"Oh no, stop!"
The middle-aged man, caught off guard by such an event, was momentarily stunned but quickly reacted, roaring as he chased after the scarlet-robed youth.
"How incredible!
It seems that Divine Pill has evolved to the point of possessing life! It's escaping!" someone cried out in shock.
"That pill is priceless! Hurry up and block it, catch it!" others snapped to their senses as well, unleashing their movement techniques to pursue the scarlet-robed youth. Even Ye Yunfei couldn't help but activate his own movement technique to give chase.
Pushing his technique to the limit, Ye Yunfei's speed in movement and techniques reached an astonishing level, instantly overtaking most of the pursuers and rapidly closing in on the scarlet-robed youth.
To Ye Yunfei's surprise, there were five or six individuals who could keep pace with him in terms of speed in movement and techniques, running alongside him as they all sought to catch the youth.
At that moment, the scarlet-robed youth suddenly transformed once more, turning back into a crimson pill. Its speed then increased even further, becoming a streak of red light that pierced through space and vanished.
"No need to chase anymore," Hun Lao said to Ye Yunfei. "That pill has already left this space, and by now it might even have left this entire passage.
Look at the lid of that jade bottle—there was a seal on it. Previously, that seal was likely what trapped the pill inside. Now that the sealed lid has been opened, the pill that had gained life seized its chance to escape."
Ye Yunfei immediately looked at the lid of the bottle that had held the red pill. Sure enough, he discovered the torn seal.
"No! How can this be?" the man who had first found the red pill cried out unwillingly, watching as the pill had vanished without a trace.
"Astounding!
Pills refined by ancient practitioners actually gained life. It seems the legends about some ancient Divine Pills are true," the crowd continued murmuring, gazing in the direction the red pill had disappeared.
"It seems this city truly contains some good stuff!
Let's keep searching!" someone suddenly snapped back to reality.
"Since the city held a priceless pill like that, it might harbor other valuable treasures as well."
Instantly, even more people began rushing into one building after another within the city, searching everywhere. Even Ye Yunfei couldn't resist joining the throng, constantly entering and exiting structures.
Every building in this city looked extremely dilapidated, crumbling both inside and out. Some structures were already beginning to collapse, and most of the items inside had decayed beyond recognition.
"Damn it! I found over a dozen bottles of pills here. I thought I'd hit the jackpot, but when I opened the lids, every single pill inside disintegrated into dust as soon as it was exposed to the light," someone cursed bitterly after finding over a dozen jade bottles inside one building. He'd opened them all eagerly only to watch the pills turn to flying ash and scatter with the wind.
"There are five or six artifacts here that look like True God-level Dao Weapons.
Hahaha... Excellent!"
Suddenly, suppressed laughter came from a building in the distance.
Inside that building, someone had found over a dozen artifacts on a wooden shelf, all of which seemed to be True God-level Dao Weapons. Unable to contain his delight, he'd burst into laughter.
But just as his hand touched those Dao Weapons, they crumbled into dust at the slightest contact, becoming piles of broken fragments completely devoid of power.
"Useless! These True God-level Dao Weapons have all been utterly ruined," the man cursed through gritted teeth in disappointment.
"How could this be?
Logically, True God-level Dao Weapons can exist for extremely long periods of time. That these have all been ruined suggests their core energy and essence have completely dissipated, rendering them utterly useless.
This can only mean one thing—these True God-level Dao Weapons have been stored here for an incomprehensibly long time, completely destroyed by the Time Energy and Time Laws that have eroded them. That means this city must have been abandoned for an unthinkably long period," someone couldn't help but comment, stunned.
"Hahaha, I found an aged Feng-shaped Fleeceflower Root here! Looks like it's at least several thousand years old.
Excellent!
This kind of medicinal herb is rare to begin with, and one this old is even rarer.
Even more remarkably, this Feng-shaped Fleeceflower Root is perfectly preserved, brimming with potent medicinal energy! I've struck it rich, truly struck it rich!"
Suddenly, a voice striving to remain low came from a round palace nearby. Though the voice was small, many nearby still heard it.
"What?
A thousand-year-old Feng-shaped Fleeceflower Root?"
Everyone who overheard immediately wore expressions of greed, for this was a legendary, extremely valuable type of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.
"That guy is too lucky, to find such a precious herb," Ye Yunfei mused nearby, overhearing the voice from the round palace and feeling a flicker of envy.
"Let's just snatch it," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm, already salivating, suggested to Ye Yunfei.
"Never mind," Ye Yunfei shook his head after some thought. "'Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures are for those fated to possess them.' Besides, we bear him no grudge. There's no need to forcibly seize it."
Ye Yunfei continued searching throughout the city, but his luck seemed poor, as he found nothing of value.
This was partly because many people had entered the city before him, and by now almost every building had been thoroughly ransacked.
Exploration and treasure-hunting often came down to being one step ahead; the chances for latecomers to obtain treasures and opportunities were greatly diminished.
"Hey, there seems to be an underground treasure vault in this square!"
Suddenly, someone entered a square located in one corner of the city. This square was filled with numerous stone pillars, each carved with mysterious and bizarre-looking runes. Each pillar had a different color—a riot of hues that made the scene appear extremely peculiar.
A few True Gods entered this square, which radiated an aura of strangeness from every corner, and cautiously examined their surroundings. In the center of the square, they found a loose stone slab that resembled a door leading to an underground palace. Once they lifted the slab, they revealed a pitch-black entrance to a tunnel.
However, the energy emanating from within was far too sinister and bizarre, causing even these few True Gods to involuntarily shudder. For a moment, none dared to enter. Thus, they called out to draw more True Gods to join them in exploring below.
Sure enough, more True Gods immediately rushed over to the square, gathering around the black tunnel entrance.
"Everyone, valuable treasures are likely hidden inside. Let's go down together and explore," they soon mustered their courage and proceeded into the tunnel entrance as a group.
But moments later...
"Aah! Aaaaaah!"
Scream after scream emanated continuously from the tunnel entrance.
"What's happening?"
Shocked gazes converged on the square.
"Ahh! So horrible! There's some terrifying demon hiding inside!"
A bloody figure suddenly rushed out of the tunnel entrance.
This was one of the True Gods who had gone in earlier. Now, his garments were completely shredded, and his body was covered with ghastly crimson scratches—as if sharp claws had raked over every part of him! Fresh blood gushed from the torn flesh.
"Aah! Run for it! It's coming out!"
At that moment, everyone saw a half-body drenched in blood rush out from the tunnel entrance.
This was the upper half of a True God, his lower body missing completely. His viscera dragged behind him, painting the square floor in bright red.
Then, another True God rushed out—only a head remained, filled with terror, screaming as he fled, in a state of complete mental collapse.
Everyone who saw this scene felt a chill in their hearts, their alertness heightened.
"It seems something truly horrifying is hiding in that tunnel.
Everyone, run!
I suspect that's where the legendary Reincarnation Ghost resides," the freshly escaped True God—now just a head—screamed with terror.
"What? The legendary Reincarnation Ghost?"
Hearing his terrified scream, the others all had their expressions shift to horror. Some even cried out involuntarily.
"Were the legendary Reincarnation Ghosts truly real?" Even Ye Yunfei was somewhat shaken.