A moment's thought, and Nie Kong already felt a sense of calm.

The spirit medicines refined from these herbs, those below the Ninth Grade, offered no benefit to the cultivation of Spirit Gods. Furthermore, the natives of the Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm rarely relied on medication, so the herbs remained largely unspoiled. It was a pity the timing was wrong; otherwise, Nie Kong would certainly have stopped for a thorough search.

Suddenly, Tai Yan’s crisp voice drifted from ahead: “Look, there’s a town over there.”

“A town?”

Nie Kong looked up and indeed spotted something.

They had now reached the periphery of the dense forest. The terrain ahead leveled out, and in the distance, by the riverside about ten li away, a cluster of buildings was faintly visible. Nie Kong’s spiritual sense expanded rapidly, brushing against the outskirts of the town in an instant. The situation there became clearly rendered in his mind.

“All Panxing Clan members?”

Nie Kong felt a slight surprise; he hadn't expected to encounter a town populated by the Panxing Clan so quickly.

Initially, the Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm’s natives comprised three major Star Clans: the Panxing, the Xianxing, and the Chixing. After the great war ten thousand years ago, most Xianxing and Chixing Clan members were exiled to the ‘Realm Beyond Heaven.’ The remaining members of those two clans had all assimilated into the Panxing Clan.

Now, no Xianxing or Chixing members remained among the native population of the Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm; only the Panxing Clan endured.

Over ten thousand years of evolution, the Panxing Clan’s population had far surpassed its original numbers, reaching at least one billion. However, this number still fell far short compared to the Divine Void Realm. Given that the Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm was even vaster than the Divine Void Realm, a billion people seemed sparse across such a massive expanse.

Searching his memory for a moment, Nie Kong chuckled, “I know. That must be Pangyuan City.”

New Spirit Gods ascending in the Divine Void Realm were randomly teleported to eight different domain regions within the Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm. In the Northern Domain Region, spanning a thousand li, there was only one settlement belonging to the Panxing Clan.

Judging by the direction they had been traveling, this was undoubtedly Pangyuan City.

“Brother, should we enter the city?” Tai Yan couldn't help but ask.

“Yes, yes! This is the first major city we’ve seen in the Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm!”

Hulu’s eyes glittered with excitement. He waved his two underdeveloped arms vigorously, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he saw everyone looking at him strangely. He couldn't help but shrink his shiny head in confusion, his eyeballs darting around. “Am... am I wrong?”

Qing You patted Hulu’s head, admonishing him with aged wisdom, “Of course you are wrong. We are currently being hunted by the Grandmist Heaven Mansion, the Pill Immortal Sect, and the Sea Clan. If we just rush into a town, what if someone recognizes us? If there happens to be a powerful entity in the city, they could capture us all in one sweep.”

“Oh!” Hulu instantly looked rather deflated.

“…”

Seeing the expressions of the two little ones, the others around them couldn't help but suppress their laughter.

“Although we haven’t entered a domain region, nor have we fallen into the encirclement of those Spirit Gods, that doesn’t mean we are safe. Back in the Divine Void Realm, we clashed with those Spirit God avatars many times. During those battles, it was entirely possible for them to capture our auras.”

Nie Kong pondered, “Unless something unexpected happens, the Grandmist Heaven Mansion, the Pill Immortal Sect, and the Sea Clan must have stored up a good number of auras belonging to me, Tai Yan, and Aunt Yue. Based on these auras, they can still track our whereabouts… Damn it!” As he spoke, Nie Kong’s expression suddenly changed.

“What’s wrong?”

Tai Yan and Yu Longyue, along with the others, felt a slight jolt in their hearts upon seeing this.

Nie Kong’s expression grew solemn. “I was a bit careless just now. Since Pangyuan City is the only town within a thousand li radius of the Northern Domain Region, it might house a Teleportation Illusion Formation. Even if this formation isn't directly linked to the domain region, it could still offer an indirect route there. If the Spirit Gods over there detect our movements and reach Pangyuan City ahead of us, continuing in this direction would be walking right into a trap.”

The Grand Sovereign Spirit Realm was truly vast. Even Spirit Gods who had resided here for thousands of years might not know the precise details of every area.

Among the souls Nie Kong refined in the Divine Void Realm, only two Pill Immortal Sect Spirit Gods had mentioned the existence of Pangyuan City. However, they were not clear on its precise location. The only reason they knew about it was that the Northern Domain Region was the first area they arrived in.

Since they were unaware, Nie Kong naturally couldn't know either, which was why he had chosen to head south.

In an instant, Nie Kong made a decisive call: “Qing You, Lan Ling, Hulu, all come onto me. Tai Yan, Aunt Yue, we’re changing direction immediately—head east!”

“Alright!”

Upon hearing Nie Kong, everyone realized the severity of the situation. Qing You and Hulu immediately leaped into Nie Kong’s embrace, and Lan Ling entered the Beast Token. However, just as Nie Kong, Tai Yan, and Yu Longyue were about to turn east, an immensely powerful aura suddenly pressed down from a distance.

“Too late! They’ve already reached Pangyuan City…”

Nie Kong’s heart constricted. The intensity of this aura far surpassed any Spirit God avatar he had ever encountered in the Divine Void Realm, including the avatar of Dark Night Divine Venerable. Clearly, the owner of this aura was likely a Seventh Grade or Eighth Grade Spirit God, with the latter being a higher probability.

The leap from Sixth Grade to Seventh Grade Spirit God, or Seventh Grade to Eighth Grade Spirit God… each step was like an insurmountable chasm. If it were a Seventh Grade Spirit God, Nie Kong might still fight, but against an Eighth Grade Spirit God, he lacked much confidence. Moreover, the Spirit Gods arriving at Pangyuan City were surely not alone; besides this Eighth Grade Spirit God, there were likely many others below the Seventh Grade.

Nie Kong suddenly spoke, his voice a low command: “Tai Yan, Aunt Yue, both of you come onto me as well.”

“Brother, I—” Tai Yan started to speak, but Nie Kong cut her off with an undeniable tone: “Obey!”

“Tai Yan, Nie Kong is right. If it were a Fifth or Sixth Grade Spirit God, we could still offer some help, but with an Eighth Grade Spirit God, being outside makes it easy for us to distract Nie Kong.”

Yu Longyue tugged Tai Yan’s sleeve. Her body instantly transformed into the thumb-sized ‘Blue Sky’ mental aspect. With a flick of her tail, she slipped into Nie Kong’s sleeve. Seeing this, Tai Yan had no choice but to transform into a red gleam and merge into Nie Kong’s embrace. Following that, a vibrant red Remembrance Flower gently poked out from his collar.

Beside the Remembrance Flower, the two small, gleaming heads of Qing You and Hulu appeared. Soon after, the mental aspect of Yu Longyue also poked a portion of itself out from there. The enemy from Pangyuan City had not yet manifested, but that colossal aura alone was shocking enough, leaving everyone extremely tense.

With Tai Yan and the others secured within the Spirit Link Battle Robe, Nie Kong felt his confidence steady, certain he could protect them as long as he himself was unharmed. He gazed into the distance. Beneath the boundless blue sky, a tiny black shadow flashed into existence, hurtling toward them. Behind that shadow, more than ten figures appeared one after another.

What an entourage!

Nie Kong sneered, and his figure abruptly merged into the void.