Across the undulating expanse of sand, Leshan Shenzun sped onward, cradling a dark-red shadow of blood in his palm.

“Hmm?”

Suddenly, he halted, a sound of surprised utterance escaping his lips.

“What is this? There are three sets of life auras?”

Leshan Shenzun surveyed the void, his gaze snapping to two footprints not far away. His brow furrowed slightly, and he muttered to himself, “Besides Nie Kong, one individual possesses the strength equivalent to a Ninth-Rank Illusionary Spirit Master, and the other is comparable to… an Eighth-Grade Spirit God…”

“An Eighth-Grade Spirit God?”

Muttering the four words again with some doubt, Leshan Shenzun’s expression suddenly shifted. “Blast it! In the fifth layer of this Grotto-Heaven, there isn’t a significant speed difference between an Eighth-Grade Spirit God and a Ninth-Grade Spirit God. With that person escorting Nie Kong, catching up to him is likely to be difficult.

“How exactly did this Nie Kong manage to deceive the Grand Venerables and bring two outsiders in? Could it be that they share some kind of life-and-death linked spiritual mark with Nie Kong? Unlikely. Neither in the Outer Realm nor the third layer of the Grotto-Heaven did I detect the auras of those two.”

Leshan Shenzun’s thoughts raced, and he shot forward, though a layer of dark cloud now settled over his brow…

“…”

“Tai Yan, a little to the right!”

“More to the right!”

“…”

Under the dual influence of the Chaos Divine Power and the little one’s innate medicinal energy, the injuries within Nie Kong’s viscera gradually subsided, and he occasionally directed Tai Yan on the path forward.

The basis for determining their direction was the “Great Sun Chaos True Fire” that Nie Kong cultivated.

At this moment, a tiny white sun hovered above Nie Kong’s head.

After absorbing thirty-three strands of “Chaos Immortal Qi” in the “Seven-Colored Immortal Domain,” Nie Kong’s divine power was now unavoidably imbued with the aura of “Chaos Immortal Qi.” The “Great Sun Chaos True Fire,” specifically crafted by the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable, could maximize the expression of that “Chaos Immortal Qi” aura.

This aura resonated with the immortal energy within the “Primordial Grotto-Heaven,” allowing Nie Kong to find their general direction of travel.

“Brother, that old bastard is chasing us,” Tai Yan’s voice suddenly echoed from the blood mist, tinged with deep worry. “I don’t know what trick he used, but his speed is comparable to when you were on the fourth layer. He’ll probably catch up to us soon.”

“That fast?” The gourd startled, its little head popping out from Nie Kong’s chest.

“Don’t worry, we’ll be there soon,” Nie Kong smiled, not overly concerned.

Based on Tai Yan’s current sensory ability, Leshan Shenzun should be about a hundred li away, but if his perception was correct, their destination was only forty or fifty li distant. Even if Leshan Shenzun sped up slightly, it was unlikely he could catch up to Tai Yan.

“That’s wonderful!”

Hearing Nie Kong’s words, Tai Yan was immediately greatly relieved, and the churning of the blood mist became even more intense.

Sure enough, not long after, the pale, hazy spatial barrier came into view.

“Look, that’s the ‘Divine Heaven Absolute Domain’,” Tai Yan announced.

Even Nie Kong couldn’t help but feel a slight surge of excitement.

This spatial barrier was vastly different from what he had seen before. In the first four layers of the Primordial Grotto-Heaven, such barriers existed at the entrances of the vortices. Because the Grotto-Heaven was so vast, they appeared like sheer, upright ramparts. However, the spatial barrier before them was distinctly concave.

The indentation spanned dozens of meters and was quite noticeable.

It was rumored that this concavity did not exist initially; it was accidentally broken by a Ninth-Rank Star God named “Panshen Tian.” Consequently, the place was named after him as the “Divine Heaven Absolute Domain,” and Panshen Tian himself reportedly perished within the very domain he discovered.

“We’ve finally arrived,” the gourd chirped excitedly, rushing out of Nie Kong’s chest. Tai Yan was also greatly energized, manipulating the blood mist to roll fervently into that depression…

“Divine Heaven Absolute Domain?”

Two or three li away, Leshan Shenzun’s eyebrows lifted slightly. A thick, satisfied smile spread across his pale, clean face. “Heaven truly favors this old man; they ran right into the ‘Divine Heaven Absolute Domain.’ When the Boss arrives, we can set up a perfect trap—catch them all in one net.”

Since becoming one of the Five Great Divine Venerables thousands of years ago, he had entered the Primordial Grotto-Heaven every time it opened to search for “Primordial Divine Crystals.” He had entered the “Divine Heaven Absolute Domain” many times himself and was intimately familiar with the conditions inside.

The domain was formed by the concave space barrier, resembling a vase with a wide belly and a narrow neck—it had only one exit.

Block the opening, and escape would be impossible, even with wings.

The distance of several li vanished in an instant. Leshan Shenzun soon reached the indentation.

He waved his chubby fingers gently, and threads of divine power seeped into the ground. The yellow sand immediately stirred as if imbued with life, undulating like an ocean tide.

“Rumble!”

As if the heavens and earth were overturning, the crests of the sand waves rose higher and higher, pulling the spatial barriers on either side upward toward the sky infinitely, sealing the indentation tightly.

Leshan Shenzun’s figure flickered, and he melted into the sand wall, only to emerge moments later from the inner side of the wall.

“Chaos Divine Power, it will finally fall into my hands!”

Leshan Shenzun drifted forward, sensing the three auras within the “Divine Heaven Absolute Domain.” He was overcome with elation, his smile so rich it seemed ready to spill over.

In just a short time, Leshan Shenzun traversed the narrow passage extending for several li and reached the heart of the domain, where the scene before him suddenly opened up.

“Huh? The people are gone?”

Just then, the smile on Leshan Shenzun’s face froze. He let out an astonished, disbelieving cry, his previously leisurely posture becoming slightly frantic.

Several more minutes passed.

Leshan Shenzun arrived at the deepest part of the “Divine Heaven Absolute Domain.” Before him was the misty, snow-white spatial barrier. On the sand in front of the barrier lay a series of scattered footprints, clearly identifiable as belonging to two people; some of the prints were quite small, indicating their owner was evidently a woman.

Leshan Shenzun’s brows were tightly locked as he scanned his surroundings.

Those three auras had vanished from this spot moments ago. Yet, as his spiritual sense swept across the entire core of the domain, even through the long, narrow passage, he found no trace. Three living beings had vanished without a ripple, leaving nothing behind but footprints.

This situation left Leshan Shenzun utterly baffled.

He knew the Chaos Divine Power Nie Kong cultivated was marvelous for concealment. However, ever since detecting the trio’s trail, he had kept close watch on Nie Kong. Based on his assessment, Nie Kong’s injuries had not fully healed, making perfect concealment difficult.

Moreover, he still held that ball of blood shadow in his hand.

The direction indicated by the blood shadow pointed precisely toward the spatial barrier ahead.

Could they have managed to hide within the spatial barrier? Leshan Shenzun shook his head, squatted down, and began scrutinizing the footprints closely.

Unconsciously, he drew nearer and nearer to the spatial barrier, eventually standing with his back to it.

Suddenly, a hand silently separated itself from the spatial barrier.

“Bang!”

Immediately after, the hand struck Leshan Shenzun’s back like lightning. A powerful, white, surging force erupted like a monstrous tidal wave.