The shattered stone gate, smashed by immense force, collapsed and piled up in front of the stone chamber. Inside the chamber, numerous rare and precious materials were arranged in an orderly fashion, and judging from the energy fluctuations emanating from the air, the items here were extraordinary.
Inside this stone chamber, there were seven Half-Emperor -Half-Emperor, but all of them were injured to varying degrees, and one of them had already fainted.
The remaining six people stared in utter shock at the mysterious figure in black robes in the arena. They could hardly believe it. There were seven of them in total, including three Nine-Star Half-Emperor, and the other four were also at the Eight-Star Half-Emperor level. This lineup was enough for them to sweep away anyone below the Dou Di level in this expedition to the ruins. Yet now, they never expected that all seven of them, working together, would be defeated by one person, and in such a humiliating way. Even if they went all out, they couldn't last three rounds against this black-robed man.
Who exactly is this person before me?!
By this moment, the six of them had fully realized that the person in front of them, who could easily defeat seven Half-Emperor on his own, must be at least a Dou Di expert!
"Gurgle..."
Upon realizing this, several beads of cold sweat immediately trickled down their foreheads. A sense of fear quickly rose from the depths of their hearts, causing their barely standing bodies to tremble slightly. Even the hands gripping their weapons felt numb, as if the weapons were about to slip from their grasp.
The atmosphere in the arena grew increasingly tense as the black-robed man fell silent. A chilling sweat poured from the six men's bodies, quickly soaking their clothes. After a moment, the black-robed man finally let out a cold snort and said indifferently:
"If you don't want to die, get out of here now."
The voice was cold, as if it came from the Nine Nether Yellow Springs, but when it reached the ears of the six people in front of them, their expressions immediately changed. It was as if they were death row inmates who had been sentenced to death but were suddenly pardoned. Their joy was beyond words.
Immediately, the six turned around and rushed out of the stone chamber without regard for anything else. Just as they turned around, the black-robed man in front of them suddenly spoke again.
"Etc."
"Well..."
In an instant, the breaths of these six people almost simultaneously stopped, their eyes narrowed instantly, and a chill rose from the Half-Emperor of their hearts.
"Senior, is there anything else?"
"Take this guy with you too."
The man in black robes pointed lightly to the ground in front of him and said in a cold tone.
Upon hearing this, the six quickly came to their senses and hurriedly helped the other person who had fainted to his feet. They then respectfully bowed to the man in black robes before turning around and flying swiftly out of the stone chamber.
Only after these people disappeared into the stone chamber did the man in black robes raise his dark eyes, casually glancing at the empty chamber before him. Then, with a wave of his hand, he collected all the medicinal herbs and various rare metal materials from the nearby storage shelf into his Storage Ring. In a flash, he vanished from the stone chamber.
Since encountering the five-person group in the stone chamber last time, this is the fourth group of people Xiao Yan has encountered in the past five days. However, unlike the first time, Xiao Yan did not kill these people in the following instances.
For Xiao Yan, there are countless people who have joined forces with him in this ruin. If he were to kill every single one he encounters, how long would it take? Unnecessary killing would only increase the resentment in his heart, which is not a good thing for a cultivator. Recalling Wu Hao in the Jia Nan Academy back then, he almost went astray because of his excessive bloodlust. Therefore, Xiao Yan will naturally be cautious.
Xiao Yan didn't consider himself a good person, but he was able to distinguish right from wrong, and naturally, he would avoid unnecessary trouble whenever possible.
After breaking through several more stone doors, Xiao Yan Xiao Yan frowned. In total, he had been in the ruins for about ten days. During those ten days of searching, he had broken through a hundred stone doors. Although he had made considerable gains, he still hadn't found the Soul-Congealing Fruit and the other two medicinal herbs that he wanted. This was making Xiao Yan 'Xiao Yan patience run out.
"Sigh... it seems we can only pin our hopes on the depths of these ruins..."
With a helpless sigh, Xiao Yan moved and once again darted into the deserted passage.
Based on Xiao Yan's deductions over the past few days, he discovered that the deeper one ventures into the ruins and along the endless passageways, the higher the level and value of the treasures within the stone gates. Judging from Xiao Yan's recent gains, he has even encountered Human Class Cultivation Methods and Combat Skills in several stone chambers. Any one of these items would be priceless if displayed elsewhere, yet here they are simply arranged neatly within these stone chambers. This demonstrates that the items in these chambers represent only the smallest portion of the entire ruins.
Therefore, Xiao Yan simply focused his attention on the deepest part of this ruin, since the truly valuable treasures were all there.
To put it bluntly, while the items inside these stone chambers might attract the attention of many Half-Emperor level experts, they are nothing more than commonplace items to true Dou Di experts. What they want are treasures that can enhance their strength. While these pills and cultivation techniques might serve as a means of self-preservation, if they possess sufficient power, why would they need external items like pills for protection?
The saying "It's better to rely on yourself than on others" illustrates this point.
After several swift movements, Xiao Yan flew rapidly towards the depths of the ruins. Clad in a black robe and wielding the Heavenly Severing Steps, Xiao Yan's figure not only remained completely invisible but also made it difficult to detect his aura. As a result, even as Xiao Yan passed by numerous Half-Emperor, none of them noticed him passing by, nor even the slightest Wind Movement.
Faced with such terrifying speed, perhaps only Dou Di expert could barely detect Xiao Yan's whereabouts!
At a certain moment, Xiao Yan, who was flying at high speed, suddenly heard a voice in his ear, causing his body, which was rushing forward, to stop abruptly. His sharp eyes under his black robe instantly turned to a certain direction in the passage, which was the place where the voice came from.
"Hmph! I warn you, we are from the Cloud-Hidden Pavilion. If anything happens to us today, someone will avenge us after you leave!"
"People from the Cloud-Hidden Pavilion..."
With his eyes half-closed, Xiao Yan murmured in a gradually lowering voice.