OUTSIDE OF TIME

Chapter 1566: The Fifth Star Ring

Editor: Atlas Studios

A red aurora, like a long river, flowed across the sky, covering a vast expanse.

The light, in constant motion, did not disperse evenly, casting a flickering glow on the muddy ground below.

Not only was the spirit mine filled with mud, but even the world outside the deep pit of the mine was dominated by the same muddy terrain.

Xu Qing had some understanding of this from the memories of the Ruler’s servant.

This place was the southern part of the Fifth Star Ring and was in a remote outer area.

A long time ago, there was an ocean here.

That was the Primordial Sea of the Fifth Star Ring.

Under the power of the Venerable Immortal, the starry sky of the Fifth Star Ring was flattened, along with the Primordial Sea where countless gods lived.

Hence, this place became a place where cultivators could stay.

It was just a little more barren.

However, there were no anomalous substances.

In the entire Fifth Star Ring, all the gods were suppressed. To a certain extent, it could be said that the gods were forbidden from moving here.

Hence, the anomalous substances formed by the god’s aura that were harmful to cultivators naturally wouldn’t exist. Instead, under the process of refining the gods, it was transformed into vitality, turning into spiritual energy that could be absorbed by cultivators.

As he walked through this world, Xu Qing felt this transformation intensely.

The hairs on his body stood on end as his body instinctively absorbed the spiritual energy of the heavens and earth, much like parched land welcoming spring rain.

As for the spiritual energy, it was endless. Although it wasn’t as dense as in the spirit mine, it was still dense.

“Such an environment doesn’t exist in Wanggu.”

Xu Qing mumbled. Under the instinctive absorption of spiritual energy, his divine sense spread out as well. While sensing the world, he also sensed the rules and laws here.

This was an ability unique to Soul Accumulation cultivators.

Through the rules and laws here, he could indirectly sense this world.

In his divine sense, translucent threads appeared in the world. These threads connected to all things, and each of them was a law.

When one’s cultivation reached a certain level, they could use and control it.

Under Xu Qing’s divine sense, what he focused on was the source of these rules and laws…

Shortly after, a look of contemplation appeared on Xu Qing’s face. At the same time, the sense of vigilance rose in his heart.

This was because during the process of sensing the world, he could clearly sense numerous majestic wills at the source of the rules and laws in this vast world.

“The sources of many rules and laws have been occupied.”

Xu Qing retracted his divine sense and looked at the sky.

He didn’t directly probe those powerful wills. Instead, he indirectly used the laws and rules to sense them.

Doing this wasn’t offensive.

“The rules and laws of this world seem orderly but there’s an inexplicable chaos under them…”

Xu Qing silently looked around.

Through the feedback of the world’s rules and laws, he sensed blood and slaughter.

“Looks like not only is this place a place where the strong prey on the weak, but the intensity is probably even more dramatic.”

Xu Qing mumbled.

His feeling was verified a day later.

It was a massacre.

On one side was a majestic caravan in the sky.

The group consisted of thousands of people, using giant beasts resembling rhinoceroses as their means of transportation. These beasts carried goods that were unknown to Xu Qing, but clearly could not be stored in a spatial storage device, as they were being transported through the sky.

Based on the surrounding aura, it was evident that both inside and outside the caravan, there were powerful beings providing protection and escorting the convoy.

Such a strength was clearly extraordinary. In Xu Qing’s opinion, very few people would provoke them.

However, a massacre still occurred.

As the ground suddenly rumbled, tens of thousands of people rushed out like bandits and attacked the caravan.

It was extremely tragic and death tolls increased rapidly. The heart-rending cries of the cultivators and the roars of the beasts echoed endlessly.

The smell of blood permeated the surroundings.

In this massacre, divine creatures that were enslaved were mobilized.

What was even more astonishing was that in the end, the merchant group actually used a god.

It was a huge eye that was bound like a slave.

There were originally many tentacles in this eye, but now, most of them were broken and there were seals in the eye.

This was a Divine Fire Realm god.

It seemed to have become a trump card and was like a tool in this massacre.

As for the final outcome of this battle, Xu Qing didn’t know.

He had been watching from far away. When he sensed that both sides sent divine senses toward him, Xu Qing chose to leave.

This massacre had nothing to do with him. He naturally didn’t plan to be implicated.

As for his departure, it didn’t go smoothly at the start. The two powerful divine senses approached with a certain degree of hostility. However, the instant they got close to Xu Qing, a cold glint flashed in Xu Qing’s eyes and he ruthlessly spread out his divine sense.

Sometimes, if one wanted to avoid trouble, they couldn’t be too low-key.

Letting others know that he wasn’t someone to be trifled with was the best way to avoid trouble.

Whether it was here or Wanggu, it was the same.

At the next instant, the divine senses came into contact.

Lightning flashed and colorful rules and laws appeared. Amidst the rumbling sounds, even the space fluctuated intensely.

The wind, snow, and heavy rain fell at the same time.

After that… the two divine senses retracted. Clearly, they were afraid and no longer stopped him.

Xu Qing was expressionless as he walked far away.

Xu Qing had seen such things three times in the following days.

These repeated killings allowed Xu Qing to have a better understanding of the blood and killings in this world.

“Is it like raising Gu?”

“Using the entire Fifth Star Ring as the stage, to cultivate warriors who emerge from seas of blood and mountains of corpses.”

Xu Qing mumbled and lowered his head to look below.

At that moment, there was a canyon on the ground.

In the canyon, it was obvious that a massacre had just ended.

Corpses were everywhere and the dense aura of death dispersed the spiritual energy.

Among the corpses, there was a small hill of flesh. On it sat a black-robed youth.

His expression was cold as he absorbed the aura of death here.

At the next instant, he opened his eyes and raised his head to look at Xu Qing.

“This is my spirit field.”

After announcing the ownership of this place, the eyes of the black-robed youth suddenly flashed. The next instant, a figure that was also hiding outside the valley was forced out.

This was a young girl with a coquettish appearance. She was about to speak but it was too late.

A flying sword rushed out from the head of the black-robed youth. It carried a cold light and sharpness as it headed straight for the girl.

In just an instant, it pierced through her forehead.

The young girl’s corpse fell to the ground and the flying sword returned, shining with blood light in front of the black-robed youth. At the same time, the tip of the sword pointed at the sky, locking onto Xu Qing.

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes. He naturally sensed the young girl earlier. After sensing the black-robed youth’s hostility, Xu Qing didn’t say anything and retreated.

Seeing that Xu Qing had left, the black-robed youth continued to look at the sky, not daring to relax at all.

After a long time, after confirming that the mysterious expert had really left, the youth heaved a sigh of relief.

“That person… gives me an extremely dangerous feeling.”

At the same time, in the sky, Xu Qing was also recalling the biack-robed youth’s sword strike earlier.

“Although he hasn’t reached the Ruler realm and is also at the Soul Accumulation realm, he has authority and it is related to death.”

“Also, his body doesn’t look like that of a living person.”

There was no enmity between them, so after a brief contemplation, what lingered in Xu Qing’s heart was a deeper understanding of the cultivators of the Fifth Star Ring.

“There are very few weaklings in this world.”

Xu Qing mumbled.

“What 1 saw on the way was indeed as described in the memories of the Ruler’s servant. There seem to be rules in the Fifth Star Ring but in reality, the rules are called the Immortal Capital. It is high and mighty.”

“As long as one doesn’t challenge it, beneath the surface of these rules, there is actually an undercurrent of danger and chaos.”

“Additionally, that Ruler’s servant only has a general understanding of matters due to his low cultivation. For more detailed information about this Fifth Star Ring, such as the complete map of the region and the various forces at play, 1 can’t simply rely on his memories.”

Xu Qing had a cautious personality. He naturally knew that he couldn’t completely believe in soul search.

If he trusted the results of the soul search too much, and if the other party had wrong information, he would pay the price of the mistake if he didn’t verify the information.

“Therefore, I still have to follow my original plan and find a city to verify it.”

Xu Qing moved toward the location in the memories of the Ruler’s servant.

At the same time, in the core of the southern part where Xu Qing was.

This place was known as the Great Immortal Mountain by the cultivators in the southern part of the Fifth Star Ring.

It was called a mountain, but in reality, it was an endless mountain range, with peaks rising and falling, and towering summits standing tall. The sheer number of these peaks was likely in the hundreds of thousands.

The area was perpetually shrouded in white mist, within which the faint silhouettes of immortals could occasionally be seen. On rare occasions, when the wind howled and the mist thinned slightly, glimpses of luxurious palaces with intricate jade carvings and ornate railings would emerge, barely visible through the haze.

It gave off the feeling of a fairyland.

As for the immortal aura, it surpassed the other areas in the south and was the leader of the entire southern part of the Fifth Star Ring.

At that moment, in the middle of the Great Immortal Mountain Range surrounded by countless mountain peaks…

There was a silver palace there.

This grand palace was surrounded by steps on all four sides, numbering in the tens of thousands, giving the entire structure a majestic and elevated appearance, akin to a sacred altar.

The palace itself was vast, constructed primarily from sixteen thousand immortal blue sandalwood, with a roof tiled in golden spiritual glaze. Tall dragon-entwined osmanthus trees stood on either side, and intricately carved railings of immortal jade adorned the platform, their exquisite details beyond description.

The plaza below was paved with jade stones, and a hundred and sixty statues, each glowing with radiant light, stood in two rows, exuding an aura of grandeur.

At this moment, within the palace steeped in millennia of history, a silver-robed elder sat upon a sacred throne.

Though he appeared ordinary, an occasional flash of sharpness in his eyes hinted at a commanding presence that seemed to look down upon the world.

Below the throne, the atmosphere was one of harmony and celebration.

Sleeves fluttered as dancers performed, bells and chimes rang out, and music filled the air

The incense burning on the platform sent tendrils of smoke curling through the hall, adding an air of mystery and reverence. As the scene unfolded, someone entered from outside the hall.

The newcomer was a middle-aged man dressed in a robe adorned with cloud patterns. As he walked, the patterns seemed to shift like rolling clouds, reflecting his extraordinary presence. He moved through the dancers and the mist, making his way to the foot of the throne.

The middle-aged man bowed respectfully.

“I pay respects to the Immortal.”

“The Immortal Capital’s hunt has started. I wonder how many disciples from our Great Immortal Mountain should be sent out for this trial?”

The middle-aged man’s voice echoed through the grand hall. After a brief pause, the elder on the throne, shrouded in mist and only faintly visible, seemed to nod slightly.

“Thirty percent should be sufficient. Let’s hope we find some promising talents.”

“Also, you all have to remember not to make the same mistake as last time and break the rule that Great Emperors can’t directly interfere.”

“Immortal Capital wants heaven’s chosens who killed their way up fairly, not flowers.”

His voice was calm but his words contained a hint of warning.

The middle-aged man named Lan Yun respectfully agreed.

The old man swept his gaze across the middle-aged man below and calmly spoke.

“Lan Yun, there’s no need for such formalities between us.”

Lan Yun shook his head.

“Immortal is supreme; decorum must not be neglected.”

With that, he took his leave.

The old man didn’t say anything else.

The singing and dancing continued.

As the incense smoke spiraled from the platform, it wound its way through the hall, shrouding the vividly painted murals on the walls in a veil of mist. The once vibrant and lifelike images became hazy and indistinct.

Coupled with the light emitted by the eight-sided palace lantern hanging in the center of the hall, the entire chamber was enveloped, growing increasingly mysterious..