Ye Qin headed toward Suoluo Trench, glancing frequently at the map scroll in his hand to orient himself. From the entrance of the Demon Realm to Suoluo Trench was roughly ten thousand li. For a Nascent Soul cultivator, this wasn't a great distance; on a flying sword, the journey would be swift.

However, within this Demon Realm, rife with high-level demon cultivators, perhaps only a Demon Saint dared to fly high in the open air, exposing themselves to all eyes.

Ye Qin had no choice but to travel by ground, moving through mountain ranges, jungles, deep ravines, and streams—the journey was far longer, and evading demon cultivators along the way naturally consumed much more time.

Several days later, Ye Qin finally arrived at Suoluo Trench.

Upon reaching the area, Ye Qin saw the continuous stretch of Suoluo Spirit Trees and suddenly understood why the map scroll had given this place its name.

In the cultivation world of the East Sea, Suoluo Spirit Trees were considered high-grade spirit wood, typically ranking from the seventh to the ninth tier, extremely rare, usable for alchemy or artifact refinement. Here in the Demon Realm, where spiritual energy was abundant, most of these Suoluo Spirit Trees had grown wildly to the tenth tier or higher, with many ancient Suoluo trees even exceeding the thirteenth tier.

The scent emitted by the Suoluo Spirit Trees could confuse and put demon beasts into a deep slumber.

Especially when the Suoluo Trees blossomed, the countless pollen grains scattered were fatal; contamination meant falling into an unending sleep, and one could never leave the forest once lost within. Apart from demon insects like spirit butterflies and wasps, few other demon beasts were willing to approach the Suoluo Trees.

Fortunately, the Suoluo Forest was not currently in bloom; the aroma was thick but not yet lethal.

Ye Qin cast a Golden Light Shield around himself and entered the Suoluo Forest, sealing the tree scent outside the barrier.

Ye Qin stepped slowly into the woods, his gaze immediately growing heavy.

Deep within the forest, amidst the hazy glow of the Suoluo Trees, there were massive numbers of dead spirit butterflies and wasps—some in the hundreds, others numbering in the tens of thousands. Most of these insects were at the sixth or seventh tier, equivalent to the Core Formation stage; the highest among them were even tenth-tier, Nascent Soul-level Demon Butterfly Kings and Demon Wasp Kings.

These hordes of insects had died en masse, frozen stiff by frost or corroded away by pitch-black corpse miasma; the Butterfly and Wasp Kings had been directly crushed by divine power.

Ye Qin couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

Demon insects generally had shorter lifespans and rapid growth cycles, so their tiers rarely became excessively high. A tenth-tier, Nascent Soul-level demon insect was unheard of in the East Sea cultivation world, found only here in the Demon Realm. Yet, when these insects emerged in swarms, their terrifying might often surpassed that of demon beasts several tiers higher.

A swarm of ten thousand early Core Formation-level spirit wasps could make a Nascent Soul cultivator’s face turn pale with fear, forcing them to flee in panic.

But here, within the Suoluo Forest, as he moved forward, he encountered continuous fields of dead spirit butterflies and wasps.

"These insect corpses have been dead for one or two days... This is the attack signature of the Saint Emperor, the Ghost Lord, and Old Monster Hen Shan—they have already reached Suoluo Trench!"

Ye Qin examined the remains, thinking silently as he followed the trail of corpses. The Saint Emperor, the Ghost Lord, Old Monster Hen Shan, and the others were all peak late Nascent Soul cultivators. Within the Nascent Soul stage, they had few equals; even swarms of local demon insects posed no threat to them.

With the corpses of these insects as a guide, it was actually easier for him to catch up to the Saint Emperor and his group.

Less than half a day later, Ye Qin arrived at the depths of the Suoluo Forest.

Here lay a sheer cliff face thousands of zhang wide and tens of thousands of li long. Beneath it was an abyss of impenetrable blackness, likely tens of thousands of zhang deep. Faint roars and howling winds drifted up from below; it was impossible to tell what sort of demon beasts inhabited the depths.

The fierce wind blowing up from the abyss was extremely violent, making it difficult even for a Nascent Soul cultivator to maintain balance.

On the cliff face, there was a narrow stone path leading toward a vast canyon on the opposite side.

Ye Qin paused, calmly surveying his surroundings. Detecting nothing unusual, he leapt onto the stone path and dashed rapidly toward the canyon ahead. Taking the Vermilion Fruit had cost him considerable time, and he was anxious about falling too far behind the Saint Emperor’s group, driving him to rush his pace.

In the space of a single breath, he cautiously crossed the thousand-zhang stone path and landed at the entrance of the opposing canyon.

"Rock Lizard Demons!"

Ye Qin dropped down and, seeing over a dozen corpse-like figures of hundred-zhang-long demon lizards scattered across the canyon entrance, sucked in a sharp breath.

These dozen-plus demon lizards were all cultivators at the tenth tier or above, equivalent to the Transformation stage. Their forms resembled rocks, and if they hadn't been right in front of him, they would have been completely invisible.

The Rock Lizard Demon’s greatest innate skill was camouflage and stealth; their skin could perfectly blend with the surrounding environment, rendering them undetectable. If he had flown down here just now while crossing the stone path, ambushed by several of these demons, with the cliff face at his back leaving no room for retreat, he would have either perished on the spot or been forced to ascend on his flying sword—both outcomes would have been dire.

Fortunately, the Rock Lizard Demons guarding the canyon entrance had already been dealt with by the Saint Emperor and the others.

Alarmed, Ye Qin couldn't help but secretly feel fortunate.

He examined the wounds on the lizards; their blood had only just congealed, meaning they had died within the last two or three hours.

Ye Qin naturally understood that the Saint Emperor, the Ghost Lord, and Old Monster Hen Shan, leading the way and dealing with the demon insects and cultivators of Suoluo Trench, must have been significantly delayed. By following closely behind, his own pace would naturally be extremely fast. He suspected he would catch up to them very soon if he pressed forward.

With this thought, Ye Qin accelerated his sprint into the canyon.

...

Ye Qin rushed through the perilous grand canyon for several hundred li, encountering more slain Rock Lizard Demon corpses along the way, until he finally saw the familiar figures of four Nascent Soul cultivators: the Saint Emperor, the Desolate Spirit Ghost Lord, Old Monster Hen Shan, and the Lotus Incarnation, gathered on a massive boulder, deep in discussion.

Ye Qin’s sudden appearance startled the four of them.

"Young Friend Ye has arrived!"

The Saint Emperor turned his head and saw Ye Qin appear, looking rather surprised. A few days prior, while evading those two Demon Saints, he had lost track of Ye Qin mid-journey. In this dangerous Demon Realm, once separated, he feared Ye Qin, with his early Nascent Soul cultivation, would find it nearly impossible to survive, and he had felt a measure of regret these past few days. Ye Qin’s reappearance was genuinely unexpected.

"Greetings to the esteemed seniors!"

Ye Qin flew onto the boulder and cupped his hands toward the four.

"Your life is tough, you’re not dead yet! But that's good; I’m nearly out of spirit wine, and if you died, I’d have no wine left!"

Old Monster Hen Shan shot Ye Qin a cold glance and grumbled strangely. Previously, passing through the Suoluo Forest, due to insufficient spirit wine, they had to rest for an hour or two after defeating a large swarm of demon insects to recover their spiritual power, wasting a great deal of time.

"Senior Hen Shan jokes," Ye Qin replied with a dry laugh. In Old Monster Hen Shan’s eyes, his life was worth less than a gourd of spirit wine.

The Ghost Lord’s form remained shrouded in a mass of ghostly mist, making its current expression impossible to discern.

"When did you break through to the second layer of Nascent Soul?"

The Saint Emperor suddenly noticed something amiss; Ye Qin's cultivation seemed significantly deeper than before, causing him to be surprised.

"On my journey here, I coincidentally discovered several rare, unknown spirit fruits. In order to gather those fruits, I was delayed a few days. After consuming the fruits, I broke through to the second layer of Nascent Soul and hurried toward Suoluo Trench," Ye Qin explained immediately. Naturally, he skirted the important details, mentioning only the spirit fruits and omitting the Vermilion Fruit.

"Oh, I see!"

The Saint Emperor nodded slightly, not pressing for further details.

Being late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators themselves, they cared little for spirit fruits that only boosted vital energy. Even numerous Nascent Soul-grade spirit fruits offered no benefit to them. Moreover, a mere promotion from the first to the second layer of Nascent Soul suggested the fruits weren't extremely rare. Only a spiritual object capable of aiding their ascension to the Spirit Transformation stage would interest them; their current priority was obtaining the Violet Spirit Yang-Restoring Grass as quickly as possible and leaving the Demon Realm.

"Senior Saint Emperor, why have you stopped here instead of continuing forward?" Ye Qin inquired.

"Lotus Incarnation scouted ahead just now and discovered an ancient fierce beast slumbering in the canyon ahead. Rushing forward recklessly might awaken it. This ancient fierce beast is peak twelfth tier, equivalent to peak late Nascent Soul. Though not yet a Demon Saint, its strength is likely comparable. My companions and I are currently discussing how to pass safely! Coincidentally, you arrived, making it perfect for you to contribute!" the Saint Emperor explained calmly, gesturing toward the front.

"What ancient fierce beast?" Ye Qin asked, surprised.

"An Ancient Rock Profound Turtle, an earth-elemental ancient beast, ferocious and cruel in temperament, possessing astonishing divine might. Among the myriad demon races, it ranks high. Demon races are usually slightly stronger than cultivators of the same tier, and this Ancient Rock Profound Turtle’s defense is staggering—it will likely be difficult to deal with. We must combine the strength of everyone here to handle it."

The Saint Emperor gave a brief explanation, then continued, "Later, I will personally make a move, using my great divine abilities to suppress this demon. Daoist Hen Shan, you will use your Ice Sealing Technique to restrain it from the side; you must ensure it has difficulty moving. Daoist Ghost Lord, we will rely on your Nether Flames to deliver the fatal strike. As for Lotus Incarnation and Young Friend Ye, first, you will maintain vigilance in the surrounding area to prevent other demon beasts from approaching, and second, you must join the fight if the situation changes unexpectedly. Additionally, Young Friend Ye, give this Sovereign and Daoist Hen Shan a gourd of your spirit wine."

"To take the Violet Spirit Yang-Restoring Grass, it is only right that I contribute my strength!" Ye Qin immediately produced two gourds of his self-brewed Thousand Flower Spirit Brew and handed them to the Saint Emperor and Old Monster Hen Shan. The spirit wine inside was likely enough for them to fully restore their spiritual power in a single draft, maintaining sufficient power being crucial for besieging the Profound Turtle.

The Saint Emperor finished assigning everyone's tasks.

"My Ice Sealing Technique is sufficient to kill low-tier demon cultivators. While it might not freeze this ancient beast to death, the ice seal and restraint should be achievable," Old Monster Hen Shan stated, nodding solemnly after accepting Ye Qin's gourd of spirit wine.

The Desolate Spirit Ghost Lord also offered no objection to this arrangement.

To kill this ancient beast, they could not hold back any strength. If any one of the three fought the peak twelfth-tier Profound Turtle alone, they would likely fail to win, perhaps even facing defeat and death. They only had a few tens of percent chance of success if the three worked together.

With the discussion concluded, the Saint Emperor soared into the air, transforming into a streak of golden light, shooting rapidly into the canyon.

Old Monster Hen Shan and the Desolate Spirit Ghost Lord exchanged a glance, following closely behind as two more streaks of light heading into the canyon.

Ye Qin and the Lotus Incarnation remained at the rear. As early and mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators, their strength was entirely insufficient to deal with a peak twelfth-tier Profound Turtle; they could only observe the battle from behind.