Several hours had already passed, and after Jiang Che and Nangong Luo had studied this sealed array on the altar for so long, they still didn't have the slightest clue.

Right now, Jiang Che could only think of one simplest, and also easiest, solution.

Since they couldn't break the array, then they might as well just use brute force to smash the altar apart directly.

"No! No! Big bro, that won't work. Even though destroying the altar would break the seal, the inner spatial channel might be affected by the space fluctuations and be relocated somewhere else."

At these words, Fang Yuan's face changed and he hurriedly objected.

If the spatial channel got knocked away, he'd cough up blood—he was still waiting to enter the Ancestral Demon Realm for training.

And if the spatial channel suddenly appeared in the outside world, the demonic qi erupting out would surely wreak havoc on everything nearby, turning it into a Demon Realm.

By the time Tiger King Ridge found the location of the spatial channel, who knows how long that would take.

"Since brute force is out, if we want to open the channel, the only way is to break the sealing array on the altar."

Hearing that the altar couldn't be destroyed directly, Jiang Che immediately frowned, feeling somewhat troubled.

Nangong Luo at his side could only shake his head helplessly, letting out a breath. "Second brother, this sealing array is just too ancient. Big bro and I have absolutely no idea—we can only rely on you!"

"Hehe, big bro, third sis, just relax. This Demon Monarch actually has some research into arrays—I'll crack it open in no time!"

Fang Yuan just chuckled, oozing confidence in his tone, and quickly strode to the altar's edge.

Seeing Fang Yuan looking so assured, Nangong Luo and Jiang Che exchanged a glance, instantly understanding.

Since Fang Yuan could invite Jiang Che to go to the Ancestral Demon Realm, he definitely already had his own means for breaking the array; otherwise, he wouldn't have opened his mouth at all.

"Old second, looks like you planned this all along! You must've already studied this sealing array through and through. All right then, get started!"

Jiang Che teased and nodded at Fang Yuan urging him on.

"Heh, big bro, this array is extraordinarily profound and complicated—how could I possibly master it all at once?

Fortunately, the altar itself is flawed—there's already a breach. So with this crack as our entry point, we just need to destroy several key nodes in the array—there's a great chance to unravel it!"

Fang Yuan explained with a big grin, then focused his attention on the altar's sealing array.

Jiang Che and Nangong Luo retreated a bit, standing a hundred meters away, silently watching Fang Yuan at work.

Standing atop the altar, Fang Yuan very adeptly located the several array nodes he'd marked before.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh~

In an instant, Fang Yuan's gaze sharpened, his palm waved, and several streaks of blood-red light shot forth, striking the array's nodes with precision.

At once, on the surface of the altar, several areas crisscrossed with golden runes dimmed—the golden runes broke one after another, scattering into dots of golden light, and dissolving into nothingness.

At the same time, after these nodes in the array were destroyed, the altar began to tremble repeatedly with loud rumbling. Fortunately, the movement wasn't too violent, so the sealing array did not completely collapse.

Gradually, the altar and the array atop it seemed to stabilize, vibrating steadily at a modest frequency. The dim golden spiritual light on the surface pulsed like breathing, brightening and dimming in cycles.

Seeing this, Fang Yuan, whose heart had leaped to his throat, was overjoyed.

Success!

"Big bro, third sis, come over quickly!"

Soon after, Fang Yuan turned and beckoned to Jiang Che and Nangong Luo.

When Jiang Che saw the smile on Fang Yuan's face, he knew they'd probably succeeded, and led Nangong Luo over swiftly.

"Second brother, did it work?"

Nangong Luo couldn't help but ask.

"Pretty much. Next, just one more step, and we can unlock the sealing array!"

Fang Yuan was beaming now, nodding at Nangong Luo as he spoke.

"One more step, then let's do it?" Jiang Che nodded.

Fang Yuan looked toward Jiang Che and requested, "This last step—it may require your help, big bro!

Right now, the sealing array is at the verge of collapse, holding on in a brief state of equilibrium. If we just let it shatter on its own, it'll be like an avalanche; as time goes on, it'll grow fiercer and more chaotic, eventually affecting the spatial channel.

So, we'll need you, big bro, to use your Imperial Realm Power—cover the entire altar with your Spiritual Power, and thereby control the rate at which the sealing array breaks down, ensuring it shatters at a gentle pace. Only then can we protect the spatial channel below from harm."

Me?

Jiang Che was a little surprised. No wonder old second asked him here—it wasn't just to play bodyguard.

"All right! You and third sis fall back. Leave the rest to me!"

Jiang Che didn't refuse. Since he'd agreed to help old second enter the Ancestral Demon Realm, he was going to see it through to the end.

Once Fang Yuan and Nangong Luo had flown several hundred meters back, Jiang Che looked at the altar before him—his aura shifted instantly; the might of the Tier Nine Imperial Realm surged forth, like heavenly power rolling in from all directions.

In the next moment, Jiang Che released a torrent of Spiritual Power, enveloping the entire altar. Instantly, purple lightning completely suppressed the faint golden light of the sealing array.

At the same time, the provoked sealing array immediately lost its balance and began to collapse—runes flowing on the altar's surface dissolved, golden light grew ever dimmer, and the entire jade altar shook with wild intensity.

Seeing this, Jiang Che struck at once, suppressing the rate at which the sealing array fell apart. The purple lightning flared more brilliantly.

The effect was instant—on the altar's surface, the golden runes began breaking down much more slowly, and the trembling lessened.

Time ticked by, and the array atop the altar broke down bit by bit.

Soon enough, under Jiang Che's control, the sealing array collapsed completely, scattering into brilliant golden specks that vanished into the air. Only the bare white jade altar remained standing.

Crack!

Suddenly, on the altar's surface, the fissure still spurting demonic qi grew larger, and under the pressure, cracks quickly fanned out from its center.

Boom!

In the blink of an eye, the entire altar shattered into chunks of white jade, which flew off in all directions.

Meanwhile, a blood-red passage below the altar was revealed, from which a series of wails like those from the Nine Netherworld Hell could be heard.

Boom!

The next moment, terrifying demonic qi surged violently from the blood-drenched giant passage, blotting out the sky and engulfing everything. Billowing demonic qi soared into the heavens.

In an instant, the concentration of demonic qi in the entire Demon Valley multiplied several times over. Pillars of demonic qi even broke through the resistance of the array above, smashing straight into the clouds.