Rui Feikai and Dai Jing looked at each other. Although they were somewhat reluctant, it was clear this wasn't a deliberate attempt to make them avoid battle, but rather a move to find Martial Uncle Baili and Martial Uncle Gong's group. Naturally, they could only nod in agreement. Gan Shi waved his hand again, and the two of them also turned into streaks of light and shot toward the mouth of the Spirit-Storing Pouch.
After Zhu Gaotai and Kong Si entered the Spirit-Storing Pouch, they found that the space was not large. The air was filled with wisps of spiritual energy, and a few large trees swayed in the wind on the ground. It was a good place to recuperate.
"Senior Brother Kong, it seems the spirit vein in this Spirit-Storing Pouch from the Ten-Pace Courtyard is quite strong. It's at least approaching the mid-to-low grade," Zhu Gaotai said after looking around. He slowly walked to a tree and sat down cross-legged.
"Senior Brother Zhu is absolutely right. Although the spiritual energy here is not as rich as in the secret realm, at least it's safe for now." Kong Si was a medium-built young cultivator. He also found a spot and slowly sat down, but the movement aggravated his injuries, causing him to grimace in pain.
"Heh heh, safe?" Zhu Gaotai gave a bitter laugh. Hearing this, Kong Si also shook his head helplessly. If the cultivators outside died, what safety could they speak of?
"That Little Martial Uncle from Little Bamboo Peak has truly brilliant methods. With my Lord Lao Peak's ability in pill and poison refinement, I couldn't even detect a single trace of where he set up the ambush inside the sphere," Kong Si said after a moment of silence.
"Think about it, why was he able to come to us? Why didn't Martial Uncle Gong send someone else? Was it just because they are true martial siblings? Look at the expressions on Martial Uncle Gan's face during their transmissions and conversations inside the sphere. He clearly has to rely on him. Otherwise, Martial Uncle Gan wouldn't have used a questioning tone. This should be enough to demonstrate his individual combat and survival capabilities," Zhu Gaotai said after a moment of thought. They were both extremely intelligent people. Just from the few words and attitudes exchanged between Li Yan and Gan Shi when they weren't using transmissions, they had already made their deductions.
Just as Kong Si was about to say more, two streaks of light suddenly shot down from the sky, startling them. They quickly, though with difficulty, stood up and went on full alert. But when the two streaks of light landed and slowly dissipated, the figures of a stocky man and a beautiful girl appeared.
"Eh, why is it you two?"
The stocky man and the beautiful girl looked at the questioning gazes opposite them and could only shake their heads with a bitter smile.
In front of the battlefield, only Li Yan and Gan Shi stood facing each other. "What now?" Gan Shi asked.
"Senior Brother Gan, give me your blue rhomboid crystal first. I need to test it. And you should recover for half an hour," Li Yan said, looking at Gan Shi's condition. Although he was much better than when they had first met, he still looked extremely fatigued. Li Yan was very anxious, but things had come to this point. He couldn't just abandon them and go back to find Gong Chenying's group. That would be starting with a tiger's roar and ending with a snake's whimper, as if he had never come at all. He could only suppress his impatience and give him half an hour to recover. This was already his limit. At the same time, he needed the other's crystal to test something out.
Gan Shi thought for a moment and then said no more. With a flash of light from his hand, a blue rhomboid crystal with a purple core flew toward Li Yan. He himself sat down cross-legged on the ground, took out another pill and swallowed it, then held a Spirit Stone in each hand and closed his eyes. He was well aware of his current state. If he didn't recover some of his strength, even if he managed to get out of the passage, he would not only be unable to help Li Yan if they encountered trouble, but in the space outside the passage, they would all die even faster.
After catching the crystal, Li Yan saw how decisive this Senior Brother Gan was and couldn't help but admire the Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Malevolent Spirit Sect. Of the few he knew, every single one was decisive in killing, their decisions always swift and clean. From this, it was clear that they were all people who had weathered storms and had long since come to view life and death lightly. Yet at the same time, they valued life and death very much. It was a contradiction, but it could exist in the same person. They would make the fastest choice at any given moment.
Li Yan quickly immersed his Divine Sense into the crystal in his hand. Soon, this wisp of Divine Sense arrived before the purple core. Without any hesitation, it passed straight through. What met his eyes was a world of purple. In the sky, a large point of light flashed with intense brilliance. Around it, thirty-six smaller points of light revolved. But at this moment, the vast majority of the light points had turned gray. Only twelve were shining, some strong, some weak. Some were so weak they were almost gray, clearly indicating those who were severely injured.
After confirming this, his Divine Sense locked onto the first, brightest semicircular archway. At the same time, outside the crystal, a bright purple light shone from Li Yan's hand. A moment later, the entire blue rhomboid crystal had turned purple. Then, without hesitation, Li Yan's figure flew and charged silently toward the gate his Divine Sense was locked onto.
Gan Shi, who was meditating, only felt his eyelids tremble slightly. In his Divine Sense, Li Yan's aura had once again completely vanished from this world.
But before he could fully enter a meditative state, Li Yan's aura reappeared in his Divine Sense two breaths later. A faint smile touched the corner of Gan Shi's lips, and he then sank into deep meditation.
Li Yan stood at the edge of the battlefield, holding the purple crystal, lost in thought.
'It seems that even with the main crystal of this passage, it's possible to get out.' His action just now was to confirm whether this main crystal could be used to exit. After all, he still hadn't fully understood the strangeness of these crystals. The core of this crystal actually had light points that indicated the life status of each person. How were these light points formed? And how were they linked to a cultivator's life? He was completely clueless. But it was almost certain that these light points were not like the Soul Lamps kept in the sect, because he had never felt any part of his own soul diminish, which meant that not a single wisp of his soul had been taken from his body without his knowledge.
This suggested that these points of light were likely linked to one's aura through some powerful immortal art. In that case, even if a light point turned gray, the cultivator themselves should be unharmed. But he still didn't dare to risk leaving this main crystal here and having Gan Shi take Miao Zhengyi's crystal out. At the very least, the final results of entering the Wheel of Life and Death might also disappear, and all the rewards would be lost. So he had to be sure to take this purple-cored blue rhomboid crystal with him if possible.
For the rest of the time, Li Yan did nothing else but also meditate and recover. He had also consumed a huge amount of energy on his way through the previous trial.
Time flew like sand in an hourglass. Half an hour was enough for an ordinary person to do many things, but for a cultivator, it was merely the time it took to close and open their eyes.
Gan Shi slowly opened his eyes, a sharp light flashing across his pupils. In this half-hour, he had recovered at least nearly thirty percent of his strength. Although it wasn't enough, it would have to do. At the same time, he saw Li Yan also open his eyes.
Neither of them spoke. Li Yan quickly stood up, and with a flash of spiritual light from his hand, the purple-cored crystal appeared. At this moment, the crystal was already beginning to slowly return to its original state. Li Yan silently circulated the True Scripture of Gui Water. For a time, a purple light began to flicker in his hand, growing brighter and brighter, until the entire crystal was a solid purple.
Gan Shi said nothing, but his eyes flashed with continuous surprise. He was surprised by Li Yan's cultivation level. Li Yan, who was now unleashing his full power, held nothing back. He wanted to find Baili Yuan as quickly as possible, so he no longer reserved any of his spiritual power. This was unlike the previous trial when he had assisted Gan Shi. At that time, he had to face all sorts of unforeseeable attacks, so he had held back some of his strength to protect himself. But now, of course, the faster the better.
'In the last trial, this Junior Brother Li looked to be at the late-stage of the ninth level of Qi Condensation. It turns out his true strength has already reached the mid-stage of the tenth level, and it looks like he's close to the late-stage. To think he hid it so deeply. His cultivation manual is truly strange; I can't identify it at all. It doesn't seem like such a manual exists in the sect.' Gan Shi thought to himself, but he had still misjudged Li Yan's strength. He had guessed based on the depth of the spiritual power he saw. How could he know that Li Yan was actually only at the early stage of the tenth level of Qi Condensation?
A moment later, Li Yan stopped channeling his spiritual power. He walked up to Gan Shi, handed him the fully purple rhomboid crystal, and then quickly flashed to the side, arriving at a spot on the edge of the battlefield. Only then did he look back at Gan Shi, simultaneously gesturing out a rough area with his hand.
"Senior Brother Gan, hold the crystal and charge out from this direction. But it's best to protect yourself well. The compressive force inside the band of light is quite strong. I need a Ghost-Chariot Talisman and a protective spirit shield," Li Yan said quickly, briefly explaining his own level of protection. He didn't say much more, confident that Gan Shi would adjust his own defenses accordingly.
"Just like that?" Gan Shi asked doubtfully, holding the dazzlingly purple crystal. He had also tried to break out of the paths of the various trials before, to see if there was another way, but he had never succeeded.
"Mhm," was all Li Yan said, a hint of urgency in his eyes.
Seeing this, Gan Shi laughed heartily. A great yellow spiritual light erupted from his body, and several rings of spiritual power rose from beneath his feet, spinning rapidly around him. He didn't use a Ghost-Chariot Talisman. Then, with a flicker, he shot rapidly toward the area Li Yan had indicated.
The next moment, with a loud "BOOM" that made Li Yan's eardrums throb and his head spin, a yellow light flashed violently, and a figure was sent flying backward.
"Thud, thud, thud." Gan Shi felt as if he had crashed into a great mountain again. He had felt this sensation in the previous trials. Then, a powerful repulsive force sent him flying backward uncontrollably. He flew for several dozen meters before he could forcefully stop his momentum, but he could already feel a pressing danger at his back. He hurriedly took a few steps forward. His retreat just now had almost sent him back into the battlefield.
Up ahead, Li Yan was also looking at him with a puzzled expression.
"I just used your crystal to get out, and I've tested it. It has nothing to do with what elemental spirit roots one possesses," Li Yan said, frowning in thought.
"You really tried it, Junior Brother Li?" Hearing Li Yan's words, the confidence he had just mustered was now uncertain again.
Li Yan remained silent, just looking down in deep thought. He was equally puzzled by this situation.
'Could it be that only those with Five Elements Spirit Roots or those who have cultivated a Five Immortal Sects cultivation manual have the ability to break through the wall?'