Turning toward the voice, he found a figure standing right beside him.
The figure was tall — well over two meters.
He wore a suit of black armor that was exquisitely crafted, its surface bearing the marks of ages past. Sword scars, blade wounds, traces of all manner of weapons — even the imprints of martial techniques.
As for his exposed skin, it radiated a faint glow, making it impossible to make out any clear features.
But his head of white hair was perfectly visible. It cascaded down over the black armor, and combined with his straight, commanding posture, the overall impression was one of overwhelming dominance and crushing pressure.
Yet this figure clearly bore no hostility toward Chu Feng.
"Senior, since you are the master of this place, you should control the formations here and be able to hear our conversation."
"She was very respectful toward this place, and equally respectful toward you."
"So why did you deliberately provoke her? Insist on making her step inside?"
From the way this figure had treated him, Chu Feng could tell that what he had done to Huahua just now had been deliberate — a calculated move to force her into the formation.
"Because of you," the white-haired man in black armor said.
"Me?" Chu Feng was surprised.
"You are Chu Feng — the strongest young martial artist of this generation, and also the strongest young Spirit World Master of this generation."
"So why don't you challenge that formation?" the white-haired man asked.
"Because I listen to advice," Chu Feng replied.
"Listen to advice?" The white-haired man seemed confused.
"That formation literally has two words written on it: 'extremely dangerous,'" Chu Feng said.
The white-haired man chuckled before responding. "Put nicely, that's called listening to advice. Put harshly, that's called being a coward."
"But that doesn't quite match the Chu Feng I've heard about."
"Senior, goading won't work on me."
"Unless you can tell me plainly what the reward is for breaking the formation."
"I've already observed that there don't seem to be any treasures left here," Chu Feng added.
"There are no treasures, that's true. But what about dignity?" the white-haired man asked.
"Dignity?" Chu Feng was taken aback.
"You've already met your contemporaries from the ancient era, haven't you?" the white-haired man continued.
"I have," Chu Feng confirmed.
"Actually, they too were born within the span of a hundred years. Strictly speaking, they're also people of this generation."
"But they claim the ancient era as their own and look down on modern martial artists. Do you know why?" the white-haired man asked.
"Because their bloodlines were inherited from the ancient era. Because their clans have stood unshaken since ancient times."
"And as for modern martial artists…" Chu Feng paused.
"What about modern martial artists?" the white-haired man prompted.
"What follows is purely my own speculation — nothing verified," Chu Feng said with a smile.
"Then let me hear your speculation," the white-haired man said.
"My guess is that all the humans and demon clans of this era weren't born in this age."
"Our ancestors should all trace back to the ancient era as well."
"But the question is — why don't we possess ancient treasures? Why don't we carry ancient inheritances?"
"My theory is that our ancestors were rather mediocre during the ancient era. They were the lowest rung of the martial cultivation world — not that they couldn't pass anything down, but that they simply had nothing of value to pass down."
"In fact, many of our ancestors probably weren't even cultivators back then. They were ordinary commoners."
"That's why in many places of the lower realms, so many people don't even have a bloodline to speak of."
"Something must have happened in the later part of the ancient era. All those powerful sects and clans were involved."
"That led to their slumber. Meanwhile, it was we — the descendants of commoners — who survived and carried on."
"But the events of the ancient era seem to have erased many people's memories. So our ancestors forgot everything about the ancient times and simply believed they belonged to this era."
"Of course, even those who survived from the ancient era — how many of them are still alive today?"