Free Web NovelChapter 193: Chapter 193: Stone Forest
Zhang Nan took a step, intending to enter the Stone Forest, when a sharp pain suddenly pierced his mind—a warning from his Companion Spirit, the Golden Hamster.
Chen Nan was the first to notice Zhang Nan’s pale face. He reached out to steady him, asking, "What’s wrong?"
Zhang Nan glanced at Min Wu, who was preparing to enter the Stone Forest with him. He didn’t want anyone to think he was timid or afraid to scout ahead.
Gritting his teeth against the stabbing pain in his head, Zhang Nan waved Chen Nan off. "I probably just didn’t sleep well last night. It’s nothing." He subtly pressed a hand to his breast pocket, where his Companion Spirit, the Golden Hamster, was squirming restlessly, sending him a stronger sense of crisis than ever before.
"Let’s go." Zhang Nan took a deep breath and led the way into the Stone Forest. He could feel Chen Nan’s worried gaze on his back, but he didn’t turn around.
The moment they stepped into the Stone Forest, the surrounding temperature dropped sharply. Though it was noon, the sunlight was shattered by the towering black stone pillars, casting bizarre shadows on the ground. Zhang Nan noticed the shadows seemed to be squirming, but when he focused on them, they returned to normal.
"Min Wu, do you feel cold?" Zhang Nan asked the man walking beside him.
Min Wu rubbed his arms. "It is a little cold." He then lowered his voice. "And don’t you think it’s too quiet? It feels like there’s no sound at all."
Zhang Nan nodded. The Golden Hamster was growing more agitated in his pocket. He carefully observed the arrangement of the stone pillars and the features of the terrain, then channeled a sliver of energy into his eyes, activating his Companion Spirit’s Talent Skill, Eye of Truth.
Min Wu saw Zhang Nan’s eyes turn a shadowy gray and knew he had activated his Talent Skill. Min Wu was clear on his mission: to ensure Zhang Nan’s safety and use his own Skill to get him out of here if danger arose.
Zhang Nan activated Eye of Truth. The moment he did, he realized the Skill was draining his energy at an enormous rate. He scanned the area in all directions—near, far, front, and back. What he saw made his breath catch in his throat. The base of a low-lying stone pillar not far from them was sprouting a vast, dense network of roots, just like a great tree. These roots were covered in blood-red veins that pulsed faintly, like blood vessels.
And within the mottled shadows on the ground, wisps of black aura were swirling, slowly creeping toward their position.
"Min Wu, we have to go. Now." Fighting a powerful wave of dizziness, Zhang Nan forced himself to keep looking, memorizing the position of each unusual stone pillar.
Just then, the ground began to shake violently. Three nearby stone pillars exploded, and countless black tentacles shot out from the rubble. The tentacles, covered in slimy suction cups, lunged for the two of them. Zhang Nan instinctively leaped back toward Min Wu, who grabbed him and activated his Positional Flash Skill. Just as the black tentacles were about to touch them, the two figures vanished with a WHOOSH.
When Min Wu and Zhang Nan reappeared before Ning Xuan and the others, their faces were deathly pale. Zhang Nan clutched his head, crying out in pain, "My head hurts so much."
Min Wu also felt a tightness in his chest. He slammed a fist against it, and Tang Xue grabbed his hand nervously. "What’s wrong, Little Five?"
"Little Snow, my chest feels tight," Min Wu gasped, breathing heavily.
Ning Xuan had already placed three needles in Zhang Nan’s head, and the pain gradually subsided.
"Xuanyuan, hurry and check on Little Five," Tang Xue called out anxiously to Ning Xuan.
Ning Xuan walked over and took Min Wu’s pulse. Finding it rapid and strong, and seeing his shallow, quick breaths and purplish lips, she immediately applied acupuncture to several key points. After a moment, Min Wu’s breathing gradually stabilized.
Once his headache eased, Zhang Nan immediately took out a pen and paper. He drew the unusual stone pillars he had memorized, handed the sketch to Ning Xuan, and told everyone what he had just seen in the Stone Forest.
"The Stone Forest restricts energy flow. Using the same Skill inside is slower, and it consumes two or even three times more energy than outside," Zhang Nan said, explaining his experience. Min Wu immediately confirmed his account.
"That’s right. I can usually use my Flash Skill at least three times a day, but just now, all my energy was completely depleted," Min Wu said weakly.
"My headache started when one of those shadows brushed past me. There wasn’t even any direct contact, but I could feel a cold, sinister aura invade my mind," Zhang Nan added.
Ning Xuan nodded, giving each of them a bottle of Energy Supplement Potion and a bottle of Spiritual Power Recovery Potion. She told them to get some rest.
Ning Xuan studied the diagram Zhang Nan had drawn. After a moment, she passed it to the others. Yun Han looked at it for a while, his expression turning grave.
"What is it? Did you figure something out?" Ning Xuan asked.
"Contractor, I can’t be certain, but judging from the arrangement in this corner, it resembles an Array I read about in an Array Book," Yun Han said hesitantly.
"Zhang Nan, when you were drawing this, you said the problematic pillars were all the lower, shorter ones, correct?" Ning Xuan turned and asked Zhang Nan.
Zhang Nan nodded affirmatively. "Yes. The other pillars come in all shapes and sizes, but the ones with roots at the base are all short and rounded."
"Yun Han, if we could map out the pattern over a larger area, would you be able to determine if it’s the Array you’re thinking of?" Ning Xuan asked Yun Han.
"If I could see another two-thirds of the area, I could be certain," Yun Han replied.
"Then all we need to do is get above the Stone Forest, look down at the pillars, and map out the positions of all the short ones," Ning Xuan said.
Di Youlin immediately stepped forward. "Master, I can fly above the Stone Forest."
"I’m afraid that’s not a good idea. Did you all see the dried bloodstains on those especially tall pillars? The blood flowed down from the very top," Yun Han warned.
"Judging by the distribution of the stains, they were likely left by something that fell from the sky, crashed onto the pillars, and was impaled," Yun Han added.
"That does seem to be the case," Lin Mo nodded.
"Whatever fell was probably just some ordinary bird. If I fly high enough, I’ll be fine," Di Youlin said dismissively.
Hearing this, everyone had mixed expressions.
Ning Xuan frowned. "Don’t be careless. Yun Han, what Array do you suspect this is, and what does it do?"
"It resembles a Trapped Dragon Formation. They’re typically used to suppress powerful Exotic Beasts. It can draw on the Exotic Beast’s Bloodline Energy to maintain the Array, and it can also siphon energy from any person or creature that enters or approaches it," Yun Han explained.
"But didn’t this place just get invaded by Exotic Beasts? And we haven’t found any highly intelligent species. Even if there was an extremely powerful Exotic Beast, how could it have been suppressed?" Di Youlin asked doubtfully.
Based on just a small part of the pattern, Yun Han couldn’t be certain either. Hearing his theory questioned, he fell silent.
