The boundless sea of trees swayed under the gusts of chaotic energy, rolling in great green waves.

WHOOSH...

Suddenly, a sound tore through the air. A black dot appeared in the distance, and a moment later, it grew larger, revealing a clear view of the person’s face.

The person flying at such high speed was none other than Shen Haoran, who had just left the main hall. The massive Vermilion Bird Wings on his back flapped, stirring up a scorching gale that made the sea of trees below sway in the wind.

Shen Haoran had spent the last few days practicing his flight. After countless failures, he could finally use the Vermilion Bird Wings at will. With their power, his speed had doubled, allowing him to shorten a ten-day journey to a mere two!

WHOOSH...

Shen Haoran came to an abrupt stop in mid-air. His flaming wings flapped, and he slowly descended.

Once his feet touched the ground, the Vermilion Bird Wings transformed into a streak of fire and merged back into his back. Shen Haoran surveyed his surroundings, and his gaze fell upon a towering ancient tree. Something seemed to be carved on it.

As Shen Haoran approached, he saw the shape carved into it: a black flame. It looked exactly like the Yao Sect’s Gate Badge. This had to be the mark Shui Ruolan had left for him.

"Ruolan and the others must be just ahead!" Shen Haoran chuckled, gently stroking the fiery mark. After so many days, he had finally found them.

With a soft laugh, Shen Haoran spread the Vermilion Bird Wings once more. His body transformed into a black streak of light and vanished from sight.

...

Meanwhile, in a region not far from Shen Haoran, Shui Ruolan and her group stood staring at a dark canyon ahead, their brows furrowed in concern.

This was one of the most famous—and most dangerous—places in the Sect Secret Realm: the Dark Canyon. The inside was pitch-black. Any source of light was rendered useless within its depths. Furthermore, countless Primordial Beasts, including many High Level ones, lurked in the Dark Canyon. Those who entered faced almost certain death. In that pitch-black domain, the only thing you could rely on was your own intuition.

The members of the Yao Sect stared at the Dark Canyon with grave expressions, not daring to take a single step forward.

"What’s wrong? Aren’t you the scouts? What are you doing standing around? Shouldn’t you be up ahead scouting the path for us?" As the Yao Sect members hesitated, Xue Gong’s voice rang out from behind them.

"Easy for you to say! If you’ve got the guts, you go scout ahead. This is the Dark Canyon!" Zi Mo shot back, turning to face him.

"You’re the ones who took on the role of scouts. Besides, I haven’t taken any of your Source Pills for this entire journey, so you should at least fulfill your duty, shouldn’t you?" Xue Gong said dismissively, glancing at Zi Mo.

"You..." Zi Mo started to retort but was stopped by Shui Ruolan.

"You knew all along that this path led to the Dark Canyon, didn’t you?" Shui Ruolan asked coldly.

"So what if I did? Is there a problem?" Xue Gong sneered in response.

Seeing Xue Gong admit it, Shui Ruolan’s expression darkened. ’It seems this Xue Gong has been plotting against me all along!’

"Do you think you can get rid of us with a petty trick like this?" Shui Ruolan said coldly.

"We’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we? For now, if you scouts would please go and find a path for us." Xue Gong’s eyes narrowed, a cruel glint flashing within them. He was eager to see what abilities these people from the Yao Sect had that would let them pass through the Dark Canyon.

Seeing Xue Gong’s expression, as if he were settling in to watch a good show, the members of the Yao Sect burned with anger. Shui Ruolan shot him a cold glance and snapped, "Let’s go!"

’Hmph. If Xue Gong is so eager to see the Yao Sect make a fool of themselves, then we’ll show him. We are fearless. Not even the Dark Canyon can stop us!’

The moment Shui Ruolan finished speaking, the members of the Yao Sect stepped into the Dark Canyon without the slightest hesitation, vanishing before Xue Gong’s eyes.

"Hmph. You’re still too green to fight me," Xue Gong sneered, watching as the darkness swallowed the members of the Yao Sect.

"Brother Xue, they went in. What should we do?" a disciple asked. To reach the ruins, this path required passing through the Dark Canyon. But the canyon was fraught with danger, and they didn’t have the same courage as the Yao Sect members to charge straight in.

"We’ll take a detour. I know a smaller path that should also lead to the ruins," Xue Gong said nonchalantly. With a final glance at the Dark Canyon, he led the remaining disciples around it and continued onward.

Upon stepping into the Dark Canyon, the members of the Yao Sect felt as if their eyes had been covered with a black cloth. They couldn’t see a thing; even their Spiritual Thought was sealed within their bodies.

FWOOSH...

Suddenly, with two soft whooshes, a purple flame and a white flame flared to life, dispelling some of the surrounding darkness and allowing everyone to see their companions.

These two flames were, of course, Long Mo’s Void Purple Flame and Long Zhen’s Netherworld White Flame. Although the energy in the Dark Canyon could suppress any normal light source, their flames were Celestial Fires. They carried the might of heaven and earth, so the canyon’s energy was naturally unable to suppress them.

Seeing the two flames, Shui Ruolan let out a long sigh of relief. She had been worrying about how they would get through the Dark Canyon. Long Mo and Long Zhen had saved the day.

"Everyone, hold hands so we don’t get separated. Be careful," Shui Ruolan instructed. She had Long Mo take the lead at the front of the group, while Long Zhen and Zi Mo brought up the rear. The group joined hands and cautiously moved forward.

There was no concept of time in the darkness, but the farther they walked, the more alarmed Shui Ruolan’s group became. The light from the Void Purple Flame and the Netherworld White Flame was growing dimmer, and the ground around them was littered with ghastly white bones. The atmosphere was incredibly oppressive.

"Brother Long, does something about this Dark Canyon feel... off to you?" Shui Ruolan asked softly, her brow furrowed.

"Yes, it’s too quiet," Long Mo said with a nod. "The Dark Canyon is supposed to be hiding countless Primordial Beasts, but we’ve been walking for so long without a single one appearing."

"Could something have happened inside the Secret Realm?" Shui Ruolan said, a jolt of alarm in her heart.

Hearing this, the others found it hard to believe. If that were true, what kind of incident could have made every single Primordial Beast in the Dark Canyon disappear?

"We can’t worry about that now. Let’s just focus on getting out of here first," Long Mo said grimly. "I have a bad feeling about this." He’d felt it ever since entering the Dark Canyon, and the feeling was only growing stronger.

"Right," the others agreed, quickening their pace.

After some time, the group finally burst out of the Dark Canyon. When the blinding sunlight hit their faces, they all instinctively squeezed their eyes shut. Once they had adjusted, they opened their eyes again. But when they saw the scene before them, they couldn’t help but gasp in shock.

"What... what in the world is going on?" Shui Ruolan murmured, staring at the sight before her.