"No one knows what opportunity this generation's exceptional talents might find within the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons."
Unbeknownst when, Wen Tingguang had moved to Yue Zhonglian's side. Stroking his long beard, he remarked with a deep sigh.
"One is Yan Jinghong, and the other is Ling Feng!"
Yue Zhonglian narrowed his eyes, watching as the entrance to the secret realm slowly vanished into the sky. His heart was far from calm.
"Indeed, those two are peerless talents! However, unlike Yan Jinghong, whose journey has been an unbroken rise against the heavens, Ling Feng's ascendance has been nothing short of miraculous, reaching today's heights at an astonishing speed."
Wen Tingguang's gaze sparkled with admiration. "Who knows what opportunities await them after ten days, or to what heights their powers might surge?
"In ten days, all will be revealed."
Yue Zhonglian turned to the other elders and said, "Elders, I leave things here in your hands. I must return to the sect to attend to other matters."
"Farewell, Sect Leader!"
As Yue Zhonglian departed, so did the forces from the other major sects who had come to witness the event, dispersing like a receding tide.
After a long wait, as the light returned to his vision, Ling Feng leaped forward, emerging from the portal of the secret realm.
Upon being teleported from the secret realm's entrance to the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons, everyone landed at random spots. However, every three Gods and Demons tokens formed a set, with the bearer and their two chosen companions arriving at the same location.
Ling Feng looked around and soon spotted Tuoba Yan and Mu Qianxue nearby.
The two women quickly adjusted their robes and gracefully flew towards him.
"This place truly deserves to be called the ancient Battlefield of the Gods and Demons; the richness of the spiritual energy here is a hundred times more concentrated than the spirit-gathering array at Tianwei Academy!"
Ling Feng marveled, feeling the almost liquid concentration of spiritual energy; it was indeed astounding.
However, though the spiritual energy was abundant, it was also mixed with chaotic demonic qi. To cultivate using this energy would likely introduce the demonic qi from Devils from Beyond into one's body. That would be a risky endeavor with questionable benefits.
It also seemed that the excessive presence of both spiritual energy and demonic qi was affecting Ling Feng's spiritual consciousness. His Boundless Vision's range was reduced to just thirty zhang, a tenth of its usual extent.
What Ling Feng didn't realize was that this suppression wasn't due to the spiritual energy itself. It was the unique rules of the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons, imposing a natural restraint on every martial artist who entered.
Tuoba Yan and Mu Qianxue had also noticed this, and after joining Ling Feng, they began to assess their surroundings carefully.
Wherever they looked, there was an abundance of rare treasures!
Though their qualities were low-tier, most were over fifty years old and quite rare in the outside world.
"Wow, such treasures!"
Suddenly, a flash of purple light zipped past, and a tiny, pocket-sized stone figure shot out in front of the two surprised women, Mu Qianxue and Tuoba Yan.
The purple light swept over the ground like an autumn breeze clearing fallen leaves, peeling a layer off the earth itself.
Unlike the despicable donkey, who only coveted high-tier treasures, Zifeng was different.
This fella hoarded anything that contained spiritual energy, regardless of its grade!
However, Zifeng had one quality the despicable donkey could never match, which was its loyalty to Ling Feng. No matter how valuable the treasure, Zifeng would leave most of it for Ling Feng, taking only a small portion for itself.
"Wakakaka, we've struck it rich, Master! We're rich this time!"
Ling Feng slapped his forehead as he watched patches of ground vanish around him, twitching in frustration.
Is it worth wasting time collecting these low-tier herbs? The Five Elements Heavenly Palace has them in abundance!
Mu Qianxue and Tuoba Yan were surprised to see Zifeng.
"Big Brother Ling, I thought spirit pets couldn't be brought into the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons?" Mu Qianxue asked, incredulous.
"Zifeng is a bit different," Ling Feng replied, touching his nose. "As an elemental life form, Zifeng can transform directly into true qi and hide in my dantian. I doubt the one who created the portal foresaw a creature as unique as Zifeng."
Mu Qianxue bit her lip, a bead of sweat trickling down her forehead. "Then, Big Brother Ling, should we wait for Zifeng to finish gathering these herbs?"
Ling Feng's mouth twitched as he watched Zifeng scrape the ground hundreds of zhang away.
How vast is this creature's individual space[1]?
"Forget about it. I don't know him!"
Ling Feng rolled his eyes, reluctant to admit ownership of this shameless creature.
Collecting low-tier herbs like first and second-tier herbs was no better than scavenging!
Taking out the simplified map Wen Tingguang had given him from his storage spirit ring, Ling Feng pointed, saying, "Let's first figure out where we are, and then head directly to find the ancient sect ruins that Brother Wen mentioned."
After nearly a thousand years of exploration, the outer regions of the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons no longer held much value. The real rewards, according to Wen Tingguang, lay in those ancient sect ruins.
With only ten days, there wasn't time to waste on outer areas gathering leftovers.
Zifeng's behavior was downright foolish.
Coming to the famed Battlefield of the Gods and Demons, only to dig up low-tier herbs, was an embarrassment!
"Mhmm." Mu Qianxue nodded; her goal, like Ling Feng's, was to grow stronger.
Since there were greater opportunities in the ancient ruins, sticking with Ling Feng seemed the best option.
As for Tuoba Yan, she wouldn't leave Ling Feng's side for anything.
The three quickly left the area. Though Zifeng was reluctant, it abandoned the uncollected patches of ground and followed Ling Feng.
Not long after Ling Feng and his group left, a portal opened in the sky above, and three figures descended.
Two men and a woman, with the man in purple leading them.
"Oh my!" gasped the woman in blue, covering her mouth as she stared at the barren ground, "It seems someone got here before us."
"Picking up roadside trash... What martial artist from which empire could be worthy of the title genius ?"
The man in purple sneered with disdain, "Nothing but a few nobodies who aren’t worth worrying about."
The chubby man in a yellow robe pulled out a compass-like object, muttered a few words, and then grinned and moved beside the purple-clad man. "Young Master Feng, it looks like we've landed in the eastern part of the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons, quite close to the ancient ruins of the Huangji Sect."
The purple-robed man, named Feng Yan, nodded slightly. "The ruins of the Huangji Sect are known even beyond our Tiansheng Empire. Other sects have likely caught wind of it, and I wouldn't be surprised if others from the great empires know as well. Keep up, Fatty Huang, and don't fall behind."
"Understood! With me, Huang Kaixuan here, Young Master Feng can rest assured, hehe!"
Fatty Huang chuckled, pointing to a path ahead. "Young Master Feng, let's head this way!"
1. This is the first time the phrase "individual space" appears, it basically means Zifeng's stomach/pocket/storage. ☜