Gazing up at the sky, Qianye found the black sun to be somewhat surreal. It was clearly there, yet it didn’t feel like it. It was a phenomenon he couldn’t explain at all.

Qianye narrowed his eyes, his pupils changing color as he scanned different parts of the light spectrum. Yet, whatever vision he used, all he could see was the same unchanging black sun.

This meant that the black sun was probably something imprinted in Qianye’s consciousness, unaffected by any traditional isolation methods.

If that were the case, did this black sun truly exist? Qianye began to contemplate.

He retracted his gaze from the black sun and flickered hundreds of meters in the air. There were rolling hills in every direction, with only one side showing any signs of a downward slope. Qianye gazed in that direction, but he could see nothing even at the extremes of his long-range vision.

After some thought, Qianye decided to observe his surroundings before further exploration.

The inner world wasn’t desolate at all; one could almost say it was full of life. Many of the hills were carpeted with strange giant trees, and the ground was covered in thick shrubbery. If it wasn’t for the fact that the local fauna was entirely different from that of known continents, a newcomer might just mistake the place for a hospitable world.

This world was not safe.

There was no telling what kind of creatures this origin power environment had produced, not to mention the Evernight experts who had arrived earlier on.

Qianye was puzzled about something. Ordinary experts would never be able to survive such an environment. His initial analysis of the attributes here told him that those below the champion rank would only last a couple of minutes before being invaded by the darkness origin power, a taint that could not be removed.

Why then had the dark races sent a hundred thousand soldiers to Backsun Valley? Ordinary warriors simply couldn’t enter the new world, only those at and above the marquis rank would be suitable. Counts might be able to enter, but they would run into all kinds of limitations, from defense to cultivation.

As for what was inside the new world, that was no longer important. A world with a sun had to be much bigger than the outer one and was likely a priceless treasure in and of itself.

Within a certain forest, a werewolf expert fell from the sky and crashed to the ground. He immediately shot back to his feet and shook his head, glancing at the surroundings in puzzlement.

All of a sudden, his expression became pained as he clutched his throat and gasped for air. He could only exhale and not inhale.

The werewolf count fell to his knees, his face red as darkness origin power surged throughout his body. He looked like he was about to explode any moment.

A large hand grabbed the werewolf’s face just as he was on the verge of death. All of a sudden, he could breathe again. The count took a deep breath and looked up at the person who had just helped him.

A demonkin expert stood before him, emitting traces of marquis-level demonic energy.

“Count Zack Aiden, a somewhat famed legend among the werewolves. Who would’ve thought you’d be in such a miserable state?” the demonkin marquis said.

Zack struggled up. “I was merely careless, but you have my thanks all the same.”

The demonkin marquis said, “My brother was defeated in your hands back in the year, but that was a fair fight. There’s nothing to complain about. Even I sense danger everywhere in this place, so what say you to working together?”

Count Zack’s expression behind his mask was a bit hesitant. “You saved my life, so I’m willing to let go of my pride and work with you.”

“Combat strength isn’t enough in the inner world, cultivation level is also a necessary factor. You’re still some distance away from the marquis realm, a gap you were able to close using various means in the outside world, but not here. The origin power environment of the inner world has a profound effect on you, you must’ve experienced it just now. I happen to have a spare set of armor that might be helpful.”

The demonkin passed over a set of armor to the werewolf.

Zack put it on without any hesitation and found that the armor isolated him from the origin power outside. His expression improved slightly. “This goddamn place.”

The marquis nodded. “The darkness origin power here is almost poisonous, I still have no idea how we will last in the long run.”

“Is there any way to go back?”

“No.”

Zack’s expression became even more unsightly. “Even people from famed clans like you?”

“I was referring to myself when I said no. Well… there is a way, but we have to wait for the powerhouses to enter the new world. They’ll have to work together to build a passage back. Only then will we be able to return.”

Zack laughed wryly. “Had I known, I wouldn’t have suppressed my level in pursuit of a purer bloodline.”

“It’s too late for that now, but your fighting power will be helpful here.”

“Where do we go now?”

The marquis said, “I don’t know, either. Let’s try contacting the others.”

He fished out a flare and hurled it high into the sky, where it exploded. In addition to a bright flash, the flare unleashed a unique origin power fluctuation that spread far and wide.

However, the signal was like a stone tossed into the ocean. It received no response whatsoever. “It looks like we’re quite lucky to have landed near one another. Let’s discuss further when we find other people.”

Zack nodded and was just about to follow when he saw a black shadow flicker in his vision. A small creature shot out from a nearby bush and brushed past, vanishing into the distant woods.

“So quick!” The marquis was surprised.

Zack was as calm as before. “We can deal with it.”

He was prepared when the next black shadow shot out from the shrubbery. Reaching out at lightning speed, he managed to catch the creature through the air.

The cute animal was the size of a small dog, with four eyes and long ears.

The marquis approached with a frown. “This should be a herbivore, how can it be so fast? Even ordinary counts won’t reach this speed.”

Zack said, “Nothing is strange in this accursed place. With this, our dinner worries have been solved”

Neither demonkin nor werewolves at this level feared toxins all that much, so they didn’t really consider if the meat was edible.

The little creature seemed to have understood Zack. It was rather quiet at first, but it began to struggle fiercely.

The werewolf chuckled. “This little fellow is rather smart, don’t tell me it knows we’re about to eat it. It’s quite strong… wait! I’m losing grip.”

Its small frame exploded with energy as it struggled free from Zack’s grasp. The werewolf count reacted rapidly by strengthening his grip, hoping to squeeze this dangerous little thing to death.

However, the critter’s fur was oddly strong, almost as strong as some of the top wild beasts. It felt as though the animal were wearing leather armor. It ended up escaping since Zack failed to claw through its hide.

The little critter stomped on Zack’s hand with shocking force as it jumped away, leaving several bloody gashes on his hand. The impact even forced him to take a step back as the animal sped past the demonkin and toward the forest.

The marquis was astonished. He was just about to say something when Zack roared in alarm, “Careful!”

The demonkin turned around to find the little animal unfurling its ears like a pair of wings. It made a sharp turn in the air and flew back at him. The critter kept on charging after Zack called out, and bit down on the marquis’ shoulder!

With a loud crack, the animal bit through the marquis’ shoulder armor and tore it off along with a chunk of flesh. It chewed loudly on both armor and flesh before swallowing everything.

The marquis covered his wound with the other hand. “It’s carnivorous!”

Zack counterattacked with all his might. This time, the critter couldn’t escape anymore as the werewolf crushed all of its bones.

The little animal’s eyes suddenly turned white. It emitted a penetrating scream that was soon echoed by numerous others from various directions. Countless shadows leaped through the trees and had soon surrounded the two Evernight experts.

“So many?!” The marquis took a deep breath. He was just a moment late in his reaction and ended up getting bitten. He didn’t even have time to clean that wound before he was forced to draw his weapon.

These little animals all possessed the strength of a viscount, and judging from the squeaking in the forest, it would seem that hundreds of them were surrounding the place. Not to mention the marquis was injured, he would never be able to stand against hundreds of viscounts even at his peak.

Even the bloodthirsty werewolf was pale.

The beast horde didn’t attack immediately after arriving. Instead, they waited until the victims were completely surrounded before pouncing. The marquis and Zack erupted with whatever power they had left. The mixture of demonic energy and scorching darkness origin power converged to form a terrifying storm, but the two experts lasted but a few moments against the endless onslaught of beasts. Miserable screams ensued.

Qianye had just stepped into that forest at this moment. Only up close did he gain an objective understanding of those trees.

The forest was dark, gloomy, and filled with a gentle breeze. From time to time, one could hear unknown sounds that resembled the cry of birds and beasts.

Qianye didn’t get very far before a black shadow flitted past from the shrubbery, planning to dive into the depths of the woods. “Eh?” Qianye reached out and plucked the critter out of the air.

Qianye simply couldn’t figure out why this animal was so fast. After repeated examination, his eyes landed on its two long ears which, at a glance, seemed like they could be used as wings.

But even birds couldn’t fly at the speed it was flying at just now—not the birds in the Evernight world, or the flying creatures in the outer new world. Unless… it was using origin power!