A lone figure travels westward along an ancient road under the setting sun.

Leaving the protection of Shiquan Village, the desolation and cruelty of the Land of Absolute Spirit were revealed to Nightmare without reservation.

The sky was an eternal gray, as if veiled by a layer of invisible dust, and the sunlight struggled to penetrate it, appearing feeble.

The earth was cracked, vegetation was sparse, consisting mostly of drought-resistant and barren-thriving thorns and strange grasses, carrying a tenacious, withered yellow.

The energy in the air was not only thin, but also carried a heavy sense of "dead silence," attempting to drag all active existence into eternal stillness.

Nightmare's mind stirred, the Chaos Seed slowly rotating, absorbing and decomposing the dead silent energy attempting to erode his body, turning it into a negligible part of the chaos qi flow.

His pace seemed unhurried, yet each step left a faint afterimage behind him; this was exactly the movement technique of integrating the charm of space into travel, which was highly efficient.

In his hand, he held a most primitive animal skin map, handed down from the ancestors of Shiquan Village, depicting the general terrain surrounding the Cangwu Mountain Range.

Qingyang City was located to the west of the mountain range, about a thousand miles away.

For the Nightmare of his past life, who could travel ten thousand miles in an instant, this distance was not worth mentioning, but in this world, unable to tear through space for travel, he could only rely on his feet (or potential future transportation), and a thousand miles would take several days of effort.

The journey was not smooth.

On the dried-up riverbeds might lurk "Sand Worms" that survived by absorbing the residual moisture of the earth's veins; beneath the seemingly flat wilderness might be quicksand that swallowed everything; and in the withered woodlands crouched mutant wild beasts that had become exceptionally ferocious due to the harsh environment.

Nightmare's perception was fully open, like the most precise radar, avoiding most dangers in advance.

Occasionally, when he encountered unavoidable ones, he would quickly resolve them with thunderous means.

He did not use the more consuming power of Chaos, mostly relying on his Physical Body strength combined with clever movement techniques, or triggering a trace of the Dao Rhyme of Annihilation to snipe their life cores, striving for efficiency and conservation.

He observed this land.

Unlike the interior of the Cangwu Mountain Range, which still retained some abnormally active energy points and alienated areas, this outer region seemed to have been completely "drained," with even the mutations appearing to lack "vitality," possessing only the most primitive and tenacious instinct for survival.

"The Calamity of the Land of Absolute Spirit... its impact on this world is devastating." Nightmare realized.

This was not just the disappearance of Spiritual Qi, but the collapse of the entire ecosystem and energy cycle.

The groups that could survive in such an environment, whether it was the Human Race or other creatures, must all have their own unique ways of survival.

Three days later, he arrived at an area marked on the map as "Wind-Eroded Canyon."

This place seemed to have once been a huge river, but now the riverbed was exposed, carved into strange shapes by the strong winds, and the wind passing through the rock caves emitted a wailing sound like ghosts crying.

According to the scattered information provided by the man from Qingyang City, after passing through this canyon and traveling about three hundred miles further, one would be able to see the outline of Qingyang City.

However, shortly after Nightmare stepped into the canyon, his perception captured energy fluctuations and faint sounds of fighting coming from ahead!

He restrained his aura, blending into the shadow of a weathered giant rock, and quietly crept forward.

In a relatively open area of the canyon, a battle was underway.

One side of the battle consisted of seven or eight refugees wearing simple leather armor, holding various rusted weapons, their faces filled with fear yet gritting their teeth to persist.

They formed a small circle, protecting several carts piled with ragged belongings in the middle.

Their opponents were a dozen "Stone-Spined Jackals" that looked like earth dogs, but with fur like rock and exposed fangs!

These Stone-Spined Jackals were swift and fierce, their sharp claws easily leaving deep marks on the rocks, and from time to time, they could shoot sharp stone spikes from their spines!

Several refugees had already been injured and fallen, the fresh blood stimulating the jackal pack to become even more manic.

As the defensive line was about to be broken, a burly man who seemed to be the leader wielded a notched long saber, roaring as he slashed back a Stone-Spined Jackal, but his own shoulder was slashed open by the sharp claws of another jackal, revealing bone, dripping with blood!

"Hold on! Once we get through the canyon, we'll be in the territory of Qingyang City!" The burly man roared, but his eyes were already full of despair.

These refugees who had escaped from Qingyang City thought that escaping the beast tide meant a chance at survival, but they hadn't expected that there would be so many dangers in this wilderness.

Just as a Stone-Spined Jackal seized the opportunity to pounce on the injured burly man, and its fangs were about to bite through his throat—

Whoosh!

A subtle sound of piercing through the air rang out!

The Stone-Spined Jackal pouncing in mid-air suddenly stiffened, then collapsed softly as if all its strength had been drained; between its eyebrows, there was an extra tiny red dot, its life force already severed!

Immediately after, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Several more almost inaudible sounds of piercing through the air!

The Stone-Spined Jackals besieging the refugees fell one after another, dying for no apparent reason, their manner of death identical—a single red dot between their eyebrows!

The remaining few Stone-Spined Jackals were frightened by this eerie scene, emitting terrified whimpers, tucking their tails and fleeing rapidly, disappearing behind the craggy rocks.

The survivors of the disaster were stunned, blankly looking at the jackal corpses on the ground, and then looking around suspiciously.

Nightmare slowly walked out from the shadow of the rock.

He was still wearing that inconspicuous, slightly damaged black tight-fitting outfit, his aura restrained, looking like an ordinary traveler.

"Thank... Thank you, Your Excellency, for saving our lives!" The injured burly man was the first to react, enduring the intense pain, and hurriedly saluted Nightmare.

The other refugees also followed suit, their faces filled with gratitude and awe.

Although they couldn't see how Nightmare had made his move, they knew they must have encountered an expert.

"It was just a small effort," Nightmare said calmly, his gaze sweeping over these sallow and emaciated refugees with fear in their eyes.

"Are you fleeing from Qingyang City?"

"That's right!" The burly man nodded hurriedly, a look of sorrow appearing on his face.

"Qingyang City... can't hold out much longer! There are too many Vicious Beasts, and many maddened Yao Beasts... Small families like us are just waiting to die if we stay in the city, so we had to take the risk to escape..."

"What is the specific situation in the city now? What about the City Lord's Mansion and those big Families?" Nightmare asked.

"The City Lord's Mansion and several big Families are still resisting, but I heard the losses are heavy.

And..." The burly man lowered his voice, a trace of fear appearing on his face, "Some mysterious people in gray have come to the city recently.

The City Lord's Mansion is very polite to them, but they... they feel very wrong, their eyes are chillingly cold.

Some people have seen them driving some maddened beasts..."

Those in gray! The Eshi Yue Organization! They were indeed already active inside Qingyang City, and might even have controlled the situation to a certain extent!

"Where are you planning to go?" Nightmare asked again.

"We... we don't know either." The burly man shook his head bitterly.

"We just want to get as far away from Qingyang City as possible and find a place to survive... I heard that the Cangwu Mountain Range to the east is sparsely populated, perhaps..."

"The Cangwu Mountain Range is not a paradise; it also has dangers." Nightmare interrupted him, taking out a small bottle of medicinal powder prepared by Medicine Old Man that had miraculous effects on external wounds, and threw it to the burly man.

"Apply this to your wounds, and it will ensure your life.

If you have nowhere to go, you can travel about two hundred miles to the southeast.

There is a village called 'Shiquan'. It might take you in.

Mention the word 'Night', and the village chief will understand."

He was no saint, but pointing out a possible path to survival and borrowing this opportunity to spread the reputation of Shiquan Village slightly, attracting some refugees to enhance the village's popularity and strength, could be considered killing two birds with one stone.

As for whether these people could make it there, it would depend on their own good fortune.

Upon hearing this, the refugees, as if grabbing a life-saving straw, thanked him profusely.

Nightmare said no more.

With a flicker of his figure, he disappeared into the depths of the canyon, continuing his journey towards Qingyang City.

Behind him were the refugees struggling to survive and the jackal corpses covering the ground.

Ahead lay the smoke-filled ancient city and lurking crises.

His eyes remained calm, only the Chaos Seed slowly rotating in his body seemed to accelerate slightly due to the upcoming storm.