Chapter 487: with translation of chapter title

Before leaving, Ye Liuyun turned back and glanced at Elder Luo Xi guarding the gap in the Heavenly Net.

The scene made Elder Luo Xi's heart race. He guessed that Ye Liuyun and that monster together had enough strength to fight him. If the two trained, and with the artifact in Ye Liuyun's hand, he would truly be no match. Moreover, his spatial power was also not inferior to Ye Liuyun's. By then he wouldn't even be able to run away.

So when Ye Liuyun cast that glance, he immediately became tense.

Unexpectedly, Ye Liuyun only smiled at him, then turned and stored the Skeleton Puppet. Afterwards, Lei Ming shrank and leapt onto Ye Liuyun's shoulder, returning straight to the opposite bank.

After Ye Liuyun returned, it wasn't long before five Martial Cultivator squads from the He family arrived together, led by a Tian Gang eighth layer strongman, plus four Tian Gang seventh layer strongmen.

However, they still didn't assault the crossing; like last time, they entrenched on the opposite side, waiting for Ye Liuyun to charge the bridge.

"Little brother, I'm returning to the Xuan Kong Shi to break through my realm; I'll soon reach Tian Gang seventh layer, and then fighting those Tian Gang eighth layer Martial Cultivators will be more certain," Lei Ming said bravely.

"Fine, then you go back and cultivate. But don't force it; I have a way to deal with them," Ye Liuyun said, fearing that forcing a breakthrough would destabilize his realm. After ensuring his safety, he stored Lei Ming in a Storage Ring, letting her break through with peace of mind.

In fact, he's also close to breaking through, but can't attempt it now. He can't relax; he must guard the crossing.

Ye Liuyun plans this time to deal a harsh blow to the opponents, attacking directly with spatial power. Yet he still wants to wait and see; if Lei Ming breakthroughs quickly, he and Lei Ming together can handle those opponents easily, allowing him to temporarily conceal his spatial power.

Moreover, he's waiting for news from the Corpse‑Eating Worm to determine his next move. The Worm has already entered the tomb and is searching. m.

Ye Liuyun continued to stalemate with the opponents. After a while, the Corpse‑Eating Worm reported good news: the tomb indeed contains treasure, an energy Crystal Stone that can aid breakthroughs. Through Divine Sense, it transmitted everything it saw to Ye Liuyun.

When Ye Liuyun saw the Crystal Stone, he was overjoyed. The massive Crystal Stone's contained energy was enough for all of them to breakthrough!

Immediately, he had the Corpse‑Eating Worm scout the tomb's entry and exit routes, then he kept watch for half a day. Once the Worm confirmed, he gathered everyone, stored them in the Storage Ring, and vanished by slipping into the void.

The opponents also noticed his movement, yet they watched helplessly as he disappeared. The Tian Gang eighth layer strongman puzzledly used Divine Sense to search for Ye Liuyun's whereabouts, but found nothing.

Finally he decided, "We hold our positions! This kid seems able to slip into the void and can traverse from the void at any time. If we cross the bridge and he ambushes us, the losses will be severe."

"Indeed! He must think he can't beat us, so he dares not charge again, and tries to lure us over by deliberately leaving the crossing open, letting us lower our guard."

The several Tian Gang seventh layer elders beside him all unanimously approved, deciding to linger here, waiting for Ye Liuyun to give up, after which he would naturally charge.

After Ye Liuyun left, his Divine Sense also noticed they hadn't advanced. At first he was curious why they didn't follow; he had even planned to lure them in and eliminate them in batches!

Then he realized they might think this was a baiting tactic and dared not risk probing.

"Ha ha, if you don't come, little master truly leaves!" he said, then slipped through the void to the tomb, entering the underground tomb according to the Corpse‑Eating Worm's scouting.

The tomb was originally inconspicuous, with no obvious treasure. Ye Liuyun was merely suspicious, so he only let the Corpse‑Eating Worm check it, not expecting an unexpected surprise.

Ye Liuyun, alone, didn't need to consider others' safety, so his movement was extremely swift; the Corpse‑Eating Worm identified dangerous spots, and he simply traversed them via the void, arriving at the final burial chamber.

According to the Corpse‑Eating Worm, a zombie guarded here. So after entering, Ye Liuyun wasted no words, took out the Mourning Bell, aimed it at the coffin in the center, and sealed it inside.

Then he tapped it with the back of the Demon Slaying Sword.

With a "Dong" sound, the zombie inside instantly lost its Soul and its Physical Body began to rot rapidly.

When Ye Liuyun stored the Mourning Bell, the unlucky zombie was reduced to a skeleton, scattered inside the coffin.

Immediately, Ye Liuyun lifted the coffin, revealing a massive Crystal Stone hidden beneath. Once exposed, the Crystal Stone emitted strong energy fluctuations.

Ye Liuyun promptly stored it to avoid attracting other things. Then he examined the stone coffin, whose material seemed to be a special substance that blocks energy fluctuations. Consequently, he casually stored the coffin as well.

Then Ye Liuyun surveyed the surroundings. According to the Corpse‑Eating Worm, this final chamber only had that zombie as a danger.

He thought it over and decided to cultivate here, improving his realm before leaving. To be safe, he set up the Qiong Qi's Formation Flag left for him, and had the Corpse‑Eating Worm assist with the wind. Then he returned to the Xuan Kong Shi, took out the large Crystal Stone, and let everyone absorb it to breakthrough.

Regarding energy sources, he's not lacking now. Besides the massive Crystal Stone, he also possesses half of the Star Primordial Power and plenty of Spirit Stones.

Thus, everyone gathered around the Crystal Stone, sat in a circle, and began absorbing it.

But as soon as they started absorbing, Ye Liuyun immediately halted everyone.

"The energy within this Crystal Stone is problematic. Some people cannot absorb it," Ye Liuyun told the group.

Liang Xue immediately nodded and said, "I also feel this energy is strange, like Demon Qi."

Ye Liuyun confirmed, "Right! It's close to Demon Qi, so Lei Ming, Earth Demon Dragon, and I will cultivate here together. Yu Er, Qing Cheng, you two try whether your techniques can transmute it; if not, don't force it. Everyone else, step back for now—absorbing this energy won't benefit you."

Thus, Ye Liuyun assigned Liang Xue, Bai Hu, and Ru Yue to the Dragon Palace, letting the three absorb Spirit Stones and cultivate, while he returned to check Yu Er and Qing Cheng's situation.

Although the two could also transmute, their efficiency was too low, so it was more worthwhile to let Ye Liuyun's group cultivate. Hence the two ultimately gave up and returned to the Dragon Palace to cultivate.