Chapter 3434: Dispersed Breakthrough

A vast, endless black forest stretched out below. The Ice Lion flew over it at an extremely high speed, with a massive purple thundercloud following closely behind, also moving very fast.

Ye Yuhuan and the others stood on the deck, their expressions tense.

A rumbling sound of thunder echoed as three incredibly thick purple lightning bolts descended from the sky, striking towards the Ice Lion.

Ye Yuhuan performed a hand seal, causing the Ice Lion to glow with a dazzling white light and accelerate its escape speed, evading the three purple lightning bolts.

With a loud bang, the three purple lightning bolts struck the ground, creating three massive craters from which black smoke billowed.

A massive purple thundercloud appeared high in the sky. Upon closer inspection, the purple thundercloud was composed of millions of purple lightning mayflies, three of which were Eighth-tier.

If not for the Trans-Spirit Treasure Ship, Ye Yuhuan and the others would have been caught up before they could get far.

Ye Yuhuan frowned deeply. Ahead lay a vast blue ocean, stretching as far as the eye could see.

She changed her hand seals, causing the Ice Lion's spiritual aura to surge once more, and its escape speed greatly increased, covering hundreds of thousands of miles in an instant.

Strangely, the purple lightning mayflies did not pursue them. It was unclear if they had given up or if they were wary of this particular sea region.

The Ye family disciples discussed among themselves, their faces full of curiosity."Surely there aren't Eighth-tier demonic beasts in this sea, are there? Or perhaps there's a powerful restriction?""Aren't there too many Eighth-tier demonic beasts here? We've piloted the Ice Lion through the Xuanyang Realm for ten thousand years and only encountered two Eighth-tier demonic beasts. Yet, since entering this Daoist site, we've already encountered no fewer than six.""How can a Mahayana cultivator's Daoist site have so many Eighth-tier demonic beasts? Haven't any of these Eighth-tier demonic beasts transformed into human form to seize control of the central hub?"

"Perhaps this isn't Xuanling Celestial Venerable's Daoist site at all," Ye Yuhuan said softly. "It might just be a place Xuanling Celestial Venerable once visited, or a minor spiritual realm, or even the corpse of a true spirit Rahu."

There's been too much controversy regarding Xuanling Celestial Venerable's Daoist site. Some claim it's a minor world, others a minor spiritual realm, and still others believe it's the corpse of a true spirit Rahu. However, all major factions agree that the Daoist site is rich in cultivation resources, has a large number of Eighth-tier demonic beasts, and is a place where even Mahayana cultivators can perish.

Xuanling Celestial Venerable's reputation is immense. The Daoist site appeared after his ascension, and since some individuals found treasures within it that Xuanling Celestial Venerable had used, they came to believe it was his Daoist site.

No single faction has ever proven the true origin of the Daoist site, so the major powers simply refer to it as "the Daoist site." Some races in the Xuanyang Realm sought to find its central hub and control it, but none succeeded.

Mahayana cultivators from the Heavenly Moon Clan, Stone Cocoon Clan, and Shadow Charm Clan all entered the Daoist site to seek treasures, but they were never seen to gain control of it.

"Not Xuanling Celestial Venerable's Daoist site?" asked Ye Yiyan, bewildered. "Then why do all three major clans claim it is?"

Ye Yuhuan smiled and said, "Information is also a form of cultivation resource. They might know the true origin of the Daoist site, and it benefits them not to disclose it publicly. A minor world and a secret realm have entirely different values. A secret realm might only attract the contention of smaller factions, unless it contains exceptionally rare resources, in which case Mahayana cultivators might intervene. A minor world, however, is different; it's enough to spark a full-blown racial war, and Mahayana cultivators would certainly take action."

Most Mahayana cultivators are entirely unaware of Nascent Soul enlightenment and thus wouldn't know where to seek such secret arts. Some ill-informed cultivators don't even know of the Heavenly Void Jade Book's existence, let alone where to find it.

Great clans possess profound foundations, which aren't solely due to their Mahayana cultivators and Profound Heaven Treasures; their extensive intelligence networks are another key factor. Some ancient secrets are essentially passed down orally and are rarely revealed to outsiders.

If it weren't for Fairy Liuyun obtaining the enlightenment secret method, the Ye family cultivators wouldn't even know such a secret art existed.

Ye Yiyan realized the truth and nodded.

"I hope the rest of our journey goes smoothly!" Ye Yuhuan said solemnly, her expression grave.

As far as she knew, Mahayana cultivators from all three major clans had entered the Daoist site, and a late-stage Mahayana cultivator from the Heavenly Moon Clan had died there. This place could very well be an unknown minor spiritual realm.

Minor worlds vary in size but generally aren't as large as the Xuanyang Realm, with even the largest not exceeding half its size. In contrast, a minor spiritual realm is at least half the size of the Xuanyang Realm, the latter being significantly larger than the former, so it's normal for them to have a greater number of Eighth-tier demonic beasts.

The Ye family members in the Immortal Realm analyzed that an immortal artifact might have been left behind in the Daoist site, and Ye Yuhuan hoped to find it.

She performed a hand seal, causing the Ice Lion's spiritual aura to surge and accelerate its escape speed, disappearing into the boundless ocean.

***

A narrow, long valley, with sparse vegetation within and abundant grayish-white stones visible everywhere.

A green horse puppet, sporting four wings on its back, slowly advanced. Wang Zongyun, Wang Yuanjiang, Long Yufi, Wang Yong'an, Murong Yushuang, and a dozen other Wang family cultivators rode on its back, each of them enveloped in multiple layers of defense, their faces etched with vigilance.

They had been retreating with Wang Qingfeng when they encountered millions of Dragon-devouring Ants; over forty of which were Seventh-tier, and three were high-grade Seventh-tier. Wang Yingjie, Liu Hongxue, Wang Qingfeng, and Dong Xueli stayed behind to cover their retreat, while the other clan members fled.

The Dragon-devouring Ants split into multiple teams to attack them, forcing them to scatter and break through individually. They became separated, and this particular group consisted of five Integration cultivators and seven Void Refinement cultivators.

Wang Zongyun's divine sense was fully extended, meticulously surveying their surroundings, not daring to be careless.

Without special restrictions, communication artifacts were effective within a million-li radius. However, they couldn't establish contact, meaning either their clan members had traveled too far or there were special restrictions in place.

A deafening roar echoed, startling Wang Yong'an and the others. Wang Zongyun performed a hand seal, and the green horse puppet beast came to a halt.

Wang Yuanjiang raised his right hand, and dozens of bee puppet beasts flew out. They flapped their wings and flew forward.

After a moment, he spoke: "It's two Seventh-tier demonic beasts battling. We haven't detected any other cultivators."

"Let's observe for a while," suggested Wang Zongyun, "and wait until they've decided a victor before making our next move."

Having entered the Integration stage relatively early, she was experienced in treasure hunting and was chosen as the captain to lead their group.

The roar of a tiger and the cry of a crane resounded as a mass of green light and a mass of red light flared high in the sky. Soon after, a hazy green tornado flashed forth and swept into the distance.

An angry tiger roar erupted, and a thick column of crimson flame shot skyward, heading directly for the green tornado.

The green tornado was struck by the crimson flame column, but instead of slowing, its escape speed increased, and it vanished into the horizon shortly thereafter.

Murong Yushuang flew into mid-air and looked into the distance. She could see a giant, entirely red tiger lying on the ground, its body covered in blood and appearing gravely wounded.

She performed a hand seal, and a loud clap of thunder echoed from high above. Thick silver lightning bolts tore through the sky and struck towards the red giant tiger.

The red giant tiger was severely wounded, and its reactions were significantly slower than before. It spat out a thick column of crimson flames, but it was instantly shattered.

Following a deafening rumble, a burst of dazzling silver lightning flared, engulfing its form.