Chapter 5040

Kai smiled. “Miss Mo, if you’re afraid, feel free to wait here.”

“Who’s afraid?” Mo Qingyun gritted her teeth. “I’m coming with you!”

The two dove into the lake. The water was icy cold, but for cultivators of their level, it posed no challenge.

After descending dozens of feet, a massive stone platform slowly came into view at the lake’s bottom. It was covered in intricate array patterns, and at its center was a fist-sized blue crystal emitting a faint glow.

“Is that… the ‘Heavenly Crystal’?” Mo Qingyun gasped. “The legendary divine object said to hold the power to sustain heaven and earth!”

Kai’s expression grew serious. “So that’s it. This grand array uses the Heavenly Crystal as its core and draws on the spiritual energy of the earth veins to keep running for ten thousand years.”

He swam closer to the platform, carefully examining the engraved patterns. Suddenly, he noticed several runes that appeared to have been altered by hand.

“No…” he murmured. “This formation has been tampered with. It looks like… there’s a hidden restriction embedded within it!”

Mo Qingyun was stunned. “What do you mean?”

Before Kai could answer, the patterns on the stone platform suddenly flared with blinding light, and the Heavenly Crystal began to tremble violently.

“This is bad!” Kai shouted, grabbing Mo Qingyun. “Retreat now!”

But it was too late. A powerful suction erupted from the platform, pulling them in with overwhelming force.

“Kai! What’s happening?” Mo Qingyun cried out, panicked.

“The formation’s been triggered!” Kai gritted his teeth, struggling to break free. But the suction was too strong, and in the blink of an eye, both were dragged into a sudden spatial rift.

The world spun wildly around them. When they regained their senses, they found themselves in the midst of ancient ruins.

All around were shattered stone pillars and crumbling palace walls, the air heavy with a sense of age and decay.

In the distance stood a colossal stone pillar, towering ten thousand feet high, covered in countless arcane runes.

Behind it loomed a mountain, split down the middle and carved into two monstrous statues of evil spirits.

“Who would be mad enough to carve an entire mountain into statues?” Mo Qingyun said in awe.

Kai remained silent, staring intently at the two demonic figures. A chill crept through his heart, as if something invisible had gripped him tightly, stealing his breath.
Kai was struck with horror. He staggered backward and shouted, “Back off—retreat quickly!”

“Fellow Daoist Chen, what’s wrong with you?” Mo Qingyun asked, confused.

She couldn’t understand why Kai had suddenly reacted this way.

Seeing that Mo Qingyun appeared unaffected, Kai was momentarily stunned. The suffocating pressure he had just felt vanished without a trace.

“Was I just being overly nervous?”

He took a deep breath and turned his gaze back to the two demonic statues.

Kai was certain the ancients wouldn’t have carved such things into a mountain for no reason. The statues had to serve a purpose.

But as he looked at them again, his chest tightened, and the overwhelming sense of suffocation returned.

“Break, damn it!”

This time, instead of backing away, Kai drew the Dragon Slaying Sword and slashed forward.

He was determined to shatter the fear that gripped his heart.

Yet no matter how much power he released, the oppressive feeling remained, unmoved.

Kai slowly closed his eyes and began reciting a meditation mantra. He had to calm his mind.

This fear could lead him to make serious misjudgments.

What puzzled him was why Mo Qingyun felt nothing, while he was overwhelmed.

As he continued to chant, the fear gradually subsided, and a sense of calm returned to him.

When he finally opened his eyes, Kai avoided looking directly at the statues again.

The sky overhead was a dull gray. There was no sign of the sun or moon, as though the area was sealed off by some unseen force.

Mo Qingyun looked at him nervously and asked, “Fellow Daoist Chen, where exactly are we…?”