He changed Tiwat

Captain Ueno kindly offered his torch to Han Fulai, but Han Fulai waved his hand and declined, saying, "No need."

If he wanted, he could activate the Jade Pendant Shield and use it as a light source, but there was no need to waste his power right now. Besides, he had already made preparations for this trip to the Abyss Palace.

He took out a cat-shaped miner's lamp and a strangely shaped blue crystal from his storage space—"Lumen Stone".

Since he was going to explore the underground kingdom, he naturally had to bring these devices with him. He even brought a few pieces of amber from the "Tianheng" ship to use as "power banks" as backup.

"This ore seems to be..."

The divine child looked at the "Luminite" catalyst with amazement in his eyes—this thing seemed to contain the power of the heavens?

Han Fulai handed the "Luminite" catalyst to the Divine Child, saying, "Just as you thought, this thing has a miraculous effect on 'darkness.' You can trigger the light with elemental power or immortal power. Divine Child, you can take it. It will increase the output power when you encounter demons, and you can use it for protection."

The divine child accepted his kindness without saying much.

"Ying, quickly bring out your 'lumen'!"

When Paimon saw Han Fulai take out the "Luminite" catalyst, he remembered that Ying also had one, but hadn't used it since leaving the Abyss of Layered Rocks, and had left it idle for a long time.

"Paimon, why didn't you remind me last time?"

Ying muttered a complaint under her breath as she searched for "Lumenite" in her backpack with a pained expression.

Her "four-dimensional backpack" was filled with so many things, both valuable and worthless, edible and inedible, that it was hard to imagine it at first glance.

Paimon spread his hands innocently: "Didn't you yourself not expect this?"

The two stared at each other, each wanting to call the other an idiot.

Well, looking at it this way... wouldn't it make her and Paimon seem really stupid to come back here to retrieve that "Blood Coral" and fight monsters in the dark?

Thinking about it carefully, every time they went on an adventure with that young master Han, they always seemed so stupid—is that right? No, that's not right!

I'm clearly the most skilled and professional adventurer in all of Teyvat!

Moreover, her subordinates from the "Swordfish Squad 2" are here... She can't afford to lose face in front of them.

Ying stopped rummaging through her backpack and decided to pretend that she couldn't find her "Lumen Stone".

The divine child activated the "Lumen Stone" catalyst in his hand, and a white light instantly pierced the darkness, illuminating an area of ​​several dozen feet around everyone as bright as day.

The soldiers on Haiqi Island were all amazed, marveling at Mr. Han's resourcefulness.

Han Fulai wasn't particularly smug; he simply warned loudly, "Please be careful, everyone. The light might attract the monsters lurking in the darkness."

Last time, when he and Yelan fell into the surface of the abyss, he also took out this "Lumen Stone" catalyst for lighting, and then Yelan gave him a good scolding, saying that this thing could easily attract abyssal monsters.

This time, he came specifically to deal with the demons, so he didn't care about revealing himself. After all, there were three powerful beings at the demigod level or above here, and with the demons gathered, they could be wiped out in one fell swoop.

Just as he was speaking, a series of metallic scraping sounds rang out.

Then, the sound of wind breaking came whistling in, heading straight for the divine child holding the "Luminite" beside him.

The first to be hit was Captain Ueno, who was standing in front of them.

Captain Ueno was no slouch in martial arts, and he reacted immediately, sweeping his spear around. If it were a monster like a dragon lizard rushing at him, this spear would sweep it away, and his comrades would then fire their spears in a flurry, turning the monster into a pincushion.

However, his shot missed its target.

He watched helplessly as the spear in his hand inexplicably broke in two.

A sudden golden light flashed before his eyes, followed by the clanging of metal against metal.

It was as if an invisible knife was aimed at his face, but was blocked by an invisible shield.

"It is the 'Wind-Slaying Sword' of the 'Black Serpent Knight'."

Knowing that the "Black Serpent Knight" might exist here, Han Fulai had been on guard against the "Sword of Wind Slash." The soldiers of Haiqi Island, as well as Ying and the Divine Child, had never seen such an invisible and shadowless sword aura attack before—but he had seen it many times in his many battles.

The light emitted by the "lumenstone" catalyst is the most conspicuous target, thus limiting the opponent's attack path. Even invisible sword energy can be defended as long as a shield is set up in the opponent's attack path beforehand.

"Divine Child, Ying, make your move."

Although they hadn't discussed it beforehand, this level of understanding wasn't difficult for the three who had fought side by side.

The divine child immediately turned up the brightness of the "Lumen Stone" catalyst, revealing the "Black Serpent Knight" hidden in the darkness—

This was also the first time the soldiers of Haizhi Island had truly seen what those "armored suits that could move on their own" looked like.

It was a "Black Serpent Knight" wielding a double-handled great axe, with the black sun emblem representing the "Black Sun Dynasty" of Kanria printed on his chest armor.

That "wind-slicing sword" was created using those two axes.

Although the name "Sword of Wind Slash" contains the word "sword," it is essentially just an application technique of the "True Arts" of the Kanria royal family, and is not limited to the form of a weapon.

If it were Jiang Xue, she could unleash the same sharp sword energy using the Wufeng Sword, the Qianyan Ancient Sword, or even a tree branch.

The "Black Serpent Knight" paused slightly as he was illuminated by the light from the "Lumen Stone," seemingly in fear of the light.

Ying captured that moment.

"Thunder Shadow Sword!"

Her sword was actually faster than she could announce the name of her move.

With a flash of purple light, the "Mist Slicer's Return" sent the "Black Serpent Knight's" helmet flying high into the air.

...There was no body beneath its helmet.

Chapter 272 The Thousand Lanterns Ritual, the Seal of the Light Realm [4k]

Ying's sword slashed off the "Black Serpent Knight's" head, but the "Black Serpent Knight" did not fall.

It completely ignored the glow behind it and rushed straight towards the "Luminite".

Thick black mist gushed from the empty neck of the "Black Serpent Knight," looking like black blood... It charged into the enemy ranks, wielding its great axe and pouring out its burning passion.

Captain Ueno looked horrified.

He was a veteran, a man who had fought his way through battlefields where blood and flesh flew everywhere, so ordinary monsters could not frighten him.

However, the strange "armor" in front of him truly shocked him.

There are no unkillable people or unkillable monsters in this world, that should be the case... but this "armor" completely overturned his common sense.

Even after being beheaded, its actions remain unaffected, and it even appears more frenzied—like headless corpses on the battlefield suddenly rising up, determined to drag the living down with them to hell.

They have two elite squads, nearly a hundred people in formation, but there is only one monster.

But it charged alone into the army of a hundred men.

Ueno had many comrades by his side, and he knew that there were unparalleled strongmen in his ranks, but at this moment, he felt as if he were trapped in boundless darkness, facing a deadly monster that seemed like a ghost.

Xingtian wields his axe and shield, his fierce will forever remain.

There is no legend of "Xingtian" on the continent of Teyvat, but the sight of that helmetless armored figure charging forward wielding a great axe clearly demonstrated its will to everyone present—to kill!

It will not stop until it has killed all the living creatures in front of it!

Exclamations of alarm rose and fell among the Sea Spirits. Not only Ueno, but almost every Sea Spirit soldier who faced the "Black Serpent Knight" felt a deep-seated fear.

The clanging sound of armor clashing was like the footsteps of death, growing ever clearer in Ueno's ears.

As the terrifying monster drew ever closer, Ueno remained motionless, still clutching the broken half of his gun.

...It wasn't that he was loyal to his duty and willing to use his body as a shield for Lord Han, but rather that his legs were too weak to move.

Until a warm sensation came from his shoulder.

Han Fulai silently pulled Ueno behind him—for ordinary people, facing the "abyss" is simply too difficult.

At the same time, purple lightning flashed in the eyes of the divine child.

The fox-shaped lightning bolt suddenly descended from the sky and struck the "Black Serpent Knight's" body.

Great Secret Technique: The Celestial Fox Manifests Its True Form!

Just as the Black Serpent Knight was paralyzed by the lightning, "Mist Slash Reflection" shone brightly once more. The longsword flew like lightning, piercing through the Black Serpent Knight's back and chest, striking the black sun on its chest.

Spatial rifts burst forth from the sword, tearing apart the "Black Serpent Knight's" body.

As an adventurer, Ying has extensive experience fighting various monsters, such as the "Wind Core" and the "Elemental Element"... These elemental creatures do not have a "head" in the usual sense, but they will definitely have a "core".

Although Ying didn't know whether the "Black Serpent Knight" was an elemental creature, she knew that all monsters in the world had weaknesses—if the head wasn't the weakness, then the weakness was most likely in the heart.

The black sun emblem on the "Black Serpent Knight's" chest flickers slightly when it moves, and it looks a lot like the "core"... Well, why not give it a try? It won't hurt to try it, after all.

The movement without helmet armor suddenly stopped.

The next second, the "Black Serpent Knight's" massive body turned into black mist and vanished.

Yingmei deftly sheathed her sword with a flourish and gave a victory sign to her subordinates and Little Paimon, who was cowering behind the crowd.

"Captain Ying is invincible!"

"General Hai Zhi Wushuang Ying!"

The soldiers cheered and raised their arms.

Ever since the Abyss Palace was shrouded in that inescapable black mist, this armored demon has been hiding in the mist, killing countless of their comrades, and they haven't even been able to see the demon's true form... Today, General Ying has finally avenged them.

Han Fulai did not make a move openly this time. Even Ueno did not know who helped him block the invisible sword energy. When the Divine Child released the lightning, he never kindly announced the name of the move to alert the opponent. Therefore, in the eyes of those Sea God soldiers, General Ying was naturally invincible.

The legend of "Peerless Sea Goddess" has gained another chapter today.

After this encounter, the "Black Serpent Knight" did not appear again along the way. Only a few foolish dragon lizards blocked the way, which were chopped into mincemeat by the sea warriors whose morale had been greatly boosted.

The group made it through the black fog without incident and successfully arrived at the temporary camp on Haiqi Island.

The temporary camp on Umijima Island was set up in the central area of ​​Fuchishita Shrine, near the Daiichi Mikoto.

Looking up from here, you can see the "Dainichi Mikoto" hanging above the tower—as Yingmei said, it is the only "lighthouse" in this dark abyss palace.

Around the "lighthouse," coral branches, like vines, entwine around the "Dainichi Mikoto," emitting a faint glow.

The "blood coral" that Yingqian took from Yuanxia Palace was collected here.

According to Yingmei, this was a very simple job: climb up the tower, cut off a piece of coral, and take it away... However, the soldiers from Haiqi Island would not have been able to climb up this tower, which was practically a sheer cliff, along the outer wall.

The divine child then quietly tugged at Han Fulai's sleeve, prompting him to check the lights around the camp.

This temporary camp, built near the "Dainichi Mikoto," was surrounded by a fence of candles. There were several burning candles every three to five steps.

The soldiers from Haiqi Island stationed at the camp were also assigned to patrol the surrounding area, but their patrols did not seem to be guarding against the invasion of monsters, but rather checking whether any candles had gone out or were about to go out.

Each soldier carried several candles, ready to be replaced at any time.

"Is this the 'Thousand Lantern Festival'?"

Han Fulai recalled what Xin Hai had said before: the shaman Aqi, whose name could not be found in the Coral Palace's register, presided over an ancient ceremony called the "Thousand Lantern Festival," which maintained a sliver of light in the central area of ​​the Abyss Palace.

Those candles were probably ritual props for the "Thousand Lanterns Festival".

“Count the number of candles carefully, and also how they are arranged,” the priestess said again.

After she mentioned it, Han Fulai also noticed something amiss.

Although it's hard to notice at first glance, the candles weren't placed randomly; rather, they were arranged in a way that resembled "stars surrounding the moon."

In the center of the "candle array" is a relatively thick candle, surrounded by eight relatively slender small candles. Each "candle array" is composed of nine candles.

However, the specific formation that these candles formed was completely outside his knowledge.

"The array of candles is called the 'Seal of Light,' an ancient barrier technique that uses the power of 'light' to dispel darkness," the divine child said leisurely. "The so-called 'Thousand Lantern Festival' is a barrier array composed of thousands of 'Seals of Light.' That priestess named Agi is quite extraordinary."

Han Fulai remarked with deep emotion, "To be able to see through the essence of this 'Thousand Lantern Festival' at a glance, Lord Gongsi is truly remarkable."

The goddess covered her mouth and smiled, clearly pleased with his praise.

Hmph, who says vixens only know how to use their looks to please men? A clever vixen is a "wise and capable wife," making men unable to live without her.

Ueno, the captain of the "Swordfish First Squad" who escorted them here, was now slumped on the ground, exhausted, his face filled with endless emotion: "If there is another chance... I will ask Lord Coral Palace to let the 'Swordfish First Squad' deal with the floating spirits on Umijima Island. I would rather do that than go to Shibuchi-Shibuchi again!"

Ueno was originally just the vice-captain of the "Swordfish Squad 1," while the original captain of the "Swordfish Squad 1" was attacked by those armored monsters and disappeared forever in the black mist.

He had only been acting captain for two days when he was appointed in a time of crisis, but he had already made several trips to Yuanxia Palace to escort wounded soldiers, losing several comrades each time... Not long ago, he himself almost suffered the same fate as the former captain.

Death was not so terrible for an old warrior like him. Even if his opponent was General Raiden, he would still dare to fight back—even if he would die, he would show the spirit of a Sea Warrior before he died.

But in front of that armored monster, he couldn't even muster the slightest courage to resist, as if his very soul had been completely seized by fear... This feeling of weakness, of being "unable to do anything," still haunts him to this day.

"Those monsters that only have armor and chase you around with a clattering sound are terrifying..."

Paimon also looked on with a sense of shared understanding: "I completely understand."

A few days ago, when she and Ying came to retrieve the "Blood Branch Coral," there was no black mist or armored monsters in the Abyss Palace. The sudden appearance of these armored monsters gave her a real fright.

—Paymon was huddled next to Han Fulai and the others at the time. If the monster's attack hadn't been blocked, she might have been the one to be struck.