The gentle breeze swept past, and the spectral shadows of the leaves completely dissipated.

Witnessing this, Yan He and Hai Ying, who had arrived shortly after, sighed inwardly. Without the protection of that layer of seven-colored radiance, capturing Nie Kong would indeed be as easy as turning over one's hand. However, the Sea Clan and the Dan Xian Sect were not the Hong Meng Tian Fu; even if Yi Ming and the others hadn't shown up, they would still find it difficult to make the decision to attack.

"Wood Ancestor, your leaf's duration is far too short! If it could have held on for just two or three more minutes!" Nie Kong's eyes flickered over the three figures, and he gave a wry smile, chuckling heartily, "It seems I truly have no choice but to go with you to the Hong Meng Tian Fu this time."

As he spoke, Nie Kong did not cease the activity within his pet bag. If he could just stall for a small amount of time, he might still find an opportunity to slip away. Although somewhat frustrated, Nie Kong was deeply grateful to the Wood Ancestor; without his leaves, the situation now would be entirely different.

Seeing that Nie Kong offered no resistance, the three Eighth-Grade Spirit Gods from Hong Meng Tian Fu exchanged satisfied glances.

Yi Ming’s voice boomed like a great bell, roaring with laughter, "Nie Kong, you killed our newly ascended Spirit God of Hong Meng Tian Fu in the Divine Void Realm, and you refined so many Spirit God Clones! Even the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign cannot shield you, let alone the fact that your connection to the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign is still highly questionable."

He paused, then nodded approvingly toward Nie Kong, "It's a good thing you are a sensible and smart person; you've saved us quite a bit of effort."

Nie Kong smiled, "The three of you are Eighth-Grade Spirit Gods, and I am only a Sixth-Grade Spirit God. It's impossible for me to escape from your grasp, so rather than courting disaster, I might as well accept your arrangements."

"Nie Kong, you are quite straightforward!"

Zhen Bai Shan let out a charming giggle, her voice as crisp and melodious as silver bells.

Zhan Nan stated expressionlessly, "Since you know escape is futile, let's not waste any more time. The Divine Venerable is waiting to see you at Mount Hong Meng."

"Very well, I..."

Just as Nie Kong was about to nod decisively, a light chuckle suddenly burst forth from the void: "Leaving already? I was planning to watch the excitement for a bit longer."

The voice carried a very unique resonance, clear and cool like a gently rippling ancient spring, causing Nie Kong to momentarily freeze. At that moment, Qing You seemed to sense something; with a rustling crisp sound, its head emerged from Nie Kong's chest, a trace of confusion clouding its clear eyes.

"Who?"

"What Yan Dong..."

"Come out!"

Several loud shouts rang out simultaneously.

Not only Yi Ming, Zhan Nan, and Zhen Bai Shan, but even Yan He and Hai Ying’s expressions shifted drastically. So many Spirit Gods—and even five Eighth-Grade Spirit Gods—yet not one of them had detected an intruder lurking nearby.

Consequently, their gazes swept rapidly across the surroundings. Nearly twenty powerful spiritual senses covered every inch of space within a radius of several thousand meters, searching meticulously.

Yet, they found absolutely nothing.

For a moment, the faces of Yi Ming and the others turned extremely grim. If they couldn't sense the slightest anomaly even now, the hidden person was likely a Ninth-Grade Spirit God.

The Five Great Divine Venerables probably wouldn't come; even if they did, they wouldn't conceal themselves so furtively. The Ninth-Grade Spirit Gods from Hong Meng Tian Fu, Dan Xian Sect, and the Sea Clan were the same in this regard.

By calculation, the potential people lurking nearby could be counted on the fingers of one hand.

But Yi Ming and the others racked their brains, yet they couldn't guess who this person was. That voice was exceptionally peculiar; if they had heard it before, they certainly wouldn't forget it.

"Eh?"

As everyone was filled with surprise and doubt, Nie Kong’s heart gave a slight leap.

While Yi Ming and the others searched for the newcomer, Nie Kong also separated a sliver of his spiritual sense to merge with the surrounding world. His spiritual sense might not be as powerful as Eighth-Grade Spirit Gods like Yi Ming and Yan He, but in terms of its harmony with heaven and earth, it far surpassed theirs—even the Five Great Divine Venerables might not match him.

All of this was naturally due to the Chaos Divine Power Nie Kong cultivated.

After sensing carefully for a long while, just as everyone else had given up the search, Nie Kong finally detected an extremely faint fluctuation emanating from the void tens of meters to his right.

This fluctuation was almost nonexistent, making it incredibly difficult to detect. Nie Kong instinctively looked over.

As his gaze shifted, the hidden expert also seemed to take notice. The peculiar chuckle carried a hint of astonishment: "Not bad, not bad. Although only a Sixth-Grade Spirit God, you managed to discover my trace. You are far stronger than these Seventh and Eighth-Grade Spirit Gods. No wonder you managed to obtain the talisman artifact from my venerable master."

As the words fell, a white silhouette stepped out of the void.

It was an old man clad in white robes, his long hair like snow and his white beard like frost, yet his face was smooth and youthful. He moved with an elegant bearing, a gentle smile on his face, walking into the sight of all present. The shock of the onlookers was not due to the old man's immortal bearing, but rather two specific words in his speech.

Master?

Nie Kong's talisman artifact came from the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign. Could the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign be his master? When had the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign taken such a disciple?

Furthermore, this person was absolutely a Ninth-Grade Spirit God.

Yi Ming and Yan He were intimately familiar with the Ninth-Grade Spirit Gods of the Grand Sovereign Spiritual Realm, yet this white-robed elder gave them an utterly unfamiliar feeling. Not only were they shocked by the word "Master," but Nie Kong was as well.

Everyone assumed that leaf was a talisman artifact of the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign, but Nie Kong knew very clearly that the leaf had no connection to the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign; it came from the Wood Ancestor. When sealing the world gate and preparing to leave the Yin Ruins, the Wood Ancestor personally plucked that leaf from the Ancestral Heaven Divine Luo Tree.

Could this old man be the Wood Ancestor's apprentice?

As this thought surfaced in his mind, Nie Kong felt it was utterly impossible. After the Illusory Spirit Continent shattered, the Wood Ancestor had always lived on the Heavenly Spirit Continent, never leaving the Yin Ruins, and certainly never taking a disciple. Moreover, if the Wood Ancestor were to take a disciple, that person should be from the Yin Ruins.

As the son of the former Wood Sect Master of the Yin Ruins, Nie Kong had never heard of anyone in the Yin Ruins ascending to the Spirit God realm, especially not this old man, whose cultivation utilized Water Divine Power, not the Heart Aspect.

But he wasn't from the Sea Clan either; within his body, there was none of the distinctive aura unique to the Sea Clan.

"Who exactly are you?"

Yi Ming stared unblinkingly at the white-robed old man, his voice low. If this person truly was a disciple of the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign, bringing Nie Kong back to Hong Meng Tian Fu today would likely prove difficult.

"Let me think."

The white-robed old man scratched his head, deep in thought for a good while, before speaking with a tone of uncertainty, "A thousand years ago, two thousand years ago, or three thousand years ago... back then, I think I had a name... Gu You? No, no, Gu Quan?"

"Gu Quan?"

At that moment, Yan He's eyes suddenly snapped wide open, staring at the white-robed elder in disbelief as he exclaimed, "I remember now! A very, very long time ago, there was a newly ascended Spirit God from the Heavenly Spirit Continent. As soon as he reached the Central Domain of the Grand Sovereign Spiritual Realm, he was accepted as a disciple by the Seven-Colored Grand Sovereign. His name... I think it was Gu Quan."

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