Falling in an endless, dark void wasn’t what Ye Jun expected inside the cave. But Meihui had already warned him that this could be a tomb of some Cultivator, guarded by high-rank Array Formations.
Those were bizarre, so she told him that the insides of the cave would be far from ordinary. And his novel-reading experience also told him enough about these secret tombs.
’How long will I fall? Will I even survive this fall?’
It had been more than five minutes, and he was still falling. Fortunately, his speed wasn’t increasing, otherwise he would have already considered himself dead.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he sensed the surroundings changing. The darkness slowly backed away, revealing a narrow corridor lit up by red torches on its grey stone walls.
Ye Jun landed on his knees, absorbing the falling damage, and looked around. His breathing remained steady as he scanned for any traps or hidden mechanisms.
’Nothing.’
He went forward, his steps echoing in the silent stone corridor. He remained calm while thinking, ’They should also be here soon.’
Still, he didn’t rush and continued walking forward. There was no trap, not one he could see or sense at least. But he got the feeling that something was wrong here.
’What is wrong here?’
All of a sudden, his sense of perception changed.
’No! The world has changed!’
His eyes flared up in alertness as the force keeping him on the ground disappeared. No, it was still there but inverted and came with much greater force.
Ye Jun saw the world turn upside down as he was pulled upward headfirst. He quickly did a backflip, landing on the cold stone ceiling just in time to avoid the trap.
Several thin needles coated in sizzling purple liquid jutted out of the ceiling. If he had been a second late, these needles would be inside his head.
’And my soul in heaven. This poison seems strong.’
He spent a few seconds getting used to the feeling of standing upside down. It was really weird, as even his brain considered the ceiling as ground, but his eyes and senses told him otherwise.
’Gravity manipulation? Probably Dao of Space since it comes under that.’
He closed his eyes and then took a step back, his perception changing again as he dropped back to the ground, a set of needles poking out from there. He looked up. The ceiling was plain, with no needles in sight.
’Just as I thought. It’s a double trap,’ Ye Jun smiled. ’Interesting. Instead of sending traps your way, this pulls you into the trap, and the sudden change in perception makes you unable to react. What a starter pack.’
He took a step forward again, the change of gravity making his perception weird again, but he handled it better now. Then he walked forward on the ceiling, counting steps and ready for any traps.
And then it came.
’Five steps.’
Ye Jun came down onto the ground, two spears thrusting from the sides that he dodged skillfully. Like dancing amidst a bed of thorns, he continued forward, keeping up with the changes of gravity and traps.
’This is pretty easy.’
Of course, if he made even a minor mistake, he would end up dead, but that was his usual life. He was already too used to walking in danger every day.
Finally, he could see the end of the corridor, though he couldn’t quite make out what it was, so he slowed a bit and became more vigilant. Just as he did, the hairs on his arms stood up as he quickly stepped back.
’W-What the hell was that?’
Ye Jun inspected the space carefully, only now seeing thin threads connecting the walls together. Although they seemed weak, Ye Jun knew it was foolish thinking.
He found the gaps between them, but he didn’t move immediately. Instead, he took out a beast core and threw it into the gaps. The next second, something strange happened as the beast core fell onto the ceiling... in pieces.
’Just as I expected.’ Ye Jun’s lips twitched. ’Whoever designed this really wanted to keep people away from their stuff.’
He thought of cutting the threads, but thinking how it could trigger some hidden mechanism, he decided to try something else.
Taking out another Low-Grade Tier 1 Beast Core, he threw it across again, this time with greater speed. The beast core fell upward again, but it was intact this time.
’Thought so. They want us to go forward, but also want to eliminate most people. How cruel.’
He moved back to gain some distance. That was also when he heard voices coming from the corridor’s starting point. He recognized them.
’You informed me of this,’ Ye Jun thought before shouting. "Miss Yan should send some of your clansmen back. This place is dangerous and filled with death."
"Young Master Jun, you really have a kind heart. Thanks for warning us beforehand."
Ye Jun turned back toward the threads and shouted back, "I know I’m very benevolent. Don’t mention it. But be careful. I wasn’t joking, this place is really meant to drive everyone to hell."
"I appreciate your help."
Shaking his head, Ye Jun ran forward, having adapted to the change in perception so the change of gravity also didn’t affect his speed much.
The threads were invisible, but their threat was immense. Ye Jun was sure even his strengthened body wouldn’t survive against them. He got that feeling.
Passing through the gaps, he easily landed on the other side, only to drop back onto the ground in the next step where the sharp needles awaited him again.
’So many traps.’
After dodging them in a hurry, he stumbled forward and found himself at the end of the corridor. He stopped there and looked at the sight before him.
A vast hall opened before him. Walls of grey stone decorated the surroundings, with torches of blue flames illuminating everything. Stone statues of soldiers stood straight on either side of the hall, their eyes closed but their grip on the weapons tight.
’The hell? Why is the genre changing here?’ Ye Jun was speechless. ’I feel like I’m exploring a dungeon. Wait! I’m leveling too, though I’m not going solo otherwise, things would be different.’