After Xia Xin Yu, Dian Wei, and the other two left the ruins of the Ancient Immortal Dynasty's imperial capital, they traveled through the desolate land for several days before entering a primeval forest.
Upon entering, they found the ground covered in a thick layer of fallen leaves, some of which had been decaying for years, filling the air with a pungent odor.
"What is this?"
About half an hour into the primeval forest, Xia Xin Yu's expression turned grave. She crouched down, placing her palm on the thick leaves to sense the divine power fluctuations in the area.
"There's a trace of the Azure Dragon clan! Very weak, very faint!"
After a long moment, Xia Xin Yu stood up.
"The Azure Dragon clan? I suppose a powerful Azure Dragon creature must have perished here. But we haven't seen any signs of battle along the way. That's odd!" Dian Wei scanned their surroundings.
"Roar!!"
Suddenly, a thunderous roar erupted from the depths of the primeval forest. Countless powerful auras, all above the Supremacy realm, followed by waves of celestial energy storms, carrying a profound ancient aura. The ancient trees swayed, emitting divine light, and ancient birds soared into the sky. The once silent forest was instantly transformed into a battleground for primeval beings.
"Get out of the way!"
Long Ju roared, shoving Yang You Ji aside. A beam of divine light struck the spot where Yang You Ji had been, shattering the void for thirty feet. The residual divine power sent a tremor through Dian Wei and the other two.
What terrifying power!
"All of you be careful. There might be some unfathomable being here. This beam of divine light contains Azure Dragon divine power. If it hit any of us, even if we survived, we'd be gravely injured!"
Xia Xin Yu gently flicked her finger, and a feather radiating multicolored 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 level of external beings entering this sealed land was only Top-tier Supremacy. A creature of the Ancient Supreme Profound Venerable realm here would be an absolute ruler.
"All of you, be cautious. I suspect we are approaching the core area. The aura here is beyond what any of us four can withstand," Xia Xin Yu warned.
"Can you tell what kind of place this is? With countless ancient birds, the aura of the Azure Dragon clan, and that terrifying Supreme Profound Venerable," Yang You Ji said, bending down to pick up a handful of decaying leaves.
The presence of a Supreme Profound Venerable creature indicated the terrifying nature of this primeval forest. Even a Great Heavenly Venerate would perish here. The Supreme Profound Venerable here was no ordinary being, its divine power carrying a faint Azure Dragon aura.
"I have a few ideas, but this place suffered severe friction during its sealing, leaving it unrecognizable. It's difficult to pinpoint based on a few auras alone. We'll need to venture further in before I can be sure," Xia Xin Yu stated with a grave 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 Undying City?" Dian Wei glanced towards the depths of the primeval forest.
Xia Xin Yu smiled slightly and led the group further in. She herself was unconcerned; she still had plenty of trump cards. Her reason for 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, her hand catching a flowing beam of divine light in the void. She closed her eyes.
"It's the Azure Dragon Palace from the ancient era. This is the remnant of the Azure Dragon Palace. It seems we're in for some trouble. In ancient times, a bloody battle occurred at the Azure Dragon Palace, which was annihilated by the Void Demon clan. The Azure Dragon clan suffered heavy casualties."
Xia Xin Yu surveyed the surroundings 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 Venerate giant."
"Three generals, fortune and misfortune are intertwined. This place is extremely dangerous, arguably one of the most perilous spots in this sealed land. However, precious resources, and even complete Azure Dragon skeletal remains 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 word of this reached Chang'an, wouldn't they laugh us to scorn?" Long Ju's eyes blazed with spear light.
Without further ado, the group entered the core of the Azure Dragon Palace ruins. Upon entering, it felt as if they had traversed eons. The primeval forest vanished, the ancient birds fighting in the void disappeared, and before them lay a landscape of colossal craters.
Some spanned a hundred miles, while the smallest were tens of miles across. Approaching the edge of a crater and looking down, they found it bottomless. Some still contained the will of powerful beings, and storms of celestial energy and divine power erupted from the abysses.
The individuals who entered the area instantly turned pale. Countless powerful divine energy auras forcibly suppressed the four, causing Dian Wei and the others to fall to one knee. It took them a while to catch their breath.
"So powerful, unbearable. Those residual wills just now felt like they were about to explode within my body."
Dian Wei clutched his chest, his face ashen, sweat beading on his forehead. In that moment, they felt utterly powerless, instantly suppressed with no ability to resist.
Xia Xin Yu nodded. "It's the residual will of Supreme Profound Venerates. However, it's already quite diluted. If any of us four had entered this place tens of millions of years ago, we would have certainly perished!"
"Let's go further!"
The four crossed the outer perimeter of the ruins and ventured deeper. As they walked, they saw no palace ruins, only vast, uneven craters.
Half an hour later, they reached the edge of countless craters. Many beings were gathered there, cultivating. Upon closer inspection, the residual will and divine power within these craters were relatively concentrated, making them effective for self-improvement.
However, their benefits were mainly for beings below the Supremacy realm. The four searched without success and continued deeper. In the blink of an eye, a day passed, and a vast plaza appeared before them.
The plaza was immense, its end unseen. In the very center stood a colossal stone tablet, about three hundred zhang tall. Around the plaza, numerous beings were searching the area.
"We've arrived. This is the Dragon Gate Plaza of the Ancient Azure Dragon Palace. Beyond this plaza lies the Azure Dragon Palace's main chambers," Xia Xin Yu said, recognizing the familiar stone tablet.
This was once the location of the Azure Dragon clan's ten-thousand-year Azure Dragon Grand Assembly, where the high-ranking members of the clan would appear to lecture on cultivation methods for three thousand years without interruption.