This small piece of information, however, only made the few Golden Core cultivators who received it more confused. Although they were not old monsters who had lived for thousands or tens of thousands of years, they were all familiar with the clan's historical records, and there was no mention of such a large group of clansmen leaving to establish a new branch.
They were actually aware that their clan had once come from the Forsaken Continent, and they also knew that for the clan to establish a foothold here, some ancestors had remained on the Forsaken Continent to participate in the war. But how could they connect Meng Zhiyuan's group with that event? That was a very, very ancient matter.
The strongest among Meng Zhiyuan's group had only reached the Third-rank, and there were even many young demons whose spiritual intelligence had not yet awakened, clearly clansmen from within the last five hundred years.
Yet, this group of outsiders had been given a prime piece of cultivation land. Many factions within the clan had fought over that place for a long time, but the Ancestor had never given his approval, so no one had obtained it, and it was eventually left there. Now, it was suddenly taken by Meng Zhiyuan's group, which left many feeling extremely displeased.
Thus, at the welcome banquet held by the clan leader a few days ago, many in the clan took the opportunity to issue challenges to Meng Zhiyuan's group.
At first, Meng Zhiyuan and his people just sat there silently, not accepting any challenges. But amid the constant taunts from all around, and with the clan leader only offering a few symbolic rebukes, Meng Zhiyuan's group finally made their move.
That single move left this group of Dark Spirit Demon Bats from the Verdant Continent utterly shaken. The other side accepted challenges from First-rank all the way to Third-rank. In the end, regardless of the realm, they beat the local clansmen black and blue. And from beginning to end, Meng Zhiyuan and two others had not even acted.
The Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat who was now besieging Li Yan had challenged Meng Zhiyuan, but Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother had accepted the fight instead. In just a hundred moves, this beast had been beaten into a retreat, smashing through countless mountain peaks and suffering damage to his physical body…
After that battle, the clan started calling Meng Zhiyuan's group the "Outsider Thugs," which made many unwilling to even mention them.
"Oh? So you're looking for Meng Zhiyuan. Then where are you from?"
The Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat finally ceased his attack. His figure blurred and transformed into a black-robed, burly man, who then looked at Li Yan. His mind raced. If Li Yan answered this question, he could use it to guess at Meng Zhiyuan's origins.
"Just a minor sect, that's all. I became acquainted with Fellow Daoist Meng back then and have some connection with him. He once said that if he returned to his home clan, I should come and find him. Fellow Daoist, you need only tell him that Zhang Ming has come to visit, and he will know!"
Li Yan certainly wasn't going to reveal his identity. He cupped his hands in a salute to the black-robed man.
The black-robed man was very dissatisfied with this answer, but the thought of the fight a few days ago made him unwilling to offend Meng Zhiyuan's group any further. In any cultivation world, might makes right. Meng Zhiyuan's group was strangely quiet, like a bunch of mutes, but once they started fighting, they were terrifyingly ferocious.
Thus, he turned to one of the Second-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bats that hadn't attacked earlier and barked, "You, go over there. Take this Fellow Daoist's words with you and see what they have to say!"
The body of that Second-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat trembled, and an expression of extreme reluctance appeared in its eyes. Meanwhile, a fleeting look of schadenfreude flashed in the eyes of the other Second-rank bats around them.
"Still not going?!"
Seeing the Second-rank bat hesitate, the black-robed man's face instantly darkened.
After the Second-rank bat flew off, the black-robed man still did not let Li Yan leave the encirclement. Instead, he struck up a desultory conversation with him, mostly just trying to pry for information. But to the black-robed man's frustration, Li Yan's answers were watertight, giving him none of the information he wanted.
Time passed quickly. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the sound of two figures breaking through the air came from within the dense fog. The other party made no attempt to conceal their auras.
The dense fog churned, and two Dark Spirit Demon Bats broke through the mist and quickly arrived in front of Li Yan. The bat in front was as large as the black-robed man had been, and the one behind it, Li Yan guessed, was likely the Second-rank bat that had just gone to deliver the message. These Dark Spirit Demon Bats all looked basically the same; distinguishing them by sight was nearly impossible, so one could only rely on the auras they emitted.
After the bat in front arrived before Li Yan, its body blurred in mid-air and transformed into a young man in red martial attire.
Upon seeing Li Yan, the young man in red, whose face had been somewhat solemn, immediately broke into a smile. "It really is Fellow Daoist Zhang. Hmm, where is Fellow Daoist Zhao?"
"She had other matters to attend to, so she didn't come!"
Li Yan had sensed the aura from the other party just now. It wasn't Meng Zhiyuan, whom he wanted to see, but it was still somewhat familiar. After the other party transformed into human form, he recognized him at a glance. It was none other than Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother. Li Yan had barely spoken with Meng Zhiyuan's junior brothers and sisters, so he hadn't been able to identify who it was earlier.
Li Yan maintained his smiling expression. Although Meng Zhiyuan had not come personally, seeing this person's attitude towards him brought a small measure of relief to his heart. He knew his own situation best; the so-called super-sect behind him was in the Immortal Spirit Realm. In the Lower Realm, he was just bluffing. If they really ignored him, there was nothing he could do.
"Oh, so it's you. Where is your Eldest Senior Brother?" Li Yan asked, getting straight to the point.
"Oh, so you do know each other. In that case, we have other matters to attend to, so we'll take our leave!"
Seeing that the two indeed knew each other, the black-robed man immediately cupped his hands in a salute to Li Yan, his form once again reverting to that of a giant Dark Spirit Demon Bat, hovering with its wings flapping up and down.
Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother, on the other hand, squeezed out a smile and gestured to the other party that this person, Li Yan, was no threat and that he would handle things from here. He wasn't particularly fond of these clansmen of his for the time being. Not only were they talkative, but they had also been thoroughly mocking towards his group just a few days ago. It was only after his side had taught them a lesson that they had become more polite. Their hides were really thick.
However, his Eldest Senior Brother had also sent him a voice transmission, telling them not to be too hostile towards the clansmen here. There were many things they didn't know, and it was natural to feel some hostility towards a sudden appearance of "clansmen." Moreover, when you thought about it, many of these people were likely his bloodline descendants. It was enough to just treat them as juniors.
After the black-robed man left, before Li Yan could ask, a genuine smile had already returned to the face of Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother.
"Benefactor, you've come so quickly. Eldest Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother, and Third Senior Brother are in seclusion. But Eldest Senior Brother instructed before he entered seclusion that if our two benefactors came, I must explain the situation clearly. It's not that he's intentionally avoiding you. He also said that if you need anything, Benefactor, just ask. We will not forget the promise we made back then. Benefactor, please come inside with me. We can talk more about some things when we get home!"
Li Yan noticed that when this youngest junior brother of Meng Zhiyuan said the word "home," a hint of reminiscence flashed in his eyes. Perhaps he had just thought of his deceased relatives, and of that sunless seabed.
As he spoke, the young man in red had already turned slightly to the side and immediately began to lead the way forward. Li Yan followed without hesitation.
They flew for about half a cup of tea's time through the dense fog before entering a cave. Before Li Yan even got close to the cave, he felt several strands of Divine Sense sweep out from within.
'This Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan may only have one Nascent Soul cultivator, but they have a truly large number of Golden Core experts.'
When these strands of Divine Sense discovered it was Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother in front, they immediately retreated like a tide. There were no reprimands, nor did anyone greet him.
The inside of the cave was dark and damp. After flying for a long distance through winding passages, the cave before Li Yan's eyes began to grow wider and wider. The number of side tunnels and forked paths also increased, giving the impression of a sprawling network. Li Yan felt as if he had returned to the forbidden land in the deep sea of the Forsaken Continent. That place was also full of tunnels, like a labyrinth.
Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother led Li Yan through tunnel after tunnel. When they encountered other Dark Spirit Demon Bats along the way, he did not greet them. Instead, those bats stared at Li Yan with looks of surprise and suspicion.
Finally, they landed in a cavern that was a thousand zhang in size. This cavern looked more like a vast hall.
As soon as Li Yan arrived, seven or eight Dark Spirit Demon Bats near him looked over. Li Yan immediately heard chirping sounds and some voices filled with uncertain curiosity.
"Is that the benefactor who saved us?"
"It's him, it's really him..."
"Greetings, Benefactor!"
"We greet you, Benefactor..."
After a brief moment of shock, those few Dark Spirit Demon Bats hurriedly flew over. Several of them were already speaking in human language. The ones making the chirping sounds were clearly still First-rank demonic beasts, truly unable to take human form.
Li Yan looked at the bats flying towards him, feeling a little helpless. Apart from their slightly different auras, he really couldn't be sure if these were the same Dark Spirit Demon Bats he had brought out back then.
"Alright, I have matters to discuss with our benefactor. You all disperse!"
Meng Zhiyuan's youngest junior brother reverted to his form as a young man in red martial attire and waved them away. He then walked straight towards a corner of the hall. Li Yan also nodded with a smile at the few bats still flapping their wings, and then quickly followed.
Within a stone chamber, the main hall, cultivation rooms, and alchemy and artifact refining chambers were all present.
In the hall, the young man in red martial attire offered the seat of honor to Li Yan. Li Yan didn't stand on ceremony and sat right down in the main seat. The young man then took a seat as well.
"The Spiritual Energy here is quite good. It seems you've already gained the recognition of the clansmen here!" Li Yan said in a low voice.
"This was a gift from the Ancestor. It's a form of compensation for us!"
"Then have you found out the reason you were abandoned?"
"The Ancestor is still investigating. But according to the jade slips left behind in the clan, we have found some reasons for why we were abandoned back then. After the war between the two realms ended, it was a time of rebuilding. All the clans were busy seizing resources and strengthening themselves. The Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan was no exception. Furthermore, our matter involved crossing realms, which was not something an ordinary cultivator could handle or even know about. The clan elders all assumed that the powerhouses of the Verdant Continent would naturally think of this matter, so they didn't press it initially."
"But after all the clan's internal affairs had settled down, they still hadn't seen the return of our kinsmen who had been left behind on the Forsaken Continent. So the clan elders grew anxious and personally went to find the Spirit Transformation expert who had brought them here. That Spirit Transformation expert was very surprised himself; he knew nothing about it. But he later helped to inquire and found out that it was 'Venerable Duanmu' and another Spirit Transformation cultivator who were leading us on a very secret mission. However, neither of those two returned after the war. Some say they perished. Others say only one of them perished, while the other was seriously injured and was taken to the Immortal Spirit Realm by another Almighty, possibly to find a way to recover."
"Ultimately, they found the expert who was in charge of distributing missions back then. That person said we were supposed to be in a place called the 'Demon-Swallowing Abyss'. So, at our clan elders' earnest request, the same Spirit Transformation cultivator who had brought our clan here crossed the realm to search. However, he searched the 'Demon-Swallowing Abyss' for seven or eight days but couldn't find the location of the 'Chencang Trail'. For this, he even disturbed a powerful demonic beast at the bottom of the 'Demon-Swallowing Abyss'. After a big fight, he could only return alone!"