It was as if the keystone that had suppressed the ages had suddenly been wrenched away!
Rumble!!!
The entire Founder's Ancestral Hall—no, the entire Mysterious Sky Palace—began to shake violently!
At the center of the cracked ancestral tablet, a terrifying torrent of demonic qi, black as ink and so dense it seemed to congeal, burst forth like a prehistoric flood breaking through a dam!
This demonic qi was pure and savage, filled with the auras of destruction, slaughter, and madness. In an instant, it burst through the hall's roof and began to spread wildly throughout the Mysterious Sky Palace!
"Rrrr—argh!"
Within the demonic qi, countless hideous shadows seemed to roar and howl. Enormous demonic claws, formed entirely from pure demonic qi, materialized out of thin air and struck wildly at everything around them!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Under the blows of those claws, the hall's walls and pillars, along with its ancestral tablets and plaques, shattered like paper!
At the same time, the Seven-Colored Glazed Barrier enveloping the entire Mysterious Sky Palace was struck by the terrifying energy that had erupted from within. It let out a piercing crack as its light flickered rapidly, then finally shattered with a bang!
"The restriction's broken!"
"Charge!"
"The Mysterious Sky Palace is open!"
The hundreds of cultivators who had been waiting outside in mounting impatience froze for a moment at the sight. Then they let out a thunderous cheer and surged into the Mysterious Sky Palace through every entrance like a rising tide!
But instead of the immortal splendor and treasures they had imagined, they ran headlong into boundless demonic qi that swept through everything and swallowed the light, along with terrifying demonic claws that raged within it, roaring and smashing all they touched!
"Ah! What is that?!"
"Demonic qi! Such pure demonic qi!"
"Help!"
"No—!"
Caught off guard, the cultivators at the front were swallowed by the demonic qi or crushed into pulp by the claws. Screams rose one after another, and chaos erupted in an instant!
Li Qingshan was near the center of the eruption and bore the brunt of it!
An enormous demonic claw came crashing down on him, carrying a pressure that made it hard to breathe!
His expression changed drastically. He was horrified.
This Purple Gold Gourd... could it be the key to suppressing some terrifying demonic beast?! I've caused a catastrophe!
There was no time to think. Staying alive came first!
The Mystic Origin Shield sprang up in front of him. He unleashed the Flying Rainbow Technique with all his strength, his figure retreating sideways and backward like a streak of lightning!
Boom!
The demonic claw struck down, turning the spot where he had just stood into dust. Even with the Mystic Origin Shield blocking it, the tremendous force made his blood and qi roil, and a sweet taste rose in his throat.
He didn't dare linger!
Without even bothering to find his bearings, he used the force of the blow to flee wildly into the distance, desperate to escape this region that had suddenly become a demonic domain!
The Mysterious Sky Palace had descended into utter chaos.
Demonic qi raged, demonic claws ran rampant, and cultivators fled in terror. Some fought for their lives, while others were corrupted by the demonic qi and lost their minds. The sacred grounds where they had come to seek treasures had become a blood-soaked Asura battlefield in the blink of an eye!
Li Qingshan pushed the Flying Rainbow Technique to its limit, his figure a blurry streak of blue as he darted madly through the corridors.
Yet the demonic qi behind him spread as if it were alive, its advance far faster than he could have imagined. Black, viscous fog churned and howled in its wake, snuffing out light, tainting spiritual energy, and rotting buildings until they crumbled!
Worse still, the space throughout the Mysterious Sky Secret Realm began to shake violently. A teeth-grating sound of cracking came from the sky, as if this little world might collapse completely at any moment!
I have to get out of the Mysterious Sky Palace and find an exit!
Li Qingshan was frantic with worry, but the path to the main hall's exit had already been blocked by the rampant demonic qi and the panicked cultivators. From time to time, enormous demonic claws even tore through the walls and came crashing down on him!
He could only rely on his powerful spiritual sense and the subtleties of the Five Elements Escape Technique: Earth Chapter to dodge among the rubble, each moment fraught with danger.
After narrowly dodging a demonic claw, he stumbled into the ruins of a side hall.
He seemed to have stepped on something. A faint mechanical click sounded beneath his foot.
His heart stirred. He swept the area carefully with his spiritual sense and discovered that a barely perceptible formation node, almost indistinguishable from the space around it, was concealed beneath some broken bricks in the floor!
The node wasn't an exit, but it seemed to connect to an area cleverly concealed by a powerful spatial formation!
Something's off!
At the edge of disaster, any anomaly could be a lifeline! Without hesitation, Li Qingshan channeled the Ice Sword with all his strength and thrust it fiercely at the node!
Sshk!
Space tore open like cloth, revealing a narrow slit. There was no solid wall beyond it, only deep darkness!
A wisp of spiritual energy, long sealed away but still pure, seeped out from within.
He had no time to think. He ducked and plunged inside!
The moment he entered, the spatial rift behind him quickly sealed up, cutting off most of the raging demonic qi and terrifying howls outside.
Li Qingshan stumbled to the ground and quickly looked around.
It appeared to be a vast, enclosed stone hall, but it had long since fallen into ruin.
There should once have been countless shelves and jade platforms all around him, but now most stood empty, toppled over. Broken containers and the rotted remains of materials littered the floor. The walls were covered in marks from blades, swords, and spell attacks. The whole place was a wreck.
A faint haze of dust hung in the air, along with an indescribable desolation and silence.
Could this be a secret treasury that once belonged to the Mysterious Sky Sect?
Judging by its size and the traces of the remaining formations, it must once have stored countless rare treasures. Unfortunately, it had been looted long ago during some ancient battle, leaving behind nothing but these ruins.
Though the place was empty, its remaining formations were remarkably sturdy, blocking most of the terrifying demonic qi. Only the faintest wisps seeped in slowly from the weakest points in the spatial barrier, like black smoke.
Safe for now!
He had just breathed a sigh of relief and was preparing to catch his breath when he suddenly sensed two powerful presences deep within the ruined treasury!
He tensed at once, the Ice Sword hovering before him as he focused his gaze.
Behind a massive broken pillar stood two slender figures, both watching him with wary surprise.
One wore robes as green as water and was so elegant and beautiful she seemed beyond the mortal world. It was Ye Lingshuang!
The other had a black veil over her face and a graceful figure. She was none other than Leng Weiyue, the Heaven Demon Sect's holy maiden!
The two women seemed to have found this hidden node as well and slipped inside ahead of him. Their breathing was still unsteady, clearly showing that they too had faced danger outside.
Their gazes met in midair, each filled with surprise, wariness, and a hint of awkwardness. None of them had expected to cross paths again under such circumstances.
"Fellow Daoist Zhou, how did you find this place? The demonic qi is raging outside. What on earth happened?"
A glint flashed in Leng Weiyue's eyes. Putting on a familiar air, she walked up to Li Qingshan and asked him.
"I don't know either! I was exploring the palace when demonic qi erupted. I wanted to escape the Mysterious Sky Palace, but I stumbled upon the formation node here and rushed inside!"
Li Qingshan gave a wry smile.
His expression remained unchanged. Even Leng Weiyue couldn't have guessed that he was responsible for the demonic qi erupting in the Mysterious Sky Palace.
Before you continue