Here is Fuyue 7ming in a top-secret cavern, meticulously purging the Buddhist restraints from within her body.

Ten thousand years prior, the sexless old nun forcibly took Fuyue 7ming as a disciple and brought her to the Paramita Bliss Heaven. Fuyue 7ming had cultivated the Great Vehicle of the Complete True Canon, her physical body already transformed into the Innate Form; her roots and aptitude were exceptionally fine.

Furthermore, having received the profound Daoist principles imparted by Gu Wuchen, her progress in Buddhist cultivation was meteoric, truly exceeding the old nun’s imagination, breaking through to the realm of the Great Overarching Golden Immortal in just a few thousand years.

The old nun knew very well that Fuyue 7ming had no wish to become her disciple. One should not mistake her solitary cultivation in the Great Snow Mountain for genuine piety; it was merely a strategic compromise. Thus, once Fuyue 7ming reached the Great Overarching Golden Immortal realm, the nun placed a Buddhist restriction upon her, preventing her departure from the Great Snow Mountain.

Normally, if Fuyue 7ming dared to slightly touch this restriction, the old nun would instantly sense it and rush over to stop her schemes. However, now that Gu Xiechen and his forces had battered the Great Snow Mountain into disarray, the old nun was completely preoccupied dealing with the attacks from the Nine Nether Dao. Only then did Fuyue 7ming dare to work on dissolving the restriction within the secret haven she had managed to establish.

Armed with the myriad vicious restriction knowledge from the Great Desolation Scripture taught by Gu Xiechen, and aided by several tremendously powerful Innate Supreme Treasures, Fuyue 7ming managed to completely eradicate the nun's restriction in just a few days. During these days, the old nun’s entire focus was on the Nine Nether Dao army, and indeed, she never bothered Fuyue 7ming.

When the old nun angrily departed the Great Snow Mountain, Fuyue 7ming immediately led her followers to stealthily leave. They tracked the bones left behind by the Nine Nether Dao disciples, making their way towards the exit of the Paramita Bliss Heaven. Gu Xiechen led the great army out of this celestial realm just as Fuyue 7ming arrived right behind him.

Amidst the field of scattered, broken soldiers, Fuyue 7ming met Gu Xiechen's gaze through a veil of tears.

He coughed, spitting out a clot of blood, and Gu Xiechen shook his head helplessly. "A bit embarrassing, isn't it? I said I was coming to rescue you, but instead, I got thoroughly thrashed and chased out! Hey, are those bald heads behind you your disciples?"

Fuyue 7ming blinked, kneeling beside Gu Xiechen on one knee. Two streams of clear tears trickled down, dripping onto Gu Xiechen's face, swollen with contusions. She shook her head and laughed softly:

"What's there to be ashamed of? The Paramita Bliss Heaven harbors hidden dragons and crouching tigers; countless ancient monsters lie concealed within. If they use a few tricks, we can't withstand it."

Her palm gently stroked Gu Xiechen's cheek, then Fuyue 7ming suddenly twisted his ear fiercely, nearly wrenching off the ear that was already pulp inside. Fuyue 7ming cursed under her breath, "Why did it take you this long to come find me?"

Gu Xiechen grimaced and groaned, bitterly recounting his predicament of being trapped for ten thousand years. Only then did he explain helplessly, "I calculated that since you've been at the Great Snow Mountain for a hundred thousand years, you wouldn't mind staying another century or so, right? I planned to accumulate more strength before coming for you, but now it seems no matter what, we are no match for them!"

Fuyue 7ming looked at Gu Wuchen's tattered body and suddenly collapsed onto him, wailing loudly.

Mugalian and the twelve great disciples of Fuyue 7ming stood frozen to the side, watching their master weep and not knowing what to do.

The Monkey zipped over, kicking Mugalian and the others away one by one. "Little bald donkeys, stop looking at this sentimental display. Amitabha, Buddhist disciples focus solely on pure cultivation; don't they know women are tigers?"

Gu Xiechen strained to raise his right hand and placed it on Fuyue 7ming’s head. He mobilized his last ounce of strength to take out an exquisitely crafted diamond ring from the Primordial Yin Profound Pearl. He tugged it slightly and laughed, "No matter what, it's good that you're back. Uh, let’s get married!"

Blood pooling, flesh reduced to paste, his face grotesquely distorted, Gu Xiechen proposed to Fuyue 7ming, who was dressed in monastic robes with her hair tied in a Daoist bun. Countless dismembered Nine Nether Dao disciples glanced at each other among the carnage, and gradually, some began to cheer excitedly. By the end, the roar of celebration was like thunder.

The Nine Dragon Heaven-Ascending Ladder was summoned, and the mighty Nine Nether Dao army returned en masse to the lower realm, not giving the Immortals of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths remaining below a chance to intercept. The army returned to the Spiral Starfield at maximum speed and sealed the entirety of the Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Star Array.

From then on, the Nine Dragon Heaven-Ascending Ladder was controlled by the Nine Nether Dao, once again isolating the Immortals of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths from the mortal realm. The Immortals in the mortal realm could not descend, and those already there could not return to the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths. Despite their frantic stomping, they were powerless against Gu Wuchen, who remained securely shut away.

Although the Nine Nether Dao suffered heavy losses in the Paramita Bliss Heaven, ninety-nine percent of the fallen were dark creatures. With the abnormal reproductive capacity of the dark creatures, they could replenish their losses within twenty years, and their numbers would even increase beyond that.

The core disciples of the Nine Nether Dao, such as Jiantu Hua and Yan Jiang, who were zombies, along with the ghosts, demons, and fiends, were spirits. They did not suffer significant damage in the battle, which was an outcome the Corpse Emperor could reluctantly accept.

However, as the Supreme Patriarch of the Nine Nether Dao, the Corpse Emperor brooded over this crushing defeat. He spent his days engrossed with the Monkey, debating Buddhist doctrine and discussing why the Buddhist powers and Zen arts of Great Dragon Chan Master and the other old monks and nuns had undergone such a drastic change.

For a long time, the Corpse Emperor’s primary research focused on Buddhist divine abilities, nourishing his Buddhist Three Corpses Primordial Spirit until it grew increasingly robust and powerful. What was once an ancient zombie was now faintly enveloped in Buddhist light and auspicious energy, appearing almost indistinguishable from a Bodhisattva of the Western Pure Land. The Corpse Emperor was single-mindedly determined to break the Buddhist divine abilities utilized by Great Dragon Chan Master and the others, planning his revenge for the future.

The consistent style of the Nine Nether Dao was to retaliate without fail. Now that the Nine Dragon Heaven-Ascending Ladder was in their hands, the Nine Nether Dao held an absolute strategic advantage. Whether through sneak attacks, assassinations, or frontal assault, only the Nine Nether Dao could attack the Great Snow Mountain lineage, and the disciples of the Great Snow Mountain line had no recourse against them.

Upon returning to the Spiral Starfield, Fuyue 7ming immediately took charge of the reconstruction of the Yafike Empire.

Under her immensely capable administrative control, the Yafike Empire quickly regained its vitality, and everything returned to the path of development. The losses sustained in the Great Snow Mountain battle were swiftly replenished, and the power of the Nine Nether Dao steadily and firmly ascended, presenting a scene of flourishing prosperity.

With Fuyue 7ming overseeing the overall situation, the efficiency of the Nine Nether Dao and the Yafike Empire increased nearly a hundredfold compared to when Gu Xiechen managed everything. Cases of local immortals near the Spiral Starfield going missing became increasingly frequent, and on several occasions, all the immortals belonging to a minor sect vanished overnight. On a planet called the Human Origin Star, the experimental immortal subjects in the secret laboratories of the Earth Federation increased significantly.

The massive fortresses specifically used for mining Innate Materials in the Spiral Starfield had increased to nine. Absolute core disciples of the Nine Nether Dao, such as Jiantu Hua, were responsible for commanding these nine stellar fortresses, traversing the sub-space, constantly detonating stars and black holes to simulate scenes of world creation, gathering immense quantities of Innate Materials.

The number of mining asteroid belts outside also increased to over one hundred thousand. Countless miners labored diligently on these mineral planets, providing the Nine Nether Dao with astronomical amounts of ordinary materials. With Daoist Youchen, the master artifact refiner, securing their supplies, the disciples of the Nine Nether Dao were gradually armed to the teeth.

Everything developed in an orderly fashion. With Fuyue 7ming in overall command and elite disciples like Jiantu Hua working diligently, the strength of the Nine Nether Dao increased with every passing day.

Especially under the instigation of the villain Blackjack, the dark creatures and fiends under the banner of the Nine Nether Dao launched a "Hero Mother" campaign. Any mother who gave birth to five or more children received huge rewards from the Nine Nether Dao; mothers who gave birth to nine or more children earned the opportunity to have Gu Xiechen personally impart teachings and resolve their doubts.

Spurred by the massive rewards, the dark creatures and fiends bred with manic fervor, seemingly intent on filling every planet in the Spiral Starfield with their descendants.

In just ten years, the population under the Nine Nether Dao increased fivefold. Fortunately, Fuyue 7ming noticed the situation getting out of hand and stopped Blackjack's frenzy, otherwise, the descendants of the dark creatures and fiends would have truly filled the entire Spiral Starfield.

These newborn descendants of dark creatures and fiends were nurtured from birth by the inherent star power of the 108 Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Stars, granting them excellent innate talent. Many newborn infants already possessed the cultivation of peak Qi Refining or even Golden Core stage, and their future cultivation path was clearly smooth sailing—they were undoubtedly destined to become the pillars of the Nine Nether Dao.

Everyone was busy to their hearts' content, only Gu Wuchen remained immersed in quiet cultivation.

His physical body had been shattered by the Great Dragon Chan Master using the Minor Three Thousand Buddhist Kingdom secret technique, and even his Primordial Spirit had suffered severe trauma. The weapons of the Protector Heavens carried the Buddhist power aura of the Three Ancient Past Buddhas, and this power became entangled within Gu Wuchen’s body, proving extremely difficult to expel.

Even the Innate Supreme Treasures like the Pangu Banner and the Haotian Pagoda could do nothing about the Buddhist power invading Gu Wuchen’s body. This power was of a level equivalent to those Supreme Treasures, and the tenaciousness of Buddhist energy was unparalleled. Gu Xiechen mobilized the power of the Pangu Banner to bombard this Buddhist power, but the result was nearly shattering himself into fragments—bang—the Buddhist power remained within his body.

Ultimately, having no choice, Gu Xiechen had to mobilize his yet fully formed innate artifact, the Chaos Bell, to devour this Buddhist power.

The outcome was ideally suited. The Chaos Bell contained the Daoist laws of another universe, rules more profound than the highest Heavenly Dao laws of this cosmos. Although the Chaos Bell was weak at this time, a young lion is still a lion, while a grown sheep remains merely a sheep. After forty-nine hard years of effort, the Chaos Bell finally purged all the Buddhist power that had invaded his body.

Once the Buddhist power was clear, Gu Xiechen’s physical body immediately healed. The Indestructible Profound Yellow Body is a self-harming divine ability; the more severe the injury, the greater the leap in cultivation upon recovery. Having suffered such grievous harm, even his Primordial Spirit was deeply wounded. Once healed, Gu Xiechen’s cultivation under the Indestructible Profound Yellow Body advanced by leaps and bounds. Gu Xiechen attempted to attack himself with the chaotic airflow blasted out by the Pangu Banner, but even one-tenth of the Pangu Banner’s power could no longer harm his body.

Perhaps attacks below the peak Great Overarching Golden Immortal realm could now be largely ignored?

Unless it was a particularly unique divine technique, ordinary attacks below the peak Great Overarching Golden Immortal truly held no place in Gu Xiechen's concerns.

Gu Xiechen recovered from his injuries and emerged, immediately summoning all the high-ranking members of the Nine Nether Dao to announce his decision to marry Fuyue 7ming. He selected an auspicious date three months hence—a time of great harmony between Heaven and Earth, and the perfect union of Yin and Yang—for their wedding ceremony.

Jiantu Hua and the others, those prone to causing trouble, immediately became ecstatic. Like hungry wolves, they scoured the entire Spiral Starfield, painstakingly decorating the newly rebuilt Yafike Imperial Palace, wholly dedicated to arranging Gu Xiechen’s wedding.

Even the Corpse Emperor suspended his research into Buddhist doctrine, eagerly getting involved in Gu Xiechen’s wedding celebration. According to the Corpse Emperor, this was the first official wedding of a Patriarch in the history of the Nine Nether Dao, and it certainly had to be handled grandly.

Gu Xiechen interpreted the Corpse Emperor’s words as: "He is the first living Patriarch in the history of the Nine Nether Dao to marry, so naturally, he’s the only one marrying. Could you expect the Corpse Emperor, being a Corpse Cultivator, to be interested in beautiful, delicate maidens?"

Three months later, Gu Xiechen’s wedding was held in a replica of the Thirty-Three Heavens. The main venue for the ceremony was set within the Nine Nether Hall.

On that day, on the parade grounds outside the palaces of the Thirty-Three Heavens, countless Heavenly Soldiers and Generals stood rigidly in formation as an honor guard. Various rare birds and exotic beasts circled about, drums and music soared to the heavens, auspicious light and mystic energy permeated the surroundings, and celestial flowers rained down from the void—truly a vision of a heavenly palace.

Yet, in the void above, tens of thousands of transformed flying dragons led by the Demon Sovereign Kujin spiraled overhead, with gloomy winds and evil energy rising fiercely. Blood-red baleful energy coalesced into boundless blood clouds that surged and roiled across the sky. Occasionally, the immensely excited Demon Sovereign Kujin would let out piercing screams and roars, provoking countless offspring to hiss strangely, their cries shrill and unpleasant, truly like the wails of specters from the Eighteenth Layer of Hell.

Outside the palaces of each heaven, countless dark creatures gathered. They smugly blew on their instruments, their music ascending to the Ninth Heaven. Dense dark energy surged upward, intertwining with the blood-red murderous aura in the sky, forming a dense evil light that thoroughly enveloped the palaces of the Thirty-Three Heavens.

Outside the Nine Nether Hall, Linghu led the Blood Rakshasas rolling and roaring in a sea of blood, their surging vital energy pervading the surroundings—a magnificent scene depicting the Hell of the Blood Sea.

Inside the Nine Nether Hall, countless demons, devils, ghosts, and monsters scurried about. Zombies and wandering souls hopped around offering cups of wine, and occasionally, a few skeletal frames floated by with a cackle, presenting a grand spectacle of dancing evil spirits.

Surrounded by the multitude of monsters and fiends, Gu Xiechen, clad in a bright red groom's robe, held Fuyue 7ming, draped in a phoenix coronet and robes, as they bowed before the Corpse Emperor, who sat on the throne of the Nine Nether Hall, grinning from ear to ear. The exceedingly excited Corpse Emperor manifested both dark energy and Buddhist light, with the dark energy ultimately overpowering the Buddhist light, forming a gigantic black skull that cackled menacingly above the Nine Nether Hall.

Across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, and within the Three Realms, since the opening of Heaven and Earth, only the current Patriarch of the Nine Nether Dao, Gu Xiechen, could host a wedding with such a scene! And only Fuyue 7ming, marrying amidst countless demons and fiends without a change in expression, whose flower attendants were clearly several pairs of little fox spirits, could be the bride.

This was a match made in heaven, a truly perfect pair! The wedding ceremony concluded, and before Gu Xiechen could even take Fuyue 7ming to the bridal chamber, a disciple of the Nine Nether Dao brought news:

On the mining asteroid belt where the disciples of the Kunlun and Zhongnan sects were imprisoned, all the Nine Nether Dao disciples had been brutally killed! All members of the Kunlun and Zhongnan sects had vanished without a trace. (To be continued, if you wish to know what happens next...)