225: Enter the palace

The news of the Void Heaven Palace appearing was like a storm sweeping across the Chaotic Star Sea.

For a time, countless streaks of light soared from various large islands, converging towards the sea area enveloped by golden light.

Both the Righteous Path and Demonic Path, major Sects, and Loose Cultivator magnates, all moved at the news.

However, in this carnival-like feast, a strange silence emerged.

The overlord of the Chaotic Star Sea, Star Palace, remained completely still.

It was as if it had no interest in this Immortal Cave that opened once every three hundred years.

This abnormal behavior made many forces, who had already been eager to move, ponder deeply.

What was Star Palace wary of?

Or was it that the opening of the Void Heaven Palace this time held unknown dangers?

For a time, undercurrents surged, and many quick-witted Cultivators quietly suppressed their urge to go, choosing to observe instead.

...

At the same time, on a remote Barren Island.

Han Li was covered in blood, his magic power almost exhausted, and he was panting heavily.

At his feet, two massive Grade Seven Yao Beasts, giant crocodiles, had been blasted into a bloody mess, their Yao Cores shattered, completely devoid of life.

Not far away, a Core Formation black-robed Cultivator who had been traveling with him had his chest pierced through and had long since died.

Another had lost an arm, his face pale as he swallowed Medicinal Pills, his eyes filled with the terror of surviving a catastrophe.

"Fellow Daoist Han... thanks to you..." Jin Qing said, covering the wound on his chest, still shaken.

He never imagined that a seemingly ordinary ancient Cultivator's Immortal Cave would hide two such ferocious Grade Seven Yao Beasts.

If it weren't for the set of azure Flying Swords Han Li unleashed at the last moment, their five-person team would likely have been completely annihilated here.

Han Li did not reply, only silently retrieving the thirty-six Azure Bamboo Cloud Swarm Swords.

These swords had just been refined and possessed extraordinary power, but they had also nearly drained all his magic power.

He walked to the five-colored pool and extended his Divine Sense into it, quickly discovering two ancient treasures lying quietly at the bottom of the pool, emitting a faint glow.

One was a five-colored mask, and the other was a defensive light shield.

These were precisely what Lin Feng had casually left behind back then.

Han Li's heart stirred, and he fished them out.

Just as he was about to discuss with the heavily injured Jin Qing how to divide the spoils, a golden pillar of light, piercing through heaven and earth, suddenly lit up in the sky.

An indescribably grand Aura instantly spread throughout the entire Chaotic Star Sea.

"Void Heaven Palace!"

Jin Qing exclaimed in surprise, the terror on his face instantly replaced by fanaticism.

Then, he seemed to recall what the Grand Elder had instructed him earlier, and his expression changed.

He cupped his hands towards Han Li and said, "Brother Han, I have some urgent matters, so I'll take my leave first." He then fled the Barren Island.

Han Li's heart also trembled violently. He suddenly took out a palm-sized, unremarkable tattered cloth from his Storage Pouch.

Profound Bone's voice seemed to still echo in his ears.

"Fellow Daoist Han, this is a partial map of the Void Heaven Palace. Although incomplete, it records the methods to break several key Restrictions in the inner hall."

"If a Loose Cultivator in the Chaotic Star Sea wishes to form a Nascent Soul, the Void Heaven Palace is the only opportunity!"

To go, or not to go?

Han Li struggled intensely within.

The bloody battle with the two Grade Seven Yao Beasts just now had made him deeply realize the powerlessness of the Core Formation Stage.

If he hadn't used all his trump cards, he would have long since perished.

However, inside the Void Heaven Palace, Nascent Soul Old Ancestors gathered. Entering with his Early Stage Core Formation cultivation was no different from a lamb entering a tiger's den.

But, his Dao heart, when had it ever known fear!

He took a deep breath, and the hesitation in his eyes turned into determination.

Han Li looked in the direction Jin Qing had departed, no longer hesitating.

Following the vague guidance on the partial map, he identified a direction and resumed his escape light.

...

Void Heaven Palace, entrance.

Space rippled like water, and three figures quietly appeared.

Leading them was a palace-dressed woman with a cold demeanor and peerless beauty, who was Ling Yuling.

The Nascent Soul Stage pressure emanating from her caused many Core Formation Cultivators around them to look over, not daring to approach.

Behind her followed a young woman of equally stunning beauty, but with a more lively and spirited demeanor, who was Purple Spirit disguised as a Core Formation Stage Cultivator.

And trailing behind the two was an ordinary-looking middle-aged man with a restrained Aura, who was Elder Profound Bone, transformed by Lin Feng.

"Green Brother, the outside world says my cultivation was forcibly raised by my parents at the cost of their Origin, and I might not live for a hundred years," Ling Yuling transmitted softly, a hint of a smile in her tone.

"Just rumors, no need to mind them," Lin Feng replied indifferently. "That way, there will be less trouble."

Several years ago, Ling Yuling accidentally revealed her Nascent Soul cultivation, shocking the entire Chaotic Star Sea.

Such a young Nascent Soul Cultivator, her terrifying talent, put immense pressure on both the Righteous Path and Demonic Path.

It wasn't until Star Palace "accidentally" leaked the news that everyone suddenly understood and breathed a sigh of relief.

So it was a fake Nascent Soul, then there was nothing to fear.

"Brother Qing, it's so magnificent here!" Purple Spirit curiously surveyed her surroundings.

They were currently in a massive plaza, paved with white jade, stretching endlessly.

Hundreds of towering stone pillars, a hundred zhang tall, stood scattered across it, exuding a magnificent Aura.

At this moment, most of the stone pillars were already occupied by many Cultivators.

These individuals, without exception, were all experts above the Core Formation Stage.

The Void Heaven Palace was fraught with danger; even Core Formation Cultivators entering were merely cannon fodder, and Foundation Establishment Cultivators didn't even qualify as cannon fodder.

Lin Feng's Divine Sense swept across the plaza and quickly spotted Han Li's figure on an inconspicuous stone pillar at the edge of the plaza.

He was sitting cross-legged, restraining his entire Aura, trying to avoid drawing attention.

A subtle curve appeared at the corner of Lin Feng's mouth.

Just then, a commotion erupted at the entrance of the plaza.

A terrifying, overbearing and savage pressure descended. A purple-haired big man, ten feet tall with bulging muscles, carrying a giant wolf-tooth club, strode in.

"It's Barbarian Hu!"

"The number one Body Cultivator of the Demonic Path!"

A series of gasps erupted from the crowd, and many Cultivators scattered, fearing to provoke this harbinger of doom.

Closely following him, a scholar dressed in a Confucian robe holding a feather fan, and a black-robed old man shrouded in black Qi with a sinister Aura, arrived together.

They were Qing Yi Hermit and Old Ancestor Extreme Yin.

Although Old Ancestor Extreme Yin's Aura was still somewhat unstable, he had clearly recovered seven or eight tenths with the help of the Medicinal Pills sent by Myriad Sound Sect.

His sinister gaze swept across the entire hall, making all Cultivators who met his eyes feel as if they had fallen into an ice abyss.

The three Demonic Path giants had all arrived!

The three walked directly to the three tallest stone pillars in the center of the plaza and unceremoniously occupied them.

A moment later, at another entrance, rays of light shimmered, and auspicious Qi streamed.

Wan Tianming, Sect Leader of the Myriad Dharma Sect, accompanied by the two Nascent Soul Cultivators, Tian Wu Zi and Hei Ming Zi, arrived gracefully, surrounded by a crowd of Righteous Path Cultivators.

The Righteous Path and Demonic Path were distinctly separated, confronting each other from a distance, and the atmosphere in the air instantly became tense.

"Wan Tianming, your Righteous Path Alliance is getting more and more timid. You only sent three old geezers?" Barbarian Hu mocked, carrying his wolf-tooth club, his voice booming.

Wan Tianming held a whisk, a faint smile on his face.

"Fellow Daoist Man, you jest. To deal with you, the three of us are more than enough."

The two sides exchanged verbal jabs, full of hostility.

And Han Li buried his head even lower.

These legendary Nascent Soul Old Ancestors, any one of them could crush him with a mere flick of a finger.

He only hoped now that no one would notice him, an inconspicuous Early Stage Core Formation Cultivator.

Just then, at Lin Feng's signal, Ling Yuling, accompanied by Purple Spirit and Lin Feng, slowly walked towards the Righteous Path Alliance.

"Star Palace's Ling Yuling greets Sect Leader Wan and the two Seniors."

Ling Yuling's cold voice instantly drew all eyes in the plaza.

Wan Tianming and the others looked at Ling Yuling, a hint of surprise flashing in their eyes, which then turned into understanding.

"So it's Fairy Ling. Is Fairy leading Star Palace this time?" Wan Tianming returned the greeting politely.

"Indeed," Ling Yuling nodded.

Barbarian Hu on the opposite side, however, curled his lip in disdain.

"A Nascent Soul baby cultivated by secret techniques, dares to challenge the Void Heaven Palace? Are the Star Palace Twin Saints out of people?"

Ling Yuling's expression turned cold, about to retort.

"Buzz—"

A long hum, as if from ancient times, reverberated throughout the entire plaza.

The white jade plaza beneath their feet began to glow with countless profound runes.

At the end of the plaza, a massive portal formed by light slowly materialized.

The first checkpoint leading to the inner hall had opened.