Everyone ascended, but I didn't get on board

Chapter 205 The Invasion of the Strange Beasts

Qiu Ci and Juan Shan found a secluded place to stop. Qiu Ci set up more than a dozen layers of isolation formations, and after thinking for a while, she asked the dog system to turn off the shield before she began to ask questions.

"What exactly happened? They didn't do anything to you, did they?" she asked quickly.

"Huh?" Juan Shan was taken aback, somewhat puzzled by her question. "What could have happened to me? Wasn't I just here to report on Huo Yanting's disappearance? But why are you here, Venerable One?"

"If you're just here to report, how come Xiao Er is trapped and has left your sea of ​​consciousness?" she asked directly.

"Lord Chen?" The old man from Juanshan was even more puzzled. He habitually reached for his hat and blurted out, "Lord Chen is still here with me... Huh!" He reached for nothing, as if he had just realized that Xiao Er was missing. His face turned pale and he frantically searched around.

[Host!]
Xiao Er then floated out from behind the dog system and flew leisurely towards the old man of Juanshan.

"Lord Chen!" Old Man Juanshan hurriedly caught it with both hands. At this moment, he also realized what was happening, and his face slowly darkened. "Master, there must be something in that temple that confuses people's senses. I didn't even realize that Lord Chen was not by my side."

With his Celestial Realm level of perception, he didn't notice anything at all, and for an entire day he didn't think of Lord Chen's existence at all. This was not normal at all; it was only possible that someone had deliberately downplayed his perception of the system.

"So what exactly happened to you at the temple?" Qiu Ci continued to ask. The temple could even separate Xiao Er from the shrine, so confusing his senses was naturally something he could do as well.

“They only asked about Huo Yanting once, and incidentally wanted me to leave the Federation and join the Temple.” He said in a deep voice, “After I refused, they didn’t say much, just told me to wait for the results of the report, and then… I met you.”

"Is there nothing else?" The temple hadn't mentioned the system at all.

"No!" Juanshan shook his head. "Why did you come, Venerable One? Did you discover what happened to Lord Chen?"

"It was the dog system that discovered it." Qiu Ci then recounted everything, including the matter concerning the temple priest.

"What? The temple has so many systems!" Juanshan was also shocked after hearing this.

"Yes, there are at least thirty-five more." This was only what the other party told her; in reality, there were probably many more.

"What is the temple trying to do by gathering so many systems?" asked the old man from Juanshan.

“That’s what I don’t understand either.” Qiu Ci shook his head. “Logically speaking, the system is only effective for the bound target host. Others may receive some benefits, but for the temple, supporting them is not very profitable.”

As an official organization, the resources provided by the system are readily available to them; there's no need for them to specifically cooperate with the system. Is it merely for better management of the hosts and to prevent the bound individuals from causing trouble?
But what about Huo Yanting? The temple knew about his binding with the system, and it was the temple that released that system. In the past ten years, they haven't seen any management or intervention in Huo Yanting's actions, let alone any attempt to stop him. On the contrary, Miao Jia's path was almost ruined.

Moreover, after Huo Yanting went missing, although the temple had been investigating, anyone could see that it was just going through the motions. Otherwise, his teammates wouldn't have simply disbanded and gone home, only sending the captain's old man, Juanshan, to report.

“Master, I don’t think the temple has gathered these systems just to help you become immortals. They must have other plans. We shouldn’t agree to it so easily,” the old man from Juanshan said worriedly.

"I understand." Qiu Ci knew this, of course. She could tell from the temple's attitude towards her and Juanshan. Xiao Er was directly separated because of her low level, without even notifying Juanshan. The dog system was obviously stronger and even absorbed one-third of Liu Tianze's system's energy, yet they directly invited her to join.

The difference before and after was too obvious. Qiu Ci did not believe that the temple would return Xiao Er to Juan Shan if she had not appeared.

Therefore, she didn't believe a word Liu Tianze and the others had said before. But why did the temple let them leave so easily? And why did they seem so certain they would agree to join? Was there something about the system that she didn't know?

"Oh, right." While he was thinking, the old man from Juanshan seemed to remember something and quickly said, "When they invited me to join the temple before, they also showed me a document about the beast uprising."

"A strange beast?" What's that?

“They say that in the far north of the temple, there is a land abandoned by the gods, where a calamity called the Dark Tide often breaks out.” Juanshan recalled for a moment and explained, “When the Dark Tide breaks out, strange beasts often take the opportunity to invade. These beasts are extremely ferocious and their whereabouts are unpredictable. The purpose of the temple recruiting high-level cultivators is to guard the north and deal with these strange beasts.”

"There are such things?" I've heard of demonic beasts, spirit beasts, and divine beasts, but what kind of creature is this strange beast?
Qiu Ci was somewhat puzzled and was about to ask for details when...

Sudden.

The surrounding space rippled for a moment, and an unprecedented chill swept over her, inexplicably making the hairs on her body stand on end and giving her goosebumps.

The next moment, a rapid alarm suddenly sounded over the city, spreading throughout the entire city in an instant. The streetlights on the corners and roadsides all turned red, and at the same time, an alarm sounded.

"Warning! Warning! Citizens, a monstrous beast is about to invade! Please move to the nearest shelter and activate defenses!"

The broadcast rang throughout the city.

The two were both stunned. They looked at each other and then removed the formation and walked out of the street corner. Only then did they realize that the once bustling street was now deserted, and the surrounding high-rise buildings were all shrouded in layers of formations. The two of them were the only ones left in the entire city.

what's the situation?
Before they could react, a dark rift suddenly opened in the distant sky, and a colossal, mountain-like beast emerged from it. The beast was shrouded in black mist, obscuring its features, except for a pair of bright red eyes that stood out clearly.

Roar……

The giant beast roared, and its immense pressure spread with the sound waves, causing the once flat ground to be lifted up one after another, and the entire city to be engulfed in dust.

This pressure... is comparable to the Celestial Realm!

Both of them were shocked. Was this a strange beast? Its strength had actually reached the ninth rank or higher.

Before Qiu Ci and the other two could react, they saw the giant beast surrounded by black mist roar and then gallop away like the wind.

"Master!" Juanshan exclaimed, "Why do I feel... like it's heading straight for us?"

Upon closer inspection of the autumn farewell.

"Damn it! They're coming for us!" He immediately grabbed Juanshan and ran away, yelling, "Run!"

"..."