Just four hours later, atop the ruins of the shattered stone tower, an elder clad in crimson robes, appearing to be in his sixties, hovered in the air.

He strode through the debris with an air of cold derision etched onto his face.

"Unable to even send a single message; truly useless! Serves him right to have his soul searched to death—"

His gaze lingered for a brief moment upon a mangled corpse with a grotesquely twisted skull.

The red-robed elder merely shook his head slightly, withdrawing his sight to scan the surrounding area.

"Slaughtered ten Immortal-ranks in a single strike, six annihilated by flying daggers. Collapsed the Zhenyuan Tower with one kick. Impressive, truly impressive! So tyrannical, worthy of the man who could unleash that sword strike outside the Death Prison! Does he no longer intend to conceal his tracks? True, at this point, concealment is impossible. A troublesome one; though not a Divine Realm expert, his combat power surpasses even a preliminary Divine Realm cultivator—"

If outside the Death Prison he couldn't precisely gauge the man’s true cultivation, his current realm,

Then now, he could largely ascertain the strength of the one who forcibly flattened the Zhenyuan Tower and the hundred stone platforms.

He glanced again at the surrounding platforms, noticing many were pulverized, with hundreds of severed chains scattered across the ground.

The perpetrator was exceedingly cunning and cautious. Many traces had been erased, and false clues deliberately planted.

However, the lingering death aura here was distinctly too faint.

The old man in red robes pondered for a moment, then let out a cold laugh.

"He rescued them? A mere few dozen Immortal-ranks, yet he stages such a performance. How petty! Hmm, useful for refining a Dao Weapon, though—"

Finding no other beneficial clues around, the elder stopped looking.

Withdrawing his divine sense, he fell into deep contemplation.

The intruder entering the Nine Absolutes Death Prison was clearly well-prepared and confident.

Yet, his foundation must be shallow; otherwise, he wouldn't have been tempted by these meager few dozen Immortal-rank cultivators.

Then, why capture the person in charge here? Why search his soul?

What did this man want to know? And what was his ultimate purpose for entering this Death Prison?

The elder's eyes flickered, and after a moment, the corner of his lips curved upward, revealing a hint of knowing amusement.

A sliver of killing intent appeared on his face.

"His escape technique is indeed impressive. He can shift across space by several hundred miles instantly. Is he confident that even if I knew his approximate location, I couldn't find him immediately?"

"This aura is also quite familiar; it must be someone I've encountered before. A pity it's too faint to discern—"

Staring deeply into the abyss, the elder’s figure did not plunge into it.

Instead, he stepped through the void, traversing directly out of the Death Prison world.

Amidst the outer Starfire Mote Great Formation and layers of spatial-temporal turbulence, he walked at a leisurely pace.

Roughly half an hour later, far from the location of the Nine Absolutes Death Prison,

A palace, spanning a radius of one hundred thousand zhang and constructed entirely of fiery red jade, materialized before the elder’s eyes.

It was hidden within the folds of space and time, initially invisible to the eye.

Yet, the elder’s divine sense immediately imprinted the entirety of this location, named the Fire Jade Palace, within his mind.

Upon entering the palace gates, several servants, disciples of the Lu family, stepped forward to obstruct him.

However, as they clearly recognized the elder's form and visage, their expressions grew solemn, and they all stepped back, bowing respectfully.

The red-robed elder kept his eyes lowered, not giving them a single glance, and proceeded straight toward the central courtyard.

In but a moment, he reached a hall of blazing red.

Though called a hall, it resembled a colossal piece of precious jade more than anything.

As the elder arrived, a faint inquiring voice drifted from within: "Lu Tianqing, why have you abandoned your post guarding the Nine Absolutes Death Prison to come to my residence?"

The voice was like jade, cold yet serene, exceedingly pleasant to the ear.

The red-robed elder did not reply immediately. Instead, he bowed deeply and respectfully toward the entrance of the hall, performing a full salutation.

"Lu Tianqing greets the Venerable Saint."

Straightening up, he then replied, "Tianqing has come here to seek the Venerable Saint's assistance!"

"Seek assistance? Has some catastrophe befallen our Lu family? Or has something gone awry in the Nine Absolutes Death Prison? You know well that I have long since withdrawn from worldly affairs. If it is a trivial matter, do not bother me."

"Tianqing understands! This visit is to request the Venerable Saint to personally intervene and take the life of someone who infiltrated the Nine Absolutes Death Prison!"

Before Lu Tianqing finished speaking, he felt a pressure of wrath pressing directly into the depths of his primordial soul.

Knowing the occupant of the palace was clearly impatient, he calmly continued,

"If it were an ordinary person, it would be as easy as turning my hand for Tianqing to eliminate him, even worth ignoring altogether. However, this person's spatial shifting technique is formidable, making him hard to locate when masking his aura. Furthermore, Tianqing suspects this person has the support of an Ultimate Realm cultivator stationed outside."

He kept his words as concise as possible, and as he uttered the final sentence, the feeling of pressure indeed receded.

In this world, once the Ultimate Realm Saints were involved, nothing was trivial.

"Ultimate Realm?"

A vastly unparalleled divine sense suddenly spread in all directions, sweeping across layer upon layer of space, world after world.

A moment later, the jade-like voice spoke again.

"What was the reason for this person entering the Death Prison? Do not tell me, Lu Tianqing, that you know nothing."

Lu Tianqing’s gaze flickered, and the cold mockery in his eyes deepened.

Indeed, there was an Ultimate Realm expert—

The Venerable Saint’s divine sense must have detected some traces, prompting this question.

He was not surprised by the inquiry from within the hall.

The Fenkong Lu Family was certainly one of the top powers in this domain.

Possessing three Ultimate Realm experts, precisely because of this, they could not afford to create enemies on all sides.

Especially when the opponent was also an Ultimate Realm Saint, caution was paramount; rashness was forbidden.

Even regarding the Nine Absolutes Death Prison, if the opponent’s objective did not significantly harm the Lu family's interests,

Letting it pass would be acceptable. A wink and a nod would suffice, and perhaps even create a favor owed.

"The clues are extremely sparse; this junior can only grasp a little, suspecting this person is likely Lu Hanyan's son. His entry into the Nine Absolutes Death Domain was most likely on his mother's behalf—"

"Hmm?"

The great jade door suddenly burst open. A youth with a face like polished jade, red lips, white teeth, and clad in a purple-gold robe stepped out from within.

His expression was cold and stern, radiating an imposing majesty without anger, as he looked upon the red-robed elder standing outside the hall.

"Hanyan's son? Are you jesting? Have you misjudged? Was there another assisting him, or was he alone?"

"There were two in total; whether the other was an accomplice, Tianqing cannot say for sure."

Lu Tianqing smiled faintly and said coolly, "However, Venerable Saint, you may be somewhat isolated from current affairs. I heard that Hanyan’s son has now tarnished the reputation of the Lu family's main lineage. Moreover, he has received the full assistance of Fang Jue, the Master of Cangyan Hall. If he possessed no skill of his own, how could he achieve this? As for whether I misjudged, Tianqing cannot be certain. I can only speculate based on a few traces. Having not met him personally, I cannot definitively say this person is Hanyan's son—"

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