The Stars Beyond

Chapter 417: A Sleepless Night

The inner landscape opened automatically and the fissure grew wider. Wisps of purple mist and silver light emanated from within.

Is this real substance? It’s different from before!

Moonlight lit up the reed lake and the lawn. Wang Xuan felt uneasy. He stood quietly in place, with no urge to enter the inner landscape. The Godslaying Banner that was hidden within his Life Soil was secretly activated by him. It was enveloped in a faint red substance. The red substance was destructive energy, and it was ready to unleash a devastating blow at any moment! This was very abnormal.

How could the inner landscape suddenly open like this?

It wasn't caused by his extraordinary sense, and it was far from divine sensing. None of the conditions of opening up the inner landscape were met.

Who or what force was leading this?

Part of Wang Xuan's mental strength projected onto the Life Soil and it lifted the lid of the Life Essence Furnace. If something unexpected happened, he would gamble and go all-in!

The timing was quite coincidental. Inexplicable events occurred around him just over ten days after the departure of the four great experts. He felt danger looming around him. At this moment, the inner landscape gradually revealed its entirety. It was wide open and had exposed the truth inside it.

Wang Xuan's spiritual eye swept over it and found no living beings inside. There were only strange substances. It was like the silver light steaming from the pool of life and it was similar to the two substances he had seen in the ethereal realm! This was a bit absurd.

How did the substances from the place that the meteorite was in end up here?

He gazed silently and made no movements. Within the inner landscape, mysterious particles drifted down and fell gently like goose feathers from the sky. As for the sky within the inner landscape, it was pitch black, deep and desolate. Standing there, it felt like being in the midst of the timeless river of space. Faint purple mist gathered and slowly drifted out of the inner landscape as it was hovering in mid-air. It made the moonlight appear purple which added a sense of mystery.

Wang Xuan felt intensely uneasy. It made his hair stand on end. There was definitely something wrong, but he found nothing even after scanning with his spiritual eye. He gripped the iron awl tightly in his right hand. He held back the furnace lid and the divine banner as he was waiting for the moment when everything became clear!

Overall, Wang Xuan felt a sense of horror. This was the first time he encountered such a situation that was not caused by himself, but by an external force opening his inner landscape. The more he thought about it, the more terrified he became.

What kind of power was this? Could he resist it?

Finally, he sensed the source of the crisis. It was not far away to his left. The figure teleported and instantly appeared behind him. Instantly, the figure was less than ten meters away from him!

Is that a human?

He felt a shiver down his spine!

Being able to silently approach within ten meters of him indicated that it was an immensely powerful being. It was at least at the level of a Patriarch! Objectively speaking, in terms of strength, he was not yet a match for such an extraordinary being. However, his perception was extremely sharp and it allowed him to make certain judgments.

Wang Xuan didn't turn around. He was shaken and felt insecure as someone could open his inner landscape within ten meters from him. His spiritual eye left no blind spots and covered everything with full radiance. He captured all anomalies and finally he saw the terrifying intruder!

It was a shadow that was hugging the ground. Under the moonlight, it was creeping closer behind Wang Xuan. It was silent and oppressive, and was causing intense unease to Wang Xuan. Of course, Wang Xuan wouldn’t feel any pressure if he didn't have his spiritual eye. One would only feel a suffocating urgency and spine-chilling fear with a keen perception that could notice such anomalies, and realized that the threat of death was approaching step by step.

With a strong will, Wang Xuan maintained steady breathing and mental calmness. He showed no signs of panic. He did not act recklessly although he was faced with the unknown creature that could pose a serious threat to his life. He believed that this creature was stronger than him. It would pose a great crisis for him if they were to fight to the death through normal means. Wang Xuan planned to use the furnace lid and the Godslaying Banner that were infused with red substance as his trump cards. He was planning to launch a fatal blow at the critical moment! Of course, he had also planned to activate the great supernatural powers imprinted within him by Fang Yuzhu and Zhang Daoling to fully suppress the mysterious enemy!

"Why did it open my inner landscape first? Is it trying to ascertain something?" Wang Xuan was also pondering quickly in that very tense moment.

Recently, there was only one person who had been concerned about his inner landscape and that person was Zheng Yuantian! However, he had killed Old Zheng. He died under the supreme treasure. Even if there was a slight possibility of Zheng Yuantian coming back to life, he wouldn't have the power to kill Wang Xuan. With his physical body gone and his cultivation weakened, it was not feasible! Moreover, Wang Xuan had verified that the Zheng Yuantian he killed was indeed dead. Furthermore, Wang Xuan's spiritual eye was clear, and his intuition was strong. He could determine that this was not Zheng Yuantian's aura, it was even stronger than his!

The moon casted a tall shadow on the figure. It was surprisingly ethereal and it exuded an otherworldly charm. It appeared to be a man that made people feel like he transcended the earthly realm and possessed an unparalleled sense of sanctity. This was extremely strange as Wang Xuan could not see the real body. However, its shadow was nearby and it was drifting as if it was ascending to immortality. The shadow felt like someone that was undying and had embodied a power close to the truth.

As it drew closer, the sense of horror intensified. Wang Xuan closed his spiritual eye which calmed his mind down. When he reopened it, a terrifying catastrophe of hellish proportions was about to descend. It was like waves crashing against the shore. At the crucial moment, Wang Xuan attempted to switch between these two different experiences and it gave him a strange sensation of the first step into the spiritual realm. At that time, ordinary people couldn't see the mythical phenomena in the spiritual realm. Only those like him who had opened their spiritual realm could perceive it.Now, it was harder than before. One couldn't see the danger or the monster without a spiritual eye. The powerful spiritual realm of the transcendent was no longer sufficient!

Wang Xuan couldn't help but want to take action. As he was about to erupt, the creature began to flicker and it cautiously darted left and right.

Was this provocation or mockery?

Suddenly, he noticed a terrifying and abnormal occurrence. His shadow was elongated and was becoming thin and tall. It had been stretched out several meters away. Then, the tall mysterious figure with an otherworldly charm took the form of a shadow, and was quickly approaching his shadow!

The tall figure underwent some changes, swelled up and had become massive. It reached out its hands to grab Wang Xuan's shadow. It even opened its unnaturally large mouth wide open to devour his shadow that was on the ground! This was extremely strange. It was just Wang Xuan's shadow on the ground.

Could it really be eaten? What would happen if it was swallowed?

Wang Xuan couldn't bear it. It was a frightening sight and a strange experience. He absolutely couldn't allow the other party to have their way. How could he possibly allow that mysterious creature to wreak havoc? It was time to strike first! He’ll deal with the shadow whether it works or not. He must kill it first!

However, the shadow smirked chillingly as Wang Xuan's body emitted light and unleashed powerful energy while he was attempting to activate the great powers of Fang Yuzhu and Zhang Daoling. White teeth appeared in the shadow's mouth, it was half-shadow and half-real. It was extremely terrifying. Moreover, it became even more elusive. Its hands reached out to grab Wang Xuan's shadow and stretched it to ten meters long. It darted left and right, and kept changing its trajectory. It was simply too fast.

Wang Xuan tried to strike it several times and he had activated the great powers to suppress it, but he couldn't lock onto that terrifying shadow! His scalp tingled. This was the first time he encountered such a creature, especially since it wasn't directly targeting his real body but rather shifting on the distant ground. Suddenly, a deep roar that could make the souls of people in the real world tremble and palpitate sounded out. Anyone sleeping in this area would definitely involuntarily shiver and tremble after hearing it.

Wang Xuan erupted. He threw out the Godslaying Banner that was covered with the red substance and it blasted towards the shadow on the ground. Seeing himself getting attacked, the shadow grabbed Wang Xuan's shadow and opened its mouth to gnaw at it. At the same time, the lid, Fang Yuzhu's and Old Zhang's great powers, were also about to erupt. It could be locked onto as long as the Godslaying Banner touched it and had an effect on it.

Suddenly, the shadow staggered backward and released Wang Xuan's shadow. It emitted a deeper and more muffled low roar. It was as if the demon lord was murmuring to itself in the abyss. It was terrifying beyond measure. Wang Xuan's shadow returned to normal. No longer elongated, it returned to his side. He was astonished. It wasn't the effect of the Godslaying Banner as the banner had only flown out. With a swish, he immediately pulled back the banner and clutched it in his hand!

The creature shrank and it was no longer swollen. It had returned to its slender state. It showed some wariness towards the Godslaying Banner and the red substance on the banner surface, but it didn't overly guard against Wang Xuan. Instead, it looked in another direction. Two more shadows appeared out of nowhere by the edge of the reed lake. They abruptly emerged without any sound. This was somewhat terrifying. Three in a row tonight?! Wang Xuan felt a chill down his spine. Tonight was too unusual.

What kind of rhythm was this, and what kind of creatures were these that made one defenseless?

Upon closer inspection, the pair of shadows had the form of a man and a woman. They had relatively long shadows and were slowly moving towards the slender shadow. A sword appeared in the woman's hand. Using the sword, the woman slashed towards the slender shadow on the ground. The slashed was swift as lightning. A terrifying sword light could be vaguely seen flashing in the void and causing the real space to tremble and collapse. Wang Xuan's pupils contracted. Clearly, the shadows on the ground were fighting and it was causing such a commotion in the real solitary void! Tonight's sightings were strange and frightening. It left him utterly puzzled.

With the sword in hand, the woman advanced and caused the slender figure to retreat. At the same time, the man that stood beside the woman also took action. Just as fierce as thunder, he chased after it and slammed his fist down on the slender shadow to the ground. With a loud boom, a huge thunderbolt appeared and pierced through the air in the sky above the reed lake.

It was somewhat absurd. The duel was on the ground, yet there were glaring flashes of lightning and thunderous explosions in the sky. It made people’s spirits thrilled and unsettled. Wang Xuan remained calm and didn't act. Instead, he stood there quietly to observe, and was ready to enter the fray at any moment. He quickly realized that the man and woman seemed to have no ill intentions towards him. He felt nothing amiss. Together, they forced the slender shadow to stagger backward.

The chilling whispers sounded as if the lord of hell was sneering. It pierced through endless time and space. The slender shadow trembled violently once more and was swaying as it retreated. In the end, it unexpectedly turned and fled. He ran as it was unable to withstand the man and woman! The man and woman's shadows showed no hesitation and chased after it with lightning speed. In the blink of an eye, they were all gone.

The bright moon hung high, its light was like gossamer enveloping the earth in a hazy veil. Only Wang Xuan was left standing alone by the reed lake. He clutched the Godslaying Banner tightly and stared fixedly in the direction where the three shadows had disappeared. Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night.