My experience of grinding in another world

Chapter 656 Jade Cicada

In the dead of night, the starry sky stretches endlessly.

The bright moonlight shone on the mist that drifted slowly above the Misty Forest, creating a serene and mystical atmosphere, like a celestial palace in a dream.

The forest was completely quiet; not even the faint chirping of insects could be heard.

a moment.

Click!

The silence was broken by the sound of a withered leaf cracking.

Amidst the swirling mist, a ragged, white-haired old man emerged from the fog.

His hair was gray and disheveled, and his body was so thin that he seemed to be nothing but skin and bones. But he walked with remarkable agility, his limbs were strong, and his complexion was ruddy, like that of a middle-aged strong man.

At this moment, the old man's eyes were half-open, but his pupils were unfocused and his face was expressionless, as if he were sleepwalking.

Step, step, step...

A series of orderly footsteps approached from afar, and a group of people broke through the mist, appearing in the middle of the woods, just like the old man, in a daze.

They included men, women, children, people of all ages and heights, and even two or three black water buffaloes and seven or eight large yellow dogs.

At this moment, everyone had droopy eyelids and walked silently into the depths of the misty forest, their movements perfectly synchronized, like marionettes.

Further away, moonlight shone through gaps in the mist into the woods.

Countless shadowy figures are moving slowly forward, hidden in the mist.

Step, step, step...

The sound of orderly footsteps echoed eerily in the deathly silent, misty forest at night, sending chills down one's spine.

……

Several days later, in Peach Blossom Valley.

Chen Mu was mingling among the Hundred Illusions Clan, feigning a demonstration of the Demon-Sealing Spell. Suddenly, a commotion arose from the direction of the peach grove where the entrance was located.

The group stopped what they were doing and looked into the distance. They immediately saw a group of more than a hundred ordinary people walking into the valley with blank expressions.

Several disciples from Taoshan Temple were also with them, loudly admonishing and leading the group forward.

"Which batch is this?" someone in the crowd asked.

“Twenty-three. Nowadays, there are at least eight hundred to a thousand mortals in Peach Blossom Valley,” one person replied.

"It's said that the Misty Forest outside is full of footprints; no one knows how many mortals have gone to Qingqiu Mountain." Another person said worriedly, "Letting living beings walk into a trap, I never imagined that the demons from beyond the heavens would be so wicked!"

This doesn't seem like something Lan Zhang would do.

Chen Mu, standing on the edge of the crowd, frowned as he looked at the group of ordinary people in the distance.

Those people had rosy complexions and behaved like normal people.

However, upon closer observation, it can be observed that those people often lose focus and their reactions are slightly slower than those of ordinary people.

The human body is divided into the soul, spirit, and spirit. The soul governs consciousness, and these people's reactions seem to indicate that their souls have been damaged.

"Why does this feel a bit like the Yellow Millet Plague I encountered back in the Dingyou Heavenly River Water Mansion?!" Chen Mu's heart skipped a beat.

Even now, thinking back on that thing still makes his heart race.

If it weren't for the Heavenly Demon Armor and the Qi Restriction for a Hundred Miles, he would have almost become an ignorant and unknowing living dead.

"Don't be afraid, I've already gone to Taoshan Temple's inspection office to investigate." Yang Fu clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention.

"Those who are affected are ordinary mortals and common animals. We Qi cultivators are protected by spiritual light, so we are very safe."

Upon hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Upon hearing this, Chen Mu's brows furrowed even more deeply.

If this change is truly related to the Yellow Millet Plague, then the protective aura of a Qi cultivator won't be very effective.

Back then, Jiao Shi possessed the cultivation of a Great Perfection of Tribulation Transcending, comparable to a Qi Refiner who had mastered the River Chariot. Yet, even so, he still couldn't withstand the plague's infection.

"Please don't let it be that thing."

……

Just two days later, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse.

More than a dozen night patrol soldiers disappeared without a trace. After repeated investigations, the only conclusion they could draw was that these people had left Peach Blossom Valley on their own.

In the following nights, people began to disappear one after another. The truth could no longer be concealed, and panic gripped the entire Peach Blossom Valley.

Fearing being caught in the trap for no reason, many Dao soldiers began to stay indoors, and all the various demon-sealing spell drills arranged by the Thousand Machines Sect were put aside.

Chen Mu also stayed inside the stone house and did not go out.

Late at night, he stood by the window of the stone house.

The sky was cloudless and the stars were dazzling. The pure white moonlight shone through the window, illuminating half of his face.

The night sky was clear and bright, but he had no interest in looking at it.

The Divine Power of Listening was unleashed, enveloping the area surrounding the location of the Hundred Illusions Division.

At one moment, a figure in gray appeared at the edge of the range of the Divine Listening Power.

The man walked straight out of Peach Blossom Valley with a blank expression and half-open eyes, seemingly in a daze.

But just as they reached the edge of the peach grove, several streaks of light descended, blocking the soldier's path.

Judging from their clothes, those people were from the Taoshan Temple Inspection Office.

One of the burly men stepped forward and gently patted the affected Taoist soldier on the shoulder. The Taoist soldier, who had been dazed just moments before, snapped back to his senses.

He saw several burly men in black suits around him, looking completely bewildered, as if he had truly been sleepwalking.

After exchanging a few more words, the man followed several black-clad patrolmen back to the depths of Taoshan Temple.

Chen Mu watched from beginning to end, and only looked away after everyone had completely disappeared.

This was not the first time he had encountered such a situation.

Those black-clad patrolmen were clearly professionals who handled such incidents.

"It seems that Taoshan Temple wasn't completely idle after all." Chen Mu breathed a sigh of relief.

……

Sure enough, no one went missing in the following days, and the strange illness that caused people to sleepwalk into the Misty Forest never reappeared.

As people in Peach Blossom Valley gradually felt at ease, they resumed their daily activities and began to practice the Demon-Sealing Spell step by step.

"I heard it was Elder Yan from the Thousand Machines Sect who was behind it." Inside the Hundred Illusions Department's performance arena, someone spoke mysteriously: "The root of the problem lies with those ordinary people. They were infected by an evil secret technique from extraterrestrial demons, which is contagious. The Dao soldiers who were caught a few days ago all had encountered those people."

"Luckily we were standing far away beforehand," someone in the crowd exclaimed with relief.

"Now it's all right. Elder Yan has used a barrier spell to seal and isolate all those infected people deep in the valley, so we are no longer at risk of being infected."

The crowd was abuzz with discussion, their worries of the past few days vanished, and relaxed smiles appeared on their faces.

Chen Mu, who was listening intently nearby, also breathed a sigh of relief.

……

Late at night, in the city of a thousand lights.

Chen Mu lay rocking in the rocking chair in front of the wooden building.

A delicate, palm-sized dragon body roams and hovers around him.

It would sometimes burrow into Chen Mu's hair, and sometimes it would dart up into the sky, curiously observing the large eye hanging high in the air.

Ever since he contracted that strange illness, Chen Mu has been too afraid to sleep in Peach Blossom Valley at night.

Even though the risk of infection is no longer there, it is only a temporary isolation and there is no clear solution yet, so he decided to stay in Thousand Lanterns City for a couple more days.

"As expected, the Thousand Machines Sect couldn't just watch all the Dao soldiers perish."

"After all, we still have to rely on the Taoist soldiers to launch a counterattack on Qingqiu Mountain."

Thinking of all the information he had gathered during the day, Chen Mu felt a little more at ease.

"It's just that ordinary people suffer." He couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.

Within Peach Blossom Valley, elders of the Thousand Machines Sect intervened to prevent the spread of the virus. However, the countless ordinary people outside Peach Blossom Valley were left unattended.

Controlled by an evil secret technique, they rushed to Qingqiu Mountain like puppets; their fate is likely to be grim.

Chen Mu didn't know how far this secret technique had spread, but according to the patrolling soldiers, there were many unfamiliar footprints in the Misty Forest, and the number was increasing day by day.

Is the Thousand Machine Sect unable to save those ordinary people?

Chen Mu shook his head slightly.

"I'm afraid the Qi cultivators of the Thousand Machines Sect don't care about ordinary people at all."

Ordinary people are of low status and little power, and their suffering and cries have never caught the attention of Qi cultivators.

"I just hope that the Thousand Machines Sect can send Lan Zhang back to the Underworld Demon Heaven as soon as possible."

"In the end, we still lack the strength," Chen Mu sighed inwardly.

Now that the River Chariot is complete, the Yin Spirit Divine Embryo has been cultivated, and the powerful secret technique Candle Dragon Transformation has been mastered.

But faced with this upheaval that swept across the entire Haizhou, he was still like a lone boat at sea.

"Fortunately, my years of hard work have not been in vain."

"The Heavenly Demon Armor and the Thousand Lanterns City—these measures at least ensured my safety."

He smiled wistfully, a sense of weariness slowly creeping into his heart.

Raising his hand, Chen Mu transformed the Candle Dragon's Dharma Body into a bracelet, dispelling distracting thoughts. He then closed his eyes, preparing to enter a deep sleep.

But the next moment, he suddenly opened his eyes.

Something is wrong!

Having cultivated for many years, my body has undergone numerous transformations. Unless I suffer significant damage, I can go ten days or half a month without sleep without feeling tired.

just now……

Oh no, I've been infected too!

The thought flashed through his mind for a moment, and before he could react, a faint blackish-green light suddenly flickered between his brows.

A few lines appeared between her eyebrows, outlined with a few simple strokes, resembling a jade cicada.

A sudden wave of immense fatigue washed over me.

Chen Mu's eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds; no matter how hard he tried, they drooped uncontrollably.

His pupils slowly dilated and became unfocused. In just a few breaths, Chen Mu became dazed and confused, as if he were sleepwalking.

The black mist swirled, and the gate to Thousand Lanterns City appeared.

Chen Mu walked straight forward and crashed into the outside of Qiandeng City without hesitation.

(End of this chapter)