Once the shock passed, everyone remembered the matter at hand and hurried to search for traces of Old Demon Ye.
Yet the Inner Hall of Ziwei Palace was in total disarray.
Anomalies could be seen everywhere.
"This couldn't be Old Demon Ye's doing! In recent years, Ziwei Palace has emerged ahead of schedule time and again. It was clearly the brewing of some great change, and now it seems the truth will finally come to light today. However, I fear this won't be the full opening of Ziwei Palace as we previously anticipated, but rather a far greater upheaval!"
Feather King possessed the deepest seniority among them, having risen to fame long before Demon Monarch Tongyou and Daoist Zhenyi.
He stared into the Inner Hall, looking upon this immortal palace that felt both familiar and alien.
The Feather King Palace had been passed down through generations, and every Feather Demon King had reigned as an overlord of Tianyao Mound. In the past, braving the immortal formations of Ziwei Palace had always required reliance on the ancestral treasures of the Feather King Palace, so they had never missed an opening.
Among the cultivators present, none likely knew more secrets than he did.
Even so, he could not help but marvel. As it turned out, Ziwei Palace still harbored so many secrets!
Many places had been explored countless times before and had seemed utterly ordinary. Only now did they realize that was not the case; restricted by their cultivation and knowledge, all they had ever seen was the surface.
Ziwei Palace at this moment surpassed everyone's understanding.
An unprecedented immortal realm.
Unimaginably powerful ancient restrictions.
Enticing immortal herbs and ancient treasures...
Even Tianshan, once regarded as the paramount core area, no longer seemed so prominent amidst the countless hidden realms.
"Old Demon Ye laid his plans for centuries, choosing this precise moment to strike and even releasing a devil of unknown origin. It seems he knew all along that Ziwei Palace would undergo such a change."
Daoist Zhenyi looked around.
The minds of the crowd were likely no longer on Old Demon Ye.
Whether this upheaval in Ziwei Palace was a blessing or a curse remained unknown, but for everyone present, it was a once-in-a-millennium opportunity. Take the ancient medicinal garden: previously, one might not find a single immortal herb even after enduring untold hardships. Now, spiritual light flashed everywhere. As long as one had the capability to withstand the restrictions of the ancient medicinal garden, they could claim them.
Daoist Zhenyi sighed inwardly. How could he not be tempted himself?
Several top experts conferred via voice transmission.
Daoist Canghong said in a clear voice, "Trying to find Old Demon Ye right now is like searching for a needle in the ocean. Let us split up for now. If anyone discovers traces of Old Demon Ye, send a signal immediately. Do not let the benefits before you cloud your judgment. Think of what Old Demon Ye has done—if we do not eliminate this demon swiftly, the Beichen Realm will never know peace!"
The crowd was already itching for action. Hearing this, they voiced their agreement in unison and flew eagerly toward the Inner Hall.
Someone invited Qin Sang to join forces in searching for treasure.
Qin Sang politely declined. Spotting a gap in the sea of clouds, he steered his streak of light through it and entered the Inner Hall.
Within Ziwei Palace, auspicious five-colored clouds drifted in clusters, and immortal palaces stretched in vast arrays, truly resembling a celestial realm.
He swept his gaze across his surroundings. Once the crowd had departed, he avoided prying eyes and landed on a fragment of floating land. A flash emanated from the corpse puppet bag at his waist, and Bai flew out.
Seeing the anomalies within Ziwei Palace, Bai's eyes flickered. After a moment of contemplation, he turned to Qin Sang and said, "Hurry and subdue the Nanming Primordial Fire. Delay brings unexpected trouble. I'll stay outside to wait for your senior sister and look around while I'm at it. If there's any news, I'll send word to you."
Qin Sang had been thinking the same thing.
The scene before them was completely unforeseen. No one could predict what would ultimately become of Ziwei Palace; what if this was merely the final flare before total destruction?
If he missed this chance, who knew if there would ever be another?
Qin Sang was thankful that his years of hard work had not been in vain and that he had completed the refinement of his magic treasure, even though he had less than a fifty percent chance of subduing the Nanming Primordial Fire.
"Take care, Brother Bai. I shouldn't be delayed too long," Qin Sang said.
Subduing spiritual fire was a straightforward matter—either it worked or it didn't, and a single attempt would reveal the outcome.
He left the Demon Binding Rope with Bai and set out with only the Nascent Soul talisman puppet.
Entering Ziwei Palace this time felt completely different from the previous two occasions.
Places that had once been exceedingly safe now saw hidden realms surfacing, layered with ancient restrictions that flickered in and out of view and teemed with unknown dangers. No one dared to fly about recklessly as they had before.
Qin Sang summoned the ebony sword and transformed into a streak of sword light, but once he reached the edge of the Inner Hall, he obediently landed on the ground.
He gazed toward the direction of Sword Mark Mountain. After a moment, he swept his eyes back and forth, seeking a safe route. Finding a path where anomalies were fewest, he set off without hesitation.
Coming into close contact with the hidden realms of Ziwei Palace filled Qin Sang with growing awe.
In this moment, he felt a heartfelt longing for the glory of the ancient cultivation world!
Cultivators of the present era were like frogs at the bottom of a well; without seeing it with their own eyes, it was hard to imagine that such magnificent spectacles existed in the world. Even though these were merely the ruined remnants of Ziwei Palace's hidden realms, they were still beyond compare.
Qin Sang was entranced by the unprecedented ancient restrictions, yet to state a plain truth, he could barely understand any of them.
This made Qin Sang feel increasingly anxious.
Sword Mark Mountain was clearly affected as well. In the past, the illusory formation had been dormant, allowing him and Yunyouzi to pass through it during the Foundation Establishment stage to find the pill chamber where the Nanming Primordial Fire was kept.
With the illusory formation transformed by the upheaval, even with his current cultivation, he had little confidence in breaching it.
The good news was that the sword qi that had persisted on Sword Mark Mountain since antiquity had erupted as well, and it seemed the illusory formation was being disrupted by it.
Mulling this over, Qin Sang did not pause his pace. After rushing forward for a while, he was not far from the ancient medicinal garden.
He noticed that the majority of cultivators were heading for the ancient medicinal garden—including Feather King and Cultivator Lu—far outnumbering those going to Tianshan.
This was simply because the ancient medicinal garden had undergone the most drastic changes; the peerless spiritual herbs deeply hidden within had surfaced one after another. Their locations were easy to spot, and it was first come, first served—far simpler than searching for ancient treasures in other hidden realms.
Cultivator Lu had been traveling everywhere to treat the Cold Lizard's injuries, so he naturally would not miss such an exceptional opportunity. He had been the one who invited Qin Sang to travel together just moments ago.
Qin Sang looked toward the ancient medicinal garden.
He was naturally very tempted as well.
Peerless immortal herbs were one of a kind. Obtaining even a single stalk was an immense fortune, possessing effects beyond imagination.
Especially Xuanpu Palace at the center of the ancient medicinal garden.
Before undergoing his tribulation, Yunyouzi had explained the origins and details of Xuanpu Palace to Qin Sang at length. That it could nurture psychic Qingfu True Bamboo was proof enough that it was the core treasure ground of the ancient medicinal garden.
However, after weighing his options, Qin Sang decided that the Nanming Primordial Fire was more important to him, and he reluctantly tore his gaze away.
Just then, Qin Sang arrived before an empty clearing.
There were no anomalies here, and as he was about to cross it, he suddenly sensed something amiss. His expression changed slightly, and he abruptly halted at the edge.
In the next moment, bubbling sounds came from the center of the clearing as a springhead welled up.
Spring water gushed out incessantly, quickly pooling into a small pond.
Sweeping his gaze over the terrain, Qin Sang realized the ground here sat lower; it must have originally been a small lake that had dried up, now reviving before his very eyes.
"The upheaval in Ziwei Palace is still unfolding!" Qin Sang muttered, feeling an even greater sense of urgency.
In the blink of an eye, a crescent-shaped lake appeared before him.
The surrounding scenery revived along with the lake: purple bamboo shoots sprouted, growing into a grove at a speed visible to the naked eye. As a gentle breeze blew through, the bamboo leaves rustled softly, serene and tranquil.
Chapter 1333