"My deepest thanks, Mr. Yu..." Xuanyuan Ruoxing bowed deeply to Mr. Yu. He understood implicitly that without this Mr. Yu before him, his soul might have long since scattered into nothingness...

Now, to aid in his speedy reconstruction, Mr. Yu had even given him a Divine Soul Pill he had personally refined. How could Xuanyuan Ruoxing possibly bear such immense kindness with just a single bow?

Mr. Yu said no more, merely shaking his head slightly before his form drifted off the lotus blossom. Xuanyuan Ruoxing's own form then floated upward, beginning to absorb the ceaseless torrent of energy...

Waves of cerulean light began to ripple across his body...

Time flowed on, and in the blink of an eye, another half a month had passed. Xuanyuan Ruoxing's body had gradually begun to take shape, though it remained an ethereal form of energy, significantly more solidified than before. Mr. Yu paid him no mind, continuing his own secluded cultivation.

Ye Jingyu and the others had also returned to Yun Jing, tirelessly honing their strength. Huangfu Buyue had successfully ascended to the Martial God realm and entered deep seclusion. His absence kept the Western Chu Empire from rashly attacking Miao City, effectively shattering Ye Jingyu's earlier, singular focus on wiping out the City Lord's Mansion.

At this moment, in the temple housing the Primordial Spirit Sect in Tianyuan City, the eight elders—Yuan Tian, Yuan Di, Yuan Xuan, Yuan Huang, Yuan Yu, Yuan Zhou, Yuan Gan, and Yuan Kun—stood respectfully in the main hall. Before them stood a man who appeared young, perhaps no older than his early twenties...

The man wore a robe of blood-red silk, emblazoned on the back with a massive purple-gold flower. His skin was pale, his eyes sunken, giving him the appearance of a ghoul crawling up from the depths of hell. Though clearly a living person, he exuded an aura of profound lifelessness...

"Speak. It has been half a month. What leads have you uncovered?" the man stated flatly, showing no discernible emotion on his face. Or perhaps, that pale visage was nothing more than a mask...

"Reporting to the Protector, Young Master Fang was accompanying Prince Xuanyuan Ruoxing to Miao City that day. His Highness is now missing, and the Miao City Lord's Mansion was brutally slaughtered. We have discovered that the perpetrator was the Duke of the Southern Cloud Empire, and therefore..." Yuan Tian spoke with extreme caution...

"And so you believe he killed that idiot Fang Jiuyou?" the man addressed as Protector scoffed coldly. He was, in fact, the Primordial Spirit Sect Protector operating on the Dou Hun Continent.

Yuan Tian wiped a bead of sweat. Fang Jiuyou might have been arrogant and presumptuous, but calling him an idiot seemed excessive. Still, even if he truly were an idiot, Yuan Tian dared not utter a word of disagreement...

"Your subordinate merely speculates..." Yuan Tian murmured carefully.

"Speculation? No need to guess. It was him. In any case, Fang Jiuyou is dead. It amounts to nothing more than killing a few people to appease the Old Immortal. Killing anyone will suffice. Go tell the Emperor of the Tianyuan Empire to immediately mobilize troops to campaign against the Southern Cloud Empire. If the Old Immortal won't let me break the rules of the Dou Hun Continent, then I shall kill him as a renowned general of a nation..." Fang Zhuguo sneered.

Hearing Fang Zhuguo utter such words, a chill broke out on everyone present. They knew some of the inside story—that this Protector Fang was actually one of the Sect Master's sons, bloodthirsty by nature, and far more lawless than Fang Jiuyou. The only difference was that he had dedicated himself to the study of power from childhood, his strength utterly incomparable to Fang Jiuyou's. To what degree he had reached, none of them knew...

Naturally, regarding Fang Zhuguo's immediate confirmation of Ye Jingyu as the killer of Fang Jiuyou without a shred of evidence, they dared not voice any dissent. Whether wrongly accused or truly guilty, it was only his bad luck...

However, upon hearing Fang Zhuguo's demand for the Tianyuan Empire to send troops, the Grand Elder Yuan Tian seemed to recall something critical.

"Protector, the Tianyuan Empire may currently be unable to launch a campaign against the Southern Cloud Empire..." Yuan Tian quickly explained the current situation...

It turned out that when Fang Zhentian ordered him to shatter the Nine Provinces previously, he had used the power of the Primordial Spirit Sect to reignite internal turmoil within the Tianyuan Empire. Storm City, in particular, had nearly fallen. Had Xuanyuan Xiaozhan not personally rushed there to take command, it would have been breached by the Mengtu Empire. Even so, the national strength of the Tianyuan Empire had been depleted to its absolute limit, making an immediate offensive against the Southern Cloud Empire impossible...

"Oh? Is that so?" A strange light ignited in Fang Zhuguo's eyes, yet his tone remained eerily placid. But it was precisely this placidity that made those present feel colder than ever...

Cold sweat poured down the backs of the eight men, and their bodies began to tremble. They tried to speak, but their throats felt dry, rendering them utterly silent...

The eight were inwardly stunned. Did he intend to kill them all? Just as their expressions began to shift toward despair, Fang Zhuguo's figure abruptly vanished from the spot...

A cold gust of wind swept through, and the eight simultaneously let out a sigh of relief. However, the thought that Fang Zhuguo might have gone to seek trouble with Ye Jingyu filled them with renewed perplexity. Yet, aside from this puzzlement, there seemed nothing they could do...

Meanwhile, in the Imperial Palace of the Tianyuan Empire, within a secret chamber accessible only to the Emperor, Xuanyuan Xiaozhan—who should have been at Storm City—sat cross-legged in the center of the room. Streams of orange light continuously swirled around him. Orange light—that denoted the realm of a Triple Heaven Martial God...

Xuanyuan Xiaozhan, a man who had never known defeat, had not only failed to diminish his strength after that single loss but had instead broken through the stagnation that held him for years, reaching the Third Heaven of the Martial God realm. His power had increased by at least tenfold...

After circulating his breathing for one full cycle, bringing his physical state to its absolute peak, Xuanyuan Xiaozhan slowly opened his eyes. Two dazzling beams of light shot forth, but his gaze quickly turned to one of shock and horror...

Standing before him, having appeared at some unknown moment, was a man—a man in a blood-red robe, a pale-faced, coldly grim man clad in crimson...

To appear there silently, without even him sensing it, meant the person before him was undoubtedly a master, and one who surpassed him. But when had such a young master emerged on the Dou Hun Continent?

"Sir, arriving late at night, may I ask your purpose..." Even though he clearly knew the other's strength exceeded his own, Xuanyuan Xiaozhan maintained an impassive expression. Since the other hadn't attacked immediately, he presumed he wouldn't be harmed...

"I require one of your military tallies," Fang Zhuguo said, a mocking smile playing on his lips as he looked at the God of War of the Tianyuan Empire...

"A military tally?" Xuanyuan Xiaozhan was momentarily stunned. Why would such a formidable expert require a mere tally?