Finally, under Ye Yunfei's insistence, the seven Deities accepted the spatial rings he handed them.
In doing so, their favorable impression of Ye Yunfei instantly soared.
"Young man, your talent is monstrous, but more importantly, you are a man of loyalty and honor. This is truly rare!"
The few Deities heaped praise on Ye Yunfei.
As the treasures they had gifted Ye Yunfei were largely returned, and he had even added a few additional precious artifacts for them, they were now able to take back the majority of what they had gained from their exploration of the True Phoenix Tomb. It meant this venture was not in vain.
"Everyone, I understand the ancient Chaotic Void Sea split into eight fragments. May I ask which one you hail from?" Ye Yunfei asked.
"We all reside in the Sixth Void," one Deity replied.
"So, the Sixth Void," Ye Yunfei nodded.
Inside the True Phoenix Tomb, Ye Yunfei had devoured the Soul Bodies of many individuals from other external Voids, thus acquiring their memories. He knew the ancient Chaotic Void Sea had fractured into eight fragments after being shattered, each piece simply numbered sequentially from the First Void to the Eighth Void. The Void where Ye Yunfei resided was known as the Eighth Void – also the weakest among the eight fragments in overall strength.
"Everyone, in the Sixth Void, how strong is the Guardian Faction? Frankly speaking, in our Eighth Void, the Guardian Faction is the most powerful force, having even gained control over the entire region, with many major powers already pledging allegiance to them," Ye Yunfei inquired.
"The situation in our Sixth Void is quite similar. The Guardian Faction is a superpower within our Void. However, in the Sixth Void, besides the Guardian Faction, there are a few other supremely powerful entities who exist as rivals, capable of opposing them as equals to some extent. So, the Guardian Faction cannot claim complete control over the entire Void. But recently, the Guardian Faction has been stirring unrest, acting ambitiously, using every method and means to suppress the other superpowers, creating an extremely tense atmosphere. Some grandmasters of divination, after performing their calculations, concluded that the Guardian Faction has begun its campaign to seize control of the Sixth Void and establish dominance. In short, the Sixth Void is now highly unstable, a violent conflict could erupt at any moment," one Deity explained.
"The seven of us come from a first-class faction. While our faction's strength is respectable, it is still inferior compared to those superpowers. If a fierce conflict or war truly erupts within the Sixth Void, factions like ours, even the first-rate ones, will be forced to pick sides and become entangled. In fact, the vast majority of forces across the entire Void will be implicated. When that happens, the land will be scorched, and countless lives will be lost — a consequence our Sixth Void can ill afford!" another Deity lamented.
At this, both Liu Ju and the seven Deities wore unpleasant expressions, the atmosphere turning heavy.
"It seems, in your Sixth Void as well, it is the Guardian Faction stirring up trouble, preventing the entire Void from knowing peace," Ye Yunfei stated.
"The situation is quite similar in our Eighth Void. Originally, even though our Void was comparatively weaker in overall strength, it remained largely peaceful on the whole. But not long ago, the Guardian Faction suddenly emerged, forcibly seeking hegemony. First, they enlisted numerous major factions, then began excluding and targeting those unwilling to join them. Currently, the atmosphere in our Eighth Void Sea is also extremely tense. The Guardian Faction has become the dominant power in our region," Ye Yunfei spoke slowly.
"I've heard that the Guardian Faction's circumstances in the Fifth Void and Seventh Void are basically the same. They have been very active everywhere," another Deity added.
"Everyone, what about the overall strength of your Sixth Void? Are there many Deities?" Ye Yunfei asked further.
"Within our Sixth Void, the number of Deities can be considered relatively high. For example, a first-class faction like ours typically has over a dozen Deities. The superpowers have many more Deities. There are rumors that among those superpowers, there likely exist Heavenly Gods," Liu Ju answered Ye Yunfei's question.
"Heavenly Gods... So the Sixth Void's strength is that formidable." Ye Yunfei was a bit taken aback.
Above Void Gods were Heavenly Gods — Deities of a higher realm. In Ye Yunfei's Eighth Void, forget about Heavenly Gods, even primary-level Void Gods were not numerous.
"If that's the case, then within your Sixth Void, the Guardian Faction likely possesses experts at the Heavenly God level. With the Sixth Void like this, the Guardian Faction's strength in other Voids must be similar, possibly even stronger. The overall power of the Guardian Faction is truly terrifying!" Ye Yunfei couldn't help but exclaim.
"Indeed, the Guardian Faction's overall power is formidable. I've heard that the Guardian Factions across different Voids are connected to one another. They essentially form a single entity. If you combined all members of the Guardian Faction across the Eight Voids, their collective strength would be truly terrifying," Liu Ju nodded.
"In your Sixth Void, does anyone understand the origins of the Guardian Faction?" Ye Yunfei pondered for a moment before asking.
"Actually, within every Void, there exists a legend regarding the origins of the Guardian Faction: that it was founded by the instigator of the ancient war, the very culprit who shattered the Chaotic Void Sea. The purpose of establishing the Guardian Faction was to control and suppress all living beings across the Eight Voids, even treating the Eight Voids as eight prisons, with the Guardian Faction serving as the jailers, tasked with guarding us, the inmates. And all living beings across the Eight Voids are criminals to them, criminals beyond redemption who must suffer hardship to atone for their sins," one Deity stated.
"If that's the case, then the Guardian Faction should be the common enemy of everyone across all Eight Voids. Shouldn't all factions and individuals unite to face them and together eradicate the Guardian Faction? But now, far from uniting against them, so many factions and people have actually joined the Guardian Faction. Why is that?" Ye Yunfei inquired.
"The reasons are complex. Firstly, no matter which Void you're in, the Guardian Faction is immensely powerful. Not many factions or individuals dare to openly take the lead in opposing them. Secondly, the Guardian Faction uses various methods, promising immense benefits to recruit many major factions and individuals. They have even planted agents within many powerful organizations. Thirdly, from what I know, infighting among major factions within each Void is severe. Each pursues its own interests, and some even secretly collude with the Guardian Faction to suppress rival factions. In short, most major factions don't want to be the one to stick its neck out. They don't want to take the lead in organizing everyone against the Guardian Faction. Instead, they want others to be the vanguard, sitting back to watch other factions struggle against the Guardian Faction, hoping to reap the spoils later. Getting all factions and people to unite against the Guardian Faction is incredibly difficult," Liu Ju considered Ye Yunfei's question and slowly spoke these words.
"Sister Ju is right. Although everyone knows the Guardian Faction is ambitious and harbors ill intentions, getting all factions and individuals to unite and resist them is incredibly challenging. Moreover, I've heard that in the Fourth Void, there was indeed an incident where all factions joined forces to form an alliance to collectively resist the Guardian Faction. But in the end, they were defeated. The Guardian Faction used various methods to dismantle that alliance, and two or three of its key factions even secretly defected to the Guardian Faction," another Deity sighed and added.
"Indeed, it's much the same in our Eighth Void. Everyone is fully aware that the existence of the Guardian Faction poses a serious threat to the entire Void, yet many major factions not only fail to confront them, but for their own selfish interests, collude with the Guardian Faction, aiding them in their tyranny. The situation is highly intricate," Ye Yunfei recalled the state of affairs in his own Void, shaking his head with a sigh.
"Right, I have another question I'd like to ask you all. That is, how did you manage to enter our Eighth Void? Since the Eight Voids have split and are no longer connected, traveling from the Sixth Void to the Eighth Void shouldn't be easy, right?" Ye Yunfei asked further.
"It's true that the eight fragments of the Chaotic Void Sea are not directly connected to each other. However, there are two methods to travel from one Void fragment to another. The first method involves the ancient Chaotic Void Sea possessing many long-distance spatial teleportation formations. Even though it has fragmented into eight pieces, some of these high-level long-distance spatial teleportation formations remain functional. If you can locate such an ancient, advanced long-distance spatial teleportation formation, teleportation between two different Void fragments becomes possible," Liu Ju explained.
"I see," Ye Yunfei understood now.
"Some exceptionally high-level long-distance spatial teleportation formations can still function even if their positions shift, or the distance between them stretches," Hun Lao transmitted his voice to Ye Yunfei.
"The second method involves experts possessing exceptionally formidable power who are also skilled in spatial energy and spatial laws. They can rip open space and forcibly traverse between two different Void fragments. There are also experts who possess extremely high-level spatial magic treasures, capable of shattering the void to enable crossing between different fragments. To my knowledge, among the powerful experts from other Voids who entered the True Phoenix Tomb for treasure hunting this time, several utilized their spatial treasures to brute-force their way through the spatial barriers to get here," Liu Ju continued.
"So that's how it is. Experts capable of ripping open space and crossing between two different Void fragments possess unimaginable strength. And those magic treasures able to pierce through the space between two different fragments must be of extremely high rank," Ye Yunfei marveled.
"Indeed, the ancient Chaotic Void Sea had a highly prosperous cultivation civilization — an era teeming with experts where Deities rained down from the sky. Although the Chaotic Void Sea has been shattered into eight fragments, many ancient superpowers have endured, and their foundations should not be underestimated," Liu Ju nodded in agreement.
"What about the eight of you? How did you cross over from the Sixth Void to our Eighth Void?" Ye Yunfei asked once more.