The night fell like ink; the silhouette of Spirit City appeared exceptionally solemn and quiet under the starlight. Deep within the Pope Hall, the last instruction was whispered and concluded in the secret room. Ghost Douluo and Ju Douluo knelt on one knee; their figures receiving the order melted into the shadows, withdrawing quietly. Hu Liena stood before Bibi Dong; those eyes usually filled with charming smiles were now full of seriousness and a trace of imperceptible worry.
"Teacher, be careful with everything."
Bibi Dong raised her hand, gently stroking the disciple's smooth hair. She said no more, only nodding. She took off the gorgeous Pope robe and changed into a dark purple tight outfit convenient for action, her long hair tied high. That Tears of the Wind God was worn close to her body; even through the fabric, she could feel waves of increasingly clear scorching heat, like the beating of a heart, guiding the direction of southwest by west.
Dai Chengfeng had also changed into inconspicuous black robes, his aura concealed, appearing like an ordinary soul master guard. But those eyes occasionally flashing with sharp light revealed his Titled Douluo level strength and alertness. The two did not leave through any open channel. Beneath the Pope Hall, there were several secret paths known only to successive Popes and extremely few confidants, leading directly outside the city. They chose a teleportation secret passage constructed using groundwater veins and ancient soul tool arrays. Although the distance was limited, it was enough to send them silently to a hidden outpost one hundred li outside Spirit City.
After a brief sense of dizziness, a fresh night wind carrying the scent of grass rushed to their faces, replacing the heavy incense inside the Pope Hall. This was a hunter's hut located in a mountain hollow; the exterior was dilapidated, but the interior was another world, storing supplies and several soul beasts with extremely fast foot speed, "Night Phantom Horses." No lights were lit; relying only on the starlight filtering through the window and the soul masters' excellent vision, the two quickly checked their equipment.
Dai Chengfeng had prepared very comprehensively. This included soul tool shield generators to resist extreme wind attributes, high-concentration soul power supplement potions, detailed maps of the Fasinuo Province and the Haagen Daz Kingdom border. There were even several low-level soul master robes used for disguising identity.
"Intelligence on the Wind Howling Rift environment is limited; most ancient records are vague. They only emphasize two points: the gale that never stops, and... it is easy to lose direction. It is said that a naturally formed 'Wind Maze' exists within the rift, disturbing perception." Dai Chengfeng handed a special positioning soul tool to Bibi Dong while whispering quietly.
Bibi Dong buckled the soul tool onto her wrist. Feeling the increasingly hurried heat in her chest, she said in a deep voice: "With the Tears of the Wind God guiding, direction is not the problem. The key is, this sensation came suddenly and strongly; I fear we are not the only ones who noticed the anomaly." She looked towards the heavy night sky in the southwest; the stars there seemed to have dimmed by a few degrees. "Let's go, we need to reach the edge of the rift as soon as possible."
The Night Phantom Horses' four hooves were wrapped with special soft pads; when galloping, they were almost silent, like two shadows merging into the night color, galloping quickly along desolate paths. Bibi Dong and Dai Chengfeng were both top-tier powerhouses of the current era; under the concealment of their auras, unless Titled Douluos of the same realm deliberately searched, it was extremely difficult to discover their traces.
The journey was not smooth sailing. The closer they got to the southwest border of Fasinuo Province, the more chaotic the soul power fluctuations in the air became. Occasionally, they could perceive some soul master figures who were also in a hurry and hiding their auras passing in the distance; their directions actually roughly pointed towards the Wind Howling Rift as well.
"The news has indeed leaked, just don't know to what extent specifically." Dai Chengfeng's eyes turned slightly cold; tiny electric arcs jumped at his fingertips.
Bibi Dong pressed his hand, shaking her head lightly: "No need to create extra branches; our goal is the depths of the rift. These people may not be able to find the doorway." The temperature of the Tears of the Wind God on her chest rose a few more degrees, as if urging, or as if resonating with the call of some existence in the distance.
After several consecutive days of traveling without sleep or rest, crossing the vast plains and hills of Fasinuo Province, the desolate mountains on the border line gradually came into view. Vegetation became low and sparse; exposed rocks presented a rugged appearance eroded by wind and sand for a long time. The sound of the wind also gradually changed; it was no longer an ordinary whistle, but carried a sharp whimper as if it could penetrate the soul, coming from the distant west. The wind elements in the air were amazingly active, even producing a certain repulsion and interference to soul power of other attributes.
"We have arrived; ahead is the outer area of the Wind Howling Rift." Dai Chengfeng reined in the Night Phantom Horse, pointing to a huge earth abyss ahead that suddenly sank, covered by gray misty airflow. Even standing several li away, one could feel the violent airflow carrying sand grains rushing to the face, blowing people's robes whistling loudly.
Looking around, the so-called rift simply could not see the opposite bank; there was only a rolling endless gray-white wind wall that looked like solid matter. The earth at the edge of the rift was cracked, filled with bottomless gaps. Small ones were only about a foot wide, large ones exceeded several zhang; constantly, fierce gales sprayed out from the earth gaps, making sounds like ghosts crying and wolves howling. This place was desolate and dead silent; except for the wind sound, almost no sound of life could be heard; even the most stubborn weeds were difficult to survive.
Bibi Dong jumped off the horse's back. The Tears of the Wind God was already so hot it made the skin on her chest feel stinging pain. But strangely, this scorching heat did not make her feel uncomfortable; instead, there was a palpitation connected by bloodline. She closed her eyes, carefully sensing the pulse transmitted by the necklace. That was a clear traction with a sense of direction and distance.
"It's below the earth, very deep, and... moving? No, the position of the entrance in the wind is not fixed." She opened her eyes, a flash of understanding passing through her pupils. "No wonder ancient records say it is easy to get lost here; the rift itself may be a huge, active wind attribute domain or array."
Hearing this, Dai Chengfeng's brows locked tightly: "Do you have confidence to lock onto it?"
Bibi Dong nodded, her fingertips lightly touching the necklace. A wisp of extremely pure pale green energy overflowed from the Tears of the Wind God, wrapping around her fingertips, pointing to a seemingly nothing-special position within the wind wall. "Follow this wisp of guidance."
She stepped forward first, walking towards the gale belt sufficient to tear an ordinary soul master apart instantly. Dai Chengfeng followed without hesitation, simultaneously activating the soul tool shield generator in his hand. A layer of pale gold oval light film covered the two of them. This was the latest result of the Spirit Hall Research Institute; it could resist extremely strong energy impacts, especially having good resistance to wind attributes.
The instant they stepped into the gale belt, the shield vibrated violently, emitting a gritting friction sound. Vision was completely filled by violent gray-white airflow; visibility was less than three meters. In the ears was a deafening whistle, as if ten million sharp blades were cutting the shield simultaneously. The pale green light thread at Bibi Dong's fingertips, however, was exceptionally stable, winding in the violent wind pointing towards one direction. She concentrated her mind and advanced following the guidance; Dai Chengfeng followed closely behind, fully maintaining the shield, and alerting for dangers that might be hidden surrounding them.
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