With a surge of intense airflow, Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er transformed into streaks of light, plunging into the great fissure alongside Qingqiu Li, while Wang Rong and dozens of accompanying Nascent Soul cultivators trailed behind in the chaotic currents.

However, upon spotting other groups of cultivators rushing towards them from the distance, this cohort of cultivators, almost in unison, laid down powerful, triggered talismans and restrictive enchantments at the entrance behind them.

These measures were unlikely to inflict significant harm upon the top-tier cultivator teams, but slowing down the approaching groups would still be beneficial. If the leading wave of cultivators could be delayed even slightly, they would inevitably collide with the teams following close behind. A fierce, inescapable melee would ensue, buying valuable time for them to secure the Spiritual Paste.

Once the Deep Abyss Strange Beasts were discovered, the competition between these Nascent Soul cultivator teams ceased to be one of mutual non-interference; it devolved into a fight to the death. The Spiritual Paste of the Deep Abyss Strange Beast had become an absolute necessity for Void Refinement stage cultivators. Such heavenly treasures were exceedingly rare; even one High Lord Deep Abyss Strange Beast would only yield a few portions, far too few to satisfy the multitude of Nascent Soul cultivators present.

Ye Qin heard the successive roars and spiritual energy fluctuations echoing from behind, yet he did not spare them a second glance. He had already entered the body of the Deep Abyss Strange Beast, and the battles raging among the various Nascent Soul teams had failed to stir the colossal, fifteenth-tier Demon Beast High Lord.

Ye Qin scanned his surroundings and felt a degree of surprise. The scene within the giant beast's abdomen was utterly beyond anything he had previously imagined. The location where he hovered resembled a vast, empty cavern tunnel. The four walls of the cavern were composed of thick, hard rock, interspersed with numerous glittering phosphorescent lights; there was no trace of flesh and blood. Were it not for the warm, yet foul and fishy dampness permeating the cave, and the faint, rhythmic vibrations resonating through the structure, it would have been difficult to accept that they were currently inside the body of a monstrous beast hundreds of miles long within the Abyss of the Demonic Realm.

"This Deep Abyss Strange Beast... large sections of it have petrified?!"

After looking around, Huangfu Bing'er couldn't help but marvel, "I wonder where the Spiritual Paste is, and how we're supposed to find it?"

"Search everywhere!"

Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er streaked along the cavern walls, only to suddenly notice Qingqiu Li ahead had stopped moving. He probed ahead with his divine sense and discovered that the tunnel split into dozens of diverging paths, their destinations unknown.

"The aura of the Spiritual Paste is incredibly dense. As long as we can track the scent, we will find it!" Qingqiu Li paused briefly, concentrating, uttered this, and then flew down a path leading to the left. Her spiritual perception was exceptionally keen.

Under Qingqiu Li's guidance, Ye Qin, Huangfu Bing'er, Wang Rong, and the group of several dozen Nascent Soul cultivators navigated past dozens of bifurcations before arriving at a cavern where a strange fragrance assaulted their senses. By this time, the other cultivator teams were nowhere in sight behind them. They had likely either lost the trail or were still locked in a fierce battle outside.

Qingqiu Li arrived first, flashing inside the cavern in a single movement. Ye Qin followed almost simultaneously. Huangfu Bing'er trailed closely behind him.

Upon entering the grotto, Ye Qin saw that within this nest-like chamber, more than ten stalactite pillars hung down from the ceiling. Pale white, crystalline fluid dripped drop by drop onto recessed troughs below, gradually congealing year by year into milky-white paste. These several portions of paste emitted a faint, dazzling sheen; the density of the spiritual energy within was as if the most brilliant essence of the world's spiritual power had been gathered there.

"Spiritual Paste!"

The instant Ye Qin saw it, his gaze became fixed, the word flashing through his mind. Although he had never witnessed the fabled Spiritual Paste before, he had been to the Demon Realm and seen Vermilion Fruits, and encountered numerous spiritual entities at or above the Void Refinement level. Yet, no spiritual object possessed the intense allure of the paste before him, making even his resolute heart—that of a peak Ninth Layer Nascent Soul cultivator—feel an overwhelming, immediate desire to possess it.

The troughs in this cavern-nest were interconnected; once one was full, the paste would flow into the next. In total, five troughs were completely filled with the paste. Qingqiu Li, being the first inside, immediately collected one portion.

"Husband, we have it! We can leave now!"

Huangfu Bing'er's movements were equally swift; with a flash, she secured the two portions of Spiritual Paste required for herself and Ye Qin.

"Mm."

Ye Qin nodded.

"Dou Hongshan, Ye Qin, leave one portion for me!"

Just then, Wang Rong and his contingent of dozens of Nascent Soul cultivators, slightly slower in speed, rushed into the cavern-nest. Wang Rong was nearly frantic, terrified that "Dou Hongshan" and Ye Qin would take all the paste, leaving none for him. If such a prime opportunity to gain Spiritual Paste slipped through his fingers, he felt he would never rest in peace. He had even mentally prepared to turn hostile if Dou Hongshan dared to claim everything.

"There's still some!"

Wang Rong was overjoyed to see several portions of paste remaining, far better than he had anticipated. He eagerly rushed toward the troughs, preparing to collect the paste.

Qingqiu Li, however, suddenly sneered, raising her hand swiftly, and shot out a beam of crimson light.

Pfft!

Wang Rong was completely unguarded against "Dou Hongshan" and was struck through the heart. A small-scale divine ability sword of the Fire element shattered his entire chest cavity and heart. Wang Rong was barely ten zhang from the Spiritual Paste, but this short distance became an impassable chasm.

"Why kill me?!"

Wang Rong managed to turn his head, his fair face etched with utter disbelief. He was allied with Dou Hongshan, and they had had no prior conflict or offense; there was more than enough paste in this grotto to spare him a share!

Not only he, but the other Nascent Soul cultivators also wore expressions of confusion and suspicion, unable to comprehend why "Dou Hongshan" would launch such a murderous assault without warning.

"Kill everyone who fought Wang Rong! Leave none alive!"

Qingqiu Li fiercely ordered the Nascent Soul cultivators under her command, then swiftly flew on her sword toward one of Wang Rong's subordinates nearest to her. Of the thirty-plus Nascent Soul cultivators in this group, more than twenty were attendants loyal to her "Dou Hongshan," while the remaining dozen-plus belonged to Wang Rong. The strength advantage held by Dou Hongshan's faction was overwhelming.

"Kill!" "Take down Wang Rong's subordinates!" "Avenge our Young Master!"

The Nascent Soul cultivators erupted in furious roars. Since "Dou Hongshan" had already eliminated Wang Rong, what reason did they have to hesitate? Regardless of the cause, the priority was to kill first.

The mouth of the cavern-nest instantly devolved into a chaotic melee. The Nascent Soul cultivators loyal to Dou Hongshan immediately turned on the enemies standing right beside them. Wang Rong's followers were terrified; some fought back desperately, while others fled in panic.

This skirmish began quickly and ended even faster. In the span of a single breath, nearly all of Wang Rong's dozen-plus Nascent Soul subordinates were annihilated... not a single one escaped. Meanwhile, the cultivators under "Dou Hongshan's" banner suffered minor injuries, with two or three killed. This ambush—with a twofold numerical advantage—was a near-total slaughter by "Dou Hongshan's" side.

Qingqiu Li and her loyal Nascent Soul cultivators controlled their magic artifacts, completely blocking the exit of the cavern-nest. At this moment, only Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er remained inside the grotto. This cavern had only one exit, which Qingqiu Li currently occupied, and the opening was small, completely sealed off by her and her followers.

The Nascent Soul cultivators loyal to Dou Hongshan were eager, their gazes fierce as they stared at Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er, awaiting only a command from "Dou Hongshan" before swarming them.

"Your target wasn't Wang Rong, it was me?"

Ye Qin gazed deeply at Qingqiu Li, his expression having turned utterly frigid. When Qingqiu Li suddenly struck and killed Wang Rong, he sensed something was amiss. It was only because Wang Rong's faction collapsed too swiftly that he could only manage to protect himself and Huangfu Bing'er with the Eight Diagrams Sword Array before he could find an opportunity to break out.

"Young Master Ye, I have waited a very long time for an opportunity to corner you like this. You might be able to fight me to a draw, but with nearly twenty Nascent Soul cultivators aiding me, you are no match. Now, hand over my Gray Egg!!"

Qingqiu Li chuckled lightly. Ever since that Sacred Relic fell into Ye Qin's hands, she had been deeply displeased. But since she couldn't deal with Ye Qin then, she could only secretly look for the right moment. Now that Ye Qin was trapped within this grotto, the true contest had finally been laid bare, and she was poised to win. As for the Gray Egg, she wasn't worried about her subordinate cultivators realizing what it was. These lower-tier Nascent Soul cultivators of the Southern Demonic Continent wouldn't know what a Gray Egg signified. Once she retrieved the egg and broke through to the Void Refinement realm using the Spiritual Paste, she would silence all these cultivators.

"I already promised that I would return it to you after this matter is concluded. How about this: the moment we leave the Abyss, I will hand the Gray Egg over to you."

Ye Qin remained calm.

"Once we leave this grotto, if you renege, this Southern Demonic Continent is vast—where would I go to reclaim what is mine?!"

Qingqiu Li shook her head.

"But if I hand the Gray Egg to you now, how do I know you will let us leave?" Ye Qin countered.

"Young Master, why waste words on him? Let's just kill him and find the Gray Egg you desire!"

A stout cultivator in the late Nascent Soul stage beside Qingqiu Li shouted fiercely. There were only two portions of Spiritual Paste left in the troughs of the cavern-nest, but twenty-odd Nascent Soul cultivators were present. Dou Hongshan already held one portion, and the remaining few would likely be divided among the other late Nascent Soul cultivators present. The stout cultivator had long coveted the two portions Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er had taken. If he could kill Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er, gaining two extra portions would drastically increase his chances of obtaining the paste. Once he had the paste, breaking through to Void Refinement would be imminent! As for what the Gray Egg was, they had never heard of it; all the cultivators stared avidly at the Spiritual Paste, paying no heed to that other item.

Qingqiu Li, however, fell silent.

"Brothers, attack!"

The stout cultivator assumed Qingqiu Li had tacitly agreed with his suggestion. He roared excitedly and led the charge toward Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er. Driven by the frenzy of seizing the Spiritual Paste, he even forgot that Ye Qin was a cultivator of the Twentieth Wheel.

"Courting death!"

Ye Qin coldly snorted and flung out a streak of bloody light.

"Ahhh! Save me!"

The stout cultivator, who was charging at the very front, was struck by the bloody light. Bloodthirsty vines erupted wildly, coiling around him, piercing his flesh and marrow, greedily sucking him dry. The stout cultivator shrieked in terror; in almost an instant, he was reduced to a withered skeleton, his primordial spirit devoured as well. This Bloodthirsty Vine, sated with the flesh and blood of a late Nascent Soul cultivator, radiated a vigorous bloody glow, swaying thick, menacing tendrils with an air of suffocation.

"What devilish thing is this? It actually consumes flesh and blood?" "This is not from the Southern Demonic Continent! We've never seen anything like it!"

The surrounding Nascent Soul cultivators, who were about to surge forward, saw the terrifying demise of the stout cultivator and gasped, their faces contorted with horror and dread. They halted their attack.

"There are two extra portions of Spiritual Paste remaining in this cavern-nest, and only living cultivators have a chance to obtain them. If anyone feels they have too many years to live and wishes to cause trouble for me, feel free to come forward! I might not be able to kill every single one of you, but dragging ten or eight down with me would be quite easy," Ye Qin sneered as he surveyed the cultivators.