Chapter 31: The Umbrella of Great Mystery

"I don't know, now is not the time to talk about this. We must leave this place immediately."

Old Long seemed to sense something. He leaped up instantly, dashed into the small hut, and roughly dragged Jiang Wu out.

Accustomed to such situations, the dragged Jiang Wu looked around and asked with some confusion, "Has the monster left?"

"Not yet, but his attention is no longer focused here. Let's hurry, cross the Quicksand River first."

Old Long said with certainty, "I have a lingering feeling that staying here is unsafe, and going back is equally unsafe. Only after crossing the river will you have a sliver of a chance of survival."

"Alright, we'll leave right now." Decisive as ever, Jiang Wu made up his mind upon hearing Old Long's words.

After a brief moment of thought, he turned to Wang Liang and said, "Brother Duocai, I brought this trouble upon us. You shouldn't suffer this ordeal with me. Take this item, and let us part ways here."

With that, Jiang Wu shoved something into Wang Liang's hand.

The moment the object touched his palm, Wang Liang was greeted by a faint scent of sandalwood. Looking down, he saw he was holding a cicada molting carved from sandalwood.

"I accidentally carved this when I was a child, and it has stayed with me all these years. I have nothing better to offer, so please accept this."

Just as Wang Liang was about to speak, the umbrella in his hand trembled slightly. He watched as the umbrella opened on its own, and the cicada molting naturally wedged itself into the notch at the very top of the umbrella handle.

Shortly after, Wang Liang realized that this magical treasure was now complete, though the properties belonging to the cicada molting itself were not immediately visible; only a single line of purple text explained the situation within that slot.

[Golden Cicada Sloughing: Activated at the moment of utmost danger, it instantly transports the user out of the game (only one chance per game; it cannot be used again upon re-entering this game).]

Discovering this, Wang Liang couldn't help a sigh of amazement. His magical treasure was finished just like that?

Not quite. The treasure wasn't entirely complete yet, as it still lacked a proper name.

He certainly couldn't just call his magical treasure "umbrella."

Opening the magical treasure interface, Wang Liang found the field to enter a name. After a moment of thought, he wrote down three characters with utmost sincerity: Tai-Xuan Umbrella.

Once named, Wang Liang felt as though the Tai-Xuan Umbrella had become an extension of his own body. Even without holding it in his hand, he could control it effortlessly.

When Wang Liang tried letting go of his grip, the Tai-Xuan Umbrella actively hovered behind him, as if someone were dedicated to holding an umbrella over him.

This discovery brought a gleam of joy to Wang Liang's eyes.

"Many thanks, Brother Jiang Wu. You are the one who made my magical treasure whole. I offer my gratitude here."

Jiang Wu knew nothing of Wang Liang using equipment to forge treasures, and looked at the scene before him with profound curiosity.

Fortunately, Old Long held Jiang Wu back in time, stopping him from inquiring further.

Wang Liang then said to Jiang Wu, "Then let us part ways here. I shall head out first, do as you wish."

Old Long nodded, then added, "Be careful yourself. I feel that the one who laid this trap will not leave too far away just because of a couple of ape cries; they will be watching the surface of the river. If danger arises, find a way to jump into the river."

Wang Liang smiled and said with certainty, "Don't worry, even if there is danger, I can escape."

With that, Wang Liang summoned his bronze warhorse, leaped onto its back, and charged outward.

Old Long voluntarily lowered the formation barrier, allowing Wang Liang to escape.

As soon as Wang Liang departed, Jiang Wu stared at Old Long with an expression full of anger.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"The concentration of purple qi on him is no lower than yours. He is a noble figure of status just like you, yet he is not the target of those people. Although he will be watched upon appearing, he will not suffer any real harm. We need someone to draw their attention. Do not forget how many people have sacrificed themselves for you along this journey."

Hearing Old Long put it this way, Jiang Wu fell silent. He hesitated for a long time, but ultimately failed to call out to Wang Liang.

Wang Liang was actually well aware of this himself.

He understood that he was being used as bait, but he also had a lingering sensation. Back when he first saw Jiang Wu, Wang Liang had always felt that the skull of the scripture-seeker he carried earlier looked remarkably similar to Jiang Wu's head.

Because they had spent so much time with Jiang Wu, Old Long and the others had failed to notice it.

Wang Liang believed that the monster in the river was likely arranged specifically to slaughter scripture-seekers like Jiang Wu.

Judging by the four skulls from earlier, four had already been killed here, making this the fifth generation of scripture-seekers.

Wang Liang was not surprised by this at all. Memories of both his first life and his current life existed within his own mind, and though his memories of the intervening periods were incomplete, he believed he, too, was in his fifth reincarnation.

Through all five lives, he had been moving steadily toward a single goal, and he believed Jiang Wu was no different.

Moreover, Jiang Wu possessed a major advantage over him.

Lost in thought, Wang Liang glanced at the cicada molting wedged in the notch of the umbrella.

Five lives ago, Jiang Wu was very likely a cicada spirit, possessing the means to escape death by shedding its skin.

Pondering this, Wang Liang urged his bronze warhorse onward.

Soon, he arrived once again at the banks of the Quicksand River.

The traces left behind by the fierce battle here had not yet been washed away by the river, and the corpse of the strange monster still lay on the bank.

Catching sight of that corpse from a distance, Wang Liang suddenly felt something was amiss; the corpse bore the aura of having been rummaged through.

Someone must have flipped through the remains, and done so in a rather casual manner.

Coupled with the intimidating aura of the mighty being from earlier, Wang Liang dared not go near the corpse. He skirted around it and charged straight into the Quicksand River.

The moment he plunged into the river, the Tai-Xuan Umbrella automatically unfurled, enveloping Wang Liang within its shelter.

Then, the bronze warhorse unleashed its maximum speed, charging forward continuously while trampling the churning waves.

The top speed of the bronze warhorse could reach 380 kilometers per hour, meaning the eight-hundred-li Quicksand River would take just a little over an hour to cross.

Wang Liang had no time to mind anything else. Only a single thought filled his mind: push through. As long as he crossed the Quicksand River, everything else would cease to be a problem.

Driven by this thought, the bronze warhorse left everyone far behind on the Quicksand River, moving so fast that even the cresting waves could not catch up.

He paid no attention to the fish leaping out of the Quicksand River; the bronze warhorse simply barreled right into them.

Those fish had been full of vigor when they leaped up, attempting to knock Wang Liang flying, but upon colliding with the bronze warhorse, they were instantly shattered into pieces.

Wang Liang didn't even spare those fish a glance, keeping his eyes fixed on the opposite bank of the Quicksand River while steadily maintaining the speed and direction of his bronze warhorse.

After charging for about half an hour, Wang Liang felt that terrifying pressure from earlier descend once more over the skies of the Quicksand River, as if someone had locked onto him.

Just at that moment, a soft "hmph" echoed from the heavens, and everything dissipated as swiftly as it had appeared, as though nothing had ever happened.