Trap

Ning Zhanji pondered for a moment, dispatching two cultivators to scout ahead while he led the main group back a distance.

A moment later, the two cultivators returned to report, "It's the corpse of a Demon Ape!"

The tense atmosphere of the entire team eased considerably.

When the main force arrived beside the Demon Ape's corpse, Ning Yong exclaimed in surprise.

It was the first time he had seen what a Fire Melt Demon Ape looked like.

This demonic beast had a robust physique, standing about three meters tall, and was covered in thick, large red fur. The fur was a pure, fiery red color, very beautiful.

The Fire Melt Demon Ape's fangs were bared, its eyes wide open, unwilling to rest in peace.

Its body was a peculiar existence, a combination of flesh, blood, and lava.

Even though it was dead now, through the wounds on its body, one could see its internal structure. It was like magma, still slowly flowing and emitting intense heat, but rapidly cooling.

Ning Zhanji's brows furrowed tightly.

This was an unexpected situation.

He would have preferred a living Fire Melt Demon Ape.

Now, the situation had become complicated.

"A fierce battle took place here!"

"The Fire Melt Demon Ape fought hard here, but ultimately lost."

"What kind of existence could single-handedly kill an adult Fire Melt Demon Ape?"

"From the traces, it doesn't seem to be any known demonic beast."

Ning Zhanji knew he had to investigate thoroughly.

Because, if a mysterious demonic beast was left unchecked, when the family's main force made a big move in the future, they could suffer a great loss if the intelligence was unclear!

Ning Zhanji's purpose in leading the team into the underground cave this time was precisely to scout the environment and gather intelligence.

This was his duty.

Thinking of this, Ning Zhanji stopped pondering and decisively abandoned the original route, following the traces upwards.

"However, the mysterious demonic beast had a fierce battle with the adult Demon Ape, so its combat strength can be estimated. Our current strength should be able to handle it."

"Furthermore, after battling the Demon Ape, its combat strength must have decreased. This is a very good opportunity!"

A sharp glint flickered in Ning Zhanji's eyes as he led the team in pursuit.

Along the way, they successively discovered other demonic beasts that had met their demise. For example, the Fire Essence scattered on the ground after a Fire Walking Snake died, or the corpses of Flame Treading Lizards, and the scattered stones from Lava Demon Heads.

As the Ning Family cultivators pursued, the items in their hands increased.

"Boss, what kind of thing is this, so powerful, killing so many demonic beasts?"

"Haha, we're getting a bargain this time. If a few more of these mysterious demonic beasts show up, we won't have to do any work and will get rich directly."

Ning Zhanji's brows were tightly furrowed, and he secretly calculated, "The other party left these behind without cleaning up the battlefield, which clearly indicates it's not a cultivator. But none of these corpses have been gnawed on, and resources like Fire Essence haven't been devoured. This seems to indicate that this mysterious demonic beast doesn't belong to the volcanic lava cave and is not part of the food chain here."

"Perhaps, this is the pet of a certain cultivator?"

"No matter what, I must reveal its true form this time!"

Ning Zhanji made up his mind and chased after it.

Eventually, they arrived at a dead end.

"No road ahead?"

"That shouldn't be!"

"The tracks clearly point here..."

The Ning Family cultivators were puzzled.

Ning Zhanji looked around, then muttered something, performing a certain spell.

Finally, his gaze fixed on a wall.

"Step back and form a formation."

"Let's blast this wall and see." Ning Zhanji ordered.

The Ning Family cultivators formed three small formations, pulling Ning Zhuo and Ning Yong into the furthest one, instructing them not to run around.

Boom boom boom!

The formations activated, and the cultivators worked together to continuously bombard the wall.

After the surface of the wall shattered, the light of a formation was revealed.

A defensive formation was actually hidden here!

The defensive formation was laid out simply and crudely. It didn't last long and was quickly shattered.

The wall was penetrated, revealing another passage.

"There's actually another passage hidden here?"

"We didn't find it before because someone hid it?"

Ning Zhanji's brows furrowed deeply.

Chasing to this point, his previous conjecture wavered.

It was obvious that whoever could set up a formation must be a cultivator. Even if not human, it would be an intelligent demon cultivator.

Hesitating for only a second, Ning Zhanji decided to continue the pursuit.

The Ning Family cultivators began exploring the mysterious passage.

They quickly discovered "beast tracks" similar to the ones before.

"Perhaps, this is a spirit pet of a certain cultivator, quite intelligent, and has permission to pass through formations."

"Many places in this passage show signs of human activity, and it was opened earlier than ours."

"In other words, our Ning Family is the later party?"

"What is that?"

"We're reaching the end of this path."

"Be careful!"

The Ning Family cultivators followed the trail, exited the passage, and arrived at an underground plaza with an open view and flat terrain.

Two arrays were also laid out in the underground plaza, both very simple, like a child's scribbles.

Ning Zhanji dispatched his subordinates to search for clues. Just then, the roars of demon beasts echoed.

Howls and roars rose and fell, surrounding them from all directions.

Ning Zhanji was greatly alarmed and immediately ordered a retreat.

However, scorching magma suddenly surged from the passage they had come through, forcing them to retreat back.

"Damn it!"

"This is a trap!!"

"Who could have such a scheme? Is it the other two families, or perhaps the City Lord's side?"

Ning Zhanji was both shocked and angry. While directing everyone to form an array, he also sent people to investigate the surroundings.

The results of the investigation were very bad.

This underground plaza seemed like a transfer station, connecting numerous passages. And from these passages, a large number of demon beasts were surging out.

The Ning Family cultivators set up a defensive array in a corner of the plaza and activated it with full force.

Fortunately, they were well-prepared for battle and brought many array plates, allowing them to quickly build a defensive array at such a rapid speed.

The defensive array activated, forming an ice-colored light wall that enclosed a semicircle. Combined with the wall behind the cultivators, it formed a complete circle.

The Fire Velvet Rat swarm was the first to charge. Compared to the outside, the Fire Velvet Rats appearing now were already half a person tall!

The Fire Velvet Rat swarm charged wildly, and many rats directly crashed and died against the ice wall.

Cracks appeared in the ice wall.

Some Lava Demons floated in mid-air, crossing over the ice wall and killing their way in.

The Ning Family cultivators cooperated tacitly and were well-prepared.

A large number of magic artifacts were activated, mainly flying swords and flying needles, piercing through the Lava Demons and buying crucial time.

A second defensive array was built, forming a half-sphere that covered everyone.

Suddenly, the noise outside the array significantly decreased.

"Continue building the array!" Ning Zhanji's face was solemn.

Just as the Ning Family cultivators finished building the third large array, forming a beam of light that supported the ceiling of the underground space, a vast aura suddenly emerged.

The cultivators looked horrified.

"Golden Core aura, are we pursuing a Golden Core cultivator?"

"I remember this aura, it's the Zheng Family's ancestor, Zheng Shuang Gou!"

"Could it be that the Zheng Family is targeting us?!"