Crossing the Cultivation Realm: Two Souls Coexist

Within the mirrored world, the orange flames continued to leap silently, elongating and distorting the shadows of the three people as they were projected onto the smooth, mirror-like walls.

Yang Li seemed to have started talking, and was still recounting something in fits and starts.

About the tedious etiquette within the Salary Clan, about a certain annoying brother, about his father, a cold and indifferent "old geezer" with hundreds of children...

His voice echoed in the enclosed space, carrying a rare sense of relaxation after letting down his guard.

However, Hu Qing and Gu Yang seemed somewhat distracted.

Their minds had already flown to the fierce and unknown battlefield outside.

Commander Li, Elder Han, Elder Yan... these predecessors are fighting a bloody battle, their fates unknown.

But here they were, chatting "leisurely" with a young master from another race.

This stark contrast made them extremely uneasy, filled with anxiety and guilt.

Suddenly, Yang Li stopped speaking.

His expression changed slightly as he listened intently to some unseen voice. After a moment, he whispered:

“Another battle has ended in another space.” He paused, then added, “However, it wasn’t Ye and his group yet.”

This sentence was like a block of ice thrown into an already stifling atmosphere.

The fragile peace was instantly shattered, and a deeper sense of oppression descended.

Hu Qing and Gu Yang's hearts sank. If it wasn't Ye, then it meant... perhaps another senior had fallen.

The two lowered their heads, clenched their fists so tightly that their nails almost dug into their palms.

Seeing their faces darken instantly, Yang Li realized that his topic was inappropriate and awkwardly shut his mouth.

Swallow the rest of your words and give them time to process this heavy burden.

Silence spread, broken only by the faint crackling of the flames.

Not long after, Yang Li seemed to sense some crucial change and suddenly stood up from the ground.

His movements were large, stirring up the air around him, causing the pile of orange flames to sway, and light and shadow flickered and flowed around him like water.

Hu Qing and Gu Yang were startled awake by his sudden action and looked up in confusion.

With a hint of uncertainty, Gu Yang asked cautiously, "Can...we get out now?"

Yang Li nodded, his expression a mix of relief and wistfulness.

He said, "The battle on Ye's side is over. On my side... I've regained full control of all the array permissions and can lift the blockade."

"That's great!" Gu Yang was overjoyed upon hearing this and almost jumped up, eagerly looking around.

Although all he could see was endless darkness, he seemed to already see the glimmer of hope for escape.

"Then quickly dispel the formation! The seniors outside are still waiting for us; we wonder how they are doing!"

Yang Li did not act immediately. He paused for a moment, his gaze slowly sweeping across Hu Qing and Gu Yang's faces, his eyes becoming unusually solemn, even carrying a hint of barely perceptible sadness.

“The next time we meet,” he said in a low voice, enunciating each word clearly, “we might… be enemies.”

These words struck Hu Qing and Gu Yang like a heavy hammer blow.

Hu Qing remained silent, then nodded heavily.

His position was like an insurmountable chasm, and becoming enemies was an inevitable outcome; he had long been aware of this.

Gu Yang, who was originally excited, was as if he had been doused with cold water. He instantly calmed down, and his excited smile froze on his face and slowly faded away.

Although we only spent a few hours together in this special space.

But after a long conversation and several exchanges, an indescribable feeling, akin to that of "close friends," quietly began to grow.

It's rare to find a true friend in life, let alone someone with whom you can let down your guard and speak freely.

The thought that their next meeting might mean facing each other on the battlefield and fighting to the death filled the air with a heavy and oppressive atmosphere, even more so than before.

Yang Li forced a smile, but it was filled with a strained and suppressed sadness.

He said no more, reached into his pocket and rummaged around for a while, then took out a stone about the size of a palm, completely black, with irregular patterns on its surface, and looked inconspicuous. He casually tossed it to Hu Qing.

"Here, this is the fragment of the sacred artifact I found before."

Yang Li tried to sound relaxed, "Consider it... a reward for patiently listening to me ramble on for so long."

Hu Qing caught it instinctively; the fragment felt heavy in his hand and had a strange, icy feel to it.

Almost the instant they made contact, he clearly felt the dormant sacred artifact within his dantian resonate and throb with a strong and joyful energy!

He stared incredulously at the fragments in his hand, then looked at Yang Li: "This... how are you going to explain this when you get back?"

"Sigh," Yang Li sighed, waved his hand, and looked like he had given up on everything.

"To be honest, I didn't manage to steal it, I got injured, and I lost the fragments."

Anyway, I'm not popular in the clan, so even if I hand over this fragment, I probably won't get any decent reward. I might as well leave it to you; maybe... it'll be useful in the future."

Seeing this, Gu Yang also took the fragment from Hu Qing's hand.

The moment the fragment touched his palm, it seemed to come alive, transforming into a streak of dark light that directly entered his dantian.

Within his dantian, the originally incomplete sacred artifact emitted a buzzing sound, and the fragments precisely embedded themselves into the gap.

The gaps between the joints healed and disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye, quickly merging into one and radiating an aura that was more rounded and powerful than before.

Feeling the slight improvement brought about by the near-complete completion of the sacred artifact, Gu Yang suddenly remembered something and frowned as he asked:

"By the way, the information we received at the time was that we were looking for three fragments."

We found one before, and you have this one, so... there should be one last one still out there.

The trace we were tracking suddenly shattered for some reason, indicating it was forcibly removed. Do you know the whereabouts of the last one?

Mentioning this, Yang Li also showed a helpless expression, raising his hand to rub his temples, appearing somewhat irritated:

"Don't even mention it, it makes me so angry! Based on the clues, I had already basically figured out where the last fragment might be hidden."

It took a lot of effort to pinpoint the exact location. But when I finally got there, all I found was an empty seal core!

The fragments of the sacred artifact inside have long since disappeared, and judging from the marks, they have been taken away at least a year or two ago!

The fluctuations from the artifact fragments that I painstakingly deduced before were nothing more than misleading information left over from that empty shell!

"What?!" Hu Qing and Gu Yang were shocked upon hearing this.

Someone actually acted before them and quietly took away the last crucial fragment?

Who is this person?

Friend or foe?

What was his purpose in collecting the fragments of the sacred artifact? A series of questions instantly flooded my mind.