In the dark, damp prison, Yangg Yan and Feng Xiao lay huddled together on the floor. The sharp light in their eyes was gone, replaced by the dullness of a dead fish’s, as if they had lost all hope.
After being locked in this dark, damp place for several days, even the most resolute will would have been worn down, and theirs was nearly gone.
"Where in the world are we? It looks like we’re not getting out of here!"
Yangg Yan glanced at the Ultimate Venerable Seal surrounding the cell and shook his head, overco with an indescribable dejection.
When they first arrived, they saw no guards and planned to escape. But after being brutally "taught a lesson" by the Ultimate Venerable Seal several tis, the two finally understood that escape was simply impossible.
"Escape? Haven’t you seen that the people who bring us food are all Peak Powerhouses of the Armor Realm? Even without the seal left by an Ultimate Venerable Powerhouse, we still couldn’t get away!"
A look of despair crossed Feng Xiao’s face.
’Before we were injured, we were only at the Early-Stage Armor Realm. We can’t even beat the people who deliver our food. The thought of getting out is nothing but a fool’s dream!’
They had been certain they would die under Lik Nansou’s attack, only to wake up and find themselves imprisoned here, their bodies heavily wounded.
"When I first arrived, I was just like you, thinking about how to escape. Heh, after a few attempts, I learned it’s utterly impossible!"
A bitter laugh ca from nearby. The prison held another inmate, an old man whose strength was far greater than theirs. His faint aura carried the bearing of a First Generation Grandmaster; he had already reached the Peak of the Qi Sect.
The old man’s clothes were tattered and his face was haggard. At first glance, you might have mistaken him for a beggar. He had clearly been imprisoned here for a very long ti.
"Has no one ever escaped?" Yangg Yan asked, finding it hard to believe.
"Do you know how long I’ve been locked in here?" the old man sneered, his gaze drifting to the ceiling, his voice bleak. "Thirty-seven years! A full thirty-seven years!"
"In these thirty-seven years, at least twenty others who reached the Peak of the Qi Sect like have been imprisoned here. There were even two at the Early-Stage Ultimate Venerable Realm. A pity. Not a single one escaped. They all died!"
"What? Even Early-Stage Ultimate Venerables died?" Yangg Yan exclaid, startled.
’An Ultimate Venerable can be considered at the Peak of the Qi Sea. Every one of them is a regional overlord who would receive the highest honors from the Royal Family upon entering the Empire. For two of them to have died here... it’s just unbelievable!’
"Even Ultimate Venerable Powerhouses can’t escape, and you two think you can? Dream on!" The old man waved his hand dismissively.
"What is this place? Why can’t even Ultimate Venerable Powerhouses escape?" Feng Xiao couldn’t help but ask.
"What place? The Mi Tian Sect, of course! The Mi Tian Sect Master is Venerable Mi Hong. He’s at the Ultimate Venerable Peak, the number one powerhouse in the Divine Wind Empire. His strength is unrivaled. You want to escape from his domain? Not unless you’ve reached the Heaven-Seizing Creation Secret Realm!"
At the ntion of Venerable Mi Hong, a look of terror appeared in the old man’s eyes, and his entire body trembled like a leaf.
"Number one in the Divine Wind Empire?"
"Unrivaled?"
Yangg Yan and Feng Xiao exchanged a glance, and each saw a flicker of fear in the other’s eyes.
"I was thinking that if we could escape to a place where the Communication Jade Token works, we could send a ssage to Nie Yun and have him rescue us," Yangg Yan said. "Looking at it now, it’s a good thing we couldn’t get a ssage out. Otherwise, not only would we be trapped, but he would have been dragged into this as well!"
A seal in the prison suppressed all transmissions, preventing the Communication Jade Token’s ssages from getting out.
"You’re still expecting soone to co and save you? Hah, dream on! This is the Mi Tian Sect. Who knows how long they’ve been fortifying this place. It’s full of traps and fraught with danger. Rescuing soone from here is harder than climbing to the heavens!" The old man reacted as if he’d just heard the funniest joke in the world.
"But... this Nie Yun we’re talking about is incredible. He’s an Ultimate Venerable Powerhouse too!" Feng Xiao retorted, annoyed by the old man’s mockery.
"There are plenty of Ultimate Venerable Powerhouses. When did he reach that realm? How old is he?" the old man asked.
"We... we don’t know when he beca an Ultimate Venerable, but a little over two months ago, I think he was only at the Peak of the Armor Realm!" Feng Xiao said after a mont of thought.
"Peak of the Armor Realm just over two months ago?" The old man’s expression was strange. "Are you sure you’re not pulling my leg?"
’As a cultivator at the Peak of the Qi Sect, the old man knew just how difficult it was to advance through that realm. To go from the Peak of the Armor Realm to an Ultimate Venerable in just over two months... Who did they think they were kidding?’
"Pulling your leg? Of course not! He really did reach the Ultimate Venerable Realm!" Yangg Yan interjected.
"From the Peak of the Armor Realm to an Ultimate Venerable in two months? That’s absolutely impossible!" the old man stated adamantly.
"Believe it or not, we both saw him fly with our own eyes!"
Yangg Yan confird with a firm nod.
’To be honest, even as he said it, he knew others wouldn’t believe it. Even the two of them found it incredible! Just over three months ago, Nie Yun’s strength wasn’t much different from theirs—in fact, they might have even been a little stronger. And now, he had reached the Ultimate Venerable Realm and beco a supre powerhouse in the Divine Wind Empire.’
"Fly? Then he really is an Ultimate Venerable!"
Only Ultimate Venerable Powerhouses could fly; that was common knowledge. Hearing that they had seen it with their own eyes, the old man stopped doubting. He shook his head with a sigh. "True, there are always plenty of geniuses. A while back, I heard about a young man in the Empire nad Mo Yanqing who reached the Ultimate Venerable Realm in his thirties. Another prodigy! But even if this Nie Yun of yours is a genius, he’s only just beco an Ultimate Venerable. How could he possibly compare to an old monster like Venerable Mi Hong, who entered the Ultimate Venerable Realm decades, even a century ago?"
"Nie Yun has a lot of tricks up his sleeve. Maybe... maybe he’ll have a way!" As they said this, even Feng Xiao and Yangg Yan sounded unconvinced.
It wasn’t that they lacked faith in Nie Yun’s strength, but that the Mi Tian Sect Master was simply too terrifying. The title "Number One in the Divine Wind Empire" alone was enough to make countless people shrink back in fear.
"A way? In this world, strength reigns supre. Tricks are useless! I’d advise you to give up hope, lest it lead to greater disappointnt. You’ve never witnessed the terror of the Mi Tian Sect Master firsthand. You can’t possibly know!"
The old man seed to fall into a mory. Whatever he recalled, it made his face turn deathly pale.
"The news that we were betrayed by the Assassin Union will get out sooner or later. Knowing Nie Yun’s temper, he’ll definitely investigate it once he finds out... I just hope he doesn’t co..." Yangg Yan’s expression faltered.
’He’d known Nie Yun for so ti and was very familiar with his temperant. Their disappearance was no small matter. If he really investigated and found this place, wouldn’t he just be walking into a trap?’
"You’re right. I hope he doesn’t co. If he really tries to save us, we’ll just be getting him killed!" Feng Xiao realized, his face growing pale.
"It’s good you understand. Just resign yourselves to staying here. This Nie Yun you speak of has no chance. It’s better if he doesn’t co. If he does, he’ll only be walking to his death!" The old man shook his head.
After thirty-seven years in this prison, he had seen many fellow inmates killed, and just as many would-be rescuers. The old man knew the defenses of this place all too well. He knew that anyone who charged in was just committing suicide.
"Walking to my death? Heh, do you really have so little faith in ?"
Just then, a voice suddenly echoed from the front of the cell. A young man strode into view, a faint smile on his handso face.
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