The two walked briskly and soon found themselves quite a distance away from the gate.

Zhou Yuan sighed inwardly, realizing that while Ye Guan had many great qualities, he was excessively concerned about showing off.

Was showing off really that important?

Zhou Yuan couldn't help but become curious about the identity of the individual who taught Ye Guan to show off, as the latter's ability when it came to showing off had made his scalp go numb.

Zhou Fan suddenly asked, "Young Master Ye, do you primarily cultivate the swords?"

"Yes."

"Are you familiar with the Heart Sword Clan?"

Ye Guan shook his head. "I've never heard of at."

"If you ever get the chance, you should visit the Heart Sword Clan."

"Why should I visit the Heart Sword Clan?"

"It's because they focus on cultivating the heart and integrating that into their swordsmanship. The Heart Sword Clan is a powerful clan with quite a few supreme swordsmen. You should definitely check them. You'll surely gain something from the experience."

"Where are they?" asked Ye Guan, feeling intrigued. He was genuinely interested in meeting top swordsmen from other universe regions and sparring with them.

Zhou Fan turned to Ye Guan and suggested, "I can take you there."

Ye Guan was slightly taken aback. "Isn't that a bit too much trouble for you?"

"Not at all."

"I just don't want to inconvenience you."

"It's really no trouble at all."

"All right, then."

The two soon found themselves before a valley.

They looked deeper into the valley and saw three ghost face masks on an ancient golden tree. The tree's trunk extended deep into the clouds and spread out like a giant umbrella, blotting out the sky.

The ancient-looking golden tree had nothing else left but its trunk.

However, the golden tree's truck was withered and decayed.

There were a few people beneath the golden tree, and they had concealed their true appearances using their own secret technique.

Zhou Fan suggested, "Let's go take a look."

The two of them walked up to the golden tree.

Ye Guan observed the three ghost face masks. Every single one of the masks was unique. The one in the middle seemed to be made out of red copper, and it depicted a face with long fangs and bulging eyes.

The one on the left seemed to be made of bronze, and it depicted a ferocious face and fiery red eyes.

The one on the right appeared "normal." It depicted a face with eyes half closed, seemingly in deep thought.

Zhou Fan seemed quite interested in the masks and the golden tree.

Just as she started walking toward the bizarre masks, an aged voice echoed from nearby. "Watch out, young lady. If you get too close to those bizarre masks, they'll disturb your mind and send you into an illusion."

Zhou Fan glanced at a figure not far away and said, "Thank you for the warning."

Despite her words, she ignored the warning and stepped forward. Soon, she reached the masks. Moments later, the space in front of her twisted and deformed as a myriad of illusions flashed across her eyes.

Zhou Fan tapped her palm with the jade fan in her right hand, and the illusions vanished in an instant. She then moved closer to the ghost face masks and examined them carefully for a moment before smiling. "One of these is a divine item."

"What divine item is it?" asked one of the shrouded figures.

"I don't know." Zhou Fan shook her head. "Its spirit is sleeping."

Everyone fell into contemplation at that remark.

Zhou Fan swept her gaze across the crowd and asked, "Are you all interested in it?"

"We're in the ruins of at least a Tier Four civilization, so we're interested in it, of course," someone replied.

Zhou Fan nodded and suggested, "I have an idea. If you think my idea is bad, then just ignore my words."

"Go ahead, young lady," someone said.

Zhou Fan announced, "Everyone wants it, but there's only one divine item. To avoid conflict, I suggest we auction it. The highest bidder wins, and the proceeds from the auction will be divided among the rest. What do you all think?"

An auction? Everyone fell silent. The truth was that every one of them was trying to leech off of each other or even freeload if possible. Who'd want to spend money when it was unnecessary to do so?

However, they also knew that one had to possess absolute strength to snatch an item under the noses of so many experts. Those daring enough but with lesser strength would surely perish before being able to take a few steps away.

An aged voice chimed in, "That suggestion works. The person who wins the bid gets the divine item, and those unfortunate will still acquire some Ancestral Veins. Everyone gets to have something."

The others nodded slightly, agreeing with the suggestion. Those with money could bid, and those too broke to bid could still profit.

A middle-aged man in a black robe stepped out and shouted, "Everyone here is at least a half-step Path Creation Realm expert, but there's someone only in the Divine Dao Realm. How can they stand on equal footing with us?"

The black-robed middle-aged man stared directly at Ye Guan as he spoke.

At the same time, everyone also turned to look at Ye Guan.

They were also aware of Ye Guan's cultivation base, but they hadn't said anything on account of Zhou Fan's extraordinary status.

The black-robed middle-aged man glared at Ye Guan and sneered, "What qualifications do you have to stand with us?"

Ye Guan's mouth fluttered open to speak, but a blood-red shadow streaked across the air.

It was Zhou Yuan!

The black-robed middle-aged man's face changed dramatically, and he swung his fist toward the oncoming blood-red shadow.

Boom!

A deafening explosion echoed, and the black-robed man flew a thousand meters away.

Everyone present was shocked.

Zhou Yuan glared coldly at the black-robed middle-aged man in the distance and said, "You disrespectful punk. You better respect our Young Master, or I'm going to beat you to death. Do you understand?"

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Meanwhile, the black-robed middle-aged man's face was ugly. He wiped away the blood from the corner of his mouth and stared alternatingly between Zhou Yuan and Ye Guan.

He was reluctant, but he cupped his fist and said, "I had no idea that you were so strong. I apologize for my offensive words. Please forgive me."

Everyone was surprised once again. They found the black-robed middle-aged man to be quite an interesting character. After all, those who knew when to admit defeat were quite rare throughout the vast expanse.

However, this was normal. Someone capable of having a half-step Path Creation Realm cultivator as their Dao Protector definitely had more of such elites around him.

Ye Guan was also a bit surprised. He thought the black-robed middle-aged man would put up a fight, so he was surprised to see the latter apologizing immediately.

'It's fine." Ye Guan smiled. "It was just a small matter."

The black-robed middle-aged man cupped his fist again and retreated to the side without saying anything.

Zhou Yuan glanced at the black-robed middle-aged man before returning to Ye Guan's side. "I made my own move without your instructions. I hope you'll forgive me, Young Master Ye."

"Why would I forgive you when you haven't made any mistakes? Senior Yuan, you don't have to be so formal with me in the future."

Zhou Yuan bowed slightly and retreated behind Ye Guan.

Meanwhile, Zhou Fan glanced at Ye Guan and announced, "Now that there are no more issues, let's start the auction! I bid one hundred Ancestral Veins."

"That's my only bid," Zhou Fan added.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. If she wanted it, they'd simply give up.

Zhou Fan had earned hundreds of Ancestral Veins from collecting entrance fees, and no one was daring enough to offend her due to her extraordinary status.

"One hundred and five Ancestral Veins," someone remarked, bidding an additional five Ancestral Veins.

Everyone turned to look at the speaker. It was the black-robed middle-aged man who fought Zhou Yuan earlier.

The black-robed man smiled awkwardly beneath everyone's gazes. "I hope you'll give me some face and let me have—"

"A hundred and twenty Ancestral Veins!" someone interrupted.

The black-robed middle-aged man's expression froze, and he quickly shouted, "One hundred and fifty Ancestral Veins!"

"Two hundred Ancestral Veins!" the previous bidder responded.

The other party was completely hidden, so no one could see his true appearance. Judging by his voice, he seemed to be an old man.

The black-robed middle-aged man stared in the direction of the speaker and shouted, "Two hundred and twenty Ancestral Veins!"

The shrouded figure immediately replied, "Two hundred and sixty Ancestral Veins."

The black-robed middle-aged man looked around. There were twelve people here, including him, which meant that he'd get about twenty Ancestral Veins.

The black-robed middle-aged man stopped bidding. Clearly, he thought that freeloading was the way to go.

Zhou Fan smiled and asked, "Anyone else want to bid?"

"Three hundred Ancestral Veins," an old man said.

The black-robed middle-aged man’s eyelid twitched, but he was overjoyed inside. He was going to get a ton of Ancestral Veins.

Zhou Fan turned to look at someone else.

Without hesitation, they declared, "Three hundred and fifty!"

The old man's brows furrowed.

Ye Guan was also a bit surprised. Three hundred and fifty Ancestral Veins was no small amount. He had emptied the treasury of two civilizations but only managed to accumulate over fifteen hundred Ancestral Veins.

However, the recent bidder had actually bid three hundred and fifty Ancestral Veins right off the bat.

The old man remained silent. Clearly, three hundred and fifty Ancestral Veins were too much.

Zhou Fan smiled and asked, "Anyone else want to bid?"

No one else made an offer.

Zhou Fan turned to the mysterious bidder and said, "The item is yours."

The man was straightforward. He opened his palm, and a storage ring flew to Zhou Fan. She glanced at it and then divided the Ancestral Veins inside into twelve portions, distributing them equally to everyone.

Ye Guan looked at the storage ring in front of him and saw that it contained twenty-nine Ancestral Veins.

He chuckled and shook his head. He hadn't done anything yet, but he had already acquired twenty-nine Ancestral Veins, and it was for free, to boot.

Not bad at all.

Ye Guan glanced at Zhou Fan in the distance. She was indeed a remarkable woman.

The others failed to obtain the divine item, but they were happy with the free twenty-nine Ancestral Veins.

The mysterious man opened his palm and put away the divine item.

Just then, someone suggested, "This place is really dangerous. Why don't we stick together for our safety?"

"I think that's a good idea. What about everyone else?" Zhou Fan asked.

The others nodded in agreement. Everyone was getting along well so far. If they split up, they'd be worried about getting stabbed in the back. If they stuck together, they'd be on the same boat, which meant they wouldn't be worried during the next leg of their journey.

"Let's continue our journey, then," Zhou Fan suggested.

Everyone nodded and moved forward.

Just then, the Right Elder standing next to Zhou Fan muttered, "Young lady, the Left Elder is fighting someone outside."

Zhou Fan was slightly taken aback. "Is he winning or losing?"

The Right Elder said, "It seems to be a draw."

Zhou Fan nodded slightly and said, "The opponent must be quite strong! Right Elder, please go and take a look."

"No," replied the Right Elder, immediately shaking his head. "I need to stay with you."

"It's fine."

“No, I must stay with you."

Zhou Fan sighed. "All right. Just tell the Left Elder to run if he can't win."

"Understood."

***

The Left Elder and his group inundated Xuan Yang and Cang Yue with a flurry of attacks.

Xuan Yang and Cang Yue were strong, but there were just too many enemies.

Moreover, the warriors in black were using arrays and coordinated their attacks, making the fight even harder for them.

Xuan Yang suddenly stopped. He glared at the Left Elder in the distance and roared, "Do you not know who I am?! I'm from the Evil Dao Alliance!"

"Can't win, so you're trying to intimidate me using your background now? I really despise people like you!" the Left Elder sneered. Then, he raised his middle finger and thrust it toward Xuan Yuang.

Xuan Yang's face darkened. "You dumbass! You'll spell doom for your entire civilization!"

"Damn it!" the Left Elder cursed, "No manners, right? Screw you!"

Xuan Yang had no idea what to say.