The moment this thought arose in Zhu Feng's mind, the scene before her abruptly changed. Her expression shifted slightly as she realized that they were not returning to the Inner Layer at all—they had been heading ever deeper into the void all along!
What made her even more vigilant was this: what exactly had twisted their perceptions?
Mei Shang had likewise noticed that something was wrong. After thinking for a moment, he said gravely, "Fellow Daoist Zhu, I fear we have encountered an evil god's deluding barrier."
Ever since Celestial Xia had first dealt with void evil gods, they had discovered that evil gods possessed the ability to confuse one's perceptions. This was precisely what made them so troublesome. If one's mind was not firmly guarded, the slightest deviation could lead one astray. Generally speaking, however, Profound Venerables were superior in every respect. Even if they fell into a scheme, it was usually the evil god that ended up dead.
But this time was different. They could not tell when they had fallen into the deluding barrier, which showed that the evil god they had encountered this time differed from any they had seen before.
Zhu Feng said, "Turn the vessel around at once and return..."
But she stopped there, for she suddenly realized that the barrier had arrived without a sound. Recognizing its existence did not necessarily mean it had truly been broken. She believed she had seen reality, but perhaps even that understanding had still been partially twisted. Before she could be entirely certain, she absolutely could not act rashly.
She immediately took a long stick of incense from her sleeve. This was Stillness-Calming Incense brought from the Guardian of Rectitude Palace. It could dispel doubt and preserve thought, and had been prepared precisely as a defense against