He awoke with a start, his consciousness still reeling from the echoes of the White Tiger’s thoughts, relentlessly urging him toward the heart of the Far Western Desert, where a monumental shift was occurring within the spatial turbulence zone.

The White Tiger had not elaborated, yet through its mental projections, he understood the person being referenced was the Holy Mother Youlan. That Holy Mother Youlan must have accomplished something momentous deep within the Far Western Desert; otherwise, the White Tiger would not have transmitted this urgent concept to him.

Snapping out of that profound state, seated atop the main sanctuary of the Orolian Divine Cult, Ji Changkong was utterly bewildered. He was certain the message echoing in his mind originated from the Sacred Beast White Tiger, and he knew for a fact that something significant was unfolding in the Far West.

However, Youlan possessed the power of the peak Ninth Palace Heaven realm. Here, within the main temple of the Orolian Divine Cult, he wasn't even confident of handling her.

Once he left this sanctuary and ventured into the core of that Far Western Desert, encountering the Holy Mother Youlan in that location—what chance would he possibly have? At best, the moment he met Youlan, all he could do was think of escape; accomplishing anything else would be out of the question.

Considering this, he began to hesitate about whether he should follow the White Tiger’s mental prompt and hasten toward the Far West. If he didn't go, he would remain safe and sound. But if he stayed, whatever was transpiring in the desert center might prove unstoppable. If he went, there was a high probability he would be incapable of achieving anything, coupled with the risk of being severely injured by the Holy Mother Youlan.

Running through this series of thoughts, Ji Changkong gritted his teeth and muttered to himself: If I don't go, I'll know nothing. If I do go, perhaps I still won't stop Holy Mother Youlan, but at least I can get a rough idea of what she is attempting in that desolate region.

With this resolve, Ji Changkong finally made up his mind, planning to make the journey to the Far West. He rose from the circular platform of the main sanctuary. Before Ji Changkong could even summon them, the elders Aiguli, Batur, and Muluo proactively stepped forward to meet him.

“Cult Master, have you discovered something?” Batur’s expression shifted, revealing profound tension.

Youlan had long since sent word that she intended to visit the main temple soon. Many experts from the Manichaean Cult were converging on this area; everyone understood that conflict between the Manichaean Cult and the Orolian Divine Cult was inevitable.

Yet, so much time had passed, and the Holy Mother Youlan had still not arrived. This left Muluo and the others filled with doubt, sensing an underlying wrongness. Now, ironically, they wished the Holy Mother Youlan would appear sooner. They had waited long enough, prepared for a fight to the death with the Manichaeans. The longer the Manichaeans delayed, the more anxious they became, unsure of what plots were being hatched in secret.

“It’s not Youlan coming here; it’s me going to find her.”

Ji Changkong glanced at Baran’er, pointed toward the Far West, and asked with a frown, “In the center of that Far Western Desert, is there any location that stands out as particularly unusual?”

Upon hearing this, Batur’s face subtly changed. He respectfully replied, “Reporting to the Cult Master, in the heart of the Far Western Desert, there is indeed an extremely bizarre place. The sky there is highly distinctive: one side resembles a sea of fire, while the other is solid ice. The scorching heat and the chilling currents converge, forming a colossal vortex.”

Batur detailed the strange circumstances of that location, with Muluo and Aiguli adding their own supplementary information.

“Cult Master, that place is known as the Forbidden Zone of the Western Regions. Legend says it serves as a passage to the Outer Heavens. Over the years, some individuals have entered that vortex, attempting to break free from the Five Elements Continent and traverse directly into the Endless Starry Domain with their physical bodies. However, these people are often shredded into dust by the forces outside the vortex before they can even approach it.”

Muluo continued, his expression grave. “The vortex constantly erupts with various terrifying powers. I have been there myself, Cult Master, but even I dare not approach the vortex closely. I might be able to force my way in, but I would expend at least seven or eight-tenths of my cultivation. I dare not take that risk!”

“I know. People have dared to enter before, but sadly, no one has ever returned. It is a path leading only to death! It leads into spatial turbulence. Cult Master, you must know the outcome for the average person entering a spatial turbulence zone!”

After Muluo finished speaking, he tried to dissuade him: “Cult Master, if Youlan intends to enter that area, I believe she won't return safely. Perhaps, perhaps she will be eternally lost within that spatial turbulence, which would save us a great deal of trouble.”

“Spatial turbulence?” Ji Changkong froze, falling silent.

He had heard much from Gu Ya about the peculiarities of spatial turbulence zones. He suspected the strange location beneath the Poison Dragon Pool might also be an uncharted spatial turbulence zone leading somewhere unknown.

Generally, spatial turbulence zones are chaotic. Once entered, one is highly likely to be drawn into an interdimensional spatial rift, from which escape is impossible. Within a spatial rift devoid of Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi, one's innate energy would be slowly ground down until the spiritual power was entirely depleted as well. Even a master of the Ninth Palace Heaven realm would face only one outcome: death if drawn into such a spatial rift.

Of course, not all spatial turbulence zones are this chaotic. Some, having existed for millions of years, undergo peculiar changes, becoming windows connecting to another world. Through this window, one could directly enter another continent, another distinct world.

As information regarding spatial turbulence flashed through his mind, Ji Changkong gave a sudden start, a terrifying possibility striking him. He exclaimed, “That Holy Mother Youlan—is she not preparing to use some method to bring in people from the Demonic Evil Continent?”

He recalled Gu Ya mentioning that people from certain other continents had extensive research into spatial turbulence zones. It was rumored that exceptionally skilled individuals could exploit the chaos of these zones, even using them to enter another continent—though this was fraught with various difficulties and restrictions.

Ji Changkong had already verified Youlan’s connection with the Demon Cave of the Demonic Evil Continent through that single scholar from the Cave. Since Youlan was communicating with experts from the Demon Cave, she would certainly utilize the strength of the Demonic Evil Continent for some purpose.

Regardless of the specifics, for Youlan to leverage the power of the Demon Cave, their experts needed to enter the Five Elements Continent, as anyone below the Tenth Heaven realm could not travel the Endless Starry Domain directly in the flesh.

Given this limitation, the people of the Demonic Evil Continent had only one means of entering the Five Elements Continent: utilizing a spatial turbulence zone!

Suddenly, Ji Changkong grasped Youlan’s true intention and roughly surmised what she intended to do by entering that spatial turbulence zone.

“This is bad! Youlan entered the spatial turbulence zone—she must be planning to lure experts from the Demonic Evil Continent in there to invade the Five Elements Continent! The Five Elements Continent is truly facing disaster!” Ji Changkong’s face paled. He addressed Muluo and the others: “You all remain in the main sanctuary for now. I must rush there at the fastest possible speed. I hope I arrive in time, hope I can stop Youlan from committing such an atrocity against both men and gods.”

As his words fell, without waiting for Muluo or Batur to reply, Ji Changkong burst out of the main sanctuary, soaring like a streak of rainbow light directly toward the Far West, vanishing in an instant.

West of the Western Regions, in the desert under the biting cold night wind.

The Three-Headed Hound Demon howled, slaughtering its way through the desert night, having captured several Scorpion-Tailed Lions that dwelled there, and was currently feasting heartily.

On top of a sand dune, Yao Kui frowned, gazing toward the west in the distance. “I don’t know what scheme Youlan is cooking up. She insisted we wait for her here. Why not just charge straight for the Orolian Divine Cult? Lingering here for so long—women are so troublesome.”

Yu Ziling kept her head bowed, unusually silent of late.

“Shall we go take a look?” Yao Kui suggested when she didn't speak.

Yu Ziling startled, then looked vaguely confused. “What did you just say?”

Clearly, she had not been paying attention to Yao Kui.

Yao Kui let out a short, somewhat displeased ‘Hmph.’ “I said, let’s go take a look and see what scheme Youlan is running. She’s taken so long and keeps us waiting here. Her airs are quite something!”

“Wouldn’t that be improper?” Yu Ziling frowned. “When Youlan left, she was extremely grave, explicitly instructing us not to approach, saying that area is a sacred ground for the Manichaean Cult, accessible only to their people. If we barge in, we might sour relations with Youlan.”

“Sacred ground?” Yao Kui scoffed coldly. “Their sacred ground has already been destroyed. This ‘holy place’ is worthless, isn't it?”

After a moment’s thought, Yao Kui added, “Let’s move a little closer. The moment I sense any warning from Youlan, I’ll stop immediately and ask her exactly what she means.”

Seeing that he seemed resolved, Yu Ziling stopped persuading him and nodded. “Alright then, going to have a look won’t hurt.”

In the same Western Regions, within the same desert, to the south of the Far Western Extreme, another group was pressing forward through the frigid night wind.

The young man striding forward with great strides wore a confident smile on his lips. Each step covered several miles. A corpulent man, whose flesh jiggled wildly with every movement, followed the youth at an unhurried pace, whining irritably, “Shi Qianjie, you bastard! Just because you broke through to the Ninth Palace Heaven realm doesn't make you invincible. You even dared to ambush me!”

“Hahahaha! Serves you right for sleeping like a dead pig. You deserved your misfortune!” Shi Qianjie replied carelessly, laughing. “The Old Ghost told us to hurry to that spatial turbulence zone and see what’s happening. The Old Ghost calculated that Youlan might be making some big moves recently, telling us to watch her closely. It’s all your fault for being too sleepy that I got delayed with you for so long.”

“Maybe Youlan has already entered the spatial turbulence zone now. If we delay any longer, we won’t accomplish anything.”

“What’s the rush?” Hu Gao said dismissively. “Youlan was scared stiff by the Old Ghost. She’ll never dare face the Old Ghost alone in her lifetime; she can only seek out the Demon Cave people to die for her. Hmph, the Old Ghost has killed quite a few in that other domain, including Ninth Palace Heaven experts from the Demon Cave. Even if experts from the Demon Cave really show up, I doubt they can gain any advantage against the Old Ghost.”

“If one or two show up, the Old Ghost might not worry, but if four or five arrive—if the Demonic Evil Continent unleashes all its experts—I fear the Old Ghost won’t be able to handle it. The Demonic Evil Continent is full of Demon Cave experts. There are supposedly about ten Ninth Palace Heaven Masters. If half of them show up this time, we’ll have to flee along with the Old Ghost!” Shi Qianjie remarked.

“That’s true. The Demonic Evil Continent seems to have quite a few Ninth Palace Heaven Masters. I hear the current Cave Master of the Demon Cave has one foot already in the Tenth Heaven realm. If the Demon Cave Master comes to the Five Elements Continent, the Old Ghost might indeed struggle to cope,” Hu Gao considered seriously for a moment and nodded. “It seems we really need to hurry. If Youlan really manages to let the Demon Cave experts through one after another, everyone will suffer for it.”

“Someone is coming!” Suddenly, Dharma King Wisdom stood up amidst the swirling yellow sands outside the spatial turbulence zone, his expression stern. “The arrivals are powerful; they might be specifically targeting us.”

The other two Dharma Kings, along with the Saintess Paridae, were startled and immediately focused their senses, probing the surroundings to locate the aura of the approaching individuals, ready to strike at any moment.

Hahahaha! Hahahaha!

Frenzied laughter descended from the sky, growing louder, booming like thunder across the desert. The dry sand particles vibrated and shattered under the sound waves. As the fine grains exploded, they emitted fierce energy fluctuations.

“Who goes there?” Dharma King Wisdom’s face changed. He shouted loudly into the empty air.

Paridae’s bright eyes glittered strangely. She suddenly chuckled sweetly, “If they’ve come, they’ve come. Why all the fuss? Come out quickly; don’t keep people waiting.”

“Good!”

The sand grains coalesced into a colossal yellow dragon, soaring and snapping its jaws before Paridae and the others. Standing arrogantly atop the sand dragon was a handsome, imposing man clad in a dragon robe and wearing a crown. This man appeared to be only in his early thirties, radiating an aura of kingship. Majesty was evident in every glance as his eyes opened and closed.

“This King has come today because I wish to meet Youlan. Is Youlan present?” the imposing man asked with a smile.

“King Tianwu!” Dharma King Wisdom’s face drastically changed. After scrutinizing the man closely, he exclaimed again, “Ninth Palace Heaven realm!”

“Hahahaha! This King broke through to the Ninth Palace Heaven realm thirty years ago. Having reigned for many years, I have cultivated the ‘Imperial Heaven Earth God Art’ by gathering Heaven and Earth Imperial Qi. I have long sought a battle with the Holy Mother Youlan. This King has come today to see if the foremost figure of the Western Regions is truly as formidable as rumored!” King Tianwu, proclaimed the most powerful sovereign in the Central Lands, laughed uproaringly at the sky.

“Let’s not waste time. My master entered two days ago,” Paridae chuckled softly, then gracefully floated away from the three Dharma Kings, instead standing beside King Tianwu.

“Haha, this King understands.” King Tianwu laughed heartily and immediately moved to attack the three Dharma Kings.

We are about to fall out of the top fifty again. This monthly ticket competition is too fierce! Xiao Ni sincerely requests the support of brothers and sisters for monthly tickets, please help. I can’t do anything about it... If you want to know what happens next, please log on to 1 Fiend. More chapters, support the author. Support genuine reading! Day 08 Shan Xun Shu Sai Ji Kou Yu