Chapter 183

Chapter 183: The Thirteenth Layer of the Purple Fortress

At this moment, Li Hui’s expression turned grim as he said, “The leader of the Jade Symbol Sect has arrived? Didn’t you seal yourself off, cutting off all your life signs? And the array points can cover the heavenly numbers.”

“I underestimated him. The moment you teleported to the core area, the leader of the Jade Symbol Sect had already locked onto this location. The problem lies with those nine Myriad Form Purple Absolute God Symbols, which must have been personally buried by him, and infused with his own blood essence. No matter how well I hide, as long as he locks onto you, he can easily follow the clues right to me,” the embroidered ball replied.

“He buried them himself?” Li Hui clenched his fists. “Damn, I was careless.”

“Even if you weren’t careless, you can’t dissolve those nine Myriad Form Purple Absolute God Symbols. You can only wait for the Heavenly Array and Earthly Array to be upgraded to slowly wear down their talisman power before you can hope to deal with them,” the embroidered ball transmitted quickly. “Listen closely, I will give you twelve Mystical Yellow Path Talismans that reach the top-grade treasure talisman level. You need to go deep into the underground Thirteenth Layer and search for the Formation Veins.”

The tone carried determination. “Only by destroying the Formation Veins can we trigger the entire array of Wan Nest Island to suppress this area, giving us a chance to escape.”

“Underground Thirteenth Layer?” Li Hui felt a chill. Previously, through the Ideal Body, he sensed that the Purple Fortress indeed had thirteen layers, but each time he felt it, his body uncontrollably trembled.

That was not a place he could enter—it was not just a brush with death, but a tenfold guarantee of demise! Even possessing twelve top-grade treasure talismans could be exceedingly dangerous, let alone needing to destroy the Formation Veins.

“Formidable foes are approaching; you have no other choice.”

“I know.” Li Hui waved and handed Chef Zhao and Huo Qiniang to Qian Qiu Yue, saying, “Senior Sister, the leader of the Jade Symbol Sect has faked his death to stay alive. If I fall into his hands, there will be no good outcome, so I must hide in the underground Thirteenth Layer. You all shouldn’t go to the Twelfth Layer anymore; the Lingfan Shura Bug might burst out of its nest at any moment. They are coming for me, so take the Purple Essence Divine Water and find a safe place to improve!”

As he spoke, six jars of Purple Essence Divine Water fell to the ground, and a divine iron Ideal Body appeared behind Li Hui.

The divine iron Ideal Body shimmered slightly and transformed into a mysterious arc of light, rotating around. Before Qian Qiu Yue could speak, the figure had already disappeared, and even with her and Hongmo Zhengfang’s Late Condense Essence abilities, they couldn’t see through this mystery.

In just the span of two cups of tea, Li Hui arrived at the entrance to the Thirteenth Layer. Looking ahead, he saw a layer of black grease hanging down, resembling a black satin surface, so smooth it could reflect a person’s shadow.

At this moment, the embroidered ball said, “I will teach you the talisman accumulation method. Using five hundred Five-Pattern Lightning Sword Talismans, you can unleash the power of a treasure talisman. Be cautious with this layer of grease; it’s not simple.”

“What did you say? Just using five hundred Five-Pattern Lightning Sword Talismans can unleash the power of a treasure talisman?” Li Hui was astonished, thinking, “How many secret techniques does this guy possess? It’s truly true that one doesn’t reveal their skills until facing death.”

“Don’t be surprised; it’s just a matter of accumulating talisman power for a forward strike. With the Dragon Horn pattern enhancing you, it should be easy to merge and achieve. However, this method is useless in combat and requires full concentration for half a stick of incense time, which I expect will be enough time for them not to descend.” The embroidered ball explained.

“Uh, that’s still quite impressive!” Li Hui realized he was like a frog at the bottom of a well; the essence of the Jade Symbol Sect was clearly represented by the embroidered ball.

Before long, Li Hui’s hands moved like wheels, various hand seals flying as the talisman light condensed without dissipating. The embroidered ball praised, “What a Dragon Horn pattern! Truly worthy of the Upper Tier Spirit Motion Marks, seizing the creations of heaven and earth, containing the mysteries of the universe! The Jade Symbol Sect has no equal! Such talent is sufficient to enter those top sects, but it’s a pity that this talent comes at the cost of lifespan. Without breaking free from the shackles, it will ultimately come to nothing.”

At this moment, Li Hui exclaimed, “Wonderful, wonderful! I didn’t know the hand seals could be matched like this. The same Lightning Sword Talismans can be activated using the Five Elements, Wind Thunder, Yin Yang, Heaven Earth, Spirit Lure, and Auxiliary Six hand seals. I had only used the Wind Thunder hand seal before—turns out the different hand seals have subtle differences. Their interactions can be linked and chained to accumulate, producing fusion.”

After executing all the talisman accumulation hand seals, the five hundred Lightning Sword Talismans turned to ashes in Li Hui’s hands, and the lightning in his hands grew increasingly bright, becoming dazzling and radiant.

“This…” The embroidered ball was shocked; it only took half the time of half a stick of incense to successfully accumulate the talisman power.

“Go!” Li Hui pushed forward, and with a series of loud crashes, arcs of lightning surged forth like a lightning dragon, piercing through the black grease and creating a dark, cavernous hole.

The divine iron Ideal Body surged forward, and once they entered the Thirteenth Layer, the massive hole behind them immediately closed up, with only a faint touch of black grease brushing against the cuff, making a soft “puff” sound before dissolving.

“Ah! This is my best dark shirt.” Li Hui forcefully tore the sleeve off, hurriedly tossing it aside, only to see the sleeve turn to ashes before it even hit the ground.

“Use the Mystical Yellow Path Talismans, quickly!” The embroidered ball’s voice carried a hint of panic.

Li Hui reacted swiftly, bringing his fingers together to pinch the talisman paper, pouring spiritual energy through his fingers. The Mystical Yellow Path Talismans ignited like a fiery tongue, shooting sparks around him, altering his sight.

“Oh my goodness!”

It was terrifying. The front seemed empty, but in reality, it was filled with thick, drastic tendrils. One of the tendrils swept forward, almost brushing against his chest.

These tendrils appeared and disappeared unpredictably, and the Ideal Body had no reaction. Li Hui quickly dodged to the side, but the pulling force spread out, nearly immobilizing him.

“What kind of ghostly beings are these? Thankfully, I have the Mystical Yellow Path Talismans to break free from the pull.”

“Hurry up! This is a very rare Ghost Formation within the array!” the embroidered ball warned.

“Ghost Formation? Now that’s just ridiculous.” Li Hui shifted his position, relying on the wondrous vision produced by the Mystical Yellow Path Talismans to dodge the ghostly tentacles, as the Ideal Body proved insufficient.

To encounter such peril just after entering the underground Thirteenth Layer, he dreaded to think how many more bizarre formations awaited him. In this place, not even a minor Spirit Motion Stage cultivator could survive; even those in the Condense Essence Stage entering would meet certain death—there was absolutely no good outcome.

Li Hui dared not let his mind wander; in his hands, the Mystical Yellow Path Talismans released curling green smoke, and a black line appeared on the surface of the talisman, burning down to three-quarters of its length, consuming an enormous amount.

You have to understand, these were top-grade treasure talismans, dazzling and radiant beneath their halo. Seeing a quarter burn off in such a short time illustrated the dangers around him; every breath could be fatal.

At the brink of life and death, Li Hui’s Fighting Spirit emerged.

“Still, break, turn, ring, go…”

At this moment, not a single figure was visible, only an Ideal Body shadow twirling, crossing over one trial after another, leaving countless dangers and oddities behind. The embroidered ball genuinely wanted to cheer for him.

“Bang…” The Mystical Yellow Path Talismans shattered in his hands, and Li Hui panted heavily, his brow and temples drenched in hot sweat.

“That was too dangerous; such a handsome face almost got marred.”

“Quickly search for the Formation Veins,” the embroidered ball said with unprecedented seriousness. “Since there are array points above, the Thirteenth Layer should be embedded with Formation Veins, just like the relationship between acupuncture points and meridians. Dugu Yi wants me; he aims to force out the Dao Rhythm Residual Talisman using fate, intending to kill you. Destroying the Formation Veins can concentrate all the island’s power toward the Purple Fortress. When that happens, the higher the cultivation, the greater the pressure they can bear, and perhaps we can turn the tides.”

“Turning the tides is not something I’m counting on; it’s best to survive.” Just as Li Hui got up, he heard rumbling from the entrance, the enemies were arriving quickly.