"Phew..."
A gentle breeze stirred the hem of his clothes.
Lin Li turned around, his gaze sweeping over the site of the explosion. The stone statues had been too close to the blast's center and had been utterly reduced to fragments. Their energy cores had all shattered, leaving them with no possibility of revival.
The stone people in the distance had suffered heavy casualties as well. Those few lucky enough to survive were all missing pieces.
Some had lost an arm, others a leg. Their energy cores had sustained severe damage, and they lay on the ground trembling faintly, their auras weak and no longer capable of posing a threat.
Lin Li withdrew his gaze, a satisfied smile curling at the corner of his lips.
Although the explosion had caused quite a commotion, it had successfully broken the deadlock and cleared the obstacles in his path. It had been worth it.
He did not linger. He strode onward, continuing across the square.
The explosion's central area was still shrouded in dense smoke and dust, and the air retained a scorching heat.
He could only skirt around the crater and proceed along the edge of the square.
After more than ten minutes, Lin Li finally left the vast square behind.
At the edge of the square, the orderly buildings that had once stood there had long since been reduced to broken walls and ruins by the explosion. Bricks and rubble were piled as high as mountains, exuding desolation and decay.
Yet the buildings farther away remained completely intact. Their blue-gray brick walls and archaic windows still preserved the appearance of the Ancient City.
Lin Li quickened his pace, stepping over the ruins on broken stones as he continued forward.
As he walked, he suddenly felt the temperature around him quietly rising.