The Shadowless Veil was something Yang Kai had obtained at Seven Wonders Land. It had originally been a gift from Duan Hai, the Earth Guardian of the Fire Spirit Land who possessed Fourth-Order Open Heaven cultivation, given to his disciple Du Rufeng. After Du Rufeng was slain by Yang Kai, the Shadowless Veil naturally became one of his spoils.
Duan Hai had been a Fourth-Order Open Heaven cultivator, and the Shadowless Veil was no ordinary treasure. Once deployed, it could conceal both aura and physical form — Open Heaven cultivators of the lower orders would find it virtually impossible to detect his movements. It was, without question, an extraordinary artifact.
Back on that Sun Star, Yang Kai had relied on this very treasure to evade the detection of numerous lower-order Open Heaven cultivators, eventually approaching the Golden Crow's corpse and seizing it through a combination of luck and skill.
Later, at the First Inn, the Innkeeper had taken the Shadowless Veil and had a grandmaster refiner rework it, elevating its potency by another level entirely.
The Innkeeper had said that with this upgrade, lower-order Open Heaven cultivators wouldn't be able to detect a single trace of it. Even mid-order Open Heaven cultivators, unless they were paying close attention, would be unable to pierce its concealment.
Within the Grand Desolate World, where the power of Open Heaven was suppressed, the Shadowless Veil could practically be considered a decisive trump card.
Gu Pan's eyes were sharp. The moment the Shadowless Veil enveloped her, she recognized its extraordinary nature and praised, "Senior Brother, this treasure of yours is really impressive."
Yang Kai chuckled. "Junior Sister comes from the Blessed Land of Langya — a disciple of a great sect with vast experience. How could something like this possibly catch your eye?"
Gu Pan replied earnestly, "This is actually my first time venturing out to gain experience."
Yang Kai was taken aback. "Then Junior Sister really is quite unlucky."
Gu Pan lowered her head, a trace of sadness crossing her face. "Master and the senior brothers and sisters must be worried sick."
She looked so much like a little girl in that moment that Yang Kai couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy. He comforted her, "Don't worry. There will be a day when you get out. When that time comes, you'll naturally be reunited."
"Senior Brother is right." Gu Pan nodded repeatedly.
"Shh!" Yang Kai raised a finger to his lips. "Let's stop talking. We're about to land on the island, and it looks like there are a lot of sea clans over there."
Along the shore, a great number of sea clans were indeed stationed. Bonfires had been lit all along the beach, and beside them stood huts woven from palm fronds. Many sea clans drifted in and out of them, and various foods roasted over the fires gave off an enticing aroma.
Yang Kai studied them quietly, and his brow furrowed involuntarily. Just as Lin Feng had described, these sea clans were all grotesquely shaped — some had fish heads, some had gills on their cheeks, some had webbed feet, and others were covered head to toe in scales.
They all possessed humanoid forms, yet none of them truly resembled humans. They retained overwhelming characteristics of their sea clan heritage.
This reminded him of the mantis-headed creature he had encountered in Sword Pavilion's Star City.
That one had been the same — possessing a humanoid frame but topped with a mantis head, its two arms even shaped like blade-like appendages.
A realization dawned on Yang Kai. The Laws of the Grand Desolate World must differ significantly from those of the outside world. For demon beasts to achieve human transformation here would be extraordinarily difficult, far more so than on the outside.
The gathered sea clans chattered away in their bizarre, unintelligible language. Yang Kai couldn't understand a word of it, but judging by how peaceful they all seemed, he knew his guess had been correct — Lin Feng and the others must have taken a detour and hadn't made landfall here. Otherwise, there would have been a massive battle.
The sea clans on the beach were all rank-and-file foot soldiers who looked like they wouldn't amount to much in a fight. Yang Kai wasn't afraid of them, but since they were trying to infiltrate, it was best not to stir up trouble.
It was then that Gu Pan's aura suddenly wavered. Yang Kai turned to look and saw that her face had gone slightly pale. Her cheeks puffed in and out, and a strange, muffled sound came from her throat.
Yang Kai was startled. "Junior Sister, what's wrong?"
Gu Pan looked like she was about to cry. "Senior Brother, I'm going to be sick!" She clapped a hand over her mouth.
Yang Kai didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "They may be a bit ugly, but surely they're not so disgusting that you'd actually throw up. Don't — please don't throw up, or we're really going to be in trouble."
Gu Pan nodded hastily, her large eyes brimming with tears as she lowered her head to avoid looking at the sea clans' appearances.
Suddenly, a voice drifted over, discussing an incident from a few months ago when someone had caused a ruckus in this area. The sea clans had stationed troops here specifically to guard against that person returning.
Yang Kai understood immediately. They were talking about Lin Feng.
He glanced over and spotted two sea clans who looked distinctly different from the rest standing before a bonfire, chatting animatedly with each other.
Both of them radiated formidable auras, and their attire was quite refined — clearly, they held positions of some authority among the sea clans.
One of them, a creature with a pointed, fish-like head, suddenly turned and glanced in Yang Kai's direction, a flicker of suspicion in its eyes.
"What is it?" the other sea clan asked, following its gaze.
The pointed fish-head replied, "Nothing. I thought someone just looked at me for a moment." It dismissed the thought and resumed chatting with its companion.
Beneath the Shadowless Veil, Yang Kai withdrew his gaze, a sobering chill settling in his heart.
The Shadowless Veil was excellent, but one still had to be careful with one's own gaze when using it. That fish demon hadn't been particularly powerful, yet even a single glance from him had triggered a response. If they encountered a truly strong opponent, his concealment might very well be exposed.
Moving in utter silence, they skirted around bonfire after bonfire and patrol after patrol of sea clans. Two full hours later, Yang Kai finally led Gu Pan deep into a stretch of jungle.
After sweeping the area with his spiritual sense and detecting no trace of life nearby, confirming this spot was extremely secluded, Yang Kai dispelled the Shadowless Veil. "Let's rest here for now."