Chapter 7

In the valley, the personnel of the three major sects—Qingyun Sect, Bihai Sect, and Taihang Gang—gathered in a triangular formation in front of a large gate that had appeared out of nowhere. At the front of each sect, three to five Diyuan Realm True Men stood. At this moment, these people were all deeply focused on the gate in the void, paying no attention to the arrival of their junior sect members.

Fang Tianshan, after submitting his identity plate, entered the valley and followed at the very end of the group. Subconsciously, when three different groups appeared ahead, Fang Tianshan naturally positioned himself in the middle, joining the group of the Qingyun Sect.

The atmosphere in the entire valley was abnormally quiet.

Unlike the clamor at the entrance of the valley, anyone who entered the valley was awed by the gate that suddenly appeared in the void, as if they were afraid that any loud noise they made might cause the gate to disappear.

Fang Tianshan was also full of surprise.

The gate in the void was not ornate. If judged by appearance alone, it was just a simple layer of white energy, with the vague shapes of two beast creatures floating on it, each occupying one side of the gate. Fang Tianshan did not recognize these two beast creatures. The one on the left resembled a snake but had horns on its head and faintly visible four legs, with its fangs bared and claws extended. The one on the right looked more like a flying bird, with a crest on its head and a long, beautiful tail. From the occasional discussions among the crowd, it seemed that these two beast creatures were of very high rank, or perhaps from the ancient times.

At least, none of the ordinary disciples present recognized them.

The gate was composed of pure grayish-white energy, very clean and full of ancient charm, yet it also exuded a sense of imposing power. The threshold of the gate was about three feet above the ground, a height that would not hinder the entry of martial artists, but no one present made any move to enter.

Fang Tianshan took a few steps closer and could clearly feel the resistance force emanating from the grayish-white energy of the gate. No wonder the Dyiuan Realm experts of the three major sects, who were closest to the gate, were still about ten meters away. It was not that they did not want to enter the gate, but that they could not.

Apart from the few Dyiuan Realm True Men within each sect, behind them stood several stewards. These stewards, who appeared to be of similar age to the Dyiuan Realm True Men, were mostly at the peak of the Renyuan Realm in terms of strength. Behind these stewards were the inner disciples of each sect, each possessing the cultivation of the Renyuan Realm.

Further back were the outer disciples and the numerous ordinary disciples of the sects.

Fang Tianshan, who was originally at the tail end of the large group heading to the Yuming Mountains, found that by the time he entered the valley, few people were still entering from outside.

Of course, Fang Tianshan also noticed that a small group of people had gathered at a distance from the three major sects. They did not belong to the three major sects but were from several small sects near the Yuming Mountains, mostly at the late Huajin Realm, or even the Renyuan Realm and Dyiuan Realm. Individually, none of these small sects could compare to the three major sects, but together, they were not driven away by the three major sects.

Everyone in the valley seemed to be waiting for instructions from the few Dyiuan Realm cultivators closest to the gate in the void!

...

Time gradually approached midnight.

The small valley was illuminated by the flames. In fact, there was no need to light many torches, as the energy spheres emitted by the grayish-white gate in the void were enough to light up the entire valley. However, perhaps to boost their courage or to ward off the cold of the night, many of the disciples of the three major sects still held torches for illumination.

Fang Tianshan noticed that even after waiting for a long time, few people around him showed signs of impatience.

The elders and stewards gathered together, and the inner disciples, outer disciples, and ordinary disciples formed their own groups, whispering to each other and exchanging information. Gradually, Fang Tianshan also figured out the details of the situation.

The reason for the appearance of the gate in the void was still unknown. What kind of world lay behind the gate was also a matter of speculation. However, the first group of people to appear in the valley after the violent ground tremors were identified. They were three inner disciples of the Qingyun Sect.

Among these three, Fang Tianshan had only heard the name of one: Gu Yanran.

Seemingly subconsciously, Fang Tianshan's gaze drifted to one of the inner disciples in the Qingyun Sect's group.

Wearing a green robe, she did not stand out among the many inner disciples, but her graceful figure and the faint coldness she exuded made her the focus of everyone. It seemed that as long as she stood there, no one could ignore her presence. Even now, she stood quietly, seemingly oblivious to the gazes of the crowd, her eyes fixed on the gate in the void, standing apart from the world.

She was Gu Yanran, one of the inner disciples of the Qingyun Sect.

Compared to other inner disciples, Gu Yanran's fame was the greatest in the area where the Qingyun Sect was located. When Fang Tianshan first arrived at the Qingyun Sect three years ago, Gu Yanran had just entered the Renyuan Realm at the age of twenty, becoming an inner disciple of the sect.

In the past three years, there were many legends about Gu Yanran in Qingyun Town.

Including Fang Tianshan, many ordinary disciples of the Qingyun Sect looked up to Gu Yanran as a role model, striving to cultivate. Female disciples mostly discussed and paid attention to Gu Yanran's cultivation status, while male disciples, subconsciously, gossiped about her figure and appearance.

However, Gu Yanran rarely appeared in Qingyun Town, living a secluded life. Her cultivation method was fire-based, but she was cold and distant, earning her the label of being cold and beautiful. Fang Tianshan knew little about her interpersonal relationships, but he was aware that even among the inner disciples, Gu Yanran had considerable prestige and many supporters.

Originally, there would have been no connection between Fang Tianshan and Gu Yanran. However, the moment Fang Tianshan looked at Gu Yanran, he suddenly recalled the fleeting glimpse he had of her two days ago as she left the valley.

That fleeting green figure had lingered in Fang Tianshan's heart.

Fang Tianshan always suspected that the reason he obtained the third-stage Earth Dragon's tail was because Gu Yanran had slain the Earth Dragon. After collecting most of the valuable materials from the Earth Dragon's body, she left, giving Fang Tianshan the chance to find the tail.

Thus, the way Fang Tianshan looked at Gu Yanran was filled with a complex mix of emotions.

The only pity was that Gu Yanran probably did not feel it at all.

...

A slight warmth in his chest made Fang Tianshan instantly snap back to reality. He touched it and found it was the metal plate.

At this moment, the metal plate gave Fang Tianshan a strange feeling. The cold metal was now warm, warming his heart. Even when he held it in his hand, he could feel the heat transmitted from the metal plate through his palm.

Is this a sign that the seal remover has succeeded?

The first thought that came to Fang Tianshan's mind was about the seal remover he had exchanged for nineteen contribution points. However, he quickly dismissed this guess. Then, Fang Tianshan speculated that the abnormal reaction of the metal plate might be related to the time or the location.

Fang Tianshan had obtained the metal plate two days ago. Last night at midnight, although he was still in the Yuming Mountains, he was in the outer area, preparing to return to Qingyun Town, and did not feel the metal plate heat up.

Therefore, the location seemed to be the key. The metal plate was originally found in this valley. Now, Fang Tianshan had returned to this valley and was looking at the gate in the void. He wondered if it had anything to do with the appearance of this strange gate.

As Fang Tianshan was puzzled, the metal plate in his hand continued to heat up, and for a moment, he felt he could hardly bear the heat and was about to throw it away. Suddenly, the metal plate "swooshed" into his palm and disappeared.

Fang Tianshan could clearly feel the metal plate moving in a very strange way, traveling up his arm and settling in his dantian. Suddenly, the qi in his dantian, which had been gathered at the Dark Qi Realm, was all dispersed by the metal plate.

It was not exactly dispersed, but rather, the metal plate occupied the center of the dantian, and the originally condensed qi was now dispersed around it, forming a tight, impenetrable layer.

This made Fang Tianshan feel quite incredulous.

In Fang Tianshan's understanding, there was no martial artist whose dantian contained a metal plate, let alone one that occupied the position where qi was stored. After all, the strength of a martial artist was most directly reflected by the amount of qi in the dantian.

As long as one could generate qi in the dantian, it indicated that they were a Ming Qi Realm martial artist. When the qi in the dantian was sufficient to form a condensed mass, it meant they had reached the Dark Qi Realm. Once this condensed mass of qi became so dense that it turned into a mist, it indicated that they had entered the Huajin Realm.

For the qi in the dantian to be occupied by an external metal plate, what did this mean?

Fang Tianshan was speechless. He wanted to control the metal plate and remove it from his dantian, but he was helpless and had no idea how to do it.

At the same time, the grayish-white energy of the gate in the void also dimmed slightly, and the pressure it exerted on everyone suddenly decreased.