The comments said I was deeply affectionate, I just added points by using an alternate account.

The ground beneath my feet became softer and damper, covered with a layer of ash-like substance that felt spongy and offered little foothold.

The surrounding scenery quickly became desolate and dilapidated, with collapsed stone pillars, broken walls, and twisted metal debris everywhere.

The most striking feature was the omnipresent, bone-corroding black wind, which was not just an ordinary wind, but a slowly rotating stream of spiritual energy.

Some are as thin as a hair, others as thick as a python, moving silently through the ruins. Wherever they go, even stubborn rocks seem to be eroded by time, with fine holes and weathering marks appearing on their surfaces.

Generally speaking, black winds are not fatal; they only cause slight weakness. However… there are always exceptions, and large-scale black winds have occurred, though they have been extremely rare in history.

An Changqing erected a light golden spiritual energy shield, enveloping the four of them and temporarily isolating them from the direct erosion of the black wind. However, it was clear that the golden light on the surface of the shield was constantly weakened when it came into contact with the black wind.

"The black wind consumes a lot of spiritual energy and cannot be sustained indefinitely," An Changqing said in a deep voice. "We need to speed up and try to avoid prolonged exposure to areas with dense black winds."

The four quickened their pace, traversing the ruins. Chen Guan carried the coffin on his back, yet his movements remained steady. His physical condition allowed him to keep up with the group without holding them back.

He also noticed that when the black winds approached the black iron coffin, they seemed to be slightly repelled by an invisible force, rendering the corrosive effect ineffective. This put his mind at ease, indicating that the coffin's insulating properties were also useful here.

Along the way, they saw traces of other exploration teams and encountered some low-level relic creatures, which were easily dealt with by An Changqing and Long Ao and did not hinder the team's progress.

As they ventured deeper, the surrounding black winds grew denser, and visibility gradually decreased.

The ruins grew increasingly grand, vaguely revealing that they were once part of a magnificent building. Unfortunately, even the most magnificent buildings could not withstand the test of time, and now only broken walls remain.

"The Ancient Pagoda District is just ahead." An Changqing stopped and gestured for everyone to look ahead.

Through the hazy black mist, the outlines of three towering ancient towers, built entirely of gray-white boulders, gradually became clear.

They stand in a triangular formation on a relatively open ruined square, their bodies covered with mottled marks and strange runes, some of which shimmer with a faint light that resists the erosion of the black wind.

The middle ancient tower is the tallest, estimated to be nearly 100 meters high, but unfortunately the spire seems to have been damaged.

At this moment, the middle section of the ancient tower was faintly shimmering with a dark purple light, which was out of place with the surrounding gray-black environment. That was the source of the abnormal fluctuations.

"The spiritual energy fluctuations are very active, but they seem unstable." Su Yuehe took out a small rune compass, infused it with a trace of spiritual energy, and the pointer on the compass began to tremble irregularly, pointing to the ancient tower in the middle: "There must be something inside, but it feels very chaotic, and I can't detect anything."

"Approach carefully."

An Changqing removed the spiritual energy shield and instead covered his body with a thin layer of golden light. Long Ao's body also shimmered with a crimson glow, like a burning flame. Su Yuehe activated the protective runes on her staff, and a pale white halo enveloped her.

Chen Guan: ? ? ?

No, why do you all have Susanoo?

Chen Guan took a deep breath, gripped the scythe in his hand, and concentrated intently. He tried to mobilize a trace of gray energy to cover the surface of his body. The process was still difficult, but he succeeded a little.

A thin, almost invisible, pale gray film covered him and his scythe, and the surrounding black wind seemed to subconsciously avoid him.

He breathed a sigh of relief; Gray Energy was still quite capable, and it could do what spiritual energy could do.

The four of them formed a battle formation and carefully crossed the square, heading towards the entrance of the ancient tower in the center, a five-meter-high stone archway covered with cracks.

The archway was pitch black, like the throat of a giant beast, with only a faint, unstable, dark purple light shining down from higher inside the tower.

The moment you step into the ancient tower, a pressure far more chilling and damp than outside hits you. At the same time, the concentration of black wind inside the tower is far greater than outside, almost forming a visible gray-black airflow.

"The black wind here... is strange."

An Changqing frowned deeply, his golden light shield was being consumed at a significantly faster rate than the one outside.

Chen Guan felt something different. Although the black wind inside the tower was stronger, the thin film of gray energy on his body seemed to resonate with the environment.

Black Wind seemed to treat him like one of its own, and hardly attacked him.

He didn't have time to think, because clear footsteps and a low growl could be heard from the darkness ahead.

Something's coming!

Su Yuehe gasped, and the compass needle spun wildly.

The next moment, several tall figures emerged slowly from the shadows deep within the tower, their steps heavy and stiff.

They are over three meters tall, made entirely of grayish-white boulders, with dull metal parts embedded in their joints, and each holds a huge stone axe and an equally huge stone hammer.

Two eerie green flames burned within the empty eye sockets, and a denser, grayish-black aura swirled around him.

The ancient tower is guarded by stone giants, and judging from their power and energy fluctuations, they are far superior to the low-level stone golems outside; they should be at the second-tier level.

What's more troublesome is that there are six of them, and they are blocking the way forward and backward from different directions.

"It seems that if we want to get what's inside the tower, we'll have to get past them first."

An Changqing drew his longsword, and golden light shone again. His eyes sharpened for a moment. The fact that the stone giant was still there proved one thing: no one had come here yet.

A fierce smile crept across Long Ao's lips as he clashed his fists together with a dull thud, his crimson aura rising. He had come here for only three things.

Fighting, fighting, and more fighting!

The battle broke out the moment An Changqing finished speaking.

The six stone giants moved with heavy steps at the same time, causing the ground to tremble slightly. Although they were clumsy, their enormous size and power created a terrifying sense of oppression in the narrow space at the bottom of the ancient tower.

Its eerie green eyes locked onto the four of them, and the stone axe and hammer in its hand slammed down with a dull thud.

"Scatter! Take them down one by one!"

An Changqing shouted, his figure like a golden lightning bolt, taking the initiative to meet the two stone giants at the front. His long sword flashed, golden light weaving, and he accurately slashed at the stone giants' stone arm joints where they held their weapons.

Instead of engaging in direct combat, he used speed and skill to find the weaknesses of these large creatures.