Chapter 116: The Elder

Black smoke surged, blotting out the sun!

*Screech!*

A piercing, high-pitched cry suddenly erupted from the mountain peak!

"Awoo!"

The black wolf’s pupils contracted, and it let out a continuous, low growl toward the Wolf King.

The Wolf King said hurriedly, "Little Qin, it says the fierce bird on the peak has been disturbed!"

Before the words had even faded, a massive hunting falcon, its pitch-black wings flapping, descended like a small mountain, breaking through layers of black smoke and whistling toward them!

At this moment, whether it was Qin Feiyang, the Wolf King, or the black wolf, all were gripped by a bone-chilling terror.

"Get into the ancient castle!"

Qin Feiyang made a split-second decision. He sent the Wolf King and the black wolf into the ancient castle, then held his breath, plunged into the black smoke, entered the passage, and sprinted inward.

*Screech!*

The falcon arrived with a whistle. Its wings beat, whipping up a violent gale that instantly dispersed the black smoke in the area. When it caught sight of the passage, a terrifying, murderous glint flashed in its long, narrow eyes. It struck down with a talon, causing the mountain to tremble and crack, and the passage to collapse violently.

Qin Feiyang stood at the end of the passage, examining the space within. Although a vast amount of black smoke had been released earlier, his vision remained obscured and hazy; he could barely see anything beyond two meters.

*Boom!*

*Crack!*

Seeing the passage collapsing, his expression shifted drastically. Ignoring whatever might lie ahead, he leaped from the opening and plunged straight downward.

At the same time, the few fierce beasts that had been battling Feng Ling'er and Lin Chen immediately turned and fled in panic upon seeing the falcon appear.

"Damn it, run!"

Feng Ling'er’s expression also changed abruptly. She barked a command at Lin Chen, then turned and fled toward the outside.

"What on earth did that little brat do?" Lin Chen cursed inwardly while scrambling to escape.

*Screech!*

The falcon was incredibly ferocious. It swooped toward a giant rat, its wings slicing through the air like blades. As it swept past, large swathes of trees were felled, their cross-sections as smooth as mirrors. The rat was extremely fast, but it could not escape the falcon’s pursuit. Finally, the falcon caught the rat in its talons and flew back toward the mountain peak.

Back in the woods, Feng Ling'er stopped in her tracks. She gazed up at the falcon flying into the high sky, a struggle playing out in her heart. Once the falcon landed on the peak and disappeared from sight, she gritted her teeth, turned around, and ran back toward the weak point in the mountain.

"Ling'er, it’s dangerous! Come back!" Lin Chen cried out in alarm, hurriedly giving chase.

Inside Eagle Claw Peak, Qin Feiyang continued to fall, feeling as though the space below was a bottomless pit.

"No, if I keep falling like this, I’ll be smashed to death!"

He reached out to grab a nearby rock, but the momentum of his fall was too great; he couldn't get a grip. If he forced it, his arms and fingers would surely dislocate or snap, which would only make a bad situation worse. He had to be careful.

He repeatedly reached out his hands to catch onto rocks, letting go the moment his fingers reached their limit. After repeating this for a dozen seconds, the force of his descent was mostly neutralized. Seeing the right moment, he didn't hesitate to reach out with both hands and latch onto a protruding rock with a death grip. His falling body finally came to a halt.

"What now?" Qin Feiyang looked up and then down, his brow furrowing slightly. Although he had stopped, his vision was limited to two meters. He had no way of knowing whether the alchemical fire was above or below him. If he guessed wrong, he would waste precious time.

"Does this black smoke have anything to do with the alchemical fire?" He began to observe the smoke closely.

Gradually, he noticed a subtle anomaly: the black smoke was rising from below. After a moment of contemplation, he decided to check below first. What if the smoke really was linked to the fire? However, not long after, he noticed another oddity. If there were alchemical fire here, there should be intense heat. Yet, he felt no heat at all; in fact, it was quite chilly.

Right! The black wolf had said that the alchemical fire was a possessed object. If that were the case, it made sense, as the owner could control the fire’s temperature. At the thought of this, a sense of vigilance rose in his eyes. Anyone capable of possessing alchemical fire must be a terrifying expert. Perhaps this person was hiding in the shadows right now, watching him.

*BOOM!*

Not long after, a series of rumbling sounds echoed from the weak point above. Qin Feiyang frowned. He didn't need to think twice to know that Feng Ling'er had arrived and, like him, intended to blast a passage through the weak point.

"I can't let her catch up!" he muttered to himself. Using his hands and feet, he scaled the walls like a monkey, moving with incredible speed.

About five or six seconds later, Feng Ling'er and Lin Chen blasted through the weak point and stood at the edge of the opening, peering into the internal space with astonishment. A large amount of mud and rubble tumbled down, striking Qin Feiyang on the head and infuriating him.

"There’s actually a world within Eagle Claw Peak," Lin Chen asked in disbelief. "Ling'er, how did you know?"

"Are you ever going to stop being annoying?" Feng Ling'er snapped.

Lin Chen chuckled sheepishly. "So, do we go up or down?"

"I don't know if that thing is above or below," Feng Ling'er replied.

"That thing?" Lin Chen asked, suspicious. Could it be that some treasure was hidden in here?

*Screech!*

A sharp eagle cry rang out. The falcon was swooping down from the peak again.

Feng Ling'er’s gaze darkened. "The black smoke is rising from below. Let’s head down first."

The two of them immediately set off. The falcon blocked the passage once more before flying back toward the peak, appearing as if it were the guardian of this place.

*Thump, bang, thud!*

Feng Ling'er and Lin Chen were using too much force, causing rocks to shatter beneath their feet. It was the poor Qin Feiyang below who suffered, frequently getting hit on the head by falling debris.

"Can’t you two be more careful!" Qin Feiyang couldn't help but roar.

"He went down there too?" Feng Ling'er frowned and shouted loudly, "Jiang Haotian, it’s too dangerous here! You can’t handle it alone—let’s join forces!"

"Not interested," Qin Feiyang replied coldly.

"Jiang Haotian, don't be ungrateful!" Lin Chen yelled. He continued to descend, blasting at the stone walls as he went. Rocks of all sizes rained down like a downpour. This infuriated Qin Feiyang to no end.

But the real trouble was yet to come. Feng Ling'er and Lin Chen were both more powerful than him; even though they were all climbing the stone walls, their speed was inevitably faster. Sure enough, less than a dozen seconds later, Feng Ling'er and her companion caught up to him.

Feng Ling'er taunted, "You were right—the person who runs the fastest isn't necessarily the first to reach the finish line."

"True, I did say that," Qin Feiyang replied, "but whether that thing is even down here remains to be seen. What are you so proud of?"

"You know?" Feng Ling'er asked, startled.

"Is that so strange?" Qin Feiyang countered.

Feng Ling'er asked in a low voice, "Where did you hear that?"

"That’s not a question you should be concerned about. You should be thinking about how you're going to explain yourself to everyone once you get out, considering you’ve been using them as bait," Qin Feiyang sneered.

Feng Ling'er had brought them to Eagle Claw Peak clearly intending to use them as decoys to distract the falcon while she snuck in.

Feng Ling'er furrowed her delicate brows and shook her head. "You’re wrong. I didn't use you. I just wanted to see if there was an opportunity; if there wasn't, I would have taken you all away immediately."

"Do you really think I’d believe you?" Qin Feiyang mocked.

"You are truly unreasonable. Since you don’t trust me, let’s see who succeeds on their own merits!" Feng Ling'er snorted, slid down, and vanished from Qin Feiyang's sight. Lin Chen glanced at Qin Feiyang and quickly followed.

"Huh?" Qin Feiyang’s eyes flickered with confusion. Feng Ling'er hadn't taken any precautions. Did she not know that the alchemical fire was a possessed object?

"If that’s the case, then letting her lead the charge isn't a bad idea," Qin Feiyang smirked.

"It really is alchemical fire!"

About twenty seconds later, a cry of surprise echoed from below. It was Lin Chen!

"It really is down here!" Qin Feiyang’s eyes lit up with wild joy, but he grew even more vigilant than before. If the alchemical fire was down there, the owner of the fire must be there as well.

"Heh, heh!"

"So, you’ve finally come down."

The next moment, a sinister laugh erupted from the bottom. Qin Feiyang’s body stiffened—it seemed this person had discovered them long ago. Since that was the case, he might as well go down and meet this mysterious, fierce individual. He couldn't escape now even if he wanted to.

A few seconds later, his vision finally cleared. However, when he saw the scene at the bottom, he couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine. The base was large and circular, with a diameter of several dozen meters. Scattered across the floor were piles upon piles of bleached human bones.

"Is this hell?" Qin Feiyang jumped down, standing on the white bones and surveying the scene, his skin crawling. Feng Ling'er and Lin Chen were standing to one side, their gazes fixed ahead, faces full of terror.

"Heh!"

"I thought you were going to run. You actually came down here voluntarily—are you not afraid of death?"

That sinister voice came from across the space. Qin Feiyang looked up and saw an old man standing in the center of the pit. The man was disheveled and gaunt, wearing a black robe. His eyes were deeply sunken, the pupils emitting faint, emerald-green rays of light. At first glance, he looked like a ghost.

Seeing the old man, Qin Feiyang couldn't help but feel a deep sense of dread. But when he noticed the alchemical fire beside the black-robed man, his fear instantly transformed into desire. It was a black alchemical fire! It was the size of an infant’s palm, hovering autonomously in the void, its black flames flickering wildly as if beckoning to him. The black smoke was indeed originating from this fire, and here, there seemed to be an invisible field that isolated the smoke from the rest of the space.

"Heh, heh! You actually dare to ignore me? Little boy, you’ve got some nerve!" The black-robed old man laughed wickedly, the green light in his eyes growing more intense and ghastly.

Qin Feiyang started, struggling to pull his gaze away from the fire. He looked at the old man and bowed slightly. "Greetings, Senior."

"Senior?" The black-robed old man paused, then said playfully, "Don't think that just by calling me 'Senior,' I’ll let you leave."

Qin Feiyang also paused. His tense heart surprisingly relaxed. He said calmly, "Actually, I didn't expect you to let me go anyway."