After the seal of the secret place was opened, it left a trace. Jiang Yan and his group followed the crystal butterfly to find the entrance,
then injected spiritual power to tear open the entrance.
Teacher Fang, Fang Wangru, protected others behind him and reminded, 'The secrets of this place are unknown. Be cautious, and if possible, try not to separate.' 'Yes, Teacher Fang.'
If it weren't for someone secretly watching the Shi family, the various forces in the Tianlin Continent would have no idea about the origin of the Shi family and the existence of this ancestral land. So whether the Shi family's ancestral land is a treasure or a danger is still uncertain. The vast wealth of the Shi family is accumulated through the years of operation of the Stone Merchants Guild.
Fang Wangru, usually casual but with attention to detail, has walked cautiously to this day. Looking at the black hole torn open in front, he took the lead to jump in. Jiang Yan followed closely, and Chi Changye grabbed Gu Yao's arm and jumped in together.
As soon as the eyes left the darkness and gained light, the travelers were shocked by the constantly wriggling dark red in front of them. There was also a strong smell of blood. Fang Wangru quickly threw out a ring-shaped magical tool, covering himself and the students behind him, isolating their breath, as if they could still hear the angry roar of the dark red wriggling below.
Below seemed like a bloody hell. Gu Yao saw this scene for the first time, and kneeling down on the spot was already good enough. He exclaimed, 'What is this thing?'
'This is the Eclipse Blood Vine. Only the blood of the one who tames it, including their descendants, can awaken it when the Eclipse Blood Vine is dormant. In other words, this secret place is indeed passed down from the ancestors of the Shi family. Only the blood of the descendants of the Shi family can awaken the blood vine and open this secret place.' Jiang Yan explained after seeing the thing below clearly.
Gu Yao looked around, only the nearby part was dark red, as if it had just sucked blood. The back was a densely black mass, but it seemed to be recovering, emitting a bloodthirsty intent.
Chi Changye's expression became serious. Obviously, he didn't expect it to be the Eclipse Blood Vine. 'Once the Eclipse Blood Vine is awakened, it needs to feed on a large amount of blood to calm it down. Otherwise, they will attack indiscriminately until one side wins or both perish.'"
"Run quickly!" Fang Wangru's voice was stern, and a palpable fear gripped everyone's hearts. Disregarding everything, they swiftly followed Fang Wangru's figure. In that instant they left, numerous dark red serpentine objects shot out from below, seemingly capable of piercing everything. At the same time, it revealed several dried-up corpses below them, their clothes still preserving the appearance of their past lives, but the bodies were devoid of any flesh or blood.
Gu Yao just glanced back and happened to see the bodies hidden in the crevices. His heart pounded, and the bodies appeared freshly dead from the outside, yet all the blood had been instantly drained. He couldn't help but hoarsely ask, "Are those bodies left by people who just entered?"
Chí Chángyè nodded, "Most likely. Since it is passed down from the ancestors of the Shi family, the head of the Shi family should know the situation here. He used those people. The recently awakened Eclipse Blood Vine needs sufficient blood to feed on, so he sacrificed those people to these blood vines. In the meantime, he could use this time to escape. Be careful!"
The blood vines behind them chased at an extremely fast speed, and other blood vines were also stirring, surrounding them from all directions. Fang Wangru held a gourd, spraying flames from it, creating an escape route. Others also displayed their abilities. Gu Yao threw out prepared spirit talismans, crushing any that slipped through the net with sword energy.
After an unknown duration of fighting, suddenly the siege of the blood vines weakened. Fang Wangru led them with determination, breaking out of the encirclement of blood vines, flying forward until they were far from the range of the Eclipse Blood Vine before stopping.
Everyone looked back with lingering fear. They hadn't expected that the ancestors of the Shi family would use such monstrous creatures in their secret place. Fang Wangru wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "Take a moment to recover and then let's go. It's likely that more people have come behind us, diverting the attention of these demonic vines. We temporarily avoid people from other factions to reduce conflicts."
"Yes, Teacher Fang."
Their ability to trace the tracks to this place meant that other forces also had capable individuals. So, the current situation didn't surprise Fang Wangru. After a brief recovery, he waved his hand and ordered, "Let's go!"
After the demonic vines, there was a desolate area. This time, they didn't let the crystal butterfly lead the way. If the Shi family head could set up an ambush once, he could set it up a second time. No one knew if following his trail would lead them right into his trap.
"The Eclipse Blood Vine absorbs the surrounding spiritual energy before going into dormancy, so the environment here is quite normal." Seeing Gu Yao's puzzled expression, Chí Chángyè explained, "Apart from the barren surface, there is nothing abnormal here."
The spiritual energy here is also very thin.
"Not bad, I didn't expect Brother Chi to know quite a bit about these supernatural phenomena." Jiang Yan laughed.
Chi Changye calmly said, "I once experienced a similar environment. Later, I saw relevant records there and learned about this kind of demonic vine. Our luck isn't too bad; the cultivation of this vine by its owner was limited. If it could unleash its Nascent Soul strength, none of us would escape today."
Fang Wangru appreciatively looked at Chi Changye and said, "Our luck isn't too bad. It seems that the ancestral land of the Shi family is meant to protect something. Let's go, if there's a chance, we'll explore."
As for whether to seize this thing, Fang Wangru didn't feel it was so urgent after entering. Now, not only was the Shi family involved, but other forces had also joined in. It would be easy to bring trouble upon themselves by grabbing the item.
Perhaps due to the presence of the Eclipse Blood Vine, they didn't encounter any danger next. Flying in a certain direction, they saw another desolate mountain peak. At the same time, they heard the sound of a fight coming from the mountain. Fang Wangru made a gesture, and everyone immediately concealed their auras, quietly approaching the direction of the fighting.
Through the rock crevices, they saw several cultivators on the mountain path below besieged by a group of spider puppets. Each spider was the size of a millstone, not only spewing venom but also shooting silk. Behind them, it seemed like more spiders were crawling out. Fang Wangru exclaimed, "It's actually spider puppets." Then, he realized, "In this place where spiritual energy has been drained, living beings would find it difficult to survive. Only these puppets are unaffected."
Jiang Yan observed for a while and said, "The head of the Shi family and Shi Shimei are not here. The identity of the cultivators below is also unclear."
Fang Wangru looked towards the depths of the mountain, "Perhaps the place guarded by the demonic vine is here. Let's go, and we'll go down to take a look. Since we've come, there's no turning back."
"Okay, let's explore with the senior." Jiang Yan smiled.
The group no longer hid their traces. Several figures swooped out and surprised the cultivators who were battling the spider puppets. One of them shouted loudly, "Are you all here for the Shi family's ancestral land? Shi Jingcheng has already entered. He controls these puppets. Only by defeating these spider puppets can we go further."
In order to enter the passage ahead, fellow cultivators, why don't we cooperate?"
"Good, let's deal with these spider puppets first." Fang Wangru laughed heartily and took the lead in using a scale-shaped magical tool to smash down.
Gu Yao also joined the fight, using wood-based spells to generate sturdy vines to entangle the spider's claws. Beside him, Chi Changye didn't wait for the spiders to spew venom and corrode the vines. He swiftly struck the puppet's control hub with a few swords, causing the millstone-sized spider to collapse.
While observing the battle between the cultivators below and the puppets, the two had already thought about the weaknesses of these puppets. Now, their cooperation was quite tacit. Along with the other members, including Zhou Li, their combined strength was formidable. Both sides were cautious, but by joining forces, they quickly cleaned up the spider puppets outside, and no more puppets emerged from the passage.
"The cultivator from the Heavenly Mansion Academy?" A black-robed cultivator asked cautiously.
"Yes, may I know how to address you? Shi Yanyan has been captured in our academy's territory, and we have the responsibility to trace her whereabouts." Fang Wangru glanced at the other person and stated firmly.
"I am surnamed Zhao. Brother Fang is indeed righteous." Zhao cultivator said in his mouth, but he was skeptical. People from the Heavenly Mansion Academy were using the Shi family's daughter as a pretext, likely aiming for the treasures in this ancestral land. "The students of the Heavenly Mansion Academy are all young talents, and, in Zhao's opinion, they are no less than those disciples of major sects. There is a misunderstanding among the people."
"Haha, Brother Zhao overestimates them. How about we go in first and discuss later?" Fang Wangru smiled.
"Sure, Brother Fang, please."
The two groups entered the passage ahead, mutually vigilant. Zhao seemed more concerned that Fang Wangru and others might suddenly turn hostile, but Fang Wangru's group didn't have such intentions. They knew that more people had come behind them, and it wasn't certain that they would be trapped by the Eclipse Blood Vine. Perhaps those who came later would catch up and engage in a battle, wasting energy, and might even be defeated by those who arrived later.
Shortly after they entered the passage, two more groups arrived from behind. However, they looked much worse off than Fang Wangru's group. They landed on the mountain path, and their faces changed when they saw the fragments of puppet spiders on the ground. It was evident that several groups had arrived before them, and they were far behind. The two groups exchanged glances and rushed towards the passage, temporarily ceasing the battle and conserving their strength to deal with those who went in first.
As soon as they disappeared, more newcomers arrived, silently entering the passage as well.
However, many cultivators left their lives at the entrance of the secret place, becoming the blood food for the Eclipse Blood Vine. The blood vines at the entrance became even more eerie and robust, spreading into the secret place like waves of blood.
After traversing a segment of the passage, they faced over a dozen forks. Zhao cultivator, no longer courteous, pointed to one of the passages, "Let's go in this one."