One Touch to Ignite

The ground beneath their feet became softer and more damp, covered in a layer of ash-like substance that felt spongy to step on, offering little traction.

The surrounding scenery rapidly turned desolate and ruined. Collapsed stone pillars, shattered walls, and twisted metal wreckage could be seen everywhere.

The most striking feature was the omnipresent bone-eroding black wind. It was not just ordinary wind, but a slowly swirling stream of spiritual energy.

Some were as thin as strands of hair, while others were as thick as pythons. They wove silently through the ruins. Wherever they passed, even stubborn rocks seemed to suffer accelerated weathering, their surfaces pockmarked with fine holes and signs of erosion.

Generally speaking, the black wind was not lethal and would only make one feel slightly weakened. However, there were always exceptions. Large-scale black winds had occurred before, though very rarely in history.

An Changqing erected a pale golden spiritual energy shield that enveloped the four of them, temporarily blocking the direct erosion of the black wind. However, it was obvious that the golden light on the shield's surface was constantly being weakened upon contact with the black wind.

"The black wind drains spiritual energy heavily. I cannot maintain this indefinitely," An Changqing said in a deep voice. "Let's speed up and try to avoid prolonged exposure in areas where the black wind is dense."

The four quickened their pace, traversing through the ruins. Chen Guan, carrying the coffin on his back, still moved steadily. His physical fitness allowed him to keep up with the team quite well without holding them back.

He also noticed that when the black wind approached the profound iron coffin, it seemed to be slightly repelled by an invisible force, rendering its corrosive effect completely useless. This settled his mind a bit; it seemed the coffin's isolating properties were effective here too.

Along the way, they saw traces of other exploration teams and encountered some low-tier ruin creatures. These were easily dispatched by An Changqing and Long Ao, failing to hinder the team's progress.

As they ventured deeper, the surrounding black wind became denser, and visibility gradually dropped.

The scale of the ruins also grew more massive. They could vaguely make out that these were once parts of magnificent structures. Unfortunately, no matter how grand the buildings were, they ultimately could not withstand the passage of time, leaving behind only broken walls and debris.

"The ancient pagoda area is just ahead." An Changqing stopped and gestured for everyone to look forward.

Through the hazy mist of the black wind, the outlines of three towering ancient pagodas, built entirely from grayish-white megaliths, gradually became clear.

They stood in a triangular formation on a relatively open ruined plaza. The pagoda bodies were covered in mottled marks and strange runes, some of which still flickered with a faint light resisting the erosion of the black wind.

The central pagoda was the tallest, visually estimated to be nearly a hundred meters high, though it was a pity that its spire seemed to have been destroyed.

At this moment, the middle section of the central pagoda was faintly flashing with a dark purple light, completely out of place in the surrounding grayish-black environment. That was the source of the abnormal fluctuations.

"The spiritual energy fluctuations are very active, but they seem unstable." Su Yuehe took out a compact runic compass and injected a trace of spiritual energy into it. The needle on the compass began to tremble irregularly, pointing toward the central pagoda. "There is definitely something inside, but it feels chaotic. I cannot detect anything specific."

"Approach with caution."

An Changqing deactivated the spiritual energy shield, opting instead to cover his body with a thin layer of golden light. A faint crimson glow also rippled around Long Ao, like burning flames. Su Yuehe activated the protective runes on her staff, shrouding herself in a pale white halo.

Chen Guan: ???

Wait, how come you guys all have Susanoo?

Chen Guan took a deep breath, gripping his scythe tightly. Highly concentrated, he tried to mobilize a sliver of gray energy to coat his body. The process was still arduous, but he managed to succeed just a little.

An almost invisible pale gray film covered him and his scythe. The surrounding black wind seemed to subconsciously detour around him a bit.

He breathed a sigh of relief. The gray energy was dependable after all; whatever spiritual energy could do, it could do as well.

The four formed a combat formation and carefully crossed the plaza, heading toward the entrance of the central pagoda, a five-meter-tall stone archway covered in cracks.

Inside the archway, it was pitch black, like the throat of a giant beast. Only that unstable dark purple light filtered down from higher up inside the pagoda, providing a faint light source.

The moment they stepped into the ancient pagoda, an oppressive aura far colder and damper than outside washed over them. At the same time, the concentration of the black wind permeating the pagoda far exceeded that of the outside, almost forming visible grayish-black air currents.

"The black wind here... is strange."

An Changqing frowned deeply. The depletion rate of his golden light shield had noticeably accelerated, completely different from outside.

Chen Guan's perception was somewhat different. Although the black wind inside the pagoda was thicker, the faint film of gray energy on his body seemed to resonate with the environment here.

The black wind seemed to treat him as one of its own, barely attacking him at all.

He had no time to ponder this, because clear footsteps and a low roar were already echoing from the darkness ahead.

"Something is coming!"

Su Yuehe whispered urgently, the compass needle spinning wildly.

The next moment, several tall figures slowly emerged from the deep shadows inside the pagoda with heavy, stiff steps.

They were over three meters tall, their bodies constructed entirely of grayish-white megaliths, with dull metal parts inlaid at their joints. They wielded massive stone axes and equally massive stone hammers.

In their hollow eye sockets burned two clusters of eerie green flames, and their bodies were wreathed in grayish-black air currents much denser than those outside.

Ancient pagoda guards, stone giants. Judging by their imposing presence and energy fluctuations, they were absolutely incomparable to the low-tier stone golems outside; they were likely at the second-tier level.

What was even more troublesome was that there were a full six of them, blocking both the paths forward and backward from different directions.

"It seems that if we want to get the item inside the pagoda, we have to get past them first."

An Changqing drew his longsword, the golden light flaring up again. His eyes turned sharp for a moment. The presence of the stone giants proved one thing: indeed, no one had been here yet.

A battle-hungry smirk curled on Long Ao's lips. He smashed his fists together, producing a dull thud as crimson aura surged up. He came here for only three things.

To fight, to fight, and to fight!

The moment An Changqing's words fell, the battle erupted.

The six stone giants took heavy steps simultaneously, causing the ground to tremble slightly. Although they were clumsy, within this narrow space on the ground floor of the ancient pagoda, their massive size and strength created a terrifying sense of oppression.

Their eerie green eyes locked onto the four people. The stone axes and hammers in their hands ruthlessly smashed down, carrying the muffled sound of tearing wind.

"Scatter! Take them down one by one!"

An Changqing shouted in a low voice. His figure shot forward like a golden bolt of lightning, actively rushing to meet the two foremost stone giants. He swung his longsword, weaving a net of golden light, and slashed precisely at the joints of the stone arms wielding the weapons.

He did not choose to clash head-on; instead, he used his speed and skill to seek out the weak points of these hulking beasts.