Chapter 754: New Divine Power

Inside the house, the phantom sat cross-legged, its aura highly unstable.

This “instability” meant the phantom’s aura was no longer its own; it was as if it had transformed into someone else.

Shen Bai was curious. He hadn’t encountered any strange entities this time and wondered how the phantom would show off. All he could do was watch intently.

Then, as Shen Bai watched, the phantom finally began to change.

The face, originally devoid of features, began to transform right before his eyes.

Before long, the face had transformed into an exact replica of Shen Bai’s own.

Its features and expression were identical to his.

Shen Bai’s eyes widened, but before he could get a closer look, his vision began to blur.

Next, Shen Bai found himself back in the Molten Rock Forbidden Land.

“Change your face, alter your form, and the real shall be indistinguishable from the false.”

The smoke transformed into a flood of Information that poured into Shen Bai’s mind.

After absorbing the Information, Shen Bai had grasped how to use the Divine Power known as the Disguise Technique.

‘How rare. It didn’t even try to show off this time,’ Shen Bai thought.

[Disguise Technique Level 1 (Disguise +1): 0/100]

At Level 1, the Disguise Technique had no extra Attributes, only the Disguise Attribute.

This Disguise Attribute, however, was incredibly powerful.

Just as the name implied, Shen Bai could now use it to freely change his appearance.

It offered no boost to his combat power, but Shen Bai knew this Divine Power would prove uniquely effective in certain situations.

This was an unexpected boon, but Shen Bai didn’t plan on grinding it. After all, he needed to resolve the situation in the Molten Rock Forbidden Land first.

‘Time to see what you all are planning.’

Following the guidance of his Infinite Divination Skill, Shen Bai flew off in a specific direction.

…

「Far, far away from Shen Bai.」

At that very moment, Xu Sheng Taoist and the others had arrived inside an ancient city.

Their eyes were wide with disbelief, unable to accept that what they were seeing was real.

They had stumbled upon an ancient city teeming with people.

The city looked as if it had been formed from the solidified, scorching lava of a volcanic eruption, and it emanated a unique, volcanic red hue.

The city walls were tall and thick, covered in the marks of time and the scars of battle, like a weighty tome of history.

The city gates were shut tight. In front of them lay a wide, open plaza, its ground cracked and parched by the scorching sun. Steam occasionally billowed from the fissures.

On the distant hills, resilient shrubs grew, their roots digging deep into the rock crevices in a testament to the tenacity of life.

On the city’s watchtowers, guards in crimson battle robes held long spears, their gazes vigilantly scanning their surroundings.

The streets inside the city were wide and straight, flanked by rows of stone houses. Their roofs, blanketed in a thick layer of volcanic ash, gave them a solemn, ancient appearance.

Residents fanned themselves under the eaves to ward off the heat, their faces etched with a sense of peace and contentment.

“How is this possible? How can there be living people inside a Forbidden Land?” Monk Mingxin exclaimed, his eyes wide with shock.

The street vendors, the soldiers in armor passing them by—they were all indistinguishable from living people.

Only Dean Hou’s eyes gleamed. “No, they’re not alive!”

Upon hearing this, everyone turned in unison to look at Dean Hou.

They didn’t understand what he meant, but they knew he had more to say.

And just as they expected, Dean Hou immediately began to elaborate.

“Xinhua Academy has never ceased its research into the Forbidden Lands. In the past, people have emerged from Small Forbidden Areas and encountered similar phenomena.”

“After our round-the-clock research, we discovered that some Forbidden Lands can produce unique, sentient beings. We call them the ‘Lingering Past.'”

The Lingering Past?

Xu Sheng Taoist seemed to have a flash of understanding.

Dean Hou continued, “They are all beings who once existed in history but were annihilated at some unknown point in time. The unique power of the Forbidden Land has revived them, but they are confined here, living just as they did in the past.”

“They are people, capable of independent thought, but only within the confines of this Forbidden Land.”

Realizing his explanation might be more confusing than helpful, Dean Hou switched to a simpler analogy.

“You can just think of them as people. They’re creatures born from the Forbidden Land. If the Forbidden Land disappears, so do they. It’s that simple.”

“In short, you can communicate with them. However, if you bring up anything related to the time before their deaths, they’ll simply gloss over it.”

“Let me give you a simple example. If you go up to one of them and say they’re already dead, their minds will automatically substitute it with another thought. Watch.”

With that, Dean Hou grabbed a passing local.

“You’re dead. You’re just a dead person living according to the ways of the Forbidden Land.”

The local paused, looking puzzled. “What are you saying? I don’t understand a word.”

Dean Hou released his grip. “See? Their minds automatically filter out those words.”

Everyone finally understood.

Monk Mingxin spoke up. “The Magma Core is under this city, but we’ll have to search carefully to find its exact location. This place is… special. It would be best if we weren’t too conspicuous in our search.”

Everyone present exchanged glances, all in firm agreement with the Monk’s assessment.

Just then, Xu Sheng Taoist’s eyes shot wide, and he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.

The sudden development immediately drew the attention of the people nearby.

“What’s wrong?” Dean Hou asked.