Chapter 781: Spiritual Sense Sweeping

Several days later, Li Yi left Survival Base No. 8 and set out for Earth's defensive line.

But he was not traveling alone—Ye Jingtian accompanied him.

Due to the arrival of a new group of Daoist experts within the survival base, its security level underwent a qualitative leap, allowing some personnel to be freed up for support at Earth's defensive line.

According to Ye Jingtian's description, the situation on Earth was dire: experts were frequently ambushed and killed in tandem by forces from the Demon God Realm and the Xuan Immortal Continent; if this trend could not be reversed soon, Earth's world might be forced to retreat.

"In fact, many evolvers have already crossed over to escape—those willing to stay and hold back the tide are few. But if this stalemate continues, once Earth's final combat strength is exhausted, the entire situation will collapse completely."

Ye Jingtian stood atop Li Yi's auspicious cloud, gazing far off with a melancholy expression.

Li Yi said: "Surely there's a contingency plan by then."

"Of course," Ye Jingtian turned and smiled. "You know about the intact strange artifacts inside the survival base—they normally power the base, but in a crisis, they become the key to opening a cross-realm gate."

"The entire survival base will cross over, and the coordinates are the base's deepest secret—even I don't know which world we'll end up in. But it's certain: the ten survival bases each have different cross-realm coordinates."

Li Yi's expression shifted: "So if Earth falls, the ten survival bases will flee to ten different worlds?"

"Exactly. After all, you don't put all your eggs in one basket—that's our nation's old tradition, and the best way to preserve Earth's civilization. Besides, the base has already recorded Earth's coordinates; when we grow strong enough, we'll definitely return to seek revenge." Ye Jing said.

"I see," Li Yi understood at once.

That was why the population had been concentrated into these survival bases.

They were, in fact, cross-realm bases.

If things turned bad, two million people would cross over together to start new lives elsewhere.

Ye Jingtian added: "But human hearts change. After a few or even ten years of stable life in another world, how many evolvers would still want to reclaim Earth? That's uncertain. So this plan is only to be enacted as a last resort. As long as we can still fight, we fight on—since ancient times, only those who die defending their land have been honored; none have survived by abandoning it."

Li Yi nodded slightly in agreement.

Though Earth's people were inherently wicked, they still possessed backbone and ferocity in moments of crisis—that's why Earth's situation had held out this long since the Heaven's Collapse.

If everyone had been spineless, Earth would have been emptied the moment the cross-realm gate opened.

As they spoke,

the auspicious cloud passed over a mountain range, and the scenery abruptly changed: the land was utterly devastated, not a single patch of ground intact; dust and stones swirled in midair, howling winds raged, the sky alternated between lightning storms and torrential downpours.

The climate and environment were a complete mess.

Even the cosmic energy here was wildly chaotic, laced with various forces. Li Yi sensed pervasive demonic aura, lingering spiritual energy from cultivators, and even the residual blood-qi of martial artists scattered across the earth.

On a planet where spiritual energy had revived, all things evolved—even the most barren deserts teemed with life. Such a place should not exist.

"This is a battlefield," Li Yi immediately realized why it had become this way.

It must have been the repeated, relentless battles between powerful beings that shattered this land's earth veins, permanently altering its climate. All visible signs of life were gone, replaced by desolation.

"It's worse than last time I came," Ye Jingtian remarked, clearly having been here before.

"The Heavenly Demons and Great Demons of the Demon God Realm have gathered to the north; the cultivators of the Xuan Immortal Continent have massed to the east; Earth's defensive line lies directly ahead. Additionally, some strong ones from worlds connected to Earth have appeared—some allied with us, others against us."

Li Yi said: "It seems other worlds don't want to be dragged into the chaos—they're using this to carve up Earth's fate, or to confirm their place in the food chain."

"Correct. Though a full-scale realm war would surely doom our evolvers, it wouldn't be much better for them either. No one knows what horrors might spring from the darkest corners. So the best method is to settle their status through repeated battles, determining their standing before deciding future actions."

Ye Jingtian nodded: "In short, it's localized warfare—a test of national strength. This happened often before the Heaven's Collapse, nothing unusual. But once we enter the battlefield, we're in danger. Evolvers are currently the weaker side; if spotted, we'll be attacked immediately. Li Yi, let's not die on the way to Earth's defensive line."

As he spoke, he drew his purple and green twin swords, ready for immediate combat.

"Going into battle isn't child's play—I understand that well," Li Yi replied tersely, drawing his Crimson Gold Shattered Star Spear. But since the situation seemed safe, he also hung a Crimson Gold Divine Sword at his waist.

Combined with the Crimson Gold Purple Feather Armor he wore, he was fully armed.

Moreover, within his Five Elements Bracelets lay the Moonbow and Crimson Gold Arrows—deadly weapons.

But since Great Demons of the Demon God Realm roamed this battlefield, he dared not reveal the Moonbow; if recognized, he'd face immediate pursuit. Thus, he'd only draw it in critical moments.

"Let's go."

Li Yi's auspicious cloud shimmered again, swiftly carrying Ye Jingtian toward Earth's defensive line.

As soon as they entered the battlefield, he sensed something was wrong.

Several spiritual senses swept from afar, but were blocked by Li Yi's ultimate treasure, the Crimson Lotus. Yet Ye Jingtian beside him was not so lucky—he was scanned.

"Did you feel it?" Li Yi asked.

Ye Jingtian's face darkened: "It was a cultivator's spiritual sense—three of them. Such a wide-ranging scan means the opponent's cultivation base is at least Mahayana peak—a formidable foe. Earth's defensive line is worse than I thought; even our supply route is under surveillance by Xuan Immortal Continent elites."

"Li Yi, hurry on, don't hesitate. Their strength surpasses ours—if they intend to ambush us, we can't fight back."

Li Yi's expression hardened. He had no intention of lingering in this dangerous battlefield—he pushed his cloud-riding technique to its limit, turning the auspicious cloud into a streak of divine light that shot across the sky.

Still, they didn't rely on the enemy's restraint and remained ready for immediate combat.

"That flight speed is insane," Ye Jingtian thought inwardly, astonished by Li Yi's evasion technique—such speed would likely outpace even Mahayana cultivators.

But the moment this thought arose,

suddenly,

the auspicious cloud beneath them slowed abruptly, then halted completely, hovering motionless in midair.

"Hmm?" Ye Jingtian didn't immediately ask Li Yi why. He sensed a peculiar energy fluctuation ahead.

Moreover, his soul gave an inexplicable warning—as if danger was about to strike.

Though evolvers had many weaknesses compared to other cultivators, their ability to sense danger was exceptionally strong.

"It's a formation—ahead lies a deadly killing array, layered and perilous. This must be a cultivator's killing array," Li Yi's gaze sharpened. "And it seals even the sky above—clearly, the enemy deliberately placed it along the path evolvers take to Earth's defensive line."

"Can we go around?" Ye Jing asked.

"Going around means passing through areas dominated by Great Demons," Li Yi glanced. "They've likely prepared their own traps, waiting for evolvers to walk right in."

"Besides, it's just a killing array—destroy it. Saves us trouble later."

He extended his palm, channeling power from his sixty major acupoints.

Terrifying energy surged from his body.

Then, using this power, he activated a Dao technique.

"Reverse Rivers and Seas," Li Yi waved his hand. Under the full force of this top-tier Dao technique, the surrounding sky and earth instantly darkened, and the ground was upturned by a colossal force.

The entire realm plunged into chaos.

As the terrifying power erupted, the hidden killing array triggered—countless brilliant energy bursts exploded in midair. The Dao technique clashed with the array, turning the entire area into an extremely perilous zone.

But Li Yi's strike had utterly destroyed the cultivators' painstakingly constructed killing array.

The commotion immediately alerted the array's master.

At this moment,

hundreds of miles away,

inside an underground cavern,

the master of this killing array was a Mahayana cultivator, alongside several Tribulation Crossing experts.

The instant the array was shattered, the Tribulation Crossing experts suffered immediate backlash—spirit and mind damaged, one nearly spat blood.

"Damn it! The killing array was shattered by sheer brute force," one Tribulation Crossing cultivator wiped blood from his lips.

"The opponent is strong—destroyed the array with a single strike. Must be a Mahayana-level evolver. No, even stronger."

"Don't panic. The opponent spotted the array first and destroyed it before its full power activated. His strength may not be overwhelming, but such vigilance means he's a major threat. Elder Xuan Yang, what should we do?"

Others turned to a distant figure.

An ancient, ethereal elder sat motionless on a high dais, eyes closed.

This Elder Xuan Yang was a Mahayana peak Daoist, one step away from becoming a Human Immortal—his power, needless to say, was terrifying.

"Just now, my spiritual sense swept over him—he was alone. And such arrogance deserves a lesson."

Elder Xuan Yang slowly opened his eyes. In his calm gaze flickered a hint of killing intent.

Suppressing Earth's evolvers was a joint decision by the True Immortals of the Xuan Immortal Continent—Earth must never produce top-tier strong ones; any discovered must be eliminated swiftly.

As his words ended,

Elder Xuan Yang vanished from his spot.

This was not a movement technique—it was teleportation.

(End of Chapter)