Since this place exists, it most likely means there is Space, and the Source of Space probably hasn't disintegrated either.
If it had disintegrated, this place would have long since turned into spatial turbulence.
The problem is:
If Space truly exists here and its Source hasn't disintegrated, why can't I sense even the slightest trace of spatial breath?
As Gu Qingfeng walked forward, he pondered this question. Gazing at the lifeless flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers around him, his heart suddenly stirred.
According to common sense, whether it's flowers and trees or mountains and rivers, if they lose their vitality, the flowers and trees will wither and scatter, the mountains and rivers will dry up, and over time, they will all turn into barren wasteland.
Yet strangely, these flowers and trees, despite having lost their vitality, remained perfectly preserved. Gu Qingfeng wondered if the Space here was the same—the Source of Space had lost its vitality but hadn't disintegrated; its spatial structure and even its spatial laws, though no longer functioning, also hadn't collapsed.
After much thought, this seemed to be the only plausible explanation.
In other words, this place might be a space that was dead but not dispersed—like a person who had died but whose body hadn't decayed.
He shook his head.
Gu Qingfeng couldn't be certain, after all, this was the first time he'd encountered such a situation.
Just then, Gu Qingfeng sensed something unusual. He halted and turned to look, only to see a group of seven or eight people flying toward him through the air.
He had initially thought they might be Original Sin beings. To his surprise, all seven or eight were uniformly Great Dao beings, each with profound and unfathomable cultivation—likely Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs from those blessed paradises and cave heavens.
Perhaps they hadn't seen clearly earlier, but when the seven or eight Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs recognized Gu Qingfeng, they froze mid-air, their expressions growing increasingly complex. They exchanged glances, said not a word, then turned and left directly.
Gu Qingfeng paid it no mind and continued his leisurely stroll.
For some reason, ever since he inexplicably arrived in this place, he had felt an intense sense of déjà vu.
It wasn't because everything here, like the Desolate Ancient ruins in the Li Palace, lacked vitality, but rather an indescribable, inexplicable feeling.
He was certain that this dead-yet-undispersed Desolate Ancient space was formed by the fusion of those Desolate Ancient ruins within the Li Palace.
Although he didn't know exactly what was going on here, or even if it still belonged to the Li Palace, one thing was certain: if the Li Palace Primordial Source were to emerge, it would definitely emerge here.
Because after arriving here, that feeling of spiritual connection, as if being summoned, was even stronger than when he was in the Li Palace.
Even though Gu Qingfeng had long anticipated that if the Li Palace Primordial Source emerged, he might be utterly unable to resist it...
Coming here made him realize he had overestimated himself and underestimated that feeling of spiritual connection. Now, before the Li Palace Primordial Source had even emerged, he couldn't help but want to seek it out.
Refuse?
Resist?
Such concepts simply didn't exist.
He couldn't refuse, nor could he resist. It felt as natural as the heavens and earth, more like it was his original intent, hisOriginal Heart—to seek the Li Palace Primordial Source.
It was like how a person with a kind nature wouldn't stand by and watch someone die; their inherent kindness would compel them to help. That was their nature, their innate character. Not helping would be something their conscience couldn't bear.
That was how Gu Qingfeng felt now—or rather, even more intensely. His true heart simply wouldn't allow him to refuse or resist, as if the concept of 'refusal' didn't even exist in his heart's dictionary.
Sigh.
Gu Qingfeng sighed softly and murmured to himself, "Could it be that all of this is truly predestined?"
After saying this, he shook his head and couldn't help but laugh.
He continued forward, following that feeling in his search.
Along the way, he encountered quite a few people.
There were both Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs and Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs. Some traveled in groups of three or five, others alone. And when they saw Gu Qingfeng, almost all of them turned and left immediately, as if Gu Qingfeng's presence were a plague.
At first, Gu Qingfeng was puzzled. These Great Dao and Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs had hidden themselves so deeply in the Li Palace—why were they all showing themselves here now? Later, he realized there was simply nowhere to hide in this place.
This Desolate Ancient space, though it had a Source, structure, and laws, was dead yet undispersed. In a sense, it was equivalent to having no Space at all.
Since there was no Space, they naturally had nowhere to hide; showing themselves was unavoidable.
Of course,
some Ancestral Patriarchs, to avoid exposing their identities, used supernatural powers to envelop themselves, while others directly hid inside magical treasures.
In Gu Qingfeng's view, these Ancestral Patriarchs were rather like the proverbial man covering his ears while stealing a bell.
Back in the Li Palace, as long as you hid within the void, your identity generally wouldn't be exposed. The Li Palace void was constantly changing; not only was it hard to discover your identity, it was even difficult to find you.
Here was different.
The Space here was dead. Not even the laws were functioning, and there were no changes whatsoever.
Using supernatural powers to envelop yourself was futile. At best, it could obscure your physical form. As long as the other party released their Divine Sense to probe, they could detect your spiritual aura. Once they knew your spiritual aura, they could immediately recognize your identity. Even if they didn't recognize you, they could at least get a general understanding of you through your aura.
Even hiding inside a magical treasure wasn't very meaningful. Even if you set up an array for concealment and used supernatural powers for misdirection, it only increased the difficulty of detection slightly. Against a true expert, a single sweep of Divine Sense could pierce through everything.
How vast this dead-yet-undispersed Desolate Ancient space was, Gu Qingfeng didn't know, nor did he bother to release his Divine Sense to investigate. Instead, what truly surprised him was the sheer number of Ancestral Patriarchs he encountered along the way.
In just this short while, he had come across more than ten groups of Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs, each with quite a few members. The Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs he encountered were also numerous, totaling at least over two hundred.
Two hundred-plus Ancestral Patriarchs might not sound like a lot, but one must remember these were just the ones Gu Qingfeng happened upon while wandering aimlessly. Who knew how many Ancestral Patriarchs had actually been swept in here?
Suddenly,
Gu Qingfeng noticed what seemed to be a fight in the distance. He immediately leaped up, took a single step that shrunk the ground beneath him, and arrived in the blink of an eye.
There were three people fighting, all Original Sin beings, and all Original Sin Dharma Bodies.
The three seemed to be fighting over something. Gu Qingfeng narrowed his eyes for a closer look and saw they were all circling around a flower.
It was a very peculiar flower, completely colorless and transparent. Both its petals and stem were transparent, like a flower carved from crystal.
The flower glowed with a radiance that was also transparent, while simultaneously emitting a rich Original Sin breath.
With just one glance, Gu Qingfeng knew this was an Original Sin Flower.