Chapter 705 706: Land of the Ancient Demons

This place wasn't just beneficial to Martial Kings; it could also help Martial Emperor level experts comprehend the laws of space much more quickly.

In addition, Celestial Yin Valley was uniquely located and contained many peculiar treasures.

As a result, countless Martial Kings and Martial Emperors were constantly training and fighting inside it at any given moment.

However, despite Celestial Yin Valley's wonders, it had one major problem: the black mist inside was harmful to Martial Artists. Inhaling too much would cause mental derangement. In mild cases, it would lead to cultivation deviation; in severe cases, one would become a mindless, raging lunatic.

In the past, the major powers of the Profound Domain had gone to great lengths to disperse the black mist, trying various methods, but they all ultimately failed.

Fortunately, for three months every year, the mist inside Celestial Yin Valley would thin slightly, making this period the busiest time for countless Martial Artists to enter.

Half a month had already passed since Celestial Yin Valley opened this time. Numerous Martial Kings and Martial Emperors from the Profound Realm Third Heaven had rushed here from all over to compete and clash.

Fierce battles erupted everywhere. Martial Artists fell with every passing moment, and with every passing moment, new powerhouses were forged.

And at this very moment—

BOOM!

Like a thunderclap from a clear sky, a tremendous roar echoed throughout Celestial Yin Valley. All the Martial Artists training inside opened their eyes in shock and looked up.

In the depths of Celestial Yin Valley, a place left behind from some unknown ancient era, a massive rift suddenly tore open, revealing a vast expanse of land within.

Even more shockingly, a palace seemed to flicker in and out of existence in the depths of that land, a truly staggering sight.

"What is this? A palace has appeared in the depths of Celestial Yin Valley?"

"That area is perpetually shrouded in black mist. Not even Martial Emperor experts dare to enter. It's one of the Profound Domain's greatest forbidden zones. How could a new land suddenly appear?"

"What in the world happened? Have some ancient ruins opened?"

At this moment, everyone was stunned, their eyes filled with excitement.

"Go!"

The next moment.

Expert after expert, like swallows returning to their nest, charged toward the depths of Celestial Yin Valley with expressions of excitement.

SWOOSH!

The first expert was incredibly fast. Like a streak of blood-red light, his figure flickered for a moment within the rift before vanishing without a trace, entering the vast land beyond.

"He's in! The Blood Saber Emperor went in!"

"Let's go! We're going too!"

"Hurry! There must be some kind of treasure in there. We'll be too late if we don't move now!"

In that instant, experts from every corner of Celestial Yin Valley witnessed the astonishing scene. Unleashing their full cultivation, they all shot toward the spatial rift at top speed.

「A short while ago.」

In a hidden valley deep within Celestial Yin Valley.

"Aaargh!"

A blood-curdling scream rang out. Three experts exuding terrifying auras were enveloped in plumes of black mist. Their skin rapidly rotted, their faces contorted as they let out miserable, agonized roars.

These three possessed profound auras and were protected by powerful Domain Realm barriers. They were clearly Tier Eight Second Layer Martial Emperors, but they were utterly powerless against the black mist.

"You're not Qi Cheng of Infinite Mountain! Infinite Mountain has no such evil Cultivation Technique! Who in the world are you..."

One of the Martial Emperor experts roared in agony. Above the three of them, a young man in a black cloak holding a Skull Staff stared down coldly, a malevolent smile spreading across his face.

If Ye Xuan and his group had been present, they would have recognized this person as Qi Cheng, the young master of Infinite Mountain, whose body had been possessed by Zhan Shang of the mysterious Swallowing Tribe back in Ancient Yang City on the Dream Realm Plain.

Back then, Qi Cheng had only been a Tier Seven Triple Peak Martial Emperor. Now, just over a year later, he had already broken through to Tier Eight Second Layer. Such a cultivation speed was simply monstrous.

"Hehehe, whether I am Qi Cheng or not is no longer important. What's important is that all three of you are about to become my food, hehehe."

"Qi Cheng" let out a wicked laugh and waved his Skull Staff. BUZZ. An invisible force swept over the three men below. Their once-agonized screams stopped abruptly. Beneath the black mist, their bodies instantly melted into puddles of blood as three ethereal souls were pulled forth from their corpses.

FWOOSH!

"Qi Cheng" inhaled sharply, and the three souls were instantly sucked into his mouth. An expression of extreme pleasure spread across his face, and his aura clearly strengthened.

"Hehehe, the essence of these human souls is truly delicious."

Zhan Shang licked his lips, a malevolent light glinting in his eyes. 'A pity my current strength is too weak. I can only find weaker prey to absorb for now. This Celestial Yin Valley... it really is the perfect place for me...'

RUMBLE!

Before his thoughts could even fade, the entire Celestial Yin Valley began to tremble. In its depths, space ruptured, revealing a mysterious and vast new region.

"What? This is... the Ancient Demon Land."

A look of utter shock appeared on Zhan Shang's face, his eyes widening in disbelief.

"How can this be? Why would the Ancient Demon Land suddenly appear here? During the Hundred Clans War, the Ancient Demon Land was shattered into thousands of fragments and cast into the depths of spacetime, losing all connection to this realm. How could it suddenly show up now? Could it be that a fragment of the Ancient Demon Land has accidentally reconnected with this space?"

Zhan Shang stared at the landmass that had materialized in the distance, his face a mask of utter shock.

But an instant later, his shock was replaced by wild joy. "Haha, the heavens are helping me! A human body is too weak, no matter how strong. During the Hundred Clans War, countless experts fell in the Ancient Demon Land. I wonder if any of their bodies remain in this fragment after all these years? If I could find just one, it would drastically shorten the time I need to recover my strength!"

A delighted expression on his face, Zhan Shang's figure flickered and transformed into a streak of light, vanishing from sight.

If one were to look down from above Celestial Yin Valley, they would have seen all the experts swarming into the mysterious space like a massive school of fish.

At the same time, news of the mysterious space appearing in Celestial Yin Valley spread like wildfire throughout the Profound Domain.

Ye Xuan, who was already inside the mysterious space, was naturally unaware of any of this. He was currently hiding behind a massive black boulder, his expression exceptionally grim.

"SKREEE!"

Overhead, a flock of flying creatures shrieked as they passed.

These creatures were pitch-black and featherless. Instead, their bodies were covered in fine black Scale Armor and barbs, exuding a ferocious aura.

What shocked Ye Xuan even more was that the aura of these bizarre flying creatures was extremely similar to that of the pangolin from before. Their eyes were blood-red and filled with savagery. The strength of each one was no less than that of an ordinary Tier Eight Martial Emperor, and their leader was on par with a Tier Eight Third Layer Martial Emperor.

Even more terrifying was their number—a flock of at least a thousand. They shrieked as they flew overhead, and their oppressive aura alone was enough to keep Ye Xuan from daring to show his face.

If he were discovered, he would likely be killed, no matter how high his cultivation was.

'What in the world is this place?' Ye Xuan thought. 'A flock of flying creatures this large... even if the Celestial Capital Prefecture, Liuxian City, and the other major powers joined forces, we would still suffer heavy casualties.'

The mere thought sent a shiver down Ye Xuan's spine.

This unknown land was simply too dangerous.

The dangers weren't limited to the sky; there were plenty on the ground as well. Along the way, Ye Xuan had encountered many strange and bizarre Demon Beasts. Fortunately, he hadn't met any as troublesome as that pangolin, and he did his best to avoid any packs of Demon Beasts he came across.

Otherwise, if he had encountered a group of creatures like that pangolin, he would surely be dead.

'The priority right now is to regroup with Patriarch Xiao and the others, gather information about this place, and, if possible, enslave a few more Demon Beasts.'

Ye Xuan took a deep breath.

He had been able to evade numerous Demon Beasts thanks to the pangolin's vigilance.

The pangolin had been following him from beneath the ground. Its perception was keen, and it would issue a warning whenever danger approached, allowing Ye Xuan to avoid disaster on several occasions.

Moreover, the Little Purple Mink was perched on his shoulder, pointing things out. It seemed quite excited to be here.

At the same time, while this dimension was bizarre, the Heaven and Earth Profound Qi here was remarkably pure. In this short period, Ye Xuan could clearly feel that his cultivation at the Tier Seven Second Layer, a breakthrough he had just achieved, had stabilized significantly.

The Heaven and Earth Profound Qi here seemed even purer and richer than that of the Celestial Profound Continent.

What surprised Ye Xuan even more was the abundance of Spirit Medicines, the vast majority of which he didn't even recognize.

This was astonishing, because in his past life as a Ninth Grade Emperor Level Alchemy Master and an honorary elder of the Alchemist Association, the number of people on the entire Celestial Profound Continent who knew more about Spirit Medicines than him could be counted on one hand.

Of course, even without recognizing them, Ye Xuan could still rely on his profound attainments in Alchemy to discern the effects of these Spirit Medicines.

The Spirit Medicines here were extremely similar to those on the Celestial Profound Continent; in fact, some of their effects were even better.

Ye Xuan proceeded cautiously, searching for Spirit Medicines as he went.

Before long, he arrived before a stretch of rolling hills.

Just as Ye Xuan was about to search the area carefully, a black rootstalk caught his eye.

It was a Tier Seven Bone-Transforming Vine. The Bone-Transforming Vine was the main ingredient for refining the Bone Origin Pill, a Pill that could strengthen a Martial Artist's bones, enhance their resistance, and was extremely effective at healing fractures.

Ye Xuan dug up the Bone-Transforming Vine without a second thought.

But then, he spotted a black flower not far away. The flower resembled a ghastly face, smiling with an eerie wickedness.

'What kind of Spirit Medicine is this?'

His interest piqued, Ye Xuan instantly appeared in front of the black flower. CRACK. He suddenly felt that he had stepped on something.

He looked down and saw that he was standing on a skeleton, and the black flower was growing right out of it.