Chapter 612: The Path of Ancient Peoples' Fear

Chu Feng was exhausted, moving alone through the void rifts. He had searched for many days without rest, finding some clues, but still hadn't discovered the final Gate of Life.

The world was pitch black, especially here. The void rifts were eerie; one couldn't see their hand in front of their face, as light was swallowed whole. If Chu Feng hadn't possessed fiery golden eyes, he wouldn't have been able to see anything. This place even blocked spiritual perception.

"This is promising."

Suddenly, Chu Feng felt a surge of excitement. He sensed that this area of space cracks was unstable, experiencing fluctuations, which might indicate a connection to the outside world.

The most direct evidence was the presence of some creature remains here, not entirely purified into dust by the flames of reincarnation. This suggested that the place was not a true main space of purgatory.

As a region of void rifts, it likely contained a weakness, a portal leading outwards.

After all, he had followed clues left by ancient people to find this place. Back then, many individuals must have been exploring methods of escape.

This was certainly not the accomplishment of one person, but the result of efforts by many powerful individuals across generations.

Along the way, he made other discoveries: some ancients possessed the ability to tear space, yet they left behind spiritual imprints warning later generations that this place was unique and extremely difficult. Using brute force here would only invite purifying flames to consume this realm.

"This must be the corpse of a Western silver dragon."

On his journey, he found another colossal creature, emanating a sacred aura. It surpassed the Arhat Golden Body level; its flesh was incorrupt, its scales gleaming, still radiating a silver sheen.

On Earth, it would not be an exaggeration to call such a creature a deity!

"Hmm, could this be it?!"

Chu Feng's expression shifted to surprise as he felt a breeze, unlike anywhere else. It seemed as though a deep, narrow passage here was exhaling cool air outwards.

Then, joy appeared on his face. Obvious traces had emerged within the void rift: giant beasts had once dwelled here, and people had lived in this area for extended periods. This zone was somewhat unusual.

Following the space cracks, he entered an area with slightly more complex terrain. It was utterly dark, consuming all light.

Even the remains of super-lifeforms, such as the Golden Crow, could not emit light in this region, as if they had entered a cosmic black hole.

The darker it became, the more Chu Feng anticipated what was next. He genuinely sensed a fresh scent in the wind, exciting him. Was he truly about to escape?

If there was indeed a passage connecting this place to the outside world, it would be an incredible feat. How had the ancients achieved it?

As the darkness intensified, Chu Feng felt some of his internal energy leaking outwards. Then, the faint breeze gradually ceased, and the area plunged back into absolute darkness and deathly silence.

Chu Feng then felt as if he had entered a space carved out of rock, following a long path, like a somber, dark trail leading to the underworld, chillingly cold.

The terrain descended, and the sensation of being in a void rift faded. He continued deeper underground, where coldness, darkness, and silence became the eternal themes, making time feel nonexistent.

Initially, in this silent place, Chu Feng could hear his own footsteps. Next, he heard the sound of his heartbeat. Finally, in the darkness, he heard the faint rush of his own blood.

This was all because the place was excessively quiet; "pin-drop silence" wouldn't begin to describe it. All he could perceive was the sound of his own body.

Suddenly, in the absolute darkness, a cluster of eerie green ghost fire flickered into existence right in front of Chu Feng. It was so abrupt that he had no time to react and almost collided with it.

In this black-hole-like area, the sudden appearance of a floating cluster of ghost fire was truly startling, leaving one no time to react.

Holding his Violet Crystal Celestial Lightning, he almost threw it out, while retreating himself. He remained calm, ready to unleash his power and confront any battle.

On closer inspection, it appeared to be a section of a hand bone, devoid of flesh, its surface covered in tiny cracks, and featuring long fingernails. It was glowing eerily green, burning, and suspended in mid-air.

What was this? A hand bone, with no magical energy fluctuations, yet it could float here. Chu Feng's expression turned to doubt, and he cautiously became more vigilant.

Chu Feng circumvented the burning, dried hand bone, avoiding the eerie green glow, and continued forward. He then discovered a path, very flat and clearly maintained, even featuring stone steps.

This made his heart pound with even more excitement; he must have arrived at a crucial location.

However, along this path, he saw more bones: large skulls, vertebrae, and other bones, all glowing with eerie green ghost fire and burning while suspended in mid-air. He couldn't tell what creatures they belonged to.

This certainly wasn't spontaneous combustion due to phosphorus in the bones; it was different from the ghost fires seen in graveyards.

Chu Feng's hair stood on end. This place made him feel increasingly cold, shivers running from head to toe. The floating vertebrae and skulls were like lanterns from the Nine Nether Underworld, illuminating the path of death.

He entered a stone chamber. There were no bones here, but there was ghost fire, emanating from a grotesque head suspended in mid-air. It was severed at the neck, still bloody, the head of a fierce beast as large as a millstone. Chu Feng had never seen its kind before. Its head and face were covered in bluish scales, but many steel-needle-like green hairs also grew in the gaps between the scales. Its species was unknown, and its death was horrifying.

Its eyes were wide open, as if it had experienced the most terrifying thing just before death, seemingly scared to death. After its pupils dilated, its facial expression became frozen in that instant, incredibly chilling.

Chu Feng was filled with awe and caution. He avoided the floating head, extremely wary. How did it die? Were there other dangers here?

Then, he saw a person in the corner, as dry as firewood, gaunt and emaciated, their flesh shriveled like a living skeleton. They were leaning in the corner, seemingly having retreated there out of fear. Their deeply sunken eyes were wide open, and their face was contorted with a grotesque and terrified expression, as if... scared to death!

This place was too bizarre, seemingly filled with danger and uncertainty.

Next, Chu Feng saw some words on the stone wall, left by the shriveled person in the corner. Chu Feng stared, carefully discerning them.

He had studied for some time using his light computer, but he wasn't proficient in the common language of the starry sky. However, he could generally read it and roughly understand its meaning.

"We were considered mighty figures, yet we never imagined such a miserable fate upon entering the purgatory space. When the flames of reincarnation ignited, even Zhao Qiankun couldn't endure, crushed into dust by the six types of reincarnation flames. We narrowly avoided the vortex zone and were fortunate to escape here alive."

The account was simple, not even mentioning their identities or how they came to be stranded there.

"My field mastery reached cosmic heights, and I could not accept being trapped here. Following the path of our predecessors, my friends and I decided to establish a heaven-reaching field, to open the void and escape from this place!"

The text documented their resolve and also mentioned that this place had been discovered and excavated by even earlier ancestors. It contained ancient and primitive fields intended to connect with the great void rifts.

Additionally, there were warnings from even older predecessors, stating that this place was malevolent and prone to death, and that using overly powerful energy might lead to a faster demise.

"We were very fortunate to benefit from the efforts of our predecessors. I laid down a peerless field, and with the presence of Void Rat, a spatial master among us, we finally connected this place and forged a path to survival. However, then the great terror arrived..."

As he read this, Chu Feng felt his hair stand on end, and a true chill ran down his spine. He sharply turned his head, but it was eerily quiet, and no one was there.

Then, filled with suspicion, he lowered his gaze again to read the text.

"We used the field to connect with a boundless, pitch-black mine shaft. This must have been only a small section of the shaft, which the ancients hadn't even excavated this far. We didn't know when it was left behind. We were uncontrollably excited, believing we had escaped to freedom. However, this dark pit also belonged here, still within the void rift. We had no idea what era, or even which period, the ancients who left this behind belonged to, or what they were digging for..."

Ultimately, the field master and Void Rat, along with other great powers, disregarded this deep and unfathomable mine shaft. Instead, they continued to connect along their predetermined path.

"Finally, we succeeded! Using a short section of the black pit, we pierced through the world barrier and saw the outside world. This place... it must be the eleventh-ranked planet in the universe. We found a monument not far outside. We could finally escape! We would be recorded in history, having actually managed to break free from the Land of Reincarnation!"

Then, the writing on the ground turned to panicked scrawls, as if the hand carving the words was trembling.

"Disaster struck, the great terror arrived..."

The writing became chaotic at this point, sending shivers down Chu Feng's spine.

"Void Rat's half-severed head suddenly vanished, bloody, a mysterious death! A chilling aura permeated, filling every inch of space, making pores freeze and scalps tingle..."

As he read these accounts, Chu Feng simultaneously felt the chilling aura. His pores opened, and he felt utterly cold from head to toe, as if he were experiencing everything described in the text.

He quickly turned his head, clutching the stone box in his hand. This place was too terrifying.

However, he saw nothing; there was no one behind him. Yet, why did he feel something pressed against his back just moments ago?

At that moment, the stone box in his hand emitted a faint glow, which slightly calmed him.

"My old friend Yuan Zhen exploded on the spot, torn to pieces. For some unknown reason, his flesh seemed to be instantly sucked away, leaving only white bones. However, his head retained its flesh, and both the bones and head were engulfed in eerie green flames..."

As he read this, Chu Feng deeply felt that something was amiss here, and the chill down his spine intensified.

"The other several people also died, inexplicably. Before their deaths, they seemed to have witnessed the most terrifying sight. Such a scene unfolding in the dark mine shaft was utterly dreadful..."

Chu Feng felt uneasy. What kind of place had he truly stumbled into?

"Only Fellow Daoist Mo Kong escaped, but the moment he rushed outside, he went mad, tearing at his own flesh, then screaming in terror as he fled. I don't know if he survived, but I have a bad feeling about his fate. We were great powers, yet the outcome was... not good. There's movement in the sealed passage, something is coming out. Is it finally my turn... It's over, I'm going to die, it's really here..."

The account ended abruptly here!

Chu Feng felt a chill throughout his body. What exactly had they encountered? They had clearly dug out an escape route, connecting with the void, yet in the end, almost all of them perished!

Chu Feng noticed that the person who had retreated to the corner and left the last words had been staring in terror at the exact direction behind Chu Feng. This sent a shiver down his spine.

This time, he turned to look, observing carefully. On the stone wall, there was a large boulder, seemingly blocking a path.

It was evident that the stone fit perfectly, had not been pushed aside, and no creature should have been able to pass through.

But why had that master in the field of domain research said he sensed something coming, and that he too would die? In fact, he had indeed died in extreme terror!

What exactly did he see in his final moments?

Chu Feng stared at the stone, which bore bloodstains that had not yet completely dried. This was the remaining blood of those great powers, narrating their past horrific experiences.

"There's a path ahead, leading to the outside world, and the exit is on Earth!" Chu Feng's eyes burned with fervor, his heart filled with excitement.

But so many people had died here; the place was too bizarre and terrifying. How should he decide? Should he even try?

"So many years have passed. Could anything bad still happen? Time should erase everything, so perhaps this place isn't so eerie anymore."

Chu Feng comforted himself with these thoughts as he approached the boulder. After all, one person had managed to escape, even if they went mad, they ultimately left the Land of Reincarnation.

"I really can't wait! More than a month has passed. How are Yellow Ox, Old Black, Ouyang Feng? How are my parents? Are people from outside targeting them?!"

Thinking of these things, Chu Feng was burning with anxiety, eager to break out immediately.