In an instant, three fifth-order True Men level experts fell like paper before Qingye, their lives extinguished in a single strike.
Qingye glanced indifferently at the three headless corpses, shook his head slightly, then stepped into the void, his figure gradually disappearing into the horizon.
Although it was his first foray into the ancient desolate land, Qingye had a deep understanding of this place, knowing that each of the three great cave heavens here had powerful sixth-order beings guarding them.
Even though he had cultivated an incomplete star body and comprehended the Dao of Reincarnation Sword, reaching the peak of the fifth order, he was not fully confident in contending with a perfected sixth-order expert.
Moreover, the lords of the cave heavens in the ancient desolate land were rumored to possess the Ancient Desolate Sacred Body, making them extraordinarily powerful and difficult for ordinary cultivators to match.
Before advancing to the sixth order, Qingye had no intention of clashing head-on with the three great cave heavens, especially with the lord who possessed the Ancient Desolate Sacred Body. His strength was likely close to the seventh order. Even though Qingye was confident in himself, he knew the gap between them was immense.
Thus, after easily killing the three fifth-order True Men, Qingye chose to leave swiftly without lingering.
Since the last battle with the Qingyang Realm, the three great sects and various forces had suffered heavy losses, and now, there were very few true experts guarding the Bronze Portal.
However, the small number of guards did not mean the defenses were lax.
Within the Bronze Portal, formations operated quietly, ready to be activated by the elders of the three great cave heavens at any moment to mercilessly kill any enemy attempting to invade the No Immortal Realm.
However, facing the lone Qingye, the elders of the three great sects did not rush to activate the formations, believing they could subdue him with their own power.
Unexpectedly, Qingye's strength far exceeded their expectations. In the first exchange, he instantly killed the three of them with overwhelming force, rendering all their preparations futile.
It was long after Qingye had left that reinforcements from the three great cave heavens arrived belatedly.
Upon seeing the three headless corpses on the ground, their faces changed drastically, especially an elder from the Ancient Desolate Cave Heaven, who looked particularly grim.
"The lingering sword qi is sharp and unyielding. Elder Liu and the others must have been killed instantly in the first exchange, hence they couldn't send out a warning or activate the formation in time," analyzed an elder from Tianyang Cave Heaven.
"This person's strength must be at least at the True Monarch level. Otherwise, how could they instantly kill three True Men?" he added, his gaze fixed on the Bronze Portal, his expression growing increasingly serious.
"It cannot be the one from the Qingyang Realm!" the elder from the Ancient Desolate Cave Heaven decisively denied. "If it were him, Elder Liu would have immediately activated the formation and would never have chosen to confront him head-on. They would only choose to fight personally if the opponent's cultivation was below that of a Dao Lord."
Hearing this, everyone nodded in silent agreement, acknowledging the logic.
After all, the guards here were elders from the three great cave heavens, and they wouldn't easily take risks. If a True Monarch-level expert appeared, they would activate the formation at the first opportunity and send out a warning.
"If not someone from the Qingyang Realm, it is incredible that someone could kill three True Men in an instant," the elder from the Ancient Desolate Cave Heaven said coldly. "Perhaps this person is a formidable enemy from outside the Ancient Desolate."
The golden age is about to begin, and the No Immortal Realm is in turmoil, with various forces ready to move, many coveting the treasure trove of the Ancient Desolate.
Although the Ancient Desolate is remote, it remains a vast territory with exceptional talents and countless sects, holy lands, and dynasties. Talented individuals appear one after another.
If a peerless genius had truly appeared, capable of instantly killing the elders of the three great cave heavens, it was not entirely impossible.
Hearing this, the others fell into deep thought.
One of them said, "In recent years, divine bodies and sacred bodies have appeared one after another in places like the Immortal Desolate and the Central State, aiming to ascend the Great Dao during the golden age. Even in places like the Heavenly Desolate Demon Region, many strong figures have emerged. There are even rumors that the long-hidden demon race might reappear in the world."
At the mention of the "demon race," everyone felt a chill in their hearts.
The demon race is a name carrying ancient memories.
In the long history of the No Immortal Realm, there was a period when the demon race ruled the land, treating humans as livestock. Humans lived in misery and despair.
It wasn't until powerful human cultivators emerged and killed the demon emperors that humans escaped the darkness and became the rulers of heaven and earth.
Since then, the positions of humans and demons have reversed. Humans grew stronger day by day, while the demons retreated step by step until the ancient war where the demon emperors fell, and the demon race was completely defeated, retreating to the demon region, never to step out again.
However, no one doubted that the demons always harbored the desire to reclaim the world. Whenever the sun and moon shifted and a golden age approached, it was when the demons stirred restlessly.
Yet, each golden age saw emperors proving the Dao, always denying the demons any opportunity.
"The demon race is beyond our control. The immediate priority is to address the fall of our elders and prevent the Qingyang Realm from taking advantage of the situation."
After some discussion, they reached a consensus to stay put and send the news back to their cave heavens, awaiting decisions from the higher-ups.
After all, the fall of True Men was no small matter, possibly indicating other forces' covetous eyes on the Ancient Desolate. This involved the future fate of the three great cave heavens and required utmost caution.
Moreover, ten years ago, many cultivators from the Qingyang Realm had entered the Ancient Desolate and never returned, still a lingering concern for the three great cave heavens.
In that battle, although they repelled the Qingyang Realm, the three great cave heavens and various forces in the Ancient Desolate paid a heavy price.
Since then, vigilance against the Qingyang Realm had reached unprecedented levels.
If they weren't confident in sweeping through the Qingyang Realm, the three great cave heavens wouldn't have remained so restrained until now.
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