"Alright, I'll go to Hei He now, but you have to cure them of their poison. Don't worry, they are no match for you, and you don't have to worry about what will happen to them."
Ning Beichen made his final request to the black dragon, and the black dragon readily agreed. However, even though Luo Yingying and the others were cured of their poison, the black mist was not dispersed, likely out of fear that they would escape.
Ning Beichen, without playing any tricks, mounted his sword and charged towards the Hei He at the bottom of the abyss.
"The formation is ahead, but you'll need to find a way to break it."
The black dragon said to Ning Beichen.
Ning Beichen's face darkened as he said, "So, you don't have to do anything, and you get what you want."
The black dragon ignored his complaints. It could not go any further, so Ning Beichen had to proceed alone.
Soon, Ning Beichen arrived at a vortex at the bottom of the Hei He. Entering the vortex was equivalent to entering the formation.
From the outside of the vortex, eight chains could be seen extending from within, leading to a deeper place, which was likely where the black dragon was bound.
Ning Beichen did not enter the vortex immediately but observed from the outside, then used his special eyes again.
Originally, Ning Beichen thought his eyes wouldn't work here, as they hadn't been effective when looking at the black mist before. But unexpectedly, they worked here.
A mysterious star map appeared before Ning Beichen's eyes, with every detail perfectly clear.
This filled Ning Beichen with excitement. Before, he only wanted to fulfill the black dragon's condition, as they were indeed no match for it, and any show of toughness would be useless and only lead to humiliation.
But now, things were different. This formation was what bound the black dragon. If he could control this formation, the roles between him and the black dragon would be reversed.
With this thought, Ning Beichen immediately began to study the formation.
This ancient formation had existed for an unknown amount of time and was extremely complex. If Ning Beichen hadn't had his special eyes, even a formation master, let alone a grandmaster, might not have been able to break it.
Even if it could be broken, it would likely take a very long time, perhaps even half a year or more.
This was not Ning Beichen's mere speculation; he had seen the complexity of this ancient formation with his own eyes.
This made Ning Beichen yearn for the grand spectacle of that ancient era when cultivation flourished!
It was a pity that era was destined to never return.
He wondered if it was the development of the times that led to their disappearance, or if their defiance of heaven was ultimately corrected by the laws of the world.
Or perhaps they had already departed, heading towards a higher dimension.
Ning Beichen collected his thoughts and began to seriously study the formation. This time, he wasn't trying to break it, but to seize control of it.
Time ticked by, and Ning Beichen's forehead was covered in sweat. His body even emitted a large amount of heat, preventing the Hei He water from getting close to him.
"Done!"
After an unknown amount of time, Ning Beichen clenched his fist and shouted inwardly, unable to contain his excitement.
This ancient formation was too complex. Even though Ning Beichen could see the star map of the formation, it had consumed almost all his mental energy before he could gain control of it.
Ancient formations like this had long been masterless, merely executing the settings of their creators until their power was depleted or they were broken.
If a formation had a master, it would not be so easy to break it or seize control.
Ning Beichen had already controlled the ancient formation, but he pretended as if nothing had happened to deceive the black dragon.
He believed the black dragon was secretly watching him, so at this moment, he couldn't reveal any clues.
Following Ning Beichen, he entered the vortex, officially entering the formation.
Once inside, as long as the formation wasn't closed, even the black dragon wouldn't be able to see what he was doing.
With a splash.
A shimmering bead appeared in Ning Beichen's hand. After he made some adjustments to the bead, he put it back.
He did this to eighteen beads in total. Starting from this one, this ancient formation truly belonged to Ning Beichen.
After completing all this, Ning Beichen looked at the eight chains in the center of the formation.
These eight chains were bound to eight stone tablets, each inscribed with mysterious runes. These stone tablets were the core of the formation, utilizing the heavenly and earthly power of the Hei He to trap the black dragon.
No matter how powerful the black dragon was, it couldn't break free from these eight chains. He wondered why people in the past had chosen to imprison the black dragon.
Or perhaps this black dragon had committed some heinous deed that led to its imprisonment.
But one thing Ning Beichen was sure of was that this black dragon must have existed for a very long time, even from an era beyond Ning Beichen's imagination.
This dragon was an ancient relic. If he could subdue it, Ning Beichen was sure he could learn many ancient secrets from it.
However, even bound by the chains, this black dragon was still very powerful, and Ning Beichen was not confident that he could subdue it.
But human effort could achieve anything. Even if he couldn't subdue it, Ning Beichen had a way to ensure it wouldn't dare to harm them.
Still, the eight chains had to be undone for the black dragon. If they weren't, the black dragon would definitely refuse. However, Ning Beichen already had a plan for how to undo them and how to control the black dragon afterward.
Ning Beichen took out a wooden carving knife and crouched before the eight stone tablets, modifying them.
Although the carving knife was made of wood, its sharpness was clearly superior to that of real iron or steel, allowing it to modify the mysterious runes on the stone tablets.
After about several hours, Ning Beichen finally modified all the mysterious runes on the eight stone tablets. Seeing this, he wearily put away the carving knife, a satisfied smile on his face.
Then, Ning Beichen easily untied the chains from the eight stone tablets. By this point, his mission was complete, and even exceeded expectations.
"Done. This should be enough to fool that wicked dragon this time."
Ning Beichen stretched his arms, looking at his work with satisfaction.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, he suddenly saw something. He immediately turned back and looked at the area between the eight stone tablets.
Because in the center of the eight stone tablets, Ning Beichen had discovered a golden object.