Above the firmament, dark clouds roiled.
They obscured the already sparse stars, shrouding the entire secret realm in an unending darkness.
On a flat piece of ground near a swamp.
Several tents stood erect, with the central bonfire extinguished by the cold wind, leaving only bits of charcoals emitting a reddish glow.
Inside one of the tents.
Yan Bing and his brother leaned back to back, both with their eyes tightly closed, longbows in hand.
Rustle, rustle!
A faint sound, like that of fabric rubbing against something, came from outside, prompting both men to open their eyes simultaneously.
They were both strong warriors at the Second Layer of the Golden Elixir Realm, their senses tens of times sharper than an ordinary person's.
Yan Bing lowered his voice, "There's some noise outside!"
Yan Yu nodded subtly, "Wait a little longer..."
Outside, all was quiet.
Suddenly...
An icy roar erupted, "Where do you think you're going?"
Boom!