As they passed through the gate of light, everyone felt a peculiar force.
That must be the power of space, right?
When their vision cleared, the assembled prodigies all got a good look at their surroundings.
It was a vast, desolate, and lonely expanse, entirely grey and black as far as the eye could see.
Grand and magnificent, it delivered an incredibly powerful impact. Although it was daytime, the wind was still chilling. Whimpering gusts echoed from afar, and streaks of lightning fell, instantly transporting them back to ancient times.
The ground was riddled with potholes, with massive rocks standing erect. Some were dozens of feet tall, while others were only as tall as a person, showing signs of excavation. Ten feet away, a colossal pit was a shocking sight, its walls bearing numerous indentations and caves, clearly a discarded mine.
"So… this is the ancient mining area!" someone exclaimed in shock.
The geniuses beside him stared in stunned silence. Though they had adventured and faced many dangers, they had never witnessed such a peculiar environment. They were all speechless.
Gradually, more geniuses from other factions emerged from behind them.
Everyone was awestruck by the scene before them.
They waited for a while, confirming one thing: not everyone had been teleported to the exact same location.
Since they hadn't entered the teleportation gate simultaneously, there would be slight deviations. The ancient mining area was so vast that with hundreds of people randomly teleported, they would surely be far apart. Some were near the gate of light, while others might have been sent deep into the mining area.
"Fortunately!"
The geniuses near the gate of light were fortunate. Without wasting any time, they quickly separated and scattered in all directions.
The Carefree Sect.
Four people entered the ancient mining area.
Young Master Ji Moran scanned the surroundings and immediately felt something was amiss: "Everyone, be careful!"
The moment he arrived, the atmosphere felt somewhat strange. The wind was whistling, and a mysterious fluctuation continued to ripple outwards.
Before his three fellow disciples could react, the ground suddenly shook violently, making them unsteady. The ground beneath them cracked with booming sounds, the fissures widening continuously, one foot, two feet, three feet…
"Ah!" Ji Moran and the other three cried out in surprise, simultaneously ascending into the sky.
Fortunately, they had already surpassed the Venerable realm and could barely fly against the wind. Looking down at the deep, dark cracks that seemed intent on swallowing them, a chill ran down their spines.
With the slightest carelessness, they wouldn't have even had time to use their teleportation talismans and would have narrowly escaped death.
…
The Blood Sword Hall's people had a bit of bad luck.
As Murong Changqing led two fellow disciples in, he saw clusters of flickering flames floating in mid-air before them.
The flames were a peculiar gray and, when vaguely observed, resembled human faces.
There were no less than twenty to thirty of them.
Although Murong Changqing saw them for the first time, two words immediately flashed in his mind: Netherfire.
His scalp prickled, and he immediately shouted, "Not good, it's Netherfire, act quickly!"
The flames also 'detected' them and swiftly floated over. Murong Changqing and his two fellow disciples attacked immediately, but within moments, their minds grew hazy, a malevolent aura surged, making them wish to kill everyone around them.
The gray flames completely encircled the three of them. Murong Changqing grew more agitated the more he fought and more furious the more he killed. Suddenly, he swung his sword towards a nearby fellow disciple: "Die!"
His face was contorted with savagery; he had lost control.
Soon, the two fellow disciples, trapped within the flames, were unable to use their teleportation talismans and were tragically killed by Murong Changqing.
He ran towards the depths of the mining area, shouting and raving as if driven mad…
…
On the side of the Longevity Palace.
When Shang Xie Shaoqing confirmed that his seven fellow disciples were all around him, he immediately took out a communication jade pendant.
Someone immediately asked him, "Eldest Senior Brother, what are you doing?"
Shang Xie Shaoqing smiled slightly: "Looking for someone."
The others were a bit puzzled. Why would their Eldest Senior Brother want to find someone right after entering? Had he already arranged to cooperate with friends from other factions in the ancient mining area?
Just as the others were curious, Shang Xie Shaoqing had already connected to the other end and softened his voice: "Hello? Luoluo, it's me! It's Shang Xie, can you hear me?"
"I've already come in, where are you? Of course I'm here to find you, quickly tell me your coordinates."
"What, a big rock on the right, and one on the left too? But there are rocks everywhere here… I don't know the coordinates, this is bad, how will I find you now?"
"Luoluo, wait for me, I will definitely find you!"
…
On the other side.
Su Luo hung up Shang Xie Shaoqing's call and shrugged helplessly: "It's Shang Xie, he said he's coming to find us."
Li Tianjue frowned: "What does he want?"
Is he chasing Su Luo all the way here?
Not getting any real work done!
Su Luo didn't notice Li Tianjue's displeasure and waved her hand: "Forget it, don't mind him. The ancient mining area is so large, who knows where he is? Let's go our own way."
This time, among the Clear Void Heaven disciples who entered the finals, besides the five inner disciples like Li Tianjue who had automatic advancement spots, only five outer disciples—Qin Yuanshu, Lin Yao, Gu Chengfeng, Sun Lulu, and He Bi'er—had successfully entered the top three hundred, which was still quite good.
The plan after entering the ancient mining area had long been made by Li Tianjue and the others.
While ensuring safety, they would venture deeper and search for ores, maximizing their benefits.
As for Netherfire…
Once one ventured deeper into the mining area, they were bound to encounter this thing, so there was no need to actively search for it. Otherwise, the four great powers wouldn't have used this competition to let so many geniuses enter the mining area to eliminate them.
Su Luo and the others estimated that the number of Netherfires had likely reached a dangerous level.
This made normal mining operations impossible, necessitating the elimination of some.
Li Tianjue casually scanned the surroundings, ensuring everything was safe, before walking forward: "Everyone, according to our previously established plan, let's try to advance towards the depths of the mining area now. Pay attention to your surroundings and do not act alone. At least two people should be together."
"Yes, Eldest Senior Brother."
The group began to march into the vast mining area.
Being new arrivals, everyone was unaware of the fates of others and only wished to discover some high-grade ores. The two elders had previously instructed that any ores found could be kept by themselves for thirty percent, with the rest to be handed over to the sect.
Qin Yuanshu and the others took out the pickaxes they had prepared and tapped around, hoping to discover something.
"We can't return empty-handed after coming to the ancient mining area," Lu Jixing's eyes also sparkled as he constantly scanned the surroundings.
Chu Tianshu directly swung his sword, splitting a large rock in front of him into two halves.
Unfortunately, there was nothing inside.
The group continued to advance and search, directly breaking open rocks, but found nothing.
"I've cut open over a hundred rocks, and not a single one has yielded anything. My luck is too bad." Chu Tianshu's hands were numb from the impact, and one-third of his spiritual power was depleted, yet he had found nothing.
"Do you think high-grade ores are that easy to find?" Lu Jixing curled his lips.
"If you're so capable, why don't you try finding one?"
"If you can't do it, I can?"
For once, Lu Jixing did not boast.
Lin Yao and a few other outer disciples watched the two bicker with curiosity. Su Luo chuckled faintly: "If they were so easy to find, then special ores wouldn't be valuable. Besides, this is the edge area; if there were any, they would have been dug up long ago. We need to go deeper."