Chapter 689: Expectations

A deep sound came from behind the doors.

The entire training ground trembled.

Golden light shot upward and gathered above the gateway.

The light formed several ancient characters causing Chu Miao and Ye Xuan to look up.

They recognized the writing because it belonged to the same era as the records they had found in Chu Batian’s cave.

Chu Miao read the message aloud.

"Second master recognized."

Ye Xuan’s gaze changed.

The Soul Ring had only accepted two masters since it was created.

The first had been one of the Chu ancestors involved in making it.

Chu Miao was the second.

More characters appeared.

"Divine Transformation achieved. First gateway seal released. Passage remains closed."

Chu Miao was not surprised by the last sentence.

Their current cultivation was still too low.

Even if they could enter the Immortal Realm now, they would be weak compared to the cultivators living there.

They had already decided not to leave until they reached Tribulation Transcendent.

Ye Xuan continued reading.

"Final requirement... Tribulation Transcendent."

"I didn’t expect the ring to be so particular," he said.

Chu Miao nodded.

When she reached Tribulation Transcendent, the natural laws of the lower realm would no longer allow her to remain on Earth.

The gateway would give her a controlled way to leave instead of waiting for the heavenly dao to send her somewhere unknown.

However, the message had not finished.

Another row of characters appeared beneath the first.

"Calamity unresolved."

"World passage restricted."

Chu Miao’s expression became serious.

The gateway would not fully open merely because she reached the required cultivation.

The apocalypse had to end first.

The Soul Ring had been created to preserve the Chu family and help humanity survive the predicted disaster.

Its creators had made sure the master could not use the gateway to abandon the lower realm while the calamity continued.

"It seems our ancestors did not trust their future descendants completely," Chu Miao said.

"They were cautious."

"They were worried someone would take the Soul Ring and flee while the rest of the Chu family died."

"That was a reasonable concern."

Power and treasures could change people.

The Chu ancestors had sacrificed their lifespans, strength, and lives to prepare for the apocalypse. They would not leave the fate of their descendants to the character of one future master.

They had placed restrictions on the gateway to ensure the Soul Ring fulfilled its purpose.

Chu Miao was not offended.

Even without the restriction, she would not leave before ending the apocalypse.

She had carried the prophecy through two lifetimes.

Leaving halfway was never an option.

The words above the gateway faded.

However, the golden light did not disappear.

It gathered again and formed a circular image.

At first, it resembled a small blue and green planet.

Chu Miao quickly recognized it as Earth.

Clouds moved across its surface, and several areas glowed with weak spiritual energy.

However, one region was covered in dark-red light.

A long crack stretched across the darkness.

Golden energy leaked through it and spread into the red mist surrounding it.

Chu Miao moved closer.

"What is that?"

Ye Xuan studied the image.

"It resembles a spatial crack."

"Not an ordinary one."

She could sense two different energies within it.

One was immortal qi.

The other carried thick death energy.

The mixture was unstable.

Whenever the two collided, the dark-red region around the crack expanded slightly.

Chu Miao raised her hand and touched the projection.

Information entered her mind.

It did not come from a soul or living consciousness.

It was simply a record stored inside the ancestral formation.

Two words appeared in her thoughts.

Realm scar.

Chu Miao repeated them aloud.

"A realm scar?"

The Blue Moon Crystal spun faster.

A thin thread of golden energy left her dantian and entered the image.

The location of the scar became clearer.

It was somewhere far from City A, in a region marked by the zombie maps they recovered from City S.

More importantly, it was near the city that had been marked with three black circles and a crown-like symbol.

Chu Miao and Ye Xuan exchanged solemn looks.

The most important zombie stronghold and the damaged point between worlds were in the same region.

"That cannot be a coincidence," Ye Xuan said.

"No."

The high-level zombie crystal cores contained traces of immortal qi.

Now they finally had a possible explanation for its source.

The Zombie King had either discovered the realm scar or built its stronghold around it deliberately.

It might have been using the leaked immortal qi to strengthen itself and its commanders.

Chu Miao attempted to obtain more information from the projection.

The image flickered.

A final sentence appeared above the gateway.

"Repair the wound."

Then, the projection disappeared.

The golden light faded, leaving the ancient gate closed before them.

The barrier covering it had changed.

The cracks were gone, but the seal was thinner and more transparent than before.

Chu Miao removed her hand.

"So, reaching Divine Transformation released the first seal."

"And revealed what we need to do next," Ye Xuan added.

They had to end the apocalypse and repair the realm scar.

Only then would the gateway open after they reached Tribulation Transcendent.

Chu Miao looked at the closed doors.

Her ancestors had not simply left the Chu family a way to escape.

They had left them a responsibility.

She turned away from the gateway.

"We should finish collecting the crystal cores in City K and return home."

"You want to call a meeting?"

"Yes. We need to study the maps again and determine the exact location of the realm scar."

Ye Xuan walked beside her.

"And the Zombie King?"

"If it is using the scar to cultivate, it already knows we destroyed two of its strongholds."

The distant consciousness had observed them through the mental energy in City S.

It might have also watched Chu Miao’s tribulation.

The Zombie King now knew that they were becoming strong enough to threaten it.

"It will make another move soon," Ye Xuan said.

"That saves us from looking for it."

Ye Xuan glanced at his wife.

"You sound eager."

"We have delayed the final battle long enough."

Chu Miao opened a passage leading out of the Soul Ring.

Before stepping through, she looked back at the ancient gateway.

The doors remained closed.

However, for the first time, a thin line of golden light appeared between them.

The way home was waiting.

She only needed to finish her mission first.