Chapter 997: The Clan That Vanished Suddenly

"Why do you want to know that?" The second disciple, Qing He, was slightly surprised when she heard that Li Xiaofei wanted the exact coordinates of the human mother and daughter. "That pair of human women is the most critical part of my experiment."

Li Xiaofei replied, "I want to observe them up close. If any changes occur, I might be able to draw inspiration from it."

"I see." After hearing that, Qing He hesitated briefly. In the end, she actually nodded and agreed, sharing the detailed coordinates of Si Kongxue and her daughter with Li Xiaofei.

These coordinates... could it be the ancestral land of that perfected evolutionary race?

Li Xiaofei analyzed the coordinates carefully, surprise flashing across his face.

By now, he was no longer the ignorant newcomer he had once been. Through days of studying and exchanging insights with the disciples, his understanding of the Evolution Temple had already surpassed that of most royal elites.

"That's right. That’s the place," Qing He confirmed without reservation. "If one wishes to find the path to perfect evolution, one must go to the race that succeeded. Those two human women might be able to find the key to evolution in that location."

Li Xiaofei slapped his forehead. He should have thought of that place earlier.

"Thank you for telling me." He cupped his hands respectfully toward Qing He, then turned and left in a hurry.

Qing He watched his departing figure with a trace of anticipation on her face. This research project was her life’s work. It was no exaggeration to say that it had become the very purpose of her existence.

Yet, she made no effort to stop the new Ruò Iron Clan chief from approaching the human mother and daughter. The pair had shown no signs of the evolution she had long awaited. So Qing He hoped for a catalyst to emerge.

In her view, Tie Wushuang's arrival might just be that catalyst. She hoped that Tie Wushuang, observing from outside the perspective of a researcher, might uncover a clue hidden within the mother and daughter.

After all, evolution was, at its core, a sudden transformation of life’s essence brought about by a chain of coincidences. And one of those coincidences might very well be Tie Wushuang’s appearance.

***

Evolution Temple.

Li Xiaofei once again arrived at this uncanny and unparalleled place nestled within the Holy Ruins.

Compared to the first time he had entered, Li Xiaofei now possessed a much deeper understanding of this world. While he might know it as well as his own palm, he was certainly moving through it with practiced ease.

He had traveled countless roads and now, less than half a year later, he had reached his destination. This was the birthplace of the clan that had once achieved perfect evolution and ascended as an entire race.

𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Two great rivers whose waters flowed ceaselessly ran through the land. Each river stretched hundreds of kilometers wide, resembling vast oceans. One river ran clear, while the other ran murky.

When the two met, the divide between clarity and turbidity was sharply defined. Between them lay an island oasis spanning over nine million square kilometers. The island was lush with vegetation.

It was the very place where the legendary bloodline clan had been born, cultivated, and eventually ascended.

Li Xiaofei crossed the clear river. The moment he stepped onto the island oasis, every pore in his body tensed. He could feel an omnipresent danger lurking in the very fabric of heaven and earth.

The danger seemed to seep from every blade of grass, every leaf, every dewdrop, and even the faintest breeze. This entire realm was steeped in killing intent. However, that killing intent felt all too familiar to Li Xiaofei.

It was the condensed malice of the Oblivions. Li Xiaofei sensed that the immortal force within his body had begun to stall and falter, as if met with invisible resistance, under this oppressive shroud of danger.

He summoned the Heart of Guardianship, which manifested as a tri-colored glow swirling gently around him, and only then did he muster the focus to scan his surroundings in all directions.

There were no corpses within sight. That meant the Oblivions could not initiate an attack by animating the dead. Li Xiaofei proceeded with cautious steps. For a long time, he sensed no signs of life whatsoever. No large beasts, no birds, and no insects; there was nothing.

Three days later, he came across the ruins of a village. It was an ordinary village, with wooden houses and earthen walls, a grain yard, fields, and even an artificial irrigation canal system.

But it had clearly been abandoned for many years. Weeds grew within the houses, and though the outlines of furrows were still faintly visible in the fields, they too had been left to waste.

Li Xiaofei searched the village carefully but he found no trace of recent human activity.

Though the village is deserted, everything is preserved quite well. That suggests it wasn’t destroyed in war or by an Oblivion attack.

It’s as if the villagers suddenly left... suddenly vanished.

Could it be that they ascended?

Disappointed, Li Xiaofei departed.

The birthplace of the perfect bloodline King-ranked clan was vast. But due to the pervasive killing intent saturating the land, his immortal energy remained suppressed, making it impossible to use any flight techniques. He was forced to travel on foot.

This place is soaked in Oblivion force...

Chills ran down Li Xiaofei’s spine.

It was as if the Oblivions, enraged by the clan’s ascension and escape, had unleashed all their fury onto this very land.

“This place is far too dangerous. Under normal circumstances, not even level seven or eight cultivators could survive here, let alone Si Kongxue and her daughter. But if the disciples still chose to send them here, it must mean they are not in immediate mortal danger. No matter what, I have to find them quickly,” muttered Li Xiaofei.

Li Xiaofei hastened his search. He ate nothing, drank nothing, and pressed forward day and night without a moment’s rest. After passing through more than a dozen abandoned villages, he finally arrived at a large ancient city. Like the villages, the city was completely devoid of people.

However, some ancient formations still operated within and around the city, maintaining clean streets and functioning water systems. Thus, the city had not fallen entirely into ruin.

Li Xiaofei saw the small street stalls still set up along the roadside, the neatly arranged goods inside the shops, and the shop doors—some open, some closed.

Just like the villages he had encountered earlier, the ancient city gave him the exact same feeling. It was as if the people had vanished in an instant.

Ascension? What does ascension truly mean?

Li Xiaofei grew even more curious.

After one ascended, was it a liberation? A journey to a higher-dimensional plane? Or was it a departure to some unknown region in the universe, where a new race might propagate and an evolved civilization might take root?

He closely examined the dwellings, tools, and other artifacts throughout the city, and eventually arrived at a conclusion. The ancient Reaper King-ranked clan, blessed with the perfect bloodline, had possessed a highly humanized lifestyle. Their homes, eating utensils, carriages, roads—nearly everything mirrored human design.

If that’s the case, then the Ancestor of Wisdom’s push for the Reaper race to adopt human culture wasn’t baseless. He was following in the footsteps of this perfectly evolved race, trying to walk the same path they once did,

Li Xiaofei fell into deep thought.

The only regret was that he hadn’t found a single written record in the ancient city. There were no inscriptions nor any documentation of their civilization. He didn’t linger long in the city. Instead, he pressed onward.

Roughly a month later, Li Xiaofei finally encountered a living being in this realm.