Chapter 14: Ruins Exploration

 Lin Yu entered the stone gate along with the others. Suddenly, a broad and deep passageway emerged before their eyes. Strange lights flickered on the walls of the passageway, as if guiding everyone forward. However, the unease in Lin Yu's heart grew stronger. He carefully released his spiritual power, vigilantly sensing the surrounding movements, and unconsciously slowed down, creating some distance from the cultivators ahead who were eager to explore for treasures.

 After walking along the passageway for a short while, they arrived at a huge hall. Dense fog filled the hall, obstructing their vision. Vaguely, some tall stone pillars and ancient statues could be seen standing inside. Just as everyone was marvelling at the grandeur of the hall, suddenly, a gloomy laugh echoed throughout the space, sending shivers down their spines.

 "Haha, I didn't expect so many over - confident fools to come to our doorstep. This is the perfect time for us to have a good feast!" As the voice faded, a group of monsters wearing black cloaks and with ferocious faces emerged from the fog. Their bodies gave off a putrid smell, their eyes glowed with strange red light, and their sharp claws left deep marks on the ground.

 The cultivators were immediately thrown into a panic. They all unleashed their spiritual skills, preparing to deal with the attacks of these monsters. In an instant, the hall was filled with the glow of spiritual power. Various spells and weapons intertwined as they engaged in a fierce battle with the monsters.

 Lin Yu quickly entered a combat state. He executed the Lingxi Phantom Step, nimbly shuttling through the group of monsters. The long sword in his hand swung out sharp sword qi. Wherever it passed, the monsters let out pained screams. However, these monsters were numerous and extremely fierce. They seemed tireless, charging towards the crowd wave after wave. Gradually, many cultivators began to run out of strength and showed signs of weakness.

 During the battle, Lin Yu noticed that these monsters seemed extremely sensitive to the fluctuations of spiritual power. They could quickly detect the weak points of the cultivators' spiritual power and launch fierce attacks. So, he had an idea. He restrained his spiritual power, minimizing its outward release. At the same time, he used the techniques from the "Lingxi Sacred Canon" to skillfully integrate the power of his spiritual roots into each attack, making his attacks more concealed and deadly.

 After a tough battle, Lin Yu finally found the leader of these monsters. This leader monster was huge, more than twice as tall as the other monsters. The black scales on its body were as hard as armor, and the black mist it spat out from its mouth was highly corrosive. Lin Yu knew that only by defeating this leader monster could they relieve the crisis.

 He took a deep breath, fully mobilizing the power of the five spiritual roots within his body, and unleashed his most powerful spiritual skill - "Lingxi Chaos Annihilation Wave". A colorful spiritual power fluctuation containing terrifying destructive power shot out from his hand, heading straight for the leader monster. The leader monster seemed to sense the power of this attack. It opened its huge mouth wide and spat out an even denser black mist, trying to block Lin Yu's attack.

 However, Lin Yu's "Lingxi Chaos Annihilation Wave" was extremely powerful. It instantly broke through the obstruction of the black mist and hit the leader monster hard. The leader monster let out an earth - shattering scream. Its body was sent flying by the powerful force, crashing heavily into a stone pillar, which immediately broke and collapsed.

 Seeing that the leader was defeated, the other monsters were thrown into disarray and fled in all directions. The cultivators took the opportunity to launch attacks and eliminated the remaining monsters one by one. Although this battle was difficult, it finally ended with the victory of the group.

 After a short rest and adjustment, everyone continued to explore the ruins. Deep in the hall, they discovered the entrance to a secret chamber. The door of the secret chamber was tightly shut, engraved with complex runes and patterns, exuding a mysterious aura. Lin Yu stepped forward and once again used his knowledge of runes to try to break the prohibition on the door.

 After some effort, the door of the secret chamber slowly opened. Everyone entered the secret chamber with great anticipation. Inside, a huge stone coffin was placed, surrounded by various precious magic treasures and pills, emitting a dazzling light. The cultivators' eyes lit up immediately, and they rushed towards these treasures.

 However, Lin Yu was not bewitched by the treasures in front of him. He watched the stone coffin warily, feeling that things were not that simple. Just as everyone was scrambling for the treasures, the stone coffin suddenly shook violently. A powerful force surged out from it, sending the surrounding cultivators flying.

 Immediately afterwards, the lid of the stone coffin slowly opened, and a blinding light shot out from inside. After the light dissipated, a man in ancient clothing with a cold and solemn face appeared before everyone. His eyes exuded a powerful sense of majesty and oppression, making people tremble with fear.

 "Stupid humans, how dare you disturb this king's slumber! You will all pay the price for this!" the man said coldly, his voice filled with anger and disdain.

 Lin Yu's heart tightened. He knew that this ruins exploration had encountered a real big trouble. He tightly gripped the long sword in his hand, staring intently at the man, ready to face the upcoming challenge. The other cultivators also got up from the ground one after another, looking at the man in horror, realizing that they had fallen into an extremely dangerous situation.