Chapter 108: Responding to Calamity with Calamity

At this moment, everyone in the formation had completely lost their spiritual power, reduced to mere mortals. Their eyes were heavy with seriousness, faces full of vigilance as they scanned their surroundings.

Only the Dog Daoist maintained a deadpan expression, showing no hint of panic. Instead, he clicked his tongue in admiration and said, “The Disaster Gate truly lives up to its reputation as a strange Daoist formation. Once inside, all cultivation is lost. No matter how skilled you are, there’s nothing you can do!”

Nearby, Meng Qi responded with some defiance, “Hmph, not necessarily! If you can form a Golden Core, what can this formation do to you then?”

“Enough!” Qin Yuanyi waved his hand. “Last time we came here, this place was a desert. After only a few steps, we encountered a sandstorm, and if we hadn’t retreated in time, we would have perished here. This time, it’s turned into a snowy mountain. Surely, the trial will be different. Everyone, keep to your positions. I will guard the formation’s core with the Black Demon Flag. Move steadily and remember—not a moment of panic!”

The group nodded in agreement. When Qin Yuanyi waved his hand, they all began moving forward together.

Inside the formation, everyone advanced slowly in their designated spots, not daring to make the slightest mistake. After about three hours, they remarkably crossed the summit of the snowy mountain without incident.

Standing atop the peak and looking down, they saw a massive turquoise stone gate halfway down the other side of the mountain. The gate stood wide open, its white light dazzling—the clear exit of this formation!

“Haha, Brother Qin Yuan really is extraordinary. This method truly works!” Zhao Wuming laughed heartily, relieved by the success of their journey.

“Of course!” the Smiling Monk chimed in. “The greatest power of the Disaster Gate is that it nullifies our cultivation, but it’s not an inescapable formation.”

“Indeed,” the Crane Lady smiled softly. “Ask yourself: how can an ordinary mortal survive the terrors of an avalanche or sandstorm? But the Disaster Gate doesn’t leave no way out. If one’s luck is extraordinary, it is still possible to pass through safely without trouble.”

Even the usually stern Yun Xuzi sighed, “The Six Ding Six Jia formation condenses the group’s luck as one, with the Six Ding and Six Jia gods guarding the directions, leaking not a trace. Such deception is truly the only way to ensure safety. Brother Qin Yuan, your brilliance is astonishing.”

Seeing the great formation broken and the treasures seemingly within reach, everyone relaxed, lavishing Qin Yuan with praise.

Yet Qin Yuan remained unmoved by their compliments. His brows furrowed deeply, eyes fixed on the flag fluttering in midair. His fingers moved in calculation, worry etched upon his face.

Seeing this, the others fell silent, exchanging concerned glances. After a moment, Zhao Wuming carefully asked, “What is it, Brother Qin? Is there something we missed?”

Qin Yuan did not respond, instead bowing his head in thought, muttering, “Strange… no matter how I calculate, it seems we’ve overlooked one trial.”

At that instant, a rumbling sound erupted beneath their feet. Qin Yuan’s face grew pale as he shouted, “Everyone, be careful! Another trial is coming, unavoidable!”

The group, mostly seasoned cultivators, sensed the danger immediately and scattered in all directions, abandoning the Six Ding Six Jia formation entirely.

Boom!

Suddenly, the snow beneath Zhao Wuming split open, and a white serpent, as thick as a water jar, slithered out, swallowing Zhao Wuming whole in a single bite.

With his spiritual power gone, Zhao Wuming was nothing more than a common warrior from the mundane world. Though he possessed some treasured items, he lacked the spiritual force to activate them.

The white serpent, however, was a genuine cultivator at the third level of Qi Refining, giving Zhao Wuming no chance to resist. Its massive jaws opened and closed, swallowing him alive.

The others watched helplessly as the serpent’s swollen form stretched from its mouth to its belly. They even heard the gurgling sounds of digestion but were powerless to act.

Only then did they realize that a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator, the founder of the Shadow Tower and its leader, had so mysteriously met his end here.

“Run! That serpent is at the third stage of Qi Refining. In our current state, even combined, we can’t defeat it!” the sickly scholar Li Zheng shouted.

“Run?” Qin Yuan shook his head. “I’m afraid it’s faster than us…”

He glanced at the snowy summit, his expression hardening. He muttered, “Our only choice now is to meet disaster with disaster.”

No sooner had he spoken than Qin Yuan drew a long black flute from his bosom and began to play expressionlessly.

The flute’s sound drifted out, initially low and discordant, unsettling the mind. Then, after a few turns, it grew wild and fierce, like a maddening demonic chant.

“Nine Nether Demonic Transformation Melody!” everyone was startled at first, but quickly realized that with Qin Yuan’s spiritual power lost, they had nothing to fear.

“Old Demon Qin, have you lost your mind? You have no spiritual power left and still want to subdue that beast with the Nine Nether Demonic Transformation Melody? What a madman’s dream!” the Smiling Monk shouted while running.

But Qin Yuan paid no heed. Though running, his lips never ceased playing the flute.

Crack! Crack!

A faint cracking sound came from the mountain top. Everyone seemed to hear something splitting.

The white serpent had already swallowed Zhao Wuming completely and was preparing to pursue its next victim. But as the cracking noise rang out, it suddenly turned its head toward the snowy summit.

In the next moment, the sky seemed to collapse and the earth to shatter. A massive avalanche thundered down the mountain peak. Qin Yuan’s demonic melody had triggered the entire mountainside to fall!

Though the white serpent possessed the power of a third-stage Qi Refining cultivator, it was still a beast without true intelligence. Faced with such overwhelming natural force, it shrank back in fear, diving headlong into the mountain’s depths and vanishing.

“Haha! Well done, Old Demon Qin! You chased away the serpent but caused an avalanche instead. Now it’s a race to see who can flee fastest!” the Smiling Monk laughed heartily.

Though joking, he never relaxed his pace. Carrying the little monk on his shoulder, he sprinted toward the turquoise stone gate halfway down the mountain.

With their cultivation lost, everyone could only run for their lives like ordinary warriors.

Among them, Liang Yan, who had trained in martial arts before cultivating and refined his body with the supreme Mixed Martial Technique, found himself running at the front.

Thirty steps, twenty steps, ten steps...

As the turquoise gate loomed ahead, Liang Yan suddenly pushed off and leapt, just clearing the great threshold.

The moment he passed through, dizziness overwhelmed him, and he involuntarily fell from the air, tumbling several times on the ground.

When he struggled to his feet, a gentle breeze swept past, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth flooded back into him. His cultivation surged, restoring him to the seventh level of Qi Refining!