161: Hope born from destruction

After waiting for two days, Rehn built a sturdy camp directly near the space channel. In addition to the cavalry battalion, a thousand-man infantry battalion was subsequently deployed.

At this time, good news came from Kapdo's side.

"Alright, the spatial fluctuations have stabilized. We can enter now."

Rehn, who had long been prepared, immediately stood up and approached Kapdo. He saw Kapdo controlling a mud puppet that continuously shuttled through the space channel.

Rehn could no longer sense the previous deadly danger. The space channel now emitted a white halo, and the black halo had disappeared.

"Is there no danger anymore?"

"Yes, the space channel has stabilized. We can enter now. The puppet I controlled didn't encounter any danger, so it seems the other side of the channel should be safe as well. However, we still need to be prepared."

"I understand!"

Rehn turned to the fully assembled Magic Wolf Knights behind him and shouted, "All units, prepare for battle!"

Ross stepped forward and said, "Lord, it would be more prudent for me to lead a team to scout the other side first. You shouldn't take the risk."

As he spoke, Ross signaled a squad to follow him as they quickly passed through the space channel. After a moment, they emerged from the space channel.

"Lord, everything is safe. The other side of the channel is a plain. I didn't detect any other creatures for now."

After Ross had thoroughly scouted the situation on the other side of the space channel, Rehn led the main force through the space channel.

The space channel was dozens of meters wide, and the passage of one to two thousand people was swift. As Rehn passed through the channel, he only felt a slight dizziness before finding himself in a completely new world.

"Is this the Sub-plane?"

Rehn looked curiously at the world before him.

The surroundings were a plain. In the distance, a towering peak rose abruptly in the center of the plain.

"This Sub-plane seems quite large, which increases the chances of finding treasures."

Kapdo scanned the area, his eyes growing even more excited.

"This is the Sub-plane. That peak should be the center of this Sub-plane. The gray-white barriers in the distance are the plane barriers. Beyond those barriers lies the Boundless Star Sea."

Following Kapdo's direction, Rehn saw the gray-white plane barrier in the far distance. He had noticed it earlier but thought it was just ordinary clouds.

"That is the edge of this plane. Visually, the area of this Sub-plane is about the same size as the Rage Bear Territory, making it a large Sub-plane."

"We just don't know what kind of intelligent beings inhabit this plane."

Once everyone had entered the plane, they immediately formed combat formations. At the same time, Rehn dispatched a large number of scouts to survey the surroundings.

Kapdo floated in mid-air, casting detection spells in an attempt to sense the aura of treasures. Rehn, riding on Reck, looked down upon this unfamiliar land, trying to find valuable targets.

As Rehn set foot on this land and gazed at the peak at the center of the plane, within a magnificent palace atop the peak in the center of the plain, chaos had erupted.

"The Holy Lord is dead, the Holy Lord is dead."

"Our world is doomed."

Over a dozen elders in ornate robes gathered at the center of the palace. Some argued and shouted incessantly, some wailed in despair, while others remained silent with their eyes closed.

"Honored Elders, the outside world is in complete chaos, and the Holy Guard Army is also in turmoil. Please, Elders, step forward to take charge."

A young man entered the great hall and, upon seeing the over a dozen elders, knelt on one knee. His words were urgent, urging the elders to take charge.

Yubik, who had been silent with his eyes closed, opened his eyes and looked at him upon hearing his request.

"Mark, the Holy Lord is dead, and our world is on the verge of collapse. Let those who want to cause chaos do so; there isn't much time left."

Yubik's voice held no emotion, as if everything outside was irrelevant to him.

"How could this be?"

Mark still couldn't believe the world would end, even though a few days ago, the omnipotent Holy Lord was torn apart by a mysterious force in front of most of the Holy Mountain's inhabitants, and even the Holy Lord's desperate resistance was futile.

Mark had personally witnessed the Holy Lord struggling in mid-air, and fragments of the Holy Lord's body had even splattered onto him in the end.

But he still couldn't believe that the world that had nurtured him would perish.

"Mark, your strength hasn't reached the level of an elder yet. Once you reach that level, you'll be able to sense the world rapidly declining. In as little as half a month or at most a month, our world will meet its end. Everyone will be buried along with this world."

"This is an unchangeable fact. Not even the Holy Lord could alter it, let alone you or me."

"Go back, spend the remaining days in peace, and have no regrets."

After speaking, Yubik closed his eyes again, ignoring Mark.

Mark looked at the elders, who were also in chaos, and felt utterly lost. Just as he was about to leave in despair, the door to the Inner Hall, once the Holy Lord's residence, suddenly opened, and the Grand Elder stormed out with great momentum.

"Grand Elder?"

"Assemble the entire Holy Guard Army and summon all warriors from the Three Great Tribes. A Plane Passage has appeared in the east. As long as we control that Plane Passage, we can go to a new world to live."

The sudden appearance of the Grand Elder brought everyone tremendous good news. Yubik and the others were immediately captivated, and the arguments and curses vanished instantly.

"Grand Elder, is this true?"

"Of course, there's no mistake."

"Quickly gather all combat forces; we don't have much time."

The remaining elders immediately sprang into action. As soon as the over a dozen elders stepped forward, the chaos within the Holy Mountain was quelled in an instant. Meanwhile, messengers swiftly left the Holy Mountain, heading toward the Three Great Tribes on the plain.

The Holy Guard Army, assembled first, set out under the leadership of the Grand Elder.

"How did two more Plane Passages appear?"

The Grand Elder looked toward the west and south. In his perception, two more Plane Passages had formed—a new ability he had recently acquired.

When he was in the Holy Lord's residence, preparing to await the world's end alone, he suddenly sensed the aura of a Plane Passage. Not only that, but he also felt that his long-stagnant strength, which had been at a bottleneck, was beginning to loosen.

"Grand Elder, what's wrong?"

Mark saw the Grand Elder suddenly stop and look in two other directions. He glanced over but saw nothing unusual, so he cautiously asked.

"It's nothing. Let's continue."

The Grand Elder paid no further attention to the two newly appeared Plane Passages. They were too far from him, not as close as the first one. Moreover, he firmly believed that the Plane Passage he had sensed first was the hope for everyone on the Holy Mountain.

"Yes, Grand Elder."

As the commander of the Holy Guard Army, Mark's strength was only half a step away from the elder level. And now, Mark felt as if he was about to take that final step.

The Grand Elder led the regained confidence of the elders and all combat forces of the Holy Mountain toward the newly born hope.