Earthling in Uncharted Dimensions

Chapter 235: Escape To Surface

Every muscle in his body said, 'stay down'. Every bone in his being shouted, 'do not resist'. Even the flesh tormented his resolve to stand up.

When D also joined their chorus, Lee spoke-

"Once you enter a path, you go all the way. There should not be any second thoughts after.

We saw the platform, we found the coffin. I am not going back without knowing what is inside it!"

To add difficulty, a cover of dense fog was spreading from the inside of the hexagonal stone construct. The fog emitted a weird aura, and Lee exhaled heavily through his nostrils.

[First, a banshee cries. Now a freaky cloud descends.]

The presence of opaque gaseous substance was not a matter to him and Lee slowly shifted the rear support from right knees to the right sole. Though it was an excruciating experience, the sensation did not shunt his spirit.

'Create 20 thousand Mana and Qi.'

Though the eyes were partially shut in pain, the interface was visible like daylight to him. As the count of the two energy forms increased to the desired value, Lee proceeded to the next step.

While squatting on one knee, a veil of calmness came upon him. At the same time, the air around him condensed and formed an invisible wall. A great number of sufferings were lifted off by this adaptation.

When D took a glance at Lee's stats, the Health value had gone from 7,900 to 5,020. This piece of information was a shock to Hudson and D, but Lee was expecting at least this from those hostile screaming.

Life attributed Qi repaired all the internal organs and fixed his physical damages. The itchiness was remaining, and Serenity suppressed it to oblivion.

'Map.'

The coffin was as it was, untouched. To the trio's surprise, numerous magical circles were glittering on it. Numerous talisman papers stuck on it had blended with the wooden texture, and Lee failed to see it previously.

Violent winds created a miniature tornado inside the hexagonal structure. With the coffin as the eye of the tornado, the wind blades surrounded it with ferocity. The talisman papers fluttered violently.

[There are precisely 14 formations and 32 talismans on the coffin. This seems to be done by at least 7 cultivators with God class cultivation.]

God class!

The pinnacle stages of cultivation!

This remained a dream for many, and many attempted to reach this height. But due to the lack of serendipity and fate, many perished. Those who achieved this stage became the beacons of growth.

[Such a vast amount of Qi could only be produced by God class cultivators. Their control and accuracy would skyrocket just by stepping into this class. Give me a minute to analyse the formations and talismans.

But... I wonder what was so safely imprisoned inside it?]

Speak of the devil, the coffin began to produce banging noises from the inside. Through the Map, the trio saw that the coffin was unbreakably sturdy and the top was not budging a bit.

The frequency and strength of the gales increased slightly, and the wind barrier was swaying slightly.

[Found it. The formations are placed to camouflage and prevent people from finding the coffin. The talismans are placed to imprison whatever is inside it.

The talismans used are Life Drain Talisman and Yellow River Talisman. These two are known for their immense power to drain Qi and life-force from its victims.

While the Yellow River Talisman keeps the imprisoned in a tormenting stasis condition, the Life Drain Talisman continuously takes out the life-force of the imprisoned being and transfers it to the outside.

It is this life-force that is fuelling up the formations.]

'So whatever that is inside it, is not completely dead, right?'

[Yes. It looks like we have stepped on a landmine.]

'Not necessarily.'

[Why?]

'If the imprisoned entity is an undying beast, and if the Qi and lifeforce drained from it is so vast, then this coffin is a goose that lays golden egg.'

[Beautiful.

But tell me, how are you planning to go near it?]

Lee did not give any attention to answer the query.

Under the cover of the Air Wall, he stood up. The Qi became saturated with Sound affinity and Wind Affinity and enveloped his fists.

'Break!'

At Lee's command, the Air Wall opened outward. Simultaneously, he shot his right fist forward followed by the left fist. The punches travelled while nullifying the oncoming screeches.

Boom!

The dense balls of Qi flew towards the swirling wind and bombarded against it. The abruptly ended miniature tornado stumbled to kick start itself. But before it could, Lee had come in contact with the coffin.

At the exact moment when the bombardment occurred, Lee had shot himself forward following the trail of the two Qi ball projectiles. The explosion disrupted the rhythm of the formation and created a split-second interval of silence.

It was by exploiting this moment that Lee passed by the security formations. The moment his fingers touched the coffin, it disappeared from reality.

Whoosh!

Faint turbulence went over the System Space and D lost balance and stumbled. Fortunately, Hudson caught him before embracing the ground.

[That has never happened before! What exactly is sealed inside this coffin?!]

Lee also felt something hitting his chest, and he took a step backwards in acknowledgement.

=====

11 AM.

471,600 Essence harvested.

=====

*tremble*

'Now what?'

The entire chamber began to shake and dirt began to slowly cave in. D shouted out loud from the System Space and Lee dashed at the clogged entrance.

---

Almost 17 minutes later, Lee bolted out of the cave entrance, and the momentum enabled him to leap across about 30 metres.

*huff huff*

While panting heavily, Lee knelt on one knee on the ground. While wiping the sweat from his forehead, a faint smile of satisfaction and relief could be seen on his face.

[I honestly thought that we are doomed.]

Lee could only chuckle in response. Even he himself had little faith in successfully exiting the cave network.

'D, can you do a thorough scan of the coffin?'

[I shall give it a try. I cannot guarantee any results.]