The Portal of Wonderland

Shi Mu remained silent for a moment. He didn’t give an immediate reply.

However, Liu An didn’t seem anxious either since he didn’t say anything to urge Shi Mu. The other five people also followed Liu An’s suit. And, they stood in a calm manner with their mouths zipped. However, their eyes were hovering over Shi Mu from time to time.

“The Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult has been dispatching people around the city these days to issue an arrest order of the ‘Heresy’. Are they looking for the followers of your Dark Moon Cult?” Shi Mu looked at Liu An and asked.

“Yes. I won’t keep Brother Shi in the dark. The conflict between the Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult and our Dark Moon Holy Sect has existed for a long time. And, this contradiction couldn’t be resolved in a couple of sentences. Therefore, such kind of situation has eventually arisen in the city at this time. In fact, there’s nothing strange about it,” Liu An didn’t hesitate. Instead, he admitted it in a composed manner.

“You do know that the Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult won’t let you guys off…? So, why did you take such a life-threatening danger to sneak into the Heavenly Yu City?” Shi Mu asked.

“We have come to Heavenly Yu City with an intention to offer condolences to our senior,” Liu An replied. But, his voice sounded a little low-spirited this time.

His words surfaced and stole away the cheerful expression from the other five people’s faces. Even the atmosphere inside the room became depressed and gloomy.

Shi Mu was dumbfounded by this.

“He He, let’s not dig the old matters out. Brother Shi, I accept that you became a Soul Magician by chance, and you could also practice the Secret Magic Art of our Cult. But, I have also observed that your spatial-induction force is not low. Its obvious from the fact that you are able to summon a dead spirit creature… that Xian Tian skeleton I saw earlier. But, it looks like you are totally unaware of our Cult’s other abstruse magic arts. Forgive me for being blunt, but it’s a waste of your talent,” Liu An broke the silence and changed the thread of conversation after some time had passed.

Shi Mu slightly raised his head, and it seemed as if he was waiting for his next words.

“My Dark Moon Holy Cult has originated from the ancient country of Xixia. And, it has been passed-on for thousands of years. The strength and concrete details of our Cult are far beyond your imagination. For example, this junior female apprentice seems to be very similar to you – a Star Grade Magician. But, she would’ve defeated you just a moment ago if she had resorted to her full strength. Even an Earth-Ranked powerhouse wouldn’t stand a chance against her,” Liu An looked at the masked woman once. Then, he continued to explain.

“Oh, are you boasting that she can defeat even an Earth-ranked warrior? Can this girl summon an Earth-Ranked creature from the Dead Spirit World?” Shi Mu asked.

Liu An flashed a mild smile, and looked at the masked woman. But, he didn’t speak anything.

The masked woman moved half-a-step forward, and recited an incantation. Then, she raised her bone wand, and pointed it towards the front.

A burst of dazzling black light lit-up on the ground in that room. Then, a circle of mysterious black magic characters sprang out from the black light. They then transmitted an amazing spiritual pressure in the surrounding.

This was followed by a huge figure that emerged amid the black light in a slow manner. And, it gradually condensed into a real form.

Shi Mu saw the true form of this huge silhouette when the black light finally dissipated. It was a huge skeleton that was almost two person’s height tall.

Its body was covered with a suit of black metal armor. A fine and oddly pattern was engraved on the surface of that armor. Some exposed bones – that were peeping through the armor – had a touch of a pale-golden luster. In addition, two groups of purple-colored magnificent soul flames could be seen throbbing in its eye sockets; they were almost the size of a fist.

The huge skeleton also held an arm-thick bone spear. And, a person’s size purple-colored flame was blazing on the tip of that spear.

Moreover, the huge skeleton was also exuding an extremely formidable and ominous dead spirit aura in the room. In fact, it was seemingly far beyond Zha Gu’s dreadful aura.

The screen of black light that was around the living room suddenly revealed a fit of tremor. It seemed as if it couldn’t withstand the impact of this skeleton’s formidable aura.

The red-dressed maiden’s complexion changed as she saw this. She stood behind Liu An at the moment. Suddenly, a black disc appeared in her hand. Then, she read an obscure incantation, and flicked her five fingers at a lightning speed. A magic light flashed, and submerged into the disc the next moment.

A ‘Chi’ sound was heard!

A black light beam darted out of the disc, and seeped into the black light curtain that was spread around the room.

The light screen gradually stabilized as a result.

The gigantic skeleton turned his head, and looked at Shi Mu. Then, a purple light flashed in its eyes.

Shi Mu’s complexion changed. He felt as if he was being stared-at by some sort of a huge monster. The hair on his whole body stood on its end, and his heart shuddered with a fit of terror. He subconsciously tightened his grip on the black blade and the short stick.

However, the masked woman waved her bone wand again. And, a grey light flashed out and submerged in the gigantic skeleton’s body.

The skeleton calmed down as a result.

“We have recruited this golden Skeleton King from the Dead Spirit World very recently. It possesses a decent amount of strength,” Liu An voice resounded.

Shi Mu felt a slight chill in his heart. Liu An’s words had sounded very casual. But, they contained many profound meanings… that might be dark or bright in their nature.

The Dark Moon Holy Cult could recruit a creature from the Dead Spirit World that could be even more formidable than their own strength. In fact, this creature could be a realm above than their own. He looked at the masked woman’s expression, and felt that she had carried out this task with ease.

Yan Luo’s present strength was much higher than Shi Mu’s own. But, Yan Luo had initially been a feeble skeleton that was even inferior to a Hou Tian primary stage warrior. Besides, it was only a coincidence that Shi Mu had been able to plant his mark on it.

“Is there any method to enhance the strength of the spirit pets that are recruited from the Dead Spirit World?” An idea dawned upon Shi Mu. He then opened his mouth and asked.

Shi Mu had always harbored some doubts about Yan Luo’s strength since it had continued to escalate by leaps and bounds.

“There is obviously a way to enhance their strength. One would be required to enhance their inner strength. However, the strength promotion of the Dead Spirit’s creatures is very slow. Even ten years may not be enough for them to enhance a small realm at times. And, they may encounter many accidents during this period. So, it’s far better to go for the direct recruitment method. But, we do have some genuinely formidable spirit pets from the Dead Spirit World. And, they are being raised by our Soul Magicians in a slow manner. But, that’s because the strength of these Dead Spirit creatures can’t exceed beyond a certain level. And, recruiting them directly is almost impossible,” Liu An replied with confidence.

Shi Mu’s heart moved and he nodded thoughtfully.

“The method of raising the strength of these creatures involves some secrets of our Cult. I will share the details with Brother Shi Mu if he wants to join our Dark Moon Holy Cult. What do you think, Brother Shi?” Liu An asked.

“Are you people planning to eliminate me – a potential informant – if I say I don’t wish to join your respected Cult?” Shi Mu asked.

“Ha ha, of course not! You are free to decide whether you wish to join our Cult or not. You practice the secret art of our Cult. So, you are already a half-disciple of our Cult. We will never harm those who stand on our side,” Liu An laughed as he replied.

Shi Mu heaved a sigh of relief as he heard his reply. But, an unbelievable look appeared on his face.

“It seems that Brother Shi Mu won’t be able to make a decision in a short time. You should go back and think about it. You and we are the same kind of people. I believe that you will make the right decision in-time,” Liu An spoke-up.

Then, Liu An looked at the masked woman and the red-dressed maiden.

The masked woman again read an incantation and waved her bone wand.

The gigantic skeleton’s body was curled up in a mass of black smoke at first. Then, it slowly disappeared into the void. After that, the formidable Dead Spirit aura that prevailed in the living room also disappeared without a trace.

Then, the red-dressed maiden pointed her finger in front of the disc. The light curtain around the living room trembled in response. Then, it dissipated in a slow manner.

“Aren’t you worried that I might report this matter to the Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult once I leave this place?” Shi Mu glanced at Liu An and asked.

“I believe you won’t do such a stupid thing. In addition, I must remind you one thing. You won’t like it if the Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult finds out that you are also a Soul Magician,” Liu An replied. Then, his complexion became dignified and he added that last part in a warning-like tone.

“I’ll take my leave in that case.” Shi Mu felt a chill in his heart. He then cupped his hands and greeted Liu An. Then, he turned around and walked out of the living room. His silhouette quickly disappeared into the distance.

“Big Brother, it won’t be a problem to let him go like this?” the masked woman asked in a worried tone.

“My intuition says that there’s no harm in doing so,” Liu An replied.

The masked woman’s complexion looked relaxed. It seemed as if she had a lot of faith in Liu An.

“Does Sister Zhen have confidence?” Liu An remained silent for a moment. Then, he looked at the red-dressed maiden and asked in a manner that was so ambiguous that it had neither a head nor a tail to it.

“Big Brother has assured us. So, I believe that there won’t be any problem,” the red-dressed woman replied with a smile.

Liu An nodded. Then, he looked towards the front; there was profound look in his eyes.

The other people also stood behind him in a quiet manner. They didn’t make any noise that could disturb him.

…

Shi Mu took a few quick steps and stepped out of the courtyard. He arrived at a bustling busy street that was packed with an endless stream of people and carriages. He then looked back in the direction of that courtyard, and a thoughtful expression surfaced in his eyes.

He shook his head after a moment. Then, he turned around and walked toward the front.

The Dark Moon Holy Cult was shrouded in a curtain of obscurity. In addition, it also seemed to harbor a lot of grudges against the Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult.

Shi Mu had clearly grown stronger now. But, he didn’t have any intention to join with any one of them.

Half an hour later… Shi Mu returned to the inn.

“Shi Tou, why did you return so late?!” Cai flew over while passing through the door and shouted in an extremely loud voice.

Shi Mu took out a few pieces of nuts and gave them to Cai. After that, he came to a private room inside.

Then, he sat down cross-legged on the stone bed. He adjusted his breathing for a moment. Then, he opened his eyes and touched the Vast Earth Ring with his hand. A dazzling light flashed before him, and several books and jade slips appeared.

Shi Mu had obtained these things from Zha Gu’s storage ring. These books contained information related to geography and history of the continent.

Shi Mu had skimmed through these books since he was in a hurry that day. And, he hadn’t given them much thought ever since. But, he could vaguely remember that the history of the ancient country of Xixia – that Liu An had mentioned before – was illustrated somewhere in these books.

He rummaged in the pile of these ancient books for a while. It seemed as if he wanted to find something. He then picked up a jade slip, and stuck it on his forehead…

He took the last jade slip off his forehead after a long while. Then, he retracted his spirit sense, and opened his eyes again. There was a complicated look in his eyes.

Shi Mu had found some details related to the ancient country of Xixia and the Dark Moon Holy Cult while going through these books and history.

The ancient Xixia country was located on the western side of Lu Shan Kingdom. It was adjacent to the Yellow Sea. It had a humid climate. There were many swamps and rainforest across this country. In addition, it was also called “the country of Soul Magicians” by people.

The Dark Moon Holy Cult was regarded as the largest cult of the Xixia country.

The disciples of this Cult were primarily magicians, and the majority of these magicians were Soul Magicians. Moreover, these Soul Magicians basically practiced magic arts related to the Dead Spirit creatures. Therefore, the Cult had also broken a lot of taboos due to the complexity of those arts. Consequently, it was considered an evil Cult by the outside world.

In addition, there was a peculiar thing that had caught Shi Mu’s attention. This detail was mentioned in one of the records of Dark Moon Cult’s history. Shi Mu noticed that there was a continent on the western side of the Eastern continent. It was on the other side of the Yellow Sea in particular. It was like the Eastern Continent; it was called the Western Continent.

However, the specific details of this continent weren’t mentioned in detail.

Shi Mu pondered over this matter for some time. Then, he retracted these books and slips into his storage ring. After that, he got up and went to the table. He waved his hand, and a huge stack of charm paper and magic ink appeared on the table.

Shi Mu remained seated, and exhaled a long and deep breath.

The sky was gradually getting darker. The sun had also turned blood-red in color. It looked like the whole earth was bathing in the pale-yellow afterglow of the sun.