"You don't know about the Beast Tide? It seems you've been secluded in cultivation here for so many years that you have no idea what's been happening outside." The middle-aged cultivator let out a long breath and muttered, somewhat dazedly.
"From the sound of it, things are pretty grim out there." The man sounded faintly interested. His voice was still cold, but there was a hint of curiosity woven into his words.
The middle-aged cultivator found himself momentarily at a loss for words.
How could "grim" even begin to describe the situation outside?
It seemed the other party really was some old monster who had been sequestered in isolation for countless years. Otherwise, how could he not have heard about an event that had taken place over twenty years ago?
But if that was the case, then he felt even more at ease.
With the other party's cultivation level and status, he generally wouldn't deign to lift a finger against juniors like them.
What could they possibly possess that would catch his eye?
With this thought, the middle-aged cultivator's expression grew a few degrees more respectful as he replied:
"Senior! The Beast Tide was over twenty years ago. At that time, I was still a Qi Condensation cultivator. Though I didn't witness it with my own eyes, I heard our sect's elders speak of it. They said that on one particular day, without any warning whatsoever, tens of thousands of demonic beasts from the Abyssal Sea surged out en masse. They charged straight to Qiyuan Island in a single breath and surrounded Black Stone City, bombarding it ceaselessly. Although the island had several great protective formations, as well as several thousand cultivators and a number of Nascent Soul stage seniors defending it, the beasts still breached the defenses after just a few days. Aside from a very small number of cultivators who managed to escape in the chaos, all the human cultivators on the island perished on the spot."
As the middle-aged cultivator spoke, a dark shadow of grief settled over his face.
"Is that so! What happened after? Did the beasts retreat back to the Abyss?" The man's voice carried a trace of shock, though it quickly returned to its usual cool composure.
"If only they had retreated back to the Abyss. After reducing Black Stone City to rubble, the Abyssal beasts actually split into several groups and, under the command of higher-ranking demon beasts, began sweeping through the other human towns and settlements. Most of those towns had already received advance warning and the people had abandoned their homes early to hide. But even so, quite a few cultivators and mortals fell victim to the slaughter. In the end, within half a year, not a single human settlement remained on any of the waters surrounding Qiyuan Island. All of them had been utterly destroyed. And that wasn't even the end of it. Although the majority of the beasts returned to the Abyss, some of the more intelligent high-ranking demon beasts remained behind and began hunting down the hidden humans one by one, capturing and devouring them. Before long, nearly all the mortals in the outer seas had been wiped out, and the cultivators had suffered even greater losses. The survivors could only flee far from the waters around Qiyuan Island, seeking out remote islands to eke out a living, constantly on the run. Now Qiyuan Island has become a gathering place for high-ranking demon beasts. The moment they catch even a whiff of our human cultivators, they mobilize again to hunt us down." The middle-aged cultivator's expression had turned to one of deep sorrow.
Meanwhile, the mysterious man's voice had gone silent for quite some time, as though he too had been quite shaken by this news and was struggling to digest it.
"Heh heh! How amusing. So in the
However, the man seemed unwilling to dwell on this and went on to ask several more questions:
"Qiyuan Island had several Nascent Soul old monsters in residence. Surely they couldn't all have perished in the Beast Tide? Why haven't they come forward to take charge? And since such a monumental upheaval occurred on Qiyuan Island, did the
Each question was sharper than the last, each one cutting straight to the heart of the matter. The middle-aged cultivator knew the answer to some but was unable to respond to others.
After a brief moment of thought, he answered cautiously:
"During the Beast Tide that year, it was said that two Nascent Soul seniors perished, but most of the elders managed to escape. Though there's been no word from them since, some rumors suggest they've been plotting a major operation to reclaim Qiyuan Island in one decisive blow. The specifics, however, are beyond my knowledge. As for the Inner Star Seas, all contact was completely severed from the very day the Beast Tide began. No one knows whether they've even learned the details of what happened here. As for reinforcements — naturally, we haven't seen any. Perhaps, as the senior suggested, this place really has been abandoned by the Inner Star Seas." When he spoke those last words, a shadow of bitterness darkened the middle-aged cultivator's face.
It was clear that the cultivators who had survived the Beast Tide had, without quite realizing it, developed a deep resentment toward the Inner Star Seas' indifference and abandonment.
The man's voice fell silent once more, and after a moment he asked in an unhurried tone:
"If it's so dangerous out here, why are you juniors running around instead of staying safely in your homes? Are you trying to get yourselves killed?"