I’m Definitely Taking This Power-Fantasy Protagonist Role! Chapter 64

This eerie red gemstone plays with the heartbeat, leaving one utterly exhausted.

Earlier, there was still some curiosity about what it was, but now all I want is for it to stay far away from me. If it really knows the location of the divine treasure, who knows what will happen to those who have been taken away?

Jiang Baiyu's thoughts suddenly halted without warning, and a strong sense of danger surged from the depths of his heart, gripping his chest tightly. His scalp tingled as if someone was pointing a sharp sword at his throat, and adrenaline surged through him.

A hand grabbed him and hurled him into the sky; it was Lin Zhao Ren, and he followed closely behind. The other true disciples were a beat slower in their movements.

Ling Han Su shouted, "All disciples, watch out for the ground!"

The elite disciples reacted quickly, decisively leaping into the air before summoning their flying swords, trying to fly. Sure enough, this was also a no-fly zone; they couldn't linger in the air, and their mobility was greatly reduced.

The disciples prioritized dodging, avoiding the dangers coming from below, while the masters faced the challenges head-on.

Zhonghua's sect leader cleaved a monster that had emerged from the ground with his sword, slicing it in half from its head to its tail, blood splattering everywhere.

Yellow liquid splashed onto objects, immediately sizzling, revealing its strong corrosiveness.

The calm earth, like an unnamed sea just passed through, was suddenly stirred up by uninvited guests, becoming incredibly lively. Monsters with gaping maws charged forward one after another, completely unconcerned about the deaths of their companions. The various sect cultivators were like bait scattered about, and the predators, drawn by the scent, rushed in fiercely.

In a short skirmish, over a dozen monsters were slain, blood splattering everywhere, the stench overwhelming and dizzying.

Soon, the disciples also joined in the action of slaying monsters.

It seemed that the masters from various sects found it easier to kill monsters, but when the disciples swung their swords, the metallic clang echoed, as the monsters had thick skin.

But the danger was far from over.

Shadows fell from the sky, swiftly darting about; it was a group of large monstrous birds coming from afar, circling high above. Compared to the underground dragon monsters, the sheer number of monstrous birds was more visually overwhelming, like a black cloud swirling in the sky.

They flew back and forth around the group on the ground, and finally, unable to hold back, they dove towards the ground, emitting sharp, piercing cries.

"Ahhhhhhhhh!"

The cries sounded like wails, a haunting melody that shook the hearts of those who heard it.

Some were pierced by the sharp beaks of the monstrous birds, letting out chilling screams, making it hard to distinguish whether it was the humans or the birds that were crying out in agony.

Caught in a pincer attack, with enemies on all sides, the situation for everyone was made even worse by a new discovery. The restrictions here did not limit spells, but the spiritual energy required to use any spell increased exponentially, and the same went for attacking monsters with spiritual energy attached to their spiritual swords.

Everyone's spiritual energy was rapidly depleting in the fierce battle.

Zhonghua's sect leader commanded, "Disciples of Yuheng Sect, listen up, form the Silence and Extinction Formation!"

As the disciples gathered, a mysterious formation appeared beneath their feet, emanating a powerful pressure that spread in all directions.

The dragon monsters and monstrous birds were momentarily deterred, their movements pausing.

In the next second, the formation rapidly expanded, and a similar formation appeared in the sky above, descending downwards. Any monster touched by it instantly disintegrated into dust.

When the formation landed on the ground, merging with the one beneath the feet of the Yuheng Sect disciples, the dragon monsters and monstrous birds within the area were completely cleared out.

This formation was powerful, gathering the disciples' magical power to clear a wide area, but the consumption was also enormous.

When the formation disappeared, the disciples of Yuheng Sect felt their legs go weak, their faces pale as they collapsed to the ground, their spiritual energy nearly drained.

The disciples were the nodes of the formation, while the elders who entered with them were the crucial pillars, and Zhonghua's sect leader was the eye of the formation, determining its range and power. Wiping out the monsters above and below, he was not in great shape either, his body swaying slightly before he straightened up, putting on a facade of nonchalance, not letting anyone see a hint of weakness.

The Silence and Extinction Formation consumed too much from the disciples, but now they could only cut through the chaos quickly; otherwise, the casualties among the disciples would be even greater.

If the front was indeed the location of the divine treasure, having a clear direction was infinitely better than searching aimlessly. The Yuan Gu Secret Realm was fraught with dangers, saving them from much loss.

But everything was fraught with uncertainty; who knows how many restrictions the red gemstone triggered on their way here? Right now, they had only scratched the surface.

Indeed, when they found this place, they probably triggered some restrictions, but they could have formulated strategies to effectively reduce losses and increase survival rates, rather than being hit by restrictions all at once, forced to endure.

The elite disciples were well-trained, regaining their composure in just a few seconds, quickly sitting down to recover their spiritual energy.

The island master of Feixing Island stepped forward, cupping his fists, "Thank you, Sect Leader Zhonghua, for stepping in to resolve the crisis; otherwise, the losses among my island's disciples would have been unimaginable."

Zhonghua's sect leader replied, "No need for formalities; we are all in the same boat now."

The master of Tianxiang Palace had a serious expression, "That may be so, but I still must express my gratitude. Thank you, Yuheng Sect, for your timely assistance."

As she spoke, she glanced at the remaining members of the various sects present. Most of those taken away due to the divine treasure were from their ranks, meaning that despite the grand display and numerous personnel, most were just a rabble, trying to take advantage of Yuheng Sect. When faced with real danger, they were utterly useless and had to be protected, adding to the chaos, just like the earlier incident with Qinglian Dao Ren.

From this perspective, the red gemstone had inadvertently helped them by filtering out the opportunists with weak wills.

The leaders of the other sects came forward to discuss what to do next.

Even with so many restrictions, they had already come this far and had to see it through to the end.

Jiang Baiyu snapped back to reality from his meditation, his expression not looking too good. He looked around and saw everyone was fully focused on meditating to recover their spiritual energy. It was inevitable that some disciples would die in the chaos, and Yuheng Sect had suffered losses too, though it was hard to see now, likely due to the elders' efforts.

The sudden deaths of his fellow disciples left no time for mourning, as danger could strike again at any moment. They had to recover their spiritual energy quickly to face the upcoming threats.

Clearly, two more effects of the restrictions had been discovered: the recovery of spiritual energy was hindered, and healing from injuries was also obstructed.

He saw someone secretly consuming spiritual pills, and the heavy expression on their face was the best explanation.

No flying, doubled spiritual energy consumption, hindered recovery; perhaps the dragon monsters emerging from the ground and the monstrous birds circling in the sky were also part of the restrictions.

Just combining the known factors already hinted at how difficult the upcoming journey would be.

But no one would retreat; at least Yuheng Sect would definitely not back down.

Jiang Baiyu felt a dull pain in his body, having been lightly grazed by a dragon monster earlier, leaving him feeling as if he had been heavily struck.

Lin Zhao Ren opened his eyes, his expression serious. He looked at the surrounding disciples and decisively sent a voice transmission, "How's your recovery?"

Jiang Baiyu shook his head, holding up five fingers.

At most, he had recovered fifty percent of his spiritual energy.

He had no idea what they would encounter next; this amount of spiritual energy was far from enough.

This news couldn't be hidden from the others, as disciples from various sects had all experienced some depletion and needed to recover their spiritual energy on the spot. The casualties among Yuheng Sect's disciples were small, but the consumption was enormous, causing their overall strength to drop to the mid-upper tier.

The master of Tianxiang Palace solemnly promised, "For the upcoming journey, my Tianxiang Palace will do everything in our power to protect Yuheng Sect in return for your life-saving assistance."

The island master of Feixing Island looked serious, "Sect Leader Zhonghua can rest assured; the blood flowing through Feixing Island is all sincere!"

Boom!

A deafening explosion echoed from afar, growing closer.

As the sound became increasingly piercing, it hurt their eardrums, and a powerful gust of wind swept in, catching someone off guard and sending them flying. Luckily, a companion reacted quickly and pulled them back.

A blinding light erupted at the source of the sound, a small star point suddenly expanding into a massive sphere of light, radiating brightness and heat.

Jiang Baiyu almost thought it was a mushroom bomb explosion.

The ground shook violently, layers of barriers of different colors flashing with light.

Then, he was lifted into the air.

Ah, it turned out the protective barrier set up by the sect leaders had shattered; no wonder.

This thought flashed through Jiang Baiyu's mind before everything went dark, and he fainted.

Jiang Baiyu woke up in pain.

He felt his body swaying, his ankle hurting terribly, as if it were broken.

Struggling to open his eyelids, he found himself suspended in mid-air, the wind whistling past his ears. He strained to look up and saw a sharp, hard beak gripping his ankle, drawing blood.

His entire weight was hanging from that foot, and with such a sharp and hard beak, it was no wonder it hurt so much.

He must have been swept away by the airflow and was now being carried off as food by this large bird.

In terms of size, he was probably just a caterpillar to this giant bird.

He should be grateful he wasn't swallowed whole while unconscious; now he could think about how to turn the tables and escape.

Jiang Baiyu summoned Xiguang and held it in his hand, contemplating whether to stab the bird that saw him as food right now, to avoid being taken back to its nest where he would have to face two at once. Many birds seemed to raise their young together, so timing was crucial.

The giant bird was flying high; if he stabbed it now and it died, it might open its mouth to let him go, giving him a chance to figure out a way to save himself in mid-air. But if it died without releasing him, he would definitely crash to the ground along with the bird, ending up in pieces.

In his field of vision, there was a towering, straight mountain peak, and the giant bird was flying directly towards it.

He probably didn't need to hesitate any longer.

Jiang Baiyu thought to himself.

This unknown giant bird flew incredibly fast; the distant mountain peak seemed to swell in his sight, transforming from a thin line into a massive shadow casting down on the ground, an overwhelming sense of pressure descending upon him in just two or three minutes.

The straight mountain peak shot up like a bamboo shoot after rain, standing tall on the ground.

The rock face was smooth, with almost no footholds.

It didn't look like a mountain; it resembled an enormous sword, thrust into the ground, standing there for years, its surface covered with layers of mud and grime.

The giant bird carried Jiang Baiyu to the highest point, where its nest was located.

As the scene unfolded before him, Jiang Baiyu's pupils constricted sharply, feeling a sting of pain.

The bare mountaintop was home to strange trees, devoid of leaves, only branches resembling gigantic thorns. Disciples dressed in Yuheng Sect uniforms were impaled on the giant thorns, like dried meat strips.

One, two, three, four, five…