Zhao Yan sat cross-legged with his back to Lin Yu, his fingertips pinching a piece of top-grade Spirit Jade, frantically refining the remaining energy to stabilize his realm.
His taut back and frantic refining state betrayed the pressure he was under.
"This kid is no wonder he comes from another world; his talent is simply outrageous."
He himself had to exert tremendous effort, risking his life to break through to the Martial Venerable, while Lin Yu, despite being severely injured, was able to quietly step into the Great Grandmaster.
But the kid's nonchalant attitude only made him feel more frustrated.
Zhao Yan silently complained in his heart, but his hands moved quickly, refining one Spirit Jade after another.
Lin Yu was completely unaware of what was happening. He wanted to first survey his surroundings, as cultivation should be balanced with rest.
Looking around at the cave full of Spirit Jade, he secretly marveled at the wondrous opportunity.
He walked slowly into the depths of the cave and came to the stone wall at the end.
The spiritual energy here is extremely pure, and several fist-sized, milky-white Spirit Jade are occasionally embedded in the walls.
He casually tore off a piece, held it in his hand, and in that instant, he felt equal to the sum of everything else.
"This Spirit Vein has profound depths; it must have existed for hundreds of years. How come it hasn't been discovered?"
Lin Yu pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the stone wall.
He stepped forward and reached out to touch it. As soon as his fingertips touched the stone wall, he sensed a fluctuation.
"What is this?" Lin Yu's heart stirred, and he circulated his internal energy and blood to his fingertips.
He formed his five fingers into claws, embedding them deeply into the stone wall, and pulled down a huge rock.
Buzz.
As the stone wall was chiseled open, a subtle tremor was felt.
Lin Yu was startled; there was probably something else hidden behind this stone wall.
The stone wall collapsed, revealing its true form.
"What are you doing?" Zhao Yan's voice suddenly came from over there. He noticed the commotion and walked over.
"What is this?!"
Zhao Yan's gaze was instantly drawn to the scene before him.
"Have no idea."
What should have been a wall has now become a glowing barrier.
What lay behind the barrier remained unknown to the two.
"Can you open it?" Zhao Yan reached out and knocked on the barrier.
"You give it a try." Lin Yu stepped back, making room for Zhao Yan.
"Coward." Zhao Yan glanced at Lin Yu, clenched his fist, gathered his strength, and slammed his fist hard against the barrier.
Zhao Yan's punch, imbued with the power of Martial Venerable and capable of splitting mountains and shattering rocks, landed squarely on the glowing barrier.
The expected loud noise or shattering did not occur; the fist landed on the barrier's surface, like a mud ox sinking into the sea, without even a ripple.
The violent power was instantly absorbed and vanished by the barrier, which remained completely still, its light still gentle.
"Hmm?" Zhao Yan frowned, withdrew his fist, and tried several more times, even using the "Sunflower Manual," his fist covered with the unique orange-yellow True Ki of the technique.
The results were all the same; the barrier did not react at all.
"Can't open it."
"This thing is a bit strange." Zhao Yan's face darkened; his confidence as a newly Martial Venerable had taken a hit.
The barrier was far more sturdy than he had imagined.
Lin Yu also stepped forward and tried to penetrate the area using the power of the "Primordial Unity Ki Technique".
But the result was the same: the barrier, like the most perfect insulator, blocked all energy detection.
Just as the two were at a loss, staring at the barrier and frowning in thought, Zhao Yan frowned slightly, a moment of surprise and doubt appearing in his eyes, as if listening to something.
A moment later, his gaze fell upon the barrier, becoming incredibly complex, a mixture of shock and a hint of apprehension.
"Oh shit..."
Zhao Yan muttered a curse under his breath, then looked at Lin Yu with a strange tone. "That idiot system told me that behind this barrier lies the Upper Realm."
"The Upper Realm?!" Lin Yu's pupils contracted.
"So, the Spirit Vein here actually leaked from the Upper Realm?"
Lin Yu suddenly realized why they were able to discover such an astonishing reserve in this Lower Realm Spirit Jade is rare and considered a strategic resource.
"I knew it! Where would so many high-quality Spirit Jade mines Lower Realm?" Zhao Yan licked his lips.
"The system also stated that this barrier is a naturally formed membrane created by the laws of the two realms, allowing only beings of a certain strength to pass through."
"Moreover, once one breaks through to the Martial Venerable in the Lower Realm, at a certain point, even if they don't want to go, they will be sucked through by this barrier, because the Lower Realm can no longer fully bear it."
Zhao Yan's eyes flashed with a bloodthirsty light, filled with longing for the vast world beyond the barrier.
Lin Yu understood. This was the rule of the world.
The Lower Realm has thin spiritual energy and is relatively fragile, unable to sustain overly powerful individuals for long.
"So, we can't get through for now, and they can't get through either?" Lin Yu looked at the barrier.
If people from the Upper Realm could pass through freely, this place would have been discovered long ago.
"It should be, the system says, that the barrier is one-way."
"Those from the Upper Realm who wish to descend voluntarily face greater restrictions and must pay a price, or they must utilize a special guiding formation."
"For naturally formed leaks like these, it's even more difficult to reverse the flow," Zhao Yan analyzed.
"Damn it, I was planning to kill those two bastards after breaking through to the Martial Venerable, but it looks like I'll have to let them live a few more days."
Zhao Yan gritted his teeth and decided to abandon his plan to cause trouble right now.
"If you want to go and die, go by yourself." Seeing Zhao Yan's irresistible impulse, Lin Yu shook his head, resolutely refusing to go with him.
Even now that he's Great Grandmaster, he has absolutely no confidence when he recalls those two.
They have no idea what's going on; going now would be suicide.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yan felt as if he had been doused with cold water, which sobered him up somewhat from his fanaticism.
He took a few deep breaths, forcibly suppressing the urge to rush out immediately.
Zhao Yan was also a man who valued his life; although he was mad, he wouldn't recklessly throw his life away.
He pondered, "Those two bastards are from the Upper Realm; their methods are unknown, and their strength is unfathomable."
"The fact that they can enter the Upper Realm means they are above the Martial Venerable. Even if they aren't, the methods of the Upper Realm are beyond our ability to handle."
"The odds are slim, even with this freak on the side..."
He glanced at Lin Yu.
"I'm afraid it won't do them any good."
"Cultivate!" Zhao Yan kicked a shard of Spirit Jade on the ground in frustration.
He then went to the side and sat cross-legged to cultivate.
Cultivation became the sole dominant theme within the cave.
Zhao Yan was no longer content with merely consolidating his realm; he began to consciously attempt to challenge the legendary Martial Venerable.
Time flew by in this secluded, spiritually rich underground world.
The stalactites on the cave ceiling seemed to have grown a little more, and a thick layer of Spirit Jade powder had accumulated on the ground.
The two occasionally exchanged words, mostly about cultivation difficulties and fragments of information from the Upper Realm that Zhao Yan had obtained from the system, the truth of which was hard to discern.
"The dog system says that the Upper Realm calls our Lower Realm Land of Filth, where spiritual energy is thin and mixed, and living beings are weak."
"The materials they use for cultivation are called spirit stones, which are of a higher grade than Spirit Jade, and are divided into low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and top-grade."
"They also differentiate between Tian Shu, Tian Xuan, Tian Ji, Tian Quan, Yu Heng, Kai Yang, and Yao Guang; it all sounds complicated."
"Our strength is probably not even comparable to that of Tian Shu in the Upper Realm."
These fragmented pieces of information, like pieces of a puzzle, gave them an increasingly clearer picture of the enemy and that unknown world, increasing the pressure on their hearts, but also strengthening their determination to become stronger.