Thunder and Mist

Lin Xiao's objection was silenced by a single look from Lu Yuan.

"Do we have enough trap materials?" Lu Yuan asked, turning to Mo Chen.

Mo Chen leaned against the wall, his eyes shining. "That's enough. There are still ' Flow Disruption Crystal ' and 'directional resonance rune bases' in the east warehouse. Elder Yun's 'hidden lines' are useless."

"Select a few points with the most chaotic energy and the thinnest spatial density to set up the array." Lu Yuan spoke quickly, "Don't kill, just mislead. Soul Power circulation, sense of direction, communication signals—these three are key."

Yun Youzi stroked his beard. "Let them 'get lost'?"

"Not only that." Lu Yuan dipped his finger in water and drew lines on the stone table. "The energy field around the ruins is inherently complex. The connecting passages of the ' Gate of Finality ' are still there, and I can sense their direction. Utilizing these natural 'gullies,' we can amplify the chaotic fluctuations with Soul Tool and then weave them into a net using array formations."

His fingertips slid.

"Tick a finger at a crucial point in their Soul Power circulation, or inject some false 'echoes' into their senses. Let them wander around until they lose all sense of direction."

Shen Moxin adjusted her glasses. "If it's Soul Douluo leading the team..."

"We can't hold them out for long." Lu Yuan shook his head. "Delaying time and creating chaos is enough. The real 'lesson' isn't here."

He paused, looking at his palm. A faint resonance emanated from the mark between his brows, pointing to a natural energy vortex node deep within the Black Stone Mountain Range.

"Elder Yun," Lu Yuan asked, "You mentioned that there are several 'spatial folds' deep within the mountains, where 'turbulent currents' occasionally leak out?"

Yun Youzi's eyes narrowed. "You want to guide the 'turbulent flow'?"

"A mere aftershock is enough," Lu Yuan said. "Harmless, but 'frightening' enough. Let them experience the disorientation of the rules, and remember what it feels like to have their Soul Power out of control, where even their upper and lower parts can be reversed."

The room fell silent.

Lin Xiao stared at Lu Yuan without saying anything more. Su Yan silently got up and went to the storeroom. Shen Moxin took out her notebook to do calculations. Mo Chen struggled to stand up, but Lu Yuan held him down.

"You give the orders, Su Yan will do the work," Lu Yuan said. "Time is tight, we only have one night."

"Enough." Mo Chen grinned. "I'm good at playing dirty tricks."

The action unfolded under pressure.

Su Yan carried out the dusty wooden box, taking out a crystal cluster engraved with runes and nearly transparent silver threads. Yun Youzi inspected and repaired the runes. Shen Moxin marked five nodes on the map.

Lu Yuan focused most of his mind on the imprint, sensing the "rhythm" of the energy fluctuations around the ruins. He could "see" where the energy flow was knotted and where the space was as thin as an oil film.

Lin Xiao silently patrolled the perimeter.

Night deepened.

Inside the stronghold, crystals were embedded in the soul-guiding base, and silver threads Entanglement at specific angles. Yun Youzi used mineral powder to outline the array pattern, which flashed and disappeared in an instant.

Lu Yuan stood at the entrance, his fingertips tracing lines in the air. The mark between his brows felt slightly warm, and the invisible energy "gully" was gently "stirred," causing ripples to spread and resonate subtly with the distant array and Soul Tool.

An invisible and intangible net quietly unfolds in the night.

"It's almost dawn." Yun Youzi walked to Lu Yuan's side. "According to intelligence, the advance team from those joint forces should arrive by daybreak at the latest."

Lu Yuan hummed in agreement.

He sensed the energy vortex node in the distance, like a slowly beating heart. Guiding a wisp of "turbulent aftershock" required precise timing and subtle "teasing." The risk was considerable, but he had calculated the success rate, and it was enough.

"Is the evacuation arrangement complete?" Lu Yuan asked.

"Li Wangye and Bai Zhi took the wounded and left via an underground tributary. Shi Jian was knocked unconscious and taken away. Shen Moxin took the first batch of core data through the secret passage along the mountain ridge; they should have crossed the first mountain pass by now." Yun Youzi paused, "Lin Xiao and Su Yan refused to leave first."

"Let them stay," Lu Yuan said. "The last batch, come with me."

As dawn broke, Mo Chen emerged, carrying a palm-sized metal disc with several oddly angled crystal clusters embedded in its center.

"All five interference nodes are in position." Mo Chen handed the disc to Lu Yuan. "The main control unit is here. Inject Soul Power to activate and synchronize. That should give them a run for their money."

Lu Yuan took the disc; it felt slightly heavy in his hand.

"What about distance-triggered mode?"

"There are 'sensing runes' buried at the valley entrance and key forks in the road," Mo Chen pointed into the distance. "Someone has broken in with fluctuations of Soul Power. The runes have been triggered, and the signal has been transmitted to the main control panel. Whether to activate them or not is up to you."

Lu Yuan nodded and put away the disc.

Almost simultaneously, Lin Xiao slid down like a shadow.

"They're here." His voice was tense. "Southeast, five miles away. Seven people, their Soul Power is very strong. The one in the lead... feels even more powerful than Soul Douluo from the Gloomy Eye Sect. The other six are all Soul Saint."

One Soul Douluo and six Soul Saint. This lineup is only for "scouting" and "picking up bargains".

Lu Yuan turned and entered the stronghold. The door closed, leaving a crack.

wait.

Time moved slowly. Mo Chen bit his nails. Su Yan checked the mechanisms of his Soul Tool. Lin Xiao leaned against the door, his ears twitching slightly. Yun Youzi closed his eyes to rest.

Lu Yuan stood behind the crevice, his mind sinking into the mark, extending towards that distant energy node.

They've arrived.

First, the ground trembled slightly, then the sound of voices was torn apart by the mountain wind.

"... Are you sure this is the place? It's eerily quiet."

"The energy traces are pointing this way. Be careful, everyone. The sect leader ordered us to focus on investigation..."

"What's there to be afraid of! What can a half-ruined ruin possibly do? With our ' Mysterious Yin Sect ' joining forces with the ' Zhao Clan,' we're guaranteed to be the first to act!"

Seven figures appeared outside the "A Thread of Sky" crevice at the entrance of the valley.

The elderly man in black robes at the head of the group had a gaunt face and sharp eyes Soul Power fluctuations caused the air to freeze. Behind him, three black-robed Soul Saint and three richly dressed Zhao Clan Soul Saint spread out in a fan shape.

"Enter." The old man in black robes stepped into the crevice.

The moment the foot lands --

The disc in Lu Yuan's arms trembled slightly.

He pressed his finger to the center, and a wisp of Soul Power was injected.

There was no loud noise, no light.

But the seven people who entered the crevice all stopped in their tracks at the same time.

The old man in black robes frowned deeply. The flow of his Soul Power within his body suddenly became sluggish for a moment, like river water hitting a soft wall. Although he recovered quickly, the unpleasant feeling made his heart tighten.

Behind him, the Soul Saint of the Zhao Clan cursed under his breath, "What kind of hellhole is this! Even my Soul Power isn't flowing smoothly!"

Another person looked up in confusion. "Is this fog... too thick?"

He hadn't finished speaking.

The old man in black robes stopped. He stared at the fork in the road that was faintly visible in the mist ahead, a hint of confusion flashing in his eyes.

The map should show a slightly winding, generally forward-moving natural stone path. But what's this...? Why are there three almost identical paths shrouded in thick fog?

Deep within each path, there emanated a faint "feeling" of energy fluctuations reminiscent of ancient ruins.

"Elder?" The Soul Saint of the Mysterious Yin Sect stepped forward, his expression changing slightly.

The old man in black robes remained silent, his spiritual energy spreading out in an attempt to penetrate the thick fog. But as soon as his spiritual energy extended, it felt like he had crashed into a clump of sticky, swirling cotton. His sense of direction became blurred, and the feedback he received was fragmented and contradictory.

The energy fluctuations are strongest on the left, but the spatial structure is unstable.

The energy level is stable in the middle, but there may be a faint feeling of emptiness that causes palpitations.

The one on the right is the most normal, but it's so normal that it becomes suspicious.

"Should we split up and investigate?" Zhao Clan Soul Saint suggested, his tone no longer arrogant.

"No," the old man in black robes firmly rejected. "This place is eerie; splitting up would be even more dangerous. Take the middle route."

He chose the one that intuitively made his heart race.

The seven men maintained a defensive formation and stepped onto the central path.

The fog thickened. The road was rugged and uneven, and the sharp edges of the rocks all looked almost the same in the fog. After walking for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, another fork in the road appeared ahead. This time, there were two paths.

The old man in black robes had a grim expression and used his spiritual power to probe again. The result was the same: chaotic, contradictory, and impossible to determine.

He gritted his teeth and chose the left side.

After another cup of tea's time, the fork in the road became four.

A commotion broke out in the group. One of the Zhao Clan's Soul Saint took out a communication jade talisman, attempting to contact reinforcements outside the valley. The talisman flashed briefly and then went out, emitting a crackling, wailing noise.

"Communication is down!" the Soul Saint exclaimed in a low voice, his voice tinged with panic.

The old man in black robes felt a chill run down his spine. They had fallen into a meticulously planned trap. It wasn't an ambush of force, but a labyrinth of space and perception!

"Go back!" he decided immediately.

The seven turned and retreated quickly. But after walking for a long time, the fog remained, and forks in the road kept appearing. They could not find the "A Thread of Sky strip" that had led them in.

They got lost.

The flow of Soul Power was intermittently sluggish, causing great distress. Mental probing was like throwing a stone into the sea. Communication was cut off. Most terrifyingly, even the most basic sense of direction was being slowly eroded. Looking up at the sky, thick fog obscured the sun, leaving only a pale white expanse. The surrounding rocks and trees seemed familiar yet different everywhere.

"It's an array! A sophisticated illusion array!" the Soul Saint of the Mysterious Yin Sect roared, sweat beading on his forehead.

"It's not just an illusion array," the black-robed elder's voice was hoarse, "Space... has also been slightly distorted. We might not be traveling in a 'straight line'."

Panic, like cold vines, coiled around everyone's heart.

Behind the stone gate, Lu Yuan used the main control disc and the mark to sense and "watch" the seven people circling around in a fixed area like trapped beasts.

Mo Chen's interference nodes stably output chaotic fluctuations. Yun Youzi's formation is cleverly woven, amplifying the confusion effect.

It's like binding a tiger's ankle with the finest thread. It's not a tight binding, but enough to make it stagger, become agitated, and lose its composure.

"That's about it," Lu Yuan said in a low voice.

He closed his eyes, immersing his entire being in the imprint.

The view rose higher, soaring over the valley and landing on the energy vortex node deep within the Black Stone Mountain Range. It was a depression between two peaks, constantly swept by chaotic energy winds, with a fragile spatial structure.

Lu Yuan's "consciousness" gently touched the edge of the node.

There was no forceful prying; it was like plucking a string, applying an extremely subtle resonance to its inherent chaotic "vibration frequency."

Buzz--

Within the node, a turbulent current of rules, already on the edge of restlessness and originating from the edge of the "Crevice Space," was stirred by this resonance, causing it to ripple slightly.

Lu Yuan immediately withdrew his "consciousness".

That's enough.

That little "ripple" detached from the node, like a drop of water being flung away, and rippled towards the valley along the invisible "folds" in the spatial structure.

Extremely fast.

The moment Lu Yuan opened his eyes--

In the valley, the old man in black robes, who was pacing irritably in front of a dead end, suddenly froze.

He looked up in horror.

It was not sound, not light, not any physical attack.

It was an indescribable "feeling," which appeared out of nowhere.

The ground beneath my feet suddenly felt like flowing sand, and the sky above my head felt like heavy mercury. My sense of direction blurred instantly. The Soul Power within my body surged wildly like a school of startled fish, completely out of my control.

His senses were thrown into a churning drum, violently stirred. Visual, auditory, and tactile information clashed with each other. He saw his companion's mouth moving, yet heard the sound of stones rolling down. He touched the cold rock wall, but the texture felt like warm flesh and blood.

Chaos exists at a pure and high-dimensional level of rules.

Although it lasted only a brief moment, it receded like the tide.

But that one moment of experience was enough to make these Soul Master feel a fear that came from the depths of their souls.

"Ah--!" One of the Zhao Clan's Soul Saint screamed in agony, collapsing to the ground with a dazed look in his eyes. Another person vomited and trembled all over. The black-robed elder's face turned ashen, and he staggered backward, barely managing to stand by leaning against the rock wall. His eyes were filled with fear as he looked around at the mist.

What is that?!

It wasn't Soul Skill, nor poison, nor any known attack method! It was... as if the fundamental rules of the world had briefly "collapsed" before them!

The unknown brings the greatest fear.

"Retreat! Retreat immediately! No matter which way you go, charge out!" the black-robed old man roared hoarsely, his voice distorted.

The remaining six had long lost their will to fight, their Soul Power erupting wildly as they desperately rushed towards the thinnest part of the fog. Some crashed into rock walls, bleeding profusely from their heads, but they didn't stop. Others tripped over vines, tumbling and crawling.

In a sorry state.

I just want to escape this incredibly eerie place immediately!

Inside the stronghold, Lu Yuan watched through the crack in the door as the seven hastily fleeing figures disappeared into the mist.

The vibration of the main control disk in his arms gradually stopped. The interference node had run out of energy.

The mist in the valley began to thin.

"They're gone." Lin Xiao breathed a sigh of relief. "Too bad I didn't get to beat them up."

"The objective has been achieved." Yun Youzi opened his eyes, looking at Lu Yuan with a complex expression. "That wisp of 'turbulence'... was guided perfectly. Any more, and someone might have suffered a mental breakdown and died here. The enmity would have been much greater."

Lu Yuan nodded. "It's just a warning."

This will deter the greedy hyenas, letting them know that this bone is not only hard, but also carries an incomprehensible poison. Enough.

The news will spread. The story of the Mysterious Yin Sect and the Zhao Clan's elite advance team getting lost in the valley, encountering indescribable terror, and fleeing in disarray will soon appear on the intelligence tables of all forces.

Smaller and medium-sized forces will weigh the pros and cons. Larger forces will be more vigilant and will shift to more covert reconnaissance.

This bought the crucial time and space for the complete evacuation of "Spark".

"We should go too." Lu Yuan turned around. "According to the plan, we'll split into three groups and meet at ' Dark Nest '."

Mo Chen and Su Yan packed up the last few items. Lin Xiao checked the dagger bag. Yun Youzi carefully put away the ancient books and notes.

Lu Yuan took one last look at the simple stone house and walked out.

The morning mist was completely dissipating, and the sunlight illuminated the mess in the valley—the traces left by the seven people in their panicked escape.

Lu Yuan didn't linger, and led the group away quickly along a secluded path.

The movements were clean and efficient, all traces were erased or covered up, as if no one had ever stayed here for long.

Two hours later.

Lu Yuan and Yun Youzi stood on the mountain ridge far from the ruins, looking back.

All that could be seen was the outline of the Black Stone Mountain Range and an ordinary sky. Everything from last night to this morning felt like a fleeting dream.

But Lu Yuan knew that wasn't the case.

Suddenly, without warning, a faint, completely different "resonance" emanated from the Stone Gate Mark between his brows.

The feeling was very vague, intermittent, like a call from another "Key" or another "node" transmitted from an incredibly vast distance...?

The direction points northeast of the mainland. Very far.

Lu Yuan frowned slightly.

Yun Youzi noticed something was amiss and cast an inquiring glance his way.

Lu Yuan shook his head, suppressing the discovery for the time being. "Let's leave here first," he said calmly. "The road ahead is still long."

He turned around, his figure disappearing into the rising mist on the other side of the ridge.

A deep, rumbling sound came from the depths of the valley behind them.

The pre-arranged mechanism was triggered, completely burying the entrance to the ruins and disguising it as a simple natural landslide.

All the past, the adventures, the dreams, and the initial Core Flame are temporarily buried beneath those silent rocks.

The road ahead is shrouded in Mist, but the decision to move forward has been made.