Covering the sky

"Did you see what it is?" Pang Bo asked, trying to figure out the source of the danger. Normally careless and carefree, he was always calm and steady in critical moments.

"I didn't see anything, but I felt a terrifying aura enveloping my entire body, and then the bronze bell suddenly started vibrating," Wang Ziwen replied, still shrouded in golden light but clearly shaken.

After hearing these words, everyone who had gained something in the Great Thunder Sound Temple tightly gripped the broken Buddhist artifacts in their hands. It was now clear that these were indeed extraordinary items, likely held by deities!

The broken bronze bell stopped vibrating, and the mellow bell sound gradually faded away. The golden divine flames burning around Wang Ziwen vanished, and the golden radiance resembling a golden battle armor returned to the bronze bell.

"Let's go, we need to leave this ruins quickly!" Ye Fan said, holding the bronze lamp, which released a faint divine light, leading the group toward the five-colored altar.

The others followed closely. There must be something terrifying hidden in this vast ruins, and the longer they stayed, the more dangerous it became.

"Ah…" A scream rang out again. As they neared the edge of the ruins, a male classmate suddenly fell to the ground, a blood hole the size of a finger in the center of his forehead, with blood pouring out. It was the same death as before! His eyes were wide open in terror, frozen in the expression of fear he had before death.

In that moment, many were filled with fear. Another classmate had died, and they had watched helplessly, unable to prevent it. They didn't even know what had taken his life.

Saying goodbye to life was easy to talk about, but experiencing it firsthand, everyone felt the bitterness. A close classmate had died suddenly without even leaving a last word. It was impossible to accept. Many female classmates nearly broke down and started crying. They had never witnessed such a scene before.

"Let's go!"

They didn't stop and couldn't afford to stop. They quickly ran toward the five-colored altar. Finally, they managed to escape the ruins, but two lives were forever left behind, never to be seen again.

After running a long way, they looked back. The broken walls and ruins loomed like monstrous demons in the night sky, sending shivers down their spines.

But before they could even catch their breath, three more screams almost simultaneously rang out. Two male classmates and one female classmate fell heavily to the ground. Their injuries were the same, with three identical blood holes in their foreheads, horrifying to behold.

Blood stained the ground, and the three former classmates and friends died tragically. Their eyes bulged, and their expressions were filled with terror.

In just a short time, five people had lost their lives. This made everyone feel cold to the bone, their scalps tingling. Perhaps they were the next ones. No one knew when their own life would come to an end.

"Wuwu…" A female classmate was on the verge of breaking down, crying loudly, "The ones who died didn't find any items in the temple. That unknown devil is nearby! If you don't have a sacred artifact left by a deity, you'll die sooner or later…"

This was the truth. The five who had died had not found any artifacts in the temple, while Wang Ziwen had been safe only because of the broken bronze bell.

"Help us…" Those who hadn't found any items in the temple were all in a state of panic, and those who had found something begged for help with pleading tones. But in such a life-or-death situation, who would give up their only life-saving artifact?

Some didn't hesitate or even look back, quickly running toward the five-colored altar. Classmate bonds were precious, but when facing life and death, many chose to be cold and indifferent, hoping to survive.

The relationship between people, the contradictions of human nature, were being put to the test for the first time.

"Please, help me…" That almost broken-down female classmate ran while crying, her shoes lost, her face tear-streaked, looking pitiful. She was utterly lost, and terror had completely overtaken her mind.

Ye Fan loudly shouted, "Those who found artifacts in the temple, we can share them with others."

Pang Bo, who had always stood by Ye Fan, stood next to him and shouted as well, "That's right, we can share an artifact found in the temple among two or three people."

Many people looked toward them, but with hesitation. Someone spoke up, "What if these broken artifacts aren't that powerful? If they can only protect one person, wouldn't that put the original owner in danger…"

Upon hearing this, doubts spread, and two people began to accelerate, running ahead without looking back.

"Thank you, Ye Fan…" The female classmate who had lost her shoes, with her tear-streaked face full of gratitude, stumbled over to Ye Fan, looking like a pitiful sight. She was shaking as she extended her right hand, but when she was just one step away from the ancient lamp, her expression suddenly froze. Her eyes lost their light, and she collapsed to the ground.

The change was so sudden. Ye Fan watched helplessly as her eyes lost their brilliance. That pitiful face, with tear stains, and the expression of gratitude that had just begun to form, froze forever. It was a heart-wrenching sight.

Ye Fan wanted to help her up, but in the end, he only extended his hand before withdrawing it. The poor female classmate's head was pierced through, not through the forehead this time, but through the back of her head. Blood flowed from her long black hair, and she died just inches away from Ye Fan's reach.

The frozen smile on her face pierced Ye Fan's heart. He slowly backed away from her now-cold body.

"What exactly is that thing?" That was the question on everyone's mind.

Death was so close, and everyone was filled with fear. Soon, three or four people crowded around Ye Fan and Pang Bo, almost fighting to grab the ancient lamp and bronze plaque, eager to claim them for themselves.

"What are you doing?" Pang Bo glared at them and shouted, "We're here to help you, to share these things, not to give up our life-saving artifacts!"

He was tall and burly, and with his glare, he naturally exuded a terrifying aura. The group of people hesitated and reluctantly stepped forward, placing their hands on the bronze plaque and the ancient lamp.

There was no time to waste. They quickly ran, but the atmosphere was tense. Some people's eyes burned with desire to seize the Buddhist artifacts. Those who held the broken artifacts were filled with vigilance, regretting sharing them with others.

"We come from the same place, we've been classmates for four years. Don't let the rest of your life be filled with shame and regret over the choice you make today!" Ye Fan shouted loudly, even more forcefully than Pang Bo. This immediately made many people calm down.

"Boom!"

At that moment, a burst of hundreds of thousands of lightning bolts erupted from Liu Yunzhi's body. The electric arcs danced wildly, and he looked like a god of thunder descending to earth!

The lightning completely enveloped his body, lighting up the surroundings, and his golden Vajra Pestle shone brilliantly. It was all thanks to that half-broken magic pestle.

Liu Yunzhi seemed to wear a suit of armor made from intertwined lightning. His entire presence radiated a sharp, unmatched aura, as arcs of electricity swirled around him, almost like a thunder deity.

"I was attacked by that unknown thing earlier," he said briefly, and then fell silent. His sharp gaze inadvertently swept toward Ye Fan, but when he saw the ancient bronze lamp, his fierce gaze quickly faded.

It wasn't until a while later that the electric arcs surrounding Liu Yunzhi gradually faded, and the Vajra Pestle in his hand dimmed.

The artifact of a deity!

The power of that Vajra Pestle was clear for all to see, and it sent a chill down everyone's spine.

Along the way, everyone remained silent, and they finally reached the five-colored altar. Thankfully, no more deaths occurred, which allowed the group to breathe a small sigh of relief.

On the five-colored altar lay nine huge dragon corpses and the bronze ancient coffin, still in place, still as shocking as ever.

"That is…"

Upon arriving at the altar, everyone was shocked. The five-colored altar was surrounded by a hazy glow. Tiny specks of light from all directions were gathering and entering beneath the stone base.

The light dome covering the sky gradually dissipated, slowly vanishing. It seemed that the five-colored altar was absorbing some mysterious energy.

At first, everyone was startled, but then they looked delighted, because the five-colored altar was glowing, just like when they were at Mount Tai. It was very likely the sign of opening the Starry Sky Ancient Road. However, this time, the energy source wasn't the "Stone Book and Jade Scroll" but a huge and hazy light dome.

"Rumble!"

The hazy light dome in the sky started to shrink, and a thunderous windstorm roared in the distance, shaking the entire ground.

The light dome dimmed as everyone climbed onto the five-colored altar, nervously watching everything unfold.

A terrifying presence, like a shadow, still lingered in their hearts. Though it hadn't appeared for now, as long as they didn't leave, it remained a looming threat, and everyone was eager to escape Mars.

After half an hour, the dim light dome continued to compress. Eventually, it only just barely covered the five-colored altar. The diameter had shrunk from over a thousand meters to less than two hundred meters, almost pressing down to the ground, and all the mysterious energy had been absorbed by the five-colored altar.

Pang Bo lowered his voice and whispered in Ye Fan's ear, "Liu Yunzhi's gaze has inadvertently swept toward us several times. This guy is very scheming, be careful."

"Don't worry, I know." Ye Fan turned to look at Liu Yunzhi and smiled warmly.

Liu Yunzhi remained calm, nodding in a friendly manner, showing no signs of abnormality. He was accompanied by two people, one of whom was the male classmate who had been protected by Ye Fan's bronze ancient lamp and safely made it here.

This made Pang Bo very unhappy. He muttered under his breath, "This ungrateful guy. Back in school, he was always following Liu Yunzhi, but now, after we protected his life, he's back with Liu Yunzhi."

After a moment, the hazy light dome outside continued shrinking, and it was about to fall onto the five-colored altar. The terrifying windstorm outside could be clearly felt.

The wind howled like ghosts wailing, and sand and stones were being blown against the light dome, making a thunderous noise. Some dust even blew inside. It was clear the light dome was weakening, and it could collapse at any moment.

Everyone was startled, stepping back. If they fell out of the altar, they might be swept up into the sky by the storm.

Just then, the male classmate whom Pang Bo had described as ungrateful moved slowly from Liu Yunzhi's side, suddenly grabbing for the bronze ancient lamp in Ye Fan's hand with one hand while pushing Ye Fan forcefully with the other, trying to knock Ye Fan out of the five-colored altar while seizing the lamp.