Chapter 532: The Sixth Layer of the Abyss

Having jumped down from the fissure on the fifth layer, Ye Feng had been wandering around the sixth layer for an entire day. Yet he found nothing—not even the slightest trace of life.
He even boldly used his mental power, which was only at the early stage of the Saint Venerable level, to scan the sixth layer, but still found nothing.
Throughout the day, he explored every corner of the sixth layer, finding nothing but endless graves. All of these graves were small mounds, without tombstones or inscriptions.
What disappointed him the most was that this sixth layer was already the last one—he failed to find the entrance to the seventh layer. After three scans, he became convinced that there was no seventh layer at all; this was the end.
Although he found nothing, Ye Feng remained vigilant, as this place was far too strange.
Everything around him was black, including the ground beneath his feet and the cliffs on both sides—everything was pitch black.
What concerned Ye Feng the most was that the soil on those small mounds was soft, as if it had been turned over.
“What on earth is going on here?” Ye Feng frowned slightly.
Ye Feng sent his spiritual power into the realm, hoping that those experienced experts could answer his questions.
“Lord of the Realm, I’m not sure about what you described just now. Could you take me out to see it for myself?” A powerful warrior at the peak of the Saint Emperor level bowed slightly toward Ye Feng. His name was Stark, a man with extensive knowledge. Although he was only at the peak of the Saint Emperor level, Stark could easily kill warriors at the middle stage of the Saint Venerable level and even defeat most those at the later stage.
Ye Feng’s spiritual power had now reached the early stage of the Saint Venerable level and was very close to the middle stage, enough to sustain the summoning of Stark for one and a half hours.
After summoning Stark, Ye Feng saw him frown deeply upon seeing the place before him.
Stark bent down, picked up a handful of soil, and then took a small amount with his other hand, rubbing it between his fingers for a while. He then looked at his fingers, which had taken on a slight blood-red hue.
Stark sniffed his fingers, frowning even more.
“What’s wrong?” Ye Feng grew even more uneasy.

“Lord of the Realm, if I’m not mistaken, this place should be a land of the dead. To confirm, I need to dig up a few corpses to take a look.” Stark didn’t explain much. He glanced at the sky before continuing, “It’s getting dark soon. We must finish the inspection before night falls. If it truly is a land of the dead, Lord of the Realm, you’d better find a place to hide.”

Ye Feng didn’t ask many questions, as he knew it was getting dark and they needed to hurry.

The two walked over to a small grave and began digging. The corpse appeared, but it could no longer be called a corpse—it was completely a skeleton. Even the body of a Saintly Lord-level warrior had been corroded into bones, showing just how long ago this had happened. What surprised Ye Feng, however, was that the skeleton still held a sacred weapon in its hand, though the weapon was severely damaged.

Stark examined the bones and the sacred weapon carefully before moving on to another grave. The two quickly dug up another skeleton. After observing it, Stark headed to a third grave. They dug five graves in total, all containing skeletons with not a trace of flesh left.

“This place is indeed a land of the dead,” Stark finally concluded. “Lord of the Realm, look at the wounds on their bodies. They vary in color, clearly showing both old and new wounds. Moreover, each skeleton has thousands of wounds—these couldn’t have been caused while they were alive. It’s very difficult for someone at the Saintly Lord level to have their bones injured; perhaps such severe wounds only occur once or twice in a lifetime. So, these wounds must have been caused after they turned into skeletons. Look at their weapons too—each holds a weapon, clearly ready for battle at any moment. The cuts on those weapons also vary in depth and age, indicating that they fought using these weapons after turning into skeletons.”

“Since we’ve been in a undead state, I know these guys are influenced by lingering resentment and fighting will. After countless battles, their combat strength is extremely high. Even if only Saintly Lord-level warriors are buried here, they might be able to kill those at the Supreme Saint level. So, Lord of the Realm, you’d better leave this place as soon as possible. Besides, we don’t know if there are any corpses of Supreme Saint-level warriors here.” Stark urged Ye Feng to leave.

“What do the undead fear?” Ye Feng seemed determined not to leave at all.

“Natural light, which can greatly weaken their combat strength. But even that’s beyond your ability to handle, Lord of the Realm,” Stark said reluctantly.

“What else?” Ye Feng frowned slightly and pressed further.
“The powerful Light Domain’s Holy Light Law, or the Fire Domain’s Purification Law—to deal with Saintly-level undead, one must reach at least the seventh level of mastery in such laws. But you, Lord of the Realm, are only at the second level,” Stark continued.
“Is there nothing else?” Ye Feng felt Stark seemed to be holding back. “Stark, don’t hide anything from me. You can speak freely in front of me.”
Stark shook his head with a bitter smile. “There’s also the Dark Domain’s Undead Law. Only a sixth-level mastery is needed to enslave Saintly-level undead. The reason I didn’t mention it is because I knew it would be useless.”
“Are there any treasures in the Land of the Undead?” Ye Feng still seemed unconvinced.
“Probably not. Their armor and weapons are already in terrible condition, and their storage rings might have been destroyed in battle.” Stark naturally hoped Ye Feng would leave this hellish place soon. “When night falls, these undead will revive. They only have a desire to kill—no other thoughts. Lord of the Realm, you’d better leave now.”
“Wait. I remember that you used to devour each other’s souls to grow stronger. Do these guys do the same?” Ye Feng asked.
“Judging from their skeletons, it seems so,” Stark nodded.
“Then after countless years of conflict, they should have evolved into intelligent beings, right?” Ye Feng pressed on.
“Yes…” Though reluctant, Stark had no choice but to be honest. “But if the time isn’t long enough, they might not.”
“Then I’ll hide here and observe tonight.” Ye Feng seemed determined not to leave, leaving Stark speechless. He had explained so much just to make Ye Feng aware of the dangers and urge him to leave quickly, but instead, Ye Feng’s interest in this place grew even stronger.
“Lord of the Realm, please leave. It’s about to get dark, and this place is too dangerous,” Stark tried one last time.
“You go back first. I’ll hide in the Flowing Palace and secretly observe what’s going on outside.” With that, Ye Feng sent Stark back to the realm, then walked to the center of the graveyard, glanced at the gradually darkening sky, and entered the Flowing Palace.