Chapter 429: The Stonehouse Tribe
Chapter 429: The Stonehouse Tribe
As he listened to Professor Liang's words, Li Qian unconsciously directed his gaze towards the crater in the ruins.
"Should we go in and take a look?" Li Qian pointed at the opening and asked after a moment's thought.
All the canine beasts had fled, and Li Qian felt that the danger within was now minimal.
"That makes sense. Instead of waiting here, we might as well go in and check it out," Professor Liang pondered for a moment and nodded.
The most crucial thing was that through the calm underground cave, she could also determine that the temporary dimensional rift below had likely closed.
At this moment, there was probably no danger underground.
"I'll go down and take a look first, just to inspect it, but to ensure safety, he remained cautious.)
As soon as he finished speaking, he didn't waste any time and disappeared into the underground cave.
Although Li Qian also wanted to go in and take a look, he restrained himself until he received definite information.
He stood there, waiting for Professor Liang's news.
After about ten minutes, a voice suddenly appeared beside Li Qian's ear, "You can come in now, it's safe!"
Hearing this, Li Qian didn't hesitate and immediately stepped into the underground cave.
"I wonder what happened down here?" he muttered to himself and began walking towards the interior of the passage.
At some point, a flashlight had appeared in his hand, and with its light, he gradually ventured deeper.
After walking for about two or three minutes, his vision suddenly brightened, and he saw scattered fluorite crystals on the ground.
Li Qian scanned the area and immediately recognized that he was now at the location of the previous underground palace.
"Here!" Inside the underground palace, a figure stood gazing at the original location of Chamber One.
It was Professor Liang.
"Professor Liang!" Li Qian saw Professor Liang standing in the stone chamber and quickly walked over.
After entering the chamber, Li Qian looked around and discovered that this chamber hadn't suffered much damage and was almost unchanged from before the underground palace collapsed.
"What's this?" It wasn't entirely untouched, though, and soon after entering, Li Qian noticed something amiss.
At that moment, there was an array diagram on the ground, a very clear and obvious one.
Li Qian could be a hundred percent certain that this array diagram hadn't been there before and had only appeared after they entered.
"This is a sealing array," Professor Liang looked down at the diagram on the ground and explained directly.
"A sealing array, sealing what?" Li Qian asked subconsciously after hearing Professor Liang's explanation, but as soon as he spoke, he quickly realized.
That Holy Spirit-level Demon Realm three-headed dog and so many canine beasts must have come from somewhere, and there was no doubt that there was a dimensional rift in this place.
Combined with the sealing array Professor Liang mentioned, the answer was already obvious.
"Dimensional Rift!" He exclaimed in realization.
Professor Liang nodded.
"If this array is activated, will it loosen or even disappear, revealing the dimensional rift?" Li Qian continued, voicing his speculation.
Professor Liang didn't hide the truth and spoke frankly, "Yes, just as you guessed!"
"If this array is activated, the seal will loosen and may even disappear, naturally revealing the dimensional rift."
Li Qian followed up, "So that's how the canine beasts came here!"
Professor Liang nodded in agreement.
"Then how do we activate this array?" Li Qian asked.
Professor Liang didn't answer directly but reminded him, "Think about how it was activated last time."
Li Qian immediately pondered upon Professor Liang's reminder, and soon, a flash of insight struck him, "The Nightstalker's blood?"
If asked about the activation of the array and its relation to something, Li Qian could only think of this.
Liu Qingyuan's Nightstalker had left its only trace in this chamber—its blood, which it spat out before being taken away by the guards.
"To be precise, it's energy!" Professor Liang clarified.
As she spoke, she snapped her fingers, and beside her, the Time Sprite's body immediately emitted a faint glow.
"What's this?" As the faint glow lit up, Li Qian suddenly noticed that the array diagram on the ground also began to flicker.
"Just now, I only let the Time Sprite inject a little energy, and the array responded. If we increase the energy input, the array will start running directly."
"Then why don't you activate it?" Li Qian asked.
"I think that even if we activate this sealing array now, there shouldn't be any danger.
"Your courage is truly admirable!" Ms. Liang shook her head and chuckled upon hearing Li Qian's words.
She turned to Li Qian and expressed her concerns, "In theory, it's unlikely there will be any significant danger, but no one can be certain about these things."
"Most importantly, even if it appears safe, I can't enter it."
Li Qian understood Ms. Liang's words. After all, if she went in and the Demon Realm Three-Headed Dog attacked again, it might be challenging for Captain Hao and Professor Yang to hold it off.
"I can go in and take a look. Perhaps I can find another solution." Li Qian thought for a moment before offering his suggestion.
"No way!"
Ms. Liang immediately rejected the proposal without hesitation.
"You're the treasure of Cultivation Academy. If something happens to you, I don't know how to explain it to Dean Fei and Principal Park."
Li Qian remained calm and patiently explained his reasons, "Ms. Liang, let me explain. My willingness to volunteer and enter this Dimensional Rift is not due to blind confidence or recklessness."
"I have my considerations. First is my strength, as you've seen, I have a Tidal Sea Spirit at the Overlord level, and my other Companion Beasts are no less than Commander-level."
"Secondly, I have various life-saving trump cards, both active and passive, that when combined, can protect me even against a Holy Spirit."
"Earlier, I didn't use them because the life-saving trump card Principal Park gave me is passive."
"It only passively protects my safety and can't take the initiative to attack, which is why the three of you were so battered in your resistance."
"Lastly, regarding the danger, I trust your judgment, Ms. Liang. Most of the dangers within this sealed Dimensional Rift should have been released by now. Moving forward, even if there are still dangers, they shouldn't be too significant."
Seeing Ms. Liang's hesitation, Li Qian added, "The current situation is dire. Inside, our classmates are severely injured and it will take time for them to recover. Outside, the Demon Realm Three-Headed Dog is lurking."
"Waiting for the Spatial Vortex to completely calm down could take an indefinite amount of time, and we might encounter other unforeseen circumstances."
"With so many of us huddled up in Yingluo City without an escape route, it's actually very dangerous."
Li Qian had made his point very clear. He believed he could convince Ms. Liang. As he anticipated, after some hesitation, Ms. Liang nodded and agreed to Li Qian's suggestion.
"Alright!"
After agreeing, Ms. Liang immediately reminded him, "However, once you go in, you must be extremely careful. If you encounter any unexpected dangers that you can't handle, retreat immediately and don't be stubborn."
"I'll maintain the energy input here, and the Dimensional Rift will remain open for you."
Upon hearing this, Li Qian nodded.
These words were unnecessary, as Li Qian would have acted accordingly even without Ms. Liang's reminder.
He was going in to look for another solution, not to train or take risks.
As he mentioned, it was very dangerous for so many people to be trapped in Yingluo City without an escape route.
And within the Dimensional Rift, even if he couldn't find another solution, as long as he could confirm that there was no danger or minimal danger, it could serve as an escape route.
This was a crucial reason why Ms. Liang agreed to Li Qian's entry.
"Then let's not delay any further. Let's get moving!" After making the decision, Li Qian didn't hesitate and spoke up.
Ms. Liang was also decisive. Without any delay, she immediately gave orders to the Time Sprite.
As the Time Sprite's body gradually emitted a faint glow, the array diagram on the ground began to flicker with dazzling light.
Buzz, buzz, buzz...
The dazzling light flashed and then dissipated, spreading into a hazy glow.
The hazy glow enveloped the entire stone chamber, and within the glow, like ripples on water, a Dimensional Rift slowly opened on one side of the stone wall, approximately three meters high and two meters wide.
This Dimensional Rift resembled a door.
"Wait a moment." Ms. Liang immediately spoke up when she saw the Dimensional Rift appear.
In fact, even without Ms. Liang's reminder, Li Qian wouldn't have rushed into it at this moment.
He needed to assess the situation first.
The Dimensional Rift opened, revealing a pitch-black interior, with no visible scenery on the other side.
The two of them stood quietly, waiting in the stone chamber.
During this waiting period, Li Qian had already summoned his Tidal Sea Spirit.
To be prepared for any possible contingencies.
This was also a chance to demonstrate his abilities to Ms. Liang.
If he couldn't even handle such a minor contingency, there was no point in entering the dimensional rift.
Suddenly, a dark shadow darted out from within the rift.
The Tide Sea Spirit received Li Qian's command and instantly condensed a water arrow, shooting it out.
Pfft!
The water arrow hit the mark, piercing the shadow!
The shadow was directly impaled, and its body fell to the ground.
Focusing his gaze, he discovered that the shadow was a brown-furred dog.
Common lineage, with elite apex strength.
In Li Qian's hands, it was as insignificant as an ant.
After severely wounding the dog, Li Qian threw out a Beast Ball, capturing it and immediately waiting quietly once more.
The two stood there, waiting for about half an hour.
During this time, in addition to the brown-furred dog, three more Feline Beasts emerged from the dimensional rift.
But none of them got any good results against Li Qian.
Almost instantly, they were dealt with by Li Qian's Tide Sea Spirit.
"Is it time?" Li Qian felt that the timing was right, and even if there might be more Feline Beasts rushing out later, they wouldn't pose any threat. So, he prepared to take action.
"We can go in." Ms. Liang nodded.
After receiving Ms. Liang's approval, Li Qian immediately took action.
To ensure the safety of this operation, he also summoned the Six-Tailed Cat, which had just completed its evolution.
Both Companion Beasts were of a manageable size.
They were relatively easy to carry.
Thus, carrying the two Companion Beasts, Li Qian strode into the dimensional rift.
With the flickering of light and shadows, in the blink of an eye, the world transformed, and all things shifted.
Li Qian's figure appeared in another space.
"It seems like a tribal settlement..." Upon entering, he scanned the surrounding environment and his expression turned to one of surprise.
The scene here was completely different from that of Yingluo City.
This was a rather desolate hill.
On the hill, various trees grew.
These trees stood tall and straight, like iron rods, with hardly any branches.
On the hill, where the trees stood in a scattered manner, stone houses stood erect.
These stone houses were all of similar height.
About five or six stories tall.
However, their shape was quite unique.
They were mostly cylindrical, narrowing towards the top, and at the peak, they were cone-shaped, resembling bamboo shoots.
Creak, creak...
Stepping on dry branches and leaves, Li Qian began to pace.
His gaze was sharp, searching and scrutinizing everything around him, not letting any anomalies slip by.
The Stonehouse Tribe was desolate, with hardly any sounds.
However, Li Qian knew this was just an illusion, and there were definitely many Feline Beasts hidden within this Stonehouse Tribe.
Li Qian walked slowly, glancing back at the location of the dimensional rift.
The rift hovered above the hill, over a small plaza.
"It seems like a small plaza, probably used for rituals."
Muttering to himself, Li Qian soon discovered a place similar to the temple cluster in Yingluo City.
At the highest point of the hill, there were stone houses, but they were noticeably taller than the others.
They were about ten stories high.
Li Qian thought for a moment, feeling that this place must be a special location.
Perhaps it concealed valuable information.
As he pondered, he began to walk slowly towards that direction.
During his walk, Li Qian continued to observe the surrounding environment.
Soon, he discovered another place similar to Yingluo City.
Within this Stonehouse Tribe, there were also many statues.
However, these statues were different from those in Yingluo City; they were all of Feline Beasts, not Rodent Beasts.
Seeing this, Li Qian couldn't help but scratch his head.
It was clear that the previous Feline Beasts had escaped from here.
Since there were so many Feline Beasts in this Stonehouse Tribe, where had the Rodent Beasts from Yingluo City gone?
Why were only Rodent Beasts running rampant outside?
Unable to figure it out, Li Qian decided not to overthink it.
For now, the most important thing was to gauge the danger of this place.
And also, to go and check out the taller stone house buildings to see if there was a place similar to the temple cluster in Yingluo City.
(End of Chapter)
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