C669 Darkness Dust Fog!
Night had descended.
The Crimson Desert, once ablaze with the sun's rolling waves by day, experienced a sudden plunge in temperature with the onset of darkness.
From hundreds of towering sand dunes, gray smoke burst forth, shooting from deep underground towards the sky, rapidly expanding in all directions.
Had the Fallen Star Eyes still been present, they would have witnessed the entire Crimson Desert being rapidly consumed by the gray smoke in an astonishing fashion.
The sect disciples who had ventured here, along with the supporting elders, found their sensory perceptions dulled the moment they were enveloped by the dense gray smoke.
Within its grasp, their souls felt adrift, and concentrating became an arduous task.
Many were prone to distraction, their focus wavering mid-conversation or in the heat of battle.
Yet, the Devaputras and the Galaxy Alien Race remained unaffected.
They even seemed more ferocious, as if the gray smoke had amplified their strength.
The native Great Demons, less focused on soul refinement, were also less susceptible to the smoke's influence.
Only human cultivators who had honed their Spiritual Sense to the Penetrating Stage immediately recognized the smoke's peril.
The more advanced their realm, the more acute their awareness!
"The Dark Ash Dust from the Gray Domain's depths, found in the outer Heavenly River!"
"My God! How can the Dark Ash Dust appear in the Boundless Land?"
"It is the Dark Ash Dust!"
Those traversing the Crimson Desert, who had heard their elders speak of this mist, were terrified at the recollection of its mysterious and fearsome nature.
Leaders like Hou Tianzhao, Qi Jinghai, Kong Banbi, and Qu Jing, upon learning of the Dark Ember Mist's spread through the Crimson Desert, abandoned their mission to eradicate evil. They promptly gathered their remaining disciples and fled the desert with utmost haste.
...
Beyond the desert's edge.
Ann Ziqing of the Blood God Cult, after instructing Han Ling, used a secret method to send a soul message to Lin Yue, only to notice the strange happenings in the Crimson Desert.
"Dark Ember Mist!"
Ann Ziqing and Han Ling exclaimed almost simultaneously.
Chen Langzhi remained composed, offering a respectful fist-and-palm salute to Ann Ziqing, "Luan Bird City, as well as the Chen family, will always welcome you within our walls."
After uttering those words, the Chen family member gave a slight smile and disappeared into the earth.
A crimson light burst forth from Ann Ziqing's sleeve, severing the connection between heaven and earth.
"Could the anomaly in the Crimson Desert have ties to the Chen family of the Luan Bird Empire?" Ann Ziqing mused, her brow furrowed in concern.
"Never mind the Chen family for now; I need to go back up Lin Yue!" Han Ling said, urgency in his voice.
"Take heed, even you must not venture into the Crimson Desert again!" Ann Ziqing cautioned.
"I'm well aware," replied Han Ling, the fiery elder of the Blood God Cult, who had grown alarmed upon discovering the Dark Ember Mist in the Crimson Desert. "It's uncertain how many will perish there. My only hope is that our Blood God Cult members make it out unscathed."
"At the very least, Lin Yue must survive!"
Lin Yue was the direct disciple of Han Ling's senior brother, and he had vowed to look after him.
...
As the Fallen Star Eyes neared Luan Bird City, it diminished in size and descended.
The city guards, well aware of the renowned Fallen Star Eyes and its master, granted swift entry.
Yu Yuan, accompanied by Lau Ying, chose not to pursue seclusion at the Blue Sky Shrine but instead sought out Xie Binn at the Small Clouds Sect, who, after refining his Heavenly Soul, had resumed his cultivation journey.
Lau Ying was at his side.
En route, Yu Yuan altered his appearance, taking on the guise of "Chen Xi."
Before long, the once quiet Dao House of the Small Clouds Sect was abuzz with activity. Huang Chuan, the laid-back, lame-legged old man, stood at the entrance, turning away the throngs of cultivators who had come seeking knowledge.
"Brother Chen Xi!"
His eyes brightened when he spotted Yu Yuan and Lau Ying arriving together. Shoving through the crowd, he eagerly waved them over.
Yu Yuan came to an abrupt halt, his gaze fixed on a familiar silhouette.
Among the young hopefuls who had come, one particularly striking youth stood apart, his eyes filled with a wistful longing as they occasionally swept over the Small Clouds Sect's signboard.
Clearly, he yearned to step inside and master the sect's Dao Spells and secret arts.
Yet his nature, inherently proud, prevented him from openly soliciting entry like the others.
He stood out awkwardly, as if he was waiting for someone from the Little Clouds Sect to recognize his exceptional abilities and proactively invite him to join.
That man was Lee Yu.
"Old man Xie insisted that the moment you arrived, he wanted you brought to him without delay!" Huang Chuan hobbled over, his face flushed with urgency, as if worried Yu Yuan might be unaware, "Old man Xie has successfully reunited his soul! And no matter how much I press him, he refuses to disclose why!"
Trembling with excitement, Huang Chuan blurted out, "Chen Xi, do you realize the significance of Old man Xie's soul reunion for our Little Clouds Sect?"
Yu Yuan gave a slight nod, "I'm aware."
Yet his attention remained on Lee Yu, his mind swirling with unanswered questions.
Why was Lee Yu here?
"Qi Jinghai wants our Ice Thunder Mark? He can keep dreaming!" Huang Chuan sneered with a vicious grin, "I've learned that Old man Xie was once the most renowned cultivator on the Heavenly Source Continent! He even achieved great feats in the Outland Star River!"
"Now that he's reunited his soul and returned to the Soul Wandering Stage, having once witnessed the glory of the Yang God, refining it again will be a breeze for him! Perhaps Old man Xie might even ascend to the Freedom Stage!"
"If Qi Jinghai dares to come back, we'll show him what we're made of!"
Huang Chuan was buoyant with confidence.
Yu Yuan, however, remained contemplative, his gaze fixed on Lee Yu.
Lee Yu, sensing the attention from the edge of the crowd, returned Yu Yuan's stare with a puzzled look. Annoyed by the unfamiliar man's scrutiny, Lee Yu's face soured as he let out a disdainful snort.
"What's with the snorting?"
An irked Huang Chuan pointed at Lee Yu and informed Yu Yuan, "That kid's got a solid foundation, his cultivation at the Profound Break Stage. He goes by Lee Yu, hailing from the Devil Moon Empire. I've heard he's kin to the Silvermoon Queen. You must know, the Silvermoon Queen and her people aren't exactly embraced by the current sects."
Huang Chuan rambled on, essentially conveying to Yu Yuan that while Lee Yu's talents were sufficient for the Little Clouds Sect, his controversial identity meant he hadn't accepted the offer.
Before Lee Yu approached the Small Clouds Sect, he had lingered around neighboring sects, disclosing his identity, only to be turned away each time.
No sect was willing to take in someone with a tainted past.
"Let him enter with me. I'll take him to meet Elder Xie," Yu Yuan whispered.
"Him?" Huang Chuan exclaimed in surprise.
"Whether Elder Xie wants someone or not, I'll just make the introduction," Yu Yuan said, smiling.
"Alright, I'll do this for you," Huang Chuan conceded, raising his voice to address Lee Yu, "Come on then, you'll join us. Whether Elder Xie will accept you, I can't say, but you'll get your chance."
Lee Yu, standing amidst the crowd, felt a surge of excitement at Huang Chuan's words.
He knew that the Small Thunder Sect had once been a lower sect, akin to the current Thunder Sect, sharing the same origins in their Dao Spells and secret arts. It was a devastating battle in the Outer Star River that had reduced them to their current state.
Not long ago, he learned that Xie Binn, the current steward of this place, was once a formidable Yang God Stage practitioner who had been severely wounded in that celestial conflict and subsequently assigned here.
Lee Yu had been contemplating this information for some time.
Later, he heard that Xie Binn had reassembled his Heavenly Soul and had caused an uproar at the Cold Yin Sect's Dao House, retrieving a young girl from the clutches of Zhao Jingzhi.
Lee Yu, desperate for a path to the Dao, had come here on a whim to try his luck.
Yet Huang Chuan seemed aware of his origins and had shown no interest in him from the start, casting a shadow over Lee Yu's spirits.
He had been ready to leave after a short while, never anticipating the possibility of a new opportunity.
