Nine Astra Skies

A thick scent of sulfur lingered in the air. It was not a big deal but it made people feel uncomfortable nonetheless.

The Raven Hawk and Vermillion Spirit Condor continued to maintain telepathic contact with Ye Chen's Astral Body. Whatever they saw while circling above was what Ye Chen could see too. The humans, beasts, and Celestial Beasts were all fighting for something in a very intense battle.

Not far away, Ye Chen saw everything with his Astral Body. The battlefield was a mess. Humans, beasts, and Celestial Beasts were clumped up fighting against one another. There were at least thousands of lives involved and Ye Chen could not make out their reason for fighting. Slightly farther ahead was a large fissure with molten red liquid and a male body floating on it. The body was a three-meter giant with very similar bone structures to a human. The body seemed to have been left there for years and it was difficult to tell its physical age. The clothing on the body had all been burned away but the flesh remained perfectly intact with not a single burn to be seen.

The body did not disintegrate in the fiery magma!

The body must have been someone powerful as it was perfectly preserved in the magma without any burn marks. It was clear that he must have had very strong cultivation in his past life though no one could tell how he was assassinated.

Were the humans, beasts, and Celestial Beasts fighting one another to claim the ownership of the body?

It would have to take more than a regular body for the crowd to engage in such a massive battle.

While Ye Chen attempted to inspect the body with his Astral Body, he had picked up something else. Up ahead was an elderly man dressed in a white robe. With his right hand, he tossed a package to a thirty-something-year-old man. "Get out of here, get this to the sect leader!"

The old man mustered all his strength, channeling his Celestial Chi and sent out a strike that pushed back thirty peak Tenth Level human combatants.

Judging by his power level, the old man was likely an Earthly Venerable One! Ye Chen shuddered. He would suffer a worse fate than death if he took him on.

"Go!" The younger man with the package, who was protected by ten clansmen, continued to run.

Likewise, the men who had surrounded the package-carrying man looked to be in their thirties and were all Tenth Level combatants. They wore white robes with sleeves adorned with gold stars, each symbolizing their respective ranks.

They were people from the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars Sect!

Once the men were far ahead, Ye Chen decided to pursue them. The Raven Hawk circling above kept a tight eye on the package.

Why on earth would these people keep the package on them and not in their Heaven-Earth Pouches?

Maybe the package did not fit into the pouch?

The members of the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars did not go far. Ye Chen saw a group of people surrounding the men. Some of the pursuers were Earthly Venerable One. It seemed whoever tried to leave the place with the package would be hunted.

Ye Chen realized that most combatants on the floor had their eyes set on the package that fell into the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars Sect.

Did the package belong to the body floating on the magma?

The body in the magma must certainly be a Heavenly Venerable One, perhaps stronger. Likewise, his belongings must have been powerful too.

The group of men arrived and initiated a fight with the members of the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars Sect. One of the men, who happened to be an Earthly Venerable One, lunged forward and struck the man carrying the package on the chest. The attacker caught the package with his right hand. The package now fell into the attacker's hands.

The man who had taken a blow from the Earthly Venerable One began coughing up blood. He angrily shouted, "You fellow Taiyi Sword Sect scumbags! We of the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars Sect will never forget this!"

The Earthly Venerable One from Taiyi Sword Sect smirked. "Finders keepers, losers weepers. The treasure naturally belongs to the strongest. If you want it so badly, you can always reclaim it!"

Moments after the Taiyi Sword Sect member had retrieved the item, a large roar broke out.

A group of Tenth Level Demon Wolves and sanguine Demon Wolves surrounded them. The Taiyi Sword Sect member's face changed. Going by strength, the Three Major Sects were relatively equal in power and thus, stood an equal fighting chance. The beasts, however, were particularly difficult to shake off. Once they set their sights a target, they are relentless, especially the Demon Wolves who tend to form a pack and displayed exceptionally coordinated attacks.

"Taiyi scumbags! If we Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars can't get it, neither should you!" Just as the wounded member of the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars Sect finished, a group of Demon Wolves pounced on him. The rest of the clansmen quickly rushed over to help.

"Members of the Taiyi Sword Sect, charge!" The Earthly Venerable One screamed, leading ten plus members to break through the circle of Demon Wolves. Another bloody fight ensued with terrifying scenes. More beasts and humans joined the battle. Bodies began to fall once more, creating a bloody river sight.

Amid the battle, the package in the hands of the Earthly Venerable One slipped. One of the sanguine Demon Wolves quickly took it by its mouth and ran.

"Give that back, you savage animal!" the Earthly Venerable One screamed. He sprung forward and struck down the animal.

Ten Demon Wolves surrounded him. Clang, clang, clang. One after another, the Demon Wolves were sent flying off their feet. The Demon Wolves did not seem to fear death and continued to charge toward the man. The Earthly Venerable One could only watch helplessly and scream as the sanguine wolf ran away with the package in its mouth.

Ye Chen's Astral Body saw that there were ten creatures circulating above the air. Apart from the pack of Demon Wolves, there was a group of rhinoceros and lions that had surrounded them. The battle was far from over. It looked like there were different factions of beasts too and they would not think twice about killing their brethren.

Initially, it was the humans who had the upper hand. When the beasts and Celestial Beasts came over, the Three Major Sects had a difficult time looking after their own. They could only watch as the item fell into the hands of beasts, yet do nothing about it.

Seeing the change in the situation, Ye Chen smiled. Had the item fell in the hands of the Three Major Sects, he would not have stood a chance in obtaining it. With beasts, however, it was a different story. Ye Chen ordered the Raven Hawk and Vermillion Spirit Condor to watch over the package while he pursued from behind.

"Squeak, squeak." Little Tanuki squeaked a couple of times. It then hopped off Ye Chen's shoulders and disappeared, probably running up ahead.

Was Little Tanuki going for the package too?

Now that Ye Chen thought about it, Little Tanuki was a Tenth Level Celestial Beast too. It was lacking in fighting power but had an equal footing against beasts and Celestial Beasts alike. It could turn invisible, which meant it could escape if it encountered any powerful beasts or Celestial Beasts. Once in a while, Ye Chen checked on Little Tanuki.

While the beasts fought over the item, Ye Chen patiently waited for his moment to strike.

High up above the cliffs, the members of the Stalwarts of the Heavenly Stars Sect had huddled together. There were about a hundred of them with twenty important members acting as the core. Three of them were elderly folks with white beard and hair. Their white robes swayed beautifully, giving them a rather regal presence. Those three were Earthly Venerable Ones.

"Elders, we've lost the item," a severely wounded man reported. He was held by his clansmen. The man had suffered multiple bites on his body and took a heavy blow to the chest. If it were not for a grade seven medicinal pill, he would have died by now.