The team moved forward once more, the atmosphere growing even more solemn. Tang San quietly released his Blue Silver Domain, communicating with the surrounding plants to gather more subtle information. What worried him was not only the interference from the shadows but also the exposure of Xiao Wu's identity. The closer they got to the core area, the greater the probability of encountering 100,000-year soul beasts or even stronger existences. Although Xiao Wu's aura was concealed, it was not foolproof.
At the same time, tens of thousands of miles away, in the Extreme North.
The cold wind was like knives, whipping up ice crystals across the sky; as far as the eye could see, there was only vast whiteness. Ghost Leopard Douluo lurked behind an ice ridge, his soul power concealed, almost merging with the surrounding environment. The three elite Soul Saints of Spirit Hall he led were scattered at observation points further away.
They had been waiting here for seven days. According to previous intelligence, the abnormal energy eruptions in the Perpetual Freeze Core Region appeared with intermittent fluctuations approximately every ten days.
"Elder, there's movement." A subordinate's lowered voice came through the soul tool communicator, filled with uncontainable shock.
Ghost Leopard Douluo focused his gaze and looked. In the extreme distance, that Perpetual Frozen Core region regarded as a life forbidden zone, the originally calm ice plain suddenly bulged! It was not an avalanche, but rather like crustal movement; a huge ice crystal structure flashing with a dark blue luster broke through the ten-thousand-year hard ice and slowly rose. An overwhelming coldness and pressure that made one's soul tremble spread out. Even separated by tens of li, Ghost Leopard Douluo felt his blood flow slow abruptly, and his soul power become stagnant.
The ice crystal structure stalled when rising to about 100 meters in height. A crack split open at its top, and brilliant ice-blue light shot straight into the sky, reaching the firmament! Within the light, a palace phantom completely carved from black ice was vaguely visible; towering, ancient, holy, yet carrying an absolute coldness that kept people a thousand li away. The palace gates were tightly closed; the door panels seemed engraved with incomparably complex runes. Merely glancing from afar made one feel dizzy.
What was even more shocking was that at the moment the light pillar and phantom appeared, on the periphery of the core region, several powerful auras burst forth suddenly, rushing towards the ice crystal palace direction without any concealment! Every aura had reached the Title Douluo level, and even two of them gave Ghost Leopard Douluo the feeling that they were slightly stronger than him! They had obviously been lurking for a long time.
"It's people from the Clear Sky Sect! And... that is... Huyan Zhen from the Elephant Armor Sect? He actually broke through?" Ghost Leopard Douluo's pupils contracted. He immediately used a special soul tool to record the scene he witnessed and the aura characteristics and transmit them back. He dared not move closer; the struggle and pressure at that level were not something he, a Title Douluo specializing in stealth and speed of the Agile Attack System, could participate in.
The ice palace phantom lasted for about the time it takes to burn one stick of incense. The light gradually converged, and the huge ice crystal structure also slowly sank beneath the ice plain, as if it had never appeared. However, those several powerful auras did not leave; they seemed to be patrolling and investigating on the ice plain, and even a brief conflict erupted. The ice plain vibrated, and roaring sounds came faintly.
Ghost Leopard Douluo held his breath and concentrated his mind. Until those auras gradually moved away and disappeared, he slowly exhaled a mouthful of white breath, his heart still palpitating with fear. He glanced at the soul tool in his hand that had finished recording and whispered, "Mission complete, withdraw. This place is not suitable for lingering."
Almost at the same time Ghost Leopard Douluo witnessed the anomaly in the Extreme North, far away in the Endless Vast Sea on the western edge of the continent.
Spirit Kite Douluo stood on the deck of a disguised small soul tool ship. The sea wind whistled, blowing her fire-red long hair. She was ordered to investigate the anomalies at Sea God Island, but the sea area surrounding Sea God Island was mysterious and unpredictable; mist and ocean currents were fraught with danger, and there were sea soul beasts guarding it. She dared not approach rashly and could only linger and observe on the periphery.
Nearly half a month had passed. Except for feeling that the heaven and earth yuan power in this sea area seemed more dense and active than elsewhere, there were no special discoveries. Just when Spirit Kite Douluo thought this mission might return without success, a sudden change occurred.
At noon, with the blazing sun overhead, the originally calm sea surface suddenly surged with waves without wind. It was not a sign of an approaching storm, but rather the seawater itself emitting a low humming sound. Immediately afterward, centered on that Sea God Island in the distance, shrouded in faint golden light and looming in and out of view, circles of soft yet overwhelming golden ripples spread out, rapidly spreading to the sea area within sight.
The seawater became crystal clear, as if there were endless points of light floating and jumping within it. Spirit Kite Douluo saw in shock that countless sea soul beasts—from the lowest-level small fish to 10,000-year soul beasts with bodies as huge as small hills—floated to the surface one after another. Facing the direction of Sea God Island, they assumed a posture similar to prostration and worship, exceptionally quiet.
Then, the thick fog that never dispersed year-round around Sea God Island really began to dissipate! It was not blown away by the wind, but rather as if absorbed or pushed aside by an invisible force. The outline of the island was displayed before Spirit Kite Douluo's eyes clearly for the first time: strange peaks stood in rows, vegetation was lush and green, and an incomparably towering divine temple, seemingly cast entirely from white jade and gold, stood on the highest peak in the center of the island, shining with sacred glory under the sunlight.
"Ding—!"
A bell chime, as if coming from ancient times yet also as if resounding deep within the soul, came from the direction of the divine temple. A huge golden light pillar with a diameter exceeding 100 meters shot booming from the top of the divine temple straight into the sky, piercing the clouds, rendering the clouds in the sky into a brilliant gold! Within the light pillar, a phantom figure wearing a crown and holding a trident was vaguely visible. Although the face could not be seen clearly, that vast, majestic, all-encompassing divine pressure, even separated by such a distance, caused Spirit Kite Douluo's mind and soul to shake violently; she almost couldn't help but kneel down.
She forcibly endured the palpitations of her soul and urged the recording soul tool with all her strength. The light pillar and phantom lasted for about the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, then slowly converged. The mist closed up again, the sea soul beasts sank into the water, and the sea surface returned to calm, as if everything was just an illusion.
But Spirit Kite Douluo knew it was not. She gripped the slightly warm soul tool recorder, her palm full of sweat. The Sea God Inheritance had actually truly manifested! Moreover, the movement was so large; probably the entire coast of the Vast Sea, and even places further away, would have sensed it.
"Return to port! Immediately return to port!" Spirit Kite Douluo ordered urgently. Sea God Island had revealed a divine miracle; next, this sea area would surely become the eye of the storm; who knows how many strong individuals would be attracted to come. She must send the intelligence back to Spirit Hall City immediately.
Two days later, the recorded images from Ghost Leopard Douluo and Spirit Kite Douluo were presented before Bibi Dong almost simultaneously.
In the secret room of the Pope's Hall, light and shadows flowed. That towering, cold black ice palace from the Extreme North, and that sacred, brilliant golden light pillar and phantom from above the Vast Sea, were alternately reflected on the walls, bringing a completely different yet equally suffocating sense of pressure.
There were only two people in the secret room: Bibi Dong and Dai Chengfeng. Bibi Dong sat upright in the main seat, her expression deep and calm like water, carefully watching every frame of the images, especially the several powerful figures captured within them. Dai Chengfeng stood by her side, his gaze sharp as an eagle's.
The images finished playing, and the secret room fell into a brief silence.
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