Within a solitary peak of the Profound Heaven Sect.
Wang Li, in his inner vision, once again faced the strange Dao Palace within his sea of qi.
A fifth-grade spirit pill like the Purity Returning Spirit Pill was indeed somewhat extravagant for a cultivator of his level.
After only half a night, the needle-pricking headache had completely vanished. Not only had the damage to his divine sense fully recovered, but his successful tribulation crossing and the medicinal power of this spirit pill had greatly strengthened his divine sense.
The stronger his divine sense became, the more real the gray Dao Palace before him appeared.
He could now even see the seams between the bricks in its walls, as well as the holes in the somewhat porous bricks.
The more real it was, the stranger it seemed.
Though his conversation with his senior sister after nightfall might have seemed useless to others, he did not see it that way.
Many of Lü Shenliang's words seemed entirely unreasonable, yet he was certain that some of her seemingly groundless instincts and judgments were often remarkably accurate.
Just as she had previously guessed that Wang Li might encounter those strange gray-robed Daoists every time he broke through a minor realm during the Qi Refining stage—her guess had been perfectly correct.
During their conversation after nightfall, she suggested that Wang Li simply refine some low-grade pills with extremely mixed Vital Energy and see whether the gray Dao Hall would absorb that useless, mixed Vital Energy and become more solid.
Wang Li truly gave it a try.
The result was indeed as expected.
Although he did not know how this gray Dao Hall had formed, nor could he judge the Vital Energy laws governing its existence, the fact was that the mixed Vital Energy contained within those low-grade pills, which had originally been extremely harmful to cultivators, caused him no hindrance at all. It was all truly absorbed by the gray Dao Hall.
This gray Dao Hall now seemed like a special magic treasure designed specifically to purify the True Essence within his body.
If it were merely a magic treasure with such a special function, Wang Li would truly thank Heaven and thank Earth.
A magic treasure capable of purifying True Essence and absorbing the mixed Vital Energy within a cultivator's body would absolutely be priceless and unavailable even in the Lesser Jade Continent.
But this gray Dao Hall was completely beyond his control.
Moreover, those ferocious gray-robed cultivators had left far too deep a psychological shadow upon him.
If a whole group of such gray-robed cultivators were hidden inside this gray Dao Hall, would that not make it like an enormous coffin, filled with zombie-like gray-robed Daoists?
Such a giant coffin had appeared out of nowhere within his perfectly good sea of qi. No matter how he thought about it, it sent chills down his spine.
The unknown always inspired fear.
He truly feared that if he entered this gray Dao Hall himself, a group of gray-robed cultivators would be lined up neatly inside, waiting for him.
Lü Shenliang's reply to this fear of his was, "If you do not go in and take a look, how will you know whether those gray-robed cultivators are inside? Are cultivators like us really so timid?"
Those words sounded rather irresponsible, as though she did not care whether her junior brother lived or died.
But to him, the fact that Lü Shenliang did not directly oppose it meant that he truly could try going inside.
Because based on his understanding of his senior sister, if she truly believed there was mortal danger, she would never say such things.
"Whatever. Wealth and honor are sought amid danger... damn it... I'm going..."
What he had not expected was that the instant he gritted his teeth and finally decided to go in and take a look, the gray Dao Hall suddenly produced an irresistible suction force and pulled him directly inside. His vision blurred, and he was already within the gray Dao Hall.
"..."
He was instantly somewhat speechless.
Strange. Still strange.
A faint gray mist filled this gray Dao Hall. The mist did not truly touch him and seemed to pose no hindrance to him.
There were no gray-robed cultivators lined up like a family as he had imagined within the gray hall. Yet five gray flames floated silently in the gray mist.
They were five slender flames, swaying within the gray fog as though they could be extinguished at any moment, yet they never went out.
Wang Li stared gravely at the five slender flames. Whenever his gaze fell upon any one of them, his consciousness seemed as though it would instantly be drawn inside.
He saw that these flames seemed to be composed of countless tiny specks of light.
These tiny specks of light resembled faintly glowing dust amid dying embers, as though in the very next instant, they would lose their glow as the last trace of heat faded away.
Yet in his perception, an extraordinarily tenacious will supported their light.
Countless such tiny yet tenacious wills formed a wisp of flame.
The five wisps of flame in the gray mist before him were all like this.
For some reason, every wisp of flame seemed to him like a tiny gray Dao Palace, as though it could draw him inside. Yet this will differed from the immense will of the gray Dao Palace, which he could not resist at all.
It seemed to attract him, yet it was more like the formations of certain magic treasures, as though waiting for his summons, waiting to merge with him.
Wang Li hesitated for the span of a breath.
With utmost caution, he attempted to release a strand of True Essence, sending it toward the nearest wisp of flame as though testing a magical implement.
With a soft pop.
That strand of True Essence easily entered the gray flame, as though it had pierced a ball of air wrapped in an extremely thin layer of cowhide.
Countless tiny specks of light scattered from within and rapidly expanded.
Like a brand-new miniature world, it suddenly unfolded before him, then filled the entire Dao Hall, even stretching it endlessly open and expanding outward!
Wang Li's entire body froze stiff.
No words could describe the shock he felt at that moment.
It was as though he had instantly been placed within a sea of stars.
All around him, in every direction, gray-robed cultivators floated everywhere!
No matter how he twisted his body, turned his head, or looked in any direction, every space within his field of vision held gray-robed cultivators floating silently there.
Among these gray-robed cultivators were female cultivators and male cultivators, young and old alike. Their robes were all tattered, and each bore horrifying wounds. Many of them even had only a small portion of their shattered bodies remaining.
Wang Li did not feel fear.
At the first instant, absolute shock overwhelmed every other emotion. Nor did he feel fear afterward, because these gray-robed cultivators were like purely lifeless objects floating in the void.
They possessed no vitality and did not give him the feeling of being True Persons, like any of the gray-robed cultivators he had encountered before.
The broken remains of these gray-robed cultivators seemed frozen in the river of the void, utterly motionless.
Only he was alive.
Only he possessed vitality.
Suddenly, amid the densely packed gray-robed cultivators, he discovered a familiar figure.
It was a short, fat gray-robed cultivator who appeared unharmed from the front, yet whose entire back of the head and back had been blasted full of holes by spells.
This short, fat gray-robed cultivator was the strange gray-robed cultivator he had first encountered when advancing from the First Level of Qi Refining to the Second Level of Qi Refining.
This gray-robed cultivator likewise floated lifelessly in the gray void.
But when Wang Li's gaze rested upon him for a long time, his tightly shut eyes suddenly opened.
The updates have been fast enough, right?
Remember to save it first and cast a vote~~
Before you continue