C523 The Starry Sky!

Upon discussing the situation at the Azure Sun Martial Mansion, Zhan Yinuo became a bit emotional. After a pause, he added with a hint of bitterness, "Let's not dwell on the past. Honestly, I didn't step in earlier because I didn't expect your fighting skills to be that powerful. Either way, I wasn't being a good friend." With that, Zhan Yinuo clasped his hands in a respectful gesture.

"Don't worry about it. Let's head inside! If more people come to snatch the spirit liquid, we might not stand a chance!" Woo Zhengyang said as he headed toward the valley.

"This... you discovered the spirit pool and dealt with them. I shouldn't go in."

"Come on, don't be so polite. Do you think I'm the kind of person who keeps everything to myself?" Woo Zhengyang replied, a bit exasperated.

In the end, Zhan Yinuo didn't insist further and joined Woo Zhengyang in entering the valley. After all, the spirit liquid was a huge temptation for him too. Like everyone else, Zhan Yinuo had a tough time during his first visit to the spirit pool, but having been there once before, Woo Zhengyang found it much easier this time.

Woo Zhengyang tested the larger spirit pool and found that the spirit liquid was indeed much stronger than before. It integrated into the body faster, and the effects were increasingly beneficial.

Half an hour later, the spirit liquid in the pool was completely absorbed by the two of them. To Woo Zhengyang's surprise, after absorbing the spirit liquid, Zhan Yinuo advanced directly to the mid-stage of the Inner Stage.

Woo Zhengyang seemed to have absorbed even more spirit liquid than Zhan Yinuo, yet he was still some distance away from reaching the mid-level of the Inner Stage. Zhan Yinuo had only recently entered the Inner Stage before coming to the Misty Mountain Range, not much earlier than Woo Zhengyang. Woo Zhengyang had asked him, and it turned out Yinuo hadn't had any special opportunities before. Yet, Yinuo advanced, while Woo Zhengyang did not.

Woo Zhengyang could only speculate that his body, transformed by the golden vortex, required more energy than usual, or perhaps the "Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique" he practiced consumed much more than other techniques. Now, even in refining energy, the "Sword Sacrifice and Void Breaking Technique" was more challenging than for others, and the same went for body training. Woo Zhengyang had to cultivate both energy and body simultaneously, requiring several times the resources of other practitioners. The road ahead was indeed tough!

After absorbing the spirit liquid, Zhan Yinuo decided to leave on his own. Despite reaching the mid-level of the Inner Stage, he was well aware that staying with Woo Zhengyang wouldn't be much help and might even be a burden. Even Hee Tianye, who had long been in the Inner Stage, wasn't a match for Woo Zhengyang, let alone himself.

Woo Zhengyang tried to persuade him to stay, but Zhan Yinuo was determined to seek his own opportunities. Seeing this resolve, Woo Zhengyang didn't insist further. With the ability to fly on his sword, he found it much more convenient to travel alone.

As they were about to part ways, Woo Zhengyang shared his strategy for dealing with those spirit crystal women with Zhan Yinuo. Whether Yinuo could handle it easily depended on his own archery skills, as Zhengyang couldn't offer any more help.

Flying on his sword once more, Zhengyang was much more cautious this time. It wouldn't be good to get caught. However, things turned out better than he expected. This world was vast and boundless, and with the previous two layers, it seemed even larger than the original world.

The underground world was even bigger than the one above. It sounded absurd, like an illusion, but the more Zhengyang explored, the more real this illusion felt.

After flying for about four hours, Zhengyang hadn't found a new spirit pool or encountered anyone else. Yet, he discovered the edge of this world!

Yes, the very edge of the world.

Zhengyang had never imagined he would see the world's edge, nor did he expect it to look like this. All the spirit crystals formed a sheer cliff, as if sliced by a sharp blade. Beyond this cliff lay an endless starry sky.

Tiny stars spread down from the sky, extending below the cliff. Is this what the starry sky looks like?

Even with his enhanced vision, Zhengyang couldn't clearly see the stars' shapes. They seemed so close, yet they were actually far away.

Woo Zhengyang stood on the edge of a cliff, feeling as if he were amidst the stars. Suddenly, he snapped out of his daze, his heart pounding with fear. Once again, he had been tricked by the creator of this world!

He found himself truly in a starry expanse, with no trace of the spirit crystal world behind him. Everywhere he looked—up, down, left, right—there was nothing but emptiness. Beneath his feet was the last spirit crystal, the only thing keeping him from falling.

Zhengyang took out the Array Origin Bead, but sensed no trace of any array around him. This wasn't an illusion array? What on earth was happening?

Frowning deeply, Zhengyang scanned his surroundings but found no opportunity or way out. Then he felt something strange beneath him. Looking down, he saw an even more troubling sight.

The spirit crystal under his feet was slowly disintegrating, falling away in glowing fragments. The starry glow was beautiful, making it seem as though he was standing on a firework shooting into the sky. But as the light continued to burst forth, the crystal beneath him kept shrinking.

"If this crystal disappears, will I fall?" Zhengyang thought, his face etched with worry.

Before long, Woo Zhengyang's fears became reality. He felt the ground disappear beneath his feet, and his body started to plummet endlessly...

Woo Zhengyang tried to connect with the Ice Crystal Fire Hall, only to find his Soul Energy was once again ineffective, and even his Sword Manipulating Flight Technique failed him.

"The creator of this world must be a jerk!" Woo Zhengyang cursed internally.

As soon as he entered this world, he was falling endlessly, and now it was happening again. Was this the creator's idea of fun?

This thought made Woo Zhengyang suddenly wary. If these settings were just the creator's amusement, it might not be a big deal—just a test of his character. But what if, like No Life City, it was all part of a sinister plot?

The near-death experiences in No Life City were still fresh in Woo Zhengyang's mind. Even now, he was bound by the No Life Sword, unable to break free. If the creator of this world still existed here, the consequences could be dire.

Of course, this was all speculation. This world had been accessed multiple times before without any issues.

Right now, Woo Zhengyang needed to focus on his current predicament. He was still falling with no end in sight. When he first entered this world, it was a constant fall, followed by those troublesome clouds. What would it be this time?

I'm not really worried about being in danger anymore. Since this world seems to be all about playing tricks on people, it probably won't just drop someone to their death. That would be way too boring.