Nie Kong gasped. A chill ran through him.

Now a ninth-rank Phantom Spirit Master, it was inconvenient for him to use spiritual sense for probing, lest he alert the Pill Immortal Sect. Thus, he instructed Tai Yan to keep a close watch. Tai Yan's form was unusual, and with her now largely capable of controlling the immense power within her body at will, having her conduct the surveillance would be far safer.

Upon entering the city, Nie Kong already knew the Pill Immortal Sect possessed many ninth-rank experts, but he hadn't anticipated they would be so numerous—even more than the Netherworld Spirit Sovereign Hall.

This was only within Ascending Dragon City currently. If he added up all the Pill Immortal Sect experts no longer within the city, the total would certainly exceed one hundred.

After a long while, Nie Kong finally calmed his mind: "Tai Yan, did you discover anything else useful?"

"I think... er..."

Tai Yan narrowed her eyes, straining to recall. After several seconds, a glint flashed in her beautiful eyes. "Brother, I also overheard an interesting piece of news. In half a month, the 'Pill Immortal Sect' will host a 'Pill Palace Immortal Assembly' here. They say they plan to invite all the Danyao Dawang from the Divine Void Realm to attend."

"Oh?" Nie Kong was quite surprised.

"I heard this from two ninth-rank Phantom Spirit Masters. They were preparing the invitations for those Danyao Dawang at the time," Tai Yan quickly added.

"What does the Pill Immortal Sect want to achieve by holding the 'Pill Palace Immortal Assembly'?"

"They didn't say, and I don't know either."

"..."

Nie Kong slowly paced the room, his mind unsettled. He, too, had once organized an invitation for all the Danyao Dawang under the heavens—it was for compiling the Danyao Dian 'Compendium of Materia Medica.' So, what was the Pill Immortal Sect's motive? Regardless of the reason, it likely had something to do with the word 'many'..."

Tai Yan stood quietly to the side, her beautiful eyes following his movements, but she made no sound to interrupt his thoughts.

After a considerable silence, Nie Kong finally stopped pacing and smiled: "Tai Yan, well done. Let's go out again tonight and see if we can glean any more information."

"Mmm."

Tai Yan agreed, a sweet smile blooming on her lovely face.

As the lamps were lit, Nie Kong and Tai Yan left the inn. When they returned, it was already late into the night, and the bustling Ascending Dragon City was gradually falling silent.

The candlelight flickered in the room. Tai Yan stood by the table, her soft voice flowing out gently.

Nie Kong sat before the desk, occasionally nodding or scribbling a few characters onto paper. Half an hour later, six sect names graced the white sheet: the Fahua Sect, Hundred Flowers Mountain, Lingxiao Heavenly Creation Pavilion, Heart Intent Sect, Profound Shadow Sect, and Nine Chan Gate!

This was the sum of Nie Kong and Tai Yan's findings that evening.

Within a thousand-mile radius, aside from the super-power of the Pill Immortal Sect, these six sects were the most renowned, and their strength was considerable.

Having confirmed the general area, Nie Kong could not dogmatically fixate on the Pill Immortal Sect without absolute certainty. The six major sects, including the Fahua Sect, each possessed nearly twenty ninth-rank Phantom Spirit Masters. Such might, if placed on the Celestial Spirit Continent, would constitute top-tier sects, second only to the Spirit God Hall.

Yet, even in the Divine Void Realm, they only occupied a mid-to-upper tier position.

However, even so, their power made it highly probable that they could be where Kou Xilai and the others were hiding.

Besides these six sects, there were numerous smaller sects within the thousand-mile range, all of which Nie Kong ignored. After all, Kou Xilai and his group did not know he had followed them to the Divine Void Realm; they would have no reason to hide in a weak, minor sect when they could seek refuge in a respectable one.

Nie Kong had only one remaining chance to deploy the "Blood Shadow Dharma Appearance" and dared not act rashly. If Kou Xilai's true aura was still shielded, his final use of the "Blood Shadow Dharma Appearance" would be wasted.

For now, the only recourse was to eliminate the most likely possibilities—the other sects. As for the Pill Immortal Sect, being the strongest, Nie Kong decided to save it for last.

The next morning, Nie Kong and Tai Yan parted ways.

Tai Yan remained in Ascending Dragon City to investigate, and Qing You was also left behind.

As dawn broke, Tai Yan strolled through Ascending Dragon City, carrying Qing You concealed within the Spirit-Sealing Jade Vial.

At dusk, the Lingxiao Heavenly Creation Pavilion.

On the steps outside the mountain gate, figures could occasionally be seen ascending and descending; these were all disciples of the Pavilion. At this moment, a white shadow suddenly materialized, utterly out of place.

It was an elder, with frost-white hair and eyebrows, clad in a white robe, his face ruddy, possessing the bearing of an immortal master.

His sudden appearance startled the passing Creation Pavilion disciples, who stopped in their tracks, casting continuous looks of astonishment.

At the mountain entrance, the middle-aged man sitting cross-legged on the stone platform abruptly opened his eyes.

The middle-aged man's gaze was sharp as an eagle's, fixed directly upon the white-robed elder dozens of feet away, and he roared, "Who goes there?" To trespass into the sect's mountain gate without announcement was a profound disrespect, and the middle-aged man's tone was far from courteous.

The white-robed elder did not stop walking, his eyes, however, darted towards the plaque hanging high at the gate, appearing quite mischievous.

"Halt!"

A hint of anger flickered across the middle-aged man's face. He spoke with a voice like booming thunder, seemingly carrying a penetrating power that shook the minds of the surrounding Creation Pavilion disciples.

A strange smile flickered in the white-robed elder's eyes. He suddenly raised his hand, and a stream of dark red energy shot forth from his fingertip without warning, piercing the mountain gate plaque like a sharp spike.

"Bang!"

The plaque shattered into pieces. The four characters carved upon it, "Lingxiao Heavenly Creation," turned into dust. The gate pillars flanking it suffered collateral damage, groaning as they began to topple sideways.

The surrounding Creation Pavilion disciples were struck dumb with shock. This old fellow had an astonishing amount of audacity to destroy the mountain gate of the "Lingxiao Heavenly Creation Pavilion"! With the Pavilion Master and all the elders currently inside, if they attacked in anger, this old man, no matter how high his cultivation, would likely end up pulverized.

"What gall!"

Staring at the debris, the middle-aged man was furious enough to blow smoke from all seven orifices. As he roared, a colossal black tiger burst forth from his body, opening its cavernous maw to lunge and bite at the white-robed elder, emitting earth-shattering roars that pierced the soul.

"Hiss! Hiss..."

The white-robed elder swept his right palm across the void, flicking his fingers repeatedly. A cascade of dark red leaves, sharp as swords, shot from his fingertips, flashing like lightning into the black tiger's mouth.

"Boom! Boom..."

The leaves exploded sequentially.

The menacing black tiger only managed a single pained cry before it was blown into countless fragments. The middle-aged man behind the tiger recoiled as if struck by a heavy blow, staggering back more than a dozen paces, his face swelling from red to purple. When he finally managed to steady himself, he could no longer suppress it and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Instantly, the area outside the mountain gate fell silent.

The Creation Pavilion disciples stared blankly at the white shadow. The middle-aged man was an Elder of the Creation Pavilion, having reached the ninth rank of Phantom Spirit Master for nine years, yet he could not withstand a single blow from the opponent. Furthermore, based on the exchange just now, the old fellow clearly hadn't even deployed his complete Dharma Appearance.