The Once Upon a Time Past

The sky-blotting black mist suddenly enveloped the entire array, causing the four brothers' hearts to jolt in unison.

Subsequently, an aura of primal chaos suddenly diffused from within the black mist.

The dark silhouette continued to smile coldly, and then his figure gradually faded away, disappearing completely.

"Be careful, this is an array!" Yi Feng warned defensively.

"Cheap tricks. Resorting to an array when you can't win in a fight, this Desolate Hall is nothing more than this," the Man in Black scoffed.

Just as the two finished speaking.

The four brothers felt the space around them gradually collapsing, their bodies rapidly plummeting.

The entire world suddenly became different.

The black mist gradually transformed into the aura of primal chaos, enveloping the entire space.

Everything before their eyes became a hazy, bizarre distortion.

The four of them simultaneously felt the power within their bodies being siphoned away by the chaotic energy.

Various flames and lightning struck in a bizarre and abrupt manner.

The power of various laws fell into disarray within this space.

Gravity seemed to vanish, space appeared to overlap and twist, and the flow of time fluctuated unpredictably, making everything incredibly eerie.

"Brothers, form an array to defend!" Yi Feng shouted.

Fighting an array with an array, defeating magic with magic.

Only by first withstanding the erosion could they find a way to break the array.

"Alright!" the other three brothers replied in unison.

Yi Feng and the other three took positions in the four directions, raising their hands together to form a protective array to resist the strangeness of this place.

The shield enveloped the four of them, protecting them against the distorted laws, eerie lightning, and raging flames.

"Sizzle!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Various attacks wildly slammed into the four brothers' array shield, emitting earth-shattering booms and causing violent tremors.

The four brothers were each searching for a way to break the array.

Yet, they heard various voices whispering in their ears and saw people who shouldn't exist appearing before their eyes.

There were actually illusions!

Not just illusions, these illusions could actually trigger their inner demons!

The four brothers saw the deceased singers and dancers of Wenjiu City dancing gracefully before them.

But as they danced, these familiar girls suddenly started bleeding from their seven orifices.

Gradually, their fair skin turned sallow and then withered.

Ultimately turning into skeletons dressed in neon garments!

Seeing this scene, the malicious thoughts within the four brothers were instantly provoked.

Thoughts of vengeance made them incredibly furious, but the angrier they got, the faster their power drained away.

As soon as this illusion appeared, the four brothers had already seen through the trick.

They sent voice transmissions to warn each other, urging everyone to maintain their rationality and avoid falling into the trap.

This illusion array triggered inner demons, and inner demons would cause their power to rapidly deplete.

And their lost power was nourishing this great array that sought to claim their lives.

This was undoubtedly a vicious cycle.

They needed to find a way to break the array quickly, otherwise, the four of them would be drained to death alive inside it!

Suddenly, the eerie and distorted voice of the Master of the Desolate Hall, that dark silhouette, echoed within the space.

This voice was like a demonic tune, and also like distant yet close thunder, sometimes exploding in the minds of the four, sometimes as soft as a mosquito's hum.

"Seeing you act like true brothers and appear so united, this Venerable One wants to see if you can remain like true brothers and stay so united from now on."

"Tsk tsk," the dark silhouette sneered playfully, continuing, "This Venerable One will take pity on you and tell you how to break the array."

"The method to break the array is quite simple. When only one person is left alive inside the array, it will naturally deactivate."

"In other words, only one of you can walk out of this array. I am very curious whether you four brothers will slaughter each other in this life-and-death crisis!"

Accompanied by cold, strange laughter, the demonic voice slowly dissipated.

Hearing this, the four brothers felt not the slightest ripple in their hearts.

"Ignore his alarmist talk. We will continue to maintain the array and look for a way to break it," Yi Feng shouted.

The Man in Black, Toad, and Snail nodded solemnly.

"Let's search around and see if we can find the array core or the gate of life," the Man in Black said.

"Toad, use your air cannons to attack in all directions and see if you can find any clues," Yi Feng commanded.

"Alright!"

The four of them, maintaining the shield, swept towards various parts of the array.

Toad continuously launched air attacks in all directions.

This space seemed endless. The four flew at top speed but could never find the edge.

Moreover, this space seemed to have no distinction between up, down, left, or right.

The four brothers tumbled around in this chaotic world, continuously consuming their own qi.

"Toad, take a rest, let me take over!" Yi Feng said.

"Mhm." Toad was already somewhat exhausted.

The four brothers constantly encountered illusions and inner demons, continuously holding up the shield, enduring dual torment of mind and body.

"Big brother, take a rest, let me do it!" Snail said.

The four brothers supported each other like this, using every method available to find the array core.

They either attacked or used magical treasures to investigate, but they never found the slightest trace of the array core or the gate of life.

Everything they did seemed to be in vain, completely useless.

Meanwhile, this great array was absorbing their power at every moment, quietly growing stronger.

The passage of time in this space followed no rules, and it was unknown how long had passed...

It seemed like a year.

Or perhaps ten years.

The condition of the four brothers gradually declined, and all four appeared extremely exhausted.

But the continuous torment only increased rather than decreased.

Amidst the haze.

The small mountain village appeared before Yi Feng's eyes.

A peaceful and serene village, filled with the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers.

It was a bright and sunny noon.

Yi Feng, just like before, was called Ah Dai by the children.

Carrying the firewood he had just chopped on his back, he walked toward home.

From afar, he saw a woman with fluttering robes standing at the gate of the courtyard, eagerly looking forward to his return.

Seeing Yi Feng return, the woman's beautiful eyes sparkled with light.

She beamed with a smile that looked like a hundred flowers blooming.

While joy welled up in Yi Feng's heart, an endless sorrow also arose.

Why? Why was he so heartbroken upon seeing his true love?

Yi Feng didn't understand, nor did he want to. He only wanted to rush forward quickly and embrace his lover.

But the shouts of his brothers suddenly rang in his ears.

"Big brother, this is an illusion, wake up quickly!"

"Grab him, don't let him rush out!"

"Slap him, smack him awake!"

...

His brothers held onto Yi Feng, screaming hysterically into his ears.

Yi Feng fell into bewilderment, only to see the surrounding scenery suddenly become desolate and then hazy.

His true love slowly solidified into a stone statue, devoid of any signs of life.

"No!"

Yi Feng wanted to reach out and grab something, but in the end, he grasped nothing.

At the most critical moment, his three brothers held him tightly.

Under these circumstances, if Yi Feng rushed out of the shield, it would definitely cause a massive problem.

Fortunately, Yi Feng regained his senses.

Yi Feng's eyes were red, and he swallowed a wave of bitterness down his throat.

"Big brother, are you okay?!" Toad asked anxiously.

Yi Feng looked at his three brothers and said melancholically, "I'm fine."

How he wished that everything that had just happened was real, but alas, it was not.

Recalling the promise he had made to Bai Piaopiao's stone statue—that he would soon return to bring her back—Yi Feng pulled himself together once more.

"I'm sorry for making you worry. Let's try to think of another way. When brothers unite, their combined strength can cut through gold!" Yi Feng encouraged.

"Right!" the three brothers replied in unison.

Seeing Yi Feng regain his fighting spirit, the three brothers felt a profound sense of joy.

However, their current situation was truly dire.

As their energy was constantly drained without being replenished, their strength rapidly deteriorated.

An unknown amount of time passed. All four brothers wore heavy expressions, their bodies plagued by extreme weakness.

Under the dual torment of mind and flesh, they gradually slipped to the brink of death...