Traces of Soul Hall

Under the pull of the Spatial Storm, Zhao Li reacted swiftly. He tore open a passage, abandoned the Spatial Boat, and leaped out alone.

After staying for so long inside the pitch-black Spatial Wormhole, the long-missed sunlight stabbed into his eyes the moment he left the passage. Zhao Li blinked reflexively, then immediately felt a wave of weightlessness as he plummeted downward at tremendous speed.

Zhao Li steadied himself, not even bothering to tidy himself up before quickly leaving the area. The might of the Spatial Storm still left him shaken.

Although Zhao Li had jumped out of the Spatial Wormhole, his back had still been grazed by Spatial Energy. His clothes were torn apart, and his back was a bloody red mess.

Several hundred li away, Zhao Li changed into a fresh set of clothes. With his current vitality and physique, he had long since surpassed Magical Beasts of the same rank. Though the wound on his back looked frightening, it had already healed; he simply had not cleaned off the bloodstains.

"What a sin. A million Gold Coins, gone just like that. I hadn't even reached my destination. Sky's Edge City's service really wasn't up to standard."

After tidying himself up, Zhao Li thought back to the soul-stirring experience from earlier and quietly joked to himself, finding a little amusement in the hardship.

He swept his gaze over the surrounding environment. What entered his eyes was one green mountain after another, stretching endlessly as far as he could see. There was simply no way to tell where he was.

Zhao Li pondered for a while and identified the direction. He decided to head south the whole way.

Sky's Edge City was located in the northwest of the Central Plains. Since he had left halfway, he could not have ended up in the Southern Region of Central Plains. This place most likely had yet to reach the Central Plains, so heading south should not be wrong.

After walking for two days, even at Zhao Li's speed, he was still within the mountains.

However, over these two days, Zhao Li had crossed several thousand li and did discover some unusual things. Within such an enormous mountain range, he had not found a single Magical Beast living there. Even wild beasts only appeared occasionally, and they were extremely, extremely rare.

Such a situation had to be the result of someone deliberately controlling it. Otherwise, it would absolutely not be like this.

Since there were people, Zhao Li carefully searched around as well. When the time came, he could ask exactly where this place was, and then make arrangements afterward.

But after two days, Zhao Li found nothing at all.

"Sigh... just what the hell kind of place is this?"

For two days, all that entered his eyes were mountains and more mountains. Even Zhao Li felt visual fatigue and grew somewhat irritated. He raised his head to look at the sky, rubbed his face, and let out a long sigh.

After resting briefly and sorting out his mood, Zhao Li set off again.

Suddenly, Zhao Li's gaze sharpened. He looked to the left, fully on guard.

Just now, the Soul Power Zhao Li had released to investigate had been obstructed for an instant, as though it had encountered something unknown. His Soul Power was at the Spirit Realm; even a Dou Zong would have to avoid it.

Zhao Li did not dare be careless. He waited for a while and probed several times, but every attempt was disrupted within a small area. This feeling seemed somewhat familiar to him, yet for a moment he could not remember it.

After probing several times and still discovering nothing else, Zhao Li carefully walked over.

Very soon, a small stone stele entered Zhao Li's sight.

Once he saw the words on it clearly, Zhao Li's heart stirred up stormy waves, unable to remain calm.

"Soul Hall! There's actually a Soul Hall branch within this mountain range."

On that stone stele, which radiated an eerie aura, the two words "Soul Hall" were impressively carved—this really was a "ghostly" place.

Zhao Li remembered that Soul Hall was divided into Heavenly Gang Halls and Earth Fiend Halls, but even within an Earth Fiend Hall, there would be a Dou Zun stationed there. He did not dare linger and quietly withdrew.

"Who dares spy on my Soul Hall?"

A furious shout rang out, and immediately after, a black shadow abruptly appeared before the stone stele.

When Zhao Li saw the words "Soul Hall," he had already restrained his aura and quietly left. It was just that he had not yet gone far when he heard the explosive shout, and he did not dare move.

That person from Soul Hall had acted on a sudden impulse, as though he sensed someone spying on him. But as his sharp gaze swept over the surroundings, he only discovered a faint remnant of Spatial Energy and found nothing else, which left him somewhat doubtful as well.

"Perhaps I was overthinking it. It should merely have been someone passing by this place. In the Central Plains, no one has the guts to provoke my Soul Hall."

Immediately after, his figure dispersed like mist vanishing beneath sunlight, without a sound or trace.

The people of the Central Plains grouped them together as One Hall, One Tower, Two Sects, Three Valleys, but only the people of Soul Hall understood just how terrifying Soul Hall truly was.

Just a single Earth Fiend branch hall had at least two Dou Zun within it. With such strength, even merely thinking about it made him feel afraid. He did not believe that people from the other factions considered to be on the same level as Soul Hall would provoke Soul Hall for no reason, much less that anyone outside those great factions would have such courage.

When Zhao Li saw someone appear, he did not even look over. He restrained his aura to the extreme, his heart tense and far from calm.

"As expected, he's a Dou Zun. If this trip through the Spatial Wormhole hadn't raised my comprehension of Space Rules to another level, I'm afraid I would have had to flee this time."

Zhao Li memorized the location and quickly left, no longer probing around. He was not yet prepared to face Soul Hall.

When he saw the stone stele, Zhao Li had already understood that this mountain range had to be controlled by Soul Hall, which was why it was so abnormal.

Continuing southward, another three days passed before he finally saw a group of people. Zhao Li asked them for information and learned the name of this mountain range—the Tianmu Mountain Range.

Thinking that in the future story, Yao Chen was imprisoned in this very place, Zhao Li inexplicably felt that fate had tied them rather closely.

Zhao Li was unfamiliar with the land and simply traveled together with the merchant caravan.

"Brother Zhao, once we pass through this gorge, we'll be able to see Tianxuan City."

After traveling for three days, the group arrived at a gorge. The cliffs on both sides towered high, leaving only a passage of about three meters. The carriages could barely pass through.

"There are quite a few Magical Beasts in the mountains on both sides of this gorge. If our luck is bad and we run into them, there'll be no avoiding a fight, and losses will be inevitable. But this is the only road in and out of Tianxuan City, so we have no choice but to take it."

As Li Ming spoke, he sighed as well. From the sound of it, he had encountered Magical Beasts before and suffered no small losses.

"Screech!"

A high-pitched eagle cry rang out. Li Ming's expression changed, and he looked up into the sky. An eagle was sweeping its gaze over the gorge, as though it would dive down at the slightest stir.

Li Ming reacted extremely quickly. He steadied his mind and began issuing orders.

"Prepare for battle."

When everyone heard him, they took defensive stances and advanced cautiously.

Zhao Li was somewhat speechless. Perhaps it was a beast's instinct—when hunting, Eagle Cry might be able to intimidate prey, but against people, aside from announcing its presence to the enemy, it seemed to serve little purpose.

Zhao Li did not want to waste any more time, and his Soul Power surged toward the eagle.

Li Ming and the others saw the originally mighty eagle suddenly plummet for some unknown reason. Then, after letting out a wretched cry, it flew off into the distance.

But no one dared to be careless, and they continued forward with extreme caution.

At last, facing the afterglow of the setting sun, a majestic city appeared before their eyes.

Only then did everyone let out a breath of relief.

"This is Tianxuan City, located in the Northwestern Region of the Central Plains. If Brother Zhao wants to go to the Central Region, you'll need to transfer through several Spatial Wormholes. Why not come to my home as a guest first? As it happens, Tianxuan City's Spatial Wormhole is under the Li Clan's responsibility this year. When the time comes, I'll send you over."

Li Ming was a clever and tactful man. From the things Zhao Li had said, intentionally or otherwise, he guessed that Zhao Li was an Alchemist.

He had the intention of befriending Zhao Li. After a few days, he had also grown familiar with him, addressing him as a brother. Looking at the city before them, he began introducing it to Zhao Li.

Zhao Li thought for a brief moment, then nodded in agreement.

Along the way, Zhao Li had also asked Li Ming about the Pill Gathering. There were still six years until the next competition, so there was plenty of time, and there was no need to rush there.

"Then many thanks, Big Brother Li."

Zhao Li cupped his hands toward Li Ming and offered his thanks.

Zhao Li followed the merchant caravan into Tianxuan City. Inside the city, people came and went, and it was bustling to the extreme.

Smiles unconsciously rose on everyone's faces as they relaxed. The liveliness within the city seemed to wash away some of the dust and fatigue of their journey.

After Zhao Li entered the city, his Soul Power spread out, then quickly withdrew.

Yet in that brief moment, Zhao Li discovered several Dou Zong-level auras.

"So this is the Central Plains? Even in the northwest, it's still filled with powerful experts like clouds."