Chapter 366

Suddenly, heavenly light appeared, day and night reversed—something extraordinary must follow.

In Baihua City, Yunzhou, Ye Han gazed at the brilliant, glowing horizon in the cold night and couldn’t help murmuring softly.

He had just been discussing with the young chieftains of the Ya and Lin tribes about sending an envoy to Youzhou to pay homage.

Even if they traded secretly with the human race, their alliance with the barbarians would not change.

This envoy mission was meant to explain the matter.

Yunzhou heavily relies on mineral resources; agriculture is underdeveloped, and failing to trade would make it impossible to feed the clan—this was a perfectly valid reason, and the barbarians could hardly object.

Moreover, the Barbarian Emperor had already arrived in Youzhou days ago; at this moment, the demon tribes should take some action to solidify their alliance.

But who knew that as soon as the meeting in his study ended, he saw a blinding daylight, as if the sky had been replaced.

“This vast heavenly light cannot be man-made; its origin must lie in Zhongzhou.”

After whispering this, Lin Dou looked at Ye Han: “While studying human history from the scrolls left in the city, I came across records saying that the Nine Provinces are blessed with divine talent and often give birth to heavenly treasures.”

Ye Han turned his head, glancing at the guard beside him.

A moment later, several demon generals strode through the air above Baihua City and sped away in a roar.

At the very moment the demon tribes reacted, several powerful auras in the heart of Youzhou surged eastward.

This is the downside of the northern wall being breached.

The Zhenbei Army stationed in Qingzhou can track the main forces of the barbarian and demon tribes, see them leveling streets, observe their migration from Jibei.

But they cannot block these stealthy individuals like the Jingxian Array does.

After all, Youzhou and Yunzhou are vast, and both barbarian and demon tribes possess bloodline talents, some of which specialize in concealment.

Meanwhile, Old Qiu was gazing upward in the backyard of Ji Zhai .

The secret sale of Snowfield Demon Stones had accelerated grain sales, and with spring plowing arriving, Fengzhou was plunged into chaos.

After prolonged negotiations with all sides, Old Qiu returned to Ji Zhai wrapped in night.

After a hasty wash, he picked up the porcelain basin, planning to pour out the water and sleep.

But as he opened the door, he froze—then stared at the basin in his hands.

He wasn’t sure how long he’d spent washing; it was only the time to splash water on his face, yet daylight had burst forth.

At that moment, Old Qiu, lost in self-doubt, heard footsteps.

He looked up—Ji You had already entered the courtyard, and Kuangcheng followed closely behind, rushing forward upon seeing Ji You.

“Brother Ji, you haven’t slept yet?”

“I was just about to.” Ji You replied.

Kuangcheng looked up at the sky: “What happened up there?”

“I don’t know, but it seems to be in the direction of the Former Sages’ Sacred Ground.”

No sooner had he spoken than everyone suddenly felt darkness swallow their vision.

Above the boundless, deep sky, the torrent of white light receded like a tide, and darkness, which should have been there all along, flooded in instantly.

The violent alternation of light and dark left countless people overwhelmed, their eyes aching, their vision spinning with a soulless dizziness.

When they adjusted, they saw stars and moon reappear in the night sky—as if everything before had been an illusion.

“Alert everyone in the Zhai —stay indoors tonight, don’t go out. I’ll go investigate.”

Old Qiu snapped back to reality just as Ji You gave his order: “Young Master, be careful.”

Kuangcheng also spoke up: “Watch your safety.”

Ji You nodded, then shot upward with sudden force.

A powerful surge erupted in the void, roaring as dust and earth churned—his figure vanished into the thick night, heading south.

Meanwhile, in the forests of northern Zhongzhou, a large gathering of Zhongzhou aristocratic clans had already assembled.

Among them were the He, Zuoqiu, and You families, as well as centuries-old clans like Qiu, Huang, Sheng, and Liu—all relatively close to this location.

They hadn’t planned to come together; they’d all arrived independently, drawn by the direction of the heavenly light, and met by chance due to different approach routes.

The reason these aristocratic clans rushed here was the same as the Lin tribe’s young chieftain—they believed a spiritual treasure had emerged nearby.

This wasn’t idle speculation; their family histories recorded several prior instances of spiritual treasures appearing in this very place.

After all, this was the Former Sages’ Sacred Ground, favored by heavenly grace—no surprise.

For millennia-old clans, heavenly treasures must be claimed by themselves; for century-old clans, this was an undeniable opportunity to strengthen their power.

Logically, this should have been a clan-based struggle—anyone else present would be a rival. Yet when they met in the forest, they did not immediately clash.

Most of them were affiliated with the Heavenly Book Academy; their elders often crossed paths there, and without seeing the actual treasure, they wouldn’t yet tear each other apart.

Swish-swish-swish—

As the heavenly light faded, the forest returned to darkness, all sounds silenced.

Aside from the faint footsteps of the immortal sect disciples moving silently, only the continuous rush of river water echoed from the southwest.

It was the sound of a tributary of Nujiang, drowning out the rustling of movement in the woods, making everything unnervingly still.

“To the south.”

He Ye of the He family cultivated the Four Symbols Art, capable of sensing subtle differences in air currents—he immediately detected something unusual in the silence.

At once, the He clan disciples adjusted their course and headed south.

Zuoqiu Jingyun and his disciples arrived from another direction, converging on the same path into a winding valley.

The two families were in-laws; the He family had long relied on Zuoqiu Yang, the Hall Master, to maintain their standing—so competition between them was minimal, and traveling together was common.

Yet once inside the valley, the hundred disciples of both families quickened their pace, knowing the heavenly light’s vast reach must have drawn other clans.

They had gained an early advantage due to proximity—every move had to be swift.

Crossing mountains and valleys, several clan heads and hundreds of disciples filled the entire valley, pressing steadily southeast, their expressions growing ever more cautious.

They had assumed the treasure’s birthplace would be near the entrance of the Former Sages’ Sacred Ground, since that was the boundary between realms—the most likely place for a heavenly treasure to emerge.

But as they walked, they realized they’d veered far from the entrance—not advancing straight toward it at all.

Still, by distance, they remained within the Former Sages’ Sacred Ground—only on its outer edge.

By now, some time had passed since the heavenly light faded; the aura had grown faint.

So the aristocratic disciples scattered, beginning a wide-scale search of the dark forest.

A spring rain had just fallen; the woods were damp, the air thick with the smell of mud.

The He and Zuoqiu clans followed their earlier judgment, reaching the valley’s center, where the air currents suddenly became clear yet chaotic.

“There—it’s ahead!”

He Ye spoke low, and his disciples instantly hastened forward.

As they pressed deeper, everyone’s eyes grew heavy with gravity.

For the darkness ahead was twisted—not by air currents or light, but by darkness itself, warping.

Like a smooth silk cloth gripped by a hand, wrinkle upon wrinkle forming.

In other words, space here had warped.

“This… what’s going on?”

He Ye stared at a downward-curving fold in the void, his expression stunned; the Zuoqiu clan also turned grave gazes toward it.

Though masters of great magic power could cause ripples in the void, those ripples vanished instantly—even a Linxian couldn’t damage this world.

Yet the evidence showed these folds had existed for a long time—unable to heal, and still pressing inward.

Yinyuezhijian , they felt the brilliant heavenly light and violent tremors were more than mere birth of a heavenly treasure.

“Master, come quickly!”

“?”

Farther west, He Long, leading his clan’s youths, suddenly cried out, voice trembling—immediately drawing He Ye and Zuoqiu Jingyun’s attention.

In an instant, both men shot upward, racing toward the sound.

Meanwhile, You Fu Sheng, head of the You family, also flew forward with two elders.

But before he reached the others, You Fu Sheng saw He Ye and Zuoqiu Jingyun stop dead, staring upward in stunned silence.

Had they found something? Then why had they frozen?

The thought flashed through his mind—then he saw the answer himself, and his body locked rigid, breath cut off.