After Xia Xin Yu, Dian Wei, and the other two left the ancient Immortal Dynasty's imperial capital ruins, they continued to walk through the desolate land for several days before entering a primeval forest.
Upon entering the primeval forest, the ground was covered by layers of leaves several feet thick. Especially those close to the ground, which had begun to rot over the years, filling the air with a pungent odor.
"What is this?"
About half an hour after entering the primeval forest, Xia Xin Yu's expression suddenly turned solemn. She squatted down, placed her palm on the thick leaves, and sensed the divine power fluctuations in the area.
"There's the aura of the Azure Dragon clan! Very weak, very faint!"
After a long while, Xia Xin Yu stood up.
"The Azure Dragon clan? This place must have been where a powerful Azure Dragon creature perished. But we haven't seen any signs of battle along the way, which is strange!" Dian Wei scanned the surroundings and said.
"Roar!!"
Suddenly, from deep within the primeval forest, earth-shattering roars erupted. Countless powerful auras, all above the Supreme realm, followed by layers of spiritual energy storms, surged forth, carrying a rich ancient aura. The ancient trees began to sway, emitting divine light. Ancient birds soared into the sky. The once silent primeval forest instantly transformed into a land where primal creatures attacked.
"Get out of the way!"
Long Ju roared and directly pushed Yang You Ji aside. A beam of divine light struck where Yang You Ji had been standing. With a boom, the void shattered by three zhang. The residual divine power sent a tremor through Dian Wei and the other two.
Such terrifying power!
"Be careful, everyone. This place might be home to some extraordinary creature. This beam of divine light contains Azure Dragon divine power. If it hits us, even if we don't die, we'll be seriously injured!"
Xia Xin Yu gently pointed her finger, and a feather emanating colorful divine light fell into the shattered void. With a hum, the feather instantly turned to ash.
"Supreme Profound Venerable!"
Xia Xin Yu's fingers trembled slightly: "A living Supreme Profound Venerable!"
This was not good news. The highest cultivation level of any being from the outside world entering this sealed land was only at the peak Supreme realm. A Supreme Profound Venerable creature from ancient times would be an absolute master here.
"Everyone be cautious. I suspect we are approaching the core area. The aura here is something that none of us four can withstand," Xia Xin Yu said.
"Can you tell what this place is? With countless ancient birds dwelling here, the aura of the Azure Dragon clan, and that terrifying Supreme Profound Venerable," Yang You Ji crouched down and scooped up a handful of rotten leaves.
The existence of a Supreme Profound Venerable creature indicated how terrifying this primeval forest was. Even beings at the Great Heavenly Venerable realm entering this place would surely die. The Supreme Profound Venerable here was extraordinary, with a faint Azure Dragon aura within its divine power.
"I have a few ideas, but this place has undergone severe friction during its sealing, and its original appearance is distorted. It's hard to identify with just a few auras. We'll need to go further inside before I can confirm," Xia Xin Yu said with a solemn expression.
"Then let's go deeper. We've only just arrived, and we're still far from the core. If we stop here, what's the point of coming to Undead City?"
Dian Wei glanced towards the depths of the primeval forest.
Xia Xin Yu smiled slightly and led the group further inside. She didn't mind; she still had many trump cards. Her purpose in entering this sealed land was to find information about entering the Immortal Realm from the Immortal Lord's activities.
"Wait!"
An hour later, Xia Xin Yu stopped and held a flowing divine light in the void, closing her eyes.
"It's the Azure Dragon Palace from ancient times. This is the remnant of the Azure Dragon Palace. It seems we're in trouble. In ancient times, a bloody battle occurred in the Azure Dragon Palace, and the Azure Dragon Palace was destroyed by the Void Demon Clan. Many Azure Dragons died, and many were injured."
Xia Xin Yu looked around and pointed south: "Further in should be the ruins of the ancient Azure Dragon Palace. Many powerful beings perished there, and there are even remnants of the will of a Creation Profound Venerable giant."
"Three generals, fortune and misfortune are intertwined. This place is extremely dangerous, arguably one of the most perilous locations in this sealed land. However, precious resources, and even complete Azure Dragon skeletons, might be found here. Venturing in despite the risks could lead to immense rewards."
"Since we're here, why wouldn't we go in? If this news gets back to Chang'an, won't we be laughed to death?" Long Ju's eyes blazed with spear light.
Without further ado, the group directly entered the core of the Azure Dragon Palace ruins. Upon entering, it felt as if they had crossed through eons. The primeval forest disappeared, and the ancient birds attacking in the void vanished. What appeared before their eyes were countless massive pits.
Some occupied an area of a hundred li, while the smallest were still tens of li across. Standing at the edge of a pit and looking down, they were bottomless. Some still contained the wills of powerful beings, with storms of spiritual energy and divine power erupting from the abysses.
The group, upon entering this area, instantly turned pale. Innumerable powerful divine force auras forcibly suppressed the four of them. Dian Wei and the other three were immediately forced to their knees, and it took a long time before they could catch their breath.
"So powerful, difficult to resist. Those residual wills from earlier felt like they were going to explode inside my body."
Dian Wei touched his chest, his face pale, cold sweat beading on his forehead. In that moment, they felt utterly powerless, instantly suppressed with no ability to resist.
Xia Xin Yu nodded and said, "It's the residual will of Supreme Profound Venerables, but it's already very thin. If the four of us had entered this place tens of millions of years earlier, we would have surely died!"
"Let's go further!"
The four crossed the outer edges of the ruins and ventured deeper. As they walked, they saw no palace ruins, only vast, pitted abysses everywhere.
Half an hour later, they reached the edges of countless deep pits. Many creatures were gathered there, cultivating. The four approached and investigated. Within these countless pits, the residual wills and divine power were relatively dense, making them twice as effective for tempering oneself.
However, this was only of great benefit to beings below the Supreme realm. The four searched without success and continued deeper. In the blink of an eye, a day passed, and a massive plaza appeared before them.
The plaza was vast and seemingly endless. In the center stood a colossal stone monument, about three hundred zhang tall. Around the plaza, countless creatures were searching the area.
"We've arrived. This is the Dragon Gate Plaza of the ancient Azure Dragon Palace. After crossing this plaza, we'll reach the Azure Dragon Palace's main halls," Xia Xin Yu said, recognizing the familiar stone monument.
This was once where the Azure Dragon clan held their once-in-a-hundred-thousand-year Azure Dragon Grand Assembly, where the high-ranking members of the Azure Dragon clan would appear and lecture on cultivation methods for three thousand years without interruption.