427: Chapter 427 The Void Clan

Gao Feng walked down the stone steps of the pavilion, with the others following behind him, their footsteps making a rhythmic clattering sound on the uneven ancient stone slabs.

The valley of the Meteor War God Realm flickered in and out of sight within the morning mist.

The lights in the Spirit Plant Garden were still on, and the Time Holy Vine shimmered with a faint silver glow in the morning light.

Nine figures walked along the mountain path toward the lights, their shadows stretching longer and longer behind them until they were swallowed by the rising sun.

On the summit of Lingxiao Peak behind them, the flag inscribed with "Wuxiang Sect" snapped in the morning breeze, like a giant bird with spread wings watching them depart.

It was the fifth day since the Wuxiang Spirit Gathering Array had been successfully activated.

The concentration of Spiritual Qi in the Spiritual Vein pool had recovered by nearly twenty percent; although it was far from reaching the level before it had been depleted, at least the trend of loss had been halted.

Elder Lingyuan, who was responsible for monitoring the Spiritual Vein, reported the data three times a day: the Formation patterns were stable, the flow of Spiritual Qi was smooth, and there were no abnormal fluctuations.

But no look of relief could be seen on the face of Daoist Master Xuanyang.

Only one lamp was lit in the side hall, and the light was dim.

Several Spiritual Vein maps and a yellowed Jade Slip were spread out on the long table, with densely written, still-wet annotations filling the blank spaces.

Daoist Master Xuanyang sat behind the table, with the nine members of Gao Feng's squad seated before him.

Gao Feng sat at the very front, followed in order by Luo Li, Su Ning, Chu Lan, Tianxin, Yaoguang, Lin Yue, Lin Jingyu, and Situ Lan.

No one spoke; the only sound in the hall was the faint crackling of burning sandalwood incense.

"The Wuxiang Spirit Gathering Array is operating normally, the rift has been sealed, and the Spiritual Vein is slowly recovering."

Daoist Master Xuanyang's voice was very low, as if he were stating something not worth being happy about, "But this is only temporary. The sealing Formation can last at most three years. Three years from now, the Formation patterns will be eroded by the power of the Void Realm, and the rift will expand again. By then, if we cannot find a way to permanently Seal the rift, the Void Clan will invade in full force."

There was silence in the hall.

Chu Lan's fingers unconsciously tightened around the corner of her clothes, and Lin Yue's brows were knitted together.

Tianxin expressionlessly reached her hand into her sleeve, touching the edge of the stack of talisman papers.

Luo Li held the flowing sound zither, her fingers resting on the strings without plucking them.

Su Ning closed her eyes and sensed the spatial fluctuations outside the side hall, as if she were familiarizing herself in advance with the environment she would have to face in the future.

Yaoguang gently held Chu Lan's hand, while Lin Jingyu and Situ Lan exchanged a glance, each gripping their sword hilts tightly.

"In three years, you must reach the Late Golden Core Stage."

Daoist Master Xuanyang's gaze fell on Gao Feng, "Otherwise, even if the rift is sealed again, you will not have the strength to confront a Void Lord."

"A Void Lord?" Gao Feng asked.

"The leader of the Void Clan."

Daoist Master Xuanyang picked up the yellowed Jade Slip from the table and explained, "No one knows exactly what Realm it is. Because everyone who has seen it is dead. According to ancient books left by our Sect's predecessors, in the ancient era, there were Void Lords who took on human form and infiltrated the Human Realm; their cultivation... was at least equivalent to the Nascent Soul Stage."

Nascent Soul Stage.

This term landed in the hall like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirring up silent, massive waves.

Chu Lan's lips moved, but no sound came out.

Lin Yue gritted his teeth, and Lin Jingyu's fingers tapped the sword hilt twice—an unconscious action of his when he was thinking.

"What is recorded in this Jade Slip is everything our Sect's predecessors knew about the Void Clan."

Daoist Master Xuanyang pushed the Jade Slip toward Gao Feng, "The 'Records of Void Oddities', a unique copy passed down from the ancient era. Study it carefully; perhaps you can find a way to restrain the Void Clan."

Gao Feng took the Jade Slip and probed it with his spiritual sense.

A vast amount of information flooded his mind. He closed his eyes to digest it for a moment, then handed the Jade Slip to Luo Li beside him and said in a low voice, "What our predecessors wrote, you all should listen to it."

Luo Li took the Jade Slip, probed it with her spiritual sense, and began to read aloud softly.

The origin of the Void Clan dates back to the Great Ancient Catastrophe.

During that unknown catastrophe, countless Cultivators died and vanished.

Resentment condensed in the spatial rifts and did not dissipate. After ten thousand years of accumulation, the first Void creatures were born.

They have no physical bodies, no fixed form, and feed on Spiritual Qi.

The more Spiritual Qi they consume, the stronger their power becomes.

When they consume enough, they will evolve—from mindless shadows to Void Beasts with low intelligence, and then to Void Lords capable of taking human form.

A few lucky Void creatures consumed heaven and earth spiritual objects during their evolution, allowing them to take human form early and infiltrate the Human Realm.

Their disguises are extremely sophisticated; without specialized methods, it is impossible to see through them.

Luo Li continued reading.

The Jade Slip also contained a rough distribution map of Void regions, marking several general areas where the Void Clan frequently appeared.

But these regions are not fixed; they drift slowly through the Void Realm, and their positions are constantly changing.

The author of the ancient book marked several coordinates on the map and noted that these coordinates were valid for no more than a hundred years.

Luo Li finished reading the last paragraph and handed the Jade Slip back to Gao Feng.

The hall was quiet for a long while; no one spoke.

That information was the first time most of those present had encountered it—an enemy without a physical body, feeding on Spiritual Qi, growing stronger the more it ate, and able to take human form to infiltrate the Human Realm.

The author of the "Records of Void Oddities" wrote a passage at the end of the Jade Slip, with a tone of deep powerlessness: "If the Void Clan invades in full force, the Human Realm will repeat the mistakes of the ancient era."

Tianxin took the Jade Slip from Gao Feng's hand and turned to the last page.

Her finger traced over the surface of the Jade Slip and suddenly stopped.

"There is another line of small text here."

Her voice was not loud, but everyone in the hall heard it clearly, "It is appended after the main text, the handwriting is one size smaller than the main text, and it was not written by the same person. It seems to have been added by a later generation. It says—If there are lingering souls with unresolved obsessions, one can help them fulfill their wishes, causing them to dissipate on their own."

Tianxin returned the Jade Slip to Gao Feng, lowered her head, and was lost in thought.

Daoist Master Xuanyang stood up from behind the table and walked to the star map on the wall.

He waved his hand, and a stream of Spiritual power was injected into the star map; the light points on the star map began to move, converging into a blurry shadow.

"The Space-Time Deduction Technique of Immortal Master Void shows that the Void Clan is gathering in the Void Realm outside the Human Realm."

"The Wuxiang Spirit Gathering Array can last at most three years. Three years from now, the rift will expand again. By then, what comes will not be just one Void Beast, but an entire Void army."

He turned around, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the nine people, "What you must do is to be fully prepared within these three years. Breakthrough in cultivation, study methods of restraint, and deduce the locations of the Void regions."

"Sect Master, if a Void Lord is truly at the Nascent Soul Stage, how are we supposed to fight it?" Lin Yue's voice broke the silence.

He was not afraid, just asking a question that had to be faced.

Daoist Master Xuanyang shook his head, "I do not know. In the ancient era, records of the great war between the Human Race and the Void Clan are extremely scarce. No one even knows the specific abilities, weaknesses, or combat style of a Void Lord. But the Human Realm still exists, which at least proves that in the ancient great war, the Human Race did not lose."

"Not losing does not mean winning."

Gao Feng's voice was not loud, but it made everyone in the hall quiet down.

He looked at the Jade Slip in his hand, "The predecessors were able to defend the Human Realm not by luck. The weaknesses of the Void Clan must exist; it is just that we haven't found them yet."

He stood up and tucked the Jade Slip into his robe, "We cannot waste these three years. Everyone will remain in the Sect and study the ancient books first. Tianxin, you are responsible for organizing all information on the Void Clan and classifying it by threat Rank. Su Ning, use the Space-Time Deduction Technique to deduce the current possible locations of the Void regions. Chu Lan, try to use Spirit Plants to sense resentment; perhaps you can find the patterns of where Void creatures gather. As for the others, prepare yourselves. We need to go and investigate in advance."

Daoist Master Xuanyang looked at Gao Feng, was silent for a moment, and then nodded to signal that they could leave.

The nine people stood up, cupped their hands toward the Sect Master, and filed out of the side hall.

The sunlight outside the hall was blinding, and Chu Lan squinted and used her hand to shield her eyes.

Tianxin walked with her head down, muttering to herself, running through the information she had just read in her mind again.

"Tianxin, what are you thinking about?" Luo Li walked beside her.

Tianxin looked up, "That line of small text on the last page of the ancient book—If there are lingering souls with unresolved obsessions, one can help them fulfill their wishes, causing them to dissipate on their own."

Her voice was calm, but there was a trace of seriousness in her tone, "The predecessors of the Void Clan were the resentment of ancient Cultivators. If we could make that resentment dissipate…"

"Theoretically feasible, but practically very difficult," Su Ning walked in front without looking back, "The resentment in the Void Realm has been condensing for ten thousand years; it cannot be resolved with just a word or two of comfort."

"But at least it is a path." Tianxin did not speak anymore and continued walking forward with her head down.

When they returned to the Meteor War God Realm, it was already near dusk.

The setting sun dyed the valley a golden red, the lights in the Spirit Plant Garden lit up one after another, and the silver glow of the Time Holy Vine was particularly striking in the twilight.

Gao Feng stood at the entrance of his Immortal Cave, not going in.

He gazed at the continuous mountain ranges in the distance, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the Jade Slip in his robe.

The Seal of the Wuxiang Spirit Gathering Array can last at most three years, the Void Clan's gathering is accelerating, and a Void Lord might be at the Nascent Soul Stage.

Three years, is it enough?

"What are you thinking about?" Luo Li walked to his side at some point, holding the flowing sound zither in her arms.

Gao Feng did not answer.

He looked up at the sky; night was falling, and the first star lit up on the horizon.

In the distant Void Realm, those shadows that feed on Spiritual Qi were gathering.

Three years from now, they will break through the rift and pour into the Human Realm.

He gripped the hilt of the vajra sword tightly, and the sword body vibrated slightly.

"Thinking about how to become stronger within three years." Gao Feng withdrew his gaze and walked toward the cultivation room deep within the Immortal Cave.

Luo Li did not follow, watching his back disappear into the lights.

Outside the Immortal Cave, Tianxin moved a chair and sat under the veranda, holding the Jade Slip of the "Records of Void Oddities" in her hands, carefully reading it page by page.

Her brows occasionally knitted and then relaxed; every time she read a piece of key information, she would jot down a few notes on a talisman paper.

Chu Lan crouched in the Spirit Plant Garden, watering the branches of the azure wood holy seed, while thinking about the description of Void creatures in the ancient book—they have an extremely strong perception of Spiritual Qi and are sensitive to the aura of life.

If she could Cultivate a type of Spirit Plant with extremely faint Spiritual Qi, could it serve as a disguise in the Void Realm?