The mountain, a small river. A thatched hut, a pile of dry bones. The Treasure Pagoda Shao Li Yi Xiaojun

Ji Changkong emerged from the cool water of the small river, clambering out dripping wet, only to see a modest mountain ahead. At the foot of that mountain stood a dilapidated grass hut, before its broken door lay a set of dry bones, undisturbed for untold years.

First, he let his divine sense dissipate, circling the vicinity a few times. After confirming there were no traces of life, he still dared not let down his guard, slowly making his way toward the grass hut.

He looked around cautiously, fearing some ancient lifeform, like a primeval giant crocodile, might suddenly appear. Yet, this time everything seemed strangely calm. As he reached the front of the hut, no catastrophe he had imagined materialized.

The skeleton was a pale, ashen white, perfectly preserved, lying right before the hut’s entrance as if guarding it against intrusion. Its empty eye sockets stared straight ahead, serving as a warning.

Ji Changkong didn't rush into the hut. He first carefully examined the skeleton, scrutinizing it from head to toe. He discovered that the bones seemed to have died from poisoning; certain spots on the structure emitted points of light, like phosphorescence, suggesting a potent toxin was involved.

The skeleton blocked the doorway. To enter the hut, one had to pass over it, but the lingering phosphorescence seemed noxious, raising questions about potential harm upon approach.

Hesitating for a moment, unsure when Huo Feng and Xiao Han would appear, he decided it was best to investigate the hut quickly, hoping to find the passage leading to the lake surface of the ninth level.

Staring warily at the skeleton, he advanced step by step toward the hut. As he neared the door, he summoned his Five Elements Barrier, enveloping his entire body.

Seemingly undisturbed, he paused deliberately beside the skeleton, only relaxing slightly when no anomaly occurred. Then, he stepped over the bones, preparing to enter.

“Kaka!”

A sudden, strange noise sounded behind him, causing his heart to leap. Ji Changkong whipped his head around.

A pale, ashen hand shot out unexpectedly, grabbing his left ankle with lightning speed. The five sharp tips of the bony fingers pierced through all his bodily barriers, stabbing directly into the flesh and blood of his ankle.

Blood mixed with the Yao Li within him flowed rapidly through those five bony prongs into the skeleton. His soul seemed to be shackled by some force; he was utterly unable to move.

This single bony hand, with its five digits buried in his ankle, was swiftly draining the blood and vital essence from him, causing dizziness, confusion, and creeping terror.

The ashen-white skeleton began to change dramatically at that moment. First, two wisps of eerie ghost fire ignited in its hollow eye sockets, darting around like orbs, acting as eyes.

The gray tinge on the skeleton’s surface began to fade, replaced by the color of white jade. This ashen-white structure rapidly transformed, becoming pure as Han Bai Yu—not only flawless and white but also radiating a soft, ethereal glow that, from a distance, lent it an unsettling, almost sacred aura.

With one bone hand still plunged into Ji Changkong’s ankle, the white skeletal figure continued to devour the blood and essence, seemingly using this transfer to ignite some dormant restriction’s power.

Ji Changkong was utterly terrified, his consciousness blurring. He couldn't even gather the thought needed to summon his second body.

Just as he resigned himself to death, the "Yan Lei Sacred Fire" suddenly erupted. Threads of lightning power coiled around the section of the white bone arm, and the strange flames instantly engulfed the entire skeleton.

The sickly green ghost fire in the skeleton's eye sockets flared brighter for an instant.

For reasons unknown, the skeletal hand clenched in Ji Changkong’s ankle suddenly retracted. The ghostly fires in the eye sockets instantly extinguished, vanishing without a sound.

Having lost a portion of his blood and essence, Ji Changkong regained consciousness the moment the skeletal figure withdrew its hand. The Dragon Radiance Saber settled into his palm. Without a second thought, he swung it fiercely, cleaving down toward the skeleton’s collarbone.

“Clang!”

The sound of metal striking metal rang out. A mere spark flashed across the skeleton’s collarbone; it didn't even sustain a scratch.

Fearing a counterattack, he swiftly retreated into the grass hut, holding the Dragon Radiance Saber high, facing the skeleton as if confronting a mortal enemy, and roared, “Who are you?!”

The skeleton remained motionless, its eye sockets still empty, the eerie green ghost fire absent.

With the "Yan Lei Sacred Fire" coiling around his left arm, Ji Changkong stared intently at the white figure, the shock and anger in his eyes deepening.

“Plop! Plop!”

Sounds of splashing water suddenly came from the distant small river, followed by figures beginning to emerge from the water.

Huo Feng, Xiao Han, Yin Ji, and Tian Lie—four figures in total—all looked extremely disheveled. Yin Ji bore a fist-sized puncture wound on his back, and Tian Lie was spitting blood. Even Huo Feng and Xiao Han looked pale, as if they had just fought an ancient foe.

As Huo Feng, Xiao Han, and their group materialized from the river, their eyes immediately locked onto Ji Changkong inside the grass hut. They began swimming rapidly toward the structure.

Seeing that Huo Feng and Xiao Han had managed to traverse from the level below, Ji Changkong’s expression shifted sharply. He ignored the white skeleton by the doorway and urgently focused his attention on the interior of the small hut, anxious to see what it contained.

In the center of the hut sat a meditation cushion, and beside it were five wooden cabinets. One cabinet held a few small vials; another contained a silver net woven like gauze; a third held a thin scroll of a book; a fourth held a small bell-shaped lock.

The fifth cabinet was empty, yet it clearly presented a passage to the lake surface, which was evidently the way to the next higher level.

In the distance, Huo Feng and the others were approaching fast. Yin Ji and Tian Lie wore expressions of cold, fierce malice, as if wishing to strike him down instantly.

Without hesitation, his hands moved like dancing butterflies, sweeping up all the items from the four cabinets. Once everything was secured in his Mustard Seed Pouch, he didn't spare Huo Feng or Xiao Han a glance. He immediately enveloped the lake passage—which occupied the space of the fifth cabinet—with the "Yan Lei Sacred Fire."

He failed to notice that the ghost fire in the eye sockets of the skeleton outside the door flickered back to life the moment he covered the lake passage.

“Brat, you cannot escape! Even if you flee to the ends of the heavens and earth, I will kill you,” Yin Ji shouted from afar, charging forward like a frenzied beast. If not for the anti-flight barriers and numerous speed-restricting enchantments in this area, Yin Ji would likely have already reached him.

Ji Changkong didn't look outside again. Seeing that the lake passage was open for entry, he quickly withdrew the "Yan Lei Sacred Fire" and plunged headfirst into it.

“Kaka.”

The white skeleton before the hut suddenly stood up. Its pair of eerie, green ghost-fire eyes gazed in the direction from which Huo Feng, Xiao Han, Yin Ji, and Tian Lie were approaching.

As the four figures’ spiritual oceans were suddenly struck by a massive wave, they all displayed expressions of extreme agony, as if enduring a terrible assault.

The white skeleton merely glanced in that direction, then began moving its limbs. With soft "kaka" sounds, it walked toward the lake passage and dove into it right after Ji Changkong.

Once the white skeleton vanished, Huo Feng, Xiao Han, Yin Ji, and Tian Lie instantly returned to normal.

“What was that skeleton?” Yin Ji asked, his face etched with lingering fear. That single glance from the white figure seemed to have plunged him into a terrifying nightmare.

“I don’t know,” Huo Feng replied, shaking his head.

“Whatever it was, the brat has entered the next level. Hurry before that lake passage closes!” Tian Lie urged.

Huo Feng said no more, nodding and proceeding forward, though his expression remained intensely guarded.

Xiao Han remained silent. Just as she neared the hut, she immediately mobilized the cold energy within her body, wrapping herself in layers of ice before daring to enter.

The Ninth Level of the Treasure Pagoda. It was a stone chamber. In the center of the chamber sat a single, circular teleportation array; nothing else was visible in the room.

Around the edge of the circular array were multiple slots, four in each section, filled with bizarre energy crystals. These crystals provided a relentless stream of energy, causing the circular array to pulse, shimmer, and operate continuously.

In the very center of the array was a compass. The compass indicated the destination the array was set to travel toward. He glanced at it briefly and realized he didn't recognize any of the marked locations; he had no idea where those symbols pointed.

“Kaka!”

The white skeleton suddenly materialized behind him. The ghostly green fire flickered uncertainly in its eye sockets, giving him an overwhelmingly bizarre feeling.

The skeleton walked step by step, entered the center of the circular array, and stopped beside him, completely still.

Ji Changkong brandished the Dragon Radiance Saber, preparing for a fight, but as he moved to strike, he sensed a faint, familiar warmth emanating from the skeleton.

Just as he was about to bring his blade down, he stared dumbly at the skeleton. For some inexplicable reason, he suddenly found the white figure strangely endearing.

He suddenly felt that the skeleton would not harm him; perhaps it even wished to protect him. It was an ineffable feeling, an internal restraint preventing him from attacking the white figure.

To hell with it, I need to leave this cursed place first!

Thinking of Huo Feng and Xiao Han who might arrive at any moment, Ji Changkong casually fiddled with a direction on the compass and pressed down a protruding stone.

Amidst a deafening roar, he and the white skeleton vanished together into the brilliant light of the teleportation array.