Douluo Continent: Little Huo Niang Taken Away by Di Tian

Chapter 151 The Tragic Fate of Jing Hongchen

The recent unusual developments in the Demon Forest have not only alarmed the Holy Spirit Cult, but have also raised serious concerns within the Mingde Hall—especially after the Evil Emperor also brought the Jingyang Mountains under his control.

Jing Hongchen's mood has been gloomy lately.

The loss of several important mining areas that Mingdetang had operated in the Jingyang Mountains for many years changed hands overnight, a heavy and direct loss.

What alarmed him even more was the subtle shift in the trade landscape:

Although the Sun Moon Empire controls more than 70% of the continent's mineral resources, Shrek Academy, which has long been one of the largest buyers, has recently quietly stopped importing rare minerals from Mingde Hall.

This is far from the norm in the market; it can only mean that the other party has found a new supply channel with stable and substantial reserves.

At the same time, although the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile School is no longer at its peak, its vast commercial network spanning the three kingdoms of Tianhun, Douling, and Xingluo is still not to be underestimated and remains a crucial link in the continent's trade.

Intelligence from various sources eventually pointed to a name that had only gradually surfaced over the past six months—the Spirit Pagoda.

This organization seems to have appeared out of nowhere, operating discreetly yet possessing unfathomable depths.

Jing Hongchen put down the report in his hand, took off his glasses, and rubbed his tense temples.

Intuition and experience both told him that the change in Shrek Academy's ore source was very likely related to this mysterious Spirit Tower.

If this is indeed the case, then the underlying energy and intentions must be investigated further.

He decided to go there himself.

Some things can only be judged accurately by seeing them with one's own eyes.

Jing Hongchen selected an elite team, equipped with the most advanced stealth detection and storage soul guides, and silently infiltrated the mixed zone of the Demon Forest.

Deep in the forest, even the light seemed to be shining cautiously.

A faint, pervasive spiritual pressure filled the air, as if countless invisible eyes were blinking in the shadows.

Jing Hongchen took every step with utmost care, fully activating his soul guidance barrier to try and erase his own presence to almost nothing—on the territory of the Evil Eye Tyrant, any carelessness could be a "public execution" on a spiritual level.

Just as their nerves were stretched to the limit, an indescribable sound drifted in crookedly through the gaps in the forest.

The sound initially sounded like rusty gears gnawing at each other, or like a dissonant sigh squeezed out from a crack in the ground—intermittent, distorted, completely violating the basic laws of sound propagation, drilling straight into people's ears.

Jing Hongchen's brows furrowed into a knot; this was definitely not the normal roar or friction of a soul beast.

He raised his hand, making a "be on guard, advance slowly" gesture, and the team moved forward with centimeter-level precision, as if the slow-motion button had been pressed.

The sound became clearer and clearer, and the direction was unmistakable.

Jing Hongchen's sense of unease and curiosity reached its peak.

He gestured, and the group, using the thick tree trunks for cover, slowly peeked out towards the source of the sound—

Time seemed to stand still at that moment.

In a clearing in the woods, several enormous, one-eyed, ferocious evil tyrants were...dancing.

Their tentacles thrashed about wildly in a way that defied joints and gravity, like a group of drunken noodle enthusiasts having a wild party;

The enormous single eye flashed with a chaotic, multicolored light that had no discernible pattern. Sometimes it would widen, sometimes it would narrow into a slit, and sometimes it would rapidly dart left and right.

Its massive body swayed erratically, rotated abruptly, and moved in a bizarre manner that seemed to be mimicking the wriggling of a mollusk but failed miserably.

The jarring "accompaniment" combined with the frenzied "dance" created an absurd impact that exceeded the limits of sensory endurance.

"puff--!"

Jing Hongchen felt his expensively custom-made glasses, equipped with a miniature soul-guided array, emit a slight mournful sound and instantly explode with spiderweb-like cracks.

"Hall Master... what... are they... doing?"

A subordinate behind him murmured in a sleepwalking voice, his eyes vacant and lifeless.

Another subordinate was even more direct; his eyes rolled back, and he fell straight backward, foaming at the mouth and unconscious.

Those who were still able to stand were in various postures:

Some people's legs began to tremble uncontrollably at a high frequency, performing a "sewing machine" motion on the spot;

Some held their heads in their hands, their faces a mixture of extreme confusion and despair, as if pondering, "Who am I? Where am I? Why am I watching this?"

Others were completely petrified, with only their eyeballs still making rapid and meaningless circular movements in sync with the tyrannical evil eye's erratic dance.

Jing Hongchen bit his tongue hard, the sharp pain allowing him to regain some control from the dizzying, soul-stirring state.

He disregarded his image and the pain of his shattered glasses, forcing out the order through clenched teeth in a low voice.

"Retreat...retreat quickly! Take what you can! For what you can't take...may the sun and moon protect them!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and practically tumbled back the way he came.

Those of his men who still retained a shred of reason seemed to wake from a dream, and hurriedly dragged their foaming-at-the-mouth colleagues to their feet, staggering as they followed.

Only after completely escaping that nightmarish area did Jing Hongchen lean against a large tree, breathing heavily, her hands trembling as if she had Parkinson's disease.

The image of the tyrannical evil-eyed demons dancing wildly in his mind continued to play on a stubborn loop, accompanied by a brainwashing melody that made him feel nauseous.

"Master, are you alright?"

One of his men, barely recovered, asked with lingering fear, his face still bearing an expression that seemed to be both crying and laughing.

Jing Hongchen waved his hand, barely having the strength to speak. He simply removed his completely broken glasses, the lenses shattered and missing, revealing a pair of eyes filled with...

Eyes that have lost their luster, as if asking, "Who am I? Where am I? What did I see?"

This costly (and extremely shameful) trial directly resulted in core technicians on several key production lines of Mingdetang experiencing varying degrees of physiological discomfort and mental confusion when they see anything round, luminous, or twisting for some time to come, significantly reducing production efficiency.

In the serious meeting of the Mingde Hall's senior management afterwards, Jing Hongchen, with two faint dark circles under his eyes, used the most rigorous language possible to analyze in detail the terrifying aspects of the "Evil Eye Tyrant's Dance".

"This is no ordinary mental attack; it's a... well, a highly distorted cognitive interference with mental pollution characteristics. Conventional defenses are of limited effectiveness."

We must initiate a research project on how to defend against this…this specific form of ritualistic spiritual pollution.”

He even compiled this experience into a top-secret file and presented it to Kong Deming, the pillar of the hall and the chief soul master.

After Kong Lao personally went to investigate, this knowledgeable level nine soul master, unusually, fell silent for a moment upon his return. He patted Jing Hongchen on the shoulder, his tone complex:

"Jing, thank you for your hard work. What you described is basically true."

Even I need to concentrate and calm my mind to resist its... uh, its 'atmosphere' intrusion.