One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Chapter 226 Rock Run's Trap

The two stopped lingering and ceased their cautious, slow pace. Nie Lingfeng increased his speed, but remained highly vigilant. Chen Duo followed closely behind, Phoenix True Fire circulating in her palm, ready to respond to any attack from any angle.

Sure enough, the deeper they went, the more frequent the attacks became. Those "moving shadows" seemed endless, emerging from all sorts of unbelievable angles and gaps, frantically attacking them. Some shadows even tried to merge with the surrounding writhing dark red slime, forming larger, more solid, and more powerful "slime shadow monsters."

However, under Nie Lingfeng's force field suppression, which combined the majesty of the Qilin, and Chen Duo's precise and sharp Phoenix True Fire purification, these attacks were all neutralized. The two were like two sharp arrows shooting upstream in the filthy darkness. Wherever they passed, shadows dissipated, slime dried up, and the evil aura was temporarily repelled and purified, leaving behind short-lived "clean" passages, which were quickly filled back by the surrounding, denser darkness and evil.

The mine tunnel stretched endlessly downwards and deeper into the depths, seemingly without end. The slope grew steeper and steeper, in some places requiring climbing slippery rock walls. The air grew thinner, yet the malevolent "field" and the cloying, suffocating stench became so thick it was almost suffocating. The ancient, blasphemous song grew clearer, as if whispering in one's ear, possessing a bewitching magic that sought to erode one's will and drag one into eternal madness and darkness.

Nie Lingfeng had to divert some of his attention, circulating the "Wuqiu Yijue" and "Demon Heart Crossing" techniques to maintain a clear mind and resist the spiritual erosion of the song. At the same time, he constantly monitored Chen Duo's condition. Chen Duo's face was taut, her lips pressed into a thin line, and her emerald eyes shone brightly in the darkness, clearly also struggling against the interference of the song and the oppressive evil aura around her. But she did not back down; the Phoenix True Fire at her fingertips remained stable and pure, becoming the warmest and most steadfast light in this filthy darkness.

After descending further for an unknown amount of time and turning several sharp bends, the mine tunnel ahead suddenly opened up, and at the end of the flashlight beam, the outline of a man-made structure could be vaguely seen.

It appeared to be a place built into a natural cave, resembling a sacrificial platform or a rudimentary laboratory. The platform, constructed of rough-hewn stones, rose about one meter above the ground, forming an irregular circle with a diameter of approximately ten meters. In the center of the platform stood several crooked stone pillars carved with blasphemous symbols similar to those on the cave entrance walls. Scattered on the ground were broken pottery jars, rusted metal utensils, and… more fresh, not yet fully decomposed human skeletons and animal remains! The skeletons bore traces of dark red slime and gnawing marks, and the air was thick with an intensely strong stench of blood, decay, and evil.

Most strikingly, behind the platform, in a recessed area of ​​the cave wall, lies a bottomless shaft, about two meters in diameter, from which a dark red, viscous, blood-like mist continuously gushes forth! The intense, malevolent "field" and the blasphemous chants originate from the depths of this shaft! The edges of the shaft are also adorned with even more complex and sinister symbols, some of which faintly emit a dark green, will-o'-the-wisp-like glow.

This place is probably the "window" that the miners accidentally dug through to the real "Nammu Cave," and it was later used and transformed by some entity (or force) into an "outpost" for evil rituals or experiments!

"Finally...found it." Nie Lingfeng's eyes were sharp as knives as he carefully scanned every detail on the platform with his flashlight. The fresh skeletons indicated that "activity" had taken place here not long ago. Were they from Yanben? Or were they sacrifices "hunted" by the being from "Nanmu Cave"?

"Nie Lingfeng, look there!" Chen Duo suddenly pointed to a shadowy spot on the edge of the platform and exclaimed softly.

Following the beam of his flashlight, Nie Lingfeng saw several familiar silver metal boxes bearing the Yaoxing Society logo lying next to the pile of bones and debris! Although they were rusted and damaged, their style was almost identical to the ones the man in the white coat had been carrying last night! Next to the boxes were scattered fragments of documents, which appeared to have writing and diagrams on them.

Things from the Yaoxing Society?! They really were here before! Or rather, are they directly connected to what happened here? Yanben... Yaoxing Society... "Nanmu Cave"... what is the connection between these three?

Nie Lingfeng was about to step forward for a closer look—

"Da, da, da..."

A steady, calm, and even slightly mocking sound of leather shoes tapping on stone slabs suddenly came clearly from behind them, from the mine tunnel they had just passed through!

At the same time, several brighter and more stable searchlight beams tore through the darkness deep in the mine, shining from behind and completely enveloping Nie Lingfeng, Chen Duo, and that evil sacrificial platform in blinding light!

"Hehehe... Boss Lin, oh no, perhaps I should call you... Mr. Nie? I really didn't expect you to make it all the way here. It seems that the friend introduced by Chairman Feng is indeed no ordinary herbal medicine merchant."

A familiar voice, filled with undisguised sarcasm and a hint of chilling murderous intent, rang out from behind the lights.

Nie Lingfeng slowly turned around, squinting as he adjusted to the glaring light.

Behind the lights, a group of heavily armed, burly men with fierce eyes, carrying automatic weapons, were escorting a short, stout figure as they slowly approached. The leader, dressed in a dark purple silk Tang suit, had a slightly balding head, a ruddy complexion, and small eyes that gleamed with a cold, cunning light like a venomous snake under the lights—it was Yan Ben!

He really came! And it seems he anticipated their arrival, perhaps even... deliberately "guided" them here?!

"Boss Yan Ben," Nie Lingfeng's voice was calm and even, as if he had expected this scene, "is this huge entourage here to 'welcome' us, or... to 'send us off'?"

"Hahaha!" Yan Ben let out a strange laugh like an owl, clapping his thick hands. "Mr. Nie is indeed a man of few words! That's right, I'm here to 'see you off'—to send you to where you're meant to be!"

He took two steps forward and stood at the edge of the lamplight. His small eyes swept over Nie Lingfeng greedily and cruelly, finally landing on Chen Duo, especially on her emerald green eyes that were still clear under the lamplight, yet faintly shimmered with golden flames. The greed and some indescribable fanaticism in her eyes were almost overflowing!

"Originally, out of respect for Chairman Feng, I only intended to squeeze some money out of you and use you as 'bait' to lure out those 'rats' hiding in town. But I never expected this..." Yan Ben's voice suddenly became sharp and excited, "You actually gave me such a big surprise! One of you possesses the bloodline of a Qilin! And the other... is actually such a pure Phoenix body! Hahaha! Heaven is helping me! It truly is heaven helping me!"

He spread his arms wide, as if embracing this evil space, a morbid ecstasy on his face: "With these two 'main ingredients,' plus the 'nourishment' and 'seed' power accumulated in the 'Holy Cave' over the years... I, Yan Ben, can also possess my own true 'divine body'! At that time, what Feng Zhenghao, what company, what damn 'parliament' lackeys... they will all kneel at my feet! Hahaha!"

He pointed sharply at Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo, shouting, "Capture them! Alive! Especially that little girl, don't let a single hair on her head be harmed! She's the most crucial part of awakening 'Nanmu' and completing the ritual!"

"Yes, boss!" The surrounding armed men responded in unison, grinning maliciously as they slowly approached Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo, who were surrounded at the edge of the platform. The dark muzzles of their guns gleamed with a cold, deathly light under the searchlights.

Yan Ben himself took a few steps back, took out a palm-sized, strangely shaped bone artifact inlaid with dark green crystals from his pocket, aimed it at the vertical shaft behind the platform that was constantly gushing blood-red mist, and began to chant in a low voice in an ancient, obscure language full of blasphemy!

As he chanted, the crimson mist gushing from the shaft intensified abruptly! The blasphemous symbols on the platform floor also began to glow with a dark green light one by one! The evil "field" and the ancient song in the entire cave instantly surged several times over! Countless invisible, malicious "gazes" and "tentacles" seemed to be swirling towards Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo from all directions!

A trap! From the very beginning, this was a trap set for them, or rather, for Chen Duo, the "Phoenix Body"! Yan Ben's goal wasn't to find people at all, but to use them as sacrifices and "main ingredients" to complete some evil ritual and obtain the power of the "Divine Body"!

Nie Lingfeng's eyes were icy cold. The immense power within him, fused with the three divine artifacts, roared silently like an ancient beast that had been thoroughly enraged! He stepped forward, firmly protecting Chen Duo behind him. Facing the ever-approaching gun barrels, Yan Ben's evil chanting, the surging evil "field" around him, and countless invisible malice, he slowly raised his right hand.

In the palm of his hand, a dark golden flame began to burn, leap, and condense silently...

Chen Duo, who was being protected behind him, also raised her head. In her emerald eyes, the two golden flames suddenly surged as if they had been poured with boiling oil! The pure and blazing Phoenix True Fire was no longer concealed. It blazed around her, transforming into a warm and sacred fire barrier that protected Nie Lingfeng as well. It formed the most vivid and intense confrontation with the surrounding filthy darkness and evil!

"Yan Ben..." Nie Lingfeng's voice, like ice that had stood for millennia, rang out clearly in this noisy and evil cave, "It's time for you to wake up from your dream."

Battle is imminent!

Yan Ben's maniacal laughter, like the blood-curdling cry of a night owl, mingled with ancient, blasphemous chants, echoed wildly through the evil-soaked cave. Crimson mist, like a living tide, surged forth from the shaft, intertwining with the dark green runes illuminating the platform, transforming into a constantly shrinking, endlessly malevolent net of energy that enveloped Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo, trapped at the platform's edge! The invisible, malevolent "gazes" and "tentacles" in the air, like countless icy venomous snakes, attempted to penetrate the barrier of the Phoenix True Fire, entwining and corroding their souls.

"Fire! Disrupt his ritual! Capture him alive!" Yan Ben roared at the militants while continuing his chant. His eyes were filled with fanaticism and greed, as if he could already see the "body of God" taking shape within his own body.

"Da da da da—!!!"

The ear-piercing gunshots instantly tore through the noise of the cave! Dozens of scorching tongues of fire spewed out from all directions, and bullets rained down on the golden flame barrier like a storm! These were clearly not ordinary bullets; their bullet heads were engraved with fine, blasphemous runes similar to those on the platform, and they possessed the properties of exorcising and corrosive energy. They were specially made ammunition designed to deal with supernatural beings or special entities!

Nie Lingfeng's eyes narrowed, and outside the golden flame barrier (maintained by Chen Duo), he instantly deployed an even more solid Qilin True Fire shield, flowing with dark golden light! At the same time, he pushed the "Wind God Movement" movement technique to its limit, pulling Chen Duo along, and made dazzling evasive maneuvers on the edge of the narrow platform!

"Jingle bells—!"

Most of the bullets were deflected by the double shields or instantly melted by the high temperatures of the Phoenix True Fire and Qilin True Fire. A few bullets that penetrated the outer Qilin shield were burned and purified by the inner Phoenix True Fire barrier that Chen Duo was maintaining with all her might, losing their kinetic energy and evil effects, and fell helplessly at their feet. However, the dense firepower still put enormous pressure on the two of them, especially Chen Duo. She needed to be distracted to maintain the barrier and fight against the increasingly strong evil "field" and invisible erosion. Her face quickly turned pale, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.