"Ye Yunfei..."
Yan Xiaoquan had originally been running shoulder-to-shoulder with Ye Yunfei. Suddenly, she saw him being controlled by an invisible force, lifting into the air, and then rushing back toward the ancient battlefield, disappearing in an instant. She couldn't help but be greatly shocked.
"Brother Ye, where..."
Upon hearing Yan Xiaoquan's cry, Wu Wang, Zhou Ye, and Wu Tianyu also realized Ye Yunfei was gone and were equally startled.
"You guys leave first!"
Yan Xiaoquan turned to look back at the turbulent, convulsing battlefield, thought for a moment, and said to the three of them.
"How can that be! If we go, we go together. If we go back, we go back together!" Zhou Ye shouted.
"No! I'll go back to find Ye Yunfei myself! You three, leave this place immediately! This ancient battlefield is far too dangerous. With your strength, even if you came with me, you probably couldn't help much anyway. No need for everyone to go and risk themselves!" Yan Xiaoquan shook her head and said.
"If the power of us three can't help much, then you going back alone with just your own power would be even more overestimating yourself!" Wu Tianyu retorted.
"It's different for me. He saved my life. I can't just abandon him!" Yan Xiaoquan insisted.
"I am the captain of this team, and you must obey my orders. I am ordering you now to immediately leave this ancient battlefield and wait for me and Ye Yunfei outside!" Yan Xiaoquan commanded sternly.
Then, she activated her movement technique and, without looking back, rushed back toward the depths of the ancient battlefield.
"This..." Wu Wang, Zhou Ye, and Wu Tianyu watched Yan Xiaoquan swiftly vanish into the billowing, surging tide of black energy, feeling utterly at a loss, unsure what to do for a moment.
*
"This ancient battlefield looks like it's going to break apart."
At this moment, within the ancient battlefield, Ye Yunfei saw the earth continuously splitting, the space constantly exploding and disintegrating, endless black battlefield energy wildly roaring, and those War Remnant Souls burning as well. A sense of dread rose in his heart.
"But... what does this have to do with me? Who caught me and pulled me back? It couldn't be that senior lady, could it?"
Ye Yunfei felt quite helpless. He had already run to the very edge of the ancient battlefield, about to escape its range, only to be caught and pulled back now.
"I am now going to sever a part of this ancient battlefield, and I also need to cull a portion of the War Remnant Souls. The War Remnant Souls culled are all handed over for you to handle. You can use them to enhance your Soul Power."
Just as Ye Yunfei was totally bewildered, a woman's voice suddenly sounded within his Soul Sea. It was precisely the voice of that lady from before.
"Senior, it's you! What's happening to this ancient battlefield?" Ye Yunfei asked in surprise.
Simultaneously, Ye Yunfei also discerned that this woman seemed to harbor no malice toward him and was even planning to gift him a portion of the battlefield's War Remnant Souls for cultivation. This relaxed Ye Yunfei's mind. It seemed he wouldn't be in danger.
"Less nonsense. I am now sending a part of this battlefield's War Remnant Souls to your vicinity. Seize the time and refine them," the woman replied.
Boom...
Following her words, Ye Yunfei saw a massive number of War Remnant Souls rushing violently toward his location from all directions.
"Senior, I am a member of the Light Faction. I beseech you, senior, do not harm the War Remnant Souls of our Light Faction!"
Seeing that the War Remnant Souls surging toward him included not only those of the Dark Faction but also those of the Light Faction, Ye Yunfei immediately shouted. He had originally planned to find a way to take these Light Faction War Remnant Souls out someday to strengthen the overall power of the Light Faction, so naturally, he couldn't bear to refine them.
"Such a hassle! I don't care about which faction's remnant souls they are. Among these War Remnant Souls, refine the ones you want, and store and take away the ones you don't. I've already severed them; they no longer belong to this part of the battlefield anyway," the woman said in a cold, clear voice.
"Well... Alright then. Thank you, senior!" Ye Yunfei was stunned for a moment first, then said loudly.
Ye Yunfei had originally intended to let those Light Faction War Remnant Souls remain within this ancient battlefield and come retrieve them when the time was ripe. But it seemed now he would definitely have to take a portion of the Light Faction War Remnant Souls with him.
Boom...
A vast number of War Remnant Souls rushed toward Ye Yunfei's position like dumplings dropped into a pot, densely suspending themselves in the space around his body, completely filling the area.
"Huang Shang, let's refine them together!" Ye Yunfei said to Huang Shang.
"Good!" Huang Shang appeared beside Ye Yunfei, his face full of excitement.
These remnant souls were an extremely precious cultivation resource for Ghost Cultivators.
Swish...
The Soul-Nourishing Tree stretched out numerous branches, leaves, and root tendrils, shooting out from within Ye Yunfei's Soul Sea. They transformed into countless jade-green long arrows that shot toward the War Remnant Souls around Ye Yunfei, piercing through them directly and then beginning to refine them.
These War Remnant Souls seemed to have already been suppressed by that mysterious woman. They remained motionless, quietly suspended in the space around Ye Yunfei, offering no resistance.
Apart from utilizing the Soul-Nourishing Tree to refine the War Remnant Souls, Ye Yunfei also activated a core secret art from the Soul Race's inheritance. With it, he pulled a dozen or so War Remnant Souls directly into his Soul Sea and began refining them.
Huang Shang also used Ghost Cultivator techniques to start refining those War Remnant Souls.
Of course, Ye Yunfei and Huang Shang only refined the Dark Faction War Remnant Souls. Whenever they identified a Light Faction War Remnant Soul, they temporarily sealed it and transferred it into the Phantom Tower. Once separated from the battlefield, these War Remnant Souls would not immediately regain awareness; they required a transitional period and needed time to slowly recover. The weaker the War Remnant Soul, the longer the recovery time required.
Boom...
More and more War Remnant Souls were sent to the space surrounding Ye Yunfei, completely filling that area, layer upon layer. Seen from afar, Ye Yunfei was utterly submerged within them.
*
At the same time.
Three black-robed figures, their bodies enveloped in loose, wide black robes, were continuously traversing layers of space-time. They entered the Main World, then swiftly rushed toward the direction of this ancient battlefield, finally arriving at its edge.
"Our Dark Faction's Guardian of Souls within this ancient battlefield has already been killed. This ancient battlefield seems to be disintegrating," one of the black-robed figures said solemnly.
"This ancient battlefield holds a great number of War Remnant Souls. These War Remnant Souls can be used as nutrients for cultivating Seeds. Moreover, those War Remnant Souls of our faction within can be revived to participate in the imminent World-Destroying War. Therefore, this ancient battlefield cannot be allowed to be destroyed for now. Let's go in and find the cause, to preserve it!" another black-robed figure said.
Following that, the three black-robed figures simultaneously charged into the ancient battlefield, heading toward its core zone. They had already sensed that the source of this battlefield's violent disturbance lay within that core area.
Not long after these three black-robed figures entered the ancient battlefield, three more figures arrived from afar, landing at the battlefield's edge.
"This ancient battlefield seems to have undergone some sudden change! I just saw three Dark Faction experts go in. It appears the Dark Faction has had their eyes on this ancient battlefield for a while," said one of them, a yellow-robed old man, scrutinizing the violently shaking ancient battlefield before him with a frown.
"There are many War Remnant Souls of our Light Faction within this ancient battlefield. Among them are quite a few remnant souls left behind by powerful experts of the Light Faction from ancient times; they hold significant value. If it is simply destroyed, it would be a great shame. Moreover, from what I know, a few juniors of our Light Faction were sent to explore this ancient battlefield. I wonder if they are still inside," another old man with a fair complexion, clean-shaven face, and slightly plump body spoke.
"It seems the disturbance originates from the core area. Let's go in and investigate!" said a burly old man wearing purple robes.
Thus, these three Light Faction experts soared into the air and charged into the ancient battlefield.
"Hmm? Look! Over there are three young fellows. They look like they might be juniors of our Light Faction. Why are there only three left? Could the others have already perished within this ancient battlefield?" Suddenly, the yellow-robed old man pointed at three youths standing near the edge of the ancient battlefield not far away and spoke.
These three youths were precisely Wu Wang, Zhou Ye, and Wu Tianyu.