Chapter 570: Formation of Life
When Xue Wei and Lan returned to the path leading back into the desert, they found that the surroundings had changed.
While no living plants were present, most of the sand that had been whirling around previously had vanished, and in its place, a dry and cracked ground had been revealed.
Lan and Xue Wei noticed the change right away, and they could not help but feel that something had changed after their visit to the forgotten city, but they did not know what this change meant yet.
The two did not have much vigilance as they went towards the forgotten city, but on their return trip, they were on high alert. They could sense that the previous manipulation of their emotions had vanished, and at the same time, they also noticed how the previous sandy ground had become solid dry soil.
It was as if all the sand had flown away or, in some other way, vanished without a trace.
However, both Xue Wei and Lan were reasonable people, they knew very well that such a phenomenon should not have happened, as the sand had no place to disappear to.
"This path looks exactly the same as the previous one, and the location is also the same, but something seems off."
Xue Wei was the first to comment on the pathway they were walking down. Although logic told him that they were walking back the same way as they had arrived, something kept nagging at him, telling him that things were not that simple.
Lan also had a frown on his face. While he could not pinpoint what the difference was, he too felt that something was wrong.
To be able to trick even his mind was quite an achievement, as he had already unraveled enough strength to once more reach the ranks of a deity, but it seemed to be able to confuse even him.
This kind of feeling was just as disgusting as the previous manipulation with their emotions.
While neither Lan nor Xue Wei were ones who would cover in fear of the unknown, they did not like the feeling of being in the light, while something was lurking in the darkness, trying to manipulate them according to their own wishes.
The further they walked, the more this unreal feeling of something being different appeared.
"If this was in the world of the living, I would have been worried about various monsters appearing from the shadows, but somehow I don't think that is very likely to happen here."
Xue Wei could not help but comment as they made their way forward. Although the sense of danger was ever present, they both felt somewhat perplexed due to this feeling, as they both knew that the chances of encountering danger from souls or living creatures was not likely, but they could not let go of the feeling that the Ghost Realm itself wished to attack them.
Their speed was not slow, but they were also not rushed as they made their way to the end of the tunnel.
The landscape that spread out in front of them made them certain that they had not returned to the same location as they had entered the tunnel from.
There was no sand, and the land was no longer a desert without any traces of life, but instead, it was replaced by a flat expanse of land that seemed to stretch into the horizon with nothing to interrupt it.
There was nothing to obstruct the view, everything was the same flat and cracked soil, making the place seem desolate and forsaken.
As Lan and Xue Wei scanned the surroundings, they felt a fluctuation of energy from their back, and when they turned around, they found that the tunnel entrance had vanished, leaving another expanse of flat soil behind them as well.
"Is this all an illusion?"
Xue Wei could not help but frown as he looked around. He was not that familiar with independent dimensions such as the Ghost Realm, so he did not know if it was possible to have more dimensions within each other, or if they had entered some sort of illusion formation which confused their senses.
Lan heard Xue Wei's question, but he was not in a hurry to answer. His eyes slowly surveyed the horizon to see if there were certain energy fluctuations in the air, but everything he noticed made it seem as if they had encountered a minor realm within the Ghost Realm itself.
However, such smaller dimensions, hidden within another domain, would usually only have one purpose, and that was to gather the realm's formation of life.
The formation of life was the core and heart of a realm. This was the formation that would provide the realm with the energy and laws that the world would follow, and due to the importance of such a formation, it was extremely well guarded.
"I need to look around a bit more in detail to make a qualified guess."
Lan did not mention the Formation of Life right away, as he was not certain that this would be its location. Although he did not lose anything by mentioning it, he would most likely end up confusing Xue Wei even more than help him understand, as the younger man was not likely to know what a Formation of Life was just yet.
The reason that Lan was uncertain was because the only Formation of Life he had ever interacted with before was the one in the world of living where they had been residing before.
That Formation of Life lived up to its name and truly displayed life and energy. The whole dimension was full of the breath of life; energy was rippling in the air, and plants were growing in abundance.
When that dimension got compared to this lifeless one, he could not help but begin to doubt his own guess.