Chapter 743

!?

As Zhu Ye finished speaking, Xin Xiangyang's heart jolted; he sharply turned his head toward Zhu Ye and asked urgently: "Could the Eastern Realm have intervened? That shouldn't be possible—there's no way news could have reached the Eastern Realm so fast. Could it be the Ming Sect?!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ye merely shook his head, scanning the surroundings as he said: "You're not a Spirit Array Master, so you didn't notice—since this Ruins appeared, it has been continuously absorbing Spiritual Energy from a ten-thousand-li radius."

"Absorbing Spiritual Energy from a ten-thousand-li radius?!" Xin Xiangyang's heart trembled; though his Cultivation Realm was far inferior to that of the Spirit Array Grandmaster beside him, he was still a Supreme, and naturally understood what absorbing Spiritual Energy meant.

You must understand that inanimate objects cannot absorb spiritual energy—only cultivators and living beings can continuously absorb spiritual energy, drawing it from a radius of ten thousand li, which makes them extraordinarily powerful!

【5】 Know this: inanimate objects do not absorb Spiritual Energy—only cultivators and living beings continuously draw in Spiritual Energy, and to absorb it from a ten-thousand-li radius? This must be extraordinarily powerful!

A shattered continent drifting in from the endless Space, a Supreme Secret Treasury left behind by a deceased Supreme as an Ancestral Inheritance Site or Zhi Zun Fen—how could it possibly absorb Spiritual Energy?

The only possibility is that this place is neither an Ancient Ruins nor a Supreme Secret Treasury or Zhi Zun Fen—there are still living beings here!

"So that's why the Spirit Array Master… It seems cultivators of this profession are extremely sensitive to Heavenly Earth Spirit Qi. I've been so careful, yet still been discovered." Just as everyone was captivated by the Celestial Altar descending from the sky, a voice filled with thought and depth arose.

At some unknown moment, a person had already stood atop the Celestial Altar summoned by the Spirit Array!

No one could make out his face, for he wore a black robe whose hood completely obscured his features; even with perceptual senses, they could not detect his true Cultivation Realm—the special black robe was wrapped in a unique power that blocked perception.

What puzzled everyone was that when this man appeared, there was no earth-shaking aura, no peerless divine might, and most astonishingly—not even a ripple of Spiritual Energy, as if he possessed no Spiritual Power at all, merely an ordinary person!

But anyone who truly believed this black-robed man was ordinary had water in their brain.

The Celestial Altar, capable of suppressing Spiritual Power, did not hinder him—he moved in and out freely, as if unaffected, appearing and disappearing without a trace; no one saw when he arrived!

When this black-robed man appeared, the entire Heavenly Tomb fell silent; the previously restless energy entities within the Heavenly Tomb instantly calmed, and as he emerged, the gray mist hovering over the Heavenly Tomb slowly dissipated, each energy entity returning to the earth.

These energy entities feared and dreaded this man deeply.

A low hum sounded—just as the black-robed man appeared, the entire Three-Feng Altar glowed, slowly rising a luminous membrane; terrifying divine might was triggered, and at this moment, the Altar severed the world, sealing off Heavenly Earth Spirit Qi. Without the support of Heavenly Earth Spirit Qi, even a Supreme could only unleash one or two tenths of their power.

Those outside the Celestial Altar could no longer see clearly what transpired inside, only vaguely discerning a human silhouette; only the strongest could perceive slightly more.

"Spirit Array… indeed, there's some skill to it." The black-robed man smiled faintly as he watched the sealing Demonic Array rise. "Using my Spirit Puppet to lure me into the Celestial Altar is a clever tactic. But if I truly wished to break out, this thing couldn't hold me."

"Everything is possible," Zhu Ye said calmly. "You don't believe in the impossible, and neither do I—then we might as well test it."

The black-robed man said nothing more; he slowly raised his foot and then stomped down hard upon the Celestial Altar beneath him. BOOM!! A deafening roar erupted, the immense force shaking the entire Heavenly Tomb, sending countless rocks tumbling from the edges of the meteor crater.

CREAK—CRACK—CRACK! With just one stomp, the entire Celestial Altar was instantly riddled with cracks—this single step, powered solely by physical strength, was enough to destroy a high-grade Earth-grade Spirit Array.

"What?! This black-robed man didn't even use Spiritual Energy, yet he caused such terrifying destruction!!" Xin Xiangyang turned pale with shock—the Spirit Array could seal and suppress surrounding Spiritual Energy, yet the black-robed man had not a single trace of Spiritual Energy, and still achieved this level of destruction through pure physical force alone!

Zhu Ye's eyes narrowed slightly, surprised by this raw physical power; then he explained: "It's not that he refuses to use it—he has no Spiritual Power at all."

"No Spiritual Power? How is that possible? Every cultivator in the Great Thousand World must possess Spiritual Power!!! He's a Domain Beyond demon clan member!!"

It was no wonder others thought so, for the Domain Beyond demon clans were sworn enemies of the Great Thousand World precisely because they did not cultivate Spiritual Energy—they cultivated something called Demon Qi, and all Domain Beyond demon clans possessed no Spiritual Energy whatsoever.

The Demon Qi cultivated by the Domain Beyond demon clans corrupted Spiritual Energy, rendering the Great Thousand World's Spiritual Energy unabsorbable; once one absorbed Demon Qi, it clashed with their internal Spiritual Energy, causing them to become neither human nor ghost, losing reason and transforming into mindless killing monsters.

"No, he is not a Domain Beyond demon clan member—he is a powerful cultivator who broke through from a Lower Plane of the Great Thousand World." Zhu Ye stared at the black-robed man who had shattered his Spirit Array with a single stomp, a faint smile curling on his lips, his eyes gleaming with greed.

"Lower Plane?!" Xin Xiangyang, standing beside Zhu Ye, was thunderstruck, his mind reeling: "So this is a shattered continent from a Lower Plane?!"

He quickly realized—if this black-robed man truly came from a Lower Plane, then this was no shattered continent at all—he was a cultivator who had broken through the void!

Hearing Zhu Ye's words, Xin Xiangyang now understood everything: this was never a Supreme Secret Treasury—this man was still alive, watching them invade his territory all along!

Upon learning that Zhu Ye had known from the start that the black-robed man came from a Lower Plane, Xin Xiangyang's expression shifted slightly, for he had once heard that Lower Planes contained a rare resource called the Plane Embryo, a key to breaking through to a Heavenly Supreme!

Zhu Ye had come for the Plane Embryo—or for information about it.

This Plane Embryo could drive any Earth Supreme mad, more accurately, any cultivator seeking to reach the Heavenly Supreme.

Rumors even claimed that some Earth Supremes, desperate to break through to the Heavenly Supreme, had performed Blood Sacrifice upon Lower Planes, slaughtering billions of lives to prematurely condense a Plane Embryo.

The Domain Beyond demon clans also sought Lower Planes—for the same reason: the Plane Embryo. It was not only useful to Great Thousand World Earth Supremes; Domain Beyond demon clans could use it too, enabling their own strong ones to break through and attain the rank of Demon Emperor.

The Domain Beyond's Demon Emperor was equivalent to a Heavenly Supreme.

Zhu Ye stared at the black-robed man for a long while, then whispered: "You are strong. In your own Plane, I would certainly not be your match. But here, in the Great Thousand World, you have no Spiritual Power—your physical strength alone cannot escape my Spirit Array."

"If you give me the Plane Embryo, I will trade it for ten million Supreme Spirit Liquids."

Zhu Ye's words carried no threat, no aggression—merely a calm, matter-of-fact tone describing a Transaction. Yet this calmness sent chills down everyone's spines, for all understood the unspoken implication: if he refused, Zhu Ye would not let it end here.

The black-robed man's reaction was calm; beneath his hood, a smile appeared. "I don't know what you mean by Plane Embryo. Even if I did, you lack the ability to take it."

"And… you just… said you had ten million Supreme Spirit Liquids?"

BOOM! At that moment, the black-robed man stomped down—earth trembled, followed by a thunderous roar; lightning flashed beneath his foot, a terrifying thunderstorm erupted, the recoil propelling him skyward toward Zhu Ye, who sat cross-legged in the heavens.

Seeing the black-robed man move faster than any Spirit Puppet, Zhu Ye merely smiled faintly, waving his hand—countless intricate seals shot forth; ZOOM! The Celestial Altar below erupted again with overwhelming might.

Chains of spiritual energy shot up from the Celestial Altar—these Spiritual Energy Sealing Chains, like laws of nature, pierced through Space, emerging from empty void.

"Hmph! Get out of my way!" As endless chains surged toward him, the black-robed man's eyes hardened; he slammed his fists downward—BOOM! Space shattered. His overwhelming fist force, like a storm, tore everything apart; the Spiritual Energy Sealing Chains could not withstand the crushing force of Space, and his fists shattered the void, leaving gaping holes of nothingness that swallowed the chains in torrents of Space Turbulence.

Even the weakest cultivators could see: this black-robed man's control over Space was top-tier—the scene was overwhelmingly spectacular.

"Without Spiritual Power, you're but an ant!" Zhu Ye rose to his feet, his eyes glinting coldly as he let out a piercing howl.

Countless seals instantly merged into the Sky; the next instant, a crimson Spirit Array tore through the void—upon its formation, a crimson divine beast, the Qilin, let out a deafening roar, stepping forward with each stride resonating with the rhythm of Heaven and Earth, as if the cosmos itself pulsed with each footfall.

"Heaven-grade Spirit Array—Qilin Burn Heaven Array!"

The crimson Qilin stepped forward, Heaven and Earth trembling to its rhythm; the torn Space warped like waves. At this moment, Zhu Ye vanished—only a vast crimson expanse remained in the sky, an unbearable Infernal Heat enveloping everyone.

SSSSS! The Qilin roared, charging forth—its feet trampled all eight directions, surging with roaring Heavenly Flame, its momentum unstoppable, its power unyielding—it could shatter Heaven and Earth, crush mountains and rivers.

The Qilin charged, engulfing all in raging flames, its four hooves descending upon the black-robed man entangled by the Three-Feng Altar—its might terrifying, more fearsome than a mountain from the Nine Heavens crashing down; beneath the Qilin's hooves, the black-robed man appeared as tiny as an ant, ready to be crushed into dust.

"Come on!" Seeing the Spirit Array's crimson Qilin charge, the black-robed man did not show the slightest fear—instead, he laughed aloud.

Instantly breaking free from the chains, he stomped on the Celestial Altar's Spiritual Energy Sealing Chains, using them as leverage to leap upward, extending his hand to meet the Qilin's hooves barehanded!

The black-robed man's hand clamped down like a dragon's claw, instantly seizing the Qilin's two front hooves; even though this Qilin could crush mountains and rivers and burn them to ash, it was still seized in one motion—its terrifying power stunned all.

HHHHH! Crimson Heavenly Flame scorched the black-robed man's hand, yet strangely, the Heavenly Flame—so fierce even a Seven-Star Sovereign dared not face it head-on—could not burn his hand to ash!

At that moment, the black-robed man's hand became a DragonClaw—he wrenched the Qilin over, then tore it apart with both hands, blood spraying everywhere.

Though many knew this Qilin was not real, merely formed by the Spirit Array, when the black-robed man tore it apart with his bare hands, the sight was utterly shocking.

"My Spirit Array beast cannot be killed," Zhu Ye's voice echoed. No sooner had he spoken than the Qilin, split in two, burst into flames, roaring again, shaking Heaven and Earth, turning countless faces pale.

At this moment, everyone saw: within the vast Spirit Array in the sky, the great flames transformed into countless crimson Qilins, each charging forward like a thousand horses galloping—each flame Qilin trampled all eight directions, surging with roaring Heavenly Flame, as if burning Heaven and Earth itself.

Seeing ten thousand qilin charging forth, the black-robed man's eyes flickered with interest—there were no such creatures on the Dou Qi Continent.

He flipped his body and landed upon the Celestial Altar, facing the sea of flame qilin galloping like ten thousand horses; he clenched his fists tightly, emitting a creaking, creaking, creaking sound, and faint purple spatial ripples began to form on his knuckles.

He unleashed twin punches—his fists shattered the qilin's heads; one punch sent forth torrents of Purple Light, shattering space. In an instant, the black-robed man's figure leapt about—sometimes snatching up a single qilin by one hand, whipping it like a towel before slamming it to the ground, exploding into bursts of flame.

Sometimes he shattered Space with a single punch, sending terrifying spatial shockwaves that exploded the heads of countless flame qilin, spraying Spiritual Energy Flames everywhere; sometimes his hands transformed into DragonClaw, tearing qilin apart barehanded into two halves.

"My god, is this black-robed man even human—or a Spiritual Beast?!"

"He's literally a humanoid dinosaur!"

"This guy has no Spiritual Energy at all—how is that even possible?" The onlookers naturally did not know that this was in fact a powerful being from the Lower Plane, still unaccustomed to the Great Thousand World.

After all, in the Great Thousand World, an undiscovered Lower Plane was an invaluable piece of intelligence—something that drove countless Earth Supremes mad with desire.

Boom! Boom!! Countless flame qilin continued pouring endlessly from the massive Spirit Array in the sky, as if the entire Sky had become a nest of flame qilin, with boundless Heavenly Flame scorching the heavens.

Yet no matter how densely packed or endlessly flowing the flame qilin charges were, not one could inflict the slightest injury upon the black-robed man—all were shattered again and again by his terrifying punches.

(End of Chapter)