Troubles Ahead

"Junior Brother Wang, come and take a look at this insect," Shangguan Ouyang said, holding up the insect's corpse.

A man dressed in white robes, who looked to be only in his thirties, turned around, glanced at the dead insect in Shangguan Ouyang's hand, and asked with a puzzled expression, "Shangguan Brother Shangguan, isn't this just an insect? But judging from its claws, it should have had the strength of the Foundation Establishment Realm when it was alive."

Several other fellow disciples nearby also looked over and commented, "It looks a bit like a praying mantis, but we don't know what kind it is; it's not listed in Demon Beast books."

"I can't tell either, but based on the habits of mantises in the mortal realm, it shouldn't be a swarming spirit insect; this thing should belong to the category of Demon Beast."

"Shangguan Brother Shangguan, why are you so worried? Are you concerned that these insects are a swarm? Or do you think the Sea Demon Sect will be wiped out by these insects?"

Shangguan Ouyang sighed and shook his head, saying, "I can't help but worry. According to the records, the Sea Demon Sect, although it rarely went ashore, was once a powerful force in the South Sea. Yet it was wiped out without anyone noticing, and not even a single word of it got out. It's truly worrying."

"Furthermore, fellow disciples, look at these formations. They haven't dissipated even after tens of thousands of years, while the formations in our sect are basically replenished with Spirit Stone regularly to provide spiritual power. It's very unreasonable for these formations to exist for so long. I think these formations are more like a seal than a protection for something."

"That doesn't make sense," said an elder who appeared to be an old man. "If the Sea Demon Sect was able to seal those things back then, why was the sect still destroyed in the end? Even if they suffered heavy casualties, there should have been some news of it, right?"

"Shangguan Brother Shangguan, aren't you overthinking it? Even if these insects caused the Sea Demon Sect to be wiped out, at least ten thousand years have passed. They should be mostly dead by now."

"Junior Sister Li, there's no point in arguing about this. Junior Brother Wang, why don't we break through a slightly larger formation and see? If there really are these insects, then we need to be careful. We must seal this place off as soon as possible and absolutely cannot let that big guy escape, otherwise our Spirit Moon Sect will be in big trouble."

"After all, back then, even with the Spirit Severing Realm cultivators in charge, the Sea Demon Sect was still wiped out. If they were to unleash something, we wouldn't be able to withstand it now."

"Alright, since Shangguan Brother Shangguan insists, let's see. If there are any problems, it'll be a good start to our troubles. In short, we absolutely cannot let the problem get out of control."

On the other side, in a relatively secluded corner, a man with a slightly dark complexion and ordinary appearance cautiously crawled out from a hole.

"Luckily, no one saw me. If someone had seen me crawling through a dog hole, I would have lost all face."

"Damn it, I don't know what this wall is made of, it's so hard, I can't even break it."

Zhang Hao patted off non-existent dust from his clothes, looking sullen. "But at least I gained something, otherwise I would have lost face and gained nothing."

"But those two skeletons inside are really frightening. Their skeletons are so old, yet they're still as pristine as jade. It seems they must have been incredibly powerful in life."

"That insect's corpse was quite frightening. Although it had lost its Dao essence, it was still able to kill the owner of that skeleton. Even though it was a mutual destruction, it was still terrifying."

Thinking of this, Zhang Hao couldn't help but feel worried. This sect was once quite powerful, but it was wiped out by something that looked like an insect. He didn't know if any remnants remained.

"Looks like this place is pretty dangerous. I'd better grab something useful and get out of here. If someone manages to spawn a monster, that would be a real disaster." Zhang Hao muttered to himself as he turned and walked towards another area of ruins.

In the pill room, Qianyuan's face was slightly gloomy. It had been three times already, and the formation still couldn't be broken. He and the others were clearly getting impatient.

"Fellow Daoist, are you playing us for fools!" Qianyuan said through gritted teeth, his anger undisguised.

Li Xue merely glanced at him and said calmly, "I told you, this is a formation from tens of thousands of years ago. Finding the nodes will take time. If you think I'm not capable enough, you don't have to send me. You can find someone else."

If he could find someone, he would have replaced them long ago. Qianyuan Yuan suppressed his anger and tried to make his expression more amiable as he said, "Fellow Daoist, I don't mean to blame you, it's just that you've made mistakes time and time again, and we're worried."

"You're anxious, and so are we. After all, we have a share of what's inside," Shen Ge said. "If you want what's inside, just keep quiet and don't disturb her."

Qianyuan's face turned slightly pale. Being scolded by a junior in the Early Golden Core Stage was like a toad eating dung for the first time, which made him even angrier.

But since he needed their help, he couldn't afford to turn his back on them, so he snorted and turned away, pretending not to hear.

"Fellow Daoist Qianyuan, I advise you not to get so angry. I remember who that guy is. I wonder if you've heard about what happened to the Spirit Moon Sect a few years ago?" A fellow Daoist transmitted his voice to Qianyuan.

Upon hearing this, Qianyuan glanced at Shen Ge without showing any emotion and replied, "Fellow Daoist, are you saying that kid is the one who killed Golden Core Peak Elder of the Spirit Moon Sect and got away with it? What a joke! That kid's aura isn't very strong, and he doesn't seem to have anything special about him. The only threat he poses is the array he has."

"Believe it or not, I've already warned you. If you don't believe me, go ahead and test the waters. We also want to see how he managed to kill someone at the Golden Core Peak."

Qianyuan's face darkened, and he transmitted his voice, cursing, "You guys really have a good plan, don't you? Let me test the waters? Let me tell you, don't even think about it. Make a move? I will never make a move. If anyone should be testing, it's you who should be testing."

Regardless of whether it's true or false, Qianyuan has no intention of verifying it. After all, he only has one life, so it's better to be cautious.

Li Xue studied the area for a while longer, then redrawn a dot and said, "Attack here. This time it should be fine."

Qianyuan Yuan immediately jumped out, a smile on his face, and said, "Fellow Daoist, you rest, we'll take care of it."

After saying that, the group launched another attack on that spot. This time, the formation shook for a moment before a crisp cracking sound was heard.

The crowd's faces lit up with joy, and one of them immediately stepped forward, smashed the door open with a single blow, and rushed inside.