Mortal: My name is Ma Liang, and I also possess a magic brush.

"Since Han Li is here, then Nangong Wan must be here too. I don't want to be trapped here for sixty years, especially with the demonic invasion coming later, and the opening of the forbidden area is even more uncertain."

Thinking of this, he first took out a map and carefully memorized the location of this place. With a glance, he saw the next node he had marked, which was not far from here.

He didn't rush to find Nangong Wan, after all, words alone were not enough, and even if he did meet her, she might not believe him.

So he put away the map, determined the direction, and sped toward the next node.

On the other side, Zhong Wu had just stepped out of the stone hall when he was startled by the scene before him.

A giant python was coiled in mid-air. The beast's scales were menacing, and its aura was fierce. It was clearly a level two demon beast.

He dared not linger any longer and darted back to the stone hall in a flash.

Only after Ma Liang's figure had completely disappeared did Zhong Wu dare to peek out from behind the stone hall door. He looked around for a while before finally coming out.

"Good heavens! How come there's a level two demonic beast outside too?"

He had just seen a cultivator standing on the top of the demonic beast, and immediately realized that it was someone else's pet spirit beast.

He had no interest in investigating the cultivator's origins or schemes; the thought of saving his life had already overshadowed all curiosity.

Without regard for anything else, he chose to leave in the exact opposite direction from Ma Liang.

Ma Liang followed the map markers to his destination, only to find three mountain peaks forming a triangular formation, surrounding an inconspicuous little mound in the center.

That seemingly ordinary mound is actually a key point.

At Ma Liang's command, the giant python landed beside the small mound.

He took out the last small flag, released a burst of spiritual energy from his fingertips, and planted it in the very center of the mound.

Just as Ma Liang was about to go find Xiang Zhili, the small flag burst forth with a dazzling spiritual light.

Within the halo, a phantom figure emerged, which was none other than Xiang Zhili.

"Kid, you just stay here and keep watch, you don't need to come back."

Ma Liang was secretly delighted upon hearing the words from Xiang Zhili's illusory figure.

This condition suited him perfectly. "Senior, there is something I would like to inform you of beforehand."

"What is it?"

"There was another Core Formation cultivator who entered this forbidden area. Senior, you are incredibly powerful, you must have already noticed."

"This junior wishes to first discuss with her whether, if we are truly trapped here, we need not adhere to the sixty-year agreement, but instead open the exit again in five years. What is your opinion, senior?"

After listening, Xiang Zhili stroked his beard, his gaze sweeping over Ma Liang. "How do you intend to persuade the Seven Sects?"

Without hesitation, Ma Liang replied, "This junior is of meager strength and has only one plan: to entice someone with benefits."

Xiang Zhili immediately nodded: "You can handle it yourself."

"In that case, I'll be right back."

After Xiang Zhili's illusory figure nodded, it ignored him and then stepped away.

The phantom vanished without a trace, but the array flags on the spot suddenly became agitated, their colors rapidly changing, and four colors of light lit up one after another, eventually converging into a dazzling light curtain that enveloped a small area around it.

Ma Liang stepped back a few paces, then leaped onto the python's head and slapped its neck.

"Walk!"

The giant python hissed and turned its massive body around, carrying Ma Liang towards the stone hall they had just visited.

Xiang Zhili sat cross-legged beside the first array eye, his hands moving swiftly like a blur as he changed hand seals, sending condensed spiritual light into the array flags one after another, making the flags shine even brighter.

The next instant, a blinding beam of light erupted and shot straight into the sky, the roar causing the entire forbidden area to tremble slightly.

Immediately afterwards, the array flags at the other three array points also responded one after another, and three dazzling pillars of light rose up in succession. The four pillars of light faced each other from afar, creating an awe-inspiring aura.

This earth-shattering commotion startled all the cultivators within the forbidden area. Everyone looked in the direction from which the pillar of light rose, their faces filled with astonishment.

Someone exclaimed in shock, "What is that?"

Some people couldn't contain their excitement and shouted, "It must be a treasure that has appeared!"

For a time, many cultivators were eager to make a move.

Ma Liang also glanced back at the pillar of light shooting into the sky, his face showing little emotion.

The information conveyed by the divine brush had already given him a clear picture. This pillar of light looked terrifying, but breaking the formation would be no easy task.

In the blink of an eye, the venomous python had already carried him close to the sky above the stone palace.

The area around the stone hall remained calm and undisturbed, and Ma Liang understood the situation perfectly.

The thought of Han Li's actions beneath the stone hall filled him with an inexplicable sense of unease.

"Fine, let's just stay here and guard it."

He sat cross-legged on the python's head and patted the python's head in acknowledgment.

The venomous python immediately understood, and its massive body descended from the sky, landing on an open space not far from the stone hall. It then coiled up, its scarlet tongue flicking in and out as it stared in the direction of the stone hall.

Zhongwu was standing on the branch of an ancient tree, gazing at the four pillars of light shooting into the sky in the distance.

"What's going on? I've never heard of such a strange phenomenon in the forbidden area..."

He suddenly remembered seeing Ma Liang earlier and wondered to himself: Could it be that person who was up to something? What exactly did he want to do?

As thoughts raced through his mind, Zhongwu showed no intention of approaching to investigate.

The beam of light exuded an inexplicable pressure, which made him feel extremely dangerous.

Without further hesitation, he activated his spiritual power and soared into the air, flying towards the outer edge of the forbidden area, wanting to get as far away from this strange phenomenon as possible.

In stark contrast to him, most of the other cultivators in the forbidden area believed that a treasure had been born, and they all rushed towards the pillar of light like moths drawn to the light.

The first thing to gather around was the pillar of light that lit up on the second floor, since most of the cultivators were currently stuck on this floor.

More and more cultivators gathered around the pillar of light, soon numbering more than twenty, but none dared to step forward rashly.

The beam of light was so dazzling that it was impossible to see what was hidden inside.

The crowd could only stand at a distance, none of them willing to be the first to test the waters.

Just as everyone hesitated to move forward, a cultivator from Huadaowu suddenly landed.

He glanced at the gathered crowd. "What are you all standing around for? Hurry up and get the treasure!"

A cultivator from the Qingxu Sect quickly spoke up, "Look at that pillar of light, it's dazzlingly bright, but the situation inside is unknown. How can we retrieve the treasure?"

"A mere pillar of light? We can break it!"

The cultivator from Huadaowu scoffed disdainfully and immediately took out several flying knives from his storage bag. With a flick of his spiritual power, the flying knives, accompanied by a sharp wind, shot towards the pillar of light.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the throwing knives touched the outer edge of the pillar of light, a series of crisp "clanging" sounds rang out, as if they had hit an invisible barrier and fell to the ground.

Everyone thought to themselves that it was just as they expected, but before they could even breathe a sigh of relief, their expressions all changed.

A majestic and profound voice came from the depths of the pillar of light, as loud as thunder in everyone's ears.

"You ignorant ant, daring to disturb my important affairs, die!"

As soon as he finished speaking, countless rays of light of different colors shot out from within the pillar of light, rushing towards the surrounding cultivators like a torrential rain.

The cultivators turned pale and tried to flee, but it was too late.

The beams of light were incredibly fast; they didn't even have time to beg for mercy before their skulls were pierced.

For a moment, the sounds of bodies falling and ritual implements hitting the ground mingled together.

A moment later, the scene fell into complete silence, leaving only a scene of utter devastation.

A cultivator saw this scene from afar and was so frightened that he dared not approach.

He immediately changed the direction of the magic weapon and ran as fast as he could towards the distance.

The majestic voice echoed once more from within the pillar of light.

"These spoils of war have really benefited that brat Ma Liang."