Li Tianxing gazed at the patterns gradually disappearing into the ground, a chilling smile appearing on his lips.
"Let the other sects fight over it."
"It would be best if they fought to the death, so we wouldn't have to resort to underhanded tactics."
"Once the ceremony is over, the entire secret realm will become our Heavenly Evil Sect. At that time, that lord will be able to break through to the Dao Xuan Fifth Layer Realm, or even a higher realm!"
Upon hearing this, the kneeling demonic sect disciple's eyes blazed with fanaticism.
Li Tianxing, however, did not look at him again.
He looked up at the sect signals exploding one after another in the distance, and a slow smile crept onto his lips.
The more elite forces from different factions are concentrated, the easier it is for the struggle to get out of control.
Once those self-proclaimed geniuses have fought tooth and nail for the opportunities in the ruins, the altar patterns hidden underground will be able to devour enough of their life force.
As for Chu Yunfei...
The sinister lines in Li Tianxing's eyes flickered slightly.
Hopefully, that guy will live a little longer.
He will personally take charge once all the altars are fully connected.
Thousands of miles away.
Chu Yunfei traversed the mountains, stepping on dark golden lightning.
As the distance closed, the Spiritual Qi in the air became noticeably denser, mixed with several lingering fluctuations from array formations.
After crossing the last mountain ridge, the scenery suddenly opened up.
A palace ruin stretching for dozens of miles lies quietly nestled among the mountains.
Broken stone pillars lay fallen among the weeds, and shattered tiles covered the ground. Most of the outer palaces had collapsed, leaving only ruins. Only the central main hall in the deepest part still retained its general outline.
The main hall is a hundred feet tall and is entirely constructed of a dark blue-green ancient stone.
Twelve dragon-carved stone pillars support the dome, the palace doors are tightly closed, and the surface is covered with a layer of pale silver light.
Countless intricate array patterns flowed slowly within the light screen, their aura causing the surrounding void to subtly distort.
Thousands of cultivators have gathered outside the ruins.
The Cangyun Sect, Puppet Sect, Divine Martial Sect, and Heavenly Sword Sect each occupied a side, while second-rate forces affiliated with these sects gathered on the perimeter, and more aristocratic martial artists and Rogue Cultivator were scattered among the broken walls and stone platforms.
All parties were on guard against each other, and spiritual energy was secretly circulating.
Several mutilated corpses lay on the ground, their wounds charred black, clearly indicating they had died from the protective array outside the main hall.
Chu Yunfei landed on a broken stone pillar.
His appearance quickly attracted the attention of the nearby cultivators.
" Chu Yunfei is here!"
"He actually dared to venture into a place where the elites of various sects gathered?"
"Both the Cangyun Sect and the Puppet Sect are looking for him; this is going to be interesting."
The hushed discussion spread quickly.
A joyful and loud voice also came from the crowd of the Divine Martial Sect.
"Brother Chu, you really came too!"
Wu Changge strode over several broken walls, his face full of excitement.
Wu Mingyue followed behind, and seeing that Chu Yunfei was safe and sound, a hint of relief flashed across her eyes.
Just now, with the signals from various sects rising one after another, she was worried that Chu Yunfei would be ambushed and killed by them prematurely. Now it seems that not only is he alright, but his aura is even more composed than before he entered the secret realm.
Chu Yunfei leaped down from the stone pillar, cupped his hands, and smiled, " Holy Son Wu, we meet again. It seems you're quite lucky; you've reunited so quickly after the random teleportation."
Wu Changge grinned and pounded his chest with his fist.
"My younger sister and I are not far apart, and we met a few fellow disciples on the way, so we hurried here together. But Brother Chu, you are all alone, yet you were able to get here so quickly. You must have encountered quite a few opponents along the way."
As he spoke, his gaze was fixed intently on Chu Yunfei.
Although he couldn't see through Chu Yunfei's true cultivation level, he could sense that Chu Yunfei's body seemed to contain a bottomless ocean.
This feeling caused Wu Changge's fighting spirit to rise rapidly.
"Brother Chu, after the battle at the Jingyuan Hall, I recently mastered the Divine Martial Sect Nine Heaven-Shaking Strikes. Let's find a spacious place to fight again. This time, I will not admit defeat as easily as last time."
Wu Mingyue's forehead twitched upon hearing this, and she reached out to grab Wu Changge's arm.
"Brother, don't you even look at where we are? The main hall's formation is still intact, and all the forces are watching each other closely, ready to attack at any moment. If you were to spar with Young Master Chu now, wouldn't you be letting others take advantage of you?"
Wu Changge looked around, his gaze sweeping over Qin Hao, Yue Chenzhou, and Yin Hanmei before suppressing his fighting spirit.
"That's true, there are indeed quite a few people in the way here. Let's postpone the sparring for now."
Wu Mingyue released her grip, feeling a wave of helplessness wash over her.
While others entered the secret realm to compete for opportunities, my elder brother was only thinking about finding someone to fight.
Chu Yunfei didn't mind Wu Changge's directness and looked up at the central main hall.
"What exactly happened here? Just a short distance away, I saw several signals taking off one after another."
Wu Changge's expression turned serious, and he pointed towards the depths of the ruins.
"The first to discover this place were a group of Rogue Cultivator. After entering the outer side hall, they found several Sect Token and two sixth-grade spiritual herbs. Later, someone saw a purple spiritual flower on the altar in the main hall through the main hall's array."
"The spiritual flower was surrounded by a glowing aura, making it highly likely to be a seventh-grade divine soul-type spiritual herb. There was also a long spear-like spiritual weapon beside it, emanating an aura no weaker than a high-grade heavenly weapon."
Wu Mingyue took over the conversation, her tone becoming more serious.
"After the news spread, disciples from various sects in the vicinity arrived one after another. The Cangyun Sect and the Puppet Sect sent out signals one after another in order to gather their fellow disciples, which is why so many people have come."
"However, the array outside the main hall is extremely dangerous. The group that first discovered the ruins tried to force their way in, but the array only lit up once before five Heavenly Origin Realm and one Divine Sea Realm Rogue Cultivator perished on the spot."
Chu Yunfei followed Wu Mingyue's gaze.
There were indeed six charred corpses at the bottom of the main hall's stone steps.
The lingering aura of the Divine Sea in one of them had not completely dissipated.
This protective formation, capable of annihilating a cultivator at the Divine Sea Realm in a single strike, must have reached at least the Heavenly Level.
He then focused his divine sense on the interior of the main hall.
The pale silver light screen rippled gently, and the moment divine sense touched it, it was blocked by a resilient force.
However, during that brief contact, Chu Yunfei still managed to capture a wisp of pure soul power.
What Wu Changge said is true.
There are indeed divine and soul-related treasures inside.
Chu Yunfei has now cultivated the Samsara Soul-Forging Scripture. The stronger his soul, the longer he can maintain the Great Heaven-Burning Art. However, for him, the seventh-grade spiritual herbs for the soul have more than just these two uses; there is also...
Moreover, if such a treasure can be found even from the outside, there are likely other opportunities hidden deep within the main hall.
"This place is worth going in and taking a look."
Chu Yunfei made up his mind, but he did not rush to approach the formation.
All parties involved have not yet arrived.
No one could discern the true nature of the formation.
Making a hasty move now would only pave the way for others.
Chu Yunfei looked around the ruins and soon spotted several familiar figures.
On the Cangyun Sect's side, Qin Hao stood at the forefront of dozens of disciples, his aura Divine Sea Realm Second Layer cultivator completely undisguised.
Beside him was a young man surnamed He, whose aura had reached the Divine Sea Realm Sixth Layer. This He Yang, the young man surnamed He who had held Qin Hao down outside the secret realm.
The Puppet Sect and the Cangyun Sect are not far apart.
Yue Chenzhou and Yin Hanmei had already arrived, followed by more than thirty disciples and more than ten battle puppets.
Situ Shuang'er, along with two disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect, occupied a dilapidated stone platform all to herself.
Her expression was aloof, her hand resting on the hilt of the Ice Soul Sword, showing no interest whatsoever in the surrounding disputes.
When Chu Yunfei appeared, her eyes flickered slightly.
He is still alive.
And it appeared completely unharmed.
The unease in Situ Shuang'er's heart quietly dissipated, but she was soon met with a bit of irritation because of her own reaction.
She and Chu Yunfei had long since severed ties.
Why should I care about his safety?
Qin Hao's reaction was completely different.
The moment he saw Chu Yunfei land, an uncontrollable killing intent surged in his eyes.
The area where my arm was severed seemed to be throbbing again.
The humiliation of having his arm cut off in front of everyone in the Jingyuan Hall burned like poisonous fire in his Divine Sea.
However, Qin Hao did not make a move immediately.
Nangong Wuhen of the Heavenly Sword Sect has not yet appeared.
According to the previous agreement, it would be safest to wait until all the elite forces had gathered before joining forces to kill Chu Yunfei.
"I'll let you live a little longer."
Qin Hao stared at Chu Yunfei, a cold smile playing on his lips.
"Once Nangong Wuhen arrives with his elite troops, I, the Holy Son, will personally shatter your dantian and force you to kneel before me and beg for mercy."