Chapter 22: Out of the wolf's mouth and into the tiger's mouth

  The roar of the engine broke through the calm coastline, and the land gradually fell behind. The shallow blue sea water gradually darkened, and the sound of waves crashing against the shore grew smaller until it disappeared. Yang Hao and his group sat on a speedboat heading towards a mysterious island suspended in the middle of the ocean. The speedboat left a white trail of foam on the surface of the sea as it traveled, and after a while, the calm and peaceful sea surface suddenly started to produce mist for no apparent reason. The boat was moving through it, feeling isolated from the world. It was as if they had entered a mystical realm, surrounded by a vast expanse of white fog. The cries of seagulls and the sound of waves crashing against the shore all disappeared, leaving only the hum of the engine in their ears. Their sense of hearing seemed to be cut off by this ethereal landscape. The mist grew thicker, making everyone feel suffocated. Everything around them was damp and sticky. Just as visibility almost reached zero, and an eerie silence fell over the group, a faint melody drifted from somewhere unknown. It was a woman's voice, soft and melancholic. The sound was intermittent, seeming to come and go, and Yang Hao perked up his ears to listen. But when he focused on it, he couldn't hear anything anymore. He relaxed, and the sound floated back again. After confirming several times that this sound really existed, Yang Hao looked at Master Yi, who was driving the speedboat. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Master Yi close his eyes, turn off the engine, and adjust the rudder with his hands, relying on intuition. Tiger Head suddenly jumped onto Yang Hao's body and made a gesture for him to be quiet, then tapped his own chest and closed his eyes too. What did this mean? Was he supposed to follow suit? So Yang Hao also closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing. After a while, his thoughts spread out with the surrounding air currents, and that melancholic song became very clear, each sentence entering his ears: "Green fields fragrant with morning dew, red boats drifting with cloud tides, gathering together in the realm of immortals, parting ways amidst human smoke..."

  As soon as the words fell, Old Man Yang suddenly opened his eyes, and Hu Tou and Ji Feng also stared at Yang Hao with wide eyes. Everyone's face was filled with terror, as if Yang Hao had done something he shouldn't have done. Old Man Yang suddenly revved up the engine, and in an instant, the speedboat shot out like a startled rabbit. After seeing his master's reaction, Yang Hao heard that the melody had undergone a huge change, sometimes high-pitched, sometimes low and mournful, with strange changes in pitch and rhythm, fast and with great amplitude, making people's hair stand on end. Then he saw a figure floating in the fog, rapidly approaching them. At the same time, Yang Hao's head started to ache without warning, as if a million worms were wriggling in his brain. Every time the melody changed, his head would throb violently. Just when the figure was about to touch the boat, a whooshing sound filled their ears. The speedboat had already burst out of the fog. The eerie singing and the figure disappeared, and Yang Hao's headache also vanished.

  "The fog just now was you coming back from the brink of death."

  "What's the Soul-Killing Formation?" Yang Hao recalled that beautiful and mournful singing voice and the drifting mist, it was actually a killing formation, he couldn't help but shiver with cold sweat.

  "Not bad... the Soul Killing Formation is also known as **Formation. It's a formation that uses vengeful spirits as its core to attack people's hearts. Did you feel a headache just now?" Yang Hao nodded.

  "If you were moved by its singing voice just now, after the headache, your thoughts will be completely controlled by it, and you will be willing to be killed by it."

  "How can it be so powerful? Why didn't Master tell me?"

  "It's too late, by the time we realize it, we're already in the midst of it." Tiger Head chimed in.

  "Hmm... that's right. At first, I also thought it was just an ordinary fog, but after entering, I discovered the strange place. The way to break this formation is to not be confused in one's heart, not speak with one's mouth, distinguish the direction, and then go straight through without any danger. So I won't open my mouth to speak." Yiyang Shu continued to explain.

  Yang Hao recalled everything that had just happened, although it was extremely brief, but the danger was extraordinary. A formation that could make you willingly accept death had occurred on his own body once. If it weren't for his master's quick thinking and speeding out of the fog, the consequences would be unthinkable.

  "Ah Hao, don't be too hard on yourself, you just need to know that in this vast world, nothing is impossible. The killing techniques and magic are not what's scary, it's these mysterious arrays that can make people die unknowingly. It's normal to have mistakes when encountering them for the first time. Look, we should find what we're looking for over there." After comforting Yang Hao with a few words, Yi Yang Shu indicated for everyone to pay attention to the front. At this moment, Yu Deng and Yu Zhuo also woke up, but they didn't know that they had just gone through a soul-killing array. They only heard their master telling them to pay attention to the front after waking up. At this time, everyone's gaze was focused on an island not far away in front of them.

  As far as the eye can see, this island is not as desolate and barren as Zhong Kui said, but on the contrary, it looks exceptionally beautiful. The island is filled with all kinds of beautiful flowers, and in the center of the island, there is a group of buildings similar to those of the Tang Dynasty. From afar, they shine brightly like gold and jade. Seeing this, people's hearts are filled with joy, as if they have arrived at some resort village. If there were wine houses, hotels, and beauties on the island...

  "Don't be misled by illusions, look up..." Yiyang Shu reminded after seeing through everyone's thoughts.

  Above this "beautiful" island, a red aura shot straight up into the clouds. A huge circular vortex formed in the sky. Green and blue ghosts darted about, too numerous to count. Looking around in all directions, the entire island was surrounded by a purple barrier. However, it had already been weakened by the ghostly impacts and would likely be broken through soon.

  "It seems the seal won't last much longer... We're landing now." After saying that, Uncle Yang found a relatively flat spot to park the speedboat. Yang Hao and others re-checked their equipment once again. Everything was ready, and under the leadership of their master, they disembarked one by one, arriving on this beautiful yet evil ghost island.

  Yang Hao and his group had just set foot on the ground when they caught a whiff of fragrance. Looking around, he was surprised to find that they were now in a small forest with not very tall trees. The fragrance came from the flowers on the trees.

  "Wow... pear blossoms are really beautiful..." Yu Deng said and was about to go pick some pear blossoms from the tree.

  "Stop right there... Are you speaking recklessly like this?"

  "Master, I just picked a flower..."

  "On a hot summer day, the pear blossoms are blooming, don't you think it's strange?" Yu Deng heard Yang Hao's words and his body stiffened, "Ah, how can pear blossoms bloom in the middle of summer?" After going through that brief life-and-death struggle, Yang Hao's thoughts had indeed become much more meticulous.

  "Let's go~~~" Uncle Yang said, and Yang Hao followed his master along the path in the pear blossom forest.

  "Master, won't you try again with the Encounter Array?"

  "Since you're already here, then make yourself at home. Are you afraid of the formation and won't come onto the island?"

  The master and apprentice said a few words, then came to an empty space, the road disappeared on this empty land. All around were pear blossom trees, three layers inside and three layers outside, surrounding these people in the middle. The strange arrangement seemed to indicate that there was a hidden mystery here. Suddenly, Yang Hao felt something moving behind him, and immediately turned back to look.

  "Master... The road we came by is gone..."

  "Hmm... as expected, be careful everyone... the formation is about to activate." As soon as Old Man Yang's words fell, the fragrance of pear blossoms suddenly became rich and intense, completely different from the seductive scent earlier. The fragrance was subtle, almost imperceptible at times, but could bring a very comfortable and soothing effect. If it became too strong, it would severely stimulate the brain, causing dizziness, nausea, and weakness throughout the body. Yu Zhuo and Yu Deng were clearly affected by this, their faces pale as they looked like they were about to vomit. Yang Hao felt the world spinning around him, tears streaming down his face, even Old Man Yang, a powerful cultivator, furrowed his brow in discomfort.

  "Ugh... wow..." Yu Deng and Yu Zhuo finally couldn't bear the nausea and vomited. After vomiting, they inhaled a large amount of fragrance again, and their faces turned pale instantly. Their bodies were soft and weak, without any strength. At this time, as the fragrance became more intense, the pear blossom tree moved. Yang Hao thought it was an illusion - how could trees move? But he calmed down and compared the front row of trees with the back row, and found that the tree had indeed moved. However, he was also dizzy and couldn't speak. What's going on??? Yang Hao discovered that not only the three of them, but also their master, Hu Tou, and others were frowning, pale-faced, yet the fragrance didn't seem to be toxic. Why is this happening? How can trees move by themselves???