"I can't see clearly what they truly are, because their bodies are shrouded in a layer of very special Law radiance. However, I also sense they seem to lack any aura of life. Could they not be living things?"
Hun Lao spoke while sensing the more than ten figures ahead.
After entering this Reincarnation Cave, Hun Lao's sensory range was less than two hundred meters, while Ye Yunfei's was even smaller, only a little over a hundred meters. Therefore, Ye Yunfei couldn't perceive the more than ten figures Hun Lao had mentioned earlier.
"Let's go a bit further ahead," Ye Yunfei said.
He then moved forward. After advancing roughly a hundred meters, Ye Yunfei indeed sensed the more than ten figures ahead.
Those figures were lined up in a single file, moving forward slowly. Their movements were extremely sluggish and a bit stiff, seeming to sway and shuffle.
"I can sense them now too," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm chimed in.
"Why do I feel these guys are like spirits or ghosts? Not only are their movements stiff, but they also seem to possess no consciousness whatsoever. They resemble hollowed-out Soul Bodies," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm said curiously after sensing the figures ahead.
"Correct. I'm also sensing it more clearly now. They aren't living beings, but Soul Bodies devoid of consciousness," Hun Lao said, having gained a clearer perception.
"I know what they are. They should be the deceased souls of legend, preparing to enter the Reincarnation Cave on their journey towards rebirth," Hun Lao exclaimed, his tone filled with shock.
"Very likely," Ye Yunfei concurred after observing the figures for a moment.
"Wait, I've found that they most likely aren't real souls at all, but merely projections. Because all I can feel from their bodies is spatial energy and spatial Law. These beings seem to be projections imprinted onto the space itself, not real souls preparing for rebirth," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm suddenly called out loudly.
"Yes, I can sense it more clearly now too. They are indeed just projections imprinted onto that area of space. Now I understand. What we are seeing are not real, present entities, but spatial recordings of past projections, replaying endlessly," Hun Lao nodded in agreement.
"Indeed. Hearing you say that, I can see it now. They should just be some spatial projections recorded there," Ye Yunfei said, amazed, while simultaneously admiring Hun Lao and the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm's sensory abilities.
"This shows that in ancient times, this Reincarnation Cave might have truly been a passageway for souls to travel towards rebirth. It's truly astonishing! The legend that living beings transform into souls upon death and enter a Reincarnation Cave to be reborn… is actually true. The affairs of this world are truly miraculous!" the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm exclaimed.
Ye Yunfei cautiously moved forward until he reached the location of the more than ten figures.
Now he could see even more clearly: those figures were indeed spatial projections, shimmering faintly, repeatedly playing back within that stretch of space.
Ye Yunfei continued forward after that. Ahead remained the same bewildering, pitch-black expanse. Not long after, he spotted more and more spatial projections, all lined up in rows, moving slowly forward procession after procession, their movements stiff and zombie-like.
Ye Yunfei understood these were likely all spatial recordings left behind by souls who had entered this Reincarnation Cave in the past.
And so, Ye Yunfei journeyed onward in the inky blackness, unsure of how far he had traveled.
"Have you guys noticed... it feels like we're being watched by something?"
At this moment, the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm suddenly sent a Sound Transmission to Ye Yunfei and Hun Lao.
"Yes, I just sensed it too. Something seems to have locked onto us," Hun Lao transmitted back.
"We're being watched by something?"
Hearing their words, Ye Yunfei was momentarily startled. He immediately released his Soul Power, energy, and mental power, sensing in all directions.
Sure enough, a hair-raising feeling of being watched soon crept over him.
Ye Yunfei couldn't perceive the direction or location of that entity, let alone what it was. Yet the feeling of being observed grew increasingly intense.
"I'll try divination," Ye Yunfei thought to himself.
He immediately performed a divination using the Chaos Heavenly Mystery Art. Soon, his gaze turned in a specific direction.
According to the divination result, Ye Yunfei felt something in that direction was watching him.
"It's over there," Ye Yunfei Sound Transmitted to Hun Lao and the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm.
Hun Lao and the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm immediately focused their senses in that direction; both were exceptionally strong in spatial perception, much stronger than Hu Miao or Huang Shang.
"That's definitely the direction, but I can't tell what it is staring at us," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm reported after a moment of sensing.
"I can't pinpoint what it is either," Hun Lao said.
"The divination is showing me something... It seems to be a savage black beast shrouded in an eerie aura, crouched in that direction watching us," Ye Yunfei said, continuously using the Chaos Heavenly Mystery Art. He suddenly saw the image of a colossal black beast-shadow crouching in that direction, two beams of terrifying light shooting from its eyes.
"Forget it, whatever it is, we shouldn't provoke it."
Finding that the terrifying beast suddenly seemed to intensify its gaze, Ye Yunfei spoke up at once and immediately turned to continue forward.
"Right. We'd be better off avoiding entanglement with anything in this Reincarnation Cave," Hun Lao said.
As Ye Yunfei pressed on, he continuously sensed many other strange, sinister auras hidden within the distant darkness. These auras lurked there, invisible to the naked eye and undetectable by Soul Power or mental energy. Yet Ye Yunfei knew it wasn't an illusion; there undoubtedly existed something eerie hidden within the surrounding darkness.
"We really must be careful. This Reincarnation Cave seems to hold many eerie beings. They're lurking in the shadows watching us… it's too frightening," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm said with a tremble.
"Don't worry. As long as we don't provoke them, they likely won't trouble us either," Ye Yunfei reassured.
At this time, Ye Yunfei was holding the Palace Lord's identity token of the Samsara Palace, which continuously emitted thick Samsara energy and Samsara Law.
Thus, Ye Yunfei journeyed onward, unaware of the distance he had traveled.
Suddenly...
Boom...
A rumbling sound like rolling waves arose ahead. Ye Yunfei was shocked to see an endless black sea before him.
Towering waves, each hundreds of meters high, surged skyward across the black expanse, a spectacular sight.
"Why is there a black sea here?"
Approaching the shore, Ye Yunfei gazed at the endless black waters, a deep-seated alarm growing within him.
"Don't you find these waters particularly bizarre?" Hun Lao suddenly said to him.
Ye Yunfei immediately looked at the black seawater and discovered it exuded an intensely yin, cold energy. The entire black sea felt like an expanse of bitterly cold black ice. Even with Ye Yunfei's cultivation level and power, standing on its shore sent a chill through his body, causing him to shiver slightly.
He promptly circulated the Nine Yang Ancient Sutra. The eight Chaos Divine Meridians within his body surfaced simultaneously. Three enormous golden spheres within his dantian shone with sky-reaching golden radiance, floating and submerging. Furthermore, several other strange fires manifested around him, radiating scorching energy.
As a result, the cold energy radiating from the black sea was instantly isolated, no longer affecting him.
"Proceed with utmost caution. This place is profoundly strange," Hun Lao warned.
"We've come this far. To continue onward, we must venture onto this eerie black sea. Think carefully. I sense there must be many bizarre things lurking within its waters," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm advised Ye Yunfei.
"We can walk across its surface without touching the water," Ye Yunfei said.
He then stepped forward, planning to traverse the air, not intending to descend to the sea's surface but to cross over it through mid-air.
Yet, as soon as Ye Yunfei took a step towards the black sea ahead, he felt a terrifying force violently pulling his body downwards towards the sea surface. Fortunately, he was prepared and halted his step abruptly before retreating hastily to stand back on the shore.
Startled, Ye Yunfei waved his hand, retrieving a Perfected Demigod-level magical treasure, and hurled it forward.
With a boom, the artifact activated directly, releasing powerful artifact energy as it whistled forward over the sea's surface. But the next instant, it plummeted into the sea, submerged by the dark water, and vanished without a trace.
"There are highly advanced spatial restrictions here. It's impossible to fly over the sea's surface," Hun Lao explained.
"Right. I feel it too. The air above the sea contains terrifying spatial prohibitions. It's completely impossible to fly across," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm added.
Ye Yunfei waved his hand again, tossing out several more Perfected Demigod-level treasures, activating them all simultaneously. They roared as they flew forward.
These artifacts raced over the sea's surface but less than half a breath later, all fell into the sea, submerged, and disappeared.
Watching this, Ye Yunfei's expression turned grim. This clearly demonstrated the futility of attempting to fly across.
"It seems flying over isn't an option. I certainly can't swim across," Ye Yunfei said with a bitter smile.
"Did you guys notice we completely cannot sense anything under these waters? The water seems to block perception," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm exclaimed, surprised.
"Indeed. These waters definitely block perception. I can't feel anything under the water either. Too bizarre," Hun Lao confirmed.
Ye Yunfei tested himself, but whether using Soul Power or mental energy, he couldn't penetrate the waters. This made him even more wary of venturing into the sea rashly.
"Looks like we can only go this far. We can't proceed," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm said.
Reluctant to give up, Ye Yunfei walked along the shoreline in one direction.
Not long after, to his delight, he spotted a small white boat moored at the shore ahead, tied to a wooden post.
Ye Yunfei approached the boat, inspecting the small white vessel.
The boat was pristine white as snow, engraved with strange patterns and emanating an aura rich with Samsara Law.
"Master, look! Ahead, there are many more of these white boats," Hu Miao said, pointing further along the shore.
Indeed, many more white boats were moored along the coast. One after another, snow-white vessels rested against the shore. Contrasted against the black water, they were strikingly visible, but also gave off an eerie feeling.
"It appears these boats are specifically meant for crossing the sea," Ye Yunfei observed.
"Since I've come this far, there's no reason to turn back empty-handed. So be it. I'll use this boat to venture into this black sea and see what lies beyond."
Ye Yunfei quickly resolved himself.
The vast black sea was endless. To proceed onward required using a boat; there was no other choice.
With the Palace Lord's identity token in one hand, continuously channeling Samsara energy and Samsara Law, and with his spatial teleportation token ready in his other, Ye Yunfei stepped onto the white boat.
The moment he boarded, before taking any action, the white boat suddenly untied itself from the wooden post on the shore and began sailing towards the open sea.
The boat was tiny, and sailing on the vast expanse of black waters made one feel profoundly insignificant.
Ye Yunfei discovered the boat moved swiftly, heading straight into the sea's depths.
"We're taking a huge risk! We don't know where this strange boat will take us. We have no control now. Also, the boat moves by itself, seemingly operating outside our control. It's actively taking us deeper into the sea. Who knows if it will bring us back to shore later? What if we can't return?"
The Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm appeared beside Ye Yunfei, its expression full of worry as it gazed at the vast, dark sea ahead.
"We'll take it one step at a time," Ye Yunfei said, frowning deeply as he looked at the boundless black waters.
In truth, Ye Yunfei also felt his decision might have been somewhat hasty.