My Misfortune Crushed Instances-Chapter 226: Strange Images

Clearly, you do not trust me!

Li Rui didn't dare roll his eyes at a level 50 city branch president, but he was crystal clear about the situation.

Not only Wu Mengying, but even Song Yao personally called this morning, giving a ton of precautions. That might have been fine, but the key point was that he even called again in the afternoon to add another bunch of precautions.

He might have quietly cared before, but never expressed it so blatantly.

Apart from these heavyweights, Guan Gui, Dong Sanchuan, and Cheng Mingyue also expressed their concerns. If Kong Ji, as the highest-ranking officer of the mobile unit, weren't so busy, he'd probably be making several calls a day too.

The most serious issue right now has nothing to do with Ten Stars. The crucial point is that this Secret Realm was just updated recently, and the first group of people to go in were all wiped out.

Immediately following, a rising star is about to enter. It's evident from the Superpower Division's act of specially assigning someone to deliver a ring that even higher-ups must be paying attention.

This situation made Li Rui feel like he was dreaming back to the Demon Wind Temple.

Back then, everyone else was as anxious as ants on a hot pan, except for him, who wasn't very flustered.

Now he's still relatively calm, just like when he was a kid when a dump truck came towards him. Even though he knew it was dangerous, he wouldn't panic, but would instead think about what to do first.

Perhaps it's his personality, or perhaps he remembered what his parents often told him when he was little.

Never lose your calm.

He made one last check of his inventory, confirmed the placement of items was most convenient, ensured all equipment was neatly donned, and then lay back with peace of mind.

"Everyone, don't worry. Wait for my victorious return."

He gave a thumbs-up.

Then he tilted his head back and closed his eyes.

...

[Gained negative status — Burning: You will continuously take Fire Attribute damage.]

As soon as Li Rui opened his eyes, he saw this message.

The Secret Realm system doesn't have a health bar mechanism. All damage is recalculated based on the data and ultimately reflects as tangible injuries.

This Burning buff is the same; after calculating Fire Element resistance and Fire Attribute reduction, it specifically manifests as minor burns on Li Rui's body.

This kind of injury continues to generate, and because it's elemental damage, ordinary Golden Wound Medicine has little effect. At least you need to pair it with excellent or even rare quality Fire Resistance Potions to heal some injuries.

"No wonder."

Just with this debuff, it wasn't surprising the last group that came in was wiped out.

It's too difficult to deal with. If this Secret Realm can't be completed quickly, even Li Rui's potion stock might not hold, let alone others.

The only consolation for himself is that the damage caused by Burning is relatively low. At least it won't be life-threatening immediately in the short term, and it will take a while before more severe injuries occur.

However, this negative status surely isn't the whole reason for trapping their souls. Even if they were burned alive, they wouldn't all fail to awaken; something else must have happened at that time.

Li Rui surveyed his surroundings.

The ground was covered with a kind of flowing flame, somewhat like lava but not exactly the same. It's both flowing and burning, likely causing fire damage upon contact.

In the distance, under the pitch-black sky were equally dark ridges, obscured partly due to the flames and thick smoke, making it hard to see clearly.

He did not attempt to search for companions because, before entering, it was confirmed that this time, he was the only one entering this so-called Peach Blossom Goddess Tomb.

This was the conclusion given after investigations on the Superpower Division level, leaving no room for doubt.

Li Rui remained calm; even though the hot air was causing damage, the challenges he faces certainly are fewer.

With 33% innate All Elemental Resistance paired with the ring providing an additional 10% Fire Resistance, a lot of damage has already been blocked.

Not to mention he's tough-skinned; by the time others are well-done, he's probably just about medium rare.

He wandered aimlessly holding an umbrella, because the issue now was that after entering, the main quest had not updated, leaving him clueless about what to do. He could only rove around the burning ridges in search of a path.

During this time, he tried to use Mist Control only to find that this skill was directly sealed; it wouldn't work at all.

"No wonder, Healing Mist or Healing Rain would definitely be useless; even with an advanced Rain Summoner in the party, they couldn't heal anyone."

Li Rui hadn't found the way yet but discovered more possible reasons for Duan Ling and Yu Xin's team's downfall.

He walked ahead while investigating the terrain and finally, when advancing into the depths of the Land of Flames, discovered a burning cliff.

Flames crawled densely like insects over the cliff face.

This place is called Beheading Cliff, where a small boss used to be when the Secret Realm was still called Immortal Tomb.

But now, the boss was gone, replaced by a sea of fire.

Of course, Li Rui didn't leave empty-handed; at least finding this iconic terrain confirmed his position, assuring him that he indeed entered the original range of the Immortal Tomb Secret Realm.

"Okay, okay, confirming it's the Immortal Tomb is good."

He was somewhat pleased; though the burns on him were increasing, he wasn't discouraged.

Just as Li Rui was about to leave, he suddenly saw the air a few meters ahead seemed to be fluctuating.

"What's this?"

He walked up, poked at the wave of air with his Vajra Umbrella, and suddenly jumped back a few steps as the oscillating space seemed to dissolve suddenly.

If he hadn't sensed no killing intent from it, he might have directly unleashed Thunder Shocking Earth.

At this moment, several blue shadows sprouted like bamboo shoots breaking through the earth, finally forming several familiar figures.

"What the hell?"

Li Rui saw Duan Ling, Yu Xin, and a few others he'd seen when a meeting was held back then.

However, they were merely faint shadows, clearly not real, yet their voices were clearly audible.

"Duan Ling, this is Beheading Cliff; we've got our bearings straight. Those hills ahead should be Armor removal Ridge, and crossing them gets us to the Immortal Tomb."

Yu Xin's voice was as robust as ever.

"Great news."

A female voice said, "Let's speed up; staying here too long is unbearable with that negative status."

Someone nearby threw cold water: "Don't celebrate too early; we've yet to receive the main quest, and there's no guarantee we'll even get out after crossing."

"Let's go, climb the mountain first, and worry about the rest later."

Evidently, Duan Ling led the group as the team's backbone, and then all the shadows vanished a few steps away, silence returning to the surroundings.

Li Rui frowned tightly.

"Why?"

He couldn't figure it out.

Every Secret Realm entry is independent, yet he could see the shadows of Duan Ling and the others.

"Is it an illusion, or did it really happen to them in the Secret Realm?"

"Can only I see it, or can anyone entering see it?"

"Never mind, pondering outside doesn't help, better to go deeper and check."

Unable to find the answer, Li Rui didn't have time to ponder further as uninvited guests emerged from the surrounding flames and triggers popped up.

[Triggered Random Event: Attack of the Little Flame Spirit.]

[Target: Eliminate the enemy.]

[Reward: Experience +42000, Random Consumable x5, Random Enhancement Material x7, Temperature-Reduction Potion x1.]