"Retreat?" Qian Tong froze, not understanding why Yang Kai had suddenly grown so tense.
"Move! If we don't leave now, it'll be too late." Yang Kai offered no explanation, instead bellowing the command as he shot backward. Before leaving, he grabbed Lin Yurao and yanked her along.
Lin Yurao was completely baffled, but she didn't resist, letting Yang Kai drag her along as they rapidly withdrew over a dozen zhang.
"Brother Qian..." Zhao Tianze's face was a picture of helplessness as he cast a pleading gaze toward Qian Tong.
"Do as Yang Kai says." Qian Tong didn't hesitate for a heartbeat. He transformed into a streak of light and followed close behind Yang Kai.
He had no idea why Yang Kai had made this choice, but he chose to trust him unconditionally.
Perhaps Yang Kai had his own reasons!
Seeing all three of them already retreating, Zhao Tianze stood rooted in place for a moment, torn with indecision. Then he slapped his thigh in frustration and hurried after the trio.
The scene had already descended into chaos.
As the cracks on the Domain Stone Mountain continued to multiply, countless warriors surged forward, scrambling to seize the fragments of Domain Stone as they broke apart.
A handful of sharper individuals, having heard Yang Kai's shout and sensing that something was off, chose not to wade into the fray. Instead, they quietly retreated.
When something was out of the ordinary, there was bound to be trouble — and the imminent collapse of the Domain Stone Mountain was no small upheaval.
But such people were few, perhaps one in ten. The vast majority had been bewitched by the temptation before their eyes, paying no heed to Yang Kai's shouted warning.
Crack, crack, crack...
The sounds were relentless. The Domain Stone Mountain truly seemed on the verge of crumbling apart. Before everyone's eyes, those fissures grew more numerous, wider and wider.
At last, the Domain Stone Mountain collapsed with a thunderous roar, the colossal structure splitting into pieces of Domain Stone in varying sizes that scattered across the ground.
But what struck everyone as bizarre was that the shattered pieces looked nothing like the Domain Stone produced within a Domain Vortex. Every shard was thin as a cicada's wing.
"Impossible — the Domain Stone Mountain was hollow inside?" someone cried out in disbelief.
The fractured pieces told the story plainly. If the mountain's interior hadn't been empty, how could such gossamer-thin fragments have appeared after its collapse? The sight was like a hollow clay jar being smashed to pieces.
Many could barely accept it.
But even Domain Stone thin as a cicada's wing was still Domain Stone.
After a few moments of stunned silence, everyone lunged forward in a frenzy, their eyes fixed on the pieces of varying sizes, snatching and fighting over them.
The scene spun out of control in an instant!
The power of various Artifacts and martial techniques erupted, illuminating the area of several dozen zhang so brightly it was nearly blinding. Screams rang out, blood sprayed through the air...
Then — suddenly, a visible ripple emanated from the very center of the Domain Stone Mountain, spreading outward at tremendous speed.
Every warrior caught within the range of that ripple involuntarily froze, their faces draining of color with fear.
When the ripple passed over their bodies, they all sensed a wave of danger — the aura of a Domain field!
And an utterly terrifying Domain field at that!
The Domain Stone Mountain's long-dormant Domain field appeared to have reignited from the ashes.
"No good — run!" some of the quicker-witted warriors shouted.
No one was scrambling for the scattered Domain Stone anymore. Every warrior frantically channeled their Saint Qi, desperately trying to retreat.
It was too late!
The moment the first ripple appeared, the second and third followed right on its heels.
In the blink of an eye, countless visible ripples layered over one another, blanketing an area nearly a thousand zhang across, engulfing every inch of that ground within its reach.
Visibility blurred as the formidable Domain field born of the Domain Stone Mountain finally revealed its savage face — like a maddened, ravenous beast opening its massive jaws to swallow nearly two hundred Return Void Realm Stage Three cultivators whole.
Screams erupted from every direction, sending chills down the spines of all who heard. No Return Void Realm warrior could withstand the crushing, grinding force of this violent Domain field. Bursts of vigorous life force vanished abruptly, like soap bubbles popped between fingers.
As the waves of ripples swept through, every person caught within was obliterated, their bodies exploding in mid-scream, painting the air with their final, terrible beauty in blood and life.
Yang Kai and the other three stood a full thousand zhang away from the Domain Stone Mountain. Every one of them stared ahead with ashen faces.
Zhao Tianze's lips trembled, his teeth chattering audibly, clack, clack, clack.
He dared not imagine what would have happened if he had yielded to even a sliver more greed. He would likely have met the same fate as those trapped within the Domain field. He looked involuntarily toward Yang Kai, his heart flooded with gratitude.
If not for this young man's far-sightedness, this trip to the Blood Prison would have been the end of him.
Qian Tong and Lin Yurao's expressions were hardly any better.
So many warriors of the same cultivation realm, so many powerful existences who could have launched their charge toward the Void King Realm — and they had perished just like that, utterly powerless to resist.
They had died like ants...
Their feelings were a delicate, complicated tangle.