"Until one day,
Strange rays of light began to spread across the entirety of Baiwa City.
From that moment on, none of the demons in the city could maintain their human forms, regardless of their cultivation level. Even newly enlightened demons within the city could only remain in their original forms and could not transform.
If it had only been this, it wouldn't have been too bad. The humans and demons in Baiwa City were all focused on finding a way out together.
But something happened that no one expected.
One day, as I was walking down the street, a beam of light suddenly descended from the sky, enveloping a human cultivator.
At first, the cultivator had no idea what was happening. But after just ten breaths of time, they vanished without a trace—and without the slightest sign of pain.
No one knew whether this cultivator had escaped Baiwa City or disappeared entirely in the truest sense.
After that, the human cultivators in Baiwa City began to vanish daily. Some disappeared while eating, others in their sleep. There was no pattern, no warning. The only common factor was the white light that appeared just before each disappearance.
My wife and I redoubled our efforts to study the formations surrounding Baiwa City.
Finally, we uncovered a critical truth: Baiwa City is not a formation, but a world.
Yet Baiwa City is unlike an ordinary small world. It exists in a state between a small world and a formation. It has its own laws but hasn't fully developed into a complete world.
We discovered that Baiwa City is gradually evolving. Its laws are constantly improving. Perhaps it won't be long before Baiwa City transforms into an actual small world.
So, we decided to refer to it as a 'small world' for now.
As we studied the laws of this small world, my wife detected that someone was manipulating Baiwa City.
The transformation of Baiwa City into what it is now may very well have been intentional.
But to possess the means to create a small world and even establish its laws, one would need to surpass the Ascension Realm. Only someone at a realm beyond Ascension could achieve such a feat.
But here's the problem: does anyone truly exist at those legendary, long-lost realms beyond Ascension?
Even if someone had reached such realms, why would they do this? What is their purpose? What do they want from Baiwa City?
My wife and I were left with too many unanswered questions.
Thankfully, we had seen Baiwa City before its transformation.
My wife, a genius beyond compare, studied the flow of spiritual energy and the geographical features of Baiwa City before and after its transformation. After countless attempts, she finally managed to create a formation.
As long as nothing goes wrong, this formation should allow us to leave this place.
However, the formation must be activated on a full moon night to work at its full potential.
According to my wife's calculations, the next full moon is exactly one hundred days away.
Both of us knew that either of us could vanish before then.
As time passed, the number of human cultivators in Baiwa City dwindled until only my wife and I remained.
We both understood that if the white light appeared again, it would claim one of us next.
To prepare for the worst, I placed a record of everything that happened in Baiwa City, as well as the formation my wife created, into this box.
I entrusted a butterfly spirit girl from the neighboring house to fulfill one request: if anything happened to my wife and me, she would cremate us and bury our ashes beneath the banyan tree in our courtyard. The box was to be hidden beneath a floorboard near the doorstep.
If, in the future, someone were to enter this secret realm and find what we left behind, perhaps it might help them escape Baiwa City.
If the formation we devised succeeds and we manage to leave Baiwa City, then this letter and the formation diagram would no longer be necessary. The butterfly spirit girl will destroy them, as the formation contains many secret techniques from my wife's sect that cannot be shared.
However, we will inform the Wu Kingdom and the Tianxuan Sect about the secret realm so they can investigate its origins.
So, the fact that you are now reading this letter means we are no longer here. I hope you can live well and find your way out of this place."
The letter ended there.
Xu Ming read it twice more to ensure he hadn't missed any details.
"Goose, goose, goose (Xu Ming, I think something's not right)," the Tianxuan Goose said to Xu Ming.
"It is indeed odd," Xu Ming nodded. "Tell me your thoughts first."
"Goose, goose, goose, goose, goose, goose, goose (Look, if they intended to leave the map for later seekers to help them escape, why would they bury their ashes under the banyan tree and hide the box in a separate location? How much luck would it take for someone to find this?)" The Tianxuan Goose found it rather unreasonable.
Xu Ming chuckled. "It's not that simple.
First, if Shen Sheng and his wife had left the box lying around casually, it would've been lost long ago—let alone survive for over a hundred years in this world.
Second, do you know why so many ruins and ancient tombs are filled with deadly traps, yet also contain treasures and legacies left by their creators?
It's because these setups are meant to screen people. The creators of these ruins or tombs want to find exceptional individuals to inherit their legacy, not someone mediocre. Otherwise, their inheritance would be wasted.
And they already stated it, didn't they? The parchment contains secret techniques that cannot be made public. Not just anyone can be allowed to see it."
Xu Ming opened the parchment and examined the formation. "See? The formation they created is indeed extraordinary. While not overly complex, it's intricate, with countless interlocking details. A single misstep during its construction would cause the entire formation to fail.
I'm certain Shen Sheng and his wife must've left many clues scattered throughout Baiwa City, along with various tests. Only those skilled in formations, who investigate carefully and pass the trials, would eventually reach their courtyard.
If someone can't even find this box, they likely wouldn't have the ability to construct the formation successfully."
"Goose, goose, goose (Xu Ming, can you construct this formation?)" the goose asked.
"Absolutely not!" Xu Ming replied without hesitation.
The goose was speechless.
"Don't look at me like that." Xu Ming spread his hands. "I'm not omnipotent. I can only understand the formation's design. Remember, we already knew Shen Sheng's name, which led us directly to his courtyard. Then, you were lucky enough to notice that inconspicuous groove, and that's how we found the formation they left behind."
"So, what do we do now?" the goose asked.
"What else can we do? We need to find a few people skilled in formations and see if they can help construct it," Xu Ming replied matter-of-factly. "Besides, haven't you noticed another odd detail?"
"What detail?" The goose tilted its head.
"You..."
Xu Ming sighed.
"I met Shen Sheng on Shunan Mountain. By that logic, he and his wife should've already left this secret realm. If they managed to escape, their first priority should've been to notify the Wu Kingdom or the Tianxuan Sect.
But there's been no word from Wu, and the Tianxuan Sect only arrived today, which means they had no prior knowledge either.
If I'm not mistaken, something must have gone wrong when they tried to activate the formation.
This incident left them no time to write down the sequence of events."
Xu Ming frowned as he stared at the magic array depicted on the parchment. "This place is full of mysteries. What worries me more is what Shen Sheng mentioned—could this all be the result of someone deliberately manipulating events from behind the scenes? And if so, what is their purpose?"
The Tianxuan Goose patted Xu Ming on the shoulder. "Goose goose goose? (Xu Ming, could it be that you're overthinking?)"
"I certainly hope that's the case." Xu Ming stood up. "Let's go. We should find those two disciples from White Deer Academy. I've heard that the academy doesn't just focus on studies—every scholar there must also learn formation techniques. They'll surely know more about this than I do."
The Tianxuan Goose nodded and followed Xu Ming out of the inn.
However, just as Xu Ming stepped out of the inn's door, a beam of white light descended from the sky, landing somewhere in the northern part of Baiwa City.
"A white light..."
Xu Ming's heart sank as he recalled the contents of the letter he had read earlier. Without hesitation, he flew toward the direction of the light.
Inside the inn, a stunningly beautiful young woman was taking out outfit after outfit from her storage ring.
The young woman chose a flowing gauzy long dress and pinned her hair up with a hair ornament.
"This should look pretty good, right?"
Qin Qingwan twirled in front of the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
Just as she was about to leave for Tongfu Inn to meet Xu Ming, a beam of light descended from the heavens.
"Junior Sister, what's going on?" The sudden beam of white light prompted Xia Donghua and his two companions to step out of the inn as well.
"Let's go take a look," Qin Qingwan said, her brows furrowed as an inexplicable sense of foreboding gripped her heart. She headed toward the direction of the light.
At the same time, every cultivator in Baiwa City who witnessed the white light rushed toward its source.
Many were filled with excitement, wondering if a rare treasure had appeared.
But when they arrived at the source of the light, they realized they were wrong.
One after another, the beams of white light fell on human cultivators.
These cultivators showed no signs of resistance or pain; in fact, they didn't even have time to react before they disappeared within ten breaths of time.
"No, wait... Save me!"
"What in the world is this...?"
Some cultivators who arrived at the scene thought they had a chance to seize a treasure, only to find themselves engulfed by the white light as well.
The light descended intermittently, without any discernible pattern, continuing for the duration of a single incense stick.
Xu Ming frowned deeply as he watched the events unfold before him.
By the time the white light ceased, Xu Ming estimated that, in the span of an incense stick, thirty people had vanished without a trace due to the unrelenting beams of light.
"What on earth is going on? What kind of sorcery have you used?!"
"Give me back my junior brother!"
Some cultivators, having lost their fellow disciples, flew into a rage and drew their weapons, venting their anger on the nearby demon clans. They believed it was the demons' doing.
However, other cultivators quickly stepped in to mediate.
The demon clans in Baiwa City were not weak, especially the powerful Old Dog Squad responsible for maintaining order in the city.
If a conflict truly broke out, it would undoubtedly end poorly for them.
"Everyone, please remain calm and allow me to speak."
At that moment, Xia Donghua, the son of the Tianxuan Sect's leader, stepped into the center of the street. He looked around and bowed respectfully to the crowd.
"My name is Xia Donghua, and my father is the leader of Tianxuan Sect."
Some cultivators were initially puzzled about who he was, but as soon as he mentioned "Tianxuan Sect leader," most of them immediately took him seriously.
This was the Tianxuan Sect, one of the Four Great Sanctuaries and Five Major Sects in the human realm—its status was exceedingly prestigious.
"Everyone here has witnessed it—this Baiwa City is filled with unknowns. That white light just now was clearly targeting human cultivators. We have no idea where the disappeared cultivators have gone, nor do we know when the white light will strike again.
However, we must prepare ourselves.
Though I may not be highly skilled, I propose establishing an alliance among the cultivators here. We can support each other, share information, and work together to find a way out! If anyone is willing, you can come to the Misty Rain Inn, and we'll discuss our plans together!"
As soon as Xia Donghua finished speaking, the surrounding cultivators began to murmur among themselves.
"Brother Xia's idea is brilliant! My Chaotian Sect is willing to ally with the Tianxuan Sect."
"Indeed, we should unite instead of remaining scattered like loose sand. My Luohe Sect is willing to join the alliance."
"My Qingyu Sect agrees."
"I'm in, too."
Once the first sect expressed its willingness, other sects quickly followed suit.
Firstly, the name of the Tianxuan Sect carried significant weight, not to mention Xia Donghua was the son of its leader. Secondly, in the face of danger, banding together often brought a sense of security.
However, in Xu Ming's view, the prerequisite for this kind of alliance was that everyone would need to be united and trustworthy. Yet, every person here had come for the sake of a rare treasure, each harboring their own motives.
Just based on this alone, this alliance was unlikely to amount to much.
"Let's go," Xu Ming said to the big white goose, turning to leave as he prepared to seek out the two disciples from White Deer Academy to discuss the matter.
But before Xu Ming could take more than a few steps, a young woman blocked his path.
Her long eyelashes fluttered lightly as she spoke, "We meet again~"
"May I ask what Miss Qingqing needs?" Xu Ming asked.
Qin Qingwan's tone was light and cheerful. "Oh, nothing much. I just wanted to invite you to join this alliance. Though, to be honest, I don't think this alliance will be of much use."
Seeing her so candid, Xu Ming couldn't help but smile. "If even you think it's useless, why should I join?"
"Well, even if the alliance is useless..." The young woman clasped her hands behind her back, taking a step closer. Her faintly curved lips seemed to encapsulate the beauty of the entire world. "I can protect you~"
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