Chapter 2872: Chapter 2872: The Wooden Bridge

As far as most creatures knew, no one was allowed to enter the Dark Region.

Anyone who entered would be swallowed up by endless darkness.

What happened in there was shrouded in mystery. No one knew how and why the Souls of Light disappeared in the depths of the Dark Region.

People who entered died suddenly and silently. Their Souls of Light were lost and their bodies were left empty, like ships without a rudder.

Everyone carried a deep and abiding fear of the Dark Region. It was terrible to lose your own soul. And so the Souls of Light wandering Stage Thirteen would be careful to stay far away from the Dark Region.

Chaim paused, analyzing the situation. “The bridge should be within the Dark Region,” he said.

The two Dark Regions in Stage Thirteen formed two semicircles, the ends of two arcs connected behind the Grand Sky Temple.

At Chaim's words, those from the Oneness Sky Palace stopped in their tracks. They even took several steps back, as though retreating from some horrible monster awaiting them on the bridge.

However, the Nine Li people stepped confidently onto the wooden bridge. Hutton said, “It's true that the bridge is located within the Dark Region, but we're safe in the place with light.”

Zen followed Hutton forward onto the bridge. He looked around, his curiosity increasing at the sight of the mysterious light. “Where does the light come from? It's so strange.”

According to No. 9527, only those candles could light up the Dark Region.

When Zen had first reached the entrance of the Grand Sky Temple, he'd been able to see the wooden bridge from a distance. He had wondered to himself if there were candles on the bridge. He couldn't see any candles now, which made him feel uneasy.

Where was the light coming from?

“The light comes from something we can't see,” Hutton replied calmly.

They knew little about the Dark Region, and they had accepted that they would never unravel most of its secrets.

Zen nodded, still observing the light. He knew that the candles could light up the Dark Region. But What were they made of? What else was in here?

Dorothy followed behind Zen, and in turn she was followed by Chaim, Elvinia and the other disciples.

The disciples were very scared, but they had finally come to the Dark Region which had never been explored before. If they could find a unique Other Shore Token, their status would be greatly improved in the Oneness Sky Palace in the future.

And so, dreaming of the possibilities, they cautiously stepped onto the wooden bridge.

There was a creaking sound, followed by another, then another, as the Souls of Light walked on the bridge.

No one knew for sure how long the bridge had been standing there, but it was clearly old, and over the years the wood had become slightly rotten.

The Souls of Light were not heavy, and they moved very carefully to avoid straining the bridge. However, the wood creaked and strained with each step Zen took. Zen had a corporeal body and was thus the heaviest person on the bridge, so he held his breath as he stepped forward, thinking that the bridge could collapse at any time. Ｒ𝖆ɴỌβĘş

“Thad, tread softly. If this bridge collapses, it will certainly make things more difficult for us,” said Chaim with a wry smile.

Zen nodded and moved slowly, treading as gently as possible.

In this manner, the group moved slowly forward. They made their gradual way deeper and deeper into the darkness.

A deathly silence surrounded them. The darkness pressed in on all sides, and although they kept moving forward, they still couldn't see the end of the wooden bridge ahead. The cold, eerie atmosphere strained the nerves of the disciples on the bridge.

Suddenly, one of the disciples cried out, “What happened? The temple is gone!”

The disciple hadn't been able to resist looking backwards, and what he saw stunned him.

Zen, Dorothy, and the others quickly turned around. To their surprise, the high towers of the Grand Sky Temple and the vista of the Other Shore beyond it had vanished completely. There was only the wooden bridge, stretching out into the black gloom. Absolute darkness lay ahead of them and behind them.

“I—I want to go back,” said a disciple, unable to conceal his fear.

He was a follower of Elvinia from the Phoenix Palace.

He had been reluctant to explore the Grand Sky Temple, but he came because his duty was to protect Elvinia. He had been even more hesitant about following her here into the Dark Region.

He had encountered many hardships so far, but with the help of other disciples, including those from other races, he was still alive. He had hoped that he would be able to leave safely after exploring the Grand Sky Temple, but this quiet, dark bridge somehow seemed more dangerous than anything they had previously encountered.

Elvinia glanced indifferently at him. “All right, you can turn back on your own,” she said coolly. She always looked down on cowards.

The disciple said nothing, but he didn't move. Going back alone seemed like a risky option. Who knew what he would encounter by himself?

Zen intervened, speaking in a composed voice intended to calm the others, “The Grand Sky Temple can't have disappeared. Perhaps our eyes are just deceiving us. Let's keep pressing forward and see what happens.”

Although it was Hutton and the other Nine Li people who led the way, Zen was the unspoken leader of the group.

He was the only corporeal body on the Other Shore. If something bad happened, everyone knew that they must turn to Zen for protection.

Chaim and Dorothy also spoke soothingly to the others, building their courage. Then everyone continued on their journey.

The light on the bridge was unevenly distributed. At some points the light seemed bright, but after a few steps, the light dimmed and flickered. This supported what Hutton told them. The light must come from candles, but they couldn't see them from where they stood.

The bridge still creaked loudly with every step Zen took.

Zen walked as slowly as he could, testing every plank before he placed his foot down, but no matter where he stepped, the bridge still creaked.

It made him tense, but he was determined to continue forward. The group moved without talking, and the only sound in the infinite darkness surrounding them was the creaking of the bridge. However, after a few minutes, those closest to Zen heard a new sound.

They tilted their heads, trying to identify the strange sound.

It was distinct from the creaks, but it seemed to come only when Zen was moving.

It was as if bugs were eating the wooden boards of the bridge.

Zen, Hutton and Chaim were the ones who had noticed the new sound first.

“Stop,” Hutton said sharply.

“Listen, do you also hear that sound? Can you tell what it is?” Chaim asked.

Zen stopped moving, and the sound disappeared.

“What sound are you talking about? Brother, don't scare me!” Sally said, her voice trembling.

The environment of the Nine Li race had made its people strong, but after all Sally was still quite young.

“The noise only comes when I move,” Zen said softly.

He took a step forward.

The bridge creaked, and beneath that creak was the distinct sound of something unfamiliar.

This time, everyone on the bridge heard it clearly.

“It seems that there is something under the wooden bridge!”

“What is that? Is something following us?”

“Oh my goodness! It must be a monster of the Dark Region!”

The disciples spoke in hushed, panicked voices, looking around them fearfully at the darkness.

Dorothy couldn't help but lean towards Zen. Although Elvinia was scared, she still looked around the wooden bridge, squinting her eyes.

“It's down there,” said Zen. “Something is following us.”

He held on to the railing of the wooden bridge and looked down over the side, into the black chasm below.

The planks of the wooden bridge were wider than the railings on each side. This made it impossible to probe what was under the bridge simply by leaning over the edge. The underside of the bridge was shrouded entirely in impenetrable darkness. Nobody could explore it just by using their spiritual sense.

Everyone was anxious and afraid. All of a sudden, Hutton, who was in the lead, spoke in a low and urgent voice, “Thad, look behind us.”

Zen, Dorothy, Sally, and Elvinia turned their heads. To their horror, a black tail was visible on one side of the wooden bridge.

The tail was as slender as a rope, and tapered to a sharp hook at the tip.

Without making any sound, the tail flicked and moved towards a disciple who stood in the rear of the group.