On the wilderness, in the Ruined City, at the heart of the city, a shadow, both like a living being and a stone sculpture, stood atop a stone pedestal in the center of the pool. The pool was devoid of water; instead, it had a large opening inside. The middle-aged man, Lao Tian, stood beneath it, looking up. A mysterious light from an unknown source cast a faint glow over them. They were waiting for Yi Tian to come down, while also hoping to find a way to break free from the Ruined City's shackles.

They had been here for so long that they'd forgotten when they began keeping watch here or why they were doing so. They just swept the entire Ruined City day after day, maintaining it in a pristinely clean state. They'd forgotten why they did this, but they knew they were waiting for someone to return. Whether that person would ever return, they did not know.

For Lao Tian and the others, it all felt like a dream, an unreal dream from which they didn't know when they would awaken. However, the appearance of Yi Tian brought them out of the endless dream, and they finally confirmed that what they faced wasn't a dream but reality. So they chose to try, to attempt to find a way to lift the shackles.

Lao Tian and the others looked up, through the opening above, at the night sky outside, where a purple moon hung silently. Their gaze was filled with hope. After so many years, it was their first time experiencing a desire to leave, and also the first time they held such hope. In the past, those who accidentally trespassed did not last more than three days before completely collapsing, leaving behind only cold corpses for Lao Tian and the others. Yi Tian was somewhat different from the others; at least he wasn't dead.

Outside, Yi Tian felt the overwhelming pressure from the outside world—a force capable of obliterating him with a mere gesture. As he felt this pressure, Yi Tian's heart trembled slightly. He naturally compared the pressure he felt with the sensation given to him by the elder of the Virtual Realm. Although the force exerted this pressure wasn't as formidable as the elder, it was more than enough to deal with the current Yi Tian.

Yi Tian hesitated, unsure if he should go inside. But if he didn't, he would remain trapped in the Ruined City. Of course, if he kept diligently cultivating, he might eventually find a way out, but that would take a very long time. Yi Tian didn't have that much time to waste here.

After an internal struggle, Yi Tian finally stepped forward slowly toward the dry pool. Each step was heavy, each step giving Yi Tian a sense of collapse. With every step closer to the pool, the indistinct powerful pressure became a bit more pronounced. It was the aura emitted by a clear superior in terms of power, though the aura wasn't very apparent. Resisting the temptation to turn back and leave, Yi Tian gritted his teeth and walked to the edge of the pool, then leaped into the opening.

As soon as he jumped above the pool, a massive suction force from the opening pulled Yi Tian in. Even though Yi Tian had been prepared, he could not resist this powerful suction and could only watch as his body rapidly fell into the opening.

Inside the opening stood Lao Tian and the others. When they saw Yi Tian's figure, a clear hint of joy flashed in their eyes.

The force exerted by the opening completely surpassed Yi Tian's imagination; he felt as if his whole body was about to be stretched. That discomfort lasted only a moment before he landed hard on the ground with a loud thud, in a rather disheveled manner. Just as he was feeling a bit dizzy, Lao Tian had already helped him up.

"What are you doing?" Lao Tian, seemingly amused and unaware of what had happened to Yi Tian, asked with a chuckle. He thought Yi Tian was being humorous.

"Did you not feel it?" Yi Tian asked Lao Tian and the others with some surprise. Outside the pool, it was still manageable, but after entering, the inexplicable pressure became more evident, not as indistinct as before. Feeling this pressure, Yi Tian constantly felt like he was carrying a mountain on his back.

"Feel what?" Lao Tian was bewildered. Everything was normal here, except for the walls on both sides of the passage being covered with unknown glowing objects, there was nothing peculiar.

When Lao Tian said this, Yi Tian realized they couldn't feel the pressure, or rather, because they were originally from the Ruined City, the pressure wasn't targeted at them. However, Yi Tian, as an outsider, was slightly different. Having figured out the crux of the matter, Yi Tian shook his head and said, "Nothing, it's my illusion."

Only then did Yi Tian have the time to observe his surroundings.

This was a straight passage ahead, and the ground was not a muddy wall but a layer of pitch-black, ink-like liquid that constantly flowed, adorned with small silver-white light spots, resembling a starry night sky. Yi Tian's first reaction upon seeing it was Virtual Realm because these strange things only appeared in the Virtual Realm. However, he immediately rejected this idea. The Virtual Realm is a small world both connected and completely separated from the outside world. Although there are passages to the real world, there won't be substantial passages like this one. Yet, the passage before him was clearly real.

The walls on both sides of the passage weren't particularly distinctive, filled with unknown luminous stones. Simple to the extreme patterns were carved along these stones, and they shimmered with a faint white light. If you looked closely, you would find that the light within the patterns flowed like water.

The floor of the passage was paved with ordinary bluestone slabs, emitting a faint chill. A thin mist swirled around Yi Tian and the others' feet, neither dispersing nor rising. If you moved your feet lightly, the mist would billow like a surging sea of clouds.

Taking a gentle breath, Yi Tian slightly calmed his uneasy heart. This place gave him a strange feeling; although everything seemed so peaceful, Yi Tian just felt an indescribable eeriness.

"Maybe I'm overthinking it," Yi Tian mumbled softly to himself, then asked, "Where to next? Just go straight in?" There was only one passage here, and it seemed to stretch endlessly into the unknown.

"Just head inside." Lao Tian spoke again. Among the four, it was clear Lao Tian was the leader.

"Who knows what strange things we might encounter," Yi Tian remained highly cautious of inexplicable places like this, always feeling there would be hidden monsters inside. It was like the setup by the elder of the Virtual Realm, seemingly serene and peaceful but in reality, fraught with dangers.

"I don't know about strange things, but there will definitely be some surprises for you," Young Luo exhaled a puff of smoke, which hadn't even dissipated in front of him before being absorbed by the mist on the ground, leaving no trace of smoke in the air.

Seeing his smoke not linger in front, Young Luo couldn't help but chuckle, saying, "It's a good place for smoking." The others paid no attention to Young Luo's monologue.

The five of them slowly proceeded along the passage. They didn't walk fast, or rather, they dared not walk fast because Yi Tian's earlier words made Lao Tian and the others tense. Although Lao Tian and the others had been here before, that was just the four of them. No matter how they walked, nothing happened, but with Yi Tian, they weren't sure if anything would change. They didn't want to take risks due to their recklessness, so they advanced slowly inside.

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