Chapter 2015: Broken World

Gu Ya then also sensed someone approaching, and moved back behind Qin Sang, looking in the direction of the newcomers.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh...

Five streaks of light darted through the sandstorm. They had just come from a battle, their hands still stained with blood, and a fierce, murderous aura clung to them.

"Wait!"

The foremost streak of light abruptly halted, and a man's cold voice rang out.

The four streaks of light close behind them promptly stopped as well.

The newcomers consisted of four men and one woman. The four men all wore similar black robes, while the woman was cloaked in a purple robe that revealed her graceful figure. She was strikingly beautiful, and perhaps intentionally, a knife scar on her nose bridge didn't detract from her allure but rather added a touch of wildness.

The way the five stood after appearing indicated their differing relationships.

The one who had spoken was a young man with a somewhat effeminate appearance, one of the four. A short, stout cultivator stayed closely by his side. The other two men, an old man and a youth, stood together as if they were grandfather and grandson. The woman remained somewhat separate, though she was closer to the effeminate youth's group.

"'Brother Yuan, what have you found?' asked the elder of the grandfather-grandson duo."

The effeminate youth replied suspiciously, "'Don't you all find it strange that the two Brother Qians haven't moved at all?'"

This group didn't originate from a single faction. To prevent any treachery, they had agreed upon mutual restrictive measures when forming their alliance. For instance, they collectively performed a secret technique that allowed all participants to sense each other's positions at any time.

"Brother Yuan means..."

The elder frowned, gazing forward.

The effeminate youth scanned the group. "'Earlier, when we were ambushing Old Demon Chen's descendants, the two Brother Qians mentioned seeing a treasure and went after it. However, there are no signs of combat ahead. If they had succeeded, why wouldn't they rush back immediately? What treasure could make them abandon Old Demon Chen's ancestral blood seal? And if they haven't succeeded...'"

"'Then they've been subdued!' the elder said gravely."

"'Who could subdue the two Brother Qians?'"

The short, stout man looked surprised. "'After they left, we dealt with Old Demon Chen's remaining descendants with hardly any difficulty. In such a short time, given the abilities of the two Brother Qians, even if they were outmatched, they shouldn't have been captured alive...'"

Crack!

Everyone looked at the effeminate youth's right hand, where he had just crushed a communication jade talisman. These talismans had been specially crafted for their operation, but there was no response from ahead.

"Retreat!"

Without hesitation, the effeminate youth turned and began to leave.

Before the elder could speak, the youth furrowed his delicate brows, hesitating, "'This doesn't seem right. The two Brother Qians have been diligent and made significant contributions on this journey. Besides, we all swore an oath to support each other and not betray anyone. To abandon them without knowing what happened, by both sentiment and reason...'"

"Sentiment and reason?"

The effeminate youth snorted coldly, disdainfully.

"'Consider where we are, and how many powerful figures enter and exit Fengju Yumen!' the effeminate youth scoffed. 'Don't imagine that merely because we're near Da Zhou, those mighty cultivators will show restraint. Here, they're even more reckless than in the dark territories. If the two Brother Qians provoked someone formidable, should we all die with them? Furthermore, our alliance oath had a condition: it was only applicable when confronting the Chen clan remnants. The two Brother Qians were blinded by greed and left on their own. Fortunately, the remaining Chen clan descendants weren't strong, otherwise, their actions would have severely jeopardized our plans. Ultimately, they brought this upon themselves!'"

The effeminate youth was unsparing, his tone almost a reprimand, and the youth's face flushed and paled.

As the effeminate youth spoke, he had already activated his escape technique, and the short, stout man followed his lead implicitly. The grandfather and grandson glanced at the purple-robed woman; seeing that she too was preparing to leave, they said nothing further.

Just as the five were about to escape back the way they came, a soft chuckle suddenly echoed in their ears.

"Hehe..."

The laughter was ethereal and elusive, yet it distinctly reached their ears, seeming to come from all directions at once, making it impossible to pinpoint its source.

"'You are smarter than this old man anticipated. Since that is the case, I won't trouble you further. Leave the Chen family's ancestral blood seal, and you may depart.'"

The calm voice, however, instantly changed their expressions and made their hair stand on end.

Swish! Swish!

The five immediately formed a battle formation, with the effeminate youth at its core, their faces filled with vigilance.

"'May I ask which fellow Daoist this is? Why not reveal yourself?' the effeminate youth called out loudly into the void. 'We are only temporarily cooperating with the two Brother Qians; we are not true companions. If they have offended you, it has nothing to do with us, and we will not interfere. We leave them to your disposal.'"

To their surprise, the other party completely ignored his words, maintaining the same calm and even tone.

"'This old man's patience is limited. I'll give you three breaths of time.'"

In an instant, they could almost hear each other's breathing. Three breaths of time would pass in a blink.

The effeminate youth held the ancestral blood seal, and he was undoubtedly under the greatest pressure, with all eyes on him.

It was a difficult decision.

If the opponent was bluffing, and they were scared into surrendering the treasure, they would become the laughingstock of the world. But what if the other party truly was a formidable power...?

"'I no longer want this ancestral blood seal. Please dispose of it as you see fit!'"

The effeminate youth took out a square seal and gently tossed it into the air.

The short, stout man looked reluctant, his lips twitching as if to speak, but a fierce glare from the effeminate youth silenced him instantly. He quickly fled outwards alongside the effeminate youth.

The remaining three exchanged glances, looking at the ancestral blood seal.

The effeminate youth was the strongest among them and had organized their alliance. During the pursuit of Old Demon Chen's descendants, his keen judgment and extraordinary strategy had thoroughly convinced everyone. They hadn't expected him to actually abandon the ancestral blood seal, which they had gone to such lengths to acquire, without even catching a glimpse of their adversary.

Hesitation flickered in the purple-robed woman's eyes. Finally, she hardened her resolve, averted her gaze, and transformed into a streak of purple light, fleeing as well.

The elder sighed softly, pulling the reluctant youth along as he chased after them.

After they had departed, the square seal abruptly stopped its descent and shot off on its own into the depths of the sandstorm.

Still unwilling, the short, stout man, who had flown a considerable distance, looked back repeatedly, seeing no pursuers. "'Brother, did we really just hand over the Chen family's ancestral blood seal like that? You sensed the fluctuations within the seal too. The legendary Old Demon Chen's medicinal garden is very likely right here, containing not only countless spirit herbs but possibly even Old Demon Chen's hidden treasure vault! It's so close!'"

"'Are spirit herbs more important than your life?'"

The effeminate youth glanced behind him; the purple-robed woman and the grandfather-grandson pair had already caught up.

"'The Chen family line is extinct, and we now know all of Old Demon Chen's secrets. Once we return, his cultivation ground will be ours, which will be more than enough for us to live comfortably for a long time. Let's just pretend we never obtained the ancestral blood seal.' The effeminate youth's words were meant not only for the short, stout cultivator but also as a reminder to the other three."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the three indeed brightened considerably.

As the five vanished into the distance, the ancestral blood seal landed in Qin Sang's hand.

"'He's quite a character,' Qin Sang murmured."

Qin Sang looked thoughtfully in the direction the five had departed.

Had the five approached him, he wouldn't have hesitated to deal with them all.

After entering the Grand World, Qin Sang clearly felt that cultivation was significantly easier for cultivators there compared to the Minor World. They weren't forced to desperately compete for limited cultivation resources, where one either advanced or regressed, constantly fighting for every inch of progress.

Even in the heart of the Eight Great Heavenly States, there were untouched wildernesses, not to mention the immense world beyond.

The stable political situation in Da Zhou and the smooth communication between the Eight Great Heavenly States meant that many necessary cultivation items could be acquired through trade, eliminating the need for painstaking searches. Cultivators often spent years in secluded cultivation; with sufficient talent, they could achieve considerable cultivation levels by simply following established practices.

Those who frequently walk the line between life and death, struggling their way up, possess a unique temperament—the effeminate youth being one such example, as were Qu Zhen and others from the Hengsha Association. The areas Qin Sang had traveled through since arriving in Da Zhou were predominantly orderly immortal cities, and he had rarely encountered cultivators with such a disposition.

Qin Sang picked up the square seal and examined it.

These individuals had come to seize the ancestral blood seal, and the Chen family descendants' choice to come to the more dangerous Fengju Yumen, rather than anywhere else, surely wasn't merely a diversion.

When his spiritual sense touched the ancestral blood seal, Qin Sang indeed detected something unusual. Inside the square seal, there was a blood-red thread as thin as a hair, intricately refined into it through special means.

Upon touching the thread, a faint fluctuation emanated. Qin Sang felt a vague, indistinct connection in the unseen.

Perhaps the distance was too great to pinpoint the source of the sensation, but Qin Sang could discern that the target lay in the direction of Fengju Yumen.

Qin Sang didn't have high expectations for treasures. However, Old Demon Chen had specifically refined this ancestral blood seal, which likely pointed to a hidden location. This could serve as a temporary refuge for Gu Ya to settle and heal.

Gu Ya had been caught off guard during the earlier encounter and had sustained considerable injuries; otherwise, she wouldn't have been held up by these two.

"'Senior Qin, how should we deal with them?'"

Gu Ya asked, pointing at the two individuals on the ground.

"'Don't kill them for now; we'll take them along,' Qin Sang said."

Exploring Fengju Yumen always led to dangerous areas, and they were in need of pathfinders.

"Understood!"

Seeing Qin Sang effortlessly repel the encroaching enemies with just a few words, Gu Ya's reverence for him deepened even further. She followed his instructions implicitly, flicking out a sleeve ribbon to bind the two men securely.

The two men were restrained by Qin Sang, utterly powerless to resist. After the effeminate youth and the others had departed, they had fallen completely into despair, their faces ashen.

Qin Sang put away the square seal and looked towards the direction of the chariot, transmitting a message: "'Fellow Daoist Xin, I have urgent matters and will proceed first. I will meet you at the agreed location later. Qu Zhen, you and Fellow Daoist Xin travel together. As for the matters you mentioned, I will consider them after Fengju Yumen.'"

"'As you command!'"

"'Elder Qin, please go ahead.'"

Qu Zhen and Young Master Xin responded with transmitted messages.

"Follow me!"

Qin Sang took Gu Ya, activated his escape technique, and flew directly towards Fengju Yumen. As they drew closer, the sensation from the ancestral blood seal indeed grew clearer.

Rumble! Rumble!

Deafening roars continuously echoed.

Gu Ya gazed into the distance, a look of shock appearing in her eyes. At the edge of the earth lay a vast, gray expanse. There was no sky, no ground; space seemed to be ripped apart and crushed, leaving only an endless gray storm.

Visibly violent turbulent currents roared in and out, like a colossal millstone between heaven and earth, possessing the terrifying power to crush everything.

Chaos!

Danger!

This was Gu Ya's most immediate impression of Fengju Yumen, and she inwardly conceded that it was truly worthy of being an ancient battlefield.

Seeing Qin Sang lead her directly into the storm, Gu Ya couldn't help but ask, "'Senior Qin, are we entering from here?'"

Even at the very edge of Fengju Yumen, Gu Ya felt a profound unease.

Qin Sang hummed in acknowledgment. Although the storm was powerful, it was still within his tolerable limits.

Boom!

Gu Ya's vision went black as she plunged in, feeling as if she had passed through a peculiar barrier. Then, the surroundings fell silent. It wasn't truly calm inside; Qin Sang had simply formed a protective energy shield around her.

Exerting her vision, she saw only gray land stretching endlessly beneath their feet. Naturally, no living beings could exist on such desolate terrain.

Qin Sang scanned their surroundings, his expression subtly shifting as if he had detected something. He suddenly looked up at the sky. The storm overhead was even more terrifying; colossal storm vortices swirled within the dense, gray heavens.

Next, to Gu Ya's surprise, Qin Sang began ascending, intentionally venturing towards the most powerful winds.

The energy shield firmly protected Gu Ya.

When they passed through the storm vortex, they witnessed an illogical scene: above the storm was not the sky, but another landmass. This land was inverted, with mountains pointing downwards, resting upside down on another landmass without actually crashing down.

"How is this place..."

While passing through the storm, Gu Ya felt an extraordinary sense of chaos, knowing it couldn't be as simple as an inverted landmass.

"'Two Minor Worlds! Shattered Minor Worlds!' Qin Sang murmured."

This was clearly the remnant of two Minor Worlds, pressed together, their world barriers shattered, forming an unending storm.

To witness such a breathtaking sight immediately upon entering Fengju Yumen surprised Qin Sang, reminding him of the Jushan Zhizhitan in the Talisman Realm. He hadn't been able to enter its deepest parts and wondered if there too were shattered Minor Worlds, or if fragments of Minor Worlds were present within those illusory scenes of divine abilities, though his insight might not have been sufficient to perceive them.

The ancient war was so destructive it could shatter Minor Worlds. Qin Sang, already a Void Refinement cultivator, still couldn't fathom the terrifying divine abilities of Mahayana cultivators.

Beyond that, the place was desolate, with little else to observe.

Qin Sang and Gu Ya traveled between the two landmasses, continuously flying forward. The scenery along the way was monotonous until they finally reached the end of the upper landmass.

As if cleanly sliced by a knife, a neat fracture marked the land's edge, beyond which lay endless darkness. Qin Sang's figure flickered, and he flew past the fracture, but instead of entering the darkness directly, he emerged into another space.

This place was still desolate and chaotic, though better than the outside. This was truly entering the Minor World; the outer continent was merely a corner of it that manifested after its shattering.

This Minor World was nearly destroyed, riddled with countless holes, and the concept of 'waypoint gates' no longer applied. After flying for a while, Qin Sang passed through a 'crack' and exited this Minor World.

As Qin Sang guided her through this place, Gu Ya felt a growing sense of temporal and spatial distortion.