HLnovel Chapter 5: The Edge of the Abyss
Chapter 5: The Edge of the Abyss
In the valley, there were birds singing and flowers blooming, and the air was filled with spiritual energy, but there was also an indescribable silence. Gao Xingchen followed Nan Li through the meadow full of exotic flowers.
"Be careful!" Nan Li suddenly shouted in a low voice, and his figure flashed to the side like a ghost.
Before Gao Xingchen could react, he saw the ground where they were standing suddenly collapse, revealing a dark deep pit. He was shocked to find that this seemingly peaceful valley was actually filled with murderous intent!
"Why are there so many mechanisms and traps here?" Gao Xingchen couldn't help but ask.
Nan Li did not answer, but just glanced at him coldly and continued to walk forward. She took every step carefully, as if she knew the mechanism here very well.
Gao Xingchen, who was following behind, felt increasingly uneasy. He felt that there seemed to be some huge secret hidden deep in the valley, and this secret was likely related to his repair of the star veins.
"Ouch!"
A scream broke the silence of the valley. Gao Xingchen turned around and saw Xuan Feng, who was traveling with him, sitting on the ground in pain, holding his ankle.
"What's wrong with you?" Gao Xingchen hurried forward to help him up.
"I...I accidentally stepped on something..." Xuanfeng was sweating profusely in pain and said, pointing to a seemingly ordinary stone not far away.
Nan Li stepped forward and said coldly: "This is a chain mechanism. If one triggers it, the whole body will move."
As soon as he finished speaking, the trees around him suddenly grew wildly, and thick vines swept towards them like poisonous snakes.
"Be careful!" Gao Xingchen pushed Xuanfeng away, but he was entangled by vines. The sharp thorns pierced his flesh and blood, and severe pain spread throughout his body in an instant.
Nan Li's figure was as fast as lightning, and she had a short dagger in her hand. With a flash of cold light, the vines were cut off in unison. She pulled Gao Xingchen up, tapped her toes, and took him and Xuanfeng to a giant tree, temporarily avoiding the attack of the vines.
Gao Xingchen looked down at the shocking wound on his arm, blood gushing out, and the severe pain made his face pale. He clenched his teeth and made no sound, but the cold sweat oozing from his forehead revealed that he was enduring great pain at the moment.
Nan Li glanced at him, took out a bottle of powder from her waist, and poured it on his wound. As soon as the powder touched the wound, there was a burning pain, and Gao Xingchen couldn't help but groan.
"Don't move." Nan Li's voice was still cold, but Gao Xingchen saw a hint of imperceptible worry in her eyes.
After simply treating the wound, Nanli led them deeper into the valley. As they went deeper, the surrounding trees became taller and taller, blocking out the sun. The sun could hardly penetrate the layers of branches and leaves, and the entire valley was shrouded in darkness.
Finally, they found an ancient ruin deep in a dense forest. The gate of the ruin had collapsed, revealing a dark entrance, and a rotten smell filled the air.
"Is this the place you are looking for?" Xuanfeng covered his nose with a look of disgust.
Nan Li ignored him and walked straight in. Gao Xingchen followed closely behind, his heart full of anticipation and anxiety.
The interior of the ruins was even more dilapidated than it looked from the outside, with broken walls everywhere and ancient runes carved on the walls, but most of them were already blurred. They groped their way forward, and there was an eerie silence in the air, as if no one had been here for a long time.
Suddenly, Gao Xingchen felt a strong energy fluctuation. He raised his head and looked into the depths of the ruins. At the end of the ruins, there was a stone platform. Above the stone platform was a bead emitting dazzling light. The strong energy fluctuation came from this bead.
"That is..." Gao Xingchen's heart began to beat violently. He vaguely felt that this bead might be the key to his recovery.
As if to confirm his thoughts, a line of ancient words appeared on a stone tablet next to the stone platform: "Use the blood of the stars to sacrifice the star souls, reshape the star veins, and change your fate against the will of heaven."
Gao Xingchen's heart was shaken. He knew that his chance had come! However, before he could be happy, the words on the stone tablet changed again: "The test begins. Those who fail will fall into the abyss forever."
The ancient incantation echoed in the empty ruins, like the low chant of the god of death. Gao Xingchen stared at the flashing words on the stone tablet, and his heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand. "Losers" will fall into the abyss forever. These eight words were like a heavy burden, pressing him so hard that he couldn't breathe.
He took a deep breath and stepped onto the stone platform. Following the instructions on the stone tablet, he placed his hand on the Star Soul Orb that was emitting dazzling light. A powerful energy instantly surged into his body, impacting his meridians. The severe pain made him groan, but he gritted his teeth and persisted, trying to control this violent energy.
However, things went against his wishes. This energy was too strong for Gao Xingchen's meridians to bear. He felt as if his body was about to be torn apart, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.
"Give up, you can't do it." A cold voice sounded in his ears.
Gao Xingchen suddenly opened his eyes and saw a man in a black robe standing in front of him with a mocking smile on his face.
"Who are you?" Gao Xingchen asked vigilantly.
“I am the guardian of this Star Soul Orb. If you want to obtain its power, you must defeat me first.” The black-robed man sneered.
Gao Xingchen took a deep breath, knowing that he had no choice. He mobilized the little star power in his body, ready to fight to the death with the man in black robe.
However, before he could make a move, the man in black robe turned into a black shadow, appeared in front of him in an instant, and slapped him on the chest.
Gao Xingchen only felt a sharp pain in his chest, and the whole person flew backwards, fell heavily to the ground, and a mouthful of blood spurted out.
"It's vulnerable." The man in black robe sneered and turned to walk towards the Star Soul Orb.
"Xingchen!" Seeing this, Nan Li hurriedly stepped forward to help Gao Xingchen up, her eyes full of worry.
"I'm fine..." Gao Xingchen struggled to stand up, but felt weak all over. The successive failures made him exhausted both physically and mentally, and he almost gave up.
"Don't give up, you can do it." Nan Li's voice was firm and powerful, like a warm current, flowing into Gao Xingchen's cold body.
Xuan Feng, who was standing by, also stepped forward, patted him on the shoulder, and said seriously, "Boy, I believe in you. Try again!"
Their encouragement rekindled the fire of hope in Gao Xingchen's heart. Yes, how could he give up so easily? He still had a lot of things to do. He still had to protect Nan Li, find out his own life experience, and...
Gao Xingchen took a deep breath, slowly closed his eyes, recalled the records about the Star Soul Orb in his mind, looking for the key to breakthrough.
As time passed, a faint light gradually emanated from Gao Xingchen's body, and his breathing became steady and powerful.
Suddenly, he opened his eyes with a determined light in them. He knew that he had found a way!
Gao Xingchen placed his hand on the Star Soul Orb again. This time, he was not in a hurry to absorb the power of the Star Soul Orb. Instead, he tried to use his mental power to communicate with the Star Soul Orb.
Gradually, he felt that the Star Soul Orb seemed to have a reaction, and a gentle force slowly flowed into his body.
Just when Gao Xingchen was about to succeed, a deafening roar suddenly came from the depths of the ruins. Immediately afterwards, a powerful aura came from the depths of the ruins, instantly enveloping the entire ruins.
Gao Xingchen's face changed, he knew that the guardian beast appeared!