"Whish~"

In the central building of the military camp, Lu Ran was following the soldiers when he suddenly heard a noise behind him.

He turned around and saw Chang Ying holding a Mountain Opening Axe in one hand and clutching a phantom Sign Holder in the other.

Divine Technique·Spiritual Sign!

This Divine Technique, sharing the name with Divine·Spiritual Sign, was the most basic Divine Technique of the Spiritual Sign Sect.

It was used for everyday life, not for battle.

Anything you need to ask!

Marriage, education, wealth, career and more, anything you can think of, a believer of the Spiritual Sign can divine for you!

There were five signs inside the Sign Holder, namely: top sign, high sign, middle sign, low sign, and lowest sign.

"Whoosh~"

In no time, a sign shot out from the holder.

It bore a single large character—"Middle!"

"Middle is auspicious, lucky and satisfying!" Chang Ying shook her head, muttering to herself,"Not bad, not bad~"

She really seemed a bit like a charlatan.

If you replaced her Mountain Opening Axe with a fortune-telling flag, she would look even more the part.

Lu Ran laughed and said, "Middle means auspicious?"

"Yes, indeed!" Chang Ying replied earnestly, "Any difficult situation you encounter, you can... stay... stay..."

Chang Ying suddenly furrowed her brow, mumbling softly, "What was that phrase again?"

Lu Ran: "..."

The female soldier leading the way sighed internally and thought to herself, 'Just as I suspected!'

No matter how she reassessed this small team, a gambler was still a gambler and couldn't become a responsive True Divine Being.

"Oh, right!" Chang Ying shook her head again, continuing her chant, "Any difficult situation you encounter can be calmly faced.

You will turn misfortune into fortune, turn danger into safety."

Lu Ran walked down the spiral staircase, circling around a pillar and said casually, "Have you ever drawn the top sign?"

"Of course I have!" Chang Ying immediately responded.

Lu Ran asked smilingly, "Did the predictions come true?"

The Sign Holder in Chang Ying's hand vanished, and her expression turned somewhat odd.

Lu Ran didn't get a response for a long time and couldn't help asking, "Chang Ying?"

"It's weird." Chang Ying looked at Lu Ran's back, "The few top signs I drew seemed to be related to you."

Lu Ran: "Ah?"

Chang Ying pondered, "Those first couple of days when we became believers, I wanted to ask what the future held for teaming up with you."

Saying this, she put a hand on Tian Tian's head, using it like a human crutch while walking down the steps:

"That was my first time!"

Lu Ran: "..."

What sort of scandalous statement was that?

Deng Yutang asked, "Your first time at what?"

Chang Ying confirmed, "That was the first time in my life I drew a top sign!"

Hearing this, Lu Ran also recalled the words Chang Ying had said when she approached him to form a team while he was being punished in the playground.

Lu Ran had always thought that Chang Ying was just bluffing.

So she really had calculated it?

Chang Ying continued recalling, "In the months that followed, I never drew such a good sign again.

Until a few mornings ago, the top sign popped up again.

It totally stunned me, I forgot what I had asked.

It was that very night..."

Lu Ran suddenly interjected, "Did the class instructor create a small group for us?"

"Exactly~" Chang Ying nodded with a smile, "It seems you really are a lucky star!"

While chatting, everyone continued their descent.

Encouraged, Tian Tian built up the courage to lift her small hands and push away the big hand resting on her head.

She expected Chang Ying to be displeased or to say something.

But unexpectedly, Chang Ying didn't seem to mind or even notice, and kept chatting with Lu Ran:

"Things related to you tend to yield good signs!"

Mid-conversation, Chang Ying's hand unwittingly raised and landed back on Tian Tian's head.

Tian Tian: "..."

So frustrating!

This person is really barbaric. When will Sister Ruyi come back...

During command in battle later, I must keep this wild woman away from me.

"Whoosh~"

The group walked into the Starry Sky Curtain, and gusts of night wind blew by.

Lu Ran's short hair fluttered as he used his Extreme Vision to gaze at the mysterious Demon Cave under the night sky.

Below his feet stood Stone City, and torch processions winding in all directions, reaching as far as the end of the night sky.

Lu Ran had been to Evil Dog Village, which was an endless wasteland with barren land.

He had also been to the Soul-splitting Demon Cave, where there were giant Black Soul Wood forests, with humans wandering amongst them like tiny ants.

And this Black Lantern Demon Cave had undulating mountainous terrain.

It was said that within this region, the various hills might have bizarre forests of stones.

The odd thing was, the rocks were mostly shaped like rectangular prisms, much like the tombstones in a cemetery...

And the Black Lantern Clan happened to gather here.

This also led to the military's torch-lit paths intersecting several "graveyards."

"Let's stop here." The female soldier led everyone to the ground and said, "You go through the north gate, move northward, and gain experience.

And remember, you must not stray from the torch-lit path.

Moreover, calculate precisely—you can only cross nine Black Grave Mounds.

When you see the tenth, you are not allowed to go any further."

The so-called "Black Grave Mound" was a hill filled with tombstones where the Black Lantern Clan gathered.

Therefore, this Black Lantern Demon Cave also had another name—Black Grave Mound.

The female soldier continued, "Keep track of the time. You must report to the nearest Stone City every day.

Before the 10th day of the lunar month next month, you must exit the Demon Cave; otherwise, our side will dock your believer points."

"Understood." Lu Ran nodded.

Apart from needing to check in daily and having a clearly designated activity area, the other rules were no different from other Demon Caves.

"Good luck." The female soldier left.

Lu Ran turned to Tian Tian, "What do you say, Commander?"

Tian Tian: "Then... shall we go too?"

Lu Ran smiled encouragingly, "You're the commander, most of the time, you don't need to seek others' opinions.

You have to decisively give orders, and everyone will follow your arrangement."

Jiang Ruyi had asked Lu Ran to look after Tian Tian before she left.

Now, Lu Ran was putting that into practice.

Tian Tian extended her small hand, poking Deng Yutang's back and said, "Let's go."

Deng Yutang: "..."

The group of four quickly headed towards the north gate and stood before the familiar torch-lit path.

Lu Ran also took a red scarf from his pocket and covered his eyes with it.

Chang Ying looked curiously at Lu Ran but said nothing.

After all, she had witnessed Lu Ran's powerful battle instincts during the Night of Ghosts.

"Shall I go ahead?" Lu Ran's eyes were covered with the red scarf strip as he picked up his twin blades and looked behind him.

"Be careful." Tian Tian whispered.

Lu Ran, of course, heard her loud and clear and stepped into the darkness.

Chang Ying couldn't hold back and whispered, "Does he always fight like this in the wild?"

Tian Tian raised her head to look at Chang Ying, "Stand 1 meter... 3 meters behind me!"

Chang Ying, holding her axe, obediently stepped back two steps.

"Let's go!"

Tian Tian waved her small hand, quite satisfied with her decision.

Chang Ying felt terrible!

She used to charge boldly at the forefront.

Now, at the back of the team, she even had to shorten her strides, lest she catch up with Tian Tian...

Tian Tian suddenly said, "When we encounter an Evil Demon later, you try first."

"Sure!" Chang Ying's eyes lit up, and her axe felt ready.

Who would have thought, Tian Tian then said, "Use more Five Treasure Signs and Six Treasure Signs, let us familiarize ourselves with the strength of your Divine Technique."

At that time, Chang Ying was at Stream Realm Second Rank and had mastered three Divine Techniques.

The first Divine Technique·Spiritual Sign was the life skill she had just displayed.

The second Divine Technique·Five Treasure Signs was a Divine Technique that integrated five types of abilities.

The third Divine Technique·Six Treasure Sign was an advanced version of Five Treasure Signs, each sign having a higher spell intensity.

The troublesome part was that there was one "rotten sign" in the Six Treasure Signs!

Once drawn, Chang Ying would immediately fizzle out.

The energy she needed to cast spells would triple, and the cooldowns would triple too!

That rotten sign would also stick around Chang Ying, like an annoying fly buzzing around...

As everyone knew, believers of the Spiritual Sign would enter a three-minute cool-down period after each draw.

It wasn't just a single skill cooling down but all Divine Techniques cooling entirely.

Why was it so?

This was a rule set by the Divine·Spiritual Sign's lord.

According to the lord himself: The Divine Techniques of the Spiritual Sign Sect were too powerful; if used recklessly, it would be against the harmony of heaven.

An old saying went: To go against the harmony of heaven is to invite great disaster!

Thus, if you continuously cast spells, the lord of the Spiritual Signs would not approve.

Regarding this, Lu Ran thought... it was complete nonsense!

Such old charlatan's words, not a single word could be believed.

If you really had that much capability, start by making the probability play a fixed play!

The principle of "losing nine out of ten gambles," who doesn't understand it?

And to say, "Divine Techniques are too powerful, it goes against the harmony of heaven," give me a break!

Why did Lu Ran think so?

Because, the believers of the Spiritual Sign couldn't waste these three minutes of cooldown time.

Simply waiting was not an option!

You must pray devoutly to the lord of the Spiritual Signs to count the cooldown duration of the skills.

If you don't pray and don't give the Power of Faith to the Spiritual Signs, your skills would be in cooldown for a lifetime!

Simply put, wasn't this just a means to fish for faith?

If you fish openly and honestly, nobody would say anything.

The principle is the same as making money; it's not embarrassing.

But the Spiritual Signs, with their great truths and little philosophies, package themselves very well.

As for the believers of the Spiritual Signs... well, they're just willing to endure, I suppose.

"An Evil Demon spotted!" Deng Yutang's voice suddenly came from ahead, "A solitary one."

Tian Tian immediately said, "Let's see Chang Ying's strength, shall we?"

Deng Yutang lowered his raised spear, "Alright."

"Go for it." Tian Tian turned her head to look at Chang Ying.

"Just watch~" Chang Ying stretched her long legs, gripping her axe, and charged forward.

"Use more Divine Techniques." Tian Tian shouted.

"Swoosh~"

Chang Ying immediately grasped a Sign Holder, rushing towards a Black Lantern, "Spiritual Sign bless me, bless me!"

No more support signs, I don't need to recover Divine Power!

Attack signs, control signs, Summoning Signs, anything works.

"Whoosh~"

From the Sign Holder, a Spiritual Sign shot up high and suddenly enlarged!

This time, it wasn't a support sign, but a defense sign?

Chang Ying looked up, a bit bewildered.

"Chang Ying?" From the darkness in the distance, Lu Ran's voice came as a reminder.

"Right!" Chang Ying quickly snapped out of it.

She raised her hand high and then brought it down hard.

So what if it was a defense sign?

It could still crush someone!

Under Chang Ying's control, the defense sign became like a giant fly swatter, smashing down on the Black Lantern...

...

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