Ye Guan was standing in a bustling plaza somewhere in the Shenxu Forest. The reconstruction of the Shenxu Forest was underway, so there were many people hard at work under Little Ai's lead.
After the Forest Civilization's downfall, Little Ai and her team also moved in to continue their research on the mysterious teleportation array.
Their goal was to assimilate the technology of the Forest Civilization.
This wasn't a difficult task for Little Ai and her team, especially with the Daogu Tree's assistance.
Shen Qi walked up to Ye Guan just then and extended a storage ring toward him. "Everything you need to learn about the Forest Civilization is in this ring."
Ye Guan glanced at it and accepted it.
Shen Qi then asked, "What's your next plan?"
“We'll stay here and defend ourselves while improving our own strength."
Shen Qi fell silent. The coordinates of the Guanxuan Universe were exposed to the outside world.
Their Tianxing Flame was subdued by the lady in a plain skirt of the Guanxuan Civilization. Did that mean that the Tianxing Civilization was going to let the Guanxuan Civilization go?
There was no way that was going to happen. Shen Qi knew that, so she couldn't help but sigh to herself. The Guanxuan Civilization had made quick work with the Forest Civilization, but unfortunately, it was just the beginning.
Ye Guan turned to Ming Jun and said, "Tell us more about the Asura Civilization."
"We don't know much about them. We only know that their core figures are from the Asura Universe. Their Asura Expedition Force is extremely powerful, and it's an armed force made for exploring and conquering worlds, star fields, and civilizations. Our Forest Civilization stumbled upon a tiny squad of their armed force, and..." Ming Jun trailed off with a solemn face.
Ye Guan saw that and asked, "You lost?"
Ming Jun nodded. "We lost."
"How many were in that squad?"
Ming Jun hesitated before replying, "Less than a hundred."
Ye Guan fell silent. Less than a hundred people managed to defeat the Forest Civilization?
Shen Qi chimed in, "Are they a Tier Four civilization?"
"No, they're actually a peak Tier Three civilization, but they're on the cusp of becoming a Tier Four civilization. Knowing that we're too weak to fight them, we decided to return here," Ming Jun said, glancing at Ye Guan. He was feeling conflicted.
He truly didn't expect that someone so powerful would be living in a place . The Forest Civilization had never really taken the Guanxuan Universe seriously, and it ultimately led to its downfall.
Ye Guan asked, "Besides the Asura Civilization, have you encountered any other civilizations?"
"No, but..." Ming Jun paused, looking unsure whether to continue or not.
Ye Guan urged Ming Jun with his gaze, prompting the latter to continue. "Back then, we were pretty confident and explored the vast expanse. Although we didn't discover another civilization, we discovered a mysterious ancient ruins. The ruins contained millions of divine statues. We wanted to explore it, but we had to stop."
Ye Guan asked, puzzled, "Why?"
"It was dangerous. One of our top elites went inside and never returned. Later, the ancestor went inside, but when he returned, he had it sealed and strictly prohibited anyone from entering it."
"The vast expanse surely is full of unknown wonders..." Ye Guan muttered.
Ming Jun suggested, "Young Master Ye, would you like to take a look at it? I mean no offense. I just think that you're strong enough to survive in that place. I'm sure that ruin will prove immensely helpful to the Guanxuan Universe. If it ends up being a ruin of a Tier Four or higher civilization, our civilization could soar to new heights."
"Actually, a similar golden opportunity was what allowed our Forest Civilization to grow so powerful," Ming Jun added.
The Daogu Tree appeared next to Ye Guan and glared coldly at Ming Jun.
Ming Jun's face paled; he knew this Daogu Tree was once the ancestral tree of the Forest Civilization.
Instead of attacking Ming Jun, the Daogu Tree turned to Ye Guan and said, "He's right. Mysterious ancient ruins are treasure troves for weaker civilizations. Moreover, inheriting a legacy is easier than creating one's own legacy."
Ye Guan stared alternatingly between the Daogu Tree and Ming Jun.
He then smiled and asked, "Do both of you think that I'm that strong?"
The two were stunned.
Ye Guan chuckled and turned to Ming Jun. "How does my strength compare to your civilization's ancestor?"
Ming Jun hesitated before replying, "About equal."
The Daogu Tree and Shen Qi looked at him incredulously.
Equal? Both the Daogu Tree and the Shen Qi shared the same sentiment. What a shameless statement!
Ye Guan laughed heartily.
Ming Jun remained silent. He wasn't sure whether Ye Guan appreciated flattery or not, but he thought that he wouldn't lose anything by trying.
"If your ancestor truly had it sealed the moment he emerged from it, he must have encountered something terrifying inside of it. What do you think?" Ye Guan asked.
"I think so, too," Ming Jun replied. Then, he hesitated for a while before suggesting, "Young Master Ye, it's best if you bring someone else with you... how about you bring a relative with you?"
Shen Qi smiled and pointed out. "You mean either his aunt or grandfather, right?"
Ming Jun glanced at Ye Guan but said nothing. He was wary of overstepping his boundaries.
The Daogu Tree said, "If you bring your aunt and grandfather, there shouldn't be any—"
"I have an idea," Ye Guan said.
Everyone looked at Ye Guan.
Ye Guan turned to Ming Jun, asking, "The ancient ruins that the Forest Civilization has found... no one else knows of its existence, right?"
"That's right. We concealed it with an array as soon as we found it."
"All right," Ye Guan said, nodding. "My idea is to make the ancient ruins' location public."
The three were stunned.
Shen Qi exclaimed, "You want to use the ancient ruins as a distraction!"
"That's right," Ye Guan said with a nod. "Yue Gushi has exposed the coordinates of the Guanxuan Civilization, so it's only a matter of time before we hear some knocks on our door.
"Time is our most precious commodity right now. We need as much time as possible, so I'm thinking about revealing the existence of that ancient ruins to make the other civilizations explore it...
"Hmm, how about we say that it's the ruins of a Tier Five civilization?"
"No," Ming Jun interjected firmly.
"If you say that, then no one will dare to explore it. A Tier Five civilization is extremely terrifying. Right now, I think only the Tianxing Civilization is at Tier Five...
"Simply put, A Tier Five civilization is just too terrifying that the mere thought of it alone instills fear in everyone's heart. If we do that, they'll avoid the ancient ruins, let alone explore it," Ming Jun explained with a serious tone of voice.
The Daogu Tree nodded in agreement. "Claiming that it's a Tier Five civilization is too much. Regardless of whether they'll believe it or not, they wouldn't dare to explore it. Tier Five civilizations surpass the understanding of other civilizations, after all, so they wouldn't dare to approach it. I suggest we claim it's the ruins of a Tier Four civilization.
“Of course, Tier Four civilizations are scary, but they aren't as scary as a Tier Five civilization."
"I was shortsighted," Ye Guan readily admitted.
"I wouldn't say that," Shen Qi said, chuckling. "I'm sure you thought that Tier Five civilizations aren't that terrifying. Am I right?"
Ming Jun glanced at Ye Guan. Although he wasn't sure of the lady in a plain skirt and the blue-robed swordsman's strength, he was certain that they were beyond a Tier Three Civilization.
Of course, Ming Jun also couldn't ignore the possibility that they were as strong as Tier Five civilizations. Regardless, their power had exceeded his expectations.
Ye Guan smiled at Shen Qi's words and shook his head, "Maybe that's true for my aunt and grandfather, but for me, even a Tier Three civilization is extremely terrifying."
Ye Guan hadn't lied. If it hadn't been for his aunt and grandfather's intervention, the Forest Civilization would have annihilated them by now.
He was well aware of the limits of his true strength.
Ye Guan turned to Shen Qi and Ming Jun, saying, "I'll leave this matter to you two. I want you to spread the news..."
"Are you going there?" Shen Qi asked.
"Yes, I'm going to take a look at it," Ye Guan said, nodding. He was genuinely curious about the so-called mysterious ancient ruins that Ming Jun had mentioned.
“When are you going to leave?"
Shen Qi was surprised. "So soon?"
"I won't be of much help here, anyway," Ye Guan replied, nodding decisively. "I have nothing else to do for now, so why not take a look at it? Once you two have spread the news, I'm sure I'll encounter people from other civilizations there."
Ye Guan then stared alternatingly between Shen Qi and Ming Jun. "I want you two to spread the news as soon as I leave."
Ming Jun agreed, "Our Forest Civilization has a special way to send signals deep into the vast expanse, so that won't be too difficult to do."
"If you encounter any issues, you can contact me. If I'm unavailable, then go and look for Little Ai," said Ye Guan. He then turned to Little Ai in the distance and said, "Little Ai, activate the array."
A rumbling noise pervaded the air as the teleportation array was activated under Little Ai's lead.
Soon, a massive teleportation array manifested above everyone's heads.
Ye Guan stared at Ming Jun.
Ming Jun promptly took out a scroll and said, "That scroll contains the location of the ancient ruins."
Ye Guan accepted the scroll and transformed into a streak of sword light that disappeared into the array. Moments later, the teleportation array hummed to life, whisking Ye Guan away.