Within another ancient formation.

Yang Mu, Yang Xue, Yang Qi, Li Feng'er, and the rest of the Yang family martial artists all took their positions inside the old array. This formation was very similar to the one Shi Yan had encountered, only the energy crystals filling the area around it seemed to possess subtle differences.

At this moment, the energy crystals surrounding the ancient formation were continuously releasing dazzling brilliance.

One by one, the Yang family martial artists entering this ancient array vanished amidst the blinding light.

Yang Mu and his group had proceeded through this formation following Jiang Huquan’s instructions. None of the Yang family members who used the correct footwork suffered any assault from the extraterrestrial meteorites.

According to Jiang Huquan, this very place was the exit from the Moshizhen (Strange Stone Array).

Therefore, upon arriving here, every single Yang family member, under Jiang Huquan’s direction, stepped without hesitation into the center of the ancient array, being continuously teleported away.

Soon, all the Yang family martial artists disappeared from the center of the Meteorite Array via this ancient formation. Everyone assumed Shi Yan had entered ahead of them. Because visibility and sensory connection were impossible within the Meteorite Array, and given the instantaneous relocation upon stepping inside, nobody was certain about the condition of those around them.

However, thanks to Jiang Huquan’s prior instructions, they hesitated little; as soon as they spotted the ancient array, they stepped into it. Thus, Yang Mu and the others became separated from Shi Yan within the Meteorite Array.

Outside the Meteorite Array.

Cao Zhilan sat with her two slender, beautiful legs crossed, a strange light flickering in her delicate brows. Under the command of her mind, her Spiritual God Martial Soul began to deconstruct the changes occurring within the Meteorite Array, grasping the profound mysteries governing its operations.

Pan Zhe and his entourage remained outside the Meteorite Array, unwilling to rashly enter.

Cao Zhilan sensed with her Spiritual God Martial Soul for a long time, then suddenly smiled and rose gracefully. “The Dual Extremity Meteorite Array can be traversed from the left side or the right side. As long as the footwork is correct, one will not be struck by the meteorites. If going left, take seven steps to the left, then five steps to the right; or vice versa. Alternatively, one can lead with seven steps to the right, followed by five steps left, and still exit the Meteorite Array successfully.”

“But which way should we go—left or right?” Gu Linglong frowned impatiently.

“There should be two exits within this Meteorite Array, leading to two different areas. Our objective is the Yang family members, so we should first determine the direction they left, and then pursue them,” Cao Zhilan stated calmly.

“How do we determine the direction the Yang family left?” Xie Kui asked, his face grim, murderous intent blazing in his eyes. “Yang Mu is extremely difficult to deal with. If he survives this, he will certainly use all means to retaliate against us later. Since we’ve moved against the Yang family, we cannot give them a chance to linger. We must eradicate the roots!”

“When I fought Shi Yan, I sensed an extremely intense Fire Flame power on him. Just now, my Spiritual God Martial Soul sensed a very strong flame fluctuation in the direction of the right side,” Cao Zhilan smiled. “I presume Shi Yan is over there on the right. Yang Mu would not separate from Shi Yan, so if Shi Yan is there, Yang Mu and the others must be there too.”

“Very well, we’ll proceed to the right,” Pan Zhe nodded, instructing the martial artists from Penglai Holy Land behind him: “Everyone remember Miss Cao’s words. Once you enter the Meteorite Array, first take seven steps to the right, then five steps to the left, alternating as you advance. Do not make any mistakes.”

“Alright, I will lead the way,” Cao Zhilan stepped forward decisively, entering with unhurried composure.

In the vast, scorching desert.

A figure lay on its back, limbs flung upwards, breathing slowly, utterly exhausted. The various powers within his body were slowly stabilizing, and wisps of lingering negative emotions were secretly seeping out of his acupoints as the purification process continued.

The desert was fiercely hot, yet there was no sun. The sky was a deep crimson, like fresh blood.

As far as the eye could see, there were sand dunes of varying heights, devoid of any sign of life, not a single patch of green—utter silence prevailed.

A cluster of scarlet flames escaped from a ring, flickering gracefully in the searing desert heat, dancing delicately as if sensing something covertly.

“This place makes me very uncomfortable.”

A mental message came from the Profound Ice Cold Flame within the Blood-Patterned Ring. “This strange space has an intensely scorching aura. This aura feels like it originates from the sun, yet the sun is nowhere to be seen here. I don't know what’s going on…”

“This is a certain region within the Abyss Battlefield. Yes, it is indeed somewhat abnormal. The Earth Core Fire seems to adore this place; it has become very joyful since arriving here,” Shi Yan replied mentally.

He had been teleported by the ancient array and dropped directly into this immense desert. He landed here alone; there was no other ancient array beside him.

Severely injured as he was, he lacked the energy to explore the mysteries of this place and simply lay motionless, silently recovering.

“Indeed, there is no visible sun, yet there is an intense Solar Flame energy present. It is quite bizarre,” the Profound Ice Cold Flame mused for a moment, then suddenly stated: “This location is highly beneficial for your Extreme Refinement cultivation. You can borrow the strange flame energy here to continue the arduous training of Extreme Refinement with the Earth Core Fire. This will make your body even stronger.”

“I’ll recover to my peak first,” Shi Yan replied noncommittally, giving a wry smile as he looked toward the sky. He ceased communicating with the Profound Ice Cold Flame and began slowly regulating his breathing to recover.

Ten Yuan Returning Pills went down. He did not require dense Heavenly and Earth Spiritual Qi; merely digesting the energy from the pills and merging it with his essence allowed him to gradually strengthen his essence, rapidly replenishing what had been expended.

Yuan Returning Pills were spiritual medicines for essence restoration. In the Boundless Sea, they were quite precious, affordable only by martial artists from major powers; solitary cultivators rarely possessed enough materials to refine them.

The medicinal effect of ten Yuan Returning Pills was sufficient for a high-tier martial artist to quickly restore lost essence. For Shi Yan, who was only at the peak of the Hundred Calamity realm, the potency of these ten pills was far more than enough.

As essence gathered quietly, Shi Yan opened his mind and began to perceive the anomalies within his physical body.

His bodily damage was healing rapidly under the influence of his Undying Martial Soul. The bones damaged by meteorite impacts were slowly becoming tougher, and several burst blood vessels reconnected in this short time…

Injuries that would require ordinary people several days to recover from were healed by him in just a few minutes.

In his acupoints, vortexes spun rapidly. Under the purification of the mysterious Martial Soul, the vital energy within the points was refined into strange power that could be absorbed directly.

However, the resulting surges of negative emotion were also quietly flowing toward Shi Yan’s Sea of Consciousness, attempting to drag him into a dark abyss.

This time, the pursuers who died in the palace numbered around ten.

The life essence of ten high-tier martial artists, after being purified by his acupoints, produced enough negative emotion to potentially make him lose his sanity.

After silently sensing for a while and realizing it was becoming difficult to maintain his lucidity, Shi Yan pondered and decided to sink into the sand dune.

He could be here, but perhaps the pursuers could find him too. If he were discovered by Cao Zhilan and the others while he was in the critical stage of purifying his power, his death would be utterly unjust.

Through this period of regulation and recovery, his body had regained some strength. He deployed the Finger Gun Art, his ten fingers like blades, burrowing into the sand like a pangolin, sinking deep into the dune.

The Earth Core Fire, which had been jumping outside, seemed to perceive Shi Yan’s intention. It stopped running wildly and drilled back into the Blood-Patterned Ring just before Shi Yan’s body vanished beneath the sand and stones.

Holding his breath, Shi Yan sank nearly ten meters into the dune. When the sand and stones covered his body, restricting his movement, he stopped.

Not long after, at the critical moment of acupoint purification, he finally succumbed to the invasion of negative clarity and began to lose his reason.

About ten meters beneath the dune, Shi Yan’s struggles were suppressed by the sand and stone, and his roars could barely escape.

The restraint of the sand and stone formed a natural shackle, temporarily imprisoning him.

The irrational Shi Yan merely struggled continuously, unaware of how to use the path he dug with the Finger Gun Art, merely exerting futile effort beneath the dune.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Shi Yan’s struggles gradually weakened, and his roars ceased. Strands of strange energy finally fed back from his acupoints, flowing through his entire body, permeating every sinew and bone.

The dazed Shi Yan did not notice the change in his body; his consciousness was blurred, allowing the strange energies to flow throughout him, diffusing into every meridian and bone.

Time flowed silently by.

After an unknown period, Shi Yan suddenly awoke and immediately realized that his previously exhausted body was once again brimming with vitality.

Inspecting his body with his mind’s eye, he instantly discovered that both his essence and physical form had returned to their peak state—better than ever before.

“Hmm?”

The ball of essence in his lower abdomen was continuously condensing and shrinking. Without guidance, the essence ball inside his body was rapidly refining itself.

Amidst the changes in the essence ball, all the meridians in his body seemed like sponges, seemingly sucking in the refined essence brilliance that flowed out from the ball, which had been condensed several times over.

Shi Yan’s spiritual sense swept over his entire body, inside and out, and a spark of inspiration flashed in his mind.

The next moment, a hint of excited smile played on his lips. He released his spiritual connection and, following the changes within his body, began guiding the essence ball, allowing the immensely condensed essence power within it to permeate every single meridian in his body.

Nourished by this brilliant essence, his meridians became crystal clear, resembling slender pieces of jade, incredibly miraculous.

Simultaneously with the change in the meridians, every time more essence power was injected, the meridians quietly expanded.

Meridian expansion meant that essence could flow faster within the body, allowing it to bear more essence, and even significantly enhancing the strength of his physical body.

Meridian transformation was the most direct sign of breaking through from the Hundred Calamity realm to the high-tier realm.

PS: Uh, the plot is a bit stuck, so this is only a double update today, sigh.