"Ye Ling!!!"
Seeing Ye Ling spit blood, Ye Qingyan's expression shifted slightly. She quickly stepped forward to check on him, "Are you alright?"
"It's nothing, just a minor injury."
Ye Ling waved his hand, regulating his breathing for a moment to calm the chaotic spiritual energy within him.
Ye Qingyan asked with concern, "Were you attacked?"
Ye Ling shook his head, "It didn't feel like a man-made attack, more like some kind of natural energy. It's a shame my clone couldn't withstand that force, and I didn't have time to get a clear look at the situation outside."
Ye Qingyan said, "It's so dangerous out there, let's just give up. This is a trap."
"No..." Ye Ling chuckled, "If I had any doubts before, I would have suspected it was a trap. But after destroying a clone, I'm now certain it's not."
Ye Qingyan asked in confusion, "Why? Aren't you injured?"
"It's just the loss of a clone, it means nothing to me. If it were truly a trap, why wouldn't they wait for my main body to come out before making a move? After all, that would be the most effective way to eliminate me completely."
"More importantly, even though my clone only survived for a moment, it wasn't without gain."
"What did you discover?" Ye Qingyan asked again.
Ye Ling placed his hand on the fragile cosmic barrier and said with a light smile, "I memorized the coordinates connecting outside to here... In other words, as long as I leave a marker here, I can return anytime."
For Ye Ling, he never feared challenges from beyond the domain. Otherwise, he wouldn't have directly provoked all the powerful beings from outside the domain and drawn their anger upon himself.
What he feared was being unable to return after going out.
There were still many people he cared about on Earth, and the petty individuals within this inner universe had not been completely eradicated. If he were to never return, the world would fall into the hands of the Shadow Hall, and the fates of Ye You and Su Ruoxue would become tragic.
Ye Ling would never allow such a thing to happen.
But now, Ye Ling's only concern had been resolved. The remaining challenges, he could face them head-on!
Seeing the determination in Ye Ling's eyes, Ye Qingyan realized his mind was made up and stopped trying to dissuade him. She then said, "It seems you're planning to venture out. However, the world outside the domain must be fraught with danger. If I go with you, I'll only become a burden. So, I won't be going this time. I'll stay here and guard you, waiting for your return."
"Mm..."
Ye Ling set up a beacon in place and said to Ye Qingyan, "This beacon is my reliance for returning. I'll entrust its protection to you."
"No problem! I'll keep it safe!"
Ye Qingyan squinted and smiled, giving Ye Ling an 'okay' gesture.
Ye Ling nodded slightly, no longer hesitating, and directly passed through the cosmic barrier!
Boom!!!
The moment Ye Ling broke through the cosmic barrier, an extremely powerful energy poured onto him, causing his body to crack!
Fortunately, Ye Ling was prepared for this. He used white runes to create a barrier around himself, blocking the terrifying incoming energy!
The cracked skin quickly healed. Ye Ling stood firm in the outer domain and realized he wasn't in a star field, but rather in some kind of broken spacetime.
It was pitch black all around. Only above him was there a azure palace. All the energy impacts that Ye Ling endured came from that palace.
And within that palace, Ye Ling could feel an unimaginable pressure!
It seemed to be from the Creation God himself!
"I seem to have arrived somewhere extraordinary..."
Ye Ling swallowed slightly, suppressing the shock in his heart, and flew towards the palace.
Soon, Ye Ling reached the palace gates and found them locked. The gates were also entwined with dark liquid chains, emanating a dense black aura.
These liquid-like chains were none other than residual evil power!
"Residual evil power? Where exactly have I come to?"
Ye Ling recognized the power that formed the chains and his heart skipped a beat. He looked around vigilantly for anything suspicious.
"Little brother... Over here!"
At this moment, a little girl peeked her head out from behind a stone pillar at the palace entrance, beckoning Ye Ling to come over.
"There's a little girl here?" Ye Ling was utterly shocked to see the little girl waving at him, his face filled with disbelief.
He hadn't even noticed the little girl hiding behind the stone pillar just now!
Furthermore, this palace was constantly releasing that terrifying impact force. Even Ye Ling could only counteract it with the white runes, yet this little girl, with no protection around her, could easily withstand the energy impacts emanating from the palace!
Who was this girl?
Seeing Ye Ling's stunned expression, the little girl quickly said, "Little brother, don't just stand there! Hurry over, be careful not to be discovered!"
Hearing the little girl's words, Ye Ling couldn't afford to think too much. He could only quickly walk towards her.
The little girl immediately grabbed Ye Ling's hand and ran towards the back of the palace.
Ye Ling's mind was full of questions. As he followed the little girl, he asked, "Girl, what's your name?"
"Zi You, you can also call me Xiao You," the little girl said quickly, swiftly leading Ye Ling to hide behind a wall, as if avoiding something.
"Zi You?" Ye Ling was taken aback, then smiled, "That's quite similar to my little sister's name."
Zi You peeked her head out again to look outside. After confirming it was safe, she felt around the wall with her small hands and quickly pressed down a brick.
A slightly shorter stone door materialized on the wall.
Zi You tugged at Ye Ling, "Little brother, let's go in!"
Ye Ling was stunned, "What's inside?"
Zi You said quickly, "Don't ask so many questions. You go in first. If the evil soldiers discover us here, it'll be all over!"
Seeing Zi You's nervous expression, Ye Ling didn't dare to ask further. He followed her instructions and crawled into the stone door.
Behind the stone door was a short and narrow passage. It was more than enough for the little girl Zi You to pass through, but for Ye Ling, he had to stoop, making progress very uncomfortable.
After entering the palace through the stone door, Ye Ling continued to move through the passage and asked the little girl, "Have you been living here all along?"
"Mm... I live alone in this palace."
"You alone?"
Ye Ling couldn't help but exclaim in surprise. He hadn't expected that this little girl, who looked only six or seven years old, was the owner of this palace!
Zi You replied, "Yes... I've been living here."
Ye Ling then asked, "Then what are these evil soldiers you mentioned?"
Zi You: "A group of very terrifying monsters. They patrol outside the palace frequently. As soon as I sneak out, they come to capture me and bring me back to the palace."
"Many of the secret passages I dug before have been sealed by them. This passage is my last one."
"This is truly..." Hearing Zi You's explanation, Ye Ling's doubts grew even more, and he didn't know how to describe his feelings.
Where did the Creation God's clone from before go? What kind of place was this palace? Who was this little girl?
More and more questions flooded his mind, leaving his thoughts in chaos!