Seeing Huo Yuhao's strange look, Snow Empress added, "Of course, the Light and Darkness Douluo didn't know the internal situation. The super Douluo-level experts of the Spirit Pagoda are scattered. I and Di Tian usually guard the extreme north and Star Dou respectively."
"In the headquarters of the Spirit Pagoda, there are generally only four Spirit Envoys above the super Douluo level, one main and one deputy Pagoda master. At that time, the deputy Pagoda master was out on business, so there seemed to be only one Limit Douluo."
"However, Bear Lord and Scarlet King were invited over for some matters, and the Limit Douluo from the Ji family, who rarely ventured out, was also there as an elder, holding a sinecure position at the headquarters, unknown to outsiders."
At this point, Snow Empress showed an indescribable expression and said in a strange tone:
"At that time, the Light and Darkness Douluo took a claw strike from Xiong Jun, a blow from Qiangu Dieting, and the sword intent from the Ji family head also landed on her. Scarlet King and the four Spirit Envoys also took action... In short, she was seriously injured and was swept out within minutes of entering. From that moment on, the relationship between the Spirit Pagoda and Shrek Academy became increasingly delicate."
"..."
After listening to Snow Empress's account, Huo Yuhao fell silent.
Are the Spirit Pagoda and Shrek Academy destined to be at odds?
Even after all that, the Light and Darkness Douluo still wanted to barge into the Spirit Pagoda?
What, did she still want to slap the "Pagoda Master" like before?
Huo Yuhao was somewhat speechless and shook his head slightly, asking about something he was interested in, "You mentioned the Ji family? Did Juechen's family produce a Limit Douluo?"
Many of the original members ten thousand years ago were from the original Tang Sect, but by this era, the original Tang Sect had hardly mentioned those names, and there was no news of their descendants.
Whether they had declined or encountered some problems, no one knew.
He wasn't sure if joining the Spirit Pagoda could change the fate of their descendants, but if possible, he hoped that the descendants of his old friends had not fallen and continued their glory.
"Yes, they did," Snow Empress said in a low voice. "After all, they are descendants of the original members. As long as they don't cross the line, we look after them. A hundred years ago, there was one named Ji Xuanqiu. He was the Pagoda master in his youth, but later, in pursuit of the sword path, he stepped down from the Pagoda master position and became an honorary elder who didn't manage affairs."
"But Ji Xuanqiu is of an older generation than the Light and Darkness Douluo and is nearing the end. He is now one of the hidden foundations of the Spirit Pagoda, living in retirement at home. Because of your relationship, he is closer to the extreme north faction."
Huo Yuhao's eyebrows twitched, "Hiding so many trump cards, who did you learn that from?"
With divine artifacts and Limit Douluo allies, Snow Empress had been living quite an exciting life these years.
"From you," Snow Empress laughed. "Of course, mainly because we don't need so many Limit Douluo to stand in the open. The Spirit Pagoda is already glorious enough. It's better to keep some cards up our sleeves. The Qiangu family also has Qiangu Qingfeng hidden, and behind Di Tian, there is a first-level god. Who hasn't kept something hidden?"
"Besides, what I've hidden is certainly not as much as the backup plans you've concealed."
Huo Yuhao smiled upon hearing this, "The things from ten thousand years ago are probably of little use in today's world."
"That might not be the case..."
As they spoke, they arrived home, and the last part of their conversation dissipated into the darkness.
...
The next day, under the bright sun, Huo Yuhao flew towards the sea in Mu Ye's divine-level mecha. The mecha's speed broke the sound barrier, emitting terrifying sonic booms.
At this speed, it would only take a little over an hour to travel from the East Sea to Heaven Dou City.
The mecha's internal detection equipment could detect soul power fluctuations within a certain range, but even after flying for a long time, the mecha's detection equipment showed no reaction.
Sea soul beasts, there were none left in the near-shore areas...
Huo Yuhao's eyes flickered as he looked at Mu Ye, who was sitting in the pilot's seat, "Teacher, does the second awakening have to be done in the sea?"
"Actually, no."
Mu Ye smiled and said, "The core of our sect's second awakening method is to push a person's potential to the limit, stimulating new potential in desperate situations. It doesn't necessarily have to be in the ocean."
"It's just that the founding ancestor of the Body Sect experienced a second awakening under the pressure of the deep sea, making this method of awakening in the ocean a tradition of our sect, but it's not a must."
"However, there is one place that is very suitable for stimulating potential. After all, you're a freak, and now that sea soul beasts have gathered in the deep sea, I'm worried that a normal environment won't be enough to stimulate you."
Mu Ye looked towards the distant sea, a slight smile on his lips, "That place is... the Abyss of the Deep Sea, one of the six forbidden lands."
...
Above the sea, the wind howled, and dark clouds loomed overhead.
Huo Yuhao stood on the divine-level mecha, his hair being torn by the salty sea wind, his robes flapping loudly. He gazed at the bizarre and turbulent sea ahead, his brows slightly furrowed.
Before him, the sea surface formed a massive whirlpool that was impossible to take in at a single glance. The seawater was spinning and sinking at an astonishing speed, forming a bottomless abyss.
The edges of the whirlpool surged with waves dozens of feet high, the spray flying hundreds of meters into the air before being shredded into fine mist by the wind. The center of the whirlpool was pitch black, as if it were a portal to another world.
"Among the six forbidden lands, some are naturally formed, while others are created by external forces. The Abyss of the Deep Sea belongs to the latter."
Mu Ye also stepped out of the red-level mecha, looking at the Abyss of the Deep Sea ahead, his expression turning serious, "Many years ago, a special energy fell from the sky into this sea, turning it into a forbidden land."
"Above the Abyss of the Deep Sea, there is a no-fly zone. No one or any soul tool can fly there. Inside the Abyss of the Deep Sea, all types of elemental energy are repelled, making it impossible to recover soul power. Spiritual power and blood energy are also suppressed. Staying inside for too long will turn you into a dried-up corpse. It's a dead zone; no life likes it there."
"A forbidden land," Huo Yuhao suddenly looked at Mu Ye, "This place is similar to that one."
Somewhat surprised by Huo Yuhao's knowledge, Mu Ye praised, "I didn't expect you to know about such things. This is usually only known by ancient and well-established forces."
In ancient times, certain areas were cursed by the divine realm for angering the gods, known as forbidden lands. These places were stripped of all possibility of life, and even elemental energy couldn't condense there.
But Tian Meng and others, after hearing Elder Yi's explanation, understood the truth.
These forbidden lands became what they are because of the influence of divine power.
Divine power can simulate small worlds, isolating elemental energy. If a fragment of divine power remains in a place, it effectively separates that area from the outside world, making it impossible for elemental energy to condense.
And elemental energy is a necessary condition for life to exist. Without elemental energy, naturally, there can be no life.
"Many forces in the Federation have cooperated to explore this forbidden land. The Body Sect, which hadn't yet declined to its current state, also got a piece of the pie, which is why I know its secrets."
"Initially, some people found energy fragments here, but even after taking them away, this place remained the same. It seems it won't recover anytime soon; those energy fragments have completely rewritten the rules here."
At this point, Mu Ye paused, thinking that Huo Yuhao would eventually reach that level, and continued:
"At a certain level of power, one can sense the existence of the divine realm, but that sensation suddenly disappeared many years ago. All peak powerhouses lost their connection to the divine realm. The formation of this forbidden land happened around the time the divine realm disappeared, so some suspect that the energy here might have fallen from the divine realm."
Huo Yuhao looked at the sea below, his expression somewhat strange.
The divine realm sure dropped a lot of coins...
Besides Devil Island, there are also forbidden lands born from the influence of divine power fragments.
Which deity did the divine power fragments left here belong to?