Surprisingly, despite the show of hostility between the two sides, they did not actually start fighting. Firstly, the two sides did not truly want to start a conflict here. At any rate, the most important thing here was the city. Before resolving that issue, not exhausting their strength was preferable.
Most importantly, another change had happened to the city.
One scarlet-coloured pillar of light after another shot up into the sky. The interval between the emergence of each pillar of light was gradually decreasing and it didn't take long for 81 scarlet pillars of light to rise up before them.
Every one of the pillars of light was of the same size, possessing a diameter of 50 kilometres and containing a destructive power that could send a chill down the spines of every cultivator present.
By then, the pillars of light had already smashed apart the sky above to reveal turbulent void s.p.a.ce.
“Every one of the scarlet pillars of light is the equivalent of an attack from an Immortal artefact. Looks like this city is unlike what we had first imagined.”
“Heh! I heard that someone actually tried to utilize a cosmos pouch to collect the city before, how laughable!”
“That is true. Just by looking at the pillars of light, you will be able to tell that the one who constructed this city is at the very least an Ascendant Immortal. Rather, it might be someone stronger than that.”
“If it's really someone at a higher level, everyone here will definitely have to go all out. By the way, would something like this lure over even stronger individuals?”
“That's why, its is critical for the city to emerge faster. That way, we can enter as soon as possible. Then, after getting what we want, we'll book it.”
“As if it's that easy.”
“The number of pillars has reached 90.”
“Let me test the might of these pillars of light!”
A battle lance pierced through the void as it shot towards one of the scarlet pillars of light.
“A low-grade Dao artefact. Heh! This fellow sure is willing.”
“That's Archdemon Watermoon from the Demon Plane. He had killed an uncountable number of Earthen Immortals from the Immortal Plane before. Tossing out some Dao artefacts is nothing big for him.”
Everyone was able to clearly see what happened next. The Dao-tier battle lance shot into the scarlet pillar of light and was never seen again. It was like a piece of wax thrown into fire, melted away into nothingness.
“100 pillars of light.”
Weng!
Finally, no more pillars of light emerged. Before them all were 108 scarlet pillars of light, each and every one of them piercing into the sky to take on a peculiar form.
By then, the turbulent void s.p.a.ce up in the sky had already disappeared. Instead, a total of 108 stars shone up in the sky. Every one of the stars shone in correspondence to one of the pillars of light. Even though there was a great and unknown distance between the stars and the city, every one of them was transmitting a formidable power forward. The formidable power then fused with one of the pillars of light before finally moving into the city.
After receiving power from the 108 stars, the city finished emerging from the ground. It stood steadily on the desert. Appearance wise, the interior of the city seemed tranquil even as a formidable atmosphere of coercion continued spreading out from the city.
When they finally beheld the full scope and shape of the city, all of the cultivators there sucked in a sharp breath of air. Even the cultivators from the Immortal Plane who had seen much were in shock at what they saw.
It was not because there was no city of such scale in the Immortal Plane. Rather, it was because a city this large should not have appeared in this Heavensday Battlefield.
“This city is likely not a relic from the war. I suspect that it has existed even before the war.”
“Surely not! Isn't that too long?”
“What is so surprising about that? With the reinforcing magic of grand dao powers, a city can remain untouched for tens of millions of years.”
“This city has been sleeping for so long, not appearing even during the war. For it to appear now, there must be a reason for it.”
“Who cares about that? All that matters is that we can get some benefits from it.”
“It probably wouldn't be easy to get benefits from this place.”
It was due to this change that Tian Xiaozi and Qing Hun's group stopped confronting one another. Qing Hun did not look down on Chen Feng due to his cultivation level. On the contrary, he gave a display of good will before moving away.
As for Tian Xiaozi, he gave Chen Feng a cold look before leading his men away. He went to talk to other cultivators. It seemed he was making preparations for what might happen next.
“A city with a radius of over 50,000 kilometres. I have never even heard of such a thing, let alone see it,” Chen Feng said smilingly. Although he was still feeling shocked, he had calmed down somewhat.
“It's not just 50,000 kilometres. There is no telling if this city's interior has its own dimension or not. Brother Chen, our harvest this time will likely exceed our previous one. a.s.suming, of course, we succeed. Right now, I can feel a mountain-like pressure bearing down on me.” Liu Wuxiang shook his head. Although his face appeared calm, his eyes kept flickering. It was obvious that he was deep in thought about something.
“Let's observe the situation first. We'll decide after the others enter.”
“I fear no one will be willing to take the lead.”
“Did you two discover anything?” As Chen Feng was talking to Liu Wuxiang, he was also secretly communicating with the tree yao and h.e.l.l Dog.
“A bit.” The two Yao Immortals answered at the same time.
That surprised Chen Feng. He secretly continued, “Tell me about it.”
“This city has existed for at least several million years, maybe longer.”
“There should be some living creatures inside it.”
“This city is intact.”
“The one who constructed this city should be an existence surpa.s.sing the Ascendant Immortal stage.”
“Shape wise, it doesn't look like something a cultivator from the Immortal Plane would build.”
“It also doesn't look like something from h.e.l.l, the Ghost Plane or Nether Plane.”
“Entering it will likely be very dangerous.”
The h.e.l.l Dog and tree yao kept speaking, one following the other. Hearing them, Chen Feng grew stunned. Then, he began pondering the situation.
“There is indeed the power of a True Immortal here,” Tower suddenly interjected.
“True Immortal?! Is that the stage above the Ascendant Immortal?” Chen Feng asked curiously.
“You are not even a Human Immortal. There is no point in asking about it,” Tower answered bluntly.
“Still, this city has a story behind it. It will surely have some of the items I need.”
“Not even an Immortal artefact can break into the city earlier. That alone proves how dangerous this city is. How is your current level of strength?” Chen Feng felt concerned.
“I know my limits. If it comes down to it, I can figure a way to leave this place.”
The 108 pillars of light slowly rotated and a vast amount of the power of stars poured into the city. Like a torrential rain scouring a green mountain, it caused the ancient city to gradually become more distinct and strands of spiritual energy there transformed to mists, giving the city an even more mysterious appearance.
“The city is recovering. Could there be any living creatures inside?”
“I'm personally hoping there are.”
“Are there none here willing to take the lead? Fine, I'll give it a shot!” Finally, one of the cultivators there was no longer capable of holding back. He then took a step forward, bringing his figure over 50 kilometres forward.
“Oh, the pressure has disappeared! Is it possible to enter now?”
Sou!
When he thought of that, the cultivator waved his hand to send out a shining talisman, which transformed into a goshawk before flying into the city.
The goshawk safely flew past the scarlet pillars of light and was able to enter the city unharmed. Then, it disappeared.
“It can enter!” The cultivator's eyes lit up and a delighted look of surprise appeared on his face. Next, his figure dashed forward with lightning-like speed, becoming a ray of light as he entered the city.
“What? He managed to enter!”
“He beat us to it!”
“Let's go!”
“We must not miss out on this opportunity.”
As there was someone to blaze a trail, the remaining cultivators were finally incapable of holding back as well. In the face of the temptation, they all took action and one beam of light after another streaked through the sky. All of the cultivators there, even those who were secretly lurking around, disappeared into the city.
On the other hand, Chen Feng and Liu Wuxiang looked at each other for a moment. Light glinted across their eyes at the same time and they ended up laughing out.
“We'll wait a little longer!”
“No rush!”
They suppressed the impulse within their hearts as they narrowed their eyes to observe the ancient city. It felt as though this was the most mysterious behemoth within the whole universe, giving off a sense of pressure and shock, which a.s.sailed one's mind.
“Brother Liu, how is your recovery coming along?” Chen Feng asked smilingly.
“I'm more or less recovered. The remaining wounds will not affect my ability to fight. Brother Chen, what do you think this city could contain?” Liu Wuxiang said with a chuckle.
“Given how ancient this city is, maybe some dilapidated items. However, the Spirit Gathering Array inside is quite good. It is worth studying,” Chen Feng said seriously.
“Err…”
“Well, it's about time we enter.” After one joss stick's worth of time, the two of them finally decided to enter.
“Wait. Look there.” Chen Feng pointed.
On the ma.s.sive walls of the city was a great gate and its two doors silently opened. Through the doors, they could see the buildings within the city.
Chen Feng and Liu Wuxiang exchanged glances before laughing out yet again. “Walking through the front door should be safer than vaulting through the walls, right?”
“Hopefully.”
After they made up their minds, they walked towards the gate. As for the h.e.l.l Dog and tree yao, they followed Chen Feng closely.
Hopefully, I will be able to gain something this time around to help me increase my strength, otherwise Windbolt will be looking down on me again. The h.e.l.l Dog secretly hoped.
They had a smooth time walking through the city gate. In fact, Chen Feng felt as though he was entering an ordinary city. However, when they turned their heads, they saw that the gate had disappeared, replaced with ancient-looking wall. The only marks evident on the surface of the wall were the mottled signs of age.
“Getting in is easy, but getting out will be hard.” The two of them shook their heads and they made their way forward using the vast pathway there.
Unbeknownst to them, after they entered the city, ten plus more cultivators entered the city through that same gate. However, the gate only appeared for two hours before silently closing up again.
A pathway paved with bluestone. On either side of the pathway were ancient, unique-looking buildings, single buildings and rows of shops. Seeing the buildings, Chen Feng felt taken aback. This was different from what he had expected.
“It doesn't seem special at all. Except, it is completely empty,” Liu Wuxiang said.
“Is it an empty city?” Chen Feng shook his head and he walked into the open house beside them.
It didn't take long for Chen Feng to emerge. Likewise, Liu Wuxiang also emerged from a courtyard. The h.e.l.l Dog and tree yao said nothing and they simply followed Chen Feng, their eyes silently scanning the place.
Chen Feng and Liu Wuxiang looked at each other before shaking their heads. Next, they split up to enter the other buildings.
Finally, Chen Feng found a withered corpse within a small rocky courtyard. However, just as Chen Feng was within one zhang from the corpse, the intact corpse instantly withered away completely. To his surprise, not even a grain of powder was left. It was as though the corpse earlier was just a mirage.
“What do you fellows think?” Chen Feng tapped his forehead.
1 li = 0.5 km
1 zhang = 3.333 m