Chapter 175 Confession

Faced with the toxic mist surging like thick smoke, Xiao Yuan proactively met it, standing on the periphery of the toxic smoke and taking a deep breath.

The yellowish-green toxic smoke billowed into her nostrils, and Xiao Yuan's pale face quickly flushed with red spots, developing festering blisters. Her bright, watery eyes became turbid, and bloody tears flowed.

In an instant, a mature and alluring older sister was transformed into a hideous and repulsive figure.

"Xiao Yuan…"

Zhang Yuanqing's expression changed slightly. He took out the Azure Emperor Jade Belt and rushed over.

"Don't come over!" Xiao Yuan coldly stopped him and retreated from the toxic smoke. With her face covered in festering, red, and ulcerated sores, she said, "You can't withstand this poison. Even with antidote pills and healing items, you'll inevitably die if you're enveloped by the toxic smoke and continuously eroded."

"And without antidote pills and healing items, the Fire Master and Swordsman would die on the spot."

The Fire Master and Swordsman's expressions changed slightly. Sun Miaomiao and the others didn't look any better. The toxic mist blocked their retreat, so they could only grit their teeth and闯关 (chuǎng guān - brave the level). Guan Ya's analysis was correct: the mechanical city was indeed designed to be inescapable.

If they didn't pass the level, they would die.

"I'm an Yin Corpse; I'm not afraid of poison," Princess Yinyao announced like a proud elementary school student, raising her little喇叭 (lǎ bā - loudspeaker).

"Zzzzzz." The Cat King sound system in her waist bag played music in sync: "You are the electricity, you are the light, you are the only myth~"

"Shut up!" Zhang Yuanqing's blood pressure soared in anger. He thought to himself that these two treasures had joined forces. Once they were out of the dungeon, he would separate them.

"He's angry, give him some face." Princess Yinyao patted her waist bag, and the music stopped immediately.

Zhang Yuanqing glared at Princess Yinyao, then took out the Mountain God Scepter. "How's your face? Do you need healing?"

"No need; it'll recover within five minutes. Gu poison at the Saint stage can't kill me." Xiao Yuan appeared indifferent. At least she wasn't provoking Guan Ya at the moment.

If it were Xie Lingxi, she would cry and say, "Brother, my face is ruined! Brother, I'm in so much pain! Brother, hug me!"

"Let me see." Zhang Yuanqing was still worried. He observed carefully and found that the redness and swelling on Xiao Yuan's face were beginning to subside, and the blisters were gradually drying up.

The Witchcraft Master's poison resistance physique was working. The toxins in her body were rapidly breaking down. The poison that could easily kill a level four Saint was easily broken down by Xiao Yuan in a few minutes.

Zhang Yuanqing finally breathed a sigh of relief, put away the Mountain God Scepter, put on his blue gloves, and pushed forward with both palms.

"Whoosh~"

A strong wind rose from the tunnel, tearing apart the oncoming yellow-green toxic mist.

The toxic mist was forced back. Zhang Yuanqing quickly took off his gloves, looked around, and threw the gloves to Hongji Ge (Red Rooster): "Hongji, you block the wind." Throwing the gloves to Hongji Ge (Red Rooster) was a reasonable allocation of human resources. Hongji Ge (Red Rooster) didn't need to attend meetings or use his brain; he just needed to do things.

"Come, come, come." Zhang Yuanqing gathered everyone together to discuss how to get through this level.

Guan Ya spoke quickly, succinctly explaining the rules of the stone cave.

1. Skills cannot be used.
2. The faster the speed, the faster the attacks come.
3. Both spiritual bodies and physical bodies will be attacked.
4. The attack strength can easily break through the defenses of level five terracotta soldiers.

Sun Miaomiao frowned. "Not having an Earth Guard in the team is our weakness. We can't withstand it head-on."

"If the three of us Yin Corpses gather together, we should have enough to use the human wave tactic, but the cost would be too great," Zhao Chenghuang said in a deep voice.

The Fire Master of Shame said, "No need for so much trouble. I already have an idea. We can hide in Little Red Riding Hood's hat. As long as you pass through the stone cave, it's the same as us passing through."

Xiahou Aotian's eyes lit up. "That's right; this level shouldn't be difficult for Yuanshi."

The suggestion of "The World Returns to Fire" was unanimously approved by the team members.

Zhang Yuanqing looked around, estimated the diameter of the stone cave, and quickly calculated in his mind.

"The five slides of the Sliding Shoes should allow me to reach the center of the stone cave. The Yin-Yang Faerie Robe's Water Ghost passive can block one attack. I can use the Zijin Shield to withstand the rest, plus the Azure Emperor Jade Belt's Beast Transformation."

First, he would try to determine the upper limit of the evil ghost sculpture's attack.

He took out the slender Thunderbolt Cannon and switched it to a round shield.

Then he would try. He held the small shield tightly and, under the slightly nervous gaze of the others, stepped into the stone cave. The Yin-Yang fish immediately rotated one-third of the way.

Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the sculpture and the Taiji fish, and continued to take two steps. The Yin-Yang fish completed its rotation instantly. The next second, two beams of white light shot out from the pupils of the evil ghost sculpture, illuminating the dim stone cave.

"Bang!"

The round shield in Zhang Yuanqing's hand shattered into pieces. Metal fragments splashed on the ground, automatically softening and melting into grains of liquid metal.

Even the Zijin Shield, a top-quality item at the Saint stage with amazing defensive power, couldn't block a single attack.

Behind him, "The World Returns to Fire" and the others turned pale.

"My right arm has a comminuted fracture," Zhang Yuanqing said stiffly, not moving.

"Retreat quickly," Xiao Yuan and Guan Ya said almost simultaneously.

"Retreating won't trigger an attack," Sun Miaomiao added.

Only then did Zhang Yuanqing quickly retreat. The liquid metal scattered on the ground returned and merged into the damaged shield, repairing the item.

"This is troublesome," Zhang Yuanqing said with a solemn voice. "My shield can withstand one attack from a level six Saint… Well, a level six Saint at the early stage. And there's something even more troublesome."

"What is it?" "The World Returns to Fire" had a bad premonition.

"Just now I discovered that the ability to switch the item's form and the ability to reflect electricity have been disabled. In other words, using item functions in the stone cave not only restricts skills but also restricts items," Zhang Yuanqing said.

This news was undoubtedly adding insult to injury for the team.

If the functions of the items were also restricted, wouldn't they have to rely on their physical bodies to withstand the attacks? In that case, everyone present would die, including Yuanshi Tianzun.

The corners of "The World Returns to Fire's" mouth twitched, and Sun Miaomiao's eyebrows were furrowed into a knot.

"Have you guys come up with a good plan yet?" Hongji Ge (Red Rooster) shouted from the tunnel.

"Don't make so much noise!" Xiahou Aotian turned his head and shouted. The next moment, his pupils shrank slightly. Hongji Ge (Red Rooster) was ten meters away from them before, but now he was only five meters away.

The toxic mist was scurrying along the stone walls, eroding the safe distance little by little, and would soon envelop them.

"We have to think of a way, we have to think of a way," "The World Returns to Fire" said with a heavy expression, pacing back and forth.

"We can all hide in the hat; that's the last resort," Princess Yinyao raised her small喇叭 (lǎ bā - loudspeaker).

"There's no food or drink in the hat; it's just a temporary solution," Guan Ya said in a low voice.

"Damn it, I can't hold on anymore!" Hongji Ge (Red Rooster) shouted and quickly ran back.

The toxic smoke was slowly surging towards everyone and was already close at hand.

At this critical moment, Xiao Yuan, whose face was still swollen, stepped forward and grabbed a handful of yellowish-brown powder from her inventory. It was sparkling, and upon closer inspection, it was fish roe-like insect eggs.

Xiao Yuan scattered the insect eggs in her hand. The yellowish-green thick mist suddenly sank, then thinned and slowed down at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The immediate crisis was resolved. Xiao Yuan said quickly, "The insect eggs need gu poison to hatch, but the number of insect eggs is limited; they can only last for thirty seconds at most. Yuanshi, what do we do next?"

"I'm thinking!" Zhang Yuanqing was a little anxious. He didn't know much about mechanical arts or the Mo family. Without enough information, even if he was smart, there was nothing he could do.

Suddenly, Zhang Yuanqing had an idea. He pulled Xiahou Aotian aside and said in a low voice, "You're a scholar; you should know information about the Mo family's mechanical arts. You're the protagonist; you can crack it."

Xiahou Aotian thought to himself, "Although I'm the protagonist, I'm not an omniscient god."

But then, he saw Yuanshi Tianzun's gaze aimed at his thumb.

The clever protagonist suddenly realized, "That's right, I'm the protagonist; I have a ring grandpa with me."

The old man was a high-level scholar, an ancient cultivator from the same period as the Mo family. As someone in the same profession and from the same period, he must have dealt with the Mo family.

And the founder of the Mo sect was a disciple of the Mo family.

Xiahou Aotian pinched the black iron ring on his finger and silently called out in his heart, "Master, help me out of this crisis."

He heard the laughter of the Qin Dynasty alchemist in his mind: "Call me Master when something happens, call me dead old man when nothing happens."

"I didn't call you wrong; you are an old man who died thousands of years ago. Cough cough, Master, I was wrong." Xiahou Aotian was always able to be flexible at critical moments.

The Qin Dynasty alchemist chuckled and said, "This path is the only way to the inner area. Mo sect disciples usually pass through it as well. If it were so dangerous, the Mo sect disciples would have died long ago. Have you thought about the reason why?"

Xiahou Aotian was overjoyed. "Are you saying that what we see is all illusion? The Mo sect's illusion is so profound that even Yichuan Mei didn't see through it."

"No, the Mo sect activated the mechanisms, making it so dangerous."

"Do you have to be so annoying when you talk?"

"I learned it from you."

Xiahou Aotian's face twisted slightly. He forced himself to endure it and lowered his head. "Is there a way to crack it?"

The Qin Dynasty alchemist smiled and said, "Do you still remember the meaning of Ming Gui (明鬼 - Understanding Ghosts)?"

"Believing in ghosts and gods, having a sense of awe, and not doing bad things." Xiahou Aotian glanced at the active toxic smoke and the anxious teammates and quickly answered.

The Qin Dynasty alchemist nodded. "A pure and good person can pass directly; the ghosts and gods will not attack. If the ghosts and gods attack, it means that the person has done something wrong."

Xiahou Aotian suddenly understood. "Then how can a guilty person pass through?" Xiahou Aotian quickly asked.

The Qin Dynasty alchemist said with a chuckle, "Didn't I just say it? Believe in ghosts and gods and have a sense of awe. Confess what bad things you've done to the ghosts and gods."

Xiahou Aotian's spirit was lifted. He said loudly, "I know how to pass through the stone cave; I've figured out a way to crack it!"

The team members were filled with joy. They didn't expect that this unreliable, chuunibyou (中二病 - adolescent delusions of grandeur) young man would be so reliable at a critical moment.

Zhang Yuanqing smiled. "Tell us quickly."

Xiahou Aotian didn't answer. He stepped towards the stone cave, and the Yin-Yang fish immediately began to rotate. When he took the third step, Xiahou Aotian shouted loudly, "I shouldn't have stolen my dad's private money to pay off my debts!"

The third step landed. The evil ghost sculpture quietly watched him. The attack didn't descend. Xiahou Aotian quickly looked back and said, "You must believe in ghosts and gods, have a sense of awe, and not do bad things. Those who have done bad things must repent before the ghosts and gods."

The smile on Zhang Yuanqing's face slowly disappeared.

Repent?

The joyful expressions of all the team members were like an oil painting, instantly frozen on their faces.