They flew on. Any beast foolish enough to charge from the clouds died beneath Jared’s thunder-swift strikes, and he pocketed seven inner cores-each far purer than those of the third heaven, ideal for future brews.
Toward sunset, the horizon blazed rose-gold, sheathing the billows in molten light.
Flaxseed stopped short, hanging in midair while his brows knit. “Something’s off. The energy in that valley feels twisted, as though someone bent the flow by force.”
Jared stared into the gauzy mist below. Veiled peaks drifted like ghosts, their outlines blurred by the swirling haze,
The silver glow of Jared’s Nethersky Eye flickered in his dark pupils, stripping the fog layer by layer. “Found it,” he murmured. “The vapor hides a vast illusion array. The core sits beneath the central peak. Clever work-unless you probe on purpose, it herds you away.”
Flaxseed’s eyes lit up. “Told you! My clan cloaked the place with illusions. Break it open-now!”
Jared inhaled, flooding the Dragonslayer Sword with power. Gold light pooled along the blade until the air itself seemed to vibrate.
“Break!” He swung at the array’s thinnest seam, the arc of energy tearing the sky and crashing into the formless shroud.
A dull boom rolled across the range Fog churned like a lake struck by a stone, ripples of raw force racing outward. As the mirage shattered, Flaxseed’s grin froze, disbelief wiping the joy from his face
Nine rolling peaks emerged-identical to the homeland etched in his memory. Yet no human dwellings crowned them. Instead, ink-black palaces bristled with skulls and bat totems, a dark aura hanging over the range like storm clouds.
“This-this was my clan’s territory! What happened?” Flaxseed’s voice quavered, pain and fury mingling “Demons! Those buildings are their handiwork!”
Jared’s gaze hardened, the aura pouring from the palaces matched the demons he had fought in the Third Heaven, only stronger
From the central peak, a frigid, ancient voice rang out. “Which fool dares trespass on the forbidden grounds of Blackshade Demon Palace?”
A black-robed figure shot skyward and halted before them-a gaunt elder with hollow eyes glowing sickly green, wreathed in shadow. His presence screamed Earthly Immortal Realm Level One. “A mongrel of the Wandering Immortal Realm dares make trouble here? Have your kind learned nothing?”
Shaking with anger, Flaxseed pointed his finger. “Rubbish! This is my clan’s land. You demons must be tired of living to seize our sacred ground!”
