In the blink of an eye, two hours passed, and everyone's energy and spirit had returned to their optimal state.
The group gathered in front of the mountain crevice, peering inside.
The mountain crevice stretched upwards, dark and mysterious, its destination unknown. It seemed as if the mountain had been cleaved in two, the crevice being about two zhang wide, easily allowing two or three people to walk side by side.
Dragon Elder stood before the group, raised a hand, and tossed something small inside.
The object seemed familiar, resembling a small human figure.
Upon closer inspection, the object flickered and, amidst a burst of spiritual light, grew larger, transforming into a puppet over a zhang tall.
The puppet was gray and white, made of an unknown material, exuding an aura of metal and stone. It also resembled ironwood. It was a second-order White Ape puppet.
A second-order puppet was equivalent to a Foundation Establishment中期 cultivator in strength. They were rare on the market.
However, for a Core Formation cultivator, buying one, even an expensive one, wasn't too difficult, as long as they were willing to spend spirit stones.
"A puppet? Does that mean Dragon Fellow Daoist is also skilled in this art?"
The others also examined the White Ape puppet with great interest.
"Hehe, these puppets are merely small assistants I use when studying formations. Now, it's perfect for scouting ahead."
"Dragon Elder is indeed thoughtful."
Zhang Ling, however, was thinking that he should also acquire a few puppets after leaving. Although these puppets were not as powerful as spiritual puppets, they could be quite useful in certain situations.
Dragon Elder pointed at the puppet, and several hand seals formed a rune, which he cast upon it.
Instantly, the White Ape puppet's eyes lit up, and it strode towards the mountain crevice.
The sound of cracking footsteps echoed.
After the puppet had traveled a dozen zhang into the mountain crevice, the others gradually entered.
Dragon Elder led the way, flanked by Ding Ruozhao and Ye Zimei. Zhang Ling and Qing Mang Daoist followed behind.
As Dragon Elder walked, he flicked a formation plate in his hand, sending it flying above his head, where it emitted a layer of azure light.
Seeing this, Zhang Ling and the others activated their own formation plates.
Various colored lights appeared.
Dragon Elder then quickly performed a series of hand seals, and after a few breaths, the various colored lights on everyone's bodies flowed and gathered onto Dragon Elder's formation plate.
The formation plate spun rapidly, transforming into a layer of five-colored spiritual light that enveloped everyone.
Zhang Ling glanced at the circular formation plate in the center, his brow furrowed slightly.
As the five-colored spiritual light formed, the formation plate slowly began to absorb the energy from his body.
Although the spiritual energy wasn't being absorbed quickly, it was continuous, and if it continued like this, it would be a significant drain.
He turned to look at the others beside him; they were in the same situation, but no one spoke.
After all, they were in this strange place, and having such a layer of protection would make them much safer.
This five-colored shield was no worse than an ordinary defensive magic treasure.
"Alright, the Spirit Guarding Formation is complete, but remember not to stray more than twenty zhang from me, or the shield will weaken."
The group maintained their formation and moved forward.
After walking a dozen zhang, the surroundings became dim. However, this environment was nothing to Core Formation cultivators; their powerful divine senses allowed them to be aware of the changes around them at all times.
Thus, after walking for a quarter of an hour, although they were deep in the oppressive darkness, they did not encounter any danger.
They could only hear the cracking footsteps of the puppet leading the way.
However, the more it was like this, the more the group was on high alert, not daring to be careless.
Suddenly, Dragon Elder stopped.
"Did you find anything?" Ding Ruozhao quickly asked.
"Indeed, I found something."
Dragon Elder replied without turning his head, while shaking the jade fan in his hand, a layer of azure gale swept forward.
To the surprise of the others.
This breeze only flew a dozen zhang forward, and seemed to hit something, issuing a crisp sound of 'bang'.
Then, the originally dark space in front of them trembled, rippling like water waves.
Seeing this, Zhang Ling and the others became vigilant, in case any danger descended.
"It's alright, there's only a small illusion array set up ahead."
Dragon Elder said with a chuckle.
Then, his hands flew quickly, forming several hand seals, and a ball of spiritual light floated out from his palm. Transformed into some runes, merged into the front of the passage.
The constantly shaking space in front of them instantly met some resistance, no longer shaking, and returned to calm.
But the next moment, the sound of 'kacha kacha' came. 'Bang' like ice cracking, broken into countless cyan black fragments.
At this time, looking at the environment ahead, it was no longer the original dark channel.
You can see not far ahead, there is a stone staircase leading upward. At the end of the steps, a brilliant light lit up, it seems to be the exit.
While a few people were observing the environment ahead, Dragon Elder looked at the black fragments on the ground, and with a flick of his finger, grabbed a black lacquer token.
The token was covered with cracks, and it turned to ashes with a light grip.
"Tsk tsk, what a pity."
Dragon Elder shook the jade fan in his hand, his face full of regret.
This is an independent formation plate, although it can only put some small illusions, but look at its refining technique different from now, but there are many research values.
After that, a few people went all the way down the stairs leading upwards.
There is a thick layer of dust on the steps, and some traces of corrosion. I don't know how long it has been.
After the crowd stepped onto the steps, nothing unusual happened, and they quickened their pace.
......
Several people passed through the mountain gap and came to the other side.
Suddenly open in front of you.
A basin with a not small area appeared in front of you, you can't see the head. In the more distant place there is a mountain peak, shrouded in a layer of colored fog.
But in the basin below, only some shrubs of the land grow, in which there are thick stone pillars, I don't know what they are used for?
These stone pillars vary in size, the thin ones are also a zhang, and the wide ones are inestimable.
And the position where they appear is on the mountainside.
Several people released their divine sense, and after exploring nearby for a while, they did not find anything.
Ding Ruozhao frowned and asked. "Dragon Elder, do you think we have escaped the predicament?"
"This place is a bit strange, according to my estimation, we are definitely not so easy to get out of the predicament, but, the traces of the formation here."
"Either I have too little knowledge, can't see the hidden formation, or we have passed through the formation."
These ambiguous words, heard in the ears of the crowd, they all looked at each other, and for a while did not know whether to advance or stay.
Zhang Ling looked at the mountain gap behind him, they only spent more than an hour to get here. There was no danger, which was not quite the same as he had expected before.
But they are all here, naturally it is impossible to go back, after a simple discussion, they decided to continue to explore forward.
