Chapter 1592: Chapter 1592: Howl of Despair
"Those tornado storms are Desolate Storms, formed by the chaotic Heaven and Earth Rules in the North Abyss Misty Plain colliding with each other. Their power varies greatly. If you run into a weaker Desolate Storm, you might still have a chance to escape with your life, but if its power is too great, even experts in the Sword Saint Realm can hardly escape death." The Heavenly Curtain was far too obvious, so Ye Lanfeng couldnât be bothered to explain it, and focused instead on those storms.
So this was a Desolate Storm. Han Yan remembered very clearly that back when Jian Wuchen went to the Beiyuan Fog Origin to treat the meridians in his right arm, he encountered danger in a Desolate Storm and was saved in the end only because her grandmother Luo Shuiyi personally took action. His life was saved, but her grandmother was injured because of it and then disappeared without a trace.
One had to know that although Jian Wuchenâs right arm was crippled and he could no longer use the Wuchen Sword Path, causing his Combat Power to plunge and making it impossible for him to display his true strength when fighting, his cultivation Realm was still there. He was still a top expert among Sword Saints. Even he was trapped inside and almost lost his life; from this alone, it was not hard to see just how terrifying these Desolate Storms were.
Thinking of this, Han Yan thought of her grandmother again. She had no idea where she was now, or whether she was safe.
The North Abyss Misty Plain was so vast that searching it inch by inch was naturally impossible. All she could do was carefully keep an eye out for any clues about her grandmotherâs whereabouts.
"Everyone, be more careful. Once you encounter a storm, retreat at once." Zhuang Pingâan and Sang Qinghe saw how serious Ye Lanfeng was and didnât dare be careless; they hurriedly gave orders to those young people under them.
"Being careful is useless. The Heaven and Earth Rules and Heaven and Earth Power in the Beiyuan Fog Origin are far too chaotic, changing every moment. As long as conditions align by chance, a storm will form. No one knows when it will appear or where it will show up. By the time you notice the storm, youâre often already inside it." Ye Lanfeng said.
"Then what are we supposed to do?" The two, Zhuang Pingâan and Sang Qinghe, looked miserably at Ye Lanfeng. If even being careful was useless, then werenât they just waiting to die?
"The only way is to break it apart, at least open up an escape gap." Ye Lanfeng said.
Break apart a Desolate Storm and open a gap! The expressions on Zhuang Pingâan and the othersâ faces grew even uglier.
They clearly remembered Ye Lanfeng had just said that if they ran into a stronger Desolate Storm, even experts in the Sword Saint Realm would find it hard to escape. With their strength, how could they possibly break one apart?
"Lord Ye, have you ever encountered a Desolate Storm?" Zhuang Pingâan couldnât help but ask.
"I have. Fortunately, the Desolate Storm I encountered back then wasnât that powerful, so I only suffered some injuries and managed to escape." Ye Lanfeng said.
"And... what Realm were you at then?" Sang Qinghe asked again.
"Sword Saint. Iâd just stepped into the Qi Cultivation Realm." Ye Lanfeng thought for a moment and answered.
"Uh..." The look in Zhuang Pingâan and the othersâ eyes turned somewhat hopeless.
They now knew that after advancing into the Sword Saint, there were three Realms: rebirth, Qi Nourishing and Soul Condensing, and Divine Transformation. Every advancement was as hard as climbing to heaven, absolutely hundreds or thousands of times harder than going from a completely ordinary person with no cultivation at all to a Sword Saint. Ye Lanfeng had already stepped into the Qi Nourishing and Soul Condensing Realm at that time, so he was naturally a hundred times stronger than an ordinary Sword Saint who had just entered the path. Yet even he had been injured.
And according to him, that Desolate Storm wasnât even that powerful. If its power had been a bit greater, he would have suffered far more than "just some injuries."
Looking at Ye Lanfeng and then thinking of their own strength, it would be strange if they werenât in despair.
"Aside from the Desolate Storms, thereâs another danger in the North Abyss Misty Plain that you must be extremely careful of!" Ye Lanfeng didnât try to comfort them. Instead, he continued speaking with a solemn expression.
"What?" Zhuang Pingâan and the others forced themselves to perk up and asked.
"The reason the North Abyss Misty Plain bears this name is not only because of this dense, lingering fog, but also because of the countless Earth Split Abysses. This place lies at the only point of connection between the two pieces of the Continent. Though it hasnât completely shattered, there are still innumerable Earth Split Abysses spread like a spider web. If you fall into one, your fate will definitely be to die with body shattered to pieces.
Donât underestimate this fog. In truth, everything you see might be formed by refraction of the fog and may not be real at all. What looks perfectly safeâone more step forward might be a bottomless abyss." Ye Lanfeng said.
Once these words came out, those young people who had been pacing slightly out of nervousness immediately stopped. My God! Without realizing it, they might have already walked back and forth hundreds of times along the edge of an abyss.
Their hearts, already filled with despair, sank even further.
"Right, there are also Exotic Beasts. Exotic Beasts live within the North Abyss Misty Plain as well. On the surface, they might not look all that different from the Exotic Beasts of the Longyan Mountain, but because of the chaotic Power of Laws in the North Abyss Misty Plain, these Exotic Beasts are often much stronger and much more terrifying than normal Exotic Beasts.
Of course, compared to the Desolate Storms and the Earth Split Abysses, the danger of encountering Exotic Beasts is still much smaller." Ye Lanfeng added.
Zhuang Pingâan and the others finally sank into complete despair. Desolate Storms, Earth Split Abysses, and on top of that, Exotic Beasts far stronger and more terrifying than the whole horde in the Longyan Mountainâhow was anyone supposed to survive here?
No wonder the North Abyss Misty Plain was called the first forbidden land of the Holy Court Continent, and no wonder so many people saw this trip of theirs as a death sentence. It truly made sense.
"But you donât need to worry too much. This is only the very edge of the North Abyss Misty Plain. The Heaven and Earth Rules arenât that chaotic yet, and the Heaven and Earth Power isnât too strong. With your strength, you should be able to cope.
Besides, the Holy Master holds high expectations for you and doesnât wish to see you die easily, so he sent me to travel with you. If you really encounter danger thatâs too great, I will take action." Ye Lanfeng finally said the words everyone most wanted to hear.
The expressions on Zhuang Pingâan and the others relaxed a little. With Ye Lanfeng to protect them, they would at least be somewhat safer.
"Letâs go. These days are when the Heaven and Earth Rules of the North Abyss Misty Plain are at their calmest and the Heaven and Earth Power is at its weakest. If we reach the Heavenly Curtain a bit earlier, everyone will have a bit more hope of surviving." Ye Lanfeng said.
Although Zhuang Pingâan and the others were deeply uneasy, they were elites of the various aristocratic families and even the Imperial Family, so naturally they had their pride and also a Strong Heart of the Powerful. They forcibly suppressed the unease in their hearts, gathered all of their Divine Sense, and headed in the direction of the Heavenly Curtain.
Although the mountains ahead rose and fell and the terrain was rugged, with their cultivation this wasnât enough to stump them. However, forcibly gathering Divine Sense still placed a tremendous strain on them. After several hours, everyone was panting heavily from exhaustion.
"Lord Ye, how about we rest for a bit before going on?" Zhuang Pingâan looked pleadingly at Ye Lanfeng. Although his strength was among the strongest of the group, maintaining his Divine Sense without stopping had left him somewhat unable to keep going.
"Strictly speaking, the North Abyss Misty Plain isnât that large, but its radius still spans tens of thousands of miles. The closer we get to the Heavenly Curtain, the more chaotic the Heaven and Earth Rules will become, the stronger the Heaven and Earth Power, and the harder it will be to circulate your Cultivation Technique. In the end, every single step will be like crossing a heavenly chasm. If we donât hurry now, we may never reach the Heavenly Curtain." Ye Lanfeng said calmly.
Looking at Ye Lanfengâs calm face, everyone screamed inwardly. Howlingâhow utterly despairing.
But they only howled in their hearts. Deep down, they grew more resolute. They absolutely could not stop! They absolutely could not give up so easily!