Chapter 812: Moon Palace
"Finally arrived!"
Shen Mo and the three others leaped off the back of the Evil-eating Centipede, landing on the massive branches of a tree crown, where the Bright Moon hung within their reach.
Reaching out to pick it, the faint moonlight flowed between their fingers like spring water, fanning out spots of mystical luster!
Standing atop the tree crown and looking down, one could see the floating gold and stone veins, crust layers, mountains and rivers, dense forests and marshes, ancient cultivator relics, and all sorts of places. Each was sparkling with spells, erupting waves of fierce battle turmoil...
Between outsiders and Immortal Mansion creatures, outsiders amongst themselves, creatures of the Immortal Mansion competing amongst each other, battles raged on endlessly and bloodily, all for a precious piece of spirit gold, a miraculous spiritual medicine, or a powerful magic artifact!
It was indeed quieter than the towering tree, yet, Shen Mo and the others knew this was just the calm before the storm.
Once they tread upon this moon, endless dangers awaited them.
In addition to the unknown murders buried inside and outside the Celestial Palace, they must deal with the malice of other strong outsiders, fighting and dueling for the treasures within the Celestial Palace!
Shen Mo retrieved the Evil-eating Centipede into the Sword Zone, and then everyone began consuming elixirs and refining nature’s spiritual energy, restoring their conditions.
The journey with the Centipede had cost them little energy.
After restoring their Essence and Qi to peak condition and using various means to test the surroundings, Shen Mo and the others successively flew into the moonlight.
...
What looked like a bright moon from afar, upon entering, turned out to be a colossal jade sphere!
The earth layers beneath their feet were entirely composed of top-grade jade of extraordinary quality and full of spirituality. Merely digging and taking one piece could fetch astronomical prices across the Immortal Mountain Markets of the Immortal Realm.
Unfortunately, the entire Jade Moon is as tough as the dead towering tree.
Shen Mo attempted to use the Taiyi Sword, slashing with the sacrificial method to unleash Universe sword Qi but failed to chip even a speck of jade; using the South Hua Treasure Body Traversing Difficulty Immortal Scripture to refine it didn’t absorb any spiritual essence... It was like an unarmed mortal climbing a mountain of gold, seeing and touching it but unable to take even a tiny piece, utterly frustrating!
Moreover, upon setting foot here, Shen Mo and the others’ sense was severely suppressed.
It wasn’t due to any deliberate prohibition laid by the Immortal Mansion’s owner, nor any Immortal Law targeting outsiders, but because an Immortal had resided in this Moon Palace for years, perpetually nourishing it with True Immortal Dao essence, causing severe interference to the sense of cultivators below the True Immortal Realm!
Originally, Shen Mo and the others’ power was already stifled by the ubiquitous mysterious force inside the Immortal Mansion Dungeon, preventing them from exerting their full strength. Now, with more interference from True Immortal Dao essence... Even at full effort, their sense could only extend a few miles, falling short of what eyes could see.
With sense seriously restricted, they could only rely on five senses to survey the surrounding environment!
At a glance, jade palaces and golden halls stretched endlessly, majestic with a hint of ancient desolation.
Each palace composed of pavilions, towers, crimson roofs and azure tiles, spiritual grass and medicine gardens, jade steps and courtyard flowers, rocks and clear springs... Shen Mo and the others’ five senses could not glimpse the full appearance, but even a corner revealed how bustling and prosperous this Moon Palace once was;
Countless years ago, numerous disciples of the Immortal must have resided here, engaging in cultivation, discussing Dao, practicing spells, feasting, living a life of unparalleled Carefree bliss, worthy of being deemed divine immortals in the moon!
Yet now, the palace within the moon was clear and cool; apart from occasional flashes of outsiders, there remained only endless cold desolation.
"We don’t know what dangers lie inside the Celestial Palace. Everyone be careful and don’t get separated!" The Silver-haired Child held the Ocher Demon-dispelling Bell, speaking earnestly with a serious expression.
Shen Mo and the others knew nothing not only about the dangers here.
The scattered remains of predecessors like Immortal Master Cizi, and the three celestial treasures on the Immortal painting, were all without clue as to which hall they lay... All of these they are completely clueless about.
At this time, the four were positioned at what seemed to be the outskirts of a palace.
Aside from some bamboo and flowers that had turned to dust after eons of erosion, there was nothing else.
"Fellow Qingyun, perhaps you should use your Imperial Soul to explore around first!" Longyuan Immortal Master Kang Haoxiu turned to Shen Mo with his sense obstructed.
"Alright!"
Shen Mo nodded his head and then summoned the Soul Refining Flag, conjuring hundreds of Class IV Demon Soul Generals.
Upon receiving instructions, the Demon Soul Generals scattered swiftly, attempting to scour the entirety of the Moon Palace!
However, mere moments passed before a change broke out.
The quickest Demon Soul General, after flying less than ten miles, unknowingly triggered a prohibition and was consumed by spontaneously appearing black fog, its Soul Body erased, even the soul mark on the flag vanished instantly, genuinely obliterated beyond retrieval from the flag!
"Hiss!"
"Hiss hiss!"
In the blink of an eye, more Demon Soul Generals activated prohibitions, being devoured by constantly emerging black fog, completely perishing!
And the bizarre black fog proliferating from all directions, detecting Shen Mo’s group’s presence, began to move like a living creature, advancing towards them.
"Damn!"
"Everywhere around is a potent prohibition, long integrated with the Celestial Palace, drifting within the void. Under the restriction of our sense, it’s hard to detect them beforehand!"
"Unwittingly triggering these prohibitions brings disaster to anyone nearby." Shen Mo shouted urgently while waving the Soul Refining Flag to retract the remaining dozens of Class IV Demon Soul Generals.
Subsequently, he cast a succession of Palm barriers, activating [Crystal Brahma Flame] to protect himself.
The Silver-haired Child and the other three each displayed their techniques, setting up extensive defenses atop the jade palace created by the Wall Water Badger exotic beast phantom.
"Hiss!"
"Hiss~~~~"
The strange black fog encased them, with its terrifying erosive power making short work of one magic barrier before it dimmed and shattered, necessitating repeated spell casting and setup.
Even a trace of black fog, ignoring the obstruction of the magic barrier and creeping in like water seeping through a dam, forced Shen Mo and the others to ceaselessly cast spells and sword Qi to disperse the corrosive power contained within this black fog...
The black fog seemed to contain a strand of Power of Time, capable of eroding Demon Soul General’s bodies and magic barriers, magic treasures, spiritual items, and all kinds of attacks—all could be obliterated.
Even the brilliant sword Qi Shen Mo unleashed would be marred in an instant upon contact with the black fog, as if it had endured countless years.
Fortunately, the amount of black fog penetrating the magic barrier wasn’t much, and although it would cost Shen Mo and the others plenty of mana to disperse even a trace of black fog, alternating the spell casting eventually held the position, keeping the black fog from closing in, or completely eliminating it!