The genius who counterattacked the mainland

Xu Tiancai and his companions trudged forward through the thick mist, which seemed to possess a life of its own, swirling and entwining around them. Every step felt like entering an unknown realm. The road beneath their feet was bumpy and uneven, with occasional tumbling rocks and clattering sounds, remarkably clear in this silent world of mist.

The Ice Princess waved her wand, releasing a trace of icy power, attempting to dispel the thick fog before her, but found that the mist quickly absorbed the icy power, returning the fog to normal. "This mist is a little strange, everyone be careful," the Ice Princess warned softly.

The mysterious figure nodded slightly, his figure beneath the black robe pensive. Dark power surged in his palm, testing the surrounding energy fluctuations. "The power here seems different from anything we've encountered before. It's neither pure darkness nor the more common attributes of light."

Lin closed her eyes and tried to use her elemental sense to understand the mist. She found that the wind element flowed chaotically through the mist, as if something had disrupted its normal trajectory. The water element took on a viscous state, a stark contrast to normal vapor. The fire and earth elements were suppressed to the extreme, almost imperceptible. "The elements here are terribly unbalanced, as if a powerful force is controlling everything," Lin said, frowning.

Agang gripped his battle axe tightly, watching his surroundings vigilantly. His strong body was as solid as a small mountain in the mist. "Whatever strange thing dares to block our way, we will chop it up!" His voice echoed in the mist, carrying an indomitable momentum.

The artifact in Xu Tiancai's hand flickered, illuminating a small area for the group. As they advanced deeper, they could vaguely see the outlines of ancient buildings ahead. The outlines of these ruins loomed in the mist, exuding a mysterious aura, as if beckoning them.

As they approached, they discovered that the ruins were constructed from massive stone blocks, each covered in intricate runes. Some resembled ancient creatures, while others resembled mysterious constellation patterns. Interwoven together, they imbued the site with an indescribable power. Xu Tiancai reached out and touched a stone, instantly feeling a surge of powerful energy course through his arm and throughout his body, causing his heart to race. "These runes seem to hold a secret, perhaps related to enhancing our strength."

Lin carefully observed the rune, attempting to decipher it with elemental power. When her wind elemental power gently touched the rune, it glowed faintly, and the surrounding mist began to undergo strange changes. The wind element seemed to have triggered some mechanism, and phantom wind blades appeared from the mist, striking towards the group.

"Be careful!" Xu Tiancai shouted, waving his magical weapon. A multicolored light curtain rose, blocking most of the wind blades. However, some still managed to break through the defense. A Gang swung his battle axe, shattering the wind blades that approached him, sending sparks flying. The Ice Princess cast an ice shield, and the wind blades slashed against it, leaving white streaks. The mysterious figure used the power of darkness to draw the wind blades to himself, then neutralized their power in a unique way.

After the wind blades passed, the runes glowed brighter. From the depths of the ruins, a low rumbling sound emanated, as if an ancient beast had awakened. The ground began to shake violently, and huge rocks rolled out of the ruins, crashing down upon the crowd. Each of these rocks was the size of a house, carrying a powerful impact.

A-Gang charged ahead, his axe ablaze. He leaped high and struck a boulder with his axe. The axe collided with a deafening roar, splitting the boulder in two. However, the powerful recoil sent A-Gang sliding back several meters. Lin quickly cast earth elemental magic, building a solid earth wall in front of the group. The boulder collided with the wall, cracking it slightly, but barely holding it back.

Xu Tiancai looked towards the artifact, attempting to communicate with it, seeking a response. The artifact seemed to sense his thoughts, radiating a brilliant light. A mysterious force surged from it, pouring into the surrounding environment. That force resonated with the runes of the ruins, causing them to flash at a more regular frequency. The surrounding mist began to swirl, forming a massive vortex.

Everyone was sucked into the vortex, feeling their bodies spinning uncontrollably. Dizzily, they found themselves being carried deeper into the ruins. There stood a massive stone gate, engraved with two enormous runes, emanating powerful energy waves. Small statues surrounded the gate, each in a different form: mythical beasts spreading their wings, ready to take flight, warriors wielding weapons, and dancing fairies. Their eyes seemed to gaze upon the group.

The Ice Princess walked towards the stone door, attempting to touch the runes on it, but was repelled by an invisible force. "This stone door has a powerful restriction. We cannot act rashly," she said.

The mysterious figure walked around the stone gate, carefully observing the surrounding statues. He noticed that each statue had subtle differences in posture and expression, seemingly conveying some kind of message. "These statues may be the key to unlocking the stone gate. We need to find the connection between them."

Ah Gang looked at the stone gate and the statue impatiently. "How am I supposed to find it? These things are giving me a headache."

Lin crouched down and carefully examined the small runes at the base of the stone door. She noticed they bore some resemblance to the larger runes on the door itself, like a simplified version. "Perhaps we can start with these small runes and see if we can find any clues related to the statue."

Xu Tiancai walked over to a statue of a warrior wielding a longsword and noticed a rune at its feet, similar to the one at the base of the stone gate. He touched the rune with his artifact, and it shone. The warrior statue trembled slightly, and the sword in his hand seemed to flash with a cold light. "I think I've found some clues. Let's see if there are similar runes on other statues."

Everyone took action and began to search for runes around the statues. After some effort, they found that each statue had a unique rune, and these runes had a mysterious arrangement with the runes at the bottom of the stone gate.

After they activated the runes on all the statues according to the rules, the stone gate emitted a dazzling light and slowly opened. A powerful energy surged from the stone gate. This energy was pure and vast, making everyone feel as if they were in an ocean of energy.

Entering the stone gate, a vast hall emerged. The ceiling was inlaid with countless dazzling gems, which emitted a soft glow, illuminating the entire space. In the center of the hall stood a large circular platform, upon which rested several crystal pillars emitting varying radiances. Each crystal pillar was over a meter tall, and seemed to contain some mysterious object.

Around the crystal pillar, a circle of flowing energy bands, each of varying colors, interwoven into a complex energy array. From time to time, strange lights flickered within the energy array, as if demonstrating the powerful force within.

Xu Tiancai and the others cautiously approached the platform. As they approached the energy zone, they felt a powerful attraction, as if it was sucking their strength away. "This energy array is very dangerous. We can't touch it lightly," Xu Tiancai warned.

Lin carefully observed the energy array and discovered that its operation was connected to the surrounding crystal pillars and the gemstones atop the temple. "This energy array is a whole, constantly circulating and transforming energy. If we can find a way to control it, perhaps we can draw power from it."

The mysterious figure looked at the crystal pillars and sensed a power within them that was similar to, yet distinct from, the power of darkness. "The things sealed within these crystal pillars are not simple. They may be the key to unlocking the secrets here."

Ah Gang looked at the energy array, frowning and saying, "This thing is so complicated, how can we find a way to control it? Do we have to break all these crystal pillars?"

The Ice Princess shook her head and said, "No, breaking the crystal pillar may cause energy backlash. We need a more cautious approach."

Just as everyone was contemplating countermeasures, a melodious sound suddenly rang out from the hall. It seemed to come from ancient times, carrying a mysterious rhythm that resonated throughout the space. As the music continued, the energy array's light grew brighter, and the energy flow accelerated.

Everyone looked around warily, but could see no one or anything playing music. The music grew stronger, and the energy circle began to shift. Illusory images emerged from it. These images included scenes of battle, mysterious rituals, and the movements of ancient creatures, flickering and shifting above the energy circle.

Xu Tiancai stared at the images, trying to find some clue. He noticed that in one of the battle scenes, a figure seemed to be using a unique hand gesture to control a similar energy array. "Look there, that hand gesture might be the key," he said, pointing at the image.

Everyone looked at the image, trying to memorize the gesture. Lin tried to imitate it. As her hand made the corresponding movement, the surrounding wind elements began to swirl around her, creating a faint resonance with the energy array. "I feel it. This gesture can guide the elements to connect with the energy array."

Agang also tried to make the same gesture. The flame on his battle axe became more vigorous and reacted with the energy band in the energy array. The flame spread along the energy band for a short distance. "Haha, there's a way!" he shouted excitedly.

The mysterious figure and the Ice Princess also joined in the experiment, discovering that this hand gesture not only connected them to the energy circle but also triggered different effects based on the attributes of their own power. Guided by the hand gesture, the mysterious figure's dark power resonated with the dark aspects of the energy circle, allowing him to reveal dark runes hidden deep within. The Ice Princess's icy power lowered the temperature around the energy circle, causing ice crystals to condense on the energy band.

Xu Tiancai concentrated his mind, channeling his power with the artifact and communicating with the energy array through hand gestures. The artifact's light blended with the energy array's, and he saw some information about this ruin. It turned out to be a training ground created by an ancient master. These crystal pillars contained various rare treasures and powerful powers collected by the master, and this energy array was a mechanism used to test and enhance the strength of those who entered.

As they mastered the hand gestures, the energy array's reaction grew stronger. The energy bands gradually parted, revealing a passage leading to the crystal pillar. Simultaneously, the energy array released several guardians. These guardians, humanoid creatures condensed from energy, wielded various energy weapons and charged towards the group.

Agang wielded his battle axe, charging headfirst into a Guardian. The axe collided with the Guardian's energy weapon, sending up a shower of brilliant energy sparks. Agang discovered the immense power of these Guardians, each strike packing a powerful punch. He swung his battle axe with all his might, engaging the Guardian in a fierce battle.

Lin cast elemental magic, summoning various elemental forces to fight the Guardians. Wind blades, fire balls, water arrows, and earth boulders all attacked the Guardians. But the Guardians nimbly dodged the elemental attacks and swiftly counterattacked. Some of the water arrows were shattered by the Guardians' energy weapons and rebounded towards Lin. Lin quickly cast shield magic to block the rebounding attacks.

The mysterious figure and the Ice Princess each unleashed their own abilities to battle the Guardians. The mysterious figure's dark power transformed into black tentacles, entwining the Guardians and attempting to restrict their movements. The Ice Princess's ice magic transformed the surrounding area into an icy battlefield, slowing the Guardians' movements on the ice. However, they continued their tenacious attack.

Xu Tiancai dodged the Guardian's attacks while approaching the crystal pillar. He knew that only by gaining the power within would they have a greater chance of victory. As he approached the crystal pillar, he continuously used his artifact to resist the Guardian's attacks, the light from the artifact growing brighter as the battle progressed.