They pressed deeper into the enormous underground formation. As they neared its core, the light from the surrounding roots began to change.
At first, there was only a trace of red amid the azure, so faint it was easy to miss. But the farther they went, the deeper the red in the roots became.
The color changed so gradually that Chen Cheng and the others did not notice it at first.
Only when red became the dominant color did Chen Cheng realize what had happened.
He turned and looked back. With the passage stretching away before him and the change now on his mind, he immediately saw how the roots' light had shifted in color.
"What's going on? Has the formation overloaded?"
Scorpion Lady spoke cautiously.
Chen Cheng went to the edge of the corridor, examined the tangled roots, then reached out and snapped off a section.
"It hasn't overloaded. I think the formation is gradually reawakening, spreading outward from its core.
"Look closely. The color grows deeper the nearer it gets to the center."
On closer inspection, it was just as Chen Cheng had said: the vines were turning red outward from the center.
"Young Master, should we keep going?"
Chen Cheng frowned.
"Let's move faster. I have a terrible feeling about this."
As they went deeper, the three of them entered a world awash in red. There, they finally caught up with the Green Snake King.
Or rather, the Green Snake King had retreated to that spot and happened to meet them.
The Green Snake King showed no surprise at the sight of Chen Cheng and his companions. Sword in hand, she said, "Since you've made it here, I assume you know what this place is. We don't have much time left. You've come at just the right