Chapter 42: The Indigenous People

The Count of the Spider Demons looked at Li Kuanglan and then at the sword in his hand, uncertain for a moment which was more terrifying—the man or the blade.

With great effort, the Count of the Spider Demons used the remnants of his dark essence to transform into a half-spider form. He rasped, “Who, who exactly are you?”

“You only need to remember Young Master Kuanglan.”

The Count of the Spider Demons racked his brains but could not recall who this Young Master Kuanglan was. “Young Master Kuanglan? I’ve never heard of such a person in the Empire. How is it that I don’t know of your existence?”

Li Kuanglan gave a faint smile, his radiance lighting up the surrounding forest. Gently caressing the edge of his sword, he said, “It’s quite simple. Anyone who has ever heard my name is already dead. Now, you are no different.”

As the words still hung in the air, a blinding blue light flashed from Li Kuanglan’s hand, and the Count of the Spider Demons instantly lost all sensation in his body. His head flew high into the air. The once sturdy flesh and powerful defenses of the spider form were as fragile as thin paper before the crystal sword.

In his final moments, he vaguely heard Young Master Kuanglan say, “You, being a strong figure of the Count rank, dying under my ‘Cold Moon over Sand’ can be considered a somewhat honorable end.”

Li Kuanglan didn’t even bother to glance at the items left behind by the Count of the Spider Demons, let alone pick them up. Sheathing his sword, he slowly turned and gazed in the direction from which the howls had come, his eyes burning with a fighting spirit. “This should be interesting!”

He took a step forward, moving deceptively fast, and soon disappeared into the thick white fog.

As he approached the center of the forest, heroes and champions from all directions began to converge, and the clashes between them started to increase.

Qian Ye did not rush into the heart of the forest. Instead, he spent several days circling around, observing the strong ones from both camps. He did not deliberately hunt the dark races but focused on hunting the local beasts, quickly exterminating two entire herds.

These local creatures possessed an unusually rich source of vital blood. With this replenishment, Qian Ye finally succeeded in fully illuminating the second feather of the Primordial Wings. Now, the Primordial Wings had one feather on each wing, making them look much more agile. Overall, they no longer appeared as ethereal as before, but rather, they now had a tangible presence.

Although, with Qian Ye’s current amount of primal force, he could only fire one Primordial Spear, after a day of rest, he could fire a second one. This way, even if faced with unexpectedly strong enemies, his chances of survival increased significantly.

Having made ample preparations, Qian Ye advanced toward the center of the forest. The forest was eerily quiet, with only the constant rustling of the purple substrate. As Qian Ye passed by tree after tree, nothing out of the ordinary happened.

Presumably, any powerful figures who might have detected him had already entered the central region.

But just a few hundred meters away, Night Pupil was silently watching Qian Ye through a scope until he was out of sight.

Night Pupil put away her sniper rifle and said to Aiden, “No sightings. Let’s go.”

Aiden nodded. “It’s about time. We should enter the central area too.”

Night Pupil packed up her gear and followed Aiden.

Not far from where they were, just outside their field of vision, Qian Ye leaned against a large tree, his head slightly raised as if deep in thought. Yet, his gaze was fixed in the direction where Night Pupil had departed.

Only when Night Pupil was well out of sight did Qian Ye sigh desolately and continue toward the heart of the forest.

The place where the Void Beast’s bones lay was the battleground chosen by the various powerhouses. Here, the remnant will of the beast was the strongest, and the suppression felt by everyone was most pronounced. The greater the suppression, the more the gap between geniuses and ordinary people widened, while the differences in rank became less significant.

Thus, in the hearts of these ambitious powerhouses, this was the ultimate testing ground for genius. Those of lesser strength did not even qualify to enter. Fighting here was like dancing on a knife’s edge; the slightest mistake could result in either death in battle or being crushed by the will of the beast, igniting all their primal force and turning them to ashes.

After a full day of walking, Qian Ye finally crossed the forest and entered the central area where the beast’s bones were located. As he stepped out of the forest, he was momentarily stunned. Before him stood a majestic mountain range, stretching endlessly.

Despite the long journey and his mental preparation, he was still astounded by the sight of the complete skeleton of the beast. No words could describe the shock of seeing it in its entirety.

The moment he exited the forest, Qian Ye’s senses returned to normal, and the sudden expansion of his field of vision made him feel disoriented. It took some effort to adjust.

The undulating mountains filled his entire view, creating the illusion of standing on a landmass of only mountains, when in reality, it was just the spine of the Void Beast.

The mountains were riddled with caves of various sizes, interconnected in a labyrinthine layout. Qian Ye noticed shadows, large and small, flitting through some of the cave entrances. Some of these were clearly the gray-skinned little beings he had encountered in the forest. Though small, these creatures were exceedingly dangerous, their poisonous spears causing enough trouble on their own.

The other creatures were diverse, some locked in fierce combat with the little beings, others hunting and preying on them. It was clear that none of them were easy to deal with.

Here, the previously lost sense of the ancient essence of the Void Beast returned, and the call to the essence of life grew stronger.

Qian Ye’s extraordinary vision returned to its normal range. Looking afar, he could see several groups of people. These people belonged to the two major factions and existed in a peculiar balance, coexisting peacefully. Some had even set up camps, indicating they had been there for a considerable time.

After a moment’s thought, Qian Ye approached a few strong figures from the Empire. They were mostly twelfth and thirteenth-level warriors. Seeing Qian Ye, they seemed quite pleased. In this perilous and unfamiliar environment, with dark race powerhouses lurking nearby, every additional member was a boost to their strength.

There were four in the camp, led by two Kong family warriors, with two other mid-level warriors from smaller families. Qian Ye stopped a dozen meters away. Before their identities were confirmed, this was the safe distance for warriors.

The elder Kong family warrior saw the Yan Yun Iron Cavalry emblem on Qian Ye’s uniform and the seemingly mundane heavy sword on his back. He suddenly showed a look of shock, “Young Master Qian Ye of the Zhao family?”

Qian Ye nodded, and the warriors immediately brightened, their demeanor becoming much friendlier. In this place, a figure like Qian Ye could unleash combat power far beyond his rank. Although the Kong and Zhao families had had friction under the Iron Curtain, in this dangerous land with enemies all around, it was more important to unite against the common foe.

After learning about the other Empire strongmen who had arrived recently, Qian Ye asked, “Why have you all stopped here? Why not go in?”

The Kong family warrior sighed, “You must have sensed it too. The fragments of the ancient essence are inside. But have you seen those cave entrances? The entire mountain interior is a network of caves, a natural maze. Not only is the terrain difficult, but the strange natives living inside are extremely powerful and their numbers are endless.”

“On our first day here, we tried to explore inside. We didn’t get far before we were surrounded by various fierce beasts and wild humans. We fought for a whole day and night, slaying countless foes, but their numbers never seemed to decrease! In the end, we had to fight our way out, barely escaping with our lives. But two of our comrades were left behind.”

Qian Ye glanced at the cave, feeling a chill. The Kong family warriors were not weak, and if they could be stopped and lose two of their own, the danger within the mountain was evident.

Another warrior suddenly spoke, “Over the past few days, we’ve seen groups of beasts and gray-skinned tribes entering the mountain. They don’t seem to be the usual inhabitants of the caves. Could they also be attracted by the ancient essence?”

The others had wondered the same, and now that it was said, their faces turned grim. If true, it meant that to seize the ancient essence, they would have to fight endless hordes of local life forms.

Moreover, the Evernight strongmen were not idle either.

The situation was worse than Qian Ye had anticipated.

The other Kong family warrior sighed, “Most of those who have camped outside have suffered setbacks inside the mountain. The newcomers, warned, have not ventured in rashly. Both sides are stalemated here, waiting for reinforcements. When the numbers are sufficient, whether from one side or the other, it will ease the pressure from the local inhabitants.”

Qian Ye nodded, agreeing that this was a good strategy.

Qian Ye stayed at the temporary camp of the four, wrapping himself in a tactical cloak, sitting in a corner, and meditating, waiting quietly.

Over the next day and night, Qian Ye felt multiple consciousnesses scanning the camp, some from Evernight, others from the Empire. He concealed his aura and did not respond to the probes. The consciousnesses retracted quickly, obviously just checking the situation without immediate hostility.

With the pressure from the local inhabitants, both factions tacitly ceased hostilities. The real fight would begin when they confronted the ancient essence fragments.

After two more days, both factions had gathered a formidable force. In the distance, a Marquis of the Spider Demons from Evernight rose and walked towards the mountain formed by the beast’s bones.

Like the first domino, he triggered a chain reaction. Strong figures from both factions stood up, moving at varying speeds, and began to head for the mountain.

Suppressing a trace of impatience, Qian Ye had met a few more Zhao family warriors over the past two days. Apart from the two warriors, the strongest soldiers could not linger near the mountain and had to wait elsewhere for further news. However, they had no news of Jun Du Zhao.

Taking a deep breath, Qian Ye cleared his mind, adjusted his body to its best state, and stood up. Still wrapped in his cloak, he walked at a steady pace towards the mountain. He neither led nor lagged, choosing a seemingly quiet cave entrance and stepping inside.

The entire mountain interior erupted into chaos, with countless battles breaking out simultaneously. The combined efforts of the many strong figures indeed reduced the pressure from the local inhabitants.

In the cave Qian Ye entered, there were only three or five creatures resembling hairless hunting dogs, with deep gray, wrinkled skin. At the end of a bend, two more gray dogs were about to leave, but upon seeing Qian Ye, they barked and turned back.