They traveled onward.
Bai Zihe’s divine sense was released to its maximum. This was his first time in the ancient ruins, and he didn't know when unexpected situations might arise, so being cautious was understandable.
Soon…
Everyone, including Dugu Jian, disappeared beyond Bai Zihe’s divine sense range – they had all gone in different directions. And this direction was taken by Bai Zihe alone.
"Swish…"
The next moment, a streak of light sliced through the sky. Bai Zihe’s figure continued to move further away.
About half an hour later.
A desert appeared in Bai Zihe’s sight. As far as he could see… there was nothing but scattered yellow sand and grit dancing in the wind. There wasn't even the sound of insects or birds, let alone any greenery.
“Here?”
Bai Zihe frowned slightly. Was this place where Eighth Senior Sister and the little tower had spoken of a great opportunity? He felt it was a bit unreliable.
However.
He still moved deeper into it. kuAiδugg
“Swish…”
“Whoosh…”
As Bai Zihe ventured deeper, the wind and sand grew stronger, almost forming a sandstorm, looking extremely terrifying. Bai Zihe looked below. It was a sea of sand. Not a single distinguishing feature. His divine sense also yielded the same result; he couldn’t detect anything unusual, which made Bai Zihe somewhat doubtful.
“Little Tower…”
Bai Zihe asked in confusion, contacting the Haotian Tower: “The treasure you mentioned, the one that can awaken the Earth Saint Body, is it in this place?”
“More or less.”
The little tower’s answer was ambiguous. Bai Zihe was troubled. What should he do?
“Swish…”
The next moment, Bai Zihe gathered a stream of sword energy in his hand. This area was entirely vast yellow sand with nothing else. Therefore, any opportunity could only be buried beneath the sand.
“Whoosh…”
The next moment.
The sword energy plunged into the yellow sand below.
“Rumble…”
In the blink of an eye, the yellow sand exploded, flying everywhere, forming yellow sand dragons that wreaked havoc. However… after a moment, the sandstorm dissipated, and there was no change. Bai Zihe’s sword energy had merely dug a pit where he stood, with none of the expected magical occurrences.
“Swish…”
Bai Zihe refused to believe it. With a thought, the Xuanyuan Sword appeared in his hand.
“Clang…”
A powerful sword energy instantly condensed, centering on the Xuanyuan Sword in Bai Zihe’s hand. A potent aura continuously gathered upon it. After a moment. Bai Zihe had finished building up his power. The sword energy from the Xuanyuan Sword was now tens of feet long, far more terrifying than the sword energy from Heavenly Sword Elder on that day. This was Bai Zihe’s limit without using Ruoshui or the “Heaven and Earth Splitting” technique, and its power was immense.
“Rumble…”
The next moment, Bai Zihe waved his hand. The Xuanyuan Sword slashed down towards the boundless desert below. This sword strike… was condensed to its utmost. The sword intent converged with formidable power.
“Whoosh…”
In the blink of an eye, the sword energy struck the boundless desert. This time. The moment the sword energy exploded, a flower made of yellow sand burst open. The spreading sand billowed several miles high and wide. Even this vast land… trembled at that moment. This showed the extraordinary power of the strike. After a moment. The yellow sand slowly dispersed, and the dust gradually settled. Bai Zihe looked. A massive pit tens of feet wide appeared where it had been. But this was not the point. The key was that Bai Zihe suddenly detected an aura from within it. A… very powerful aura.
“Could it be…”
Bai Zihe's heart stirred, and he formed a guess. It was better to have something than nothing. Having something meant there was a clue.
“Swish…”
Having made a discovery, Bai Zihe became decisive and began to unleash sword energy again.
“Swish…”
“Whoosh…”
“Boom…”
Streams of sword energy poured into the center of the giant pit, as if they were free. One sword strike after another, one after another. Soon. The giant pit grew larger and larger. What made Bai Zihe’s heart race was…
“Thump…”
The next moment, a dull sound echoed, coming from the very center of the giant pit. Simultaneously. As the sound emerged, the giant pit vibrated once more. Bai Zihe saw it very clearly.
“It seems…”
Now, Bai Zihe was even more confident: “This thing should be buried beneath the endless sand, but I don’t know what it is.”
“Swish…”
Immediately, Bai Zihe sheathed the Xuanyuan Sword. Then, he leaped directly into the sand and performed the Earth Evasion Technique! He had comprehended the essence of Earth, and in this vast desert, he performed it with great ease, without any delay. He kept descending. Kept going deeper.
“Thump…”
After descending for several minutes, Bai Zihe heard the sound for the second time. This time, since Bai Zihe was himself within the sand, he heard it exceptionally clearly, as if it were right next to his ear. But what surprised Bai Zihe was… this sound was like the heartbeat of some colossal entity. Wait. A heartbeat? Bai Zihe froze. He suddenly remembered that on Dragon Island, the first time he found the Lava Behemoth, he had also heard a similar sound. Could it be… that below was also a slumbering earth-element demonic beast? Bai Zihe’s heart tightened. This was not a good omen. The Lava Behemoth back then was one of the divine beasts. Even with the Xuanyuan Sword on him now, a Xuanyuan Sword capable of its second form, he was still uncertain about confronting such a demonic beast. Divine beasts… were beings far beyond cultivators of the Tribulation Realm. Otherwise, those Long-Life sects wouldn't have given up on Dragon Island, such a vast treasure trove, out of fear of Dragon Island.
“This…”
The next moment, Bai Zihe finally arrived. He saw a super colossal demonic beast slumbering in the sand. This creature… resembled a dragon, but its entire body was earthy yellow. With the naked eye, it was difficult to distinguish it from the sand. Of course. Now that this creature was before him, its heartbeat alone sounded like thunderclaps right beside his ears, making it impossible not to hear. Coupled with… the powerful aura it exuded, enough to make one tremble. What should he do now? Facing this colossus, Bai Zihe was somewhat at a loss. If he fought, he might not be able to defeat it. If he didn't fight, there would be no further clues.
“Little Tower…”
When in doubt, Bai Zihe asked the little tower again.
“Don’t ask, just fight.”
The little tower’s answer was very straightforward, yet it left Bai Zihe speechless. Fight?
“Whoosh…”
Just then, the sand dune dragon slowly lifted its eyelids. Its eyeballs were the size of houses, staring directly at Bai Zihe.
“Roar…”
Upon seeing Bai Zihe before it. The sand dune dragon let out a roar and opened its massive maw towards Bai Zihe.