Seventy-Six: The Locusts Swarm Across the Land

When Luo Yu witnessed this scene, he was stunned mid-air, chilled to the bone: Impossible! How could this be? How could Qin Yue die just like that? He...

His heart ached as if twisted by knives, and tears surged forth uncontrollably.

With blurred vision, Luo Yu dove down, grabbed Qin Yue's body, and took flight. The ferocious beast below continued its relentless pursuit, roaring furiously into the sky, making Luo Yu dizzy with each thunderous howl.

He had no idea where he was headed, aimlessly circling through the air: Has Qin Yue really died? He was so powerful—how could he have perished so easily? Where is his soul? I must find his soul...

Luo Yu’s mind was a blank void—he forgot even about the beast, searching instinctively everywhere for Qin Yue’s soul.

Like a headless fly, he wandered for a while before gradually recalling: Qin Yue was killed by that beast... But he had mastered the Heavenly Gang Golden Dragon Technique—why did he die so easily? What on earth was that beast? Why was it unscathed? This was far too strange! Could it be an illusion array?

Instantly agitated, Luo Yu’s intelligence began to return: If it were an illusion array, that would be ideal! Such a formidable beast could very well be an ancient divine creature, but weren’t they all extinct? Where would one find such a beast now? Wait... It fears attacks on the divine sense—this must be an illusion! Its roar wasn’t a soundwave at all, but an attack on the mind! Otherwise, why would only the head ache, but not the body? Yes, yes! No wonder those Golden Core cultivators were as useless as paper—they were all fake! Damn it, had me fooled!

Just as he would in a lucid dream, Luo Yu willed the scenery around him to shift, and sure enough, his surroundings changed as he expected.

His vitality instantly restored, Luo Yu targeted the beast and unleashed an attack on its divine sense. It was indeed an illusion array—the beast was the most prominent attack program, and this illusion was far more advanced than the one at Nine Heavens Palace, directly invading his thoughts. "Qin Yue" and the other cultivators were mere constructs of Luo Yu’s hypnotized consciousness. Had his mind not been invaded, there would have been no "Qin Yue and the cultivators" interacting with the beast—for an external illusion array, it would not know what he was thinking, nor would it conjure a "Qin Yue" to scare him.

The only method was to kill the beast—it could attack the divine sense, so the divine sense could surely counterattack. In this illusion, it was the sole foreign entity; everything else was conjured by Luo Yu’s mind.

Luo Yu mused: The array must be laced with highly advanced hallucinogens, for even a veteran of lucid dreams like me failed to notice anything odd... Well, perhaps there were signs, but I was too concerned to notice...

He relaxed, quietly gathering all his divine sense, and delivered a fatal strike to the beast. As expected, once he found the right method, it shrieked and dropped dead. Luo Yu’s body jolted, and he instantly felt a "sleep paralysis." Like waking from a nightmare, he opened his eyes to find himself still standing on the jade steps halfway up the mountain, exactly where he’d slipped. Qin Yue stood quietly before him, calm and unharmed.

Luo Yu’s nose tingled, tears welled up again, and he threw himself into Qin Yue’s arms, burying his face in his chest and accusing, “Why didn’t you wake me?”

Qin Yue hugged him gently, saying, “I was afraid of frightening you.”

Luo Yu knew well that in such illusion arrays, it was unwise to wake someone. The mind remained trapped within the illusion, the senses possibly controlled by hallucinogens. External attempts to rouse them could morph into terrifying noises; physical contact could be perceived as an attack, causing greater panic and possibly violent reactions.

Luo Yu grumbled, “I was completely fooled! I’ll hunt it down and settle the score!”

Climbing out of Qin Yue’s embrace, Luo Yu looked around: The other cultivators stood blank-faced, as if asleep—clearly still trapped in the illusion.

He searched carefully, finally locating the illusion array near the mountain gate. It featured a delayed trigger, activating only after everyone was ensnared.

Without ceremony, Luo Yu collected it. Once it became his, he found it truly delightful—a charming array indeed.

The others would take some time to awaken; some had already seen through the illusion but were still struggling against it—not everyone possessed the "Spirit-Piercing Needle." So, the two of them patted the dust off and went ahead up the mountain.

At the summit, the flight-restricting array vanished. Luo Yu was shocked to see a giant creature sprawled across the plaza, identical to the one in the illusion! He tensed instantly, clutching Qin Yue tightly. Qin Yue snorted, “It’s just a corpse. Are you really so terrified?”

“Dead?” Luo Yu was dumbfounded.

Qin Yue tapped his head, “What did you see in the illusion? You’re so shaken you can’t even tell life from death.”

Luo Yu felt aggrieved, tears glistening as he complained, “You were killed by it! Damn it! I was heartsick, and you’re laughing!”

Qin Yue was stunned, then pulled him into his arms, “It was only an illusion. I’m not so easily killed. Don’t be afraid.”

Luo Yu’s cheeks flushed, and he awkwardly pushed Qin Yue away, “I’m not scared.” Then, curiosity piqued, he ran to examine the beast’s corpse. “What is this? Do you know?”

Qin Yue replied, “An ancient divine beast called Kui. This one was likely the mountain’s guardian.”

Luo Yu’s eyes sparkled, “A real ancient divine beast! Let’s take it as a gift for the Vampire and trade it for the Bone Phoenix—so adorable!” Last time, they’d gifted the Vampire a phoenix skeleton, which he’d refined into an undead creature that Luo Yu liked, always regretting having given it away.

Qin Yue said woodenly, “That was a wedding gift.”

Luo Yu pouted, “Just kidding… Quickly, let’s collect it!”

They stored the beast’s corpse and prepared to enter the palace, only to encounter another defensive array. This one was far better constructed than the mountain-protecting array, so they had no choice but to painstakingly unravel it.

By the time Luo Yu finished breaking the array, a day and night had passed, and others gradually arrived—the still unconscious were awakened by their companions.

Once the protective array was breached, everyone crowded inside. Hanging high above the hall’s entrance was a plaque reading "Green Dust Residence," and the interior was elegantly arranged.

Xuan Jing remarked, “The master of this place had an open disposition. While others dwell in the mundane world, he retreated to the woods, yet claimed to be in the world without attachment, possessing a Buddhist spirit.”

Luo Yu secretly chuckled: This monk was quite romantic—Green Dust is just mold, isn’t it? Yet he managed to see Buddhist meaning in it!

Nowadays, Luo Yu’s memory was photographic, every word and script from ancient times to the present, from immortals to demons, he’d mastered. He recognized the characters on the plaque.

Once inside, everyone picked a room to search for treasures.

Luo Yu and Qin Yue split up to explore, gathering some spirit tea, incense, and miscellaneous items like cups and brush pots, all exquisitely crafted. The others overlooked these, so Luo Yu benefited.

When the scavenging was nearly done, someone excitedly reported: They’d discovered the spirit garden! Time for the array master to shine!

Everyone hurriedly clustered around Luo Yu to the spirit garden. Upon entering, they were stunned: The garden was divided into several mounds, each planted with spirit herbs ranging from Foundation Establishment to Great Ascension stage. Each mound was small, barely two square meters, but packed full; especially the Foundation Establishment herbs, which overflowed to the edges—likely due to years of neglect, letting seeds fall and sprout anew.

Oh wow! Everyone could now claim a generous share!

Luo Yu was conflicted: Why didn’t I bring more people? I’m losing big here! These are high-grade medicines!

He kept his disappointment off his face. The others noticed his odd expression and hesitation in breaking the array, growing suspicious. Elder Jiang frowned in thought, quickly grasping the reason. He gathered a few elders for a whispered discussion, then approached with a smile, “Young friend Luo, is something troubling you?”

Luo Yu replied, “Uh, I brought too few people… but breaking the array was hard work. Could I get a larger share?”

Elder Jiang said, “That’s only right, only right… But, the agreement was to split evenly among those present… These spirit herbs are rare, and we all have families or sects to support. Even monks must share with their sects. These herbs are destined for the storehouse and distribution. You two are unencumbered, so your share is already substantial. Still, we recognize your effort—if other treasures are found later, we can compensate you with those. How does that sound?”

Luo Yu considered: That’s acceptable, since he wasn’t lacking resources for advancement. Still, the abundance of spirit herbs was tempting… Hopefully they wouldn’t renege.

He said, “What if nothing else is found?”

Elder Jiang replied, “If we search everywhere and find nothing, we’ll allocate an extra share for you.”

Satisfied, Luo Yu got to work breaking the array.

Once the array was broken, reliable people were chosen to harvest the herbs, while others formed a circle to oversee and count. When all were picked, they were divided per head. The process was tedious, but everyone remained enthusiastic; only Qin Yue was expressionless, while Luo Yu pouted jealously. The others pretended not to notice their mood.

After waiting awhile, Luo Yu grew bored and asked Qin Yue to keep watch and ensure their share wasn’t shorted, while he wandered around the courtyard.

Besides the herb garden, there was only a storeroom, also beautifully made. Luo Yu slipped inside—it was spacious, with a table displaying several white jade pots holding ornamental spirit flowers. In the corner were stacks of white jade pots, along with gardening tools.

Feeling restless, Luo Yu went to grab the pots in the corner, thinking they’d be perfect for his father’s flowers. He gathered a pile, leaving only three. Determined not to leave any behind, he reached for them—only to sense something amiss and instantly dodged aside.

A flash of white light brushed past his ear, silently piercing a thumb-sized hole in the ceiling.

Luo Yu broke out in cold sweat: What the hell? Such vicious arrays for mere flower pots? No, that’s a clue—these pots must be hiding treasures!

He grew nervous, peeking outside: Everyone was engrossed in their work, oblivious to his actions.

He quickly withdrew, analyzed the array: Damn! Even stronger than the spirit garden’s array! What treasures could be inside?

Based on his understanding of the array master, Luo Yu quickly found the weak point and broke the array. Once disabled, the three white jade pots turned into three spirit jade boxes. He opened them: Rootless Spirit Grass!

Each box contained a plant, resembling the one at home: transparent stalks radiating a soft glow, with drifting clouds within the stems; the only difference was the color of the "clouds"—one golden, one ochre, one blue. Luo Yu didn’t hesitate, pocketing them at once. He now used the Jade Ring Qin Yue gave him, worn as a pendant for convenience during shape-shifting.

He scanned the room with his array plate, ensuring nothing was missed, before sauntering out.

Outside, the harvest was nearly done. Everyone then swept through the refining room. Materials were scarce, nowhere near the spirit garden in quantity. After intense bargaining, most precious materials ended up in Luo Yu’s pouch, restoring his sense of fairness.

The haul was substantial, but a sense of incompleteness lingered: Why hadn’t they found the master’s spatial bag or magical treasures? The master himself was nowhere to be seen—perhaps there was a secret location yet undiscovered, and maybe the master perished while in seclusion. Where might he have secluded himself?

Like locusts, the group searched everywhere for the master’s remains.

With numbers, success came at last: someone found a secret passage in a valley and invited Luo Yu to open it. Everyone watched Luo Yu closely, and as he moved, they followed. The discoverer was annoyed, but powerless.

The array was opened smoothly, and everyone filed in. Inside was a tall corridor, the ceiling nearly ten meters high, walls hung with fist-sized night pearls, illuminating the passage as if it were daylight. After about a hundred meters, they encountered a massive black door, covered in array patterns and forged with exceptionally strong materials using refining techniques. Everyone wondered: Why would the master forge such a door? For cultivators, a sturdy door is meaningless—if someone wanted to steal, they could just dig a hole in the wall.

However, they met no obstacles; beside the door was a mechanism—pulling it raised the door with a thunderous rumble, revealing the passage beyond. Clearly, it wasn’t meant to keep people out.

Another ten meters ahead, yet another grand door appeared. The group continued onward, opening the door...

Cultivation Chronicles of Comrades 76_Complete Free Reading_76 Locusts Crossing Updated!