High above the city of Yicheng, several hundred miles away, a dim, grayish streak, faintly flickering with electric light, enveloped Pei San, the Snow Lotus Cult Master, and Li Jun, propelling them toward Yicheng at a breathtaking speed.

Within the streak of light, the three figures seemed like celestial beings.

"Father, Yicheng is just ahead," the Snow Lotus Cult Master said with a smile.

Pei San gazed toward Yicheng with a faint smile.

Li Jun, standing beside him, appeared slightly tense. Even though it was hundreds of miles away, given Pei San’s high-altitude flight speed, they reached the skies above Yicheng in mere moments. The trio slowed, and their figures finally became fully distinct.

Pei San looked down and chuckled, "We're lucky; Jingyi is indeed in Yicheng."

Inside the inner courtyard of Teng Qingshan’s manor in Yicheng.

Teng Qingshan, who had been practicing his fist techniques, suddenly halted, looking up at the sky with a puzzled expression. "Why is Xiao Jun here? And she's not riding the Six-Legged Saber Cicada. Wait, that’s not the black Heavenly Energy... it’s a Black Hole? What in the world is this?" Teng Qingshan's face showed profound shock.

He sensed the powerful aura approaching from the high skies, but he only detected two signatures—Li Jun's and the Snow Lotus Cult Master's.

Simultaneously, he noticed that Li Jun's and the Snow Lotus Cult Master's auras seemed trapped within a black hole. The Heavenly Energy of the Nine Provinces Land was swirling frantically around this 'black hole,' achieving an astonishing concentration. Teng Qingshan initially assumed this 'black hole' was composed of Heavenly Energy, but upon careful sensing, he was stunned to realize...

This black hole was absolutely not the Heavenly Energy of the Nine Provinces!

Teng Qingshan had encountered quite a few Void Realm experts. The power of the Blind Sword Saint, for instance, was black. However, the Blind Sword Saint’s black Heavenly Energy was entirely different from this strange 'black hole.'

"What is this exactly? How did Xiao Jun and the Snow Lotus Cult Master fly here? They don't have a flying demon beast nearby, nor did I sense any soul aura of a Void Realm expert." While still in shock, Teng Qingshan suddenly heard—

Whoosh!

The 'black hole' enveloping Li Jun and the Snow Lotus Cult Master paused momentarily in mid-air, then plummeted toward the martial arts practice ground in Teng Qingshan’s inner courtyard like a falling meteorite.

"Roar~~" The Six-Legged Saber Cicada also shot to Teng Qingshan’s side, its blood-red eyes filled with vigilance. It had clearly detected the peculiarity of this 'black hole.'

"Hmm?"

When the 'black hole' in his Domain sense appeared within his visual range, settling into the inner courtyard, Teng Qingshan was astonished to see that it was actually a peculiar gray force, faintly crackling with electrical light. Within this force were three people: the Snow Lotus Cult Master, Li Jun, and a middle-aged man with fair skin wearing a brown robe.

"He, he—"

No matter how composed Teng Qingshan usually was, a trace of shock surfaced on his face.

"Haha, Li Jun, it seems your husband is quite surprised to see me," Pei San remarked with a laugh.

"Huhe," Li Jun hurried to Teng Qingshan’s side and introduced him, "This is the Palace Master of the Celestial God Palace."

"Palace Master?"

Teng Qingshan's heart still reeled with disbelief. He gasped inwardly, "This man, I’ve seen him before! I’ve definitely seen him. It’s him... Pei San! That mysterious tycoon who bought the Dream Azalea in Wu'an Commandery back then! Pei San, who had experts of the Innate Realm guarding him! The Pei San who dared to disrespect Gu Shiyou!"

Although Teng Qingshan had sensed Pei San’s mystery back then, he never imagined... Pei San’s background was this immense!

Pei San!

The Palace Master of the Celestial God Palace!

No wonder Pei San showed no deference to Gu Shiyou and spoke with such authority. It made sense... even the entire Green Lake Island amounted to nothing in the eyes of this Celestial God Palace Master. "But even though Pei San looked down on Gu Shiyou back then, he had a special purpose concerning me and even sent his guards to test me. Why?"

Teng Qingshan harbored doubts, but outwardly, he regained his composure.

"Greetings, Palace Master." Teng Qingshan clasped his hands in salute.

Pei San smiled faintly, appearing very amicable. "Should I call you Jingyi, or the guest elder Huhe?"

"Huhe is fine," Teng Qingshan replied with a smile.

Pei San nodded. "Guest Elder Huhe, you seemed very surprised just now upon seeing me... why is that?"

Teng Qingshan shook his head with a wry smile. "Palace Master, firstly, I have never met you before, so seeing you naturally caused a slight surprise. Secondly, and most importantly, my Domain sensed that you were surrounded by something like a... black hole, and I couldn't detect your aura at all, which caused me immense shock."

Even with Pei San standing before him now, in Teng Qingshan’s perception, the area around Pei San’s body remained a black hole!

"A black hole? That's a good description," Pei San’s eyes brightened as he smiled. "It seems Guest Elder Huhe, you have never encountered a Void Transcendent expert." Pei San no longer doubted. Most Void Realm experts would be astonished the first time they met a Void Transcendent, because they only sensed a 'black hole' instead of a brilliant soul aura like the sun.

"Yes," Teng Qingshan nodded.

"When you eventually advance from the peak of the Void Realm to the Void Transcendent Realm, you will be the same," Pei San said lightly. "Void Transcendent Realm experts utilize their own World Energy, which is naturally repelled by the Nine Provinces Land."

"Void Realm experts' Domains integrate with the Heavenly Energy to observe others," Pei San continued. "But what I use is my own World Energy. The Heavenly Energy of the Nine Provinces Land cannot detect my power at all. Therefore, to your senses, it appears as pitch-black nothingness."

Teng Qingshan suddenly understood.

What couldn't be sensed was simply a swath of dark void.

'He truly is a Void Transcendent!' Teng Qingshan thought to himself.

This slightly plump middle-aged man before him did not exude terror, yet his Domain’s senses clearly told him... this was someone who could not be provoked.

"I see," Teng Qingshan said with an apologetic smile. "I am provincial and have never encountered a Void Transcendent expert; please forgive my ignorance, Palace Master! Please, allow me to guide you to a place to rest." Teng Qingshan led the way, ushering Pei San and the others to sit beneath a nearby pavilion, where Pei San and Teng Qingshan took seats directly.

"Xiao Lian, you and Li Jun, sit down too," Pei San showed no airs of superiority.

"Yes, Father." The Snow Lotus Cult Master took her disciple’s hand and sat down as well.

'Pei San saw me that year, and it seems he hasn't recognized me now. Hmm... Void Transcendent experts aren't significantly better than Void Realm experts in identifying people.' Teng Qingshan felt a bit more settled, but on this point, Teng Qingshan was mistaken. In fact, Void Transcendent experts were far superior in the art of recognition.

This was because Void Transcendent experts didn't rely on the Heavenly Energy of the Nine Provinces to perceive; they used their own World Energy to observe.

Void Realm experts relied on the Heavenly Energy of the Nine Provinces because they were creatures within the world, merely borrowing the world's power; thus, they could only vaguely sense life signatures.

But Void Transcendent experts were different!

When their World Energy swept past, it was as if their own eyes were witnessing the scene directly. This was why, when Pei San used his World Energy in Tiger Leap Commandery back then, he could see through Teng Qingshan’s box and discover the Axe of the Mountain-Splitting God and the two segments of the Reincarnation Spear within.

One was sensing; the other was like seeing with the eyes. This was the gap between Void Realm and Void Transcendent experts.

However—

Void Transcendent experts could not observe the surrounding thirty-four miles constantly, as Void Realm experts did, because they were suppressed by the world. They would only release a sliver of Heavenly Energy when absolutely necessary, sweeping across the area they wished to observe like a long thread.

They could not arbitrarily diffuse their World Energy to observe the sky, the ground, and the four cardinal directions simultaneously. They could only release a linear thread of Heavenly Energy, as this was the most conservative method.

Furthermore—

The length of the sliver of World Energy they could release depended on the Void Transcendent expert’s realm. The range of that linear World Energy thread released by someone newly entering the realm differed significantly from one at the peak. The stronger the expert, the longer the release. If one reached the Great Expert realm and could fully resist the Nine Provinces' suppression, the observable range would become extraordinary.

Pei San engaged in casual conversation with Teng Qingshan, while the Snow Lotus Cult Master occasionally interjected nearby.

Suddenly—

"Guest Elder Huhe, some time ago, my Celestial God Palace destroyed the Carefree Palace and took over all of Qingzhou. However, we allowed that old scoundrel from the Carefree Palace to narrowly escape... Over this period, that old rogue has already launched three sneak attacks on key locations of my Celestial God Palace. Several Innate Realm masters in my Celestial God Palace have been killed by him, along with many elite figures. It truly is infuriating," Pei San spoke of his anger, yet his tone wasn't harsh. But within his eyes flashed lightning and thunder, utterly terrifying.

In that instant, Teng Qingshan felt the surge of imposing aura emanating from Pei San.

'Pei San is genuinely enraged,' Teng Qingshan thought. 'But this Pei San is also sinister; even when furious, his speech remains so calm.'

"The reason we can't catch him is that my Celestial God Palace lacks a Void Realm demon beast capable of burrowing underground." Pei San looked at Teng Qingshan. "Huhe, I came this time for two reasons. Firstly, to meet you, my guest elder, since we have never met before." Pei San truly hadn't recognized Teng Qingshan.

Teng Qingshan's height had changed, and his appearance had altered, with his visage controlled by muscle and bone structure changes, not by masks or makeup. Thus, Pei San hadn't noticed.

Furthermore, having reached the Void Realm, his soul aura was different. Even though Pei San was a Void Transcendent expert, he hadn't seen through the disguise.

"Secondly, I need to ask you for a favor—I need to borrow your Void Realm demon beast for a task." Pei San smiled at Teng Qingshan. "I heard that your Void Realm demon beast is so adept at tunneling underground that it easily chased down the demonic wolf of the Sun-Shooting Divine Mountain and even bit off one of its tails."

Teng Qingshan smiled and nodded. There was no need to deny this; too many people knew about it.

"Palace Master, whether I lend you the Saber Cicada is not my decision; the Saber Cicada itself must agree," Teng Qingshan replied.

"Mmm, Void Realm demon beasts often have strong temperaments," Pei San agreed with a smile. "You and Li Jun, as a couple, please help me persuade this demon beast... If you complete this favor for me, I, Pei San, will owe you one personal debt! I rarely owe anyone anything. You can use this debt later to ask me to do something for you—even asking me to kill someone for you at the Yu Huang Sect or the Mani Temple would be fine."

Teng Qingshan was startled and couldn't help but exchange a look with Li Jun.

A debt from Pei San?

A favor from the Celestial God Palace Master? That held immense value.