Chapter 54 has been discovered!

Xiao Ming pulled You Li, practically fleeing from the stone forest area filled with ambiguous sounds.

Ahead of them was a relatively open black wasteland. At the end of the wasteland, an ancient palace built entirely of some kind of pitch-black giant stone stood on the scorched black earth. The palace was magnificent yet dilapidated, its towering spires disappearing into the grey sky. The walls were covered in eerie, dark red patterns that resembled blood, exuding a heart-palpitating ancient aura.

At this moment, in front of the two giant doors of the palace, which were over ten zhang high and carved with ghost-head reliefs, figures were flickering. Dozens of figures had already gathered, vaguely confronting each other. The air was filled with a tense and oppressive atmosphere.

Xiao Ming's eyes narrowed. He immediately pulled You Li to retreat quietly, finding a hidden corner on higher ground, shielded by huge, rugged, strange rocks, to watch silently.

"Master, there are so many people. What are they doing?" You Li also mimicked Xiao Ming, hiding carefully, though she snuggled closer into Xiao Ming's embrace, her amethyst eyes curiously examining the crowd in the distance. But she was ultimately drawn to the palace gate; she could vaguely feel that something there was attracting and calling to her.

"Hmm, we will stay here for now and wait for them to open the door," Xiao Ming whispered. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind; now was clearly not a good time to reveal themselves.

His gaze slowly swept across the camp of dozens of people, and as expected, they had arrived too.

The Cultivators from the Hundred Ghost Cave were still in ominous black robes, wreathed in ghost Qi. The leading Elder at the Golden Core Peak was scowling, examining the Restriction on the palace gate.

The Yin Sha Sect's team was full of surging Evil Qi. The red-haired youth leading them had his arms crossed, his eyes arrogant, and he was also staring intently at the palace gate.

Meanwhile, the skeleton-like Cultivator from the White Bone Temple, accompanied by a few Disciples, occupied a corner and remained relatively low-key.

Besides these three strongest factions, there were also some small groups of varying sizes and scattered Loose Cultivators, among whom there were indeed a few Cultivators at the Middle Stage or Late Stage of the Golden Core.

At this moment, most people's attention was focused on the palace gate. Many had already tried attacking it, but they could only leave shallow marks on the door.

"Elder Ying, this Restriction is extraordinary. Relying on any one of our factions alone, I'm afraid we won't be able to shake it even if we wait until the Secret Realm closes. Why don't we temporarily join forces and break this palace gate's Restriction first?" The red-haired youth from the Yin Sha Sect suddenly spoke, his voice carrying a hoarse sharpness that broke the silence.

Elder Ying of the Hundred Ghost Cave snorted coldly: "Join forces? Zhao Chuan, your Yin Sha Sect is best at the Dao of attack; what is the use of just flapping your lips? Why don't you try using a powerful move?"

The skeleton-like Cultivator from the White Bone Temple also let out a "clack-clack" strange laugh: "Indeed, I heard that Fellow Daoist Zhao Chuan recently obtained a new treasure; why not show it to us all?"

A flash of killing intent crossed the eyes of the red-haired youth from the Yin Sha Sect. Just as he was about to retort, a Yin Sha Sect Disciple behind him suddenly muttered in a low voice: "Why haven't Senior Sister Liu and Senior Brother Zhao returned after being out for so long? Could they have discovered something?"

This voice was not loud, but everyone present was sharp of hearing and sight, and many heard it clearly.

In a small group nearby, an old man who looked like the leader of some small Sect frowned upon hearing this and asked a young Disciple beside him: "By the way, where is the Young Sect Leader? Didn't he say he was going to look around to see if there were other entrances? Why is there no sign of him?"

The young Disciple looked bewildered: "Reporting to the Elder, the Young Sect Leader said he would return shortly and told us to wait here. This Disciple… this Disciple doesn't know either!"

Upon hearing these whispers, a barely noticeable gloom flashed in Elder Ying's eyes. Liu Ruyan was someone he had secretly sent to handle matters. If she hadn't returned after so long, could something have gone wrong? He felt irritable and impatiently waved his sleeve: "Trivial matters, stop the noise! Zhao Chuan, are you going to join forces to break this Restriction or not?"

Just as the atmosphere was deadlocked, an excited voice broke the silence.

"Look! The Restriction seems to be weakening!" A sharp-eyed Cultivator suddenly pointed at the palace gate and shouted.

Everyone hurriedly looked over upon hearing this. Indeed, the light of the dark red patterns originally on the palace gate was now fading at a visible speed, and some runes were even beginning to fade and dissipate, as if the power maintaining the Restriction was rapidly disappearing.

"It's an opportunity, an opportunity! Although I don't know why, but… who cares!"

"Opportunity must not be missed! Fellow Daoists, let's attack together; we will surely break it!"

In an instant, everyone was on the same page. With benefits at stake, those suspicions and calculations were instantly thrown to the back of their minds.

"Do it!" Elder Ying, Zhao Chuan, and the White Bone Temple Cultivator shouted almost simultaneously.

In an instant, the dozens of Cultivators, who had long been unable to restrain themselves, all attacked at once! Ghostly wails and divine howls, demonic light and Evil Qi intertwined into a destructive storm, violently slamming into the giant door!

"Boom! Boom, boom, boom—!"

The deafening roars were continuous, and the entire wasteland seemed to be trembling. The already precarious light of the Restriction flickered violently and finally, amidst a tooth-aching "crack" sound of shattering, completely collapsed!

"The Restriction is broken!"

"Charge!"

The crowd went instantly mad, their eyes red as they scrambled towards the palace gate that seemed to contain a "Treasure Trove." The fragile Alliance that had just been temporarily reached disintegrated instantly, and a fierce melee broke out at the palace entrance once again. Several screams and cries of pain were drowned out in the surging crowd.

Xiao Ming watched all this coldly from a distance, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly: "A bunch of idiots!"

After most people had rushed in, and only a few scattered, cautious, or injured Cultivators remained at the entrance, Xiao Ming gently pulled You Li: "Let's go, we're going in. Don't attack for now; let's watch the show first!"

"Oh, You Li listens to Master." You Li nodded obediently. Although she was very greedy for the Soul Power dissipating from the warm corpses at the palace gate, she absolutely obeyed Xiao Ming's words.

Their figures moved like lightning, silently sweeping into the pitch-black, deep palace gate.

The interior of the palace was not completely dark; some kind of crystal embedded in the walls emitted a faint glow. The space was extremely vast, like a huge underground plaza.

The Cultivators who had rushed in first were already fighting inside the palace, but this time their opponents were groups of Yin soldiers and ghost minions with illusory figures, wearing ancient, dilapidated armor. Most only had the strength of the Foundation Establishment Stage to the Early Stage of the Golden Core, but they were numerous and endless, their attacks carrying a cold, chilling aura that eroded vitality.

"Kill! They are just some low-level ghost creatures!"

"Everyone pay attention, their Soul cores are still useful, don't waste them!"

The battle group ahead flashed with chaotic light, shouts and ghost wails interweaving. On the central platform were scattered Yin-attribute Ore, dilapidated ancient Magical Artifacts that had not lost their spiritual light, and rare Yin-attribute Spiritual Plants growing in the corners. These things might not be much to Xiao Ming and You Li, but to those ordinary Cultivators at the Early or Middle Stage, or even Late Stage of the Golden Core, they were gains worth fighting for, and the slaughter became increasingly intense.

In just a while, those Cultivators at the Early Stage of the Golden Core and below, at the Foundation Establishment Stage, were basically all dead or injured.

Xiao Ming took You Li, swept in from the side of the palace gate, and hid in a shadow with fewer ghost creatures. After You Li silently devoured a few Yin soldier minions, they hid in the dark, avoiding the main battlefield. Watching the ghost minions whose Soul Power dissipated after being scattered, longing flashed in You Li's purple eyes, and she couldn't help but gently tug on Xiao Ming's sleeve.

How could Xiao Ming not understand her thoughts? He shook his head gently and transmitted his voice: "No rush, this Soul Power is mottled, and absorbing it won't be of much benefit. The good stuff is still ahead!"

You Li tried hard to understand, nodded slowly, and suppressed the longing in her heart.

When most of the Yin soldiers and ghost minions were cleared and the crowd pushed into the inner side of the palace, a sudden change occurred!

"Roar—!"

Several more violent and ferocious roars came from several hidden passageways ahead! Immediately after, several Ghost Generals (with strength equivalent to the Late Golden Core Stage to Golden Core Peak) with hulking figures, solid Soul bodies, and wielding huge weapons roared and rushed out! Black Qi churned around them, and the Soul fire in their eyes burned fiercely.

"It's a Ghost General! Everyone be careful!"

Facing the strong enemy, many low-level Cultivators began to group together and cooperate. However, the teams from those few major forces were still at ease.

The battle escalated instantly. The Ghost Generals were immensely strong, their attacks eerie, each carrying a force that could tear apart the Soul. Although the Cultivators at the Middle to High stages of the Golden Core could cause damage to them, it was difficult to kill them quickly. In the middle section of the palace, spiritual light and ghost Qi collided crazily, and roars and screams were endless.

In the end, many Cultivators successfully dealt with this wave of Ghost Generals at a great cost, but those small Sects and scattered Cultivators were already few and far between.

While everyone was still cleaning up the battlefield, a few sharp-eyed Cultivators finally discovered the presence of Xiao Ming and You Li. Perhaps everyone had been too busy fighting the ghost creatures to pay attention, but now that they had leisure, they naturally had time to look around; after all, the place was only so big.