Ye Yunfei studied the map over and over again.
At the same time, he compared it to another map residing in his Soul Sea.
The jade slip left by Zhen Xuanzi contained a map detailing the precise location of the Heavenly Dao Tower.
That map had already been imprinted within Ye Yunfei's Soul Sea.
"It seems the place where Zhen Xuanzi hid the Heavenly Dao Tower is not within the Divine Fall Land," Ye Yunfei concluded after comparing the two maps.
"Let's explore some more," Ye Yunfei said, imprinting the map from the Taoist's jade slip into his Soul Sea before putting the slip away.
On this map, the Taoist had specially marked several dozen locations. Clearly, these marked places were particularly perilous.
Ye Yunfei found the position of this mysterious mountainous region on the map. Within this region, over a dozen spots were marked!
It could be said that this mountainous terrain accounted for more than half of the most dangerous places in this Small World!
With this map in hand, Ye Yunfei believed that as long as he avoided those dozen-plus marked locations, there shouldn't be any major problems.
And so, Ye Yunfei led Hu Miao and the others onward, continuing their journey through the mountain range.
Along the way, they encountered various perils, but thankfully, all encounters, albeit perilous, ultimately passed without major incident. They even managed to gather a few treasures.
During their journey, they came across several of the danger zones marked on the Taoist's map. Whenever they approached such places, Ye Yunfei would simply steer clear from a distance.
Several days later, the terrain ahead suddenly opened up into a plain.
In the center of the plain stood an ancient city of considerable size.
A large crowd had gathered before the city gates – at least several thousand people!
"What is this place?" Ye Yunfei wondered inwardly as he scrutinized the city.
The city appeared somewhat dilapidated. Its walls were covered with moss, exuding an aura of desolation and gloom.
Ye Yunfei approached the city walls with Hu Miao and the others in tow.
"Ye Yunfei! It's you!" a furious roar suddenly rang out.
Turning to look, Ye Yunfei saw a man clad in crimson-red armor glaring at him with furious eyes. A group of disciples flanked this man, their gazes fixed on Ye Yunfei with clear anger.
These were disciples of the Tongtian Sect from the Tianma Star Region!
"Ye Yunfei, I didn't expect you lot to make it here alive as well," another young man with an upright posture said coldly, his eyes locked on Ye Yunfei.
It was Wu Kun!
Furthermore, Ye Yunfei observed that the crowd gathered here consisted solely of disciples from major factions of various star regions.
Disciples from the Nine Li Imperial Dynasty, the Wu Clan, the Sun-Moon Sect, and the Cangyan Sacred Land of the Xuanhuang Star Region were all present.
"Senior Brother Cui, Ye Yunfei killed many of our Sun-Moon Sect disciples! And he robbed us of all our possessions!" a man clad in alternating black and white robes shouted, pointing at Ye Yunfei.
This was Han Yucheng of the Sun-Moon Sect. Back in the valley when competing for the Black Geng Thunder Wood, Ye Yunfei had killed many Sun-Moon Sect disciples and plundered everyone's wealth.
"Ye Yunfei, you truly are audacious. Not only did you provoke the Wu Clan, you dare to cross our Sun-Moon Sect as well!" a tall, thin man dressed in the same black-and-white robes as Han Yucheng spoke coldly.
This man possessed the strength of the late-stage Sovereign God Realm, his aura sharp and his gaze penetrating.
"Everyone, let's just join forces and kill Ye Yunfei now!" the red-armored man from Tongtian Sect bellowed, taking a step forward.
Boom...
A three-story black pagoda surged out from his body, releasing a rolling wave of energy pressure.
"Good!" Wu Kun also stepped forward. A white ring shot into the sky, shaking heaven and earth.
Boom...
A black-and-white ruler also soared into the air, emitting a fearsome pressure.
The tall, thin man from the Sun-Moon Sect also took a step forward, speaking coldly.
Three Innate Treasures!
At the same moment, disciples of the Tongtian Sect, the Wu Clan, and the Sun-Moon Sect surged forward, drawing weapons and magical artifacts, ready to besiege Ye Yunfei's group.
However, aside from the disciples of these three factions, none of the others from the various forces present took action.
"Stay back," Ye Yunfei instructed Hu Miao and the others.
Boom...
The Profound Magnetic Mountain surged out from Ye Yunfei's body, radiating a flood of silver light that dyed a vast expanse of the sky silver.
"Our main priority at the moment is figuring out a way to enter this ancient city and conduct a proper exploration," a youth in white suddenly spoke up.
"Correct. If you want to fight, go farther away. Don't disturb us here. We need to breach the Formations on these city gates," a man clad in a black cape nodded in agreement.
"All I want is to enter this city and explore it. Take your personal grudges far away from here; don't hinder me from breaking these Formations!" a man built as sturdy as an iron tower, gripping a giant hammer in his hand, shouted impatiently.
"Right, if you want to fight, please move farther away," several others chimed in.
They were all disciples from major factions of other star regions.
"Brother Wu, why don't we first join forces to break the Formations on these city gates and enter to explore and seek treasure? As for your grudge with Ye Yunfei, we can settle it slowly afterward," a young woman in a violet dress, her face veiled by a light gauze, spoke up softly at this moment.
Princess Nine Li, a young genius of the Nine Li Imperial Dynasty!
Many of the men around looked at Princess Nine Li with eyes full of admiration.
"Fine then! Ye Yunfei, I'll let you cling to life a little longer! But you've offended our Wu Clan; your death is inevitable!" Wu Kun said through gritted teeth.
Then, he retracted the white ring.
"Humph! Brat, just you wait. I will kill you!" the crimson-armored man from Tongtian Sect snorted coldly, recalling his three-story black pagoda.
The tall, thin man from Sun-Moon Sect also put away his Innate Treasure.
"Esteemed friends, Brother Tang is a young genius of the Thousand Formations Sect from the Taiheng Star Region. The Thousand Formations Sect is a major sect famous for its formation arts, and Brother Tang is a renowned young formation genius within their ranks. Therefore, let Brother Tang lead us in breaching the Formations on these city gates. Let's all cooperate as much as possible and follow Brother Tang's instructions. What do you all think?" A young man with exceptional poise spoke clearly.
"I have no objections. In terms of formation arts, the Thousand Formations Sect is indeed an authority."
"I agree as well! Brother Tang, hurry up and lead us in breaking the Formations! Rays of treasure light are shooting into the sky from all over this city; it must contain many treasures of astonishing value. I can't wait to rush in and explore!"
...
The crowd expressed their agreement one after another.
The Thousand Formations Sect was a major sect from the Taiheng Star Region, famous for its formation arts; every disciple of the sect studied Formations.
"Everyone, a day ago, someone saw a delicate-looking young boy riding a snow-white serpent playing inside this city. So, it's highly likely that there are Demigod herbs within this city!" a martial artist suddenly shouted loudly at this moment.
Hiss!
Demigod herbs!
Most people's eyes burned with fervor, their breathing turning heavy.
The very reason everyone had ventured into this mysterious mountainous region was the high likelihood of Demigod herbs being present here!
"Demigod herbs?" Ye Yunfei was taken aback for a moment.