Divine Tang Era

Chapter 145 Rune Stones

The plateau is always the same, with low-hanging clouds that seem within reach yet remain so far away.

The July wind howled by, carrying a chilling cold, whipping up the sparse grass blades and making a rustling sound.

In the distance, the rolling mountains rise and fall, their peaks covered with snow that never melts.

At the foot of the mountain, there are a few exposed rocks, their dark brown surfaces mottled and weathered by the wind, as if they have endured countless ravages. On the ground, a few puddles can be seen here and there, their surfaces shimmering with a dull gray light, reflecting the gloomy sky, making them appear particularly desolate.

"Here."

A martial arts disciple, holding a dark wooden plaque that recorded the aura of ghosts, ran towards the rocky hillside, shouting as he went. Once he reached the top and stood firm, he excitedly shouted again, "This is it!"

"This place is not easy to dig."

A martial arts student frowned as he saw the mountain of rubble.

"We have to dig, even if it's difficult. Are we going to let this treasure go to waste?"

The disciple holding the dark wooden plaque spoke as he put it away, took a small but sturdy-looking shovel from his waist, and began digging without hesitation. Seeing this, the other disciples gathered around, took out their tools, and joined the digging effort.

Most of the martial arts school's disciples are energetic young people, full of inexhaustible bull-like strength.

With each of us taking turns shoveling, we worked together and quickly dug a deep pit.

However, the ghostly aura seemed to still be below, so the group continued digging. After digging for about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters), they still hadn't found anything; the ghostly aura was still pointing downwards.

It's strange, because the pits they dug before were rarely more than two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) wide.

While everyone was filled with doubt, Lu Shizong carefully observed the surrounding terrain, pondered for a moment, and said, "There must have been a landslide here. The original soil layer below was buried by the sliding rocks, which is why the ghost's lair is so deep. Everyone, dig a little deeper, it should be close enough."

It should be, but actually it shouldn't be.

They dug another two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) but still found nothing, though the yin energy at the bottom of the pit felt noticeably stronger than before.

Everyone's eyes lit up. They knew that the heavier the yin energy, the stronger the ghost, and powerful ghost lairs often contained precious things. The thought of the treasure they were about to obtain filled the martial arts disciples with an irresistible itch, like a million ants crawling all over their hearts.

For a moment, the digging motions in my hands unconsciously quickened considerably.

Xue Diao and Xue Bao'er dug very hard, shovel after shovel, without slacking off at all.

Their enthusiasm and hard work won the approval of the disciples of the Mo Family Martial Arts School, allowing them to quickly integrate into the school's team.

The pit was dug deeper and bigger, until a huge pit was gradually dug out at the foot of the mountain. Suddenly, the shovel in the hand of a martial arts disciple seemed to hit something hard, making a crisp "clang" sound.

Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to the direction from which the sound came.

Upon hearing the sound, Zhang Bin, the holder of the ghostly wooden plaque, immediately rushed forward, squatted down, and carefully removed the soil from it.

Soon, a black stone, about the size of an arm's length, gleaming with an eerie light, came into view. The stone's surface was covered with strange runes, which flickered with a faint light, as if imbued with life, flowing with a mysterious power.

"What is this?"

People around gathered around curiously to see what was going on.

Lu Shizong also stepped forward and bent down to examine the stone. After a moment, he spoke, "I've never seen anything like this before, but judging from the runes, it should be related to ghosts."

Isn't that obvious? Anything found based on the aura of a ghost, isn't related to ghosts?

Xu Dan mentally complained for a moment, then pushed aside the people surrounding him and walked over.

As they approached, a glint flashed in his eyes, and his double pupils reappeared. In an instant, every rune and every mysterious trajectory on the stone was revealed with perfect clarity, coming into view.

Suddenly, the runes on the stone burst forth with intense light, and a thick black mist surged out of the stone and spread outwards.

"Oh no, everyone be careful!"

Upon seeing this, Lu Shizong's expression changed drastically. He flashed forward, his long sword unsheathed, its light like a rainbow, its sword energy crisscrossing, instantly transforming into an indestructible sword shield, blocking everyone in front of him.

Upon hearing the commotion, the martial arts disciples sprang into action, quickly drawing their swords and preparing to defend themselves against the enemy.

The next moment, more than a dozen twisted, hideous ghosts emerged from the mist, emitting sharp cries. The cries were like sharp blades piercing everyone's ears, causing excruciating pain.

Xu Dan was startled by the sudden appearance of so many ghosts and quickly took out the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer to swing it.

With a single strike to subdue demons and monsters, the force was like thunder in the heavens and earth, or the bright moon in the sky, carrying immense power as it blasted towards the nearest ghost.

The ghost sensed the immense power contained within the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer, but instead of dodging or avoiding it, it charged forward fiercely towards the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer.

"Whoosh—"

The wind howled, and the hammer fell with a thud.

An immense power descended, striking the ghost, but it was as if hitting a ball of cotton—soft and powerless, unable to harm it in the slightest. Xu Dan was stunned, his mind filled with disbelief: How could this be? In that instant of his daze, the ghost stretched out its sinister claws and reached for his throat.

"Holy crap."

Xu Dan sensed something was wrong. In that critical moment, a thought flashed through his mind, and a giant shield appeared before him. The ghostly claw landed on the shield, creating a trail of dazzling sparks.

"That's strange. The Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer is best at devouring these souls and ghosts, so why isn't it working today?" Xu Dan muttered to himself, his mind replaying the scene of the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer striking the ghosts.

He still refused to believe it, gritted his teeth, and wielded the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer to smash the ghost again.

However, the story repeats itself, and the ghost remains as soft and powerless as cotton, unharmed.

Upon seeing the ghost, Xue Diao and Xue Bao'er quickly retreated. Once they had created some distance, they took out their bows and arrows, nocked them, drew the bowstrings to a full draw, and released the arrows with a fierce momentum towards the ghost.

Unfortunately, it was like shooting at cotton, falling limply to the ground.

At this moment, the martial arts disciples who were fighting the ghost also noticed its strangeness.

These ghosts are not only indestructible, but also extremely cunning. They seem to know how to cooperate, constantly looking for weaknesses in the group's defenses and launching wave after wave of attacks.

As Xu Dan fought the ghost, he pondered the reason for its strange behavior. Of all the ghosts he had ever encountered, none were unkillable or unswallowable by the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer. If they couldn't be killed or swallowed, it meant that something about them made them so special.

Suddenly, Xu Dan caught sight of a black stone not far away, its surface covered with runes and emitting a faint glow.

Could it be this thing?

A bold idea suddenly popped into his head. He then began to fight the ghost while moving closer to the black stone.

As he drew nearer, Xu Dan raised the Soul-Devouring Yin-Yang Hammer and swung it forward, sweeping away the ghosts. Then, he slammed the hammer down forcefully on the black stone. With a loud "bang," dust flew up. But apart from that, there was no further movement; the black stone remained perfectly intact, not even a scrap of its outer layer was broken.

"Is it that hard?" Xu Dan frowned.

When Lu Shizong saw him smashing the stone, he immediately realized why the ghost was acting strangely.

At that moment, he swung his longsword, a flash of cold light appeared, and a sharp sword aura swept out, repelling the ghost in front of him.

Then, with a light tap of his toes, he shot out like an arrow, leaping into the air, gripping his sword with both hands, gathering all his strength, and slashing at the strange black stone with overwhelming force. The blade struck the stone with a loud clang, sparks flying, but leaving only a shallow mark on the stone's surface.

The ghosts seemed to sense the danger and stopped attacking others. Instead, they rushed towards Xu Dan and Lu Shizong, trying to stop them from destroying the black stone.

Upon seeing this, Xue Diao, Xue Bao'er, and the martial arts school disciples immediately did their utmost to block the ghost's attack.

Xue Diao displayed his archery skills to the fullest, each arrow seemingly imbued with a soul, accurately striking the ghosts and temporarily slowing their attack. The martial arts disciples cooperated, attacking with their swords to surround the ghosts, preventing them from getting close to Xu Dan and Lu Shizong.