âElder, what do you mean by that?â
Chu Feng had no idea what the old man was getting at.
âIâm asking if you know who Chu Xuanyuan is!â the old man hollered.
âChu Xuanyuan is my father.â
âWhatâs your real name?â
âMy real name is Chu Feng.â
âI get it now. You and your father are hiding your identities. Your real name is Chu Feng and your father is Chu Xuanyuan, but you have been living here using a pseudonym. Tell me the pseudonym you have been using here,â the old man said.
âElder, do you still think that Iâm a local here? Iâve already told you that Iâm not from here. I have just entered this place through the Darknight Sacred River just a moment ago,â Chu Feng explained.
âStill lying through your teeth? Very well, youâll be following me back to the city. Iâll make sure to uncover your background. Just see how Iâll deal with you later!â the old man scoffed.
His face then lit up in glee as he murmured under his breath, âLooks like Iâve finally found that Chu Xuanyuan. Iâll peel off your disguise and find out who you are!â
Jip jip jip!
The old manâs sack suddenly started shaking vigorously while producing weird sounds.
âDamn! I was too busy talking to you that I nearly lost track of time. Quick, get out of here!â
The old man quickly dragged Chu Feng over to the door and pushed him out. Following that, he took out a talisman and placed it on the sackâs opening. Then, with a wave of his sleeves, he tossed the sack into the ancient hall before closing the door behind him.
Meanwhile, Chu Feng scanned his surroundings and saw that he was in a dim corridor. He could still see the door leading into the ancient hall, leaving him even more baffled as to how he wasnât able to see the door from inside.
This meant that as long as the door remained closed, anyone inside the ancient hall would be unable to escape from it.
Chu Feng tried peeking inside the ancient hall with his Heavenâs Eyes, but he was unable to see anything at all.
It was disappointing since he was curious as to what was inside the sack. He had also noticed the presence of another aura emerging from the ancient hall the moment he was pushed out, but he wasnât sure if it was just his imagination, for it wasnât something that came from his senses but his intuition.
âElder, whatâs inside the bag?â Chu Feng asked.
âYouâre asking me that? Needless to say, itâs the Demonsoul Grass,â the old man replied impatiently.
âWhatâs the Demonsoul Grass?â Chu Feng asked.
âStill continuing with that act, huh? Youâre even pretending that you donât know the Demonsoul Grass. Very well! Letâs see how long youâll last. Follow me!â
The old man grabbed Chu Fengâs wrist and dragged him along.
They soon walked out of the building. Chu Feng turned around to look at the place he had just stepped out ofâit was a terrifying gray palace that had an odd design. It was densely shrouded in the aura of the Ancient Era.
There were several hundred people guarding the entrance of the palace, and their cultivation was much higher than the old man. Most of them were at Utmost Exalted level, but there were two at Martial Exalted level.
They bowed deeply upon seeing the old man, but their faces warped in astonishment when they saw Chu Feng.
âLord Bai, who is this? When did he follow you in?â
The person in charge of guarding the palace immediately surrounded the two of them.
âWhat nonsense are you spouting? What do you mean by following me in? I captured him inside! You rascals, I havenât even said anything yet, but youâre already trying to push the blame onto me?â the old man lashed out.
âWe dare not to, Lord Bai. Thatâs not what we meant!â
The guards appeared to be afraid of the old man despite being stronger than him.
âYou donât recognize him?â the old man asked while pointing at Chu Feng.
âWe donât,â the guards replied.
âOh?â
The old man frowned upon hearing those words. He looked at Chu Feng with a doubtful glint in his eyes, but he didnât say anything about it. Instead, he dragged Chu Feng into the sky with him and began flying into the distance.
Chu Feng didnât say or ask anything, choosing to quietly follow the old man. However, there were many doubts floating in his mind.
He was surprised to see that the Darknight Sacred River had Martial Exalted level cultivators. One had to know that Exalted level cultivators were already the peak of the Great Chiliocosm Upper Realm. Even when looking at the entire Ancestral Martial Starfield, Utmost Exalted level cultivators were already the strongest fighting prowess.
Yet, there were actually Martial Exalted level cultivators here, and they were serving as mere guards. This hinted at the existence of even stronger cultivators here.
The first thought that came to Chu Fengâs mind upon seeing the old man was that he was from the Great Chiliocosm Upper Realm, just that he was trapped in the Darknight Sacred River. However, he wasnât that sure about it now. He knew that those from the Great Chiliocosm Upper Realm didnât have the talent to reach that level.
He was also intrigued about the Demonsoul Grass, which they were using as a tribute. Just who in the world were they giving the tribute to?
It made Chu Feng realize that there was more to the Darknight Sacred River than he knew of. Even so, he thought that he would receive an answer soon enough.
With the old man leading the way, he soon arrived at a city. The city looked much more normal compared to the earlier palace; there was nothing discomforting about it.
However, this city was clearly built after the palace, evident from the absence of the aura of the Ancient Era.
There were hundreds of millions of cultivators residing in the city, and they ranged from humans to monstrous beasts.
Their cultivation wasnât as strong as Chu Feng imagined it to be. There were Exalted level and Utmost Exalted level cultivators amongst them, but they numbered in the minority.
Most of them were at True Immortal level, Heavenly Immortal level, and Martial Immortal level.
There were Martial Exalted level cultivators too, but there were very few of them. Most of them were located in the depths of the city.
What Chu Feng was more interested in, however, was the river flowing just outside the city. It was emanating a golden gleam, just like the Darknight Sacred River. Even the length of the river was the same.
As Chu Feng came a bit closer, the old man pointed to the river and said, âBrat, do you see that? This is the real exit of the Darknight Sacred River! Those who come in through the Darknight Sacred River have to come out through here!
âBesides, the Darknight Sacred River has only just opened. Itâll take a minimum of 162 hours to get here. Thereâs no way you could have arrived here that quickly. At least spin a better lie if you wish to deceive me. Do you really take me for a fool?â
The old man looked at Chu Feng in disdain. He was certain that Chu Feng was a local and not someone who had just entered through the Darknight Sacred River.
On the other hand, Chu Feng was alarmed to hear those words.
â162 hours?â Chu Feng asked with a frown.
When he entered the Darknight Sacred River earlier, he found that the river would only remain open for around sixteen hours. Once the river closed up, it would be extremely difficult for them to leave this place anymore. Thus, it was imperative that they left this place within this timeframe.
But it turned out that he had made a fatal miscalculationâhe hadnât thought that it would take this long for them to enter the Darknight Sacred River. In other words, if he hadnât comprehended the hidden spirit formation gate and slipped right into the tribute palace, he would have still been traveling in the passageway right now.
âIt takes 162 hours to get in here? How do we get out then?â Chu Feng asked.
âGet out? We wouldnât have been trapped here for all these years if itâs possible to get out! Brat, it looks like youâre determined to continue with your act. If not for the years I have spent here, I would have thought that youâre a fool who stumbled your way in here!â the old man sneered.
The old man had an expression that was practically saying âIâve already seen through youâ.
Chu Feng felt a clench in his heart. The situation was worse than he thought.