Inside the warship's hold, the glow of various formations flickered wildly—a sign that the arrays were being pushed to their absolute limits. The crackling sounds that echoed from every direction were incessant and unrelenting.
"Patriarch, we can't go any deeper! If we continue, I'm afraid..." A burly man stumbled over, his face pale with terror. Only now did he realize this journey was no stroke of good fortune—it was a deliberate march toward death.
Yan Luo said flatly, "Increase speed!"
The burly man's expression shifted.
Yan Luo raised his hand and struck down with a palm. The man collapsed without a sound, his skull caving inward as he crumpled to the floor, brain matter spilling from the wound. The surrounding Yan Family Disciples stood frozen in fear.
"Speed up!" Yan Luo barked again.
No one dared hesitate. The numerous Yan Family Disciples sprang into action, frantically channeling their own power into the various formations. The warship shuddered for a moment, then its speed surged dramatically.
There was no exit ahead—only endless, iridescent color. The crushing pressure from the void battered the warship's structure ceaselessly. Even a vessel of mid-grade Void King quality groaned under the strain, letting out one pained creak after another.
After a short while, one of the formations in the hold suddenly dimmed—it had completely collapsed. At the same time, a section of the warship fell apart. As if triggering a chain reaction, the damage rapidly spread from the point of failure. Plates of hull plating tore loose and crumbled away piece by piece.
One formation after another went dark.
The Yan Family Disciples' faces were white as paper. They looked up toward Yan Luo one after another, only to find his expression bland and unconcerned, as though this crisis meant nothing to him at all. A thread of hope stirred in their hearts.
The Patriarch would surely lead them out of this predicament. They had been carefully selected—talented individuals chosen to follow the Patriarch and wage war across the Ancestral Domain. They couldn't possibly die here for nothing.
One incense stick's worth of time later, that hope was extinguished.
With a thunderous roar, the warship shattered apart.
The power of the void surged in from every direction. Without the warship's protection, how could those martial artists whose strength hadn't even reached the Void King realm possibly survive?
Pop, pop, pop... like bubbles being burst one after another, plumes of blood mist exploded across the void, blooming into vivid shades of crimson.
"Patriarch, save us!"
Screams and pleas for help rang out from every direction. Yan Luo ignored them utterly. His figure blurred as a suit of pitch-black treasure armor materialized over his body, enveloping him from head to toe. He looked every bit like a general charging through enemy ranks on the ancient battlefield—imposing and unstoppable.
He Yunxiang had summoned her colorful ribbon Artifact at the same moment.
After a period of diligent refinement, this low-grade Dao Source Artifact, though still far from responding to her every whim, could at least serve a practical function. The ribbon Artifact was both offensive and defensive—a rare combination—and its relatively modest grade made it perfectly suited to He Yunxiang's current cultivation level.
The ribbon expanded, growing wider as it wrapped and coiled around her body. It was as though she had donned a brand-new garment woven from living color. The crushing pressure immediately eased, and she kept close to Yang Kai's side, not daring to drift even slightly away.
Yan Luo hurried over as well, taking a stand beside He Yunxiang. He glanced sideways at the ribbon, and his eyelids narrowed imperceptibly.
His eye for treasure was extraordinary. He could tell at a glance that this ribbon was no ordinary Artifact—it was incomparably superior to any he had seen before. Covetous desire surged within him, but he betrayed nothing on the surface.
Enjoy it while you can. Before long, this treasure will carry the Yan surname.
By now, the cries for help around them had gone silent. From the moment the warship began to break apart to the final silence, barely ten breaths had passed. The several hundred Yan Family Disciples who had been piloting the vessel were all dead—not a single survivor. And throughout it all, Yan Luo hadn't reacted in the slightest, as though the ones who had perished weren't members of his own clan but complete strangers.
He Yunxiang felt a chill settle in her heart. She became increasingly convinced that this man was ruthless beyond measure. She herself had committed her share of killing and arson, but she could never be as cold-blooded and merciless as he was.
In the endless void, where left and right held no meaning and north from south was impossible to discern, the view in every direction was a kaleidoscope of flowing, luminous color. Both Yan Luo and He Yunxiang were experiencing such a sight for the first time, and they quickly set aside what had just transpired, their attention captured by the strangeness of their surroundings.
Yang Kai walked at the very front, still not exhibiting the slightest ripple of spiritual energy. The terrifying pressure bore down directly upon his physical body, yet it couldn't so much as make him furrow a brow.
The world around them was utterly silent. Each person's heartbeat rang with startling clarity.
Something felt off to Yan Luo, because the journey thus far had been impossibly peaceful—no danger, no sudden incidents of any kind.
Five hundred years ago, the Ancestor had departed for the Ancestral Domain. The outside world didn't know whether he had succeeded, but Yan Luo knew that the Ancestor had arrived safely. Three months after the Ancestor's departure, the Yan Family had used a secret technique he had left behind to establish contact once. At that time, the Ancestor had described his experience entering the Ancestral Domain in considerable detail.
In particular, when passing through this multicolored void, the Ancestor had warned that the place was extraordinarily perilous—the slightest misstep meant having one's body ground to dust. Behind the stunning beauty of this world lurked countless dangers that ordinary people could never perceive.
Yan Luo had prepared thoroughly, maintaining his vigilance at every moment, dreading the sudden arrival of some unforeseen threat.
But from beginning to end, everything had been calm and serene—as peaceful as strolling through one's own backyard garden. Where was the danger the Ancestor had spoken of?
The Ancestor would have had no reason to lie.
That left only two possible explanations: either the three of them possessed heaven-defying luck, or their guide had foreseen and avoided numerous dangers along the way, which was why they had encountered nothing at all.