I’m Trapped in a Cube - Chapter 170

“Click, click, click…”

The sound of shell striking became increasingly frequent, appearing unusually obvious even under the rushing sound of water flow.

None of them dared continue forward, vigilantly staring at the ground beneath their feet.

But the sound wasn’t only coming from below their feet, it seemed the same shell striking sounds were also coming from within those rainbow lights.

Moreover, the rainbow lights kept solidifying, taking on various vague shapes.

The originally curve-shaped rainbow lights transformed into indeterminate forms like colored clay, slowly beginning to expand.

Changes in the water mist would sometimes cause the rainbow lights to disappear, but they would reappear in the next instant, like a damaged television constantly refreshing its screen at an extremely fast frequency, making people dizzy.

Before long, the rainbow lights had spread to the surroundings, filling everywhere, about to cover everything around them.

“What is this thing?” Li Xiangyi couldn’t help but ask. “Is it caused by my light band?”

She was somewhat worried and planned to put away her Relic first.

But Old Xu quickly interrupted her, “Don’t worry yet. This place is very safe. Keep the light going.”

Hearing Old Xu’s words, she relaxed slightly and continued watching the surrounding rainbow lights constantly changing.

“This is mirage vapor,” Old Xu said, grabbing at the surrounding water mist with his hand, then rubbing it to explain to the two.

“Mirage vapor?” the two asked in unison.

“Yes, the humid water vapor, and this fishy smell, these are definitely characteristics of mirage vapor. And these surrounding rainbow lights are also a precursor to mirage vapor activation,” Old Xu explained calmly.

“Just wait.”

Although Old Xu was confident, Li Luo didn’t seem as reassured. She had already taken out her electronic screen and was looking up information about mirage vapor.

……

Stories of mirages have existed from ancient times to the present.

Mirage actually refers to clams, a common type of shellfish in the sea. Ancient people believed that mirages could exhale vapor to form cities and towers.

But modern people had long figured out the cause of mirages.

It was actually a type of light refraction that reflected distant scenery in the sky—a natural phenomenon that often occurred in summer near water and in desert areas.

However, after coming to the Abyss, people had seen completely different mirages.

A lone wolf Hunter named Shen Ping first discovered this strange phenomenon in the Abyss Third Layer.

As a famous Hunter, he had not only completed many official missions but also collected many Relics, obtaining substantial resources by turning them over to the authorities.

For a time, his reputation was unmatched.

But only Shen Ping himself knew that even the money to buy his boat was borrowed.

There were many information brokers in the Abyss, people with no real abilities who would sell location information about various islands to other Hunters.

Shen Ping relied on his daring and aggressive style to explore many island ruins alone. Recently, he had bought information about an island from an information broker.

“That island has a great environment too. After you explore it and report to the authorities, it might even become an island base,” the broker told him.

“Why don’t you explore it yourself?” Shen Ping knew these brokers always exaggerated their islands.

“Uh, that place is a bit weird. Illusions keep appearing on the island. Although there’s no real harm, it’s quite frightening. The ruins are also easy to find…”

Shen Ping listened to the broker ramble on with a bunch of nonsense.

Anyway, you couldn’t hear any useful information from these information brokers—as long as the island location was accurate, that was a blessing.

After preparing for the voyage, Shen Ping hurriedly set off along the route.

“After this job, the loan will be paid off,” Shen Ping was already imagining himself paying off his loan, galloping through the Abyss, and reaching the pinnacle of his life.

Soon, he reached the designated location.

“The environment really is great!”

The broker hadn’t lied. This was an extremely beautiful island with lush vegetation. A modest stone mountain stood in the center, surrounded by swirling mist like a fairyland.

The ruins on the island weren’t buried very deep either—from the shore, you could see patches of ruins throughout the mountains.

“I’ve struck gold!”

When exploring islands in the past, many ruins were buried deep within the islands, some even inside volcanic craters. Ruins this obvious, sitting plainly on the island, were extremely rare.

It was practically easy mode.

Shen Ping couldn’t wait to land on the island. Along the way, he didn’t encounter any danger—it was like an ordinary mountain forest, making him feel very relaxed.

The creatures in the mountain forest were also very friendly all small animals that would avoid him from a distance when they saw him.

Shen Ping also had a Relic for monitoring his physical condition.

Although this journey was very relaxed, he still occasionally took out that Relic to check whether he had been affected by anything unknown.

“The safest place is the most dangerous place.” This was the conclusion he’d reached after exploring so many islands.

Fortunately, this path seemed genuinely safe. Soon he reached the foot of the stone mountain.

The ruins were very classical Chinese-style pavilions, attached to the stone mountain using extremely ingenious architectural methods. Wooden structures were mounted on extending diagonal support pillars, as if flying high in the air.

Stone steps carved directly from the stone mountain wound upward, disappearing into the clouds and mist.

“This really is a fairyland,” Shen Ping sighed at the wonder of these ruins as he carefully walked upward.

When he reached the mountainside, the mist had become very thick. Shen Ping smelled a faint fishy scent of shellfish in the mist.

The path ahead gradually became blurred, and the humid water vapor made the ground very slippery, forcing Shen Ping to slow his pace.

Although he appreciated the beautiful scenery, his inner vigilance never relaxed.

“This is a ruin, after all.”

Sure enough, before long, he discovered something abnormal.

Shen Ping had chosen his landing time very carefully, it was currently morning. When sunlight fell on the mist, some barely perceptible rainbow lights began appearing in the vapor.

He naturally noticed these lights and stopped walking.

These lights slowly spread, then gradually condensed, forming figure after figure in the mist.

“These must be the illusions that broker mentioned,” Shen Ping thought.

The figures gradually became humanoid forms wearing ornate brocade robes. Their clothing was very elaborate, complete with various accessories, even appearing somewhat bulky.

These figures wore incredibly luxurious clothing, perfectly matching this fairyland-like stone mountain.

“Are these all immortals?” Shen Ping couldn’t help but think.

However, as those figures slowly condensed completely, Shen Ping was startled by them.

The heads of these figures were all various sea creatures!

Orcas with glaring round eyes.

Octopi with waving tentacles.

Lobsters shaking their heads.

Starfish with smiling faces.

……

What kind of immortals were these?

These were sea immortals!