"Hurry... faster..."

"If we don't leave Heavenly Mountain soon..."

"There won't be any time left..."

Whoosh—

Wu Liang's eyes snapped open, and he bolted out of his sleeping bag like a released arrow, instinctively assuming a defensive stance, his eyes flashing with a fierce, vigilant look.

This sudden reaction startled the nearby Fierce Ghost Minions into silence.

It took a full five seconds before Wu Liang surveyed his surroundings and gradually eased the alertness in his eyes.

The barren, black-brown land stretched out to unknown distances where mountains cascaded unendingly, and beneath were remnants of a once verdant Primitive Forest now reduced to skeletal trees.

He was still midway up Bogda Peak, and everything that just happened was merely a dream.

"So real, but why does that voice feel familiar... That's not right, why am I dreaming?" Wu Liang pondered, sitting down heavily on the ground with a frown.

With his Nightmare Ability, he should, in theory, be able to control his dreams, even if he were to fall into deep sleep, and be aware that he is dreaming.

Lucid dreams, for him, were nothing more than ordinary occurrences.

Yet during these few days of outsmarting the White-haired Fierce Ghost, he kept dreaming of strange, unidentified voices when he rested at night.

"Boss, no external force is affecting your dream."

The Nightmare seemed to catch a trace of something, stepping forward to remind Wu Liang it had found nothing unusual.

As a City-Destroying Level Fierce Ghost, if any power could sneak into Wu Liang's dreams unnoticed, it would be truly beyond belief!

"Phew... Forget it, let's not dwell on this now. Has everyone had a good rest?"

Wu Liang exhaled heavily, then looked over at his Fierce Ghost Minions.

The Puppet Ghost and Oil Paper Umbrella had leaped to truly become City-Destroying Level Fierce Ghosts!

This left Wu Liang puzzled, as he had many Fierce Ghost Minions already at the peak of the Red Robe Level but unable to ascend to the City-Destroying Level.

So why were the Puppet Ghost and Oil Paper Umbrella able to advance now?

"Could it be they need to consume City-Destroying Level Fierce Ghosts to advance? But that's not right; during the battle with Ghost Valley, the Fierce Dragon Ghost's body was also retrieved by officials, yet the Kitchen Knife Ghost and Mist Ghost advanced just the same. Why is that?"

After pondering for a long time, Wu Liang still couldn't figure out the prerequisite for advancing to the City-Destroying Level Fierce Ghost.

In the end, he could only shake his head and temporarily set it aside; after all, the most important task now was to swiftly reach the summit of Bogda Peak and find the Attractive Object!

"Alright guys, let's climb!"

A single man along with several ghosts surged forward like a mountaineering team, advancing rapidly.

With the snow melting away and Wu Liang's extraordinary physical prowess, without the obstruction from Fierce Ghosts, even the steep cliff faces of the peaks felt like flat ground beneath his feet.

Ordinary people, regardless of their comprehensive preparations, would find it difficult and time-consuming to climb to the summit of Bogda Peak.

Yet he took only half an hour to glimpse his destination.

"Hmm? What's this?"

Upon reaching the summit, Wu Liang sensed a reaction from the Ghost Compendium, and looking toward the direction of the Attractive Object, he noticed an odd spot—

A snow-covered cave entrance?

The glaring white snow and the black cave entrance seemed to pierce both Wu Liang's and his Fierce Ghost Minions' eyes against the howling wind.

The Mist Ghost, finding it particularly puzzling, walked over to scoop up some snow and rub it between its fingers.

When combating the White-haired Fierce Ghost, it was certain it had dissipated all the snow within a hundred-mile radius.

Yet the snow at this cave entrance seemed so real, devoid of any Fierce Ghost aura, simply just ordinary snow.

"Something's wrong... The problem isn't the snow, it's this cave. If the White-haired Fierce Ghost had this snow, it might have escaped sooner, but it didn't come up until it was exorcised."

"Could a City-Destroying Level Fierce Ghost, having claimed the sovereignty of Bogda Peak, fear a small cave like this?"

"Unless what's inside... truly has some inseparable connection with the Ghost Compendium, hence naturally subduing Fierce Ghosts."

Wu Liang quickly ran through his thoughts, becoming increasingly convinced that the cave contained the hidden Attractive Object.

He then gestured, and all the surrounding Fierce Ghost Minions were stowed away within the Ghost Compendium for safekeeping.

After all, if the White-haired Fierce Ghost genuinely shunned this cave out of fear, Wu Liang was concerned its power might affect his Fierce Ghost Minions as well.

But he is a living being!

Abilities that threaten Fierce Ghosts... theoretically shouldn't affect him, right?

"Whatever, if things get dicey, I'll just peek inside and retreat if there's danger, hopping back and forth."

Wu Liang shrugged; considering the White-haired Fierce Ghost dared not enter this place for refuge but harbored that strange, peculiar shard within, it indicated it must've ventured inside at least once.

No reason a place the White-haired Fierce Ghost could exit alive, he couldn't do the same!

Crunch—

Thus, Wu Liang stepped onto the snow outside the cave and strode confidently inside, the crunching sound beneath his feet echoing within the cave, giving him an adventurer's vibe.

However, he suddenly realized as he ventured deeper, the view not only remained unobstructed but grew more vibrant and lucid, even the pebbles at his feet were crystal clear.

Yet after nearly ten more minutes of advancing, he gradually sensed something amiss.

This cave... shouldn't be this large, right?

Logically, ten minutes would've been enough for him to circle the summit once; why was this narrow cave, barely enough for three people to walk abreast, taking so long?

The most chilling part was—Wu Liang could feel himself climbing steadily higher! The path beneath increasingly resembled stairs!

"For real? Didn't I enter the cave from the summit? How can a summit cave keep ascending further?"

Based on his silent mental calculations, he estimated he had climbed nearly a hundred meters in height within these ten minutes!

Calculating from his entry point, he should now be suspended about a hundred meters in the air.

As he continued, the stone walls on either side squeezed closer, prompting a bizarre notion to pop into Wu Liang's head—

"Beyond the forest ends and at water's source, appeared a mountain with a small opening, as if there were light. So they abandoned the boat and entered through the opening. At first it was extremely narrow, only passable by one person. After a few dozen steps, it suddenly opened up."

This was from The Peach Blossom Spring, describing the Wuling People, who relied on fishing, entering that ethereal Peach Blossom Spring.

Wu Liang now felt he was walking towards a place that shouldn't exist.

After continuing for another ten minutes, reaching an ethereal height of around two hundred meters, he finally glimpsed a clear exit ahead.

Quickening his pace, as Wu Liang's head peeked out from the exit, the warm sunlight hitting his face rendered him momentarily speechless.

"Oh no, brothers, I might have actually reached Peach Blossom Spring!"

He saw a vast expanse of flat lands, neat dwellings, fertile fields, pretty ponds encompassed by mulberry and bamboo groves, all coming into view...

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