Former Interstellar Mercenary In Urban Cultivation World
Chapter 953: Secrets Amid the Mists and the Graveyard’s Silent Array

Chapter 953: Secrets Amid the Mists and the Graveyard’s Silent Array

Renshu Chang gave a wry smile. "We’ve taken our time getting here. Others must have already examined this mound of weapons, right? If they didn’t take anything, it’s probably because they couldn’t."

Jinhwa Hou’s face fell. "Junior Brother Chang, can’t you let me have a moment of excitement?"

"Enough messing around. But we could still try to pull something out. I noticed some minor gaps here and there, which means someone probably managed to extract one or two divine artifacts," Renshu Chang observed.

"Well, I’ll give it a shot!" Jinhwa Hou rushed into the weapon mound, choosing an axe. He mustered all his strength, but the axe didn’t budge an inch. He tried with several other divine artifacts, only to confirm Renshu Chang’s words. "Damn it! You were right; none of these artifacts will budge."

Renshu Chang looked around and spotted an immortal sword with a dulled surface but relatively intact compared to the other artifacts. He gripped the hilt. "I’ll give it a try too."

"What’s the point? These divine artifacts aren’t showing us any love. I’m done trying," Jinhwa Hou said, leaning on a large measuring stick—another divine artifact, though its top half was cut off.

With a thud, Renshu Chang fell to the ground.

Jinhwa Hou jumped in surprise. His eyes widened as he took in the sight. "Wait—what is that in your hand?"

Renshu Chang, holding the sword he had just pulled from the ground, was equally dumbfounded. "Senior Brother Hou, didn’t you say these artifacts were difficult to pull out?"

Because of that, he had put almost all his strength into it. It hadn’t been hard at all, so he had pulled too hard and fallen over.

"You two actually managed to pull out a divine artifact," came a sinister voice from behind, emerging from the mist as several figures approached. They had lingered here, hoping to see if someone else would arrive who might be able to pull out one of these artifacts—and now, their patience had paid off.

"Who are you?" Renshu Chang sensed their hostility.

"Just some wild cultivators—not disciples from any major sect. Looks like they’re demonic cultivators," Jinhwa Hou warned quietly.

Unlike disciples of big sects, wild cultivators had no scruples. As long as there was something to gain, they didn’t care about offending major sects. If they could kill and leave no witnesses, they would do so without hesitation.

"We’ve got trouble, Junior Brother Chang," Jinhwa Hou whispered. Two of the demonic cultivators were at the peak of the Soul Formation stage, while the remaining three were at the middle to late Soul Formation stage. Jinhwa Hou could hold off two of the peak Soul Formation stage cultivators, but the remaining three would be difficult to handle, especially since Renshu Chang was only in the early of the Soul Formation stage. Unlike Kenny Lin or Amalia, Renshu Chang couldn’t cross so many stages to defeat his enemies.

"Should we run, Senior Brother Hou?" Renshu Chang was well aware of his own limits. He could hold off one late-stage opponent, but three would be too much.

"Let’s run. Head straight forward and don’t deviate, or we might lose track of your senior brother and the others. I’ll count to three, and then you make a run for it." As the senior, Jinhwa Hou took on the responsibility without hesitation.

Renshu Chang hadn’t expected to be the one dragging someone down someday. He gave a bitter smile. "Understood."

The five demonic cultivators seemed to guess their intent and slowly began to surround them.

Just then, a clinking sound suddenly rang out.

It sounded like weapons being discarded and colliding with other divine artifacts, accompanied by a voice full of disdain.

"Why are there so many divine artifacts here—and broken ones at that?"

...

Amalia suddenly took a light step and soared into the air, gazing down from above to take in most of the gravestones spread out below.

A thin layer of mist surrounded her, partially obscuring her view, making it impossible to see the entire graveyard in one sweep.

With a single slash of her blade, Amalia unleashed a powerful gust of wind that swept in all directions. The mist around her dissipated instantly, revealing the long stretch of gravestones clearly in her line of sight.

This graveyard was built into the mountain, semi-enclosed by its slopes. She had once reached the edge of the gravestones, which coincided with the mountain’s edge, and if she had gone further, she would have looped back to her starting point.

After carefully examining the layout of the gravestones, Amalia closed her eyes, gradually constructing an image in her mind.

Lines crisscrossed, intricately connecting in a complex pattern.

To fully commit this image to memory, she had to concentrate with all her mental focus.

Amalia used the star charts of the universe to memorize each node, envisioning each one as a star. One by one, they linked together, forming a vast cosmic image in her mind. Every node shone like a true star, each emitting a faint light.

The universe was in constant motion, always balanced, with individuals and groups exerting mutual attraction. The existence of any given point had a reason behind it.

If she could discern this reasoning, she would understand the array’s principles and could dismantle it.

She wasn’t sure if the array across these gravestones was designed to reflect the workings of the cosmos, or if she had simply visualized each stone as part of the constellations. But when she completed this mental image, the pattern suddenly became much easier to grasp.

Lost in the vision, Amalia unknowingly immersed herself deeper and deeper, her spirit resonating within, eventually settling into a state of void and tranquility.

The graveyard fell silent again in an instant, with no one in sight—only the wind stirring.

As Amalia’s consciousness approached this void, the old lady nearby suddenly opened her eyes and looked up at her, her brow furrowing ever so slightly. She let out a soft sigh, one that the wind quickly swallowed, her eyes tinged with an almost imperceptible sorrow.