Five Immortal Sects
Chapter 150: Over There

Gan Shi saw Li Yan silent, merely frowning and for a moment the atmosphere felt heavy.

After a while, Li Yan looked up, then his gaze swept over Gan Shi for a moment, and suddenly his eyes narrowed.

“Is it the spirit storage bag? No, that’s not right…”

As his gaze scrutinized Gan Shi from head to toe, it finally settled on the two spirit storage bags at Gan Shi’s waist, but then he immediately felt that something was amiss again.

“I also have a spirit beast bag on my waist, and they both contain living beings. How come they aren’t affected? Is there a difference between humans and demonic beasts?”

Thinking of this, Li Yan suddenly said to Gan Shi.

“Elder Brother Gan, give me your prism crystal and also one of the spirit storage bags from your waist.”

Gan Shi was startled by the request, but immediately seemed to understand something, his face becoming somewhat awkward. Yet, he still complied, unfastening the spirit storage bag containing Rui Feikai and the four others from his waist and handing it to Li Yan along with the purple prism crystal in his hand.

Li Yan reached out and took them. First, he slapped a "Ghost Chariot Talisman" on himself, then activated his protective spiritual shield. With one hand gripping the purple prism crystal and the other holding the spirit storage bag, he swiftly charged towards the spot where Gan Shi had just collided.

Then came another “boom,” and Li Yan’s figure retreated a few steps, quickly steadying himself. He had been prepared, so the impact was not very strong; he regained his balance after only a few steps.

“It seems we can’t get out with a spirit storage bag.”

Gan Shi’s somewhat helpless voice sounded from behind Li Yan, with a hint of sorrow. When Li Yan asked for the spirit storage bag, he had thought of a possibility and now it seemed to be true.

If they couldn't get out, and considering the environment of this battlefield, it would be a pipe dream for them to pass this stage with just a few people.

Li Yan did not turn his head, maintaining his posture as if savoring the feeling of the impact. Thus, time passed little by little, and neither of them moved.

Li Yan had a feeling that the moment he collided with the ribbon's membrane, he seemed to sense two repulsive forces. However, he couldn't immediately figure out how these forces appeared. He only felt two forces rebound directly from the ribbon's membrane onto his body.

“Alas, Junior Brother Li, you should go out first and see if you can find Bai and the others. If he doesn't know the situation yet, tell him our circumstances so he can be mentally prepared as soon as possible.”

After a long while, Gan Shi looked up at the sky. Approximately an hour had passed now. They had another hour before they absolutely had to attempt the stage, but that would be a path of certain death.

If Li Yan stayed, there might be a sliver of hope, but the environment of this final stage made his heart tremble. Even at his peak, he estimated he would only have a thirty percent chance, so he certainly couldn't let Li Yan stay.

Li Yan, who was in front, seemed to be startled by his words. He suddenly placed the purple prism crystal in his hand on the ground, then took out another blue prism crystal from his storage bag, the one he himself used, with a cyan core.

Gan Shi was about to continue persuading Li Yan to leave when he saw Li Yan suddenly take out another prism crystal. Then, a brilliant azure light flared in Li Yan’s hand. In an instant, Li Yan once again transformed into a streak of azure light, directly crashing towards that spot at the edge of the battlefield.

And right before Gan Shi's eyes, as Li Yan collided with that spot, the azure light suddenly vanished, taking Li Yan with it without a trace.

“Did he succeed?”

Gan Shi stared disbelievingly at that spot. Apart from a purple-glowing prism crystal still lying on the ground, there was no sign of Li Yan. He blinked, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Just as he blinked, Li Yan suddenly reappeared there, as if he had never moved. For a moment, Gan Shi wondered if he had experienced a hallucination and that Li Yan hadn't moved at all.

However, the azure-glowing prism crystal in Li Yan's hand told him that it was not a hallucination.

Li Yan flipped his hand, and the azure prism crystal disappeared. He quickly picked up the purple prism crystal from the ground, plunged his divine sense into it, and then sent a wisp of divine sense into the spirit storage bag in his hand.

After a while, Li Yan’s face showed a smile. The light points in the core of the purple prism crystal and the people in the spirit storage bag were still as they were.

Just now, when he asked for the spirit storage bag, Gan Shi had already guessed his intention, knowing that he was experimenting with the spirit storage bag. If Li Yan failed the test and the spirit storage bag shattered, then the four people could only be considered unlucky. However, this was something that had to be done, so he had left the eight spirit storage bags.

Li Yan let out a long breath. He had been experiencing the rebound of those two forces. Finally, he confirmed that at the moment of contact with the ribbon, both forces originated simultaneously from his hands.

However, when he had previously entered and exited alone with the purple prism crystal, there had been no such phenomenon. He also had a spirit beast bag on him, which contained living beings.

And those spirit beasts did not correspond to any light spots in the prism crystal. Does this mean that when the main prism crystal and the living beings in the spirit storage bag appear together, exiting the stage passage violates the rules here? So, can they be taken out separately?

Li Yan naturally thought of his azure prism crystal. Upon testing, it indeed allowed him to enter and exit. He couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief. With this, the subsequent plan could be carried out.

“Elder Brother Gan, as you've seen, give me both spirit storage bags, and then you take the purple prism crystal and exit first.”

Li Yan smiled at Gan Shi.

Gan Shi's yellow hair fluttered in the wind, and a smile also appeared on his face. Without hesitation, he unfastened the other spirit storage bag from his body and handed it to Li Yan, then shook his head again.

“You take them out first. I’ll go out afterwards. If I can’t get out, you can re-enter and take me out with a spirit storage bag.”

Li Yan was stunned upon hearing this, but immediately understood. Gan Shi wanted to personally see him safely take the two spirit storage bags out, because if Gan Shi were to exit, the prism crystal in his hand would surely have consumed most of its Five Elements merged spiritual energy.

If he didn't replenish the consumed purple spiritual energy himself, he wouldn't be able to return. He wanted to stay behind and walk last, ensuring that his own team's disciples had already left. This was not a lack of trust in Li Yan, but his responsibility and pride.

After hearing this, Li Yan said no more. He picked up the purple prism crystal from the ground. At this moment, its light had already diminished significantly, and the Five Elements space within was slowly recovering.

He once again circulated the Guishui True Scripture, and slowly, the prism crystal in his hand began to glow brightly with purple light. He handed it to Gan Shi once more. Moments later, Li Yan, holding the azure prism crystal, flashed and disappeared.

Gan Shi stood at the edge of the battlefield, turning his head to look around. Apart from the gentle breeze, fluttering tattered banners, and a ground covered in dark brown broken weapons and armor, the battlefield’s sunset was a picture of iron and blood.

Immediately, the yellow-haired man did not linger. Several circles rose beneath his feet again, slowly enveloping him in their center. With a brilliant yellow light, he rushed forward, and the next moment, the place was utterly deserted.

However, the moment Gan Shi departed, the space here began to crack like glass, producing faint, crisp sounds. Slowly, these sounds grew louder and more frequent.

Cracks appeared more and more on the sky and the ground, widening and multiplying, even beginning to collapse…

Gazing at the multi-colored sky, Gan Shi was momentarily in a daze. He and Li Yan stood on a long purple ribbon, a tranquil expanse like a boundless sky.

Gan Shi couldn’t help but sweep with his divine sense. In his divine sense, about seven li from his current position, two ribbons fluttered, and a red ribbon was moving towards him.

And at this moment, he and Li Yan simultaneously lowered their heads, because he felt the light on the purple ribbon beneath their feet rapidly fading.

Li Yan’s eyes also shone with a strange light; this was the first time he had seen a ribbon disappear before his eyes.

“Could it be that because there are no longer living beings in the ribbon, it will dissipate completely?”

He gazed at the purple ribbon beneath his feet, continuously disintegrating, with light points flying off like purple meteors, slowly transforming into part of the multicolored space with a touch of fantasy, finally vanishing without a trace.

And the two of them were as if bathed in purple starlight, their entire bodies adorned with a fantastical, constantly shifting, colorful sheen.

Li Yan again recalled the position where the purple ribbon beneath his feet had been floating, confirmed a location, and swept his divine sense over it.

There was no sense of direction here. Li Yan was now relying on memory to determine the direction he had just come from, extending his divine sense forward.

Within his divine sense, apart from the two nearby ribbons, there were no other ribbons within fifty li. Beyond fifty li, the sensation was too vague, but it seemed there were other ribbons present.

“That one’s red, it’s not the right one!”

Gan Shi had now slowly calmed his mind. Having narrowly escaped death, he surprisingly felt a surge of excitement akin to cheating. He closed his eyes and unleashed his powerful divine sense. Immediately, a mighty divine sense, so potent that it startled Li Yan, swept outwards in all directions.

“Is this a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator? Truly awe-inspiringly powerful. I estimate it covers at least three to four hundred li, but with Elder Brother Gan being such a heavenly talent, his divine sense might be even stronger than that of ordinary late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, perhaps reaching around five hundred li.”

Suddenly, Gan Shi’s eyes snapped open, blazing with brilliant light, and he pointed to one side.

“Over there, there’s a purple ribbon!”

Li Yan looked upon hearing this, and then thought about the direction the purple ribbon under his feet had floated earlier. The direction Gan Shi pointed was not the direction he had come from before.

“It seems it’s most likely Senior Brother Bai. My original direction was from there.”

After determining the direction, Li Yan told Gan Shi, and incidentally pointed in the direction he had come from, to explain the basis of his judgment.

“Oh, that’s actually pretty good news then. Let’s go see if Bai is as wretched as I am! Bai, here I come!”

As Gan Shi spoke, he had already darted out, appearing completely unconcerned about his previous miserable state, and his words had regained their heroic spirit. At the same time, Li Yan also detected a towering killing intent.

Li Yan couldn't help but look behind him. Was there still a purple ribbon fluttering and dancing in a place he couldn't see?

“Sixth Senior Sister, you must hold on. I will rush back as fast as I can!”

The words Quan Jiuxing said to Wang Lang still echoed in Li Yan’s heart.

“…The idea of having three Foundation Establishment cultivators inside the sphere at once, Brother Wang, you must never entertain that thought again. If you do, both of us will be doomed beyond salvation.”

(Chapter End)