What little remained was caught by the dense bamboo forest.

A few gusts still broke through, but the master’s wife and the others were pressed tightly against the mountainside. The shelter they had built collapsed, but at least they weren’t seriously hurt...

Instead, they were worried about the three who had gone to Old Ox Back.

Seeing the three of them come down now, they all let out a long sigh of relief.

"Brother Qin, just now, we thought we heard a sound..."

Xiao Jiu looked at Qin Fang, his eyes filled with shock.

Qin Fang and the others let out a breath and then nodded.

"If I’m not mistaken... a master from Great Yu has made a move. This gale... it must be the aftershock of his attack."

Hearing this, Monkey and the others all gasped, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets!

’This gale, as devastating as a natural disaster, was actually the aftershock of a single... person’s attack?!’

’Just how powerful would that person have to be?!’

’...No, wait!’

’That...’

’...is that even human anymore?!’

They had already begun their Martial Cultivation, and because of this, they felt the terror even more acutely!

Their strength had increased considerably. Monkey and Xiao Qi could even lift boulders weighing hundreds of pounds.

But just moments ago, as they hid in terror from the gale, they had seen countless massive rocks swept high into the air by the wind as if they were nothing but dust!

’When you compared the two... the difference was simply heaven and earth!’

’...Can a person really become that powerful?’

Qin Fang stated his assessment in a low voice. He believed the lightning had been caused by the Mysterious Power, and the scream that followed had come from an evolved monster.

And now, with the terrifying Great Power named Yue Zhenyuan taking action, the Mysterious Power was likely... completely annihilated!

"But we can’t be sure. We’ll have to wait and see for a few more days..."

Qin Fang’s heart pounded in his chest as he finally spoke.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

They subconsciously looked up at the sky...

The wind had stopped, but the sky had turned completely black. The swirling dust blotted out everything, obscuring even the stars.

Still in shock, the group began to clean up the camp.

Fortunately, the bamboo grove was there. Although the camp had collapsed, it was made entirely of bamboo and was quite resilient. Since the master and his two disciples were all Anjin experts, they managed to put it back up, albeit haphazardly, after a bit of work.

The only problem was that the bedding and everything inside was soaked... Sleeping was out of the question, so they had to go back outside to find more firewood...

Stepping outside, the scene was still utterly shocking.

Except for a small area at the foot of the mountain, every other place had been ’plowed’ over by the wind. Not a blade of grass remained. Even the soil was gone, leaving only the solid bedrock beneath.

However, there was still plenty left on the leeward side of the mountain. They gathered some firewood there before returning to camp to light a bonfire for warmth.

Then, a thick layer of dust began to fall, filling the air with the rich, metallic scent of earth. After just a short while of breathing, the inside of their nostrils turned black...

This dust storm was harmful to the body, so Qin Fang had everyone use breathable silk cloth to make face coverings...

Because as things stood, there was no telling how long the dust would continue to fall.

That night, sleeping in the crooked shelter, Qin Fang tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

It felt as if countless insects were crawling over his heart...

His mind kept replaying the earth-shattering thunder and the giant hand that blotted out the sky...

’...How could a person become that powerful?’

He couldn’t comprehend it.

Qin Fang, who had already reached the Mid-Anjin Stage and was on the verge of the Late Stage, stared blankly at his own hands, feeling the explosive Strength within them.

’I used to think my current Strength was pretty impressive.’

But now... compared to a being whose casual slap could produce aftershocks like a natural disaster...

what did his meager Strength amount to?

’...A mayfly? An ant?’

He tossed and turned all night, unable to find sleep.

The next day, dawn broke, allowing them to see the sky clearly...

It was a sheet of gray. Countless dust particles hung in the air, obscuring even the sunlight.

No snow fell.

Wearing their face coverings, the group began to further repair the camp.

Qin Fang was worried the gale might have affected the Giant Bees, so he went to Old Ox Back to check on them.

After taking a look, he let out a long sigh of relief...

Perhaps it was just good luck. The wind had come from the side, not directly at the small hole in the cliff face, so last night’s gale hadn’t had much effect on the Giant Bees inside the cave.

Then he subconsciously glanced toward True Martial County Town. The dust clouds billowing from that direction were still thick; it would probably take two or three days for them to disperse.

With that thought, Qin Fang didn’t try to lure any bees and headed straight back down the mountain.

「In the blink of an eye, three days passed.」

For these three days, a swirling haze of dust constantly drifted down from the sky, covering the ground in a thin layer of soil.

After three days, standing on Old Ox Back and looking toward True Martial, the dust storm was no longer visible.

Qin Fang and his senior brother immediately said they wanted to go take a look, and this time, their master went with them.

They crossed mountains and ridges, making their way toward True Martial County Town.

After crossing just two mountains, the three of them were completely stunned by the scene before them...

The third mountain was gone. In its place was a boundless marshland!

And the shape of this marshland... looked exactly like five fingers!

More than half of the third mountain was missing, as if a huge chunk of it had been pressed down like a block of tofu, leaving behind the shape of fingers.

On the ground were five distinct finger-shaped depressions, each stretching for dozens of kilometers. A massive amount of water from the Chujiang River had surged into them, filling them to the brim with murky river water.

In the distance, the Chujiang River itself had nearly run dry, its water level having dropped dramatically...

This sight, which had practically reshaped the heavens and the earth, left the three of them standing frozen in place for a long, long time...