Xiuxian: I use magnetic fields to prove my truth

Chapter 398 Inside the Skull
Tan Qian looked ahead and indeed saw a group of more than a dozen men and women gathered there, all of whom were about the same age as Shang Xiuning and the others.

Shang Xiuning led Tan Qian over and introduced her to the fellow practitioners there.

Cai Mao of the Zhengyi School, Huang Yuxiu of the Guangwen School, and Gongsun Sheng of the Yuntai School.

They are all young talents who are on par with Shang Xiuning.

Upon seeing that Shang Xiuning had brought a stranger, Cai Mao asked, "Who is this?"

Shang Xiuning then recounted the origins of Tan Qian.

Cai Mao frowned and said, "Why did Junior Sister Shang bring a rogue cultivator from this remote place down here? Just send her away so she won't get in the way."

Shang Xiuning said, "Senior Brother Cai, don't worry. I will protect her and won't let her cause any trouble for everyone."

Cai Mao said, "Junior Sister Shang is our main force. She already gets in the way because she needs Junior Sister Shang to take care of her."

"Junior sister, don't forget that we have come here on the mission of our sect to uncover the secrets of the True Immortals. How can we be distracted by such a minor figure?"

"Sister Tan is no small person."

Shang Xiuning said, "When Master Yuanming discovered this ruin, he also took a look at the Forgotten Land there. He found that the cultivation methods there were extremely crude, still the original methods used by human cultivators in the beginning."

"Sister Tan is probably the only cultivator there who follows the orthodox path of immortality."

"In such a desolate place, she managed to successfully establish her foundation by exploring cultivation on her own. Her talent is astonishing. I intended to introduce her to my father and accept her as a disciple of the Tianshan Sect. I'm just bringing her down here to let her see what it's like."

Cai Mao's expression softened slightly, and he said, "So that's what you're planning, Junior Sister. I can't say anything, but I hope you won't lose sight of the bigger picture for the sake of a small thing."

Tan Qian hurriedly replied, "Sister Shang, you don't need to worry about me. I will take good care of myself."

Shang Xiuning smiled at her and then asked, "How's the situation up ahead? Haven't those monsters made a move yet?"

Cai Mao said, "Junior Sister Yuxiu just went in to investigate, so let her explain."

Dressed in colorful clothes and with a bright and beautiful face, Huang Yuxiu said, "Just now I used the Shadowless Veil to conceal my figure and sneak up to the skull to look inside. I only saw that it was dark inside, and I could not see any trace of monsters or hear any sound."

Shang Xiuning asked in confusion, "That's strange. The monsters haven't appeared for two whole days. That's not their usual behavior."

The core of the monsters here is fragments of that true immortal's will; they do not possess complete consciousness and can only react monotonously based on the fragments of will they have inherited.

Later, these thoughts were distorted by the power of the Demon Abyss, becoming even more aggressive.

Therefore, those monsters will attack any living thing that comes in.

These people have been here for half a year, and there are countless battles every day. The monsters seem endless.

Fortunately, each monster was only at the fifth or sixth level of Qi Refining. They were all core disciples of major sects and protected by magical treasures bestowed by their sect elders, so they posed little threat.

For the past six months, they have been slaying monsters and advancing forward. They finally managed to get to within twenty feet of the skull, but two days ago, all the monsters suddenly rushed into the skull and have not moved since.

Unsure of the monster's intentions, no one dared to enter the skull, and so the stalemate lasted for two days.

Cai Mao said, "I think those monsters are terrified of us, so they all hide inside the skulls and dare not confront us. We just need to attack and kill them all, and we will naturally obtain the secret treasure of the True Immortal."

Shang Xiuning shook her head and said, "We must not be reckless. Those monsters are all ignorant and irritable beings. They have no sense of fear at all. Now that they have retreated back to the skull, there must be another reason."

Cai Mao said, "Whatever the reason, we should go in and investigate to find out. If we just hide outside like this, are we going to wait forever if they don't come out?" Shang Xiuning didn't think going in to check was a good idea, but Cai Mao was right; they really couldn't stay here indefinitely.

She said, "Please wait here for a moment, everyone. I will use my ice incarnation to go in and investigate."

After saying that, she silently cast a spell.

Mysterious spiritual energy fluctuations emanated from her body, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth resonated with her magic. Water-based spiritual energy gathered in front of her, gradually forming a graceful female body.

The woman's body was crystal clear, like an elf from the world.

Tan Qian had also been taught magic by Zhou Qing, but this was the first time she had ever seen someone else use magic, especially such magical magic, which immediately filled her with wonder.

The elfin-like female figure cupped her hands to Cai Mao, Huang Yuxiu, and Gongsun Sheng, and said, "I will use my ice avatar to go in and investigate. Please take care of my main body, fellow Daoists."

Cai Mao and the other two said, "Fellow Daoist, please rest assured."

Shang Xiuning then rode her ice avatar to the skull. She looked through the holes in the skull's eyes and, just as Huang Yuxiu had said, it was dark inside and she could not see anything.

There were no fireballs spreading throughout the underground space, and no sound could be heard.

After a brief hesitation, Shang Xiuning controlled her ice avatar and jumped into the eye socket.

Upon jumping inside the skull, Shang Xiuning felt as if her five senses had been instantly stripped away. She lost all sensation; she could neither see, hear, nor touch anything.

She turned around and looked outside, but the firelight that should have been nearby was now completely invisible.

This strange situation made Shang Xiuning feel flustered.

She tried to calm herself down, thinking to herself that she could sever the avatar at any time and return her primordial spirit to its original state, since she had entered in an ice form. What was there to worry about?

Now let's go forward and explore.

She walked forward, not knowing how long she had walked. She estimated that this time would have been enough for her to circle the entire underground space, but she still did not encounter the other side of the skull, nor did she encounter anything else.

Shang Xiuning was at a loss for what to do in this situation and planned to first return her primordial spirit to its rightful place before discussing the matter with her companions.

She silently activated her magic, intending to sever the avatar and allow her primordial spirit to return to its original position.

The ice form vanished instantly, transforming into pure water-based spiritual energy.

To Shang Xiuning's horror, she discovered that her primordial spirit had not automatically returned to its place under the guidance of her physical body. She was still wandering in the darkness and could not even feel the connection to her physical body.

Outside the skull.

Everyone waited anxiously for Shang Xiuning to wake up.

Upon hearing that his sister had an accident and had already come downstairs, Shang Guangnan was extremely anxious. He said, "She's been inside for a whole day, well past the time limit of her Ice Transformation. She must have encountered an accident inside. Let's go in and rescue her!"

Cai Mao said, "Xiao Nan, don't be reckless!"

"Even Junior Sister Shang, who entered with her ice incarnation, could not return. If we enter with our physical bodies and get trapped inside, wouldn't everything be over?"

Shang Guangnan said anxiously, "This won't work, that won't work, are we just going to watch it go?"

(End of this chapter)