"Rest assured, I have completely sealed all auras inside the Heavenly Dao Tower. Having followed Guhuang Great Emperor for so many years and spent an eternity within that tower, I'm intimately familiar with its workings. So you can trust my handling of this."
Hun Lao chuckled.
"That's good then."
Ye Yunfei nodded.
Next, Ye Yunfei sent Ji Yue out from within the Phantom Tower.
"Su Fei, where are we?"
Ji Yue asked nervously as soon as she appeared, worried they were still inside that terrible palace.
But she immediately saw Third Elder and the other Ziwei Sect members.
"Su Fei! We escaped!"
Ji Yue was overjoyed.
"Indeed we did, Junior Sister Ji Yue. You can relax now. We are already far from Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb and are on our way back to headquarters."
Third Elder said with a smile.
"Su Fei, thank you. It was fortunate you pulled me out just in time, otherwise I would be dead."
Recalling the terrifying experience in that palace, Ji Yue felt a chill of fear still in her heart and was deeply grateful to Ye Yunfei. She knew if Ye Yunfei hadn't saved her, she'd be dead within that chamber.
"No need for thanks. I did it out of consideration for Patriarch Zisheng."
Ye Yunfei said indifferently, making it clear his rescue was solely because of Ziwei Sect's founder, Purple Sage Immortal Venerable. He still didn't hold much favor for Ji Yue.
"You..."
Ji Yue understood his meaning and was rather irritated.
Let it be known, with her looks and talent, she was absolutely goddess-tier among the Ziwei Sect disciples. Moreover, as a scion of the prominent Ji Family of the Eastern Barrens, these qualities had countless men pining for her. Every young man she encountered showered her with admiration and, given the chance, would try to win her favor. Never before had a young man been so cold and indifferent to her as Ye Yunfei, deliberately keeping his distance!
"Speaking of which, Su Fei, you told Third Elder earlier that a major event was about to happen in that palace and had him take the Ziwei Sect group out ahead of time. How did you know? Could it be you knew beforehand that Ancient Sage Gu Yao's corpse was going to undergo Corpse Transformation?"
Ji Yue asked curiously once more.
"No comment."
Ye Yunfei answered flatly.
"You! Hmph! It's no great loss if you don't tell me!"
Ji Yue flared up, turning her back to him and ignoring Ye Yunfei.
"Boss, I'm preparing to go into seclusion to break through my bloodline. With the Ice Toad Treasure Pearl, I'm sure I can achieve a breakthrough and upgrade it this time."
At this moment, Ye Yunfei received a sound transmission from the Ice Demon.
"Good, focus on your breakthrough. The Ice Toad Treasure Pearl will not only accelerate your bloodline breakthrough, but can also cause your strength to skyrocket, providing immense benefits to your future cultivation. You'll come to understand it all gradually."
Ye Yunfei nodded.
And so, inside the first level of the Heavenly Dao Tower, the Ice Demon entered secluded cultivation, preparing to break through his bloodline.
At the same time.
A group of old-timers from the Eastern Barrens had barged into Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb and arrived at the palace chamber housing his corpse.
Then, these old-timers saw a humanoid monster covered entirely in white fur, quietly hovering above an ice coffin.
Taken aback, these veteran powerhouses attempted to capture the white-furred monster.
The result? Before they could even get close, the white-haired monster struck first, extending a huge furry hand that gripped and ripped the head clean off one old-timer. Flesh and blood sprayed.
Panicking, the other veterans lashed out, engaging in a fierce battle with the white-haired monster.
Each of these old-timers was a figure once famed throughout the Eastern Barrens, possessing astonishing individual power. Any single one standing forth could exert a force capable of subduing the entire Eastern Barrens. How much more terrifying, then, was their combined might when fighting together?
Yet against this white-haired monster, they couldn't gain much of an advantage.
*BOOM BOOM...*
The battle was earth-shattering, making the sun and moon lose their brilliance.
Not long after, both the white-furred monster and these veterans burst out from the tomb, continuing their battle into the heavens above.
On that day, a terrifyingly extreme battle broke out in the skies over the region containing Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb. The energy shockwaves from the clashes spread for thousands of miles.
All surrounding mountain ranges were utterly flattened. Several flowing rivers were severed. The earth was battered and cratered, riddled with countless bottomless fissures.
Within a radius of thousands of miles, the land was reduced to total ruins!
Afterwards, numerous martial artists confirmed witnessing it with their own eyes: The white-furred monster gave a mighty roar, instantly shattering a mountain peak and reducing it to nothingness. Then it reached out, seizing a great river thousands of miles long and wielding it as a whip, with one lash destroying nearly half the body of a renowned Eastern Barrens veteran!
However, later on, both the white-haired monster and all the veterans vanished. No one ever knew who emerged victorious in the end.
Soon, this battle sent shockwaves throughout the Eastern Barrens, sparking frenzied discussions among countless beings.
At the same time, details of what transpired within that palace began to gradually spread.
A large group of experts had been scrambling for the Ice Toad Treasure Pearl and several dozen spatial rings left behind by Ancient Sage Gu Yao, yet none succeeded.
Suddenly, someone had employed illusion techniques to create countless phantasms, while also releasing vast amounts of ghostly mist. Amidst this confusion, the opportunity was seized to snatch the treasure pearl and the spatial rings.
"Who on earth took the treasure pearl and spatial rings left by Ancient Sage Gu Yao? Could it be someone from Qian Illusion Valley? After all, the faction possessing the most sophisticated illusion techniques throughout the Eastern Barrens is Qian Illusion Valley!"
"Indeed, it could be Qian Illusion Valley!"
Once specific details about the events inside the palace circulated, martial artists immediately suspected Qian Illusion Valley's involvement.
"Qian Illusion Valley sternly declares: Our members did not take Ancient Sage Gu Yao's Ice Toad Treasure Pearl or those spatial rings! This is because our people never entered that palace chamber, but went exploring in other areas instead!"
Qian Illusion Valley's higher-ups promptly stepped forward to clarify.
They understood perfectly well the endless calamities that would befall them if people mistakenly believed Qian Illusion Valley possessed Ancient Sage Gu Yao's Ice Toad Treasure Pearl and spatial rings.
"If not Qian Illusion Valley, then who could it be? Perhaps Young Prince Golden Roc? After all, among the masters who entered the palace, the Young Prince's speed was the swiftest."
"I think it's possible no one got them. Perhaps those illusions and ghostly mist were traps set down by Ancient Sage Gu Yao himself long ago, meant to prevent others from taking his treasures."
Discussions about the matter echoed throughout the Eastern Barrens.
By this time, Third Elder had finally returned to headquarters with the Ziwei Sect contingent.
"Haha... As long as everyone made it back safely, that's what matters!"
Sect Master Liu and the other five Grand Elders personally came to welcome them. Seeing that the entire Ziwei Sect group had returned, not a single person missing, they were extremely moved.
Because, among the forces that entered Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb for exploration this time, casualties had been extremely heavy. Even the great powers of the Eastern Barrens had lost over half their members. Many smaller forces were completely wiped out, not a single soul emerging!
But the Ziwei Sect's forces had returned completely unscathed!
"The fact that we survived and returned is entirely Su Fei's merit! Su Fei saved us all!"
Recalling the events, a chill of fear ran through Third Elder's heart. He felt immense gratitude towards Ye Yunfei, singing praises incessantly.