The Post Sky Tipping Era
Chapter 325 - 223: The Door That Was Opened

Chapter 325: Chapter 223: The Door That Was Opened

An evening passed swiftly.

The next day, long before noon, the cultivators participating in the cross-border event had already gathered early in the conference room, and through mutual conversations, Li Yi got to know their names and identities.

Xu Qiumei, a member of the Cross-border Organization, reportedly recommended by someone from the Golden Academy.

Qin Bing and Li Yi were external operatives from the investigation bureau, granted cross-border opportunities due to their merits, only they hailed from different cities; Li Yi was from Tianchang City Investigation Bureau, while the other was from Tianshan City Investigation Bureau.

Another participant was a woman named Zhang Jing, with unclear background information, but it was said that she had spent a lot of money to purchase a cross-border spot.

This revelation surprised Li Yi as he learned that cross-border spots could actually be bought, showing that capitalists were ubiquitous. However, he was puzzled as to why someone would choose to join the first batch going cross-border when exploring a new world because those in the initial batch faced the greatest risks.

The second and third groups to cross borders would be safer because they could rely on information from those who had gone before them, knowing more about the new world and feeling somewhat more confident.

As for the last man, named Tao Yuan, his identity information was confidential, but his solemn and proper demeanor made it apparent that he was definitely an expert from the military.

With five individuals and the captain Zhang Xun making six, this was the complete team for the cross-border operation.

But while Li Yi was sizing up the others, they were also observing him.

"Compared to yesterday, Li Yi’s aura seems even stronger, and he feels more dangerous. He’s an oddity; I can clearly sense his strength has improved just overnight. Last night, Xu Qiumei came to me, wanting to team up to eliminate Li Yi. Now, it seems I was right to decline," Qin Bing glanced at Li Yi, his heart sinking.

He had checked some information on Li Yi the previous night, and it was astounding because this man’s cultivation speed was too fast; he had been able to kill experts in the Spiritual Perception realm after only a few months of cultivation.

Xu Qiumei’s expression remained dark. She was in a bad mood because she had not succeeded in finding allies, meaning her cross-border operation would be challenging.

She was now having regrets.

If she hadn’t confronted Li Yi before, there might have been a chance to ease the situation, but now... even sitting here, she could feel the hostile, no, rather murderous intent emanating from Li Yi.

How many people had this guy killed recently to carry such a heavy aura of death?

In fact, Xu Qiumei wasn’t from the cultivation circle of Tianchang City, otherwise, she would have known just how dangerous Li Yi was. Even Gu Mengping, who had broken through to the Soul Realm, didn’t dare show himself when competing for a spot and only exerted pressure on the bureau to avoid Li Yi and the terrifying mother behind him.

After waiting for two hours, as noon approached, Zhang Xun, the captain, finally entered the conference room and said directly, "The cross-border operation is about to begin. Gather your belongings and follow me, and remember, do not bring mobile phones, computers, or anything with crucial information or it will be confiscated."

Everyone was aware of this rule as it was written in the cross-border manual.

The purpose was to ensure that Earth’s information would not leak to other worlds; just as they could travel to other worlds, so could others come to theirs. To avoid creating enemies for Earth, it was vital to keep all crucial information secure.

"Alright, follow me," Zhang Xun said, then left the conference room again.

Silently, everyone followed immediately.

Zhang Xun led them into an elevator in the building, which then descended deeply underground, dropping by at least six or seven floors. As the elevator doors opened, a scorching breath hit them. Merely breathing in made their nasal passages feel as if they were burning, creating an indescribable discomfort.

In the view of the Spirit Medium, everything appeared a glowing red, as if they had entered a massive furnace.

"Such terrifying cosmic energy, it’s so intense that it can affect reality. However, this burning sensation isn’t real. It’s because the energy is too rich. The cells cannot withstand such strong energy erosion and are being destroyed. That’s why it feels like burning," Qin Bing narrowed his eyes in shock.

"Under such an energy field, even cultivators of the Spiritual Realm cannot stay long or else they’ll suffer severe radiation-like cellular breakdown and die," the woman named Zhang Jing said calmly.

"Is this the energy field of a top-tier mysterious object? It’s terrifying, visible to the naked eye," Li Yi remarked, his face showing astonishment.

The energy field of the Sword Coin was nothing compared to this, and the Bone Mural couldn’t even compare to this. No wonder top-tier mysterious objects were reclaimed, and wars were even waged for them; just leaving such an object in one place was a disaster.

"Crossing borders requires a vast energy field to distort space-time and open the wormhole door. This is only possible with a complete mysterious object as the energy source that enables the cross-border machinery to operate," Zhang Xun explained calmly: "The mysterious object placed here is called the Luanyang Feather, a feather from the legendary Phoenix-like creature’s body."

He then pointed.

Sure enough, inside a machine nearby, a special feather floated quietly within a glass dome. This feather wasn’t like those typically understood by people as animal feathers but was formed from pure energy, emitting a dazzling and brilliant light, much like a man-made small sun, enduring forever.

The red energy field that had previously caused everyone discomfort was merely the light emitted by that feather.

It was hard to estimate the astonishing amount of energy contained within that feather, and how fearsome the creature possessing such feathers must be.

Li Yi could even imagine, a Phoenix draped in radiant feathers merely appearing in the sky above a city, a simple flap of its wings unleashing an energy storm sufficient to destroy a city, turning everything to scorched earth, with no lifeform able to withstand such an energetic baptism.

This was not even done purposely, merely the consequence of passing by like a person stepping on the ground causes destruction to ants below.

This signified the difference in life forms, which could no longer be described simply as a gap.

Realizing this, Li Yi fell silent. He now understood why so many were eager to cross borders.

The Earth was too dangerous.

The lower-level cultivators were unaware of this information, so they were still fearless; but the higher-level cultivators were crystal-clear about it. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have initiated the Cross-Border plan in search of a new habitat.

Li Yi was very glad he had come on this trip, having witnessed a true corner of the world and gained a clear understanding of his own insignificance.

"The portal to the Cross-Border will open in ten minutes. Before then, everyone will receive a bag containing some essential equipment and a manual. If you don’t understand, you can check it after we’ve crossed," Zhang Xun added.

At that moment, a worker wearing heavy protective gear came over and handed each person a tote bag.

After receiving them, everyone held the bags without opening them, and then quietly began to wait.

During these few minutes, everyone was somewhat unable to endure the terrifying energy emitted by the Mysterious Object, the Luanyang Feather. No wonder the staff, though cultivators, had to wear protective gear. Short exposure to the energy field was bearable, but long exposure would definitely result in physical disintegration.

However, team leader Zhang Xun stood motionless as if it were nothing to him.

Clearly, after his body had evolved, he could withstand such levels of energy corrosion—being a Soul Realm expert, the advantages were quite evident.

Li Yi, on the other hand, didn’t feel uncomfortable. He wore clothes made of Qiu Dragon Skin, which provided a certain level of protection. He didn’t feel terribly uncomfortable, but his eyes felt almost scorched blind.

Fortunately, ten minutes wasn’t a long time.

"Time’s up, everything is ready, start the machine."

"The machine has started, now absorbing cosmic energy..."

"The energy is charging, one percent, five percent, twelve percent..."

As the machine operated, the cosmic energy emitted from the vicinity of the Mysterious Object was being massively absorbed, and the sensation of burning around them quickly dissipated, even giving way to a feeling of coolness.

The dissipating energy was all converging in one place, attempting to open the gateway to the Cross Border.

"Fifty percent... eighty percent... one hundred percent, energy charging complete."

"Open the wormhole, set the coordinates, ready to connect to unknown world number 36."

As the announcements continued to come.

The next moment, in front of Li Yi and the others, a terrifying wave of energy suddenly appeared; then the space in front of them seemed to tear apart, revealing a huge gap that continuously expanded and twisted until it finally formed a circular gate.

And as time passed, the other side of the gate faintly revealed the scenery and outline of another world.

Although unclear, one could make out distant mountains and nearby rivers, with lush greenery around – evidently, it was a world suitable for survival and not a dead world.

However, the information revealed by just the tip of the iceberg wasn’t much, and due to strong energy interference, it was not possible to send machines to explore. The only method was for cultivators to enter that world and explore.

"Connection complete, the gateway to the Cross Border has been opened, Zhang Xun’s squad, prepare for departure. The gate will only be open for thirty seconds, please hurry."

The broadcast continued.

Opening the gate to the Cross Border consumed a terrifying amount of energy, and even the mythical Luanyang Feather could only power it for thirty seconds. Exceeding this time would drain the energy of the Mysterious Object, damage it, and ultimately render it useless. Therefore, to protect the Mysterious Object for multiple uses, each opening of the Cross Border gate was very brief and the number of crossings was limited.

Of course, if there were multiple complete Mysterious Objects available for power, the Cross Border gate could be opened for a longer time.

"Move." Without hesitation, Zhang Xun dashed swiftly into the Cross Border gate.

The others didn’t hesitate and immediately followed suit.

They were also very fast. For cultivators in the Spiritual Realm, crossing did not require thirty seconds; ten seconds was enough.

Very soon.

Everyone vanished from the spot, left this world, entered through the Cross Border gate, and went into an unknown and foreign world.

"The Cross-Border squad has completely departed, immediately cut off the energy supply, close the Cross Border gate, prevent counter-invasion."

The broadcast announced, and as the machine stopped operating, the portal connecting to the Otherworld twisted and finally disappeared.

At that moment, the Luanyang Feather also dimmed significantly, its energy field softened, not as scorching as before, showing how huge the consumption was for a single crossing, and thus why each crossing opportunity was extremely precious.

Luckily, this Cross Border operation went smoothly, and nothing unexpected occurred.

At least that was the case on this side.