Blood Cloud Cave
"Miaofa, you bald monk, you actually followed us and secretly sneaked into Blood Cloud Cave!"
The speaker was a tall man from a Lineage of cultivators.
The person known as the Master of Miaofa was a short, stout monk.
The monk clasped his hands together, his face bearing a compassionate expression of empathy for humanity.
"Benefactor Tang Fu, this Blood Cloud Cave is an unclaimed place. How can you say that we, this humble monk, sneaked in?"
Tang Fu roared angrily.
"It took Zhong and me a lot of effort to get into this place. You bald monks just followed behind us and got away with it for nothing."
Faced with Tang Fu's angry rebukes, Miaofa remained unmoved, his countenance solemn and dignified.
"Since ancient times, treasures have belonged to those of virtue. This humble monk has calculated that this place has a connection with Buddhism and should rightfully belong to our Buddhist family."
"Bah! Even a fool knows that Blood Cloud Cave belongs to the demonic forces and has nothing to do with your Buddhist and Daoist sects. Not only did you sneakily follow us, but you also ambushed and killed two of Alliance Leader Zhong's subordinates, which is why the restrictions here were activated."
"Now, this Blood Cloud Cave can only be entered, not exited. The thirteen stone statues also show signs of being activated, all because of you bunch of bald monks who are all talk of compassion but are actually vicious at heart."
Tang Fu looked as if he wanted nothing more than to tear the other party to pieces, but he dared not make a move because of the restrictions placed on the place and the thirteen stone statues in the square.
If anyone else dies in this square, it could potentially activate the statues.
Miaofa looked at the two corpses on the ground with a sorrowful expression.
"Upon returning to the temple, this humble monk will certainly recite the Rebirth Mantra a thousand times for these two benefactors who died unjustly, to help them ascend to the Pure Land as soon as possible."
Tang Fu's eyes blazed with fury, like a raging fire that threatened to reduce the Miaofa to ashes.
"Gentlemen, stop arguing. Right now, we can only cooperate; we cannot afford to fight again."
One of the Rogue Cultivator spoke up.
He was the leader of the Rogue Cultivator, Alliance Master Zhong Liang, whom Tang Fu had mentioned.
A smile appeared on Miaofa's face.
"What Benefactor Zhong said makes sense."
Tang Fu was somewhat reluctant to travel with Miaofa and the others.
"Hmph! Who knows if those bald monks will resort to underhanded tactics again."
Miaofa said, "Benefactor Tang, please rest assured. It was my oversight that I did not know that killing would violate the prohibitions of this place. Now that I know, how could I dare to break the precept against killing again?"
"Besides, when exploring ancient ruins and secret realms, people are bound to die. Why should Benefactor Tang hold a grudge?"
"This place has been abandoned for many years, yet the restrictions are still functioning normally, which is truly unexpected. Let's discuss how to enter this grand hall."
Before Miaofa finished speaking, a blue light suddenly shone on the square, so bright that people couldn't open their eyes.
The crowd was somewhat alarmed, but fortunately, apart from the flash of blue light, there was no other danger.
A moment later, the azure light dissipated, and a figure suddenly appeared in front of the main hall.
"Teleportation Array!"
Everyone in the square was on high alert, their eyes fixed on the figure standing in front of the main hall.
Who are you? And why have you come here?
Tang Fu questioned sharply.
This person was none other than Song Wen, who had been inexplicably teleported here.
After a brief moment of shock, Song Wen quickly recovered.
He looked at Tang Fu with a face full of terror and said in a trembling voice,
"Reporting to you, senior, I am a Rogue Cultivator who stumbled upon an ancient cave by chance. While exploring the cave, for some unknown reason, the Teleportation Array inside suddenly activated, transporting me here."
Tang Fu, Alliance Leader Zhong, and Miaofa Fa exchanged glances, all showing a knowing look on their faces.
They must have accidentally triggered the restriction, causing the Teleportation Array in the cave where Song Wen was located to activate, thus teleporting Song Wen to this place.
Song Wen was just a rogue Rogue Cultivator who was unintentionally drawn into this place.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, a sound came from inside the main hall, and the stone door of the hall was slowly opening.
Zhong Liang, Miaofa, and Tang Fu exchanged wary glances.
They went to great lengths to get here, all for the treasures within the main hall. Now, trapped here, their only way out may very well lie within this very hall.
The three parties, who were discussing cooperation just moments before, suddenly showed signs of falling apart.
"You, get out of the way, don't block the doorway..."
Tang Fu stared intently at the gradually opening stone door and shouted loudly at Song Wen.
"Yes, senior!"
Song Wen looked terrified and dared not be negligent in the slightest, retreating to the edge of the square.
As Song Wen walked towards the edge of the square, a sudden pressure arose.
The closer he got to the edge of the square, the stronger the pressure became. Before he even reached the edge, the pressure made it almost impossible for him to stand up straight.
Gravity restriction!
Song Wen was horrified.
This gravitational restriction is extremely strong; with Song Wen's current cultivation level and physical strength, he absolutely cannot leave the plaza's area.
Once the stone doors of the main hall were fully opened, each of the three factions sent one person into the hall.
A moment later, the voices of three people could be heard from inside the hall.
He signaled that there was no danger inside the hall and allowed everyone to enter.
Before long, only Song Wen remained in the square.
Although there might be treasures inside the main hall, Song Wen did not rush in. He wanted to first explore the surroundings and ascertain his current situation before deciding on his next move.
He instinctively released the Sacred Beetle Gu, only to find it fall directly to the ground.
"No-fly zone!" Song Wen exclaimed in astonishment.
He tried to use Flight Technique and sword-wielding techniques, but found that he could not fly off the ground.
He then extended his Divine Sense and found that Divine Sense was also limited; his Divine Sense could only probe within the square's area, and could not extend beyond that area.
There is a gravity restriction preventing them from leaving the plaza; there is a no-fly restriction preventing them from flying; and their Divine Sense is limited, preventing them from exploring beyond the plaza's boundaries.
"We're really trapped here. Even the Life-Substitution Technique can't get us out. I wonder if the Blood Escape Technique can help us get out."
Song Wen thought to himself.
Since Divine Sense cannot probe beyond the plaza, we can only rely on our eyes.
Song Wen produced a fireball in each hand and tossed them upwards. But the two fireballs fell straight to the ground and exploded in front of Song Wen as soon as they left his hands.
Song Wen, who wanted to use the firelight to observe his surroundings, felt somewhat helpless.
Even Law Technique are affected by gravity restrictions.
He took out a fluorescent stone the size of a washbasin, held it high above his head, and infused it with spiritual power.
Suddenly, the fluorescent stone shone brightly.
With the help of the fluorescent stone, Song Wen could barely make out the entire Blood Cloud Cave.
About five miles directly in front of the main hall, there is a deep cave entrance, which is where Tang Fu and his group must have entered.
Not far from the cave entrance, a waterfall cascades down.
A thought struck Song Wen, and recalling the underground river he had seen before, he guessed that this place might be downstream of the underground river.
If we go against the current, perhaps we can get out.
The thirteen stone statues in the square have eerie red eyes, as if they might come to life at any moment.
The two corpses on the ground had turned into mummies, and the blood in their bodies had long since disappeared, leaving only a layer of dried bloodstains on the ground.
After surveying the entire plaza, Song Wen turned and walked towards the main hall.