Qin Ming, with a mindset of "let's give it a try," went to ask the Long Princess for permission to study simplified characters in the Demon Suppression Tower.
To his surprise, the crazy Long Princess actually agreed!
This made Qin Ming overjoyed.
He clutched the seal in his hand and happily left the palace.
Fortunately, after walking several streets, Qin Ming didn't notice anyone following him!
At the back door of the Drunken Immortal Tower, a dark brown carriage had already been parked.
In front of the carriage stood a young girl named Qingxuan, holding a black gold knife with a cold expression.
It seemed she had been waiting for a while.
When she saw Qin Ming arrive, she said nothing and immediately jumped into the driver's seat.
Qin Ming also followed suit and climbed into the carriage.
Inside the carriage sat two men he had met before.
One was short and stout, named Ma Qiang.
The other had red hair and wore a hood to cover his face, named Liu Zonghuo.
Although this was their second meeting, Ma Qiang and Liu Zonghuo seemed unwilling to talk to Qin Ming.
Both were curled up in a corner, fiddling with their weapons in silence.
An hour later, the carriage entered the western part of Yingshi City.
This area had fewer people, and the buildings on both sides were broken and overgrown with weeds.
It seemed this place had gone through many battles. The marks of swords and knives on the walls were still clearly visible.
Finally, the carriage stopped in front of a ruined, weed-filled wasteland.
Qingxuan coldly spoke as she stood in front of the carriage.
"We've arrived!"
She held the black gold knife in her hand, her form perfectly accentuated by her tight-fitting blue clothes.
Her long braid was pinned with a very sharp golden hairpin.
The sharp tip of the hairpin was still stained with blood.
Qin Ming silently muttered to himself.
This woman is really crazy!
"First, I need to inform all three of you. My master said that the spirit realm is haunted."
Qin Ming: ...
He asked with confusion,
"Have any of you three ever been to the spirit realm before?"
Qingxuan, holding the black gold knife with both hands, coldly replied,
"I'm here for the first time."
Ma Qiang and Liu Zonghuo both shook their heads.
"The essence we've used before was provided by the organization. This is our first time going through this trial."
Qin Ming thought to himself, so joining the organization has this kind of benefit— they even provide essence!
The four of them walked through the overgrown grass and broken walls.
In the surrounding darkness, pairs of green, eerie eyes glowed, looking particularly strange.
With his Qi-gathering technique at perfection, Qin Ming could still clearly discern everything within a hundred meters, even in such a dim environment.
They walked for about two hundred meters.
Qin Ming saw a dilapidated archway, with four traditional Chinese characters carved on the crossbeam: Ying Shi Gong Yuan.
It seemed like a place for studying or the imperial examination.
But why was this exam hall abandoned?
Could it really be because of ghosts?
A fantasy world shouldn't be so afraid of ghosts, right?
Qin Ming took a few more steps forward and suddenly sensed something was wrong.
Just now, his Turtle Breathing Spiritual Art clearly detected that the surrounding area, within a hundred meters, was mostly rubble and broken walls.
But now, he could see the small examination booths that candidates would sit in during the imperial exams.
The stout figure of Ma Qiang clenched his fists and walked to the front, complaining,
"Master said the information provided by the Five Elements Alliance mentioned a spiritual realm here, but why is there nothing?"
Qing Xuan, holding her black golden sword with both hands, furrowed her brows.
Liu Zonghuo, standing beside her, looked serious and shook his head.
"Could it be that this spiritual realm needs to trigger some kind of mechanism?"
Qin Ming turned to face the three of them calmly.
"Didn't you notice? We're already in the spiritual realm."
"What?" Ma Qiang exclaimed in surprise.
"When we came in earlier, the surroundings were all ruins and broken walls, but now, everything is different."
Liu Zonghuo raised his right hand, and with a "whoosh," a red flame ignited.
It seemed his talent was related to fire.
He pushed two fireballs out, one with each hand, lighting up the surroundings.
To their surprise, the walls around them were lined with examination booths, one after another.
"The outside gate was destroyed like that, but these examination booths are still in such good condition," Ma Qiang muttered. "It looks like Qin Ming was right; we've entered the spiritual realm."
The three of them all looked at Qin Ming.
They realized that this newcomer was not as simple as he seemed.
[Warning: Danger level increased by 50 times! During the danger period, the speed of luck points accumulation will increase by 50 times!]
Qin Ming immediately became alert.
Suddenly, Ma Qiang shouted angrily,
"Who's touching me?"
He clenched his fist and swung it behind him.
"Boom!"
Liu Zonghuo immediately summoned another fireball.
The darkness in front of them was lit up.
But there was no one there! Not even a beast!
"Ma Qiang, are you being paranoid? What would anyone want with a rough man like you?"
As soon as Liu Zonghuo finished speaking, he suddenly felt someone blow a breath of air near the back of his ear.
He jumped in fright, his body shaking.
Without thinking, he threw another fireball.
But once again, there was nothing.
"Someone's here! We have someone around us!" Liu Zonghuo shouted.
At that moment, Qin Ming also suddenly heard a chilling, bone-rattling grinding sound in his ear.
His Turtle Breathing Spiritual Art had reached great perfection.
He should have been able to detect anyone around him.
But this sound was so clear, it seemed like it was directly in his ear.
Qin Ming tightened his fist and punched out with his Ice Soul Fist.
"Boom!"But once again, he hit nothing.
He took out his Bloodfall Sword.
With a surge of spiritual energy, he infused it into the sword sheath.
In an instant, the Bloodfall Sword emitted a faint blue glow.
Suddenly—
"Shua~" A white figure flashed past him, like a ghost.
Qin Ming gripped the Bloodfall Sword tightly and swung it forward.
Swish! A sword qi shot out straight ahead.
However, the white figure vanished without a trace.
What's going on? Could it really be a ghost?
"Qing Xuan, did Senior Yun say anything about how to break the spiritual realm?"
But Qing Xuan didn't respond!
Neither Ma Qiang nor Liu Zonghuo made a sound either.
Qin Ming quickly turned around, looking behind him.
In the dim and eerie surroundings, there was no one in sight!
What the hell!
They were just here a breath ago! Where did they go?
Where are they?
"Qing Xuan? Ma Qiang! Liu Zonghuo?"
No response!
The surroundings were dead silent, and a chilling, ominous air kept wafting from the darkness.
Qin Ming quickly forced himself to stay calm.
"Zi~ Creak~"
Once again, the sound of gnashing teeth echoed in his right ear.
It sounded like something—or someone—was chewing something, and it was an ear-piercing, horrifying sound!
Qin Ming swung the Bloodfall Sword behind him, but once again, there was nothing.
His heart was pounding wildly.
Senior Yun Shuiyao had once said:
Every spiritual realm is formed from the resentful thoughts of either a transcendent or an indigenous person, and there is always a way to break it.
The key was to find the lingering soul of this resentment.