Or perhaps… the phenomenon had been triggered by them.
Wei Shanze, Ding Ming, Xie Xie'an, Jin Miaoshan—all were present. Alongside them stood several unfamiliar figures, though Wang Yu could identify their origins: cultivators shrouded in Yellow Spring mist from the Nether Spring Temple, and a guardian from Underworld Mountain Sect riding a flying Yin Python.
Underworld Mountain was famed for its beast-taming legacy, particularly the control of Yin Beasts—a path closely related to Fierce Nether Peak's own heritage. Both traced their roots to the beast-taming arts, though their beasts were far from ordinary.
Yin Beasts were eerie creatures capable of shifting between ghostly souls and flesh-bound lifeforms. In ancient times, they existed only in the [Desolate Ancient Plains], but now they were scattered across many regions:
The Silent Desert, White Sand Wastes, Severed Realm Mountains, Windblown Barrens…
Anywhere with a Yin-veined wasteland, Yin Beasts would be found.
Legend claimed they were born in the [Netherworld Grounds], feeding on yin energy and living souls. They were said to possess innate talents for traversing the boundary between life and death, even swimming the Yellow Spring River.
But no one had ever seen a Yin Beast with such powers.
The so-called [Netherworld Grounds] had never been located in this realm—perhaps it was like the [Heavenly Demon Realm], a myth from beyond the world. Ding Ming himself cultivated the Yin Beast path.
Wang Yu wasn't sure if his own intelligence had played a role, but the Eastern Polaris ruins had clearly reached a fever pitch. His curiosity burned.
Still, he restrained himself, waiting patiently for the next image stone from his intelligence network—watching the battle unfold like a film from 3,000 kilometers away.
Whether or not the inheritance was claimed didn't matter. The vast ruins clearly held more than one opportunity. Most simply hadn't triggered the right conditions. Observing and learning was worthwhile.
With his abundant resources, Wang Yu had crafted many useful gadgets. Image stones arrived one after another, letting him watch the distant chaos unfold.
"Oh—"
"A Core Formation cultivator just made a move. Guiwater Yin Lightning? A divine technique… looks like someone from [Yingui Palace], a first-tier sect with only one or two Nascent Soul elders."
"Classic demonic path—Core Formation ambushing Foundation Establishment. The unlucky target is… Xie Xie'an! Ha!"
Due to the distance between the recorders and the battlefield, Wang Yu couldn't identify every technique. Only those with distinct traits and dramatic effects could be recognized.
Lounging on his couch, nestled against a warm snow fox, Wang Yu munched on candied fruits and muttered to himself.
"Little Xie, what trump card did you use? Still alive, huh… Oh! A talisman treasure!"
This wasn't Wang Yu's first time seeing a talisman treasure. He'd seen one used by Liu Jinxian.
These items required a Core Formation cultivator to sacrifice the essence of their life-bound artifact to forge. Each talisman could be used up to three times—standard trump cards for second-generation elites.
Evil God Peak had only three true disciples. It made sense they'd be given such tools.
Compared to Liu Jinxian's control, Xie Xie'an's mastery of the talisman was near perfect.
The black divine light not only dispersed the Guiwater Yin Lightning but also blasted the ambusher into the ground—a successful counterattack.
Then Wang Yu spotted another scene.
Jin Miaoshan, one of the competitors, tossed out a handful of unknown pill-like objects. Instantly, the area around the blood-red light pillar erupted in green flames, engulfing a thousand-meter radius.
Those who failed to escape—even with defensive techniques—were reduced to charred corpses, raining down like ash.
A true killing weapon.
"Zzzzz—"
Just as Jin Miaoshan entered the blood-red pillar, the image cut out. Wang Yu shouted:
"Third one! Has the third image stone arrived yet?"
"Here it is, City Lord!"
Beep—
The feed resumed. The battle grew even more intense.
Due to the delay in swapping stones, a few breaths of footage were lost. When the image returned, the blood-red pillar representing Asura was rapidly dimming—clearly, Jin Miaoshan had claimed the inheritance.
As the surrounding cultivators realized this, they stopped fighting and began setting up formation flags around the pillar—clearly intending to trap her.
Meanwhile, under the gray pillar representing Rakshasa—
It was pure chaos. Ghosts and evil spirits clashed in the sky, while below, zombies and Yin Beasts tore each other apart. Occasionally, the ground split open and a black coffin emerged, swallowing someone before sinking back down.
This wasn't a treasure hunt—it was a buffet for the monsters.
Some desperate cultivators unleashed their trump cards. Wang Yu saw one summon a giant ghost tree over a hundred meters tall. It rampaged briefly—then was overwhelmed and destroyed.
It was more chaotic than a mortal battlefield. Too flashy, and you'd be targeted. Too quiet, and you'd be ambushed.
Pretending to be weak? Easier to get one-shot by a lurking predator. You'd die so fast, you'd reincarnate as a pig.
Wang Yu was stunned—and learning fast. In this kind of slaughterhouse, stealth was key. Strike only when it mattered.
The battle raged on.
The victor beneath the Rakshasa pillar remained unknown—shrouded in ghostly mist. But under the Asura pillar, Jin Miaoshan had clearly won.
She emerged surrounded by multicolored formations, unable to move a hair. Her remaining protector saved her by unleashing over ten tier-three [Seal-Breaking Talismans].
They shattered the layers of formations. Then, using a spatial artifact and tier-three [Void Escape Talisman], they fled. This kind of wealth-driven combat style was beyond imitation.
Even so, both were heavily wounded.
What shocked Wang Yu most was that no Nascent Soul cultivators had intervened.
This was a top-tier Soul Formation inheritance. Not a single elder made a move?
He couldn't believe it. If juniors knew about it, surely the elders did too.
Was there something wrong with the techniques? It didn't seem that way.
Otherwise, why would elite disciples fight so hard for them? Could it be that Nascent Soul cultivators didn't need Soul Formation techniques?
That theory was absurd—even Wang Yu didn't believe it.
Then another idea struck him.
Could it be a matter of cultivation path? But there were Nascent Soul cultivators on the soul path. Sword cultivators were even more common. His own sect's Nine Fiends True Lord hadn't shown interest.
Clearly, there were secrets here that Wang Yu wasn't privy to. He'd ask Zhuo Shouqing later.
With the inheritance claimed, the Eastern Polaris ruins returned to their usual state—small teams and lone wolves exploring at their own pace.
That's how ruins worked.
Some were fully excavated and abandoned. Others were vast and deep, filled with hidden dangers. The truly valuable treasures often triggered phenomena.
Each time that happened, a wave of exploration followed—until someone claimed the prize.
Secret realms were usually controlled by major factions. Rogue cultivators rarely got access. For them, ruins were the best chance to defy fate.
When a lucky soul triggered a supreme inheritance, the major powers would swoop in to claim it. That was the norm.
Everyone waited for the feast.
A few days later—
The corpses and remains were mostly scavenged. Even broken artifacts were gone. If someone found a fragment of a magical weapon, they'd strike it rich.
The low-level "scavenger" cultivators came for this very purpose.
Of course, the real loot—storage bags and high-level corpses—had long been taken. Nothing was left for them.
The battlefield gradually quieted. Even Spiritridge City saw a sharp drop in traffic. Wang Yu adjusted his shops accordingly.
He reduced combat supplies and increased daily cultivation goods.
Peace returned—and Spiritridge flourished.
Ding Ming, Wei Shanze, and Jin Miaoshan didn't return. The storm had passed. True calm had arrived.
Except… Zhuo Shouqing stayed.
His reasoning? "Fun is fun anywhere. I've been stuck in the sect too long. Time to enjoy something fresh."
When Wang Yu asked why no Nascent Soul cultivators had joined the fray, Zhuo Shouqing gave a cryptic answer.
He said: "Demonic Nascent Souls have begun absorbing demonic qi. And demonic qi has types—just like spiritual qi has five elements, ice, wind, thunder, yin, yang…"
Higher-quality demonic qi exists. Once refined, it becomes irreversible. And in this realm, the source of demonic qi comes from sealed [Ancient Demons].
At that, Wang Yu understood.
This intel matched what he'd learned before: the demonic path's inheritance came from ancient demons.
Just like he suspected—cultivation paths were hard to change.
He'd hoped for flexibility, to borrow one path and elevate another. But in the demonic path, that didn't work.
The limitation lay in the type of demonic qi.
For example, if Jin Miaoshan cultivated the [Asura Saint-Killer Scripture], then after reaching Nascent Soul, she'd struggle to absorb Asura-type demonic qi from the world.
The best solution? Visit the [Desolate Ancient Plains] and find the sealed domain of [Kill]. There, Asura qi would leak naturally.
This strange limitation—based on the elemental nature of demonic qi—was something Wang Yu couldn't fully explain.
But one question lingered in his mind:
Could the placement panel provide him with the corresponding type of demonic qi?
He believed it could.
After all, the panel had already proven capable of absorbing even the [Heavenly Demon Malice] without side effects. If it could refine that, then surely it could simulate or supply the precise elemental demonic qi required for a given inheritance.
This meant that, unlike other cultivators who were bound by the elemental nature of their chosen path, Wang Yu might be able to bypass those restrictions entirely.
He wouldn't need to travel to the [Desolate Ancient Plains] to find the sealed domain of [Kill] just to absorb Asura-type demonic qi.
He could cultivate the [Asura Saint-Killer Scripture] or the [Rakshasa True Demon Scripture] without worrying about elemental compatibility or long-term viability.
That was the true value of the placement panel.