Chapter 1233 Startling News
“Me too.” Zhang Mu chuckled and said, “My great-granddaughter is catching up with me. Some people always say that everyone in the Zhang family is powerful except for Guangyou. I don’t want to hear people add my name to the exception list in the future. You’ve just taught me several secret skills. I’d like to take these days to cultivate the new skills.”
Dong Chen scratched his head and said with a hollow laugh, “Bro, I only dare to make fun of Guangyou. How could I joke about you?”
Zhang Han glanced around. Knowing that they were all eager to cultivate in seclusion, he nodded.
“That’s good. Cultivation is actually intertwined with hard work in seclusion and traveling. You also balance work and rest. There’s no need to stress yourself. My daughter’s breakthrough into the Elixir Realm is a result of her long-term acc.u.mulated strength. She will also need to take a long period to stabilize her new strength. No one can make progress in cultivation as easily as eating or drinking. It always takes time to achieve success.”
“Hahaha.”
Ah Hu and the others all laughed.
He felt that Zhang Han’s a.n.a.logy was quite good. Yet, it seemed that Mengmeng, Lady Boss, Dahei, and the others did make progress in cultivation as easily as eating and drinking.
Still, everyone knew that these were only what they saw on the surface. Success never happened by accident. It was only wishful thinking to be successful without making any efforts.
Lady Boss was powerful. She was at the same level as Yue Wuwei’s mysterious master.
Mengmeng was also powerful. She had followed Zhang Han on all the expeditions and worked hard to cultivate. At first, she was clumsy in battle. But now, she was more adept. Her progress was notable.
As for Zhang Han, only G.o.d knew how many painstaking cultivation sessions he had endured…
After chatting for a while, Gai Xingkong said in a slightly worried voice, “While we were gone, there shouldn’t be any trouble with the Sea Dragon Star Area, right?”
“Uncle Gai, don’t worry. With Elder Yue here, nothing can go awry.” Zhang Han shook his head. “If the situation had truly been grave, he would have brought everyone back to Mount New Moon.”
“That’s right.”
Gai Xingkong exhaled a long breath and said, “I just recalled the Blue Sand Wind Domain I saw at close range. That made me a little nervous.”
“What’s there to be nervous about? What will happen will happen. What if the abnormal phenomenon in the Blue Sand Wind Domain brings in countless treasures?” Zhang Guangyou said.
...
“Right. Anything is possible.”
Zhang Han gave a positive answer.
The changes in the Blue Sand Wind Domain could lead to too many possibilities.
But Zhang Han believed that since Yue Wuwei did not come back, things must have gone well.
“We’ll pa.s.s the Mercury Sea, the Clear Stream, and the Screen Waterfall again.”
“I’ve never seen such spectacles in the Cultivation World.”
“Those spectacles can only be seen here.”
They arrived at the Screen Waterfall again.
Looking from a distance, the waterfall was still astounding.
It was so spectacular that they could not see its margins on both sides.
“Swis.h.!.+ Swis.h.!.+ Swis.h.!.+”
The fleet suddenly entered a s.p.a.ce Pa.s.sage.
Mengmeng stayed at the front, carefully steering the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p.
“Ah!”
After going through the exit, those on the fleet found themselves in the void of the cosmos and almost crashed into the s.p.a.ce station near the Lost Continent.
Even the Thunder King that Zhang Han and the others were riding was less than 100 meters away from the s.p.a.ce station.
The people in the s.p.a.ce station were dumbstruck.
“What is going on? Why didn’t we detect the energy in the secondary s.p.a.ce?”
“Don’t panic. It’s the Thunder King fleet! They are our own men!”
“Boss! It’s Boss!”
Li Mu, who was guarding this area, was overjoyed.
He quickly got on an aircraft and flew to the Thunder King.
After entering the Thunder King and arriving at the lounge, Li Mu said loudly, “Boss, you are finally here. There is big news.”
At this time, Zhao Feng was also contacting Liu Qingfeng.
Seeing this, Li Mu didn’t say more, but trotted to Zhang Han and sat down beside him.
“The drastic changes in the Blue Sand Wind Domain have affected the landscape of the surrounding major worlds.
“The impact is particularly strong. Fortunately, the place we’re in is at the back and near the middle.
“The situation does not look good. We are all safe. Thankfully, Elder Yue has been here and kept our place safe. However, the Star Area is about to collapse. One person alone cannot save the situation. Elder Yue certainly can’t keep everything under control.
“As for the specific realities, now…”
Yue Wuwei suddenly appeared on the screen and snapped, “Save the talk. Han, come here quickly. Let’s talk about this in detail after you get to the Dragon Base Star.”
“Okay.”
Zhang Han nodded and hung up. The energy cabin of the Thunder King continued functioning, ready to jump into the secondary s.p.a.ce.
Two minutes later, the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p left the s.p.a.ce station and entered the secondary s.p.a.ce.
At this time, many people present looked at Li Mu and asked, “What has happened?”
“Let me have a drink first.”
Li Mu swallowed and a trace of fear flashed across his face, as if he had been frightened. He took a big gulp of wine and closed his eyes for a few seconds. When he opened his eyes again, he finally calmed down.
Li Mu remarked, “Something big has happened.
“Boss, on the tenth day after you left, an explosive energy eruption occurred in the Blue Sand Wind Domain. In an instant, it swept most parts of the Blue Sand Wind Domain, making it more than twice as large as before.
“In the beginning, it was all calm and peaceful. However, in less than two hours, world-shaking roars came from it in succession. Some of those roars even spread across half of the Sea Dragon Star Area. That was extremely terrifying.
“Then, then… many strange beasts appeared. Oh, no, Elder Yue called them ancient demonic beasts. Some of them could take human form and speak human language. Their strength was strikingly strong.
“A Peac.o.c.k King appeared in the world. It attacked 21 planets in a row. When it landed on each of those planets, it unleashed rays of red light. It was said that the red light could destroy people’s souls and bring misery to the living things on each of those planets. Later, the Peac.o.c.k King also said that the cultivators here were too weak. To absorb enough souls, it would need to devour at least half of the Star Area. Thus, many people fled to the depths of the Heavenly Dragon Star Province.
“There was also an Iron Armor Dragon with a steel-like body. It could withstand the attacks of the energy main cannon of a king vessel. G.o.d, when the cannon fired, the flames flew thousands of miles, but it was not injured at all. That Iron Armor Dragon could crush a 10,000-meter-high mountain by b.u.mping its head into it. These days, it has attacked more than 30 planets, and its destructive activity is still going on.”
“Hiss!”
Everyone gasped when they heard this news.
They never thought things would turn out like this.
“Good heavens! Ancient demonic beasts have appeared!”
“Demonic beast in human form… This…”
As the cries of shock sounded, Li Mu went on. “We saw an Earth Dragon as well. It likes to eat the cores of planets. By now, it has swallowed the cores of five planets, all of which are located in the Small Sky Dragon Region. They are planets with rich resources. Without cores, those planets have no future at all.
“There is also an Eight-antler Deer. It can move very fast. It can fly like a s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p. It likes spiritual herbs and has been attacking the treasure vaults of all the forces in the Heavenly Dragon Star Province.
“The fiercest one is the Dead Vine Python. Wherever it went, it would kill all the living creatures it saw. It came to the Sea Dragon Star Area and destroyed seven planets before running into Elder Yue. They fought in the void for an hour. Then, the Dead Vine Python left with injuries.”
Li Mu’s words caused Zhang Han’s pupils to shrink.
“The python didn’t leave until it fought against Yue Wuwei for an hour?
“It goes without saying that the python must have reached the Tribulation Stage.
“Could it be that Elder Yue intentionally allowed them to go back? Is he worried that killing them would draw even more ancient demonic beasts here?”
Zhang Han found it a little strange.
“Strange beasts at the Tribulation Stage have appeared in the Sea Dragon Star Area and the Heavenly Dragon Star Province. How can this be?
“They are truly ancient demonic beasts capable of transforming into human beings. Looks like Taoist Deadwood’s judgment is correct.”
Zhang Han deliberated.
Listening to Li Mu’s description, everyone gradually cottoned on.
The Sea Dragon Star Area, the nearby Star Areas, the Small Sky Dragon Region, as well as the Heavenly Dragon Star Province had all been affected.
Ancient demonic beasts had a wide variety. They could go about without scruples. The power of the Great Devils in the human form was horrible. They could cause huge trouble. Now, people in the Star Areas near the Blue Sand Wind Domain were all worried about their safety.
Nevertheless, some powerful human cultivators had fought against the ancient demonic beast running rampant outside.
The Sea Dragon Star Area was the most stable place.
To the surprise of those in the Heavenly Dragon Star Province, a mysterious elder turned up and suppressed all the ancient demonic beasts. The only places that had been affected were some of the Star Areas near the Blue Sand Wind Domain.
In the Heavenly Dragon Star Province, the renowned headmaster of the Dragnet Academy and the elders of various families who had been in reclusive cultivation for a long time built a troop of 134 people, who were all in the Void-refining Realm. This troop was called the Omnipotent Troop. They represented the alliance forces of Heavenly Dragon Star Province and fought the Great Devils in the G.o.d Transformation Realm. Gradually, they managed to appease the turmoil.
However, in the face of the ancient demonic beasts wreaking havoc, some of which were even in the G.o.d Transformation Realm, the more than 100 people did not kill a single one of them. It was as if the ancient demonic beasts had slapped the Sea Dragon Star Area in the face, but the Sea Dragon Star Area merely cried, “I object!”
Those cultivators merely drove those ancient demonic beasts away. They didn’t dare to kill their enemies for fear of attracting even greater trouble. More weird changes were taking place in the Blue Sand Wind Domain. In addition to the ancient demonic beast capable of transforming into human beings, many spirit treasures had also shown up. According to the Peac.o.c.k King, it seemed that a certain secret realm had been smashed, resulting in the appearance of tons of treasures. Among them, fifth-tier and sixth-tier treasures were just common.
The Small Sky Dragon Region, Taoist Deadwood, and some other great forces had formed an alliance as well.
However, they had suffered a b.l.o.o.d.y purge, because the enemy they were facing was that vicious Iron Armor Dragon.
It didn’t listen to their reasons and forced them into retreat again and again. They had no choice but to predict the Iron Armor Dragon’s route based on its previous tracks and inform those on the planets it would soon attack in advance and thus reduce the number of casualties.
Yet, the nearby Star Areas were plunged into misery.
The places where the living beings were ravaged were the places where most of the Great Devils in the G.o.d Transformation Realm gathered. No one could stop those Great Devils.
Upon learning that the Sea Dragon Star Area had not undergone a bloodbath, people began to flee to the Sea Dragon Star Area. Gradually, the number of refugees here grew larger and larger.
As there was no place to accommodate them, those refugees temporarily stayed on barren planets.
Places like the Hotel of the Heavenly Group were packed.
As more and more people were coming in, disputes and trouble came along with them. The truth that the Heavenly Group lacked personnel and reserves was finally revealed.
There were people stirring up trouble in all hotels, and battles had even broken out in the cities.
However, the refugees did not cause too much of a ruckus either. After all, it was said that the only people in the Sea Dragon Star Area capable of withstanding Great Devils in the G.o.d Transformation Realm were the Heavenly Group’s backers.
In the face of the intensifying chaos, Liu Qingfeng didn’t do much to deal with the situation. The Sea Central Star Area was fine. The Dragon Base Star was also peaceful. As for the other areas, he was in no mood to take care of them.
The enormous business empire had just been set up. The plan of establis.h.i.+ng banks was just about to be carried out. However, such a disaster struck.
As the population in the Sea Dragon Star Area increased as time pa.s.sed by, many young ancient demonic beasts were attracted here, which made trouble on the periphery.
Large forces like the Cloud Shadow Sky, the Snowfall Alliance, and the Sea Spa Alliance had all become popular. Many small forces from other Star Areas had attached themselves to those large forces to seek shelter.
Of course, the catch was that the small forces would provide numerous benefits to the large forces.
It seemed that the Heavenly Group was not that popular because many people did not know the status of the Heavenly Group in the Sea Dragon Star Area.
However, the Cloud Shadow Sky, the Elf Clan, and the Snowfall Alliance all sent people to contact Liu Qingfeng in the hope that they could get some help from him at the critical moment. For this reason, they also sent valuable gifts in advance.
The Snowfall Alliance had also given Liu Qingfeng some s.p.a.ces.h.i.+ps. After all, he had a wide network of contacts in the Heavenly Dragon Star Province. However, as it turned out, in such a situation, Liu Qingfeng was busy enough with protecting his own people, so how could he be in the mood to help others?
Fortunately, a powerful cultivator appeared in the Sea Dragon Star Area, who was able to converse with those monsters.
Top forces, such as the Sea Spa Alliance, all started sending presents to that powerful figure.
They had no alternative. Even though they possessed many resources, what was the point of having those resources if they were about to get killed?
These days, many Star Areas had undergone bloodbaths. The Great Devils in the G.o.d Transformation Realm killed the people living there as they pleased. The Small Sky Dragon Region had also been wrecked. The Heavenly Dragon Star Province was in a better shape, but the safe region there had been constantly diminis.h.i.+ng.
Only the Sea Dragon Star Area was still relatively stable. Merely one-tenth of its territory that was on the outermost region was constantly being hara.s.sed and slowly invaded. It seemed that the Great Devils were somewhat afraid of Yue Wuwei. Thus, they didn’t dare to plunder the Sea Dragon Star Area on a large scale as they did repeatedly in other Star Areas.
As for what they plundered, n.o.body knew, nor did anyone have the nerve to ask.
Anyway, the beasts either slaughtered half of the living things on a planet, absorbed ores, devoured souls, or just vandalized.
It was as if they announced to this world with their action that the era ruled by the ancient demonic beasts had arrived!
“Buzz!”
Two days later, Zhang Han’s fleet left the secondary s.p.a.ce and showed up in a place not far away from the Dragon Base Star.
The fleet slowly flew to the s.p.a.ce station and parked there.
Zhang Han and the others took the aircraft and headed for the surface of the planet. They soon landed in the parking area of Mount Double Moons in the main city.
In the pavilion on the lawn of Mount Double Moons sat Liu Qingfeng, Sun Ming, Yue Wuwei, and other high-position officials. There were about 80 of them.
This could be counted as a small gathering. But everyone looked slightly worried, especially Sun Ming, his wife, and other ordinary people. They had been feeling a little depressed recently.
“h.e.l.lo, Boss.”
“Hi, Boss.”
After seeing Zhang Han and all those people they were close to, they were more or less relieved.
They immediately got up to greet Zhang Han’s group.
“Hahaha, Xiaonao, come and let Dad give you a hug.” Yue Wuwei laughed.
With Yue Xiaonao gone for so many days, Yue Wuwei did miss her a lot.
“Oh, okay.”
This time, Yue Xiaonao was quite meek. She ran over, sat on Yue Wuwei’s lap, and said, “I did very well in this exam…”
She began to chat with her family.
Zhang Mu, Zhang Guangyou, and the others also felt more at ease when they saw Yue Wuwei’s relaxed look.
They sat there and talked about the major events that had happened recently.
After a while, Zhang Han and Yue Wuwei walked to the pavilion in the pool not far away.
“Are things really that bad?” Zhang Han asked.
“Clatter!”
With a stir of his mind, Yue Wuwei set up a soundproof cover and then said, “It’s worse than everyone can imagine. Most of the ancient demonic beasts able to take human forms that are running amok are at the peak of the G.o.d Transformation Realm. They’re not very strong, but they’re talented. Only a few of them are in the Void-refining Realm. For example, the Peac.o.c.k King is at Void-refining Realm Early-Stage.”
“Oh?” Zhang Han was stunned. “Some of them are in the Void-refining Realm and the G.o.d Transformation Realm? You haven’t taken action against them?”
Yue Wuwei shook his head and said, “No, I didn’t. Once I do, I may attract more powerful blows. Just forget it. They’re just some toddlers coming here to play. Their parents are still keeping an eye on them from home.”
“That’s to say, there are more powerful ancient demonic beasts in the Blue Sand Wind Domain. But why didn’t they show up? Are they in the Void-refining Realm, the Integration Realm, or the Mastery Realm? Or perhaps at the Tribulation Stage?” Zhang Han inquired.
“Well, they are not formidable to us.” Yue Wuwei curled his lips and said, “According to what I’ve sensed, the strongest of them are in the Integration Realm. However, the parents are in one Star Area and can’t go out. I don’t know what’s going on exactly. It’s true that I can go kill them. But I’m afraid that would attract the really terrifying beasts.” Yue Wuwei sighed softly. “I can no longer feel the center of the Blue Sand Wind Domain, nor can I go there. A lot of strange beasts are there.”
“They can’t go out?”
Zhang Han thought for a moment and said, “Does the restriction of the Cosmos Formation really exist? The sudden appearance of these ancient demonic beasts may forbode big trouble.”
“Could it have something to do with Cosmos Nodes?” Yue Wuwei asked tentatively.
“Yes.”
The two of them had the same idea. Zhang Han nodded and said, “The places connected by Cosmos Nodes are truly broad and horrifying.”
“How should I put it?” Yue Wuwei said subconsciously, “This is the first time I’ve seen ancient demonic beasts emerge from a Cosmos Node.”
“If those ancient demonic beasts got here from a Cosmos Node, then, there is only one possible explanation. A planet at the center of the Blue Sand Wind Domain is the central node of the Cosmos Formation. If the ancient demonic beasts had taken over it and performed a certain kind of innate supernatural power, they might have preserved the aura of this node. When the planet shattered, a s.p.a.ce Pa.s.sage appeared, leading to the unexplored, highly dangerous places in the Cultivation World or to the areas dominated by ancient demonic beasts. The strange beasts in human forms are the descendants of the strange beasts who lived with the Human Clan in ancient times. Now that they have appeared in large numbers in such a short span, I guess there is a…”
Zhang Han paused to think.
Then, he said, “In the Cultivation World, if the place where humans thrive is a planet, then, the cosmos is the territory of ancient demonic beasts. The ancient demonic beasts that like presenting themselves in human forms live between the atmosphere and the void. I suspect that the s.p.a.ce Node in the Blue Sand Wind Domain is connected to a place dominated by these mid-level beasts.”
“Are you saying that these beasts that can transform into human beings are at the middle level among ancient demonic beasts?” Yue Wuwei asked.
“Yes, that’s what I mean.” Zhang Han nodded. “Of course, it’s just my guess. We’ll know more about the specific situation only after we go to the Blue Sand Wind Domain and observe from its surroundings.”
“How did you know all this?” Yue Wuwei suddenly asked.
“Er…”
“Don’t try to fool me with the excuse of reading. Just tell me exactly who you are!” Yue Wuwei glared at Zhang Han and said, “You’ve made me stay here as a bodyguard. If you tried to fool me with the reading thing again, I would really be disappointed.”
Watching Yue Wuwei pretending to be angry, Zhang Han was speechless for a while.
“I did see it in ancient books.” Zhang Han chuckled and said, “I’ve read tons of books about the Cultivation World. That is the truth.”
“I’ve also read a lot of books, but how come I didn’t come across such knowledge?” Yue Wuwei said with a suspicious look.
“There is only one possibility,” Zhang Han said in a firm tone.
“What is it?”
“You haven’t read enough books.”
After chatting for a while, Zhang Han had a rough understanding of the changes taking place in the Blue Sand Wind Domain.
Ancient demonic beasts were running wild in the relatively weak places in the Cultivation World.
In the central area of the Blue Sand Wind Domain, there were some ancient demonic beasts in the Void-refining Realm and the Integration Realm. They were elders of those in the outside world, but they could not go out for the time being. Perhaps they were restricted from doing so or just not interested.
Zhang Han and Yue Wuwei both felt that it was more likely that they were restricted, for even if some of them were not interested, it didn’t mean that all of them thought so.
Currently, half of the Heavenly Dragon Star Province, including its major Star Areas, were connected to the Blue Sand Wind Domain.
Those living in those areas felt like they were under attack from all quarters.