After a prolonged pursuit by Nine-Tails, Dite, and their group, they had finally tracked their quarry deep into the transport route and found the objective of their search.

"Found them!" Dite declared solemnly.

Nine-Tails, Yu Lian, and Mu Shen were instantly galvanized, their speed surging as they tore into the depths of the mist. Before long, the presence of Ji Changkong materialized within their senses.

"Still at the Return to God Anchorage!" Nine-Tails sneered, "I'd like to see how far he thinks he can run this time!"

Mu Shen and Yu Lian also felt a tremor of excitement; they had waited for this moment for far too long.

"Ji Changkong!" Nine-Tails roared from a great distance, her eyes chillingly merciless. "You have betrayed our trust. You knew perfectly well what the Plague Demon meant to us, yet you dared to let it escape. Now, no one can save you!"

Dite, Mu Shen, and Yu Lian crept closer. Mu Shen and Yu Lian wore expressions eager for battle, but Dite was filled with a sense of regret. He sighed softly. "Ji Changkong, why must you take such a desperate path? Had it not been for the Plague Demon, I would not have moved against you. But allowing the Plague Demon to survive to this day is a threat to our Three-Eyed Tribe as well. I can disregard your Purgatory Ghost Clan identity, but I cannot tolerate your tolerance of the Plague Demon's existence."

"Oh?" Nine-Tails paused slightly, looking at Dite with a strange expression. "Dite, have you taken leave of your senses? This boy is a stranger to you; why would you show him such unique goodwill?"

"He has some ties to my clan," Dite replied, his gaze complicated. "Leo of my tribe achieved the Ruyi Realm because he received his assistance. And Dite is my direct great-grandson..."

"I see," Yu Lian scoffed. "No wonder you spoke up for this boy on Black Prison Star. I didn't realize you shared such a connection."

"Yu Lian, perhaps you don't know, but Shirley also entered the Ruyi Realm thanks to his help. Otherwise, Shirley would still be at the cultivation level of the Nine Palaces Heaven Realm! Didn't Fei Yun tell you about this?" Dite’s face hardened. "I also understand the concept of repaying kindness. But your Yu Clan is utterly shameless. Fei Yun clearly knew that Shirley's current achievements were due to his aid, yet he turned on the boy for the sake of the Chaos Remnant Map. Only your Yu Clan would commit such an act of repaying benevolence with enmity!"

At these words, Yu Lian’s face became extremely grim. "The Chaos Remnant Map is of paramount importance. Coupled with the fact that he let the Plague Demon go, for the peace of the Dead Star Domain and the major star realms, we cannot allow this boy to live."

"You care about the Origin Fire on him, don't you?" Dite sneered.

"Enough!" Nine-Tails shouted. "Dite, do not forget our purpose. We traveled thousands of miles to be here, which is to destroy the Plague Demon. This is our mission!"

Dite glanced at Ji Du, nodded faintly, and then said to Ji Changkong with a hint of helplessness, "Do not blame me for lacking sentimentality; it's simply that your actions are unacceptable to me."

Dite’s words brought a slight measure of relief to Ji Changkong’s heart. This Dite was not an unreasonable person. From his perspective, eliminating Ji Yuan was necessary to ensure the safety of his tribe, and that was understandable. The fact that he mentioned the favor owed to Leo before making a move suggested that Dite was, at least, upright.

However, whether it was Yu Lian, Mu Shen, or Nine-Tails, they had all overlooked the three strangers standing beside Ji Changkong.

Not only could Nine-Tails not discern the cultivation levels of Ling Meng and Zi Han, nor guess their origins, but she also couldn't fathom the relationship between them and Ji Changkong. They didn't believe these two would fight desperately for Ji Changkong, nor did they think Zi Han and Ling Meng could stop them.

"I don't care what your relationship is with him!" Zi Han suddenly spoke, her face cold. "This boy is currently under our protection. You had better retreat far away, or don't blame this Dao Venerable for being impolite!"

As Zi Han spoke, an imposing aura radiated from her. Her eyes, usually bright with spirit, turned fiercely murderous, yet not a single ripple of energy escaped her, leaving her true means undetectable.

Zi Han's assertiveness finally made the Nine-Tails group realize Ji Changkong had allies. However, they did not take Zi Han seriously. Within the Dead Star Domain, these four were peak existences; they didn't believe these two suddenly appearing young women could halt their march to slay Ji Changkong and Ji Du.

"You see," Ji Changkong smiled, shrugging casually. "If you want to deal with me, you need to see if others agree."

He didn't know the true cultivation levels of Zi Han and Ling Meng, but from their interactions, he sensed these two women, who claimed to be Dao Venerables, were far from ordinary. At the very least, he couldn't have maintained such composure when facing the dangers of the Chaotic Sea of Chaos.

He wanted to gauge the true strength of Ling Meng and Zi Han, just in case he was easily dealt with by these two girls at the very source. He needed to prepare beforehand.

It could be said that he was caught by Dite’s group entirely by design. The current standoff between the two factions was precisely the outcome he desired.

Zi Han's dominance clearly enraged Nine-Tails, who reigned supreme in the Dead Star Domain. After a brief moment of surprise, Nine-Tails let out a cold laugh. "Girl, do you understand the situation? Do you know the consequences of offending us because of him?"

"Let's just deal with these two girls together!" Yu Lian said impatiently.

"Indeed, I also think we shouldn't waste time talking!" Zi Han remained forceful, turning to glance at Ling Meng.

Ling Meng nodded slowly.

Zi Han stopped talking nonsense. A strange light flashed in her eyes. She raised her slender jade hand and formed a bizarre hand seal, shouting, "Nine Dragons Cover!"

The moment the words left her lips, before Nine-Tails and the other three could react, nine multicolored giant dragons suddenly surged out of Zi Han’s sleeve. The nine dragons coiled into a single mass and violently descended from the sky, instantly enveloping all four members of Nine-Tails' group.

Rumble!

A massive, glazed light barrier immediately encased the four. Within the barrier, the nine giant dragons writhed and twisted, jointly spewing forth light beams of fire, electricity, thunder, cold light, ice, snow, and wood spikes—a torrent of bizarre energies directed towards the four figures at the center.

The forms of the nine dragons flickered within the light shield, constantly stretching and distorting. Waves of world-shattering energy erupted in an instant, powerful enough to destroy a dozen life-bearing stars.

The nine streams of energy were distinct, each possessing the terrifying might to shatter stars. Once the glazed shield took shape, it began to endlessly absorb the free-floating energy from the Heart of the Universe, causing the fluctuations within the Nine Dragons Cover to become increasingly violent.

A strange flare nearby was also drawn by the pull of the Nine Dragons Cover, instantly dragged inside. It detonated one by one near the four of Nine-Tails, leaving them utterly disheveled and filled with shock.

They could never have imagined that Zi Han would act so decisively, without any prior warning, and that the power unleashed would be so earth-shattering, catching them without any chance to react.

Inside the Nine Dragons Cover, the four members of Nine-Tails looked grave and immediately activated their powers. Nine-Tails transformed into her fox form with a human face amidst flashing electric light. Her nine tails whipped around, pulverizing the energy within the enclosure. Mu Shen instantly underwent wooden transformation, his body sparking with electricity under the barrage of attacks.

Yu Lian also utilized the inherent gifts of the Yu Clan, spreading her wings, which moved faster than lightning. Her body shrank a thousandfold, allowing her to dart around the light barrier like a tiny gnat, skillfully evading the fierce assaults spat out by the nine giant dragons.

Dite activated his third eye, transforming it into beams of divine light that neutralized the incoming fluctuations into nothingness.

The four unleashed their inherent talents. The four at the Primordial Chaos Realm activated their innate divine abilities and remained unharmed within the Nine Dragons Cover; none suffered injury.

However, those trapped within the Nine Dragons Cover still could not break through. No matter how they exerted their power, they were effortlessly dissolved by the nine giant dragons clinging to the light barrier.

Four experts of the Chaos Realm, the apex powers of the Dead Star Domain, were bound by Zi Han alone within the Nine Dragons Cover, with not one capable of breaking free.

Ji Changkong watched, utterly dumbfounded.

At this moment, he finally understood why Zi Han and Ling Meng had never displayed any posture of evasion from beginning to end.

It turned out that Nine-Tails and the others had never truly been taken seriously by these two.

"Fellow Daoist Ling Meng, I must trouble you for a bit more assistance. Although these four pose no danger to us, completely obliterating them would still consume a considerable amount of my vital energy," Zi Han frowned as she watched the four remain unharmed inside the Nine Dragons Cover, then turned to look at Ling Meng.

"These four possess strange powers and peculiar divine souls. Defeating them is easy, but completely annihilating them will be time-consuming," Ling Meng shook her head. "Fellow Daoist Zi Han, don't forget we have other enemies. Compared to those people, these few are far inferior. We shouldn't waste too much energy on strangers, don't you think?"

Zi Han, who was calmly controlling the Nine Dragons Cover, heard this and slightly knitted her brows. After a moment of hesitation, she gently nodded. "Fellow Daoist Ling Meng is indeed more far-sighted."

Saying this, Zi Han let out a cold snort and reached out, grabbing empty air. The nine giant dragons swiftly flew back into her sleeve. As the dragons vanished, the glazed light barrier instantly dissipated.

"Even united, you four are no match for me. If Fellow Daoist Ling Meng had acted, you would only have the choice of annihilation," Zi Han declared arrogantly, holding her head high. "So, I reiterate my warning: retreat far away now. If I encounter you again, I won't be so polite!"

The four of Nine-Tails stood there, pale with terror, staring deeply at Ling Meng, who hadn't moved an inch from start to finish, silently trying to gauge her cultivation.

"Dite!" Ji Changkong called out sharply.

Dite of the Three-Eyed Tribe's expression flickered slightly. He looked sternly at Ji Changkong and asked, "What is it?"

"Rest assured, I will watch this one closely. As long as I live, he will never pose a threat to your Three-Eyed Tribe," Ji Changkong pointed at Ji Du, speaking with gravity. "I am friends with Leo. I hope you can grant me this favor; I will remember this kindness!" He didn't spell things out too clearly, but Dite should understand the matters concerning Shang Bingjie, Gu Dan, and Li Hentian.

Dite froze, then fell silent for a long time before nodding faintly. "I will return to the Dead Star Domain now. I hope you can honor your word."

With that, Dite cast one last, deep look at Ji Du before turning away and departing with a look of desolation.