Journey to the West: Building a Celestial Empire Starting from Lion Camel Ridge

This conjecture is not unfounded.

Chen Ping'an calmly watched the mist touching the edge of the barrier, shrinking back as he moved closer.

It was clearly influenced by the protective properties of the barrier.

"Mist is the true form of the mirage."

Chen Pingan spoke slowly.

"What?"

Ali paused for a moment, followed Chen Ping'an's gaze, observed carefully for a while, and nodded in agreement.

That makes sense.

Zhao Gou'er was still confused and scratched his head, not understanding what was going on.

After Chen Ping'an explained, Zhao Gou'er suddenly understood and looked at Chen Ping'an with admiration and worship.

Even the old folks from the local temples, like Brother Fan and Brother Liu, who had dealt with the mirage demon more than once, were always troubled by the difficulty in finding the demon's true form. But Brother Ping An, after only his first encounter with it, found the key to the problem.

That's just...so amazing!

Looking at the loyalty level fluctuating on the panel, a smile appeared on Chen Ping'an's lips.

Is this what it feels like to be a saint in front of others?

It was pretty fun.

......

If the entire white mist is the true form of the mirage, then ordinary physical attacks will be useless.

It's like punching cotton; it's futile.

But he has something even more terrifying than physical attacks.

Chen Pingan carefully held the black, corrosive skin.

Corrosive and highly toxic.

If this thing could spread out into the mist in front of us, it would be the most deadly poison for the mirage demon.

Now, the only problem to be solved is how to spread the putrid liquid over the largest possible area to cause the maximum damage to the mirage demon.

His gaze fell on the Bone-Splitting Spear in his hand, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

Shattered and burned.

Mirage demon, your death is nigh!

......

Under the tense gazes of Ali and Zhao Gou'er, Chen Ping'an threw out the corrosive skin without hesitation.

It landed on the ground with a crisp crack.

There was no breakage.

As it was a rare treasure, the leather bag containing the putrid liquid was quite sturdy.

The mirage seemed to sense something being thrown at it, and the white mist surged violently.

However, once it realized that it was just a small, seemingly harmless skin, it gradually calmed down.

The white mist slowly covered the skin.

It's now!

Chen Ping'an's eyes narrowed, and he raised the spear in his hand.

Forget it.

a bit far.

"Doggy, come here!"

"Throw this spear into that leather bag!"

"It has to be accurate!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Gou'er nodded and took a deep breath.

Then he hurled the spear!

The next moment, the mist will corrode the skin, completely obscuring it along with the flying bone-cracking spear!

"You won...?"

Ah Li whispered.

A crisp sound rang out as the skin ruptured.

Then, the properties of cracking and burning come into play simultaneously!

boom!

A black dot exploded rapidly in the mist. What burst out of that putrid sac was not putrid liquid, but a black, highly toxic putrid mist!

hiss!

The fog churned violently, and faint, agonizing screams could be heard.

This wasn't the howl of a bone demon. That thing had lost its vocal cords and couldn't produce such a terrifying sound.

The sound was everywhere, echoing in all directions.

It contains extreme pain and is terrifying.

The terrifying blackness spread at an extremely rapid pace.

The three of them instinctively took a half step back.

"This is terrifying."

As Zhao Gou'er watched this terrifying scene, almost instantly, the originally white mist turned pure black.

Looking at Chen Ping'an, who was expressionless at the moment, he felt a surge of turmoil in his heart.

To be fair, Chen Ping'an is much younger than Brother Fan.

But this young lord was far more resourceful than Brother Fan, and his methods were endless. The stone wall, the arrow tower, and the unknown leather bag were all powerful means to fight against the monsters.

At this moment, Zhao Gou'er felt utterly impressed and admired Chen Ping'an.

As for Ali, he remained calm, having long been unfazed by such an occurrence.

If anyone's to blame, it's the mirage demon for choosing the wrong person.

Why did you have to mess with anyone?

......

"The fog has lifted."

Ah Li spoke softly.

It doesn't just drift away slowly.

Rather, it's the kind of thing where the core is hollowed out and then the support is lost.

It starts collapsing from the thickest part downwards, thinning layer by layer.

It's a bit like a balloon that's been punctured by a needle and is slowly leaking air.

The Bone Demon's figure became clear again in the mist, and not far away were several Blood Fiend Bone Generals, their auras blazing.

Moonlight shone through the mist.

Everything in the ruins became visible again.

......

This is a deadly situation that ordinary shelters simply cannot handle.

Chen Ping'an pondered that first the mirage demon confused people's vision, and then the blood demon bone demon reaped the rewards.

One link leads to another.

The meticulous layout seems less like a coincidence and more like a deliberate arrangement.

There may be other intelligent beings in the ruins, greedily taking the lives of the few remaining humans.

As he pondered this, dawn broke.

Zhao Gou'er started a fire and boiled water to cook the last few fish left over from last night.

The three of them sat facing the hot soup, eating in silence.

That night passed.

Thankfully, it was a close call.

The rainy season has nine days left.

---

When Fan Qiming arrived, the sun had already risen.

Before even stepping into the barrier, they noticed the small, corroded pits on the ground and paused in their tracks.

"Something happened?"

"A mirage demon," Chen Ping'an said calmly, "one came last night."

Fan Qiming paused for a moment, his tone uncertain: "You... you held out?"

Only after saying it did I realize it was nonsense.

If they hadn't held out, this conversation wouldn't have happened.

"We held on."

Chen Pingan said he briefly explained the process.

Fan Qiming looked down and then carefully examined Chen Ping'an.

His expression was very strange.

It wasn't that they didn't believe it, but rather that they believed it, yet still found it unbelievable.

"I've encountered mirages twice," Fan Qiming said.

"The first time, I folded a person's coin."

"The second time I was injured, I wandered around the ruins in the dark for two hours, killing countless bone demons before I survived."

Fan Qiming looked terrified. "If I could, I would never want to encounter this monster in my life."

"Me too."

Chen Ping'an nodded; the corrosive skin was a rare treasure dropped by the Toad after killing it.

Demon crystals are not something you can obtain every day.

I don't know when I'll be able to get another one.

"There are far more demons in these ruins than we originally thought."

Fan Qiming thought for a moment and changed the subject.

Chen Ping'an remained silent, listening quietly.

"It's not just bone demons and hungry ghosts," Fan Qiming said, "but also mirage demons, death toads, and something even deeper."

"If even the mirages have emerged, then something even deeper will likely surface during the rainy season."

"Some things that might have brains."

Chen Ping'an knew that this ruin was not simple.

But when Fan Qiming said it, it carried a different weight.

Fan Qiming observed Chen Ping'an's expression and realized that the young man might have already guessed something.

"You young man, you are so clever that it makes one envious."