Four Celestial Masters of the Ruyi Realm, and twelve of the Nirvana Realm, emerged from the showering debris after the mountain peak exploded, gathering together.

The towering figure leading them, adorned with a feather crown, wore a grim expression as he looked at Yuan Bo beside him. "Yuan Xun, is this brat truly only at the Ruyi Realm cultivation level?" "If he were in the Divine Manifestation Realm, I doubt he would have chosen to flee when facing us." Yuan Xun frowned, a flicker of unease stirring within him.

"Mmm, that's true enough." The man in the feather crown nodded, then continued, "But even if this fellow is only at the Ruyi Realm, he must be extraordinary. It seems we still need to pursue him; Thunder God Mountain might not be enough to stop this brat." "Oh." Yuan Xun appeared indifferent, showing little zeal for the chase. "Let's go, we need to move quickly. Those at Thunder God Mountain should have them cornered by now."

Clutching Huo Feng, he transformed into a streak of lightning, instantly vanishing a thousand li away. Ji Changkong wore a slight, almost delighted smile on his lips.

Huo Feng's delicate body was pressed tightly against his chest. In her heart, she silently seethed. Though she inwardly resented Ji Changkong's brazen actions, she couldn't find the words to rebuke him. Gritting her teeth in frustration, she braced one hand against him, trying to create some distance, but his sheer strength overpowered her, leaving her struggling immensely. "Why are you smirking like that!?" Huo Feng snapped, her pearly white teeth bared in annoyance. "Huh?" As if just emerging from a daze, Ji Changkong looked utterly bewildered. "What did you say?" Damn it! He hadn't heard a word she said! He must be lost in some foul, insidious thoughts!

Black lines seemed to spread across Huo Feng's face. With a chilling expression, she repeated herself heavily, "Why are you smirking!?"

"N-nothing," Ji Changkong mumbled, his words lacking conviction. "I just find our escape a little too easy. Logically, they should have caught up immediately, yet I don't sense them mobilizing. It's a bit strange." In truth, he was replaying the previous scene in his mind. At that moment, he had slipped into a marvelous state where time seemed to freeze, everything slowing to a crawl, yet he himself remained completely unaffected. It was under this bizarre condition that he managed to calmly manipulate the Heavenly Net of Blood Fiends, snagging every flame spear. He kept wondering: in that scene, had others slowed down, or had he sped up?

"Don't celebrate too soon. The Yang Family will never let this slide. If they haven't pursued us immediately, it must be because they have another method for dealing with us. Be careful," Huo Feng sighed softly, a shade of melancholy darkening her eyes, as if this entire conflict with the Yang Family was not what she desired.

"Mm, I'll be watchful." Ji Changkong nodded, extending his spiritual sense. He anchored his will and aura into the fabric of heaven and earth, forming strange, invisible waves that radiated outward from him, sweeping toward the distant reaches, absorbing all surrounding fluctuations and life signatures into his awareness. After breaking through to the Ruyi Realm, he discovered his spiritual sense had become incredibly sharp. By letting his spiritual awareness spread, he could not only keenly detect surrounding life fluctuations but could even discern the cultivation level and the power mysteries practiced by those life forms. Through subtle shifts in his spiritual sense, he could generate fluctuations akin to soul tremors, preemptively imposing them upon hidden individuals, and even silently influence those of lower cultivation, forcibly altering their consciousness to incite terror, thereby discouraging any thought of making him an enemy. Of course, this spiritual assault was only effective against those of lesser cultivation; it proved difficult against true masters of equivalent rank.

"You weren't wrong after all." A quarter of an hour later, Ji Changkong's expression suddenly turned icy as he sneered, "The ones allied with your Yang Family are from Thunder God Mountain. That Lei Ming is among the pursuers!" Huo Feng’s expression remained steady. "I knew Thunder God Mountain would intervene. Alas, I didn't expect Lei Ming to show up…" "Shall I annihilate Lei Ming for you?" Ji Changkong suggested, his eyes glinting.

Huo Feng shook her head, saying calmly, "No need. Lei Ming has done me favors before. While I dislike the man, I cannot repay kindness with malice." After a pause, Huo Feng's eyes brightened, and she asked with a strange inflection, "You're so eager to kill Lei Ming—do you have some other motive? Is it because Lei Ming has feelings for me?" As she posed the question, Huo Feng abruptly lowered her head, suddenly hesitant to meet his gaze.

"What does that have to do with me! I just find that kid two-faced and generally irritating, it has nothing to do with whether he likes you or not. Why would you think that?" Ji Changkong sounded genuinely surprised. As soon as he finished speaking, he felt a sharp pain in his chest and yelped, "Damn woman, why did you bite me? Are you a dog!?" "Because I'm happy to!" Huo Feng kept her head down, her shell-like teeth moving in again to clamp down on his chest through his robes. "Crazy woman!" Ji Changkong roared, thinking how he was helping her, and yet she treated him like this. If he didn't teach her a lesson, she truly wouldn't know her place.

"Slap! Slap! Slap!" A burning sting erupted from Huo Feng’s rounded hips. Her delicate body instantly froze. After three seconds, Huo Feng reacted as if electrocuted—she jerked violently, erupting in furious shame, "Ji Changkong, I’ll kill you! I absolutely will kill you!" "I think someone will take care of that for me." "What did you say? Wait! Lei Ming!"

Huo Feng's pretty face turned icy as she gazed toward Lei Ming standing atop the distant mountain peak, flanked by the three Ruyi Realm masters from Thunder God Mountain. "Is Thunder God Mountain involved in this?"

Behind the three Ruyi Realm masters, the void crackled with lightning, each bolt a thousand zhang long, thick as monstrous pythons, writhing ferociously in the air. Deafening thunderclaps tore through the atmosphere, the explosions lurking between the lightning streaks, as if anyone rash enough to enter would be instantly atomized. "Little Feng'er, you'd rather be killed by the Yang Family alongside him than come with me?" Lei Ming’s expression was extremely displeased.

"Why would I come with you? I told you long ago, I have zero interest in you!" Huo Feng replied without hesitation, her expression even carrying a hint of disdain. She scoffed, "I know why you’ve come—it’s because of the 'Source Fire,' isn't it? Stop with the useless talk."

"Miss Feng, the 'Flame Thunder Holy Fire' is vital to both the Yang Family and Thunder God Mountain. I assume you know the value of the 'Flame Thunder Holy Fire' to our two families. Forgive our intrusion," the Great Protector of Thunder God Mountain, Lei Tian, said with a slight bow, his face apologetic. "Go!" Lei Tian pointed at Ji Changkong.

Behind him, the hundred-odd python-like, thousand-zhang-long lightning bolts in the void writhed and twisted, all surging toward Ji Changkong in a deadly embrace. A power that shook the void surged forth, seemingly intent on binding the entire world. The roar of exploding thunder shook the heavens, and the air began to smell of scorching pitch.

A strange light flashed in Ji Changkong's eyes. The Myriad Heavens Star River Art churned within him, vital essence surging from all his acupuncture points, manipulated by a unique arcane technique. Celestial Manifestation of the Great Astral Form!

Suddenly, the clear blue sky manifested an image of shifting star rivers. The power of galaxies billions of miles away seemed to be stirred, and rivers of starlight, ten thousand li long each, spawned from them, pouring down onto the torrent of giant lightning pythons. The deafening roar of the thunder ceased abruptly!

The rivers of starlight gushed forth; instantly, starlight exploded outward. The celestial waters enveloped the entire void. Each stream of starlight seemed to extend into another dimension, flowing ceaselessly, endlessly, without pause.

With the weight of untold quintillions of tons of starlight water filling the void, those thousand-zhang-long lightning bolts became mere mud eels within it, completely submerged by the Star River, unable to cause any further disturbance. The sound of exploding thunder had long since died away. "What kind of Divine Mystery Art is this!" Lei Tian’s face drastically changed. He suddenly exclaimed, "Could it be one of the Chaos Mysteries?!" "Chaos Mysteries!" The other masters from Thunder God Mountain all reacted with shock, gasping in unison. Lei Ming glared at Ji Changkong with a face ashen, utterly silent.

The starlight waters poured down, completely shrouding the void. Pinpricks of distant stars shimmered, decorating the emptiness with brilliant colors. Ji Changkong, holding Huo Feng, sank into that Star River, instantly losing all trace of his aura. No matter how the Thunder God Mountain experts searched, they could not locate the pair within those celestial waters.

The three Ruyi Realm masters unleashed various Divine Mystery Arts, attempting to shatter the Star River waters hanging in the void. However, no matter how hard they tried, the starlight waters remained immutable, as if they had existed there since the dawn of time, destined never to change.

The contingent of Yang Family members arrived. Seeing Lei Tian's expression and observing the strange phenomenon above, they were all astonished.

"Lei Tian! You failed to stop him either?" Bang—the man in the feather crown demanded.

"Yang Lie, the brat wields a Chaos Mystery!" Lei Tian managed to speak after a moment’s pause, then roared, "What?" The feather-crowned man, identified as Yang Lie, went pale with shock, blurting out, "How is that possible?" "Uncle Tian, what is a Chaos Mystery?" Lei Ming asked blankly.

Lei Tian's face was grim as he articulated each word slowly, "It is the most potent application of power among the countless Divine Arts of the Endless Cosmos. It is the true essence of the Heavenly Dao Mysteries existing since the creation of heaven and earth. It requires the fusion of various Divine Arts to achieve. Mastering a single Chaos Mystery is the foundation for stepping into the Chaos Realm. Not even the Divine Manifestation Realm elders on our Thunder God Mountain have managed to grasp a Chaos Mystery!" "That powerful?" Lei Ming was utterly flabbergasted.

"It’s beyond the description of 'powerful,'" Lei Tian took a deep breath, then concluded, "If this boy manages to stay alive, he might one day reach the Chaos Realm. To offend a terrifying entity capable of entering the Chaos Realm over the 'Source Fire'—whether to continue the pursuit is seriously worth reconsidering. I need to return to Thunder God Mountain to seek counsel from higher authorities." "Uncle Tian, but you promised me?" Lei Ming protested. "Nonsense!" Lei Tian snorted coldly in anger. "Get back to Thunder God Mountain this instant, and don't come out for a while!"

With that, Lei Tian ignored the stunned expressions of Yang Lie and the others, grabbing Lei Ming, and hastily departed. Yang Lie and Yuan Xun, along with the rest of the Yang Family members, were left standing there, their faces flickering with uncertainty. The river of starlight in the sky had vanished without anyone noticing, as if it had never been there at all.