Meanwhile, Krune's group arrived at one of the hidden entrances, just like the one that teleported Heavin over.

"It's inside this building. If Luvile's Purple Tribulation Lightning succeeds in hiding my energy, the portal should not be closed when we check it."

​​

Krune's group nodded as they quickly entered the building. Because there weren't any crystal demon beasts and ghosts around, they were able to make their way in without being disturbed. Eventually, they arrived at what was supposed to be another exit of the building.

However...

"Hum? It seems like even Luvile's power wasn't able to hide your Mental Energy Presence. There is no portal to speak of, just another exit."

Soren shook his head in response.

"Not exactly. One of you, go out of the Tribulation Layer."

Lucio accepted the task and quickly exited. As soon as he did that, some kind of field immediately expanded from that gate outwards. Krune's group couldn't tell what it was exactly. In fact, they couldn't even see it. It's just that they felt a small ripple in their Mental Energy when that happened. They knew that the area they were in was enveloped by something.

Soren could tell what they were thinking and said.

"This is the thing that won't allow me to get close to the gates. You were only able to feel it spreading because you were right beside the gate when it appeared. If we were not inside Luvile's Tribulation Lightning Layer, you wouldn't feel anything due to how discrete it is."

Still, Krune couldn't help but ask.

"So, Luvile's Tribulation Lightning Layer is working as intended. However, how come the gate is only showing the outside of the building? I can't see any spatial entrance at all."

"That's because it was made to be like that. Believe me, it's right there. We just need to cross it."

"Lucio, you go in front so that the gate can think you will enter. We will be following you right behind."

Lucio nodded and immediately dashed forward. Krune and the others followed right behind.

*Blub...*

As soon as Lucio passed through the gate, space rippled as if a stone was thrown into a calm lake. Krune's group didn't waste time and passed right through it as well. The moment they did it, the world around them blurred as Spatial Laws acted on their body. To prevent the gate from having problems, Krune deactivated his Tribulation Layer as well. After all, Luvile's Purple Tribulation Lightning could eat laws. Now that they were already in the Spatial Gate, it would be meaningless to close it again.

Just a second later, the world around them returned to normal as they could see the new region they arrived in. It was the same as Heavin, a paradisiacal planet with life everywhere. However, they quickly noticed their cultivations being suppressed at high speeds.

"Our cultivations!"

However...

"Hmph!"

Soren's Mental Energy spread around and immediately canceled whatever was suppressing the cultivation of Krune's group. Krune and the others felt their cultivations increasing again until they stopped in the Divinity Realm once more.

"With me here, I want to see how you will stop us."

Krune's group was delighted to hear that.

"Great! However, where should we go now?"

Soren then pointed in a particular direction before saying.

"This way. I've been to Zugen's territory before, so I know very well where to find him."

Sure enough, Krune's group began to move in the ruins' direction that Heavin and Liriu had entered before. Well, Krune could still feel Heavin's presence, so they would have gone there even if Soren didn't say anything.

Also, Krune didn't know if their presence had been noticed already, so he used the Purple Tribulation Layer to hide their presence once more.

However...

"Argh!"

Krune and the others looked at Soren, shocked. Out of nowhere, Soren screamed out in pain.

"Senior Soren! What happened?!"

Soren immediately sat down and concentrated. Seeing that he couldn't talk at the moment, Krune's group stayed there with him. Soren then opened his eyes again a few minutes later.

"Zugen has just absorbed part of my Mental Energy Source."

"What?! Does it mean he took Heavin and Liriu?"

Soren shook his head in response.

"No. The amount Zugen took away was even smaller than the amount you gave me. From what you said, Heavin has a lot more of my Mental Energy Source than you had, so it doesn't make sense that Zugen took away just this bit."

Obviously, that was the small amount that Heavin used in the Black Orb. Of course, Krune's group had no idea about it.

"Let's increase our speed. If Zugen takes the rest, I'll receive huge damage while his condition will improve to the point where we will be helpless against him."

Krune, Feifei, and Lucio nodded as they sped away with Soren.

Back at the ruins, Heavin and the other cultivators proceeded with caution. So far, they didn't find any of the crystal demon beasts, let alone ghosts. However, they didn't find anything else either. It was more like they had entered a labyrinth.

Liriu tried to open a way forward with brute strength, but it turned out that these ruins were even more resistant than those outside. If he decided to spend time doing it, he would be able to break through the walls. However, it would use a lot of time and energy. That being said, everyone preferred to follow the paths available.

While they were trying to find more clues, Zugen finally finished absorbing the sliver of Mental Energy Source from Soren.

"Indeed. A source from a Soul God is just too good. However, where can I find the rest? Or better yet, is there more available, to begin with?"

Zugen then spread his Divine Sense, which quickly enveloped the entire planet. He then found the various groups that had entered his maze.

"Oh, the ants are here already. That's good, then. Perhaps it was one of them that got the Mental Energy Source from Soren."

Sure enough, Zugen was unable to find Krune's group since they were enveloped by the Purple Tribulation Lightning.

Zugen then got up as he looked in Heavin and the other groups' direction.

"Still, was this a trap that Soren made for me? I refuse to believe I was lucky enough for his Mental Energy Source to simply appear here. If I really go out to capture these ants, will I fall for his trap?"

Zugen knew that Soren was stronger than him since he was the one to create the Soul Cultivation Technique. Because of that, he was afraid that Soren had developed another method to get rid of him. One couldn't blame Zugen for being cautious since his archenemy had been lurking around for so long.

He pondered for a bit and finally decided. His Divine Sense then expanded beyond the closed Solar System, connecting him with all the nearby crystal demon beasts and Ghosts. Not long after, these creatures rushed into the locations of the hidden Spatial Gates.

One by one, they entered the gates before appearing on his planet. Zugen didn't hold back and used a lot more energy to directly connect the Spatial Gates inside the ruins. However, both ghosts and crystal demon beasts were affected by this in terms of their combat power.

That's why you couldn't find any of them on Zugen's planet. It was completely sealed so that only Zugen can move without restraint. First of all, the crystal demon beasts and ghosts were not his to start with. They were made with the souls of the deceased lives of his territory in the past. They still followed his orders, but each one of them was a completely different being.

Nonetheless, both ghosts and crystal demon beasts had their abnormous advantages. The crystal demon beasts' bodies still gave them enough power to fight at the Divine Soul Realm level. The ghosts were even better since they were beings made with Mental Energy. As shown by Heavin, Liriu, and Fura, Mental Energy can display a lot more strength in this place than normal cultivation.

As soon as Zugen finished transferring them, he passed a new order.

"Beat them all to the point where they can't retaliate anymore. However, don't kill anyone. I have a few questions to ask."

Sure enough, he was still hoping to find Soren's Mental Energy even though he thought the chances were meager.

*Roar!*

Both ghosts and crystal demon beasts began to spread around the ruins. As a ruin situated on this planet only, it was obviously much smaller than the ruins outside. That being said, it would be much faster to cover more areas.

Not long after, the first group of crystal demon beasts and ghosts found a group of cultivators. Immediately, the faces of the group paled since their cultivation was still sealed at the Core Formation Realm.

"Run!"

They turned around and dashed away. However, they soon noticed something strange.

"Wait! They aren't as fast as before."

If the ghosts and demon beasts were still at the Divinity Realm level, they should have been killed almost instantly.

"Who cares! They're still faster than us, and their numbers are much higher. There's no doubt they are above the Core Formation Realm level of strength. We can't fight back. Just focus on running."

Unfortunately...

*Roar!*

Another group of ghosts and crystal demon beasts appeared in front of that group. The cultivators could only curse out loud as they unleashed their best techniques. They had to force their way through, or they would definitely die here.

Of course, they weren't the only ones trapped between those beings...