What's more, this Green-eyed Toad was clearly covered in lethal poison. Its long tongue would surely be terrifyingly toxic as well—ordinary Open Heaven Realm cultivators wouldn't stand a chance against it. Yet this woman had caught it between two fingers and was holding it without a scratch?
Yuan Tonggang suddenly found himself unable to make sense of Luo Tinghe. A vague sense of wrongness crept over him, and he hurriedly looked toward Yang Kai.
But Yang Kai didn't so much as glance their way, as if completely oblivious to the conflict. He simply called out, "I'll leave this to you all. I'm going to take a look."
With that, he shot skyward and sped off deeper into the Black Domain.
He was leaving just like that? Before Yuan Tonggang could even react, he saw Luo Tinghe apply a bit of force, and the massive Green-eyed Toad went flying before slamming heavily into the ground, the elder surnamed You on its back tumbling off in a cloud of dust.
Before the old man could scramble to his feet, Luo Tinghe had already placed a foot on his chest, smiling sweetly. "You were saying something about setting rules for people?"
The elder surnamed You surrendered without hesitation. "Grandmother, spare this lowly one's life! It was this old fool's eyes that were useless, this old fool who didn't know the rules. From now on, thirty percent of all resources extracted from this area will be handed over to you. This lowly one is willing to serve however he can!"
Yuan Tonggang and the others watched with their jaws on the floor.
Yang Kai's figure flickered as he continued speeding ever deeper into the Black Domain. With the Space Laws propelling him, his movements were swift beyond measure.
The area that should have been shrouded by that strange, ominous power—where ordinary Open Heaven Realm cultivators couldn't even approach—was now completely unobstructed. This fact weighed heavily on Yang Kai's mind.
He had never managed to figure out what that strange power truly was. Years ago, he had planned to wait until he had some real free time before studying the Black Domain's situation in depth, hoping he might uncover the true nature of that mysterious force.
He also knew that a vast territory like the Black Domain, so rich in resources, had been so easily claimed by Luan Baifeng—a Sixth-Order woman—entirely thanks to that strange power.
Without it, the mineral stars here would have long since drawn the attention of major powers. Even the great Hollow Heavens and Blessed Lands would have set their sights on this place.
But precisely because of that ominous power, extracting resources from the Black Domain was extraordinarily difficult—often requiring lives to be spent in the attempt. As a result, the Black Domain had never caught the eye of any major faction.
That strange power was essentially the Black Domain's natural barrier.
And now, that barrier was gone!
To make matters more suspicious, Luan Baifeng had gone against all precedent by spreading the word, luring Open Heaven Realm cultivators here to mine resources. The whole situation screamed abnormal.
Along the way, he passed numerous mineral stars. Many of them showed signs of Open Heaven Realm cultivators hard at work. These cultivators were unleashing various divine abilities, causing tremendous commotion—some of the smaller mineral stars had been nearly shattered to pieces, the black stones within completely stripped bare.
As Yang Kai pressed further, at a certain point he suddenly sensed a thread of that strange power washing over him. He raised an eyebrow, finally understanding—the strange power that once saturated the Black Domain hadn't vanished entirely. Its coverage had simply shrunk drastically, which was why the safe outer zone had expanded and mineral stars that were previously impossible to mine could now be accessed by just about anyone.
But deeper into the Black Domain, that strange power still existed, and it was exceedingly dense.
The last two times he had ventured deep into the Black Domain, he had relied on the Evergreen Great Art driven by his Wood Element power to shield himself, forcibly resisting the erosion of that strange force. But even with the Wood Element power refined from the essence of the Immortal Tree, he couldn't endure all that deep.
Once the Evergreen Great Art reached its limit, he could go no further.
Now things were different. During his time in the Broken Sky, he had obtained the Heaven and Earth Spring, which anchored his Small Universe with the Four Cosmic Pillars. His Small Universe was now smooth and flawless, impervious to outside forces.
So although he could feel the strange power's presence, it had absolutely no effect on him.
Yang Kai's expression shifted.
Perhaps… he could find the source of that strange power after all.
This power blanketed such an enormous area of the Black Domain—there had to be a source somewhere. Yang Kai had always wanted to investigate, but he simply hadn't had the ability. Now, with the Heaven and Earth Spring protecting him, he no longer feared the power's erosion or the drain on his Small Universe's foundation.
This time, he might truly be able to locate the source of that strange power and uncover the truth.
At this depth, there were no more cultivators mining on the mineral stars—after all, this was no place for mortals. Yang Kai pressed onward, reaching zones he had never penetrated during his previous two visits.
The strange power grew ever denser. Yang Kai even wondered how long a peak Eighth-Order Open Heaven cultivator like Luo Tinghe could hold out in a place like this.
Here, Yang Kai faintly sensed the presence of yet another force, but with the strange power interfering, the sensation was incredibly vague—he couldn't determine what kind of force it was at all.
He continued pushing inward, but after only an hour or two, he found himself unable to take another step.
What blocked his advance wasn't the strange power—with the Heaven and Earth Spring's protection, the Black Domain's mysterious force posed absolutely no threat to him.
What stopped him were the countless natural grand formations that permeated the Black Domain.
The Black Domain was dangerous for two reasons: the strange power on one hand, and the innumerable, ever-emerging natural formations on the other.