373: Chapter 373 The "Rest Area" Before the Ancient Road

Ye Tian listened quietly, his mind quickly analyzing the information.

The situation was more or less as he had expected.

The Nangong Family was indeed taking action, and the assassins from the Red Hand Hall had also entered.

Other top Prodigies were also competing for seals, preparing to enter Wendao Mountain to exchange for clues about the ruins.

The terror of the Brood Core was enough to deter the vast majority of people; this might be his opportunity.

"Thank you for telling me." Ye Tian nodded, taking out three bottles of healing Medicinal Pills from his qingxuan ring and handing them to Zhao Kuo.

"This place is not safe to stay for long; the Red Hand Hall people might return. Heal yourselves as quickly as possible, then leave this area."

Zhao Kuo and the other two took the pills, feeling incredibly moved.

These were pills gifted by a true Disciple of the Liuli Xuan Sect; their effects would surely be extraordinary.

Ye Tian said no more, gave the three a brief cupped-fist salute, and with a flash of his figure, vanished into another tunnel.

He needed to find a safe place quickly to study whether the identity spirit pendant would give clearer guidance once all three seals were gathered.

At the same time, he had to make final preparations for exploring the Brood Core.

Looking in the direction where Ye Tian had disappeared, the three from the Qingyue Sect remained speechless for a long time.

"Senior Brother Zhao... this Ye Tian is simply too strong, isn't he? A Sea Transformation First Layer assassin, defeated in a single move..." Liu Qingqing patted her chest, her heart still fluttering with fear.

Zhao Kuo smiled bitterly. "More than just strong... he's simply unfathomable. I feel his aura is even more terrifying than some of our Sect's Sea Transformation Second Layer Elders! I really don't know how he Cultivates."

Zhou Tong sighed. "This is what a true Prodigy looks like! It seems that for this Supreme Ranking, Senior Brother Ye is destined to soar to the heavens! Let's heal quickly and leave; we can't afford to run into those death gods from the Red Hand Hall again."

The three quickly took the Rejuvenation Pills. As expected, the medicinal effects were startling, and their injuries recovered rapidly.

They dared not linger, briefly cleaning up the scene before quickly departing in the opposite direction from Ye Tian.

Meanwhile, after traveling through the winding tunnels for a while, Ye Tian found a hidden stone cave.

After setting up a simple early-warning Restriction, he sat down cross-legged and took out the three taichu seals as well as his identity spirit pendant.

"The three seals are gathered. Spirit pendant... what will you tell me?"

Ye Tian brought the three seals close to the identity spirit pendant.

Hum!

The spirit pendant suddenly erupted with light, and the three seals lit up simultaneously.

A resonance occurred between them, with lines of light connecting them, gradually outlining a brief but clear phantom map in front of Ye Tian!

At the center of the map was a spiral pattern labeled 'Crystal Core Brood Core'.

Deep within the core area, a flickering point of light was specially marked, with two small words in ancient seal script beside it: 'Remnant Ruins'.

Simultaneously, a stream of information flooded into Ye Tian's mind.

"Gather three seals to exchange for a clue to a 'key to the ancient ruins' fragment at the 'Wendao Mountain' hub. With the fragment clue, find the 'key to the ancient ruins' to open the 'Ruins of the Order-Giver'."

"Warning: The ruins are located in the Brood Core, guarded by the 'Space-Time Mirage Shell'. The Mirage Shell is an ancient exotic species; at the Peak of its growth stage, it is comparable to a Yuan Dan Realm Cultivator. Its talent is 'Space-Time Disorder'. Extremely dangerous, enter with caution!"

"Note: There are three key to the ancient ruins fragments in total. Clues for the remaining two fragments require more seals or specific tokens to unlock."

The phantom map and information lasted for several breaths before dissipating. The light from the spirit pendant and seals also dimmed, returning to their original state.

A sharp light flashed in Ye Tian's eyes.

"key to the ancient ruins fragments? Three of them? Wendao Mountain can exchange for one clue... which means the clues for the other two fragments might be elsewhere or require other conditions."

Ye Tian's thoughts raced. "The Space-Time Mirage Shell is at the 'Peak of its growth stage'? Comparable to the Yuan Dan Realm? No wonder it's so terrifying!

However, 'growth stage' means it might not have reached its strongest state as a mature body? And is guarding the ruins its instinct? Or is there another reason?"

The information was still incomplete, but it was much clearer than before.

Next, Ye Tian had a preliminary plan.

First, go to Wendao Mountain and use the seals to exchange for the clue to the first 'key to the ancient ruins' fragment.

Then, depending on the situation, decide whether to risk entering the Brood Core to find the key fragment and open the Ruins of the Order-Giver.

"Wendao Mountain... according to the previous information from the spirit pendant and what Zhao Kuo and the others said, it should be a place like a hub or a final gathering point in the Secret Realm. All those holding seals will eventually head there."

Ye Tian looked deep into the tunnel. "I need to figure out which direction Wendao Mountain is in first."

He put away the spirit pendant and seals, withdrew the Restriction, walked out of the stone cave, and fully expanded his spiritual sense.

A moment later, he selected a direction where energy was converging and sped away.

The underground caverns were deep and long, like a maze.

Ye Tian sped through them for nearly an hour before the view finally opened up.

The path grew wider, and the rock walls on both sides changed from damp stone to a semi-crystallized material, somewhat similar to what he had seen in the Lingzhao Crystal Plain.

The concentration of Spiritual Qi in the air significantly increased, but the pressure was also stronger, making even breathing require some effort.

"Am I reaching the surface? Or am I approaching a core area?" Ye Tian slowed down, extending his spiritual sense forward.

Voices came from ahead, along with... the sounds of fighting.

Ye Tian's figure flickered as he pressed against a protruding rock pillar, sliding to the top. Using several clusters of glowing crystals as cover, he looked down.

Below was a massive natural cavern hall, at least a hundred zhang across.

There were several groups of people in the hall, occupying different corners. Some had two or three people, others seven or eight. Each person's aura was not weak, with the lowest being at the Zhenwu eighth or ninth level, and there were several auras of the Sea Transformation Realm.

Everyone's gaze would occasionally dart toward the other end of the hall.

There was an arched tunnel entrance that was clearly man-made.

From deep within the tunnel, a white light shone through, and a peculiar Dao charm that seemed to cleanse the soul faintly emanated.

"Is that the entrance to the 'Ancient Path to Heaven' leading to 'Wendao Mountain'?" Ye Tian wondered to himself.

On the identity spirit pendant, the arrow pointing toward "Wendao Mountain" was now brightly indicating the direction of that tunnel.

It seemed he hadn't gone the wrong way. This cavern hall was a temporary gathering place, or rather, a "rest area" before the Ancient Path to Heaven.

Ye Tian's gaze swept over the people in the hall.

In the eastern corner, several people in green martial attire with small sword emblems embroidered on their sleeves were gathered. They were Disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect, standing with their swords held close, their expressions cold. However, Li Xuanxiao was not among them.

To the west, several people in black robes with cold auras were from the Xuanming Way. The Ghost Girl was not there either.

Not far from them, several burly men with surging blood-qi were from the Xiahou Family. Xiahou Ba's loud voice couldn't be heard; he might not have arrived yet.

The southern side had the most people and was the most diverse.

There were several female Disciples from Cold Silence Valley, Zhao Kuo's trio from the Qingyue Sect, and some small Sects and Loose Cultivators. They were in groups of three to five, their expressions vigilant yet weary; clearly, the journey here had not been easy.

To the north... ha, old acquaintances.

People from the Nangong Family. Nangong Xiao was leading three Nangong Family juniors, along with two black-clad men with somber auras who clearly didn't fit the Nangong Family's style. They were likely planted by the Red Hand Hall.

Nangong Xiao's expression was not good as he spoke with a Young Master dressed in luxurious clothing, waving a jade-boned folding fan.

Ye Tian had some impression of that Young Master; he seemed to be the son of some great merchant guild's president, named Qian Buduo?

His cultivation wasn't much, just the Zhenwu Ninth Level; he was probably pushed up there by relying on Medicinal Pills.

But the four guards following him were not weak: two at the True Martial Tenth Level and two at the Sea Transformation First Layer. He had quite a retinue.

"Brother Qian, is the news accurate? Can the clue to the 'key to the ancient ruins' really be exchanged in the ancient palace at the Peak of Wendao Mountain?"

Nangong Xiao lowered his voice, but Ye Tian now had a powerful Divine Soul and incredible hearing; he could hear clearly even from a great distance.

Qian Buduo snapped his folding fan shut and said with a smile, "Young Master Xiao, rest assured. My Qian Family Merchant Guild is spread throughout the Central State; I can still obtain this much information. Three seals can be exchanged for the first clue. But..."

He drawled, his small eyes scanning the surroundings. "There are quite a few people eyeing this clue. That one from the Heavenly Sword Sect, that one from the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion, and that enchantress from the Xuanming Way... hehe, it won't be easy."

Nangong Xiao's face grew even gloomier as he gritted his teeth. "Seals... our Nangong Family only obtained two. There is still one more..."

"I heard it was taken by that kid surnamed Ye from the Liuli Xuan Sect?" Qian Buduo chimed in, his smile somewhat playful. "Young Master Xiao, it's not that I want to say it, but your family really suffered a great loss at that kid's hands this time.

Even Bei Minghong fell. Tsk tsk."