Ryu's movements were swift and yet somehow unhurried. If there were individuals here to observe him, they would see a young man that looked as though he was taking leisurely steps, and yet crossing impossibly vast distances with every step.
Those that might have a chance to observe him, though, quickly found that there were ripped from them.
Ryu completely embodied the nature of his twin daggers, his body moving like the wind and his intentions being akin to lingering shadows. Flashes of lightning were all these individuals saw before their bodies fell into a rain of ash, unable to hold onto their lives.
Although Ryu moved quickly, he was actually being extremely cautious. There wasn't an inch that he stepped upon that didn't first withstand the scanning of his soul. However, he quickly found that many of the potential issues he ran into had been forcibly broken by others already.
In truth, after so many years, the threat levels of this place had deteriorated greatly. And, it was also likely that whichever individual laid these formations to begin with had first taken away much of their strength.
Although this individual had left behind things that were no longer of use to them, logically speaking, any formation they had laid that would be capable of protecting them from enemies had to have been constructed of extraordinary items. Knowing that, Ryu had already come to understand that the most dangerous parts of these defenses had long since been ripped away.
Some fools might believe that they were really getting a good deal here, but they were exactly that, fools. If there was really some supreme treasure lingering in wait in this place, would these protective formations be able to be broken apart by the likes of these people?
Anything worth doing was difficult, and anything worth taking would be dangerous. It was just that simple and these were how things in the martial world worked.
Still, though Ryu was aware of this, he had still come here. The first reason was mostly to temper himself, but the second reason was that for those with insights and talent like him, this sort of place might be even more valuable than a Legacy World or a Ruin might be.
A location where a supreme expert spent an extended period of time cultivating in closed door was akin to a treasure trove not because of what might physically be left behind, but precisely because of the things that couldn't be seen clearly with the naked eye.
Just standing by Elder Aika's breakthrough had allowed Ryu to step from the initial stages of the Second Immortal Dao to the very peak. Even now, he just needed a small impetus to push through, something that probably should have taken him months of effort, at the very least.
While his Dao was far more powerful than almost anyone he would meet below the Seventh Heaven, and even more than enough to compare with the absolute geniuses of the Seventh and Eighth Heavens, it was also far more difficult to progress in.
One of the main reasons he wanted to enter the Second Heaven as quickly as possible was because its laws were more complete than the First Heaven, and as such, he would have a better chance at progressing.
However, his interaction with Elder Aika had enlightened him to another potential method, and that was to rely on those with far higher comprehensions than himself. Whatever lingering and residual energies there were in this place was bound to have profound insights and might even form some phenomena that could be observed.
This place had been sealed for so long, and there was definitely a strong accumulation of energy. When the evolution was triggered, there would definitely be some powerful Dao insights to observe. However, only those with strong comprehension would have a chance at understanding what was left behind, of that, Ryu was certain, and it was also because of this that he found the efforts the others made, digging deep for treasures, to be so disdainful.
Rather than breaking through these formations one by one, they should be taking their time to observe them and understand the kind of person this mysterious individual was. Maybe then they'd be able to gain an inkling that would help them once they reached the former core of this formation.
Ryu's steps came to a pause and he turned, pressing his hand against a wall.
There was a strong presence on the other side here, and it was potentially a former core of the larger formation. Whoever dug this tunnel was just lucky enough to miss it, digging around it and being off by about two meters. If the tunnel was started two meters to the right instead, that individual, and whoever was in here, would have died without knowing what happened to them.
To Ryu, though, this was perfect.
Despite his confidence in himself, he too wanted to take his time to comprehend this formation before he reached the core. Only by doing this would he maximize his chances.
Little Silk floated silently on Ryu's shoulder, watching with a flicker of interest in her little eyes.
She was quite eager as well, but not for the same reasons as Ryu. After all, to her, the stronger Ryu was, the more powerful beasts they would be able to target in the future, and the more powerful she would become.
A Sovereign Grade beast like her was an excellent trump card to have especially since she wouldn't experience any bottleneck all the way up to the World Sea Realm.
'I see, fascinating. This senior even infused their Dao into their protective formation. This would be a lot like what I would have to do to use the [Refinement Sutra] on my soul most optimally…'
Ryu removed his hand, his expression flickering. After a moment, he shot away, looking for another node.
Now that he had found one, finding more would be even easier. Soon, he would be able to form a map of the surroundings in his head.
While everyone else was rushing to get to the core as fast as possible, he took his time.
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