# Chapter 17 — Eyes Beneath Heaven
# Sun City — Eastern Wall
Cold crimson mist flooded endlessly from the partially opened gate.
The mont it touched the mountainside—
every spirit beast within the eastern forest began screaming.
Thousands of roars echoed together across the region.
Birds exploded into the sky.
Trees violently shook.
The earth trembled beneath Sun City itself.
And standing atop the eastern wall—
every cultivator felt it clearly.
Sothing inside that gate had awakened.
---
Xu Yuan slowly steadied himself against the stone wall while the resonance inside his chest continued pulsing painfully.
The pressure pouring from the gate no longer felt like ordinary spiritual energy.
It felt alive.
Watching.
Hungry.
---
Nearby civilians panicked imdiately after the crimson mist appeared.
“Close the gates!”
“Sothing’s coming out!”
“We need to leave the city!”
The eastern district instantly descended into chaos as people pushed through crowded streets desperately trying to escape.
---
City guards shouted continuously below.
“Maintain formation!”
“Don’t panic!”
“Return to your hos!”
Unfortunately—
nobody listened anymore.
Fear spread faster than commands.
---
Lin Hao looked one step away from collapse beside Xu Yuan.
“I knew it.”
Xu Yuan slowly turned toward him.
“Knew what?”
“We’re all going to die.”
“That’s slightly dramatic.”
“LOOK AT THE GIANT DEMON GATE!”
Xu Yuan quietly looked back toward the mountains.
“…Fair point.”
---
The massive ancient gate continued opening little by little.
Every movent produced deep grinding sounds that echoed throughout the region like mountains scraping against each other.
And behind the opening—
only darkness remained visible.
Not natural darkness.
Endless darkness.
---
Several cultivators atop the wall suddenly staggered backward coughing blood.
The weaker disciples looked terrified instantly.
“What happened?”
“The pressure…”
“It’s corrupting spiritual energy…”
---
Third Elder Xu Jian imdiately stepped forward.
“All disciples below Spirit Core Realm retreat from the wall!”
Several younger cultivators instantly obeyed.
Others hesitated while staring toward the gate in fascination.
Ancient ruins always attracted greedy people.
Even now.
---
Xu Yuan quietly observed the crimson mist spreading through the forest below.
Wherever the mist touched—
plants blackened instantly.
Spirit beasts fled deeper into the mountains screaming violently.
Sothing about the mist felt deeply unnatural.
Almost like it didn’t belong in this world.
---
Then suddenly—
BOOM!
A violent pulse erupted from inside the gate.
Everyone atop the eastern wall froze instantly.
Because for one terrifying mont—
they all saw them clearly.
Eyes.
Countless crimson eyes floating within the darkness behind the gate.
Watching silently.
---
Several civilians below scread in horror.
One younger disciple collapsed completely.
“That’s impossible…”
“What are those things?”
“No beast has that many eyes…”
---
Xu Yuan’s chest resonance exploded painfully again.
This ti—
he nearly lost balance entirely.
Fragnts flashed violently through his mind.
Ancient underground halls.
Broken chains.
Massive black crystal pillars.
And kneeling before the gate—
countless corpses wearing unfamiliar robes.
---
Then—
he saw sothing else.
A figure.
A woman standing before the sealed gate while blood flowed from her mouth.
Her hand pressed desperately against an ancient formation.
Silver light surrounded her body.
And behind her—
the countless crimson eyes slowly opened one after another.
---
The vision shattered instantly.
Xu Yuan sharply inhaled.
His heartbeat had beco unstable.
Beside him—
Xia Yu imdiately noticed.
“You saw another mory.”
Xu Yuan slowly nodded.
“…I think so.”
“What did you see?”
Before Xu Yuan could answer—
another violent tremor shook the mountains.
CRAAAAACK.
The gate opened further.
And this ti—
sothing stepped forward inside the darkness.
---
Not fully visible.
Only a silhouette.
Tall.
Thin.
Long arms dragging unnaturally against the ground.
The sa creature from the rooftops.
Except now—
everyone could feel its pressure clearly.
Far stronger than before.
---
Several elders instantly beca serious.
“That thing ca from inside the gate?”
“No…”
Another elder slowly narrowed his eyes.
“…It was guarding it.”
Silence spread afterward.
Because that realization terrified everyone more.
---
The creature slowly raised its head.
Its crimson eyes scanned the city calmly.
Then—
it looked directly toward Xu Yuan again.
Instantly—
the resonance inside Xu Yuan’s body surged violently.
BOOM!
A wave of spiritual pressure exploded outward from him unintentionally.
Nearby disciples imdiately stepped backward in shock.
Even the elders looked stunned.
---
Xu Yuan himself froze.
Because for one brief mont—
black symbols flashed across his arm before disappearing instantly.
Ancient.
Broken.
Unreadable.
---
Xia Yu imdiately grabbed his wrist.
Silver spiritual energy flowed naturally into his body again.
The violent resonance weakened slightly afterward.
But this ti—
it didn’t disappear completely.
---
Several nearby elders stared toward Xu Yuan seriously now.
Third Elder Xu Jian frowned deeply.
“…What was that?”
Xu Yuan honestly answered:
“I don’t know.”
And for once—
nobody thought he was joking.
---
Far beyond the wall—
the crimson creature slowly tilted its head while staring toward Xu Yuan and Xia Yu together.
Almost curious.
Then suddenly—
more red eyes opened within the darkness behind the gate.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
An endless sea of crimson staring toward Sun City.
---
Several weaker civilians below fainted instantly from fear.
Even cultivators felt chills spread through their bodies.
Because everyone understood sothing now.
The creature outside the gate—
was not the real danger.
---
Then—
a deep ancient voice echoed from within the darkness itself.
Not spoken aloud.
Heard directly inside the soul.
> “Incomplete…”
>
> “The fragnt still lives…”
Every cultivator atop the wall instantly turned pale.
So began bleeding from the ears.
Others collapsed entirely.
The voice alone carried overwhelming pressure.
---
Xu Yuan grabbed his head painfully.
The resonance inside him reacted violently.
The black symbols briefly flashed across his skin again.
And deep within his mind—
sothing cracked.
---
Darkness flooded his consciousness instantly.
He stood inside endless black ruins again.
This ti clearer than before.
Ancient broken halls stretched endlessly around him while massive black crystal pillars illuminated the darkness faintly.
The air felt dead.
Silent.
And at the center of the ruins—
stood a woman.
Silver-haired.
Blood covering her robes.
Her hand reached toward him gently.
“My son…”
Xu Yuan froze completely.
Because this ti—
he saw her face clearly.
And strangely—
it resembled Xia Yu slightly.
---
Before he could speak—
a second figure appeared behind the woman.
A tall man covered in fractured black armor.
Ancient symbols glowed faintly across his body.
But his face remained hidden beneath darkness.
---
The woman’s voice trembled softly.
“Your father and mother are waiting for—”
CRAAAAASH!
The vision violently shattered apart.
---
Xu Yuan suddenly returned to reality gasping heavily.
The eastern wall remained in chaos around him.
Civilians screaming.
Cultivators shouting.
Spiritual pressure shaking the sky.
And directly ahead—
the crimson creature still stared toward him silently.
---
Xia Yu held his arm tightly now.
Her usually calm expression finally showed slight concern.
“What happened?”
Xu Yuan slowly steadied his breathing.
Then quietly answered:
“…Soone called their son.”
Lin Hao imdiately looked horrified.
“That’s the part you ntion first?!”
---
Before anyone could continue—
the gate opened wider again.
And this ti—
a massive crimson hand slowly erged from the darkness beyond.
Ancient black chains wrapped around its wrist endlessly.
Yet despite the chains—
the hand alone looked larger than several city buildings combined.
---
The entire eastern wall descended into panic instantly.
“Retreat!”
“All civilians retreat imdiately!”
“Activate the city formations!”
Multiple spiritual formations across Sun City illuminated at once.
Golden barriers rose throughout the walls while elders released cultivation pressure simultaneously.
---
But the mont the giant chained hand touched the outer mountain—
the earth cracked apart instantly.
BOOOOOOM!
A massive shockwave exploded across the region.
Several buildings near the eastern district collapsed imdiately.
People scread everywhere.
---
Xu Yuan nearly lost balance again before Xia Yu stabilized him.
At the sa mont—
her silver spiritual energy suddenly reacted strangely.
Bright silver light spread around both their bodies naturally.
The resonance between them intensified instantly.
---
The chained crimson hand suddenly stopped moving.
Then—
very slowly—
the countless crimson eyes inside the gate turned toward Xia Yu.
Watching her silently now.
---
And for the first ti since the gate opened—
Xu Yuan felt sothing even more terrifying than hunger from beyond the darkness.
Recognition.
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