"This universal key skill is quite interesting. Could it really unlock all locks?" Li Xiu pondered secretly.
After thinking about it, he felt that if it could indeed unlock all locks, then this Golden Key was quite powerful.
As Li Xiu was contemplating, the Longevity Lamp had already floated up by itself, drifting off into the darkness.
Li Xiu followed the Longevity Lamp forward, and soon, the surroundings gradually brightened up.
When Li Xiu finally saw the surroundings clearly, he couldn’t help but frown.
"Ah!" Chu Jun appeared beside Li Xiu and exclaimed in fright after seeing the situation.
Not far ahead of them lay a corpse. Judging by the white bodysuit on the corpse, it was definitely a Trial Taker, probably one who came here before them.
The Trial Taker’s death was extremely gruesome, as if eaten by a wild beast. The body was covered in blood, and the face was a bloody mess, almost just scalp and bones remaining.
"This scared me to death, what’s going on?" Chu Jun steadied himself and surveyed the surroundings.
The place they were in resembled the main hall of a shrine, with a divine statue over ten meters high still enshrined within.
Li Xiu was staring at the divine statue because it looked very familiar. Previously, after killing the last fanatic in the Black Death City, he saw a statue just one upon entering.
However, this divine statue was slightly larger, and there was no Copper Oil Lamp in front of it to enhance character quality.
The person had died right in front of the divine statue, fallen at its feet, and with the eerie and terrifying environment, it made Chu Jun’s scalp crawl.
"I’ve seen this divine statue before. When White Lotus was enhancing its quality, such a statute was enshrined there," Chu Jun also noticed the divine statue’s issue.
"In this case, these Lands of Trial are likely interconnected, only we lack the ability to travel from one Land of Trial to another," Li Xiu turned to the half-open hall door and walked toward it.
Peering through the gap in the door, Li Xiu’s expression suddenly changed a little.
Chu Jun also walked over, and at the sight, almost vomited.
Outside the hall was a courtyard, with several corpses lying chaotically across it, or to be precise, a pile of dismembered bodies.
The bodies seemed bitten by something, all bloody and mangled, with broken limbs scattered everywhere, and the ground stained with blood.
Although the faces were unrecognizable, the torn white bodysuits suggested these people were probably Trial Takers.
"Why are there so many Trial Takers here?" Li Xiu frowned.
"What’s strange about that? They probably used their Trial Badges to enter together," Chu Jun said.
Li Xiu shook his head and said, "Probably not. Look carefully at the state of decomposition of those corpses; there’s quite a time difference. They didn’t die here at the same time."
"Maybe some died first, and some lived longer and died later," Chu Jun suggested.
"If they really watched their companions die, wouldn’t they extinguish their Longevity Lamps and leave? Why stay here to die?" Li Xiu said.
Speaking of the Longevity Lamp, Li Xiu glanced at the floating lamp beside Chu Jun and frowned slightly, saying, "The Longevity Lamp seems odd."
"What’s odd about it?" Chu Jun turned to look at his own Longevity Lamp, comparing it to Li Xiu’s, confused, "Nothing different, our Longevity Lamps are the same."
"It’s because they’re the same that’s odd. Do you remember what the Longevity Lamp looked like when we first entered Black Death City?" Li Xiu looked at his own Longevity Lamp and continued, "Those lamp flames, although dim, were a distinctly clear golden color. Look at this Longevity Lamp’s flame; it’s clearly blood red."
"Maybe the lamps have different colored flames in different places?" Chu Jun pondered.
"No, this flame gives off a foreboding aura. The previous Longevity Lamps didn’t have this vibe," Li Xiu thought and said, "There’s something really wrong here. These Trial Takers could have extinguished their lamps to leave, so why did they die here? We shouldn’t stay here any longer; let’s go."
Li Xiu was unwilling to risk his life; there were so many Lands of Trial, it wasn’t worth gambling his life for.
"Alright," Chu Jun agreed with Li Xiu’s decision after looking at those corpses, which were indeed terrifying, and opened his mouth to blow out his Longevity Lamp.
However, after blowing several times, the flame of his Longevity Lamp only flickered slightly but did not extinguish.
The same happened with Li Xiu, and both of their faces changed immediately.
They both realized why those Trial Takers died here; like Li Xiu and Chu Jun, they couldn’t extinguish their Longevity Lamps, and naturally couldn’t leave.
"What’s going on? Can we not get out?" Chu Jun’s face was extremely grim; he didn’t want to be trapped in such a ghostly place forever.
Li Xiu said nothing, suddenly drew the Fire Lotus Sword, and slashed at his Longevity Lamp.
The blood-colored flame on the Longevity Lamp suddenly swelled, blocking the Fire Lotus Sword and making a sound like metal clashing.
The flame wasn’t extinguished, and Li Xiu’s palm was shocked until the tiger’s mouth cracked, blood seeping out, and the Fire Lotus Sword almost flew out of his hand.
"That’s it. We’re really stuck here," Chu Jun’s face turned deathly pale at this situation.
"Not necessarily," Li Xiu assessed the surroundings, saying, "Just like in Black Death City, where you couldn’t extinguish the Longevity Lamp without killing all the Black Death Demons, maybe it’s the same here."
Hearing this, Chu Jun felt somewhat relieved inside, frowning and saying, "Then, what mystical creature do we have to kill?"
"Do you sense any mystical creature presence?" Li Xiu asked Chu Jun.
"I was so scared just now, I forgot I still had the Inspiration Skill," Chu Jun sheepishly scratched his head.
Chu Jun quickly used the Inspiration Skill, and the next second, his face immediately changed dramatically.