Chapter 388: Entering

Cheng Zicheng snorted and said, "Just don't hold us back. I've made a lot of progress recently, and it's the perfect time to show it off."

Gu Li chuckled and said, "Me too. I'm slowly getting the hang of it. I think my future lies in time management, hehe."

Tang San nodded and said, "I'll make some hidden weapons and new array discs for you. We won't go to the Sacred Mountains for the next two days. Instead, we'll practice and master these new weapons."

Upon hearing about the new weapons, the eyes of the four lit up. Anything made by Tang San was bound to be top-notch!

***

Two days passed in the blink of an eye. On the day they were to enter the Hell Garden, the five checked out of the hotel early in the morning and went together to the Aetherhorn Merchant Association.

Xu Zirui was already waiting there. He handed Asura a storage ring, whispered some final instructions, and saw them onto the Aetherhorn Merchant Association's carriage.

The carriage's interior was spacious, but the windows were sealed shut. This was the rule—no one was allowed to know the location of the Hell Garden's entrance.

The Hell Garden team battle participants would all gather at a designated place. Then, these sealed carriages, isolated from spiritual power, would be driven by Ancestral Court personnel to the Hell Garden entrance.

Five sets of clothing were neatly arranged inside the carriage, all tailored to their sizes.

The outfits were all black, tight-fitting uniforms with a hood that only exposed the eyes, nose, and mouth. This attire made it impossible to tell people apart, except for their overall body shape.

This was to ensure that before entering, none of the Hell Garden team battle participants could see their opponents, adding an element of mystery.

Tang San nodded to his companions. The five quickly changed into their black uniforms, chuckling when they saw that they barely even recognized each other. A light smile showed on Tang San's lips; for him, the more mysterious the upcoming team battle, the better.

The carriage journey was long, with two stops, but no sounds came from outside. Inside the carriage, only four crystals embedded in the corners emitted a faint glow, preventing it from being too dark.

The five closed their eyes to rest, maintaining their optimal condition.

After about an hour, Tang San suddenly opened his eyes. He felt a massive spiritual power enveloping the carriage. From that moment on, they could no longer sense anything outside with their spiritual power.

Tang San closed his eyes again.

After another half an hour, the carriage finally stopped. At that moment, all the insulation seemed to vanish, and sounds echoed from outside.

"Get off!"

Tang San nodded to his companions and was the first to get off the carriage.

Outside, the sunlight was bright. Stepping out from the dim carriage, he squinted his eyes slightly to adjust to the light while quickly observing the surroundings.

Before them lay a valley with cliffs on either side. Even though the walls were sheer rock and extremely steep, lush foliage covered them for the most part.

The life energy here was incredibly dense, and it was not split into different attributes as within the Ancestral Court, but merged together. It felt like a stronger version of the life energy in Kali City.

At this moment, a dozen carriages were gathered in the valley. Participants of various builds, all dressed in black and wearing hoods, were getting off the carriages one by one.

The Shrek Squad naturally gathered behind Tang San. They noticed that there were no drivers on the carriages, as if they had arrived here on their own.

Two tall figures of an unknown race stood guard ahead. They could be distinguished from the participants because, although they wore black clothing and hoods, their outfits had red patterns.

"You have all received your identification tags. Remember to wear them properly. If you come out without your identification tag, you will be killed without mercy," one of the red-pattern figures said coldly.

Naturally, Tang San and his team also had them. They were numbered eleven to fifteen.

These tags were related to the bets. After leaving the Hell Garden, they had to hand over the tags immediately to determine the order of exit. They also had to verify their own identities.

The Ancestral Court's team battles required sponsorship, with each participating team having a sponsor behind them. They also had to pay a significant deposit. If the entire team was wiped out, the deposit would not be refunded. However, many forces were willing to sponsor teams to enter the battles.

This was like betting on horses; whoever had a sponsored team inside knew them best, so they had an advantage when it came to betting. Moreover, if the sponsored team survived, the sponsor would receive a reward worth several times the deposit.

However, while many were willing to sponsor, finding suitable participants was another matter altogether.

Tang San hung his identification tag on the left side of his chest. Since they were a team of five, it didn't matter who wore which tag. Having numbered tags just made it easier to identify their teammates, at least at the beginning. If they got separated inside, and a teammate was killed and their tag was taken, that would be another matter. Cases of someone impersonating an opponent to kill the others were not unheard of.

"Enter the passage," the red-pattern figure said, pointing to the depths ahead.

The passage between the cliffs stretched straight ahead, but the distant scenery appeared somewhat illusory, naturally giving an oppressive feeling. After all, this place was called the Hell Garden!

The other teams of participants had already begun to walk deeper into the passage. Anyone who could get here was well aware of the rules. Fighting was strictly prohibited before entering the Hell Garden; violators would be executed immediately.

Once they were about a hundred meters in, they began to hear strange, whisper-like wailing sounds in the air.

These sounds seemed to carry a strange magic, making them feel somewhat dazed.

Tang San immediately noticed something was wrong; under the influence of these whispers, his spiritual power seemed to become sluggish, and his thoughts slowed down.

He did not resist. Undoubtedly, at the entrance to the Hell Garden, there would be Ancestral Court powerhouses observing all the entrants. It would be too conspicuous if he used his divine consciousness to clear his mind now.

They continued forward for about ten minutes, unaware of how far they had gone.

Suddenly, the scenery opened up ahead.

Tang San vaguely felt as if they had passed through a gate, and a whole new world lay beyond it.

This was a very peculiar place, with strange lights and shadows flowing through the air. The scenery ahead was unclear and gave everyone a surreal, bizarre feel.

If one stared closely at those lights and shadows, their mind would even feel as if it were sinking.

At this moment, the identification tags on their chests emitted a faint heat, stimulating each participant present to wake up.

Tang San noticed that the identification tags on the chests of different teams emitted glows of different colors. The five tags of the Shrek team emitted a pale green halo.

In the next instant, the bizarrely lit world ahead seemed to twist violently. Then he felt a sudden whirl, as if a vortex had swallowed him, and the surrounding space changed dramatically.

Sure enough, it was an isolated space, a separate plane.