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

Without interference, given the squad's combat strength, it's only a matter of time before they take down the Blade Spider.

Long Ao simply withdrew from the battlefield, found a place to sit down and recover, and Su Yuehe protected him.

A few minutes later, the last sword spider was cut in two by An Changqing's sword.

Silence returned to the surroundings, with only a faint blue mist slowly flowing and the dim, faded remnants of the alchemical array on the ground.

The crisis has been temporarily averted.

Everyone was exhausted, so they found places to sit down and catch their breath, treat their wounds, and take recovery pills. Long Ao, who had been resting first, had already treated his wounds and recovered about 70-80% of his spiritual power. He stood up and took charge of guarding the others.

Li Yuqing walked over to Huo Qixing, patted his shoulder hard, almost making the weak Huo Qixing stumble, and laughed heartily, "Huo Qixing, well done! You've done a great job this time!"

"It's my honor... Boss..."

Huo Qixing, who had switched back to his mage form, chuckled. His small frame couldn't withstand two slaps from Li Yuqing, whose strength was superior to his.

An Changqing also walked over. He looked at Li Yuqing and said, "Senior, the trap has been broken, and the spiders have been cleared. Next..."

Li Yuqing glanced at Huo Qixing and Liu Xiao, who both nodded slightly to indicate that it was safe.

"Let's keep going." Li Yuqing perked up again: "The fact that this trap was triggered means we've found the right place. There aren't many people here yet. The real core area of ​​Misty Manor should be not far ahead. Everyone be careful, take a break and recover. We'll set off in five minutes."

After a short rest, the seven set off again.

After passing through this area filled with traps and the remains of sword spiders, the fog ahead seemed to thin out a bit, and the outline of a relatively well-preserved three-story building made of gray-white boulders could be vaguely seen, standing quietly in the depths of the fog.

The building has a simple and rustic style, with small windows, low porches, and walls covered with more complex and difficult-to-understand alchemical symbols and long-dried dark red marks.

As they drew closer, everyone could clearly sense the resentful aura emanating from inside the building.

—I feel like I'm being driven crazy by this research.

"Cheer up, everyone." Li Yuqing's usual cheerful smile vanished, and she gripped her sword hilt with a serious expression. "I have a bad feeling about this place. Huo Qixing, Junior Sister Su, have you noticed anything?"

Huo Qixing took out the metal disc again and infused it with spiritual power. The pointer on the disc trembled violently, pointing towards the building's main entrance, but its movements were completely erratic.

"The readings are extremely chaotic, with multiple properties superimposed, including weak life responses and strong residual mental pollution. The detection has been severely interfered with."

Su Yuehe's answer was also quite similar.

Liu Xiao stared intently at the dark red marks and alchemical symbols on the wall, his brow furrowed: "These symbols are not entirely standard ancient alchemical language; some are variants, and some seem to be a fusion of other systems."

Life response? Chen Guan looked at the mansion in front of him. It didn't look like anyone had come. This place was only open to a limited number of people, and those who came here were mostly students from various universities. To avoid making a wasted trip, they would share information with each other.

An Changqing said in a deep voice, "No matter what's inside, since we're here, we should find out. But we must be extra careful, and if anything seems amiss, we should evacuate immediately."

Everyone nodded, composed themselves, and remained on high alert as they slowly approached the only entrance to the three-story building—a heavy, gray-black wooden door.

The wooden door was ajar, with a crack just big enough for a person to pass through. Inside, it was pitch black, with only a faint, misty light filtering through a narrow window high up, barely outlining the space.

Li Yuqing stepped forward first and gently pushed open the door with the tip of her sword.

Squeak.

The teeth-grinding scraping sound was particularly jarring in the silence.

Inside the door was a narrow corridor with a floor paved with worn stone slabs and walls similarly covered with symbols and marks.

The air was even more murky, filled with a mixture of mold, old metal, and a nauseating stench.

"I'll scout ahead." Li Yuqing, skilled and daring, took the lead and stepped in first, followed closely by An Changqing. Golden light flickered in his palm, illuminating a range of several meters ahead. Huo Qixing, Liu Xiao, and Su Yuehe were in the middle, while Long Ao and Chen Guan brought up the rear.

The corridor was not long, and at the end it connected to a spacious first-floor hall. The center of the hall was empty, with only a few thick pillars supporting the dome.

But the surrounding walls were covered with chilling images.

The stone niches, arranged like a honeycomb, are densely packed together. Most of the niches are empty and covered in dust.

However, in a few niches, there were still some things left behind, twisted and deformed, as if they had been integrated with the stone wall. They were dry and black, and the scorch marks of human figures could be vaguely seen.

These niches were also surrounded by dark red marks and twisted alchemical runes.

Liu Xiao's voice was hoarse: "There were indeed live alchemy experiments conducted here... and judging from the situation, there were quite a few."

Su Yuehe's face turned pale. This situation was bound to cause panic, especially since she was a knowledge-based person with highly developed spiritual senses. She gripped her staff tightly and unconsciously moved closer to An Changqing.

"Don't touch anything, and don't look at those runes for too long," Huo Qixing warned. "The residual mental pollution is very strong and can easily cause hallucinations."

Despite their discomfort, the group quickly made their way through the eerie hall and found the stone staircase leading to the second floor. The staircase was narrow and steep, covered in dust and cobwebs, and dust would fall as soon as they stepped on it.

The second floor appears to be an experimental area, divided into several rooms of varying sizes, most of which have rotted and collapsed doors.

Inside, you can see rusted vessels, broken glass containers, and some oddly shaped metal supports and debris.

On the floors of some rooms, there were still stains of various colors, but they had long since dried.

The probe disk of the Hochi Star was almost malfunctioning here, with the pointer spinning wildly.

"The spiritual field is too chaotic, and... it seems like something is watching us." He whispered, cold sweat beading on his forehead. His parents loved telling him ghost stories since he was a child, which made Huo Qixing, a grown man, particularly afraid of such things.

Liu Xiao also felt a series of palpitations. The ice crystal staff in his hand emitted a faint cold light, trying to dispel the invisible mental pressure around him.

"Alchemy blueprints... I'd like to go to a control room or something similar first, see if there are any signs." Liu Xiaoqiang tried to remain calm, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings: "According to the typical layout of this type of building, the control room is probably on the top floor, or underground."

"Let's go up to the third floor and take a look first," Li Yuqing decided immediately.

The situation on the third floor is slightly better than on the second floor. It seems to be mainly a living and storage area, but two rooms have been converted into small observation rooms.