Chen Guan's memory was quite good - he had already memorized all the contents. The text recorded a dual cultivation technique, which was essentially a secret method for two people to practice cultivation together.
Since it didn't specify whether it was limited to male-female, male-male, or female-female pairs, Chen Guan wasn't sure if this technique required one man and one woman. However, judging from the outline, practicing this dual cultivation method would bring tremendous benefits to both parties. If mastered to the extreme, both could reach the pinnacle and ascend as immortals.
The more Chen Guan thought about it, the more something felt off. The Epang Scripture was created by the Ancestral Emperor through compiling all the secret techniques in the world as a method for humans. In that era of male superiority, how could women possibly attain equal status with men?
This made Chen Guan strongly suspect that this dual cultivation secret method wasn't actually part of the Epang Scripture left by the Ancestral Emperor. As he continued studying it, he became increasingly convinced this wasn't the Epang Scripture - the later sections explicitly described yin-yang harmonization cultivation methods that clearly required one male and one female practitioner.
"This technique must be related to the Shituo King," Chen Guan pondered silently. "The Shituo King itself is a yin-yang combined entity."
Ji Nanhong had only memorized the first part, but she too realized this was a dual cultivation method. She couldn't help but doubt whether this was truly the technique she had imagined.
"How could a secret method created by the Ancestral Emperor be such a licentious dual cultivation technique?" Ji Nanhong's expression kept changing uncertainly.
After a while, the writing on the stone wall gradually lit up again. Ji Nanhong went to study it once more, committing the contents to memory.
Chen Guan no longer needed to memorize the text. Instead, he used the glowing writing's illumination to examine their surroundings, searching for possible escape routes. Unfortunately, visibility was extremely limited - beyond this section of stone wall, the distant darkness revealed nothing.
Ji Nanhong, still engrossed in memorizing the wall inscriptions, didn't notice Chen Guan's abnormal reaction. As the writing's glow faded again, Chen Guan continued staring fixedly at that section of cliff - where he had seen a human shadow.
Yes, a human shadow. Not a painted mural, but a real shadow - the kind that only appears when illuminated by a light source. Yet Chen Guan couldn't see any physical form casting that shadow. It simply existed on the cliff face, appearing rootless and source-less.
"It must be my eyes playing tricks," Chen Guan thought, his expression shifting uncertainly. "How can there be a shadow without a physical form?" Yet deep down, he didn't truly believe it was his imagination - the image had been too vivid.
It was simply a black shadow, unaffected by the cliff's uneven surface, just darkness imprinted on the stone. Chen Guan's heart pounded wildly. He wasn't afraid of ghosts - in this era, no one feared such nebulous concepts, not when Mystical Spirits' eerie abilities made ghosts seem mundane by comparison.
But a shadow existing without any source could only mean one of two things: either someone was present, or the shadow itself was a Mystical Spirit. A shadow-form Mystical Spirit - Chen Guan had never heard of such a thing. Physical attacks would likely be useless against it, just as they were against water-type spirits where fists or blades had minimal effect. Only special secret techniques could harm such entities.
Currently lacking such means, Chen Guan realized encountering a physically immune spirit would likely mean disaster today. As these thoughts raced through his mind, the wall inscriptions lit up again, pulsing rhythmically like breathing - brightening and dimming at roughly fifteen-minute intervals.
While Ji Nanhong continued memorizing, Chen Guan kept his eyes locked on the shadow. There was no mistake - it was an independent shadow, rootlessly imprinted on the cliff face near the edge of the glowing text. The bright writing actually made the shadow less noticeable.
Chen Guan noticed the shadow's posture had slightly changed from when he first saw it. "No doubt about it - that must be a Mystical Spirit. Unknown what level though." When darkness returned, Chen Guan felt profoundly uneasy, as if surrounded by lurking evil spirits waiting to emerge from the blackness and bite his head off.
A formless shadow attacking in darkness would be impossible to defend against - one might die without even knowing how. Countless scenarios flashed through Chen Guan's mind as he tensed, ready to counterattack at any moment.
Rouge had been injured breaking through the water barrier for him and likely couldn't fight effectively. Relying solely on his own abilities, he wasn't sure he could overcome this predicament. Even if Rouge could fight, could it harm a shadow?
As Chen Guan's thoughts spiraled, the writing illuminated again. Staring at the shadow's position, he realized it had moved slightly and now had a completely different posture - as if sitting with one hand propping its chin, watching Chen Guan.
Cold sweat broke out on Chen Guan's forehead. Though merely a featureless black silhouette, he could feel it looking directly at him.
"What's wrong with you?" Ji Nanhong asked, having finally finished memorizing. She turned to see Chen Guan drenched in sweat, staring strangely at the cliff face as if suffering some hidden ailment.
Someone as sharp as Ji Nanhong immediately realized something was amiss. Following Chen Guan's gaze, she spotted the shadow and her pupils contracted sharply.
"What is that? A Mystical Spirit?" Even Ji Nanhong couldn't identify it, but her assessment matched Chen Guan's - that shadow was dangerous.
"Not sure, probably a Mystical Spirit," Chen Guan replied, still staring fixedly at the shadow. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ N0v3l.Fiɾe.net
When darkness returned, Ji Nanhong experienced the same inexpressible dread as Chen Guan - as if demons lurked everywhere in the blackness, ready to devour them. Goosebumps erupted across her skin.
Against something like the Shituo King, Ji Nanhong wouldn't react this way - death in battle was straightforward. But this eerie shadow induced a fear that transcended mere fear of death.
"We need to find a way out immediately," Ji Nanhong said through gritted teeth. "This place is too unnatural."
"No sky above, no ground below, and we can't fly. How?" Chen Guan said helplessly.
"Our only option is searching underwater for an exit," Ji Nanhong suggested.
"And if there are Mystical Spirits in the water? How's your swimming?" Chen Guan countered.
"I... can't swim..." Ji Nanhong admitted somewhat embarrassedly.
"You can't swim, and I'm only average. If there are spirits in the water, we're dead for sure," Chen Guan sighed.
Ji Nanhong's expression kept changing. In her current physical state, escape seemed impossible here. If only she could recover mobility, there might be a slim chance.
But even the best medicine couldn't instantly heal broken bones. Unless... Ji Nanhong found herself thinking of the dual cultivation method she'd just memorized. Its later sections described miraculous applications - if it truly worked, perhaps it could rapidly heal her fractures.