Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 908 Enemies meet on a narrow road
With Xiao Ran's technique as a reliance, the treasure ship easily broke out of the range of the Horizontal Wind without even needing the protection of the Crimson Gold Divine Lamp.

Suddenly, the view opened up before them. The raging wind and snow, along with the soul-devouring gray-white air currents, vanished abruptly, replaced by a relatively calm sky.

Suddenly, the light in front of everyone brightened, and the world seemed to become clearer. The outlines of the distant, continuous snow-capped peaks were distinct, and even the air seemed much fresher.

Inside the cabin, Wu Man, Jin Chanzi, Lu Da, and the tiger demon and the red-blooded horse, who were lying down, all breathed a long sigh of relief. Their tense nerves suddenly relaxed, and their bodies felt a little weak.

All of them were top-notch experts, but at this moment they all felt as if they had survived a calamity.

For a moment, they all lay down on the deck, not wanting to move at all.

Wu Man brought out the dragon soup, and after everyone ate it, they finally recovered.

The group sat in a circle, asking Xiao Ran what her current situation was.

Xiao Ran didn't hide anything and explained her changes and thoughts to everyone.

He wasn't afraid of his method being leaked because this cultivation method was too extraordinary and the conditions were too demanding.

Not to mention needing to possess soul cultivation techniques and the Mahayana Sutras, the most important thing is to be proficient in curse spells and have the ability of the "Fate Stitching Thread".

Any one of these abilities would be enough for someone to spend half a lifetime gathering, let alone all of them.

Even if it were leaked, someone who wanted to copy it probably wouldn't be able to find a way.

When he learned that Xiao Ran had integrated many strange techniques into one, transforming himself into the technique itself, even the well-informed Taoist priest Jin Chanzi was so shocked that he was speechless.

Although it is often said that the pinnacle of skill is merely the superficial understanding of the Way.

Technique is, after all, just technique.

Even someone as powerful as Plum Blossom Taoist said that all the myriad techniques are nothing more than illusions.

But now, Xiao Ran's existence has become one of using techniques to achieve enlightenment, which is a fundamental difference.

"Monster, you're a monster!"

Jin Chanzi looked at Xiao Ran and called him a monster.

As they were talking, Jin Chanzi stopped talking and lay down on the deck, looking like he didn't want to move.

"What's wrong with him?" Lu Da didn't understand why Jin Chanzi had suddenly stopped talking when they were talking normally.

"He's just withdrawn." Wu Man could understand Jin Chanzi's feelings.

He explained to Lu Da, "It's like a master chef teaching you how to make mutton soup. You painstakingly simmer the mutton soup for hours, but it turns out to be a disaster. The soup doesn't turn white at all. Then, the apprentice can't stand it anymore and just adds a spoonful of evaporated milk. Guess what? It turns out snow-white and tastes absolutely authentic."

Although Lu Da didn't know what evaporated milk was, he could roughly understand it.

"Oh, so that's it."

Although Wu Man's analogy is simple, it probably explains why the golden toad broke through the defenses.

After all, no matter how powerful magic is, it can never compare to the Dao.

As a result, Xiao Ran entered the Dao through technique, which fundamentally broke the common sense that technique is just technique.

The gate to the Dao was now open to Xiao Ran, and nothing could stop him anymore.

"So, does that mean you're invincible?" Lu Da looked at Xiao Ran curiously. He, Lu Da, always admired those who were capable.

"It doesn't count!"

Xiao Ran waved his hand: "It's not complete yet. I'm only at the beginning stage. I can't control the changes in the world yet, and the scope of influence I can have is limited."

"If you have no limit, you'll become a god."

Jin Chanzi suddenly got up, his eyes fixed on Xiao Ran. Although he was unhappy, that was all.

He knew very well that Xiao Ran, who was just beginning to grasp the Dao, was in the most dangerous situation.

The Sutra Repository of Longhu Mountain contains records of many exceptionally talented individuals who mysteriously perished in the end.

These people are all extraordinary geniuses, some of whom even touched the threshold of the Dao at the age of eight.

But in the end, these people either disappeared without a trace, died suddenly, or even went insane.

Xiao Ran's current situation is the same as these geniuses. If his views are not corrected in time, he will soon go astray.

Jin Chanzi took a deep breath, stared at Xiao Ran, and asked, "I ask you, will the changes of the Zhou Tian make me king, or will the changes of the Zhou Tian make me king?"

Wu Man and Lu Da looked at each other, puzzled, and asked Jin Chanzi, "Isn't this just a sentence?"

Jin Chanzi did not answer, but only looked at Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran was also stunned.

He lowered his head and repeated the sentence.

"The changes of the heavens have transformed me into a king."

"Through the changes of the heavens, I am king!"

Xiao Ran was stunned for a few seconds, then suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead. He looked up at Jin Chanzi and said, "Damn, so that's how it is."

Seeing that he understood, Jin Chanzi stopped talking.

Xiao Ran also let out a long breath.

"I don't understand," Wu Man said, confused and wanting to get some clarification.

Jin Chanzi explained: "The first of these two sentences is about the unity of heaven and man, which is in line with the core ideas of Taoism. But there is a problem here that many people have not figured out: heaven is infinite, man is finite, and since you are finite, your influence is ultimately finite."

Therefore, there is no such thing as the ability to control everything under heaven; at most, you can only influence the sky around you.

The latter simply abandoned this idea. Since they themselves were kings, they no longer pursued empty infinity, but focused on the inner self—inner sage and outer king. Wherever they were, that was their kingdom. As long as they were strong enough, no one could bind them.

The Golden Toad Master explained the underlying philosophy.

These things are all in the Longhu Mountain Sutra Repository; the patriarch clearly wrote these two sentences on the wall.

Unfortunately, many exceptional geniuses fail to understand this, always believing they can control the changes of the universe and manage everything in the world, only to suffer a backlash in the end.

This is why Jin Chanzi suddenly gave Xiao Ran such a serious warning; too many people have gone astray throughout history.

"I understand. Don't worry, I won't go down the wrong path."

Xiao Ran thanked Jin Chanzi, saying that if it weren't for his reminder, she probably would have gone down the wrong path.

If it's only by then that you realize your mistake, then it will be troublesome.

The treasure ship broke through the howling wind, and a towering mountain range suddenly rose at the end of the icy plain.

Just as everyone was looking at the continuous snow-capped mountains in front of them, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

Wu Man suddenly pointed towards the bow of the ship, a horrified murmur rising in her throat: "What...what the hell is that?"

As everyone looked, they saw a huge hill rising in the snow-capped mountains, which was clearly different from the surrounding mountains.

Upon closer inspection, the shape of the mountain was quite bizarre. When the treasure ship got closer, they saw that the other side of the mountain was actually a huge human face.

The entire mountain was actually the corpse of a giant!

Ice, like amber, enveloped the giant's torso, and half the mountain was formed from his coiled spine.

At the thinnest point of the ice, the giant's chest, not completely frozen, could be vaguely seen: the ashen skin resembled weathered rock, and a grotesque gash running through his chest and abdomen was deep enough to expose bone, with dark golden dried blood congealed at the edges.

The most chilling thing was the head half-buried in the ice and snow, with an empty eye socket facing the treasure ship, as if it were silently staring at everyone.

"Is that really a giant?"

No one had ever seen such a massive body before. The giant was still in a half-squatting position, and it was unimaginable how magnificent it would be if it stood up.

"It is said that in ancient times there was a race of giants whose bodies were like mountains. I never thought I would see them here."

Looking at the corpses before him, Jin Chanzi couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

The power of this giant is beyond human capabilities; it is not a ghost or god, but possesses the power of a demon mountain.

Compared to everyone's sighs, Xiao Ran noticed the wound on the giant's chest.

Although countless years have passed.

However, due to the unique environment here, the remains did not decompose, and the cleavage on the chest was clearly visible.

"Killed with one blow!"

Xiao Ran looked at the wound on the giant's chest and couldn't help but be secretly shocked.

Based on his understanding of swordsmanship, the opponent's slash should have been delivered from top to bottom, considering the giant's size and the posture he maintained.

The giant raised his weapon to block, but instead of blocking, he was forced to his knees by the immense force. The blade then severed the weapon and pierced through his chest.

"Domineering!"

The power of this strike was so astonishing that even Xiao Ran was shocked.

He wanted to look around for any other traces.

But clearly they weren't the first to arrive here; everything that could be taken from the giant had already been taken.

The eyes, bone marrow, even the internal organs, and the giant's weapons were all looted.

It's just an empty shell standing here now, completely worthless.

Undeterred, Wu Man jumped off the ship and crawled into the giant's corpse. After searching for a long time, she finally emerged, cursing with a look of utter dismay, "These people are truly despicable; they even cut off the giant's scrotum."

Everyone fell silent upon hearing this.

This giant was truly pitiful; he died without even a complete corpse.

Seeing that there was nothing to be gained from the giant, Wu Man returned to the treasure ship with a disappointed look on her face.

"What's the next stop? How far is it from the Great Silent Mountains?"

Xiao Ran turned to Jin Chanzi and asked.

Jin Chanzi took out the star map and studied it carefully: "We'll be there soon. This place is called Erlong Mountain. If you keep going up after Erlong Mountain, you'll reach Daji Mountain Range."

After saying that, Jin Chanzi hesitated for a moment: "But I'm afraid our treasure ship won't be able to hold on."

As he spoke, he stamped his foot, and a creaking sound came from inside the treasure ship. In order to force its way through the vicissitudes of fate, the treasure ship first endured the extreme strain of the [Seam of Fate], and then the ravages of the vicissitudes of fate.

This dilapidated ship is now truly leaky everywhere and makes noises from all directions.

If they continue this arduous journey, they might have to continue on foot before even reaching the Dajishan Mountains.

Is there any other way?

Jin Chanzi glanced at the star map and frowned, saying, "I'm afraid it's unlikely."

The treasure ship is currently badly damaged, and even if they wanted to repair it, they would not have the materials. Moreover, Xiao Ran and his group are not good at repairing treasure ships.

"Let's seize one then. That guy who was chasing us just now, I think his treasure ship is pretty good."

"Don't think about it. That guy didn't chase after us. It seems he turned around and went somewhere else."

In fact, when Xiao Ran broke through, he had already thought about turning back and launching a surprise attack.

But later they discovered that the other party had long since disappeared, obviously having changed course and gone somewhere else.

Therefore, if you want to rob someone, you must first find them.

Xiao Ran released her mental energy to explore the surroundings and confirmed that no other treasure ships were passing by.

So they had no choice but to put up with the dilapidated treasure ship and slowly make do as they sailed toward the Great Silent Mountains.

After the treasure ship entered Erlong Mountain, Xiao Ran and his group entered a restricted area again.

This place is also called the Tomb of the Soul Caller.

A thousand miles of mud, the stench of corpses filling the sky.

It is called the Tomb of the Soul Caller because a shout can be heard from this place, and once the sound is heard, it transforms into the voice of a close relative or loved one.

It sounds like a simple soul-calling ritual.

However, unlike the soul-calling spell, which requires certain conditions to trigger, such as turning around or responding, the soul is called away.

But here, no such thing is necessary; one must rely entirely on one's own willpower to withstand it. If one's willpower is weak, the soul will immediately leave the body if one relaxes even slightly.

This place is over a thousand miles long, and the dense aura of corpses rises straight into the sky. Once the treasure ship enters this area, it will immediately feel as if it is stuck in a quagmire, and its speed will become slower and slower.

While they won't be completely still, the slower the speed, the longer they will have to endure the soul-calling.

In the past, when treasure ships passed through here, at least one or two of the people on board would die.

This is under the condition of having a treasure ship. If there were no treasure ship, an ordinary person would surely die if they walked in.

Not only do they have to deal with the soul-calling, but the black mud under their feet is not only bone-chillingly cold, but also makes it impossible to take a single step.

Even with the best lightness skill, it's impossible to get out of here.

Therefore, even when traveling on treasure ships, most people would choose to pass through here, even if it meant taking a longer route to avoid this area.

But today is different.

Before the dense corpse aura could even touch the treasure ship where Xiao Ran and the others were, it was twisted into a ball by an invisible force, gradually gathering into a dark haze that looked from a distance like a dark cloud dragging the treasure ship forward.

The speed not only did not decrease, but actually increased significantly.

More importantly, on the boat, Xiao Ran and the others were eating hot pot and humming tunes, seemingly completely unaffected.

Not only were they unaffected, but the tiger demon and the red-blooded horse were as well.

"It's incredible! If you had awakened sooner, we wouldn't have had to suffer like this."

As Wu Man spoke, she threw the mutton into the pot.

With Xiao Ran around, everything around will turn into evil spirits, and Xiao Ran can control it at will.

As mentioned before, since he is a king, he has the ability to control all things in the universe.

As soon as the treasure ship sailed in, Xiao Ran saw through the secrets of this place at a glance. With him there, everyone felt unusually relaxed.

"You talk too much nonsense. If it weren't for this sudden storm, I'm afraid I really wouldn't have had the chance to cultivate to this level."

Xiao Ran put a piece of mutton in her mouth and was talking when she suddenly paused, put down her chopsticks, stood up and walked onto the deck.

Upon seeing this, everyone immediately put down their bowls and chopsticks and followed Xiao Ran over.

A quick glance around revealed only complete darkness; nothing could be seen.

"What? Is there a problem?"

Xiao Ran frowned and looked into the distance: "There are people over there, a man and a woman, shouting for help."

"where?"

Lu Da looked around, but he couldn't see the man and woman Xiao Ran had mentioned, nor did he hear anyone shouting for help.

"The sound was very faint, about twenty miles ahead."

After saying that, Xiao Ran said, "Let's go take a look."

This place is a death trap, an abyss of the dead, filled with the aura of death. Even ordinary people wouldn't dare to enter here on a treasure ship, let alone these two people who were on foot.

Seeing that the young couple didn't look very old, Xiao Ran decided to go and see what was going on, since it was on her way anyway.

At this moment, twenty miles away, a man and a woman were lying in a sorry state on a rotten wooden plank, bobbing up and down in the sticky mud.

A thick stench of death permeated the surroundings, forming a grayish-black mist that churned and rolled like living things, emitting a pungent, putrid smell.

The woman was in her early twenties, with delicate features but as pale as paper, her lips cracked and bleeding, and her forehead covered in cold sweat and mud.

The man was a bit older, around thirty years old, thin, with sunken eyes, as if he hadn't had a good rest in a long time.

The woman screamed "Help!" desperately, her voice hoarse and weak, barely carrying.

After shouting a few times, she seemed to have exhausted her strength, and weakly lowered her head, turning to the man beside her, her voice trembling with tears: "Brother Meng, is there really someone who can save us?"

Her gaze swept around. How could anyone possibly appear in this godforsaken place? And even if someone did, why would they save them?

The man swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing. "I don't know, but the divination says that one must be put in a desperate situation to survive. Besides, if we hadn't come in, we would already be corpses."

He trembled as he lifted the divination plate, the copper coins on it already covered in rust.

Meng Xing looked at the copper coins on it. This was the divination he had finally obtained. It was a case of facing death to live. Could there be a place more deadly and desolate than this?

Even now, he still has no idea.

After all, this place is too dangerous.

This was the first time Meng Xing had questioned his innate divination skills.

However, just as the two were beginning to despair, the sky suddenly darkened. The place was already poorly lit, and now it was completely dark.

Before the two could even adjust, Meng Xing suddenly felt a lightness all over his body, followed by the sensation of being thrown into the air by some immense force.

Before he could see anything, a torrent of cold water was poured over his head. This sudden turn of events made Meng Xing instinctively wave his hands and scream.

"Ah ah ah..."

After a series of screams and grimaces, Meng Xing opened his eyes and found himself standing on the deck of a ship.

Not only was I there, but my younger sister was also there.

Meanwhile, the younger sister was still waving her arms and legs, struggling and screaming.

Meng Xing quickly grabbed her arm: "Stop yelling, we're not in danger!"

As soon as the voice fell, the youngest sister came to her senses, opened her eyes, and stared blankly at her surroundings.

Xiao Ran and the others were sitting in front of the hot pot, eating hot pot, watching the two of them acting silly.

The youngest sister was stunned as she looked at the group of people in front of her.

Looking at himself in disbelief, he found that not only was he completely unharmed, but even the dirt on his body was gone, and his clothes and hair were dry.

Amidst the shock, Xiao Ran said, "I'm sorry, you were all so dirty when I brought you up, so I just helped you clean up."

Upon hearing this, Meng Xing noticed the changes in his body. Suddenly, his expression changed, and he reached out to touch his chest, only to be shocked to find that the wound on his chest had healed.

A storm raged within him; such methods were worthy of being called supernatural.

Shocked, Meng Xing realized that the people before him were definitely not people he could afford to offend, and that their rescue was probably not out of kindness. Thinking this, he quickly cupped his hands and said:
“This junior is Meng Xing from Shenyin Sect. This is my friend Yaomei. She pays her respects to you seniors. We have no way to repay your life-saving grace. If there is anything you need, we will do our best to help.”

"Look at them, aren't these two kids quite sensible?" Jin Chanzi teased with a smile.

"Shameless! If we're talking about birth time, he could be your ancestor." Wu Man rolled her eyes at Jin Chanzi.

“In this place, the powerful come first and strength is paramount. What’s the point of seniority? The hierarchy has long been a mess,” Jin Chanzi retorted, not to be outdone.

The two were still bickering when Xiao Ran waved her hand and said, "Are you hungry? Sit down and let's eat and chat."

Faced with Xiao Ran's invitation, the two were flattered and momentarily unsure whether to accept it.

"What? Are you afraid I'll poison you?" Xiao Ran asked, narrowing her eyes.

"No! No, no, no." Meng Xing quickly waved his hand, then cupped his hands in thanks: "In that case, thank you very much, senior."

The two sat down, looking at the hot pot in front of them, at a loss. They had obviously never eaten it like this before, not to mention the ingredients... they had never seen them before either.

Seeing that the two were still reserved, Xiao Ran simply asked directly, "With your abilities, how come you're in a place like this?"

"We were forced to flee here, senior. We had no choice but to come here."

"Forced? Someone coerced you?"

"Yes, those people are awful. They're all blond and blue-eyed and look like monsters." The youngest sister gritted her teeth in hatred for those people.

But as soon as she said this, Xiao Ran's face lit up with joy. With her blond hair and blue eyes, wasn't this the foreign team?

Meng Xing noticed Xiao Ran's expression and, feeling uncertain, cautiously asked, "Does Senior know them?"

Xiao Ran's gaze towards Meng Xing and Yao Mei softened even more, and she smiled, "What a small world! Don't worry, we have a blood feud that will last a lifetime!"

(End of this chapter)