Beyond the edge of the withered, desolate domain, a single, gloomy star suddenly flared with brilliance.

A beam of intense light shot down from beyond the heavens, blooming with an ethereal, dazzling hue upon this dim and lifeless celestial body. The powerful beam struck a colossal rhombus-shaped stone, instantly pulverizing it into dust that scattered wildly. ... An unparalleled experience!

The intense light arrived swiftly and vanished just as quickly. When the radiance faded, a magnificent figure stood poised upon the dead, silent star.

His eyes burned with profound demonic intent. After merely sensing the surroundings, the man let out a low growl, his face contorted with uncontrollable killing fury.

"Zhong Huang, how dare you deceive me! I will annihilate your entire lineage!" Ji Haotian’s murderous aura soared, roaring softly on that dead, silent star.

This was a dead world, devoid of any trace of life. The surface was covered entirely with craters, large and small; there was no sign of biological activity, no water, no flora or fauna—only eternal desolation and unmoving silence.

Floating around this dead star were massive meteorites. The smaller ones were the size of a nation, while the larger ones dwarfed the combined territories of Tianwu Kingdom, Shuiyun Kingdom, and Great Chu.

These chunks of rock drifted near the dead star, moving slowly. From the center of one of these meteorites, a tunnel began to glow, gradually sealing itself shut.

Just as Ji Haotian looked up, the aperture vanished completely, leaving not the slightest seam.

Damn it!

Ji Haotian cursed under his breath, frowning deeply as he watched the rapidly closing passage.

On this dead star, there was no Tiandi Yuan Qi, nor was there Mo Qi—only endless stillness. In such a place, finding a living being was clearly difficult; finding a master who understood the profound mysteries of the Spatial Turbulence Domain was even harder.

Glancing around, Ji Haotian suddenly realized that on this dead, silent world, finding a way out would be exceedingly difficult.

Zhong Huang had sent him to a place like this, clearly believing that Ji Haotian would likely never escape. Otherwise, Zhong Huang would never have dared to deceive him so boldly.

Ji Haotian’s face darkened, his demonic energy churning violently, yet he was at a loss for what to do.

After careful consideration, Ji Haotian determined that the most urgent priority was to ascertain his exact location. Only by knowing precisely where he was could he possibly find the path back.

Otherwise, he feared he would be trapped forever on this desolate, silent star.

Without the replenishment of Tiandi Yuan Qi or Tiandi Mo Qi, on this unfamiliar dead star, he needed to constantly expend his internal strength simply to survive. He had to devise a solution quickly.

While the body struggled to find a way out, the divine soul operated entirely beyond his immediate control. Ji Haotian quickly grasped this point.

His divine soul left his body, and he began to wander through the vast expanse of the star field, attempting to locate a living world, or perhaps a vibrant star inhabited by the divine souls of powerful experts.

As soon as his soul departed, he began to search, looking for any life-bearing star or active world he could sense.

In the boundless star field, time held little meaning, and few could accurately track it while navigating the immense void.

Ji Haotian’s soul drifted through this sector of the cosmos, passing countless dead stars, yet failing to find a single active world, nor any sign of life.

He couldn't tell how long he had been flying, but he knew his soul was moving further and further from his body—so far that he was beginning to lose sensation of his physical form’s aura.

Startled inwardly, Ji Haotian knew he needed to return to his body immediately. If the soul and body lost connection, his divine soul would become a wandering ghost, lost forever in the star field, eventually dissipating into nothingness.

Reluctantly, Ji Haotian hastened his return. After an indeterminate period, Ji Haotian’s soul finally re-emerged from the vast star field and rejoined his physical form.

He used the Yuan Li within his body to refine his soul and re-gather his spiritual power. Once his spiritual strength recovered, Ji Haotian changed direction, setting the current dead star as his center point once more, continuing his search for living worlds, desperately hoping to find the path home.

Poison Dragon Pool.

Half a year passed. Ji Changkong had successfully refined over three hundred of his acupoints.

During this time, having grasped the key secrets, he pursued the path of the strong relentlessly, dedicating all his energy to cultivation.

For an extended period, he even miraculously entered the state of "Selflessness" (Wu Wo Zhi Jing).

He ceased to feel his own existence, merging entirely with the Great Marsh of Cloud and Dream. At times, he felt as if he were an intrinsic part of heaven and earth, sensing that this continent was the flesh and blood of his own body, capable of manifesting the seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—according to his will.

Under this miraculous enlightenment, he instinctively continued to follow the established steps, methodically cultivating the acupoints within his body. In just half a year, he achieved successive breakthroughs, refining one acupoint after another through sheer effort.

His body shimmered with starlight. Near the Poison Dragon Pool, the lights within his acupoints sparkled brilliantly. If anyone were to witness this, they might perceive his body as a marvelous, unfolding celestial chart.

This was an extremely peculiar sensation, indescribable. In the state of Selflessness, he found unparalleled peace and advanced at an incredible speed.

Over three hundred acupoints were refined, one after the next, making the power within him ever stronger.

One day, immersed in that wondrous state, he was abruptly awakened from the vision.

Splash!

The Heavenly Hail Pterosaur in the Poison Dragon Pool also slowly surfaced. It had shed its skin, emerging dark, crystal-clear, and gleaming as if it were a divine weapon freshly polished. A black sheen reflected off its scales.

"Someone is coming," the Heavenly Hail Pterosaur spoke softly, its voice deep and resonant, like that of a robust, strong man.

Ji Changkong nodded, observing the Pterosaur for a moment. "It seems you have grasped something new?"

"Yes. I have been working hard recently and truly seem to have comprehended some concepts. But I still need time—a great deal of time—to fully digest that knowledge," the Heavenly Hail Pterosaur replied.

"Good. No rush, you have plenty of time." Standing up, Ji Changkong gestured for the Pterosaur to return to the pool. He walked outside, frowning slightly, thinking: Why is he here? Something must have happened, otherwise he wouldn't seek me out at the Poison Dragon Pool.

"Changkong!" Xiao Xing’s figure streaked through the air, stopping abruptly above the Poison Dragon Pool before landing beside Ji Changkong.

"What happened?" Ji Changkong asked.

Gu Chan was in secluded cultivation within the depths of Mount Tianshan and had gone to the Solar Star Domain. However, over the past half-year, Gu Yan had neither returned nor sent any instructions.

During these six months, three more masters from other life-bearing stars of the Hailan Continent had suffered the annihilation of their divine souls, leaving their physical bodies withered and devoid of life force.

The deaths of three Nine Palaces Heavenly Scholars (Jiu Gong Tian Shi), combined with Gu Yan's non-return, had made Xiao Xing increasingly anxious. He realized the situation might be growing dire, perhaps even Gu Zhan was trapped.

Consequently, he rushed to the Poison Dragon Pool to inform Ji Changkong of the unfolding events.

"Half a year. No word in half a year might be normal, but three more souls extinguished... that is quite abnormal," Ji Changkong murmured, frowning.

The Nine Palaces Heavenly Scholars often required one or two years to search for Star Essence in the Solar Star Domain, so Gu Yan’s absence for only half a year could still be considered routine.

However, the fact that three more masters from other life-bearing stars had been killed during this period suggested something was amiss.

From this pattern, it seemed the actions of Old Lady Shang, Lan Fen, Big Baldy, and the others in that living world were not going smoothly; otherwise, they would have returned by now.

The forces of the Shang family, Feihua Sect, and Jincai Mountain, along with over a dozen Nine Palaces Heavenly Scholars from other worlds, formed an extremely powerful coalition. The fact that they acted together yet failed to secure what they sought indicated that the enemy must also be formidable.

"Changkong, what do you think we should do about this?" Xiao Xing asked.

Xiao Xing was senior to him in generation and three times his age, but in times of crisis, he still sought Ji Changkong's counsel. Xiao Xing was unaware of how many secrets Ji Changkong truly held, and perhaps one of those secrets could shift the current dynamic.

"I don't know what is happening there; it’s difficult to act," Ji Changkong pondered for a moment, then said to Xiao Xing, "Go back to Xuanyuan Valley first. I know about this matter, and I will think it over carefully."

"Understood." Xiao Xing nodded, then provided a brief report on the recent situation at Xuanyuan Valley, mentioning that Gui Rong of the Ghost Sect had also broken through to the Nine Palaces Heavenly Realm and would likely seek out Ji Changkong at the Poison Dragon Pool soon.

Having relayed everything necessary, Xiao Xing did not linger. He hurried away from the Great Marsh of Cloud and Dream, quickly returning to Xuanyuan Valley.

Xuanyuan Valley was now a volatile mix of factions, gathering experts from all corners of the world, and many matters required his attention, forcing him to move swiftly. ...

After hesitating for a moment, Ji Changkong left the Poison Dragon Pool and entered the unfamiliar continent where the Ancestral Demon was sealed. He needed to find Shang Bingjie.

This strange continent had not yet been completely transformed. The Ancestral Demon was sealed deep underground and could not directly influence the land, only indirectly affect plants and creatures through the towering demonic aura. It took a significant amount of time to corrupt a living being into a demon, meaning the Ancestral Demon posed no immediate threat to them.

Releasing his soul, he searched this regenerating continent for Shang Bingjie’s trace. After two days and a night of searching, he found her.

Shang Bingjie’s soul was still in a state of wandering the star field. Ji Changkong understood she was doing this to collect the Star Essence in that sector in the shortest possible time. Since she could only gather one piece of Star Essence per trip, her soul-out-of-body state certainly wouldn't last long.

Three days later, Shang Bingjie’s soul returned, bringing a piece of Star Essence with her.

"Come, I need your help with something." Ji Changkong immediately embraced Shang Bingjie and pulled her along.

, (To be continued) Currently closed.