Jiang Yang left the hall without hesitation, rose into the air, and rode the wind toward the central Return Valley.
According to Bai Tang, the entrance to the grotto-heaven lay at the very center of Return Valley, which was why Jiang Yang had wanted to find an opportunity to return.
He had been unable to come up with a decent reason, but fortunately, Chu Qingjian had thoughtfully supplied an "excuse." He offered no further explanation and tacitly accepted it.
What a pity... senior sister is injured. Otherwise, I could bring her inside, and we could watch each other's backs.
Jiang Yang looked around, murmuring to himself.
He saw few cultivators along the way. Whether they were privately tending their wounds after the successive battles or had concealed themselves because of the recent Transformation, he could not tell. In any case, everywhere seemed as peaceful as calm seas and clear rivers.
Jiang Yang pretended to search while calling out inwardly:
"Senior White, are you certain? Is this really the entrance to the grotto-heaven?"
Yun Zhen and Ying Huang had long since left. Presumably, they had achieved their aims and already withdrawn from the Sandalwood Palace.
The ancient tree here had been uprooted, leaving only an enormous hollow in the center, strewn with jagged rocks and overturned soil.
The surrounding spirit vigor was in disarray. The lingering soft green Xun Wind wandered chaotically through the sky. Without the spirit root to sustain it, it would soon dissipate naturally.
At first glance, this was an utterly ordinary patch of land, with nothing unusual in sight.
Bai Tang spoke, her voice carrying a drowsy languor:
"I wouldn't mistake this aura. Take another careful look."
Startled, Jiang Yang instinctively activated his mystic pupils and looked again. The scene before him abruptly underwent a Transformation, and