fell into silence upon hearing Yue Xiaojie's words, then finally looked at Zhou Xun.

"I don't think this person is so simple. He clearly understands this palace better than we do. Since he has hidden his figure, aren't we still in a passive position?"

In their view, the reason they were able to repel the man in black was entirely thanks to the one-time secret treasure that Chen Tianming and Zhou Xun brought out.

They weren't sure if Zhou Xun could produce another such secret treasure. In other words, after the man in black healed his wounds, his next appearance could spell their doom.

"Regardless, we can only speed up and leave this place."

"How are we supposed to leave? We have ventured so deep into the core; if we want to turn back, we will have to face those things again."

Now they were truly facing wolves in front and tigers behind. They couldn't advance, nor could they retreat; they seemed to be stuck in the middle.

There was also that man in black lurking nearby, eyeing them like a predator. If they didn't act...

"Let's go. I'll lead the way."

Chen Tianming made the final decision.

If they didn't take advantage of the spatial rift here and go in to take a look, they would definitely be trapped here until they died.

Zhou Xun nodded.

"Alright, I'll follow behind you."

Wu Wenlong asked worriedly, "Brother Chen, do you think there will be mechanisms ahead?"

"I'm not sure. But regardless of whether they can control the mechanisms, we have no choice but to move forward. Or do you plan to wait here?"

The injured Wu Wenlong moved his body, forcing himself to muster up his energy.

Wu Wenlong didn't need anyone to tell him what would happen if he stayed here; he knew there was no way out but death. He couldn't imagine any other way to survive.

"Stop dawdling. Every moment we waste here, we will pay the price for it later!"

Yue Xiaojie urged impatiently. He didn't care about Wu Wenlong's life or death, so he could naturally speak so lightly.

After experiencing a life-and-death crisis, the relationship between them had not improved at all.

It was even the same as before; there was absolutely no sign of the 'bridge effect' where shared adversity fosters genuine feelings.

"Rumble!"

Just as Chen Tianming expected, the mechanisms behind them responded one after another, as if they had gone mad.

Beams of black light shot out from the shadows, flying toward Chen Tianming and his group at a terrifying speed, as if thousands of troops and horses were stampeding.

Chen Tianming and Zhou Xun joined forces to resist for a while, but they felt their bodies becoming increasingly strained.

However, they could only advance a certain distance and lacked the ability to break through the mechanisms behind them.

"The power of these mechanisms is immense. We can only resist from the periphery," Zhou Xun said with a frown.

Wu Wenlong asked, "Brother Chen, what do you think we should do now?"

Chen Tianming said, "I don't know either, but we should try our best to rush inside and see if we can break through."

The mechanisms appeared too frequently, and even Chen Tianming had to keep his mental alertness at a high level; it was hard to guard against hidden arrows.

"Swish, swish, swish."

Suddenly, sharp weapons shot toward them like a storm, attacking them.

These men in black were no fools. If they let Chen Tianming and his group get close to them, they would be killed by them. That was why they chose this method to exhaust Chen Tianming's true energy.

"Damn it, these mechanisms must be related to that man in black!"

This moment truly exemplified the saying, "random punches can beat an experienced master."

Over on Yue Xiaojie's side, he was also exhausted from dealing with these mechanisms, and his retainer, Uncle Zhang, had also sustained injuries, neither minor nor major.

After finally passing one stage, everyone intended to rest for a moment, but out of nowhere, ghost fire skeletons appeared, drifting toward them.