Dimensional Hotel
Chapter 347: Joining the Shadows

Chapter 347: Chapter 347: Joining the Shadows

The sudden, out-of-nowhere remark from the little puppet, "There’s a killing intent," instantly startled everyone, especially Yu Sheng, whose past few lives had been rather short. He tensed up immediately, already planning for where he might die in the next second.

Then, a large swath of Fox Fire floated up around Hu Li, Luna swiftly equipped her Fingertip Blade from a hidden compartment in her thigh (no one had ever seen her react so quickly), and Xuan Che sunk his Qi into his core field, assuming a Bow Step and Lower Waist stance. One hand pulled a medicine gourd from his robe while the other prepared for the Medical Disturbance Explosion Fist...

The group stood at the main entrance of Lingxi Mine Park, forming a battle-ready quivalent of the Immortal and Mysterious Joint Attack Yu Sheng’s Death Formation, confronting the air for half a minute as more and more onlookers gathered around...

Yu Sheng raised a hand and poked the little puppet on his shoulder: "Where exactly is the killing intent you mentioned?"

Erin responded confidently, "It’s gone now!"

Veins popped on Yu Sheng’s forehead: "You little..."

"But there really was one just now!" Erin insisted with the same confidence, "I felt something glance at me, and when I tried to glance back, I sensed some malevolent presence nearby, even if it was just for a moment."

Yu Sheng was ready to yank this fellow off his shoulder and swing it around, but upon hearing this, he noticed the little puppet’s face lacked any mischievous expression, prompting his eyebrows to crease slightly: "Really?"

"Why would I lie to you?"

"I did not sense any malicious spying," Xuan Che shook his head from the side, "but Erin’s perception in this area is stronger than mine. It’s possible for her to detect malice that others cannot."

Luna retracted her Fingertip Blade, speaking slowly: "No detection."

"...Anyway, let’s stay vigilant," Yu Sheng furrowed his brows, exhaling softly before speaking in a low voice, "Let’s head to that Exotic Realm entrance. We don’t want to draw attention here."

Xuan Che nodded, also noticing the crowd around them. He casually cast a dispersal talisman to disperse the idlers, then led Yu Sheng and the group swiftly through the mine’s gates and continued towards the depths of this "mine park."

Yu Sheng, unfamiliar with the path, simply followed behind Xuan Che, zigzagging through the forest paths. They passed through large geological landscapes developed in later stages and through many exhibition halls and courtyards displaying old mechanical devices. The surroundings gradually took on a more desolate and barren look.

Going further, Yu Sheng distinctly felt as if he had crossed some kind of "boundary," no longer seeing any idle people but instead being enveloped by an elusive sense of oppression that lingered around them.

"We’ve entered the restricted zone," Xuan Che said softly, "There is a Prohibition left by my sect here to prevent outsiders from approaching the dangerous entrance to the Exotic Realm—an incline shaft just ahead of here."

Yu Sheng nodded lightly, observing his surroundings.

This so-called "mine site" was far larger than he had imagined. The Immortals who once came to this colonized satellite to mine spiritual ore had possibly centered around a massive mineral belt, establishing vast follow-up processing and residential areas around it. What he had passed through seemed to be the former residential and processing areas, the mechanical exhibition areas, and what was before his eyes now was where the old mineral belt used to be.

Before him lay a vast, somewhat desolate hill. Even though a millennium of development on the colonized satellite had endowed the planet with a thick artificial atmosphere and a complete ecological cycle, the hill maintained an almost primitive desolate landscape reminiscent of an alien planet. Strange, huge stones, pale with scattered hints of blue, and cracked grounds surrounded them. There were tracks formerly used for mineral transport, as well as large, enigmatic machinery scattered among the stones. In the distance, there were entrances to underground inclines, each flanked by imposing and fierce statues of Exotic Beasts, possibly tied to the local culture of Taixu Spirit Hub.

Yu Sheng and his group approached one of these incline entrances, taking only a few steps when several rays of radiant light crossed the sky. Following which, a group of young men and women in blue Daoist Robes landed before them.

At their head was a beautiful woman wielding a sword that glimmered with a cold sheen, exuding a cool and steady demeanor. After landing, she respectfully bowed deeply to Xuan Che: "Senior Brother."

Xuan Che returned the courtesy: "Hmm, Su Yun, you and the others have worked hard."

The other young cultivators also bowed, some covertly sneaking glances, curiously and cautiously observing Yu Sheng and his companions—especially the "Silver Fox Immortal" with nine tails.

Hu Li flashed her teeth at one of them (only for fun), causing everyone to suddenly jerk back and quickly retract their gazes.

The beautiful woman, referred to as "Su Yun" by Xuan Che, hurriedly lowered her head: "Immortal, please forgive us!"

Yu Sheng waved his hand hurriedly: "No need to be nervous, she’s just playing around with you...she doesn’t bite."

"They are the guests that Master invited from Boundary Land," Xuan Che introduced, "This is Mr. Yu, and these are Hu Li, Luna, and Erin."

He then raised his hand, pointing to the female leader opposite: "This is my junior sister, Su Yun. She was in charge of watching over this Exotic Realm before I returned."

"That Exotic Realm is truly peculiar, and now Master no longer allows ordinary disciples to go inside for ’testing.’ He only lets us guard the entrance and wait for you, Senior Brother, to handle things," Su Yun nodded, openly relieved, "We have also set Prohibitions around the old mining area and arranged four teams for patrol and vigilance."

Xuan Che nodded, and then seemed to suddenly remember Erin’s earlier "there’s murderous intent" and frowned, asking, "Have there been any unusual occurrences today?"

"No," Su Yun immediately shook her head, "I’ve been watching the entrance the whole time. Other than the shadows sometimes expanding and contracting, there hasn’t been any change."

Xuan Che nodded slightly, then ordered Su Yun to lead the way, joining Yu Sheng and the others to the eerie shaft entrance where unusual occurrences had transpired.

This was an extremely wide entrance, flanked by menacingly majestic stone statues of exotic beasts guarding either side. Within the entrance was a gentle slope stretching seemingly endlessly, with abandoned rails and suspended tracks alongside. Despite being discarded, the shaft’s entrance was still illuminated—the material of the "pearls" embedded in the wall bases of beast mouths emitted a cold glow.

Yu Sheng stood at the slope’s entrance and gazed down, seeing only chaos below. Though the lights on the walls extend downward, the further they go, it seems the lights are increasingly suppressed by something, growing dimmer, the shadows deepening.

"This place is the Deceitful Secret Realm, the entrance is rather obvious, right at the shadowy place," Su Yun said beside him, "Going down the slope, the lights on both sides steadily grow dimmer, while shadows beneath people’s feet become more defined and dense, until all around becomes pure darkness. When the lights on the walls can no longer illuminate the path ahead, one will have entered the Exotic Realm. At that moment, one can still see the path back and can retrace steps to return. But if one continues forward, they’ll step directly into the depths of the Exotic Realm..."

"In the depths, one will see all sorts of eerie scenes, nothing like being inside a mine. The path that was taken becomes hidden and cannot be retraced to exit. To leave, one must keep walking in the direction of lights or wind sounds, until seeing an upward path—possibly stairs, a dirt slope, or a mountain path. Encountering this kind of path, you keep moving forward, and barring any accidents, you’ll gradually return to the darkness, and as the path underfoot becomes the mine shaft’s slope again, you can retrace steps to return."

"According to Senior Brothers who ventured down before, there aren’t any tangible creatures such as ghosts or monsters in the Exotic Realm. It’s merely gloomy and harbors an unsettling aura, greatly influencing one’s mental state. Staying long enough, even without encountering enemies, one’s spirit may become turbulent, and one’s cultivation heart unsteady, even sensing growing violent intent. It’s always like everyone around is a threat, though one can overcome this through willpower. But if truly trapped inside unable to exit, long term exposure may lead to serious consequences."

Yu Sheng and Xuan Che exchanged a glance.

"Shall we go down together to take a look?" Yu Sheng casually suggested.

Xuan Che smiled slightly, "I am certainly willing."

"Alright," Yu Sheng nodded, then turned to glance at Erin perched on his shoulder, "Help me out too."

Erin was taken off guard, "Huh? Look at what?"

Yu Sheng wore a serious expression, "See if I’m going to experience bloodshed today."

"Oh, alright," Erin replied blankly, then held Yu Sheng’s face with both hands and seriously scrutinized, earnestly focused. After a moment, she solemnly nodded, "Yes, but the bleeding will be minor."

Yu Sheng’s mouth twitched, "Well, I really have to thank you for your precise judgment."

Xuan Che stood by, baffled, unable to understand what the two were doing, only presuming it to be some sort of mysterious ritual before the travel agency’s mission...

Then he instructed Su Yun to continue having the guard disciples maintain vigilance around the entrance, preventing unrelated people from approaching the mine, while he and Yu Sheng set out, stepping into the deep and endless slope.

As everyone advanced, light around gradually dimmed.

The atmosphere began to change.

Yu Sheng couldn’t quite articulate the nature of the change, but he certainly felt some sort of "boundary" looming closer. As he gazed at the deepening, unlit slope ahead, he sensed an abyss of sorts below, where an immense "entity" beneath the depths lifted its head and silently, coldly observed him.

Yet this feeling vanished instantaneously, and shaking his head, he merely saw ordinary shadows below.

The Exotic Realm held no sense of good or evil, only patiently awaited uninvited guests to approach.

Hu Li walked beside him, Luna already equipped with the Fingertip Blade, Xuan Che held a talisman between fingers, Erin’s fingertips subtly crackled with electricity.

Then darkness descended from all directions.

In that fleeting moment, he seemed to hear countless distant, commanding shouts, akin to thunder, rolling forth yet hard to discern, only vaguely capturing a few words—

"...Activate...the great formation!"