Wulei Valley is not large, but it is incredibly narrow and long.

After leaving the thatched cottage, the group continued walking for nearly half an hour.

Arriving in front of a Primitive Forest.

The ancient grounds in midair were dim and murky, with the forest ahead appearing dark.

Lin Tian followed behind Bu Qingxuan, Lu QingCheen, and others.

The group moved forward amidst the narrow and long dense woods ahead.

The forest was filled with moisture rising, exuding a decayed, decrepit atmosphere.

Vaguely.

Lin Tian could still smell the scent of corpses in the air.

It was only upon reaching a clearing in the forest that he understood why.

There lay a great heap of skeletons.

There were human skeletons as well as unknown monsters with large frames.

These skeletons bore many scars, some made by swords, others by claws.

Beside them lay numerous broken swords and severed limbs.

Clearly, a brutal battle had once taken place here.

Amidst the pile of skeletons, Lin Tian could see a beast skeleton as large as a house, with a longsword over ten meters long piercing down through its center, deeply embedded into the earth.

But that longsword was already rusty and had even grown moss.

Seeing the pile of skeletons before them, Bu Qingxuan, walking in front, suddenly halted, his face etched with deep melancholy.

"These are all the corpses of the cultivators who once guarded the entrance to the Earth Cave!"

Bu Qingxuan pointed to the battlefield in front, turning back to Lin Tian, Lu QingCheen, and others, saying, "The monsters that emerged from within at that time were terrifying. Many of us died in battle just barely managing to hold this entrance!"

All the guardians who died in battle?

Lin Tian’s eyebrows slightly raised, secretly astonished.

Meanwhile, he observed these dead monster skeletons in front of him; most of them were unrecognizable.

Only bones remained, and Lin Tian could only make out a vague impression of the monsters’ original appearances.

But he was certain that this type of monster was new to him.

"If they were all guardians, then they were your people. Why not bury them?"

Lin Tian pointed to the pile of bones on the ground, puzzled.

Lu QingCheen and several others beside him also looked at Bu Qingxuan, faces filled with confusion.

"Hehe... As guardians of the Earth Cave, we are inherently condemned; whether buried or not, what’s the difference?"

Bu Qingxuan shook his head, revealing a wry smile.

"Condemned? What does that mean?"

Lin Tian suddenly became curious.

Since entering Wulei Valley, he’d noticed Bu Qingxuan’s words mentioning sin.

The implication was that they were here because they’d committed some sort of wrongdoing.

"This matter is hard to explain in one word!"

Bu Qingxuan sighed deeply, the expression on his old face full of distant memories.

After a long, long time.

He finally spoke again, saying, "In the Ancient Cultivation World, Yuan Shu City was a great Cultivation City belonging to the Cultivation Alliance. For countless thousands of years, us human cultivators and the Devil Race have had constant disputes, endless wars! But the ones who actually suffered were innocent individuals, innocent demons, and weak cultivators on the lowest strata! Later, the City Lord of Yuan Shu City couldn’t bear it in his heart and saved the Fox Clan, hiding them inside the city! But this act brewed a dreadful disaster!"

"Among the Fox Clan, some people from the Devil’s wicked tribe were mingled, gaining intel on the Human Clan cultivators. Overnight, the Cultivation World saw more than a dozen cities ravaged by a Demon Beast Tide, rendering the populace miserable! It exploded outward, shaking the entire Cultivation World! All cultivators at Yuan Shu City became the greatest sinners of the Human Clan, banished to guard the entrance here!"

"I, Bu Family, was also in Yuan Shu City at that time!"

...

When these words were finished.

Lin Tian and Lu QingCheen finally understood what had happened.

The sin Bu Qingxuan spoke of earlier referred to this matter!

Such a secret affair was unknown even to Lu QingCheen.,.

"As for not burying them..."

Bu Qingxuan said this, then pointed to a huge Nameless Tree not far ahead, "That is the entrance to the Earth Cave!"

At this moment.

Lin Tian and Lu QingCheen couldn’t help but look towards that large tree.

The tree was immense, so large one could nearly see the root system sprawling on the other side.

Measuring by eye.

The area spanned by those encircling tree roots on the ground was at least the size of a football field.

Aside from the Spiritual Trees Lin Tian had seen in his past life.

He had rarely seen such a massive tree, truly spectacular!

The tree before them was not a Spiritual Tree.

Growing to this terrifying size was truly astonishing.

However.

Lin Tian’s Divine Sense explored it, clearly feeling the fluctuations of an array surrounding the large tree.

At that point, Bu Qingxuan continued explaining to Lin Tian and Lu QingCheen, "The sealing of the entrance requires energy to maintain! The constant release of Death Qi from the skeletons is one of the energy sources for the array’s operation! Wulei Valley belongs to ancient places, being quite special. The skeletons here can maintain their original state and the emanation of Death Qi as long as they remain untouched! Therefore, I didn’t bury them!"

"This is, after all, our mission. Even in death, offering what we can posthumously..."

Hearing this.

Lin Tian was slightly startled.

Unexpectedly, these skeletons contained such profound mystery.

However, Lu QingCheen evidently didn’t want to concern himself too much with this.

He coldly spoke to Bu Qingxuan, "Old man, enough of the worthless chatter, open the entrance! We can handle whatever the inside entails!"

"Are you sure about going in? Although the monsters inside the cave have been dormant for years, strong monsters have rarely appeared, they shouldn’t be underestimated! Losing your life inside would serve no purpose!"

Bu Qingxuan looked at Lu QingCheen solemnly, then said gravely, "Perhaps you should reconsider? Each time the seal of the cave entrance is opened, it expends greatly!"

"No need! Before we came, we had already understood the situation of the Earth Cave entrance and are confident we can handle it!"

Lu QingCheen laughed coldly, berating Bu Qingxuan, "And besides, we’re not headed to the Earth Cave; we’re going to Miyan Island! We’re just using the Earth Cave route to get there! Who would’ve thought Miyan Island and the Earth Cave routes overlap?"

Upon hearing this, Bu Qingxuan sighed lightly, not persuading further, and nodded before walking up to that giant tree.

"Follow me! First walk three circles to the left, then three circles to the right!"

Bu Qingxuan nodded gently, advising Lin Tian and Lu QingCheen.

Then, he led a few people in walking around the giant tree.

An Illusion Array?

Lin Tian was secretly surprised.

But he didn’t ask, just followed Bu Qingxuan around the giant tree.

When they stopped walking.

Surprisingly, an entrance appeared beneath the roots of the giant tree!

And the entrance was blocked by a massive Stone Gate, upon which could be vaguely discerned various intricate and bizarre patterns.

"This giant tree is actually the Earth Cave Temple! It is the entrance to the Earth Cave! The temple was built to repel attacks from Earth Cave monsters!"

Bu Qingxuan pointed to the entrance, explaining to Lin Tian and others.