The Tian Shan mountains were swept by a biting wind and blinding snow, yet the Qiankun Sect’s headquarters, nestled on the mountain's ridge, was now thronged with people. There were clansmen from the Chen family, the Duan family, great masters from various factions within the Xuanyuan Valley, even people from the Yi family of Dongtian Peak, and contingents from the East Sea and the Southern Barbarians. Li Hentian stood impassively amidst the swirling snow, observing the anxious faces before him.

“Sage, how is the Sage, really?” Chen Qisen asked, his face etched with worry, looking desperately at Li Hentian with furrowed brows.

Xiao Poshan, Xiao Xing, Gui Rong, Gui Hai, and others from Xuanyuan Valley all wore expressions of profound distress, as if crushed by an unbearable burden.

Teng Ye, from the Jionghai Sea Domain of the East Sea, had a face full of gloom, sighing incessantly.

“Old Li, you must tell us, what is the Sage’s actual condition?” Teng Ye urged. “I watched Chang Kong bring back the Nine Luminaries Life Tree when we were at the Sun’s Heart. With the Nine Luminaries Life Tree present, the Sage should be able to recover completely, right?”

The Arrow God Duke nodded repeatedly, quickly adding, “The Nine Luminaries Life Tree holds the energy of resurrection. Under its power, the Sage should make a swift recovery, shouldn't he?”

Li Hentian’s expression remained detached as he gazed at the urgent arrivals, shaking his head slightly. “Not that quickly.”

“What are we to do? The Holy Mother You Lan and King Tianwu, along with the contingent from the Demon Continent, have already surrounded Kunlun and are pressing their attack. If Kunlun falls, the forces of our Five Elements Continent will be next. The Western Region has already completely fallen under the dominion of the Mani Cult. If this continues, it won’t take long for the entire world to belong to the Mani Cult and King Tianwu.”

Chen Qisen sighed, looking utterly helpless. “I truly don’t know how to deal with those people. The Demon Continent sent four Nine Palaces Heavenly Masters. One of them is rumored to be the leader of the Demon Grotto, one of the eight great powers in the Yan Domain of the Sun. That leader was reportedly a peak Nine Palaces Heavenly expert many years ago.”

“Four Nine Palaces Heavenly Masters, plus You Lan and King Tianwu—that’s an overwhelming force. Moreover, those Nine Palaces Heavenly Masters from the Demon Continent are said to possess power even greater than You Lan’s. The Guiyuan Sect on Mount Kunlun has activated its grand protective formation, but they can only barely hold on. Who knows how long that defense will last,” Xiao Xing lamented.

“The Western Region is entirely the Mani Cult’s domain now. Those who previously opposed the Mani Cult have all been eradicated. Only we received news quickly enough to sink the main temple of the Aoro Divine Cult underground and disperse all our faithful before retreating here,” Mu Luo stated gravely, his face dark.

“What exactly happened over there? We only know that four Nine Palaces Heavenly Masters emerged from the spatial turbulence of the Western Region, but we don't know the specifics. How did you find out?” Teng Ye of the Jionghai Sea Domain couldn’t help but ask.

In the expanse of snow, the leaders of the world’s various powers were gathered, and all eyes now turned to Mu Luo, the one who had come from the Western Region.

In the snow, there was Teng Ye and the leaders of several major families from the Jionghai Sea Domain; the Arrow God Duke from the Divine Archery Gate of the Southern Barbarians; representatives from the major families and the Chu family of the Great Chu Kingdom; major powers from the Water Cloud Kingdom; and Yi Qu from Dongtian Peak. Almost every sect that had any connection to Xuanyuan Valley or Tian Shan had rushed here from all corners of the world.

Mu Luo saw everyone looking at him, paused in thought, and then began, “Our Aoro Divine Cult managed to get the news thanks to that little girl, Yu Ziling, from the Northern Barbarians. She came to our Divine Cult and told us about the massive change that occurred in that spatial turbulence zone, urging us to sink the main temple immediately and flee the Western Region.”

“She said her information came from her brother, Yao Kui, who is the son of King Ashura. That Yao Kui entered the spatial turbulence zone along with Shi Qianjie, Hu Gao, King Tianwu, and… the Master.”

“When the Master saw King Tianwu about to open the spatial turbulence tunnel, he intervened to stop him. He stopped King Tianwu, but the tunnel suddenly underwent a massive upheaval. The force of colliding meteors first threw King Tianwu aside, and then a tremendous suction force pulled the Master into the narrow passage.”

“Because the Master damaged the tunnel while King Tianwu was altering its course, the tunnel’s destination changed drastically. Neither King Tianwu nor You Lan knew where the passage led.”

“After the Master was pulled into the tunnel and vanished, that tunnel disappeared. Then, King Tianwu and You Lan joined forces. King Tianwu dealt with Hu Gao, Shi Qianjie, and Yao Kui, while You Lan seized the opportunity to open a new tunnel. This newly formed passage was undisturbed and led directly to the Demon Continent.”

“Once the first Nine Palaces Heavenly Master emerged from that tunnel, Hu Gao, Shi Qianjie, and Yao Kui knew they could no longer stop King Tianwu and You Lan. Fearing they would be executed by the subsequent experts from the Demon Continent within the spatial turbulence zone, they used the distraction of You Lan and the others stabilizing the passage to flee with the utmost speed…”

“As soon as Hu Gao and Shi Qianjie exited the spatial turbulence zone, they immediately returned to Kunlun. Cao Xuanqi also emerged promptly and began setting up the protective grand formation for the Guiyuan Sect. For some reason, that girl Yu Ziling came to our main temple and delivered the message, which is what saved us.”

“We don't know what agreement King Tianwu and You Lan reached. After emerging from the spatial turbulence zone with the four Nine Palaces Heavenly Masters from the Demon Continent, they swept through the Western Region with incredible speed, annihilating every Heavenly Master sect and family harboring ill will toward the Mani Cult. Then, their sharp edge pointed directly at the Guiyuan Sect.”

“Everything that happened afterward, you already know.”

Mu Luo described the sequence of events slowly and methodically, his face grim.

“Both King Tianwu and You Lan hold an intense, bone-deep hatred for Cao Xuanqi. Having secured powerful reinforcements from the Demon Continent, their immediate goal is to destroy Cao Xuanqi’s Guiyuan Sect—and that is only natural. Once the Guiyuan Sect is destroyed, the other powers of the world will be next,” Xiao Xing sighed heavily. “I wonder how Chang Kong is faring…”

The mention of Ji Changkong silenced everyone present. Especially the experts from Xuanyuan Valley and the Aoro Divine Cult, who seemed to have lost their anchor, utterly unsure of what to do next.

“I hope Chang Kong is alright,” Chen Qisen gasped out.

Everyone knew what being pulled into a completely unfamiliar tunnel implied. They understood that Ji Changkong was likely facing dire peril this time. Even if he managed to survive, finding his way back home would probably be impossible.

“Master, the Master will definitely be fine, he will be fine,” Ayiguli murmured, her eyes vacant, as if she had lost her soul.

“Cao Xuanqi truly lives up to his reputation. Relying on the protective grand formation of the Guiyuan Sect, they have already held out for a considerable time. That is truly commendable,” Xiao Poshan praised. “However, I received word that the vital energy of heaven and earth in Kunlun has already been depleted by one-third. All that vital energy has been consumed by the Guiyuan Sect’s grand formation, and it has only been about ten days. Once Kunlun’s vital energy is completely exhausted, the Guiyuan Sect will likely be finished…” Chen Qisen looked up at the others, speaking the harsh truth. “Once Kunlun falls, we will be next.”

Upon hearing this, the crowd’s faces grew long with worry, their sighs deepening as they felt even more helpless.

“The Sect Master will not recover easily; he needs time,” Li Hentian said, looking at them. “I know what you all desire—you want us to join the Guiyuan Sect to force back the experts from the Demon Continent. However, even if we wished it, we lack the capacity for now. Until the Sect Master recovers, I cannot leave. Not even a peak Nine Palaces Heavenly Master would survive if they went to Kunlun; it would only be a path to death.”

The assembly continued to sigh mournfully.

A strange star system, an alien continent.

Ji Changkong suddenly awoke from his meditative state. Looking at the corpses of demons scattered everywhere, he said gravely, “Status report?”

“Our position has likely been compromised. Although those Nine Palaces Heavenly realm demons cannot sense our aura, their movements are extremely swift. During this time, I have carried your body while flying, evading several waves of demonic attacks.”

“The demons are gradually… surrounding us. The space we have available to maneuver is shrinking rapidly. It looks like a fierce battle is unavoidable, and we must fight,” the Origin Poison admitted, dropping its usual cheerful demeanor for seriousness.

After a pause, the Origin Poison asked, “During this period, your soul has been busy gathering the essence of the stars for cultivation. What are the results?”

A flicker of joy finally crossed Ji Changkong’s face. “The results are good. In this time, I have collected the star essence from two hundred and thirty-seven stars, storing them in my two hundred and thirty-seven acupoints. However, not a single acupoint has been fully refined yet. I plan to fill all the internal acupoints with star essence first, and then cultivate them properly when I have time.”

“I have no choice; I need more starlight. Only by storing the power of the star essence within my acupoints can I absorb the energy from the stars on this strange continent to restore my vital force and spiritual power. As for actual cultivation, there will be plenty of time for that later.”

“Kong Kong, can you fight right now?” the Origin Poison inquired.

“Of course, I can!” Ji Changkong laughed proudly, full of confidence. “Although the star essence stored in my acupoints hasn't been refined into the points themselves, it still grants me supplementary power. Come on, let’s start fighting back! From this moment on, I will slaughter these demons while using them as fuel to continue my cultivation. Don't worry, we will return soon…”

P.S.: I was delayed by things during the day; there is one more chapter, and I will strive to finish it before midnight. I’m exhausted.

(To be continued)