Chapter 2660 - 2661: Qi Realm Maze

The sudden appearance of the Qi Realm Maze made Qi Chen and the others extremely nervous. They had an inexplicable fear and dread towards the Qi Realm, as every encounter with it had left nothing but unpleasant memories.

Long Boduo left after bringing Feng Yuan to the Qi Realm Maze. There was no choice; the spatial lock had not been lifted, and everyone had certain operational needs, so the Netherworld Divine Beasts had to bear the burden.

Feng Yuan couldn’t understand why they didn’t just lift the spatial lock. But it was their decision, and Feng Yuan didn’t bother to care. Perhaps it was because of the spatial lock that the Imperial People launched their cross-boundary attack?

Without further thought, Feng Yuan walked to the entrance of the Qi Realm Maze, which was locked. Ancient Mythical Era runes tightly sealed this space, even affecting vision. All possible means of transmission were distorted and interfered with by those runes.

This did not surprise Feng Yuan. During the Mythical Era, there were indeed means of transmitting curses through vision, and it was for this reason that the Mythological Remnants handled the Qi Realm matters with a mastery that seemed effortless.

Of course, even so, they didn’t know what was going on inside. After all, it was dangerous, and it didn’t look like something the Imperial People were involved in. Naturally, they wouldn’t bother to investigate.

"You... want to go in?"

Just as Feng Yuan was examining the runes, a man in a gold-trimmed black cloak with a hood approached. He hesitated upon seeing Feng Yuan but then slowly spoke.

With his back to the man, Feng Yuan casually said,

"Of course, I don’t have anything urgent to do right now, and I’m quite curious about what’s inside."

Feng Yuan had already seen the Defensive Stance of the Qi Realm Maze and had no curiosity about it. It was merely a special structure designed to withstand attacks. However, the Qi Realm Maze in front of him felt different from the one in the sky.

Or rather, this Qi Realm Maze gave Feng Yuan a sense of chaos, an illusion as if once again facing the depths of the Qi Realm.

No, maybe it’s not an illusion, but this thing...

"Please wait a moment, I’ll unlock it right away."

The man knew Feng Yuan and his abilities, so naturally, he didn’t bother with words of caution or warnings. It seemed in his eyes that this maze wasn’t qualified to pose a danger to Feng Yuan.

The Mythological Remnants were not without means to deal with such things; it was just that there was no necessity, so they chose indifference.

After hesitating for a moment, Feng Yuan did not stop him nor gather Qi Chen and the others. He merely entered to take a look, believing Qi Chen and the others were unnecessary. Besides, if something needed to be tried, they weren’t suitable.

After all, they are ordinary people; following Feng Yuan on adventures might seem fun, but the key is whether it’s worthwhile. What the Qi Realm brought was, in Feng Yuan’s view, too dangerous. Best let them remain ignorant.

The entrance to the Qi Realm Maze was an ancient stone stairway leading upward, blocked by a blood-red light curtain in front of the massive stone gate. Yet when Feng Yuan reached out, the curtain seemed non-existent.

"What a strange place."

Mumbling to himself, Feng Yuan crossed the curtain, only to be surprised.

"Wait, I can’t get through."

Hearing this, Feng Yuan turned his head to see Tamur’s paw pressed against the light curtain, its head lifted by the barrier. The little dragon looked somewhat comical.

"Hm? You can’t get through?"

Veronia did not think Tamur was joking. It seemed truly blocked by that red light curtain, but... why? Despite both being Divine Beasts, was there a difference in attribute?

"Strange, they can get through, is there something different?"

Watching Xiao Ji and the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound cautiously squeeze through the light curtain, Feng Yuan scratched his head, puzzled. He genuinely didn’t understand why Tamur couldn’t pass.

Wait, could it be...

Recalling something, Feng Yuan paused and said,

"Could it be related to the Qi Realm Stance? Tamur can’t enter because it doesn’t have a Qi Realm Stance?"

"That’s a possibility. If that’s the case, what do you plan to do?"

Glancing at Feng Yuan, Veronia casually stated. She believed Feng Yuan surely had means to break through the barrier. However, after a moment of silence, Feng Yuan said,

"In that case, we’ll act separately."

"Huh? Tamur won’t be coming then?"

Surprised, Veronia looked at Feng Yuan. She didn’t expect him to say such a thing. Smiling, Feng Yuan glanced at the maze behind and said,

"If my guess is right, this maze might have something to do with the new stances of the Qi Realm. Even if it came along, perhaps..."

"I see, I understand your point. If it’s not too dangerous, what will you do?"

Thinking aloud, Veronia couldn’t help teasing Feng Yuan; rolling his eyes, he irritably said,

"Pretend nothing happened. This isn’t something they should be exposed to right now."

"But what if these could grant them the power for a desperate counterattack?"

"There’s no if. You should know that solving mental impacts isn’t that simple."

Turning abruptly, Feng Yuan spoke with a hint of dissatisfaction and entered the maze. Tamur didn’t continue to struggle with the barrier but instead retreated to the entrance, silently watching Feng Yuan and Veronia disappear into the passage.

"What you worry about, they might not even care."

Gazing at the dark passage and the red barrier, Tamur muttered to itself.

The interior of the Qi Realm Maze consisted of blood-red ancient stone bricks. Both the ground and the sidewalls were made of countless red, ancient bricks marked by time. Finding an intact stone brick would be a challenge for Feng Yuan.

Weathering, sword and slash marks, claw marks, and other sorts of traces appeared to be naturally formed and aged over time.

However, Feng Yuan understood that this was merely an illusion created by the world. The Qi Realm Maze hadn’t been around for that long. Indeed, the appearance of the Qi Realm was relatively recent.

Unfortunately, because it’s part of the world’s design, it naturally integrates into history, making most people think of it as an ancient existence.

"An ancient maze, one wonders what strange things it could be hiding."

Laughing, Feng Yuan said while glancing at Veronia, who snorted and said,

"You’re quite looking forward to stumbling upon some random things, aren’t you?"

"Indeed, those things might be related to other Qi Realm stances. I’m also curious about what the Defensive Stance Xiao Ji might look like."

Feng Yuan smiled slightly, unconcerned with Veronia’s words, as she wasn’t wrong. What he sought were those oddities. Feng Yuan didn’t think items granting new stances would be something ordinary.

Xiao Ji shook its head looking at Feng Yuan. It wasn’t particularly interested in Defensive Stance but did think it could try for Feng Yuan’s sake.

The Fluffy Fire Wolfhound, however, was curious about Defensive Stance. Normally, mastering a defensive ultimate move was difficult for a Fluffy Fire Wolfhound, but a Qi Realm Stance could change that entirely.

"A simple maze isn’t challenging. Though here, the spread of spiritual power is limited, but..."

Spreading out his divine sense, Feng Yuan swiftly "saw" the surrounding environment. The entire maze was not only vast but its internal structure was constantly changing. Although changes paused within a 50-meter radius centered on them, the further areas kept shifting, making it impossible to retrace their steps.

"A constantly changing maze would indeed pose a challenge for most. I wonder if I could just blast a path through it."

Looking at the corner wall ahead, Feng Yuan stroked his chin and said. Veronia snorted lightly and said,

"You could try, but I feel it won’t be that easy."

"Might as well; it’s at least essential to figure out the situation."

Since there was no one he needed to protect, Feng Yuan was not overly cautious. With a wave of his hand, the Dark Ancient Book appeared, and black light emanated from it, transforming it into a large black globe of light.

Watching Feng Yuan hurl the globe made from the Dark Ancient Book, Veronia momentarily didn’t know what to say. If the Little Crocodile were here, it would surely scold him.

As a special item, even if it wasn’t a weapon, the Dark Ancient Book, thrown with force by Feng Yuan, smashed the wall ahead into pieces.

"As expected, it won’t be that easy."

Gazing at the wall collapsed into an opening, Feng Yuan sighed.