On the platform outside the True Dragon's Nest, towering figures stood on the clouds. Their strengths were exceptionally formidable, exuding a divine aura and an awe-inspiring presence. They resembled divine beings, overlooking the earth from high above.
There was no doubt that these individuals were the seniors and elders of the geniuses within the True Dragon's Nest.
By now, five days had passed since the group of geniuses entered the True Dragon's Nest. Historically, the True Dragon's Nest was only open for seven days, and on the seventh day, everyone had to leave. Otherwise, they would be slain by the array formations of the True Dragon's Nest.
Therefore, on the fifth day, some people had already exited the True Dragon's Nest and returned through the entrance of the gorge.
Their senior and elder figures immediately greeted them, showing concern for their disciples' well-being and inquiring about the situation inside the True Dragon's Nest.
As a result, shocking news began to spread.
"Li Chengdi, the Temporal Body, is unrivaled and unstoppable. He charged all the way to the core of the True Dragon's Nest."
"The Primordial Saint Body, Zhao Wujin, and the Overlord Body, Wu Gang, engaged in a battle as soon as they entered. Neither could defeat the other, but they eventually ceased due to concerns about Li Chengdi, Jiang Haoran, and others who were spectating nearby."
"Liu Nanshan and Ye Wuchen dueled with their swords and ultimately reached a draw."
One astonishing piece of news after another circulated among the powerful figures in the sky who were closely following the developments.
Wan Yanghui, an elder from the Tai Chu Holy Ground, stroked his chin, wearing a smug expression as he looked towards Emperor Tian, his counterpart. He chuckled and said, "Emperor Tian, it seems that there is no news from your Chaos Holy Ground. Could it be that your disciple has already perished inside? I remember his name was Xiao something? Indeed, an unknown nobody like him would probably die without anyone noticing."
On a white cloud, Emperor Tian stood beside a young woman named Lv Xianwan, a senior elder of the Mountain and Water Sect and also the master of Tang Yunyun. Listening to Wan Yanghui's sarcasm, Emperor Tian sneered and retorted, "Don't celebrate too early. You may end up regretting it."
Emperor Tian had confidence in his disciple. After all, Xiao Yun possessed a strength of 1 million kilograms and had mastered numerous ultimate battle techniques. He could sweep through all opponents within the True Dragon's Nest.
"Emperor Tian, don't pretend. I'm well aware of your disciple," Wan Yanghui said with a mocking smile. "He's just a pawn of your Chaos Holy Ground. He may have some understanding and was boosted in cultivation by the Enlightenment Pill, learning a few super battle techniques. But that's not enough to compete with true geniuses. Your plans in the Chaos Holy Ground are doomed to failure!"
"..." Emperor Tian remained silent, wearing an expression of disbelief. His disciple used the Enlightenment Pill? Did Xiao Yun, who could master a super battle technique to perfection within moments, really need that kind of flawed pill with side effects? Emperor Tian stared at Wan Yanghui with a cold smile. He knew that Wan Yanghui had 'misunderstood' Xiao Yun. Well, in that case, disciples from the Tai Chu Holy Ground were bound to suffer this time.
As if confirming Emperor Tian's words, in the next moment, a cry of alarm came from the platform below.
"The nine disciples of the Tai Chu Holy Ground, including Zhou Feiyu and Xie Yulong, have been slain by a mysterious powerful individual. Their bodies were found, and the scene was extremely bloody. Xie Yulong was severed in half, turning the place into a purgatory."
Upon hearing this astonishing news, the onlookers in the sky were left in shock.
The previous news was one thing; those geniuses had just entered the True Dragon's Nest, and it was expected that they would engage in some 'sparring' rather than immediately resort to desperate battles. Thus, it was normal for there to be no clear victories or defeats.
However, this news left everyone astounded.
Zhou Feiyu and the others were killed? And they were slain outside the core of the True Dragon's Nest?
"Hold on!" In the sky, a formidable figure swiftly descended. He emanated a majestic aura, making everyone feel oppressed.
He was Wan Yanghui, an elder of the Tai Chu Holy Ground.
Wan Yanghui's facial features tightened, and two brilliant beams shot from his eyes, exuding an aura that was suffocating.
He stared at one of the young men and shouted, "Tell me, how did Zhou Feiyu and the others die? Did you witness it with your own eyes? Who killed them?"
This young man was just an ordinary disciple from a sect and couldn't withstand Wan Yanghui's imposing presence. He trembled and cowered behind his own master.
His master didn't dare to provoke Wan Yanghui and quickly whispered, "Quickly tell Elder Wan everything you saw and heard. He is an esteemed elder and not someone you can deal with."
Wan Yanghui realized that he had acted a bit impulsively. After all, a junior couldn't withstand his pressure. He immediately restrained his aura and spoke in a gentle tone, "Young man, don't be afraid. I just want to inquire about something."
He then took out a decent spirit treasure and presented it to the young man.
Only then did the young man calm down and begin recounting what he had seen and heard.
In the sky, powerful divine senses also probed the scene. It was evident that everyone was concerned about the situation in the Tai Chu Holy Ground.
After all, Zhou Feiyu and the others were not insignificant figures. They had actually died outside the core of the True Dragon's Nest, which was truly surprising.
Emperor Tian, wearing a smile, turned to Lv Xianwan beside him and said, "I just advised him to be careful not to become too happy. Look, now it happened."
Lv Xianwan smiled lightly, a touch of schadenfreude in her eyes.
Emperor Tian watched the young man below and realized that even without his testimony, he could guess that it was likely his disciple's doing.
After all, even if others possessed such strength, they would not easily provoke the Tai Chu Holy Ground to death. Only Xiao Yun would do such a thing.
On the platform below.
The young man spoke slowly, "After entering the True Dragon's Nest, I randomly chose a direction to search for treasures. However, not long after, I felt intense waves of battle ahead. I realized that many powerful individuals were present, each stronger than me. I was frightened and dared not approach to observe."
Wan Yanghui quickly asked, "And what happened afterward?" The young man continued, "Later, after the aura ahead dissipated, I carefully went to investigate. That's when I found Senior Zhou's body lying in a pool of blood, along with the bodies of eight other senior disciples from the Tai Chu Holy Ground."
Saying so, the young man opened his spatial ring and took out the bodies of Zhou Feiyu and the others, emitting a pungent smell of blood. On the ground, there were numerous dismembered bodies, and eight heads with wide-open eyes, full of unwillingness.
Nine bodies in total, but only a few remained intact. The rest had been severed at the waist or had their heads blasted, presenting a gruesome and terrifying sight.
Upon seeing this scene, Wan Yanghui's eyes contracted, and then he roared with a face full of grief and indignation, "Feiyu, Yulong... Ah, who exactly killed them? I will tear them apart!!" Wan Yanghui had gone completely mad.
He recognized them completely; these nine people were ranked second to tenth among the Tai Chu Holy Ground's Body Refining Realm disciples.
It could be said that except for Li Chengdi, most of the people from their Tai Chu Holy Ground who entered the True Dragon's Nest had been killed.
How could Wan Yanghui not be angry? For so many years, had the Tai Chu Holy Ground ever suffered such humiliation within the True Dragon's Nest? It was only Emperor Tian back then who caused them some losses, but it was impossible for so many geniuses to die.
Wan Yanghui completely lost his mind, his hair stood on end, and he was consumed by raging fury. His gaze was intimidating.
The young man trembled in fear, hiding behind his master, and stammered, "Senior, I don't know who did it, but based on the situation at the scene, it seems that Senior Zhou and the others were besieging someone. I only found two unfamiliar footprints there, and one of them was standing at a distance without entering the battlefield, as if spectating."
The crowd was instantly shocked upon hearing this.
Zhou Feiyu and the others were besieging someone? And they suffered such a tragic defeat? Who exactly was that person? Were they an unrivaled monster? Wan Yanghui's eyes flickered, and he angrily looked at the people from the other five major holy grounds in the sky. He snorted, "Alright, alright. Only those few unrivaled monsters could have killed Zhou Feiyu and the others in a one-on-many situation."
In an instant, he shifted his target to Jiang Haoran, Zhao Wujin, Wu Gang, Liu Nanshan, Ye Wuchen, and others. Besides them, no one else could have single-handedly killed Zhou Feiyu and the others.
The people present also shared the same opinion.
Even the elders from Jiang Haoran and Zhao Wujin's sects believed so as well.
One of the elders from the Primordial Saint Body solemnly said, "Wan Yanghui, I feel regretful about Zhou Feiyu and the others' death."
"However, our six major holy grounds have long made an agreement that inside the True Dragon's Nest, we can freely battle, and no one can hold grudges against each other for it.
If one is not as skilled as others, then blame themselves. Can your Tai Chu Holy Ground not handle defeat?" Wan Yanghui sneered, "Rest assured, I won't target those juniors. But don't celebrate too soon either. We still have Li Chengdi from our Tai Chu Holy Ground inside. He will surely avenge Zhou Feiyu and the others."
Having said that, Wan Yanghui once again ascended to the sky, his eyes fixed on the entrance of the gorge. He hoped to hear good news about their Tai Chu Holy Ground next.
... Inside the True Dragon's Nest.
After two days of rushing, Xiao Yun, accompanied by Tang Yunyun, Zhao Wujin, and others, finally reached the core area of the True Dragon's Nest.
The reason it took them two days was not because they were slow, but because they encountered many heavenly treasures and had to stop to collect them, which delayed their progress.
Unfortunately, to Xiao Yun's disappointment, although he gathered many heavenly treasures, none of them were capable of transforming his physical body.
"Damn it, is there no second treasure similar to the Nine-Leaf Heavenly Lingzhi here?" Xiao Yun muttered in frustration as he looked at the jungle before him.
Beside him, Zhao Wujin, who had already learned about Xiao Yun obtaining a Nine-Leaf Heavenly Lingzhi, felt envy in his heart but mocked, "Do you think the Nine-Leaf Heavenly Lingzhi is as common as cabbage? Do you still expect to find a second one? I think you're just daydreaming! Such treasures, even if you encounter one in the True Dragon's Nest, it's already a great stroke of luck."
"I know!" Xiao Yun nodded. Ten of them would grant a hundred years of lifespan, which was not much, but with a hundred years, he would have enough time to grow stronger.
At that time, when his strength was formidable enough, he could explore more forbidden areas and perhaps find even better treasures to help Fu Bo.
Regarding the heavenly treasures, Tang Yunyun did not compete with Xiao Yun. She was quite sensible. Whenever they encountered valuable treasures, she would voluntarily give them to Xiao Yun.
As for Zhao Wujin, he had no interest in those heavenly treasures at all.
"Roar!" Just as Xiao Yun finished picking the Nine-Leaf Heavenly Lingzhi, a series of angry roars erupted from the nearby mountain cave.
Immediately after, two immensely powerful auras emanated from the cave, oppressing everyone around them.
Zhao Wujin's expression changed, and he said with excitement, "It's the true dragon seed. They say wherever there are Dragon Lingzhi, true dragons appear. It seems to be true."
"Tang Junior Sister, step back!" Xiao Yun shouted loudly and stood alongside Zhao Wujin.
Like Zhao Wujin, Xiao Yun knew that there were true dragon seeds within the cave, but neither of them retreated. Instead, their fighting spirits surged because they came to the True Dragon's Nest for a reason—to engage in battles and spar with powerful opponents. Only through this could they become stronger.
"There are two true dragon seeds!" Zhao Wujin said solemnly, feeling the tremendous power coming from the cave. They were not inferior to him, a peerless prodigy, and might even be slightly stronger.
"800,000 jin of strength. These true dragon seeds are truly formidable!" Xiao Yun let out a loud roar, and his eyes were filled with even greater fighting spirit.
As for Zhao Wujin nearby, he couldn't speak anymore. He realized that the black dragon before him was slightly stronger than him, making it impossible for him to be distracted. He could only give it his all.