Central Plains, Western Region.
Xiao Yi and the two others slowly appeared in the Void Realm.
Elder Zhu Li looked up, pointed at the dark sky before them, and softly said, "Little friend, that's the Corpse Burial Mountain Range ahead..."
Xiao Yi looked over at the sound.
He saw the dark mountain range stretching across the heavens and earth like a lurking giant beast.
Jagged ridges exposed black rocks, with fragments of rotten coffins and half-exposed white bones stuck in the crevices.
Perennial gray mist, carrying the stench of corpses and the reek of decaying leaves, rolled through this part of the world, creating a wailing wind.
And in the belly of the mountain, a huge cavity had been forcibly carved out, where the Human Hall, one of the three Great Heavenly Gang Halls of the Hall of Souls, was embedded in the flesh-like mountain wall.
Xiao Yi also used his Soul Power to probe.
He discovered that the Human Hall was not isolated in the Corpse Burial Mountain Range, but like a giant beast that devoured mountains and peaks, it was half-embedded in the most treacherous black cliff face of the mountain range.
He saw that the outer walls of the Human Hall were covered in rough marks from axes and chisels.
But in every groove, there was a dark purple Soul rust, absorbing all the gloomy mist and corpse Qi of the Corpse Burial Mountain Range around the hall, transforming into rolling black-brown clouds.
They slowly undulated like the breath of a giant beast, making the entire valley terrifyingly silent.
The most striking feature was the roof of the hall.
It jutted out a hundred zhang from the cliff, with eaves like ferocious beast claws piercing the sky, and each eave pillar was a thick black bone pillar that required a full embrace to encircle.
Chains hung from the tops of the pillars, strung with skull heads the size of an adult's, densely hanging down in a sheet.
Yet, when the wind passed, not a sound was heard—it wasn't that there was no wind, but rather that the pressure emanating from the hall had already crushed the air currents, making even the wind seem to stagnate outside the hall.
The most intimidating aspect was the aura surrounding the Human Hall.
It wasn't ordinary chill, but an extremely heavy and oppressive feeling, as if the entire weight of the Corpse Burial Mountain Range was concentrated within the Human Hall.
From several miles away, Xiao Yi, merely by probing with his Soul Power, could feel a tightness in his chest, his Divine Soul seemingly gripped by an invisible giant hand.
Even when his gaze fell upon that dark black hall, it was as if he was staring directly at a lurking ancient Vicious Beast.
He couldn't help but lighten his breathing, fearing that any slight movement might provoke a backlash from the hall, and he would be crushed into dust by that all-devouring pressure.
"Is this the Human Hall, one of the three Great Heavenly Gang Halls?"
"This oppressive feeling is truly terrifying..."
Xiao Yi, who quickly withdrew his Soul Power, couldn't help but sigh.
Although the group was still far from the Corpse Burial Mountain Range, they could still feel the oppressive aura it emitted.
Even Xiao Yi, a Nine-Star Dou Zun, felt this way, let alone Xiao Yan, who currently only possessed Dou Zong cultivation!
Xiao Yan also wore a troubled expression at this moment: "Is Master imprisoned in a place like this...?"
"Hall of Souls!"
At this moment, Xiao Yan gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with anger!
It was only because Xiao Yan's strength was insufficient at this moment; otherwise, he probably wouldn't have been able to tolerate it for a second and would have already charged into the Human Hall... Xiao Yi also noticed Xiao Yan's unusual state, gently patted Xiao Yan's shoulder, and softly comforted him:
"Little Yanzi..."
"Calm down, we will definitely succeed today!"
However, no sooner had Xiao Yi's words fallen than he instantly perceived a terrifying aura suddenly pressing in from all directions.
"Everyone, this is not a place where one can come and go as they please..."
Only a deep voice was heard slowly sounding.
Immediately, the miasma in the distant Corpse Burial Mountain Range suddenly quieted—not the silence of the wind stopping.
Instead, it was a deathly stillness where even particles of gray mist hung in mid-air, and even falling decaying leaves made no sound.
The next moment, a dark purple crack split open in the sky not far from Xiao Yi and the others.
It wasn't light; it was a shadow deeper than ink that seeped out of the crack, transforming into spreading bone patterns when it landed, extending along the Void Realm of the sky here.
Wherever it passed, the pale white skeletons all sank half an inch, as if bowing in reverence.
The person who came walked upon this bone pattern.
He wore no elaborate robes, only a layer of dark gold bone armor.
The armor plates were actually countless tiny finger bones pieced together.
With every step, wisps of Soul mist leaked from the armor seams, solidifying upon landing into fleeting skull imprints.
The person's figure was not particularly burly, yet he seemed to absorb all the surrounding Qi; even the perennial corpse stench of the Corpse Burial Mountain Range was suppressed and vanished within three feet of him.
It was then that Xiao Yi finally saw the person's face clearly!
Half of his face was covered by a dark iron bone mask, obscuring his eyes and bridge of his nose, revealing only his thin lips and jaw.
Dark purple Soul chains were wrapped around the edge of the mask, with a pigeon egg-sized Soul crystal dangling from the end of the chain.
Within the crystal, countless Soul shadows could vaguely be seen colliding, yet they could never break out of the crystal wall, only causing the Soul crystal to emit a trembling light.
When the person raised his hand, his finger joints gleamed cold white, with a wisp of black Soul Qi suspended at his fingertips.
That Soul Qi appeared slender, yet it caused the cliff walls several miles away to crumble—not from weathering, but from the pressure within that wisp of aura, which forcibly crushed the rock's texture.
The person didn't speak, nor did he even look around.
Yet the entire Corpse Burial Mountain Range seemed to bow at his feet.
Even the Human Hall, that dark iron rock hall that devoured Souls, at the moment of his appearance,
Caused the chains on its eaves to stop swaying, as if this heaven and earth itself feared this figure that emerged from the shadows.
At this moment, Xiao Yan, with only Dou Zong cultivation, was even unable to stand straight under such pressure!
"Zhu Li..."
"You're not staying properly on your Dragon Island, leading two young juniors to my Hall of Souls territory; I'm afraid that's a bit out of line, isn't it...?"
The person merely glanced at Zhu Li, then spoke softly with an indifferent tone.
Zhu Li smiled slightly at the words, then responded in a deep voice:
"Gu You..."
"Your words are a bit too overbearing; why don't you just say that the entire Central Plains is your Hall of Souls's territory?"
Gu You!?
Hearing Elder Zhu Li call out the person's name, Xiao Yi was startled!
The person before him was actually Gu You, the Second Heavenly Venerate of the Hall of Souls, a High-Tier Half-Saint!
No wonder he exuded such an aura just by appearing!
It was no exaggeration to say that the 'coolness' Gu You displayed upon his arrival was very high!
Even higher than that of Hun Tiandi, who appeared in the Xiao Realm that day... Those who knew, knew that Gu You was merely a High-Tier Half-Saint; those who didn't might even mistake this old fellow for a Dou Di... Hearing Zhu Li's words, Gu You did not get angry; instead, he spoke contemptuously: "This old man disdains engaging in such pointless verbal disputes with you..."
"This old man advises you to leave quickly. If you delay, even you will likely not be able to leave this place today!"
Zhu Li: "Gu You, we have come today only to request one person from the Hall of Souls..."
"Yao Chen!"
Hearing the name Yao Chen, and looking at Zhu Li and the two others again, Gu You's lips curled into an uncontrollable slight smile:
"Zhu Li, this old man sees that you are truly getting on in years..."
"When has anyone the Hall of Souls wanted ever been handed over?"
"What? Today, with you, and those two useless boys behind you, you think you can make my Hall of Souls hand someone over with just your mouths?"
"That's a bit too ridiculous!"
Zhu Li and Xiao Yi were not surprised by Gu You's answer.
Zhu Li then sighed and glanced at Xiao Yi, then spoke in a deep voice:
"Gu You..."
"Since that's the case, then let's fight..."