Chapter 372: Going In

When the Tongyou Institution carried out their plan to establish the Tongyou Mysterious World, they naturally evacuated everyone from the battlefield between the two worlds.

During the great war for the Tongyou Mysterious World, they closed off the spatial tunnel to avoid facing the Martial Extermination Realm experts from the Azure Spiritual World. That resulted in the battlefield between the two worlds falling into the hands of the four great races of the Liao Continent in the Azure Spiritual World.

They were naturally unwilling to let the Tongyou Institution enter the battlefield between the two worlds to fight with them for benefits again.

After the spatial tunnel was shut off, the Azure Spiritual World had been preparing to launch a frightening offensive on the Tongyou Institution the moment they reopened the spatial tunnel. As such, the war that was about to happen didn’t come as a surprise!

The experts of the Azure Spiritual World heard the commotion when the Tongyou Institution carved the spatial tunnel out with the power from the Tongyou Mysterious World, and they were more than ready to start the battle.

They knew where the tunnel would connect and they had long since reinforced the area to suppress the members of the Tongyou Institution the moment they crossed over.

With Shang Bo in the lead, close to ten Martial Extermination Realm experts emerged from the tunnel. Their main objective was to slaughter and make a powerful entrance for the rest of the members of the Tongyou Institution to enter.

When those back at the entrance of the tunnel heard the commotion coming from within, they finally revealed looks of fear and worry. A moment later, the fluctuations coming from the battlefield between the two worlds seemed to die down a little.

Those waiting at the entrance seemed to have discovered something and many people cheered. “We forced those bastards from the Azure Spiritual World to retreat!”

From the sounds of battle coming from within the tunnel, it seemed as though the Martial Extermination Realm experts of the institution were smoothly fighting their way deeper into the battlefield. However, it could also be a trap laid down by the other side to bait their experts deeper into foreign territory.

There were many Martial Intent Realm experts who started making their way into the tunnel, but they were stopped by Peng Lanqing.

“Stop right there!”

When they turned to stare at him with expressions of confusion, he quickly explained his actions. “The shockwaves of the battle caused by those at the Martial Extermination Realm are massive. Not to mention there are definitely more than ten of them fighting in there now. If we run in now, we might be killed before we know what happened. It would be an unnecessary loss!”

Instructors of the institution were on the same level as deacons of the various divisions and due to the emphasis and nurturing the institution had on instructors, they seemed to possess authority higher than others at the same level.

Peng Lanqing might be an instructor of the Outer Division, but even deacons like Qian Sitong, Yuan Zhen, Song You, and Yu Duhe respected him enough to listen to his orders.

The reason behind that was simple. Deacons of their various divisions might be important in their own right, but instructors were the ones who taught many students of various generations in the institution. Many of those who became deacons would even address Peng Lanqing as their teacher when they saw him around.

In the absence of Martial Extermination Realm experts, Peng Lanqing’s words would be the law.

After several minutes had passed and the energy fluctuations were no longer as violent as they were, everyone could feel that the battle was no longer concentrated at the other end of the spatial tunnel. Everyone turned to stare at Peng Lanqing as if waiting for an order.

His gaze never left the spatial tunnel and after he was satisfied that the other side was safe, he roared loudly without turning his head. “Deacons, heads, and instructors of the institution, follow me into the tunnel! Everyone is to follow behind at a safe distance!”

As soon as he spoke, he rushed into the tunnel.

Yuan Zhen, Qian Sitong, Song You, Yu Duhe, and various other experts of the institution followed closely behind him. Behind them were the others in the first group.

Sun Haiwei’s voice suddenly rang in Shang Xia’s ears as they were making their way into the tunnel. “Junior Brother Shang, are you really not going to stick with us after we enter the battlefield between the two worlds?”

After thinking for a second, Shang Xia found no reason to lie to her. He replied to her sincerely, “I am thankful for Senior Sister Sun and Senior Brother Tian’s kind intentions. However, my objective is to train myself and to look for opportunities now that we are entering the battlefield between the two worlds. We won’t be able to help each other out in any aspect when we look for our opportunities and it will be better for me to move alone!”

Seeing as he had already made up his mind, Sun Haiwei and Tian Mengzi knew that there was no point in saying more. As such, they nodded to acknowledge his stance before wishing him luck.

Nodding back at them, Shang Xia unleashed his Irregular Steps and disappeared from his original position.

Tian Mengzi and Sun Haiwei looked at each other and seemed to be at a loss for words. Only after some time did Tian Mengzi break the silence. “Haiwei, how strong do you think he is right now?”

After a short moment of hesitation, Sun Haiwei muttered, “He’s using some sort of secret technique to mask his cultivation and it’s not easy to see through it. From his confidence and his objective, he has definitely completed all three divine sense transformations. He should be in the large completion stage of the Martial Intent Realm, but it’s also likely that he has already stepped into the grand completion stage.”

“So… If he’s at the large completion stage, do you think he’s planning on using this opportunity to comprehend his third martial intent and step into the grand completion stage?” Tian Mengzi sucked in a cold breath. “That’s a little too fast, isn’t it? I feel that he should have just entered the large completion stage… He might cultivate quickly, but he wouldn’t be at the stage of comprehending his martial intent! I heard that the Shang Clan Spear Art is really unique anyway. Everyone has their own comprehension and they will have to come up with their own moves. I wonder how many moves Junior Brother Shang came up with…”

“I heard that Deputy Patriarch Shang Bo developed seven moves with his comprehension before stepping into the Martial Extermination Realm. With Junior Brother Shang’s monstrous talent, he should also have developed seven moves at the very least.” Sun Haiwei tilted her head to the side and muttered to herself.

Sighing, Tian Mengzi continued, “If he already developed seven moves, wouldn’t that mean that he would be at least the same level as Deputy Patriarch Shang when he advances? Many people out there are saying that Deputy Patriarch Shang Bo is a talent comparable to Patriarch Kou. It’s said that his combat abilities have already surpassed Deputy Patriarch Ji even though they’re at the same level. Wouldn’t that mean that after our Tongyou Institution takes over the entire You Continent, the Shang Clan might possibly become the next powerhouse like the Zhu Family?!”

Sun Haiwei lowered her voice and sighed, “Deputy Patriarch Shang Bo has already given up on his position as the Shang Clan Patriarch. Strictly speaking, we cannot consider him when we think about the Shang Clan’s influence…”

Shaking his head slowly, Tian Mengzi was clearly unconvinced that Shang Bo would really give up all connection with the Shang Clan. Like the other deputy patriarchs who stepped down from their roles in their clan. If a calamity struck and threatened the survival of their clan, there was no way they would stand by idly at the side.

“Enough of that nonsense. We’re already falling behind a little. We need to get in there and help the rest out!” Sun Haiwei snapped at him suddenly after discovering that they were near the back of the group that was headed into the battlefield between the two worlds.

…

Even though Shang Xia was at the back of the group when they started moving, he managed to overtake many people with his Irregular Steps.

He didn’t forget to spread his divine sense around to scout for any trouble while looking for traces of world essence as he made his way forward.

Unfortunately, the world essence around him was too thin and there was no point in absorbing them.

Seemingly having thought of something, Shang Xia slowed down and pressed his hand on the spatial barrier and tried to communicate with the Crimson Soul Tablet in his sea of consciousness. He wanted to see if it could absorb world origin from within the barrier, but evidently, it wasn’t possible.

Since he wasn’t able to pierce through the barrier and absorb the world origin himself, the tablet was obviously unable to. The Crimson Soul Tablet had the ability to suck up world origin, but it needed Shang Xia as a medium.

After thinking about it, he slammed his palm heavily into the barrier, causing it to tremble slightly. His action attracted the attention of many experts around him.

“Hmph, you’re overestimating yourself.” Song You sneered as he passed Shang Xia.

However, there was someone else who stopped to turn to Shang Xia. “The spatial barrier around the tunnel has been reinforced by formations and the energy of the Martial Extermination Realm experts who passed by. You can’t break it unless you enter the Martial Extermination Realm. Also, the stability of this spatial tunnel will affect the success of our operation of establishing ourselves back in the battlefield between the two worlds. Please don’t try anything to jeopardize our mission.”

Turning to look at him, Shang Xia noticed that the person who gave him the explanation was a middle-aged man who seemed to be sporting a little pot-belly.

Realizing how inappropriate his actions were, Shang Xia quickly thanked the man. “Many thanks for senior’s explanations. I was too rash and didn’t consider the severity of my actions. How can I address you?”

“Hahaha, I am Mu Jiansheng of the Mu Family. I believe you should come from the Shang Clan?” The pot-bellied man chuckled in response.

It’s him!

Shang Xia gasped silently before bowing his head slightly. “As it turns out, you’re Uncle Mu! I am indeed from the Shang Clan. You can call me Shang Xia.”

The middle-aged man’s gaze lingered on Shang Xia as a look of satisfaction appeared on his face. “Not bad, not bad at all! You deserve your reputation indeed. I heard that you were promoted with my daughter and you’re both in the Upper Division now. I believe the two of you will interact more in the future.”

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

“Naturally…” Shang Xia released an awkward laugh and started to shift his gaze.

“This is going to be a dangerous battle. You should take care of yourself. Staying alive trumps everything, do not go out of your way to take any unnecessary risks.” Mu Jiansheng gave Shang Xia another piece of advice before rushing towards the battlefield between the two worlds.

Seeing that the man had left, Shang Xia slowly retracted his hand that was still on the spatial barrier. Several cracks that he was hiding earlier started to restore itself.