The entrance to the eighth floor emitted a faint purple light, exuding an indescribable eerie aura.
After Linley and the others finished getting ready, they entered the eighth level. This level was half a gray void, with suspended stone paths underfoot, and deep darkness on all sides. There was a sense of oppression in the air, as if something was coldly watching these intruders from the shadows.
As they walked to the middle of the stone corridor, two large vertical pupils suddenly appeared in the darkness.
These were no ordinary eyes. The vertical pupils were as large as millstones, and the entire body shone with an eerie light. It was as if a vortex was slowly turning inside the pupils, and a single glance would captivate and enchant the heart.
The Evil Eye King. One of the most terrifying things before the twelfth floor.
No one could see how it appeared. Linley only felt a pair of vertical pupils suddenly look at him, and an invisible force pierced his sea of consciousness like a sharp blade. He tried to dodge, but it came too fast. Before he could grip the sword hilt, he was hit hard, and everything went black.
Olivier encountered the same situation on another stone corridor a few dozen steps away from Linley. His usually steady sword was now trembling violently, seemingly unable to withstand the evil impact that rushed into his sea of consciousness. He groaned, knelt on one knee, and his face immediately turned ashen.
The first to give in were several Initial Stage of the Saint Realm experts in the group. They clutched their heads, screamed in agony, collapsed to the ground, their eyes rolled back, and they lost consciousness in an instant.
Linley Lei endured the intense pain in his mind and looked up at the pair of vertical pupils that were getting closer and closer. Only then did he realize that the true terror of the Evil Eye King did not lie in how strong it was, but in its ability to silently invade a person's mind, disturb their mind, and make them lose the ability to resist without realizing it. The stronger you are, the more it will target you.
"Go... go quickly!" Linley gritted his teeth, grabbed Olivier who had also collapsed in pain, and ran towards the end of the stone corridor.
Panic gripped the crowd as they tumbled about in all directions under the invisible pressure of the Evil Eye King. The Evil Eye had locked onto them, one vertical pupil fixed on Linley, the other on Olivier, seemingly determined to drag them both down into the abyss.
Linley's Purple Blood Soft Sword he had previously used to defend against the Evil Eye, was now unable to withstand the corrosive influence of those vertical pupils. He stumbled and staggered along, his mind feeling as if it were being pricked by countless needles, and he nearly fell several times. Olivier, half-dragged and half-pulled by him, was pale-faced, and like him, she struggled to prevent her consciousness from completely succumbing to the influence.
"The ninth level... where is the entrance!" Tulilei roared, his giant axe no longer in use, he could only desperately flee.
Desri, bracing himself with his staff, managed to create a light shield at the back of the group, blocking part of the Evil Eye's impact, but he was already on the verge of collapse.
Just as the evil power was about to devour them all, a faint light shone from a dark stone corridor ahead.
That's the crack in the door leading to the ninth floor.
Linley used his last bit of strength to shove Olivier and the others through the door at the end of the stone corridor, sending them tumbling down to the ninth floor. The Evil Eye King's large eyes slowly closed through the crack in the door, silently releasing these surviving prey like a cold abyss.
Linley collapsed on the ninth floor, panting heavily, his face pale, the spot in his mind where the Evil Eye had pierced his consciousness still throbbed with pain. Olivier also slumped to the ground, her eyes closed, cold sweat streaming down her forehead, as if she were still struggling against the evil force that had invaded her mind.
The forest was quiet, with only the sound of people breathing heavily.
After a long while, Olivier slowly opened her eyes and said in a hoarse voice, "That Evil Eye was actually able to invade my sea of consciousness. I've never suffered such a loss in my entire life."
"Me too." Linley sat up, rubbing his still throbbing forehead. "If we hadn't escaped quickly, we probably would have all been caught in those eyes."
The ninth level was eerily quiet, with an indescribable sense of unease. But at this moment, they had temporarily escaped the clutches of the Evil Eye King.