Chu Feng released the power of his barrier and infused it into the formation map.
He was activating the formation map, and as he did, the map began to transform.
Before long, the entire great hall trembled violently.
What Chu Feng didn't know was that this trembling actually encompassed the entire ancient palace.
At that very moment, everyone inside the ancient palace could feel the tremors.
And soon, a look of strain appeared on Chu Feng's face.
Activating this formation map was no easy feat. Had it been anyone other than Chu Feng, an ordinary person would likely have been unable to open it.
"Formation, activate!"
With that sharp cry from Chu Feng, the formation map blazed with radiant light.
A powerful wave of formation energy swept over Chu Feng and engulfed the entire ancient palace.
Chu Feng was transported into an ancient forest.
Though not from the primordial era, this forest had clearly existed for countless ages.
Unlike the great hall they had just been in, this was a spatial world — vast, so vast that at least from where Chu Feng stood, he could sense no boundaries whatsoever.
Before long, three figures materialized behind him.
They were Bai Yunqing, Ling Sheng'er, and Yao Luo.
"Chu Feng, where are we?"
Upon seeing Chu Feng, the three of them immediately rushed over.
But before Chu Feng could answer, yet another figure appeared — Ling Mo'er.
Ling Mo'er spotted the four of them and, though surprised, felt more relieved than anything. Her greatest worry had been Ling Sheng'er's safety, and seeing her unharmed put her mind at ease.
However, one after another, more and more figures began appearing nearby.
That included Jie Zhou, Jie Yu, and everyone else who had entered through various other entrances. In the end, nearly every person who had set foot inside the ancient palace was now gathered here.
"Young Master Jie Zhou, what is this place?"
Everyone was abuzz with discussion.
All of them had been caught off guard by this sudden change and didn't quite know what to make of it.
So many turned to Jie Zhou with their questions. After all, hailed as the Child of Prophecy, he was clearly their guiding pillar.
What they didn't realize was that Jie Zhou was every bit as bewildered as they were.
But he didn't let it show. Instead, he put on a composed front and said, "Allow me to take a look around."
"Chu Feng, what's going on?" Ling Sheng'er whispered to him.
Unlike the others, she felt that Chu Feng was the most likely to know the reason behind this place — after all, he had been the first to appear here.
Chu Feng didn't answer directly. Instead, he asked them, "Did you all enter an illusion realm just now?"
He wanted to determine whether only he had seen his mother in her youth, or whether everyone had.
"We did. I even saw Lady Jie Ranqing inside the illusion — her younger self, that is."
"It seemed like defeating her would let you pass the final trial, but our barrier cultivation was restricted to the level of the White Dragon Divine Robe, and our combat power was locked down too."
"Under those conditions, there was no way to defeat Lady Jie Ranqing, so I failed. After that, I ended up here," Ling Sheng'er said.
"My lady, same for me," Yao Luo added.
"I... same here," Bai Yunqing chimed in.
"So we came here because we failed the trial?"
"But if you fail, shouldn't it be over?" Ling Sheng'er said, confused.