第一百四十六章 化风
The phantom vanished and reappeared diagonally above the tunnel, where the stone steps were now riddled with cracks under this sword strike, yet still climbable.
幻影消失又出现在通道斜上方，那里的石阶在这一剑下也充满了裂缝，但还能让人攀登。
The tunnel rustled noisily as the vines rapidly withdrew from the deep cracks into the earth; on the wall, faint magical crystal light revealed a deep pit beneath.
隧道簌簌作响，藤蔓快速从深处的裂缝缩进地下，在墙壁上些微魔晶光芒照耀下可以看到那里有个深深的大坑。
In the air, a gentle breeze stirred. Invisibility and the train quietly followed behind.
空气中，微风浮动，无影和列车悄悄跟在后面。
The phantom figure waiting for Li Zhinan to ascend suddenly fixed its gaze upon his back, where a discordant ripple of air emerged, swirling around to reveal a human silhouette.
等待李智南上行的幻影人忽地将目光注视向他身后，不和谐的空气波动在他身旁浮现、环绕，浮现个人影。
Wuying and Yang Zicang, still within the train, could finally get a close-up view of this formidable phantom who had appeared. A faint glimmer flickered in Yang Zicang’s eyes — this person…
无影以及列车中的杨子藏两人终于能够近距离的看清这道出现的强者幻影，杨子藏的目中微光一闪，这个人…
He hovered above the ground, suspended in midair. Within his knee-high boots, though it seemed as if countless faint stars were flowing and rotating, the style largely retained a transformed form of leather leggings. He wore a fitted nobleman’s vest, with a velvet-like silken shirt that undulated subtly like gentle waves, fluctuating between a misty, ethereal state and solid form, accentuating the contours of his battle-hardened muscles—yet the underlying design still bore the unmistakable trace of combat.
他离地悬浮，腿上长靴内虽看上去似有千百星辰隐约流转，但样式大致上却还保留着牛皮绑腿的变形制式。身上穿着修身的贵族马甲，丝绒般的稠衫如微浮波浪般隐现变动，在雾化与实体间起伏，称托着男人千锤百炼的肌肉轮廓，但这款式的根本依旧留着战斗气息的痕迹。
Yang Zicang murmured, “Perhaps this person… is the one we’re looking for.”
杨子藏喃喃道：“或许这个人…就是我们想要找的那位。”
“What? Him!” The moment Luo Bin turned to look at the murmuring Yang Zicang, the phantom-like figure ahead revealed a sardonic smile.
“什么？他！”洛宾转头看向嘀咕着的杨子藏的瞬间，前方幻影人般露出讽刺般的笑容。
In Hub Town, everyone watched this scene through the young journalist. Zhu Yin, who had already gone to bed, now appeared in her pajamas before these rows of protruding screens, frowning at the image of Li Zhinan wearing Wang Chaoguang’s face.
枢纽镇中，众人通过小记者看着这里，本已睡下的逐银已经穿着睡衣出现在这几排突屏荧幕前，皱眉看着画面中顶着王朝光面孔的李智南。
“In other words, a psychic treasure with offensive capabilities has emerged there, hasn’t it.”
“意思是，那里诞生了个拥有攻击能力的精神系宝物对吧。”
“Deputy Town Head, keep your voice down. Don’t let anyone outside hear.”
“副镇小声点，别让外头的听见。”
The people inside the room were filled with anticipation and tension.
房间内的几人也都充满期待与紧张。
“If we can get this treasure later, half the town can become our turf instantly. We can’t afford to lose that item.”
“要是后面我们能得到这宝物，小半个城市瞬间就能成为我们的地盘，这物件可不能丢啊。”
A treasure of such value is priceless once obtained. If he acquired it, Zhu Yin could not only recover his investment in Hub Town this year but also the funds he’d put in over the past two years, all in one big rebound. This kind of strategic treasure: whoever possesses it becomes a city overlord.
这样的宝物价值不菲，只要获得，逐银不光今年在枢纽镇职位上的投资，乃至前两年的投资都能瞬间回一大口血，这种战略级的宝物，谁拥有谁就是个城市霸主。
There won’t be fewer teams interested in it; there will only be more. Zhu Yin was restless with anxiety. He desperately wanted to contact his own people in the Communication-Lost Zones to relay this news.
对它感兴趣的队伍只会多不会少，逐银心中焦急难耐，他很想联系失频之地上的自己人告知这个消息。
“But if he really did that, everyone here would face at most a penalty fine—or, at worst, immediate expulsion.”
但如果真那样做，这里的所有人轻则被扣除罚金，重则立即被驱逐。
“It would be a great pity if they fail,” an employee remarked.
“他们要是失败，就甚为可惜了。”雇员道。
“No worries. We can go through the Deputy Town Head’s friends at that time and get it anyway.”
“无妨，到时候找副镇的朋友肯定也能够获得。”
“That’s not certain. Those experts all know its worth the most. A spiritual artifact covering several mountains is an absolute game-changer. If they take it, getting it back from them will be tough.”
“那可不一定，那些高手都明白它的价值，覆盖好几个山头的精神系宝物，简直是镇场子的神器。让他们获得，交出来就难了。”
Suddenly, an unexpected change erupted in the scene! Several afterimage clones materialized, blocking the entrance of the cave.
此时，画面中异变陡生！数道幻影分身浮现，堵住洞穴前方。
{Just because he can go up doesn’t mean you gutter rats can too! Get the hell out!}
{他能上去，不代表你们这些阴沟里的老鼠也可以！滚出来！}
The afterimage waved its hand, and a golden radiance flooded the area. Li Zhinan sensed that something was wrong and, with one forceful step, charged toward the stairs.
幻影挥手间，金色辉光弥漫。李智南预感不妙，猛踏一步冲向阶梯。
{Descent of Reality, Disperse!}
{真实降临，散！}
The stone stairs melted away with a bang, transforming into violent energy!
石阶轰然消融，化为狂暴能量！
This ancient staircase was actually formed by telekinetic power! Yang Zicang suddenly felt a sharp pain in his mind, and the train materialized and fell into a deep pit.
这古老阶梯竟是念力所化！杨子藏顿感精神剧痛，列车显形坠落深坑。
“Can you hold on?” Luo Bin shouted in the tumbling carriage.
“撑得住吗？”洛宾在翻滚的车厢内大喊。
[Silent Night!]
[沉吟之夜！]
A mental forcewave radiated from Yang Zicang’s body.
杨子藏身上扩散出精神气浪。
The real terrain around quickly communicated with the mind.
周围真实的地形迅速与心灵沟通。
In the pit, a golden sword, as if alive, protruding from emerald wave-like vines, turned left and right, its blade staring at the swirling distorted illusion.
坑洞，从如碧波般的藤蔓中，伸出的金色长剑如有生物左右转了转，剑刃盯向弥漫而来的扭曲幻象。
The vine let out a cold snort:
藤蔓冷哼一声：
“You thing has actually achieved such mastery over the Throne of Magic Square that you can even alter the true descent mark left by the ancient seraph.”
{你这东西，居然对【幻方之座】的掌控已经到达如此地步，都能改变古老天使留下的真实降临印记了。}
Meanwhile, Li Zhinan was hanging half his body on the suddenly collapsed half of the passage, tense and pained, as if clinging to a steep cliff.
而此刻的李智南，正紧张又痛苦的一半悬着身子挂在突然崩碎了大半的通道上，如同挂在悬崖峭壁。
He twisted his head and glanced at the subway that had suddenly appeared beside him and the shabby human figure that fell from it, and was struck with utter horror.
他扭头看了眼身边突然冒出来的那辆地铁以及一道摔落的人形，心中大骇。
Li Zhinan had no idea that such a monster had been following him!
李智南根本不晓得自己身边竟然还跟着这样的怪物！
The phantom floated toward the heights, sneering at the diagonal reddish-yellow train as it bombed down.
幻影人浮向高空，冲着坠落的赤黄色列车讽喝道：
“Haha. With such weak strength, you dare to scheme for my treasure. Do you really think I didn’t know you were there? Go to hell! And you, old tree spirit—you still haven’t recognized who he is?”
{哈哈，这点实力也敢来谋算我的宝物。你以为我不知道你们的存在吗，去死吧！还有你老树精，你还不知道他是谁吗？}
The vine stirred slightly, and the prior scene of the wooden core stem stock avatar being slain immediately overlapped with this—it quickly identified the familiar aura contained within.
藤蔓微动，之前木核茎块分身被人击杀的画面立即与之重叠，它立即认出了其中蕴含的那道熟悉气息。
{It’s you!}
{是你！}
As enemies meet, their eyes blaze with hatred. The golden sword surged upward, driving countless wildly growing vines to fill the entire space of the cavern.
仇人见面分外眼红。金色长剑带动无数疯狂生长的藤蔓冲向上方，将这洞内空间都要填满。
“Damn it, I’ve been recognized!”
“不好，被认出来了！”
Tumbling inside the train car, Yang Zicang roared, “Little Ma Chao, can you still handle it!”
车厢内一阵翻滚的杨子藏暴声喊道：“小马超，你还能行吗！”
Under the intensifying pressure here, the groaning train emitted a series of deep rumbles.
痛苦的列车面对这里不断加强的压力，发出阵阵沉鸣。
The twisting vines on the pit’s walls and cliffs surged in like thousands of swords returning to their master, rapidly closing in and taking the form of weaving a cage.
坑道、崖壁上扭动的藤蔓如万剑归宗般涌来，极速靠近，呈现编织囚笼的趋势。
{Ah! Invest in me!}
{啊！给我投资！}
With a sudden roar from Little Ma Chao, a golden-red phantom form flared up on his body, and with a bang, an abrupt burst of wind erupted.
小马超一声爆喝的同时，身上猛地亮起金红虚影，轰！劲风突兀暴起。
The moment the vines converged, it transformed into a raging gust of wind and shot forward with a whoosh.
藤蔓聚拢的瞬间，它化为一股狂风嗖地冲向前方。
The golden sword pointed obliquely.
金剑斜指。
Thump!
嘭咚！
The huge sword unleashed a wild strike toward the direction of the train. Yang Zicang heard the train’s scream for the first time. He quickly tossed out a crudely cast iron coin, shaped like “a round heaven and square earth,” from his pocket.
巨剑对着列车所在方向发出狂放的一击。杨子藏第一次听到了列车的惨叫，他快速从衣兜内丢出枚铸造得丑陋的“天圆地方”的铁币。
“Eat it!”
“吃掉它！”
The order-laden time attached to it instantly dissolved into the train’s body.
上面附带的时序霎时消融进列车体内。
This had been made from Molla’s Ability Sphere for Yang Zicang, used to store the time they had earned in recent days.
这是莫里为杨子藏提供的能力球所做，用来存储着这些天赚来的时序。
{It can hit me; I’m injured.}
{它能击中我，我受伤了。}
Even after transforming into wind, the time attached to this attack wasn’t fully manifested on the train’s psychic body. Yet the sword aura from the golden blade still caused the train to instantly lose between six to seven thousand moments of time.
哪怕化为了风，这一击所附带的时序并未完全呈现在念力体的列车身上，但金剑散发的剑气依旧让列车瞬息间抵消了六七千时序。
This plant actually had an energy similar to Zhao Anlong’s constant cycle of creation and destruction.
这植物竟然也有类似赵安龙那种不断生灭的能量。
“This sword energy must be Star Yuan!”
“这剑气恐怕就是星元！”
Could Star Yuan alone inflict thousands of sequence’s worth of damage on a psychokinetic entity?
仅仅星元就能对念力体造成数千时序的效果？
“It’s imbued with Void Zero sequence residues.”
“附着有虚零时序。”
Fortunately, that red glow missed its mark; otherwise, young Ma Chao would likely have had its spiritual consciousness shattered and become a Mold Tool.
还好那红色辉光未射中，恐怕小马超会直接被打散灵识，成为模器。
Wuying fell to the edge of the pit. He cast a panicked glance at the vine, now wildly crashing forward in pursuit of Yang Zicang, the roar in his ears like exploding thunder. Suppressing his discomfort, he quickly re-activated his model ability, taking on a human silhouette as he fled frantically out of the cavern.
无影摔落在地坑边缘。他惊慌的看了眼带起狂暴之势追逐杨子藏的藤蔓，耳边尽是暴雷般的轰鸣。他赶紧忍住不适再次发动模型能力，带起人形轮廓仓皇逃出山洞。
“Damn, I just got caught in the crossfire.”
“草，真是被波及了。”
The man who ran out turned back to look at the commotion inside the cave. Fortunately, the vine was focused on chasing Yang Zicang and had no time to bother with him; otherwise, he’d be ashes in a second.
跑出的男人转身看了眼洞内的动静，还好那藤蔓在追着杨子藏，无暇顾及自己，否则只需要一秒自己就会变成灰飞。
“That thing is terrifying. Yang Zicang, you better not die.”
“那东西好可怕。杨子藏，你可千万别死了。”
Yuan Xuelin and his group stared dumbfounded. Although the bugs had died off in an instant, the aura of that concentrated burst had radiated for dozens of li, and the ground was still shaking, as if thunder were roaring inside the mountain.
盯着这里的袁学林几人都傻眼了，虽然虫子们第一时间就死绝，但那股爆发出的气息可是瞬间扩散了十数里地，而且此刻还在不断震动，仿佛山内有雷鸣呼啸。
In Hub Town’s observatory, several employees, their faces slightly pale, looked up at the man in sleepwear standing near them.
枢纽镇的这间观测室中，几名雇员脸色略显苍白的抬头看向身边穿着睡衣的男人。
“Deputy Magistrate, what—what happened to make so many people suddenly,” they asked.
“副镇，怎、怎么突然那么多人。”
“It’s nothing, just a handful. Three or four people,” Zhuyin said, wiping his brow.
“还好吧，区区，三四个人而已。”逐银抹了把汗。
He had just been lamenting that there was no way to inform Yang Zicang, watching as the treasure was about to fall into someone else’s hands—who would have thought this kid had been lurking right beside him all along.
刚刚自己还在感叹没办法通知杨子藏，眼看着这宝物就可能落在别人手上，谁知道这小子一直就暗搓搓蹲在这人的身边。
“Damn, you better not trip up here.” Zhu Yin watched the gale rumbling and surging within the cave.
“好家伙，你可别在这里栽跟头。”逐银看着那股在洞内不断震动晃荡的疾风道。
……
……
Inside the tunnel, the great sword plunged into the rock wall as the train vanished and fled once more. Luo Bin, his face bruised and swollen, asked: “Still holding up?”
坑道内，巨剑斩入岩壁，列车再次消散遁走。洛宾鼻青脸肿地问：“还撑得住？”
Yang Zicang tossed out another glowing coin: “Can brace for a few more hits yet.”
杨子藏又抛出一枚荧光钱币：“还能抵消几次。”
The Phantom appeared at the edge of the massive pit, staring down intently.
幻影人出现在大洞边缘，紧盯着下方。
The ivy, chasing the whirlwind, suddenly halted. A face carved from wood spoke upward to the Phantom:
追逐着狂风打转的藤蔓猛地一顿，那张木头化现的人脸冲着上方的幻影道：
{This time, you brought it on yourself!}
{这次是你自找的！}
A golden sword struck forcefully.
金色长剑一击刺去。
{You’re insane.}
{你疯了。}
With those words, the Phantom was blasted apart.
这声音中，幻影轰然被炸毁。
But in the next second, it twisted and reformed in the sky, its hue even paler than before.
但下一秒它又在天际重新扭曲着浮现，身上色泽又淡了许多。
{Useless fool, I flushed out your enemy for you, and you couldn’t even kill him. Now you take it out on me.}
{废物，我给你把仇人逼现身，你都杀不死，还迁怒于我。}
Boom! Another sword swung down.
轰！又是一剑砍来。
Li Zhinan, who had just climbed up the broken cliff path, was swept forward by the howling wind, the road behind him collapsing again. Staggering in shock, his time having shed centuries, he dared not stay a single second longer.
刚刚爬上悬崖断道的李智南顿时被狂风掀翻向前，身后的路也再次垮塌。时序被抵消了几百年的他惊颤地前冲，哪里敢在这里多作哪怕一秒的停留。
The bandaged figure sat silently beneath a lush tree, watching all of this, gently twirling a dark scalpel in his hand.
看着这一切的绷带沉默地坐在株枝繁叶茂的大树下，手上轻轻转着暗沉手术刀。
“A gap of sixty years?” he murmured to himself.
“甲子间？”他喃喃低语。
……
……
Yang Zicang controlled the train to weave over to Li Zhinan’s side; just a few seconds of pursuit by the vine monster had already cost him over thirty-six thousand years of temporal principal.
杨子藏控制列车穿行到了李智南身边，刚才仅仅被藤蔓怪物数秒的追逐，就丢失了三万多年的时序本金。
“Alas, earning time is like moving mountains, while spending time is as fleeting as flowing water.”
“唉，挣时如搬山花时似流水。”
Watching Yang Zicang’s wretched expression, Luo Bin understood that the past few blows had consumed a considerable amount of the boy’s hard-earned sequence from these several days.
洛宾看着杨子藏憋屈的面容，晓得刚才那几下耗了这小子不少这几天赚到的时序。
Luo Bin, covered in lumps, comforted him, “It’s nothing, just think of it as staying up late to preserve your health.”
满头是包的洛滨安慰道：“没事的，你就当熬夜养生好了。”
“Let’s follow in first—this might be our only chance.”
“我们先跟进去，这次恐怕是唯一的机会。”
They couldn’t afford to wait for Li Zhinan to enter the mountain again; otherwise, it seemed unlikely that he could maintain any connection with that treasure.
不能等待李智南的再次进山，否者自己恐怕再难以与那宝物有任何关系。
Luo Bin nodded in agreement as well. “That phantom was strong. But probably not as strong as its ultimate form would be. Back then, that so-called pentagon blazing from its eyes was indeed just a bluff to scare you.”
洛宾也点头赞同，“那道幻影很强。不过，应该没有我们想像的最强状态那样强，当时那眼睛里冒出的所谓五边形，果然就只是吓唬你的。”
“Yeah. If someone genuinely believes he operates on a pentagonal model and fears him deep down, it will subtly weaken their own strength.”
“嗯。如果有人真的相信他是五边形模型，而心中惧怕，无形间就会削弱自身的实力。”