Chapter 821 - 819: Encountering the Eight Trigrams Array Again
The Eight Trigrams Array is composed of eight gates: Rest, Life, Injury, Hindrance, View, Death, Shock, and Open. Enter from the east "Life Gate," exit from the southwest "Rest Gate," and re-enter from the north "Open Gate," thereby breaking the formation.
This formation was originally created by Sun Bin during the Warring States Period, featuring the above eight gates. By the Three Kingdoms Period, Zhuge Liang added a command platform in the center, guarded by archers and infantry, to direct strategy changes. It is generally believed to have sixteen variations.
Thinking of this, Chen Tianlong promptly sprinted toward the eastern cave wall and kicked it.
Indeed, with a "boom," Chen Tianlong passed through the wall. But that was not the end; without a moment’s hesitation, he kicked the southwest wall at the Rest Gate position.
At this moment, Chen Tianlong slightly curled his lips, struck an impressively cool pose, and suddenly punched towards the northern direction.
"Bang!"
All directions suddenly collapsed, resembling scenes from "Inception," with the whole world crumbling spectacularly. Just as Chen Tianlong was about to grab his phone for a selfie to post on Weibo for likes, he felt the ground shaking violently.
A sudden blinding light made him squint, a current-like sting flickered in his mind, prompting him to shut his eyes. Upon reopening them, a different scene unfolded before him.
Chen Tianlong felt a bit disappointed, realizing after all that he was still within the cave, albeit in a different location.
Goddammit!
What kind of hellhole is this? Why does it feel increasingly impossible to escape?
Chen Tianlong muttered a complaint, noting the dim light and intensely hot air. After walking a short distance, he was already sweating all over, feeling extremely uncomfortable.
"What kind of ghost weather is this? Sometimes it’s cool, other times it’s scalding; does it even want people to survive?" Chen Tianlong muttered while wiping the sweat from his forehead as he continued forward.
However, Chen Tianlong gradually noticed something; the deeper he ventured, the hotter it seemed. With no way back, he had no choice but to push forward.
Eventually, overwhelmed by the heat, Chen Tianlong decided to strip off his shirt, leaving only his pants as he continued forward. Now, he was perspiring profusely, reminiscent of a shower.
"Damn it! Is this Flame Mountain or what? Why is it so unbearably hot?" Chen Tianlong lamented, exhausted from the escape, starving, thirsty, and sweltering, contemplating crashing into a wall to end it all.
Amidst Chen Tianlong’s grievances, he unconsciously reached the cave’s bottom, the ultimate tomb of the Black Alliance’s forbidden ground.
The room was scorching hot, yet Chen Tianlong’s curiosity led him to inspect three coffins ahead. Strangely, while others use thousand-year-old ice to preserve bodies, here they were placed in such heat, bafflingly oblivious to decay and smell.
As Chen Tianlong approached, he realized the three crystal coffins preserved their bodies perfectly, astoundingly intact.
Mugginess does hasten decay, but this heat originates from the Land of Flame’s extremely hot Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. The room was saturated with high-density Fire Attribute Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
"Whoa, seems I’ve stumbled into someone’s prime training area!"
Unaware of the prime cultivation conditions, Chen Tianlong remained fixated on escaping.
Suddenly, Chen Tianlong’s gaze fell upon a nearby cave wall, densely engraved with many inscriptions. Initially, he saw overwhelming Japanese script, recognizable only from a few familiar scenes from Japanese films, otherwise indecipherable.
Annoyed, his glance shifted to the right, revealing a Chinese translation.
"Damn, playing with me?"
Chen Tianlong was speechless, having struggled through the Japanese script for nothing, only to find a translation all along.
Taking a deep breath, Chen Tianlong began reading...
Briefly reading, Chen Tianlong discerned this was the Black Alliance’s forbidden ground, inscribed as the tomb of its three founders, which wasn’t the main point. Further reading revealed a nearby Eye of Fire.
The Eye of Fire is hardly noticeable, yet it regulates the temperature across Shandong. Now, during spring and summer, it’s scorchingly hot; in winter, it warms the place considerably.
"The Eye of Fire, emitting dense Fire Attribute Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, is ideal for cultivating fire attribute practitioners." Chen Tianlong, after reading the last sentence, furrowed his brows, realizing the opportunity to absorb the dense Spiritual Qi.
Nonetheless, upon reflection, Chen Tianlong doubted his fire attribute physique, given the weakness when using Flaming Frenzy Dragon Fist.
At this moment, a sharp pain engulfed his head, his heart felt uneasy—a danger signal.
"Not good!"
An innate reaction alerting imminent danger prompted Chen Tianlong to activate the Condensing Power Technique to brace for potential mishaps.
However, as soon as the technique initiated, Chen Tianlong felt something amiss. Suddenly, the Eye of Fire spewed a flame, followed by scorching Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi rushing towards him.
Alarmed, Chen Tianlong leaped in fright, knowing the flames could scorch him to death if not careful.
Oh, my!
Bombarded by flames, Chen Tianlong frantically hopped around on the ground, amusingly attempting to dodge.
Fortunately, his speed was commendable, narrowly escaping the flames’ grasps.
In his relief, the east gate suddenly slammed shut, evidently a trap door. The mechanism, controlled by indoor temperature, triggered by the flames’ continuous eruption, raised the room’s temperature, setting off the trap.
Startled, Chen Tianlong glanced at the door, nearly swearing.
Done for, done for, the door’s shut, awaiting a pig roast future.
His thoughts hadn’t unfurled when the room suddenly exploded.
Yes!
Indeed, it exploded; within the room, concentrated fire attribute Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi ignited rapidly.
Ruined!
Chen Tianlong’s eyes widened, watching wave after wave of heat surging towards him, reflexively shutting his eyes.
Unexpectedly, dying this way.
A story’s beginning was known, but its ending unforeseen—a tragedy.
As seconds passed, Chen Tianlong felt no pain.
Were the explosions so powerful that he perished before feeling pain, shattered into fragments?
Instinctively, Chen Tianlong opened his eyes, wondering about his presence in heaven or hell, considering his evil deeds, countless murders, uncertain whether he’d end in hell.
Eh? Still in the room.