Within the gorges bordering the edge of the Savage Forest, following the consumption of the elixir refined from the soul of a Ceased Immortal, the injuries sustained by Ni Bo and the Gluttonous Beast had largely recovered. Particularly for the Gluttonous Beast, its two broken horns had already regrown substantially upon manifesting its true form.

Inside Ye Jingyu’s body, the Water Acupoint was brimming with dense Water Essence Energy, and a thumb-sized, azure-blue Golden Core was slowly coalescing. Finally, under the overwhelming influx of Water Essence Energy from the Black Tortoise's Inner Core, the Water Golden Core successfully materialized.

As the Water Golden Core took shape, the Fire Golden Core, Earth Golden Core, Wind Golden Core, Thunder Golden Core, Star Golden Core, and Nether Golden Core began to spin in concert. Rivers of immense energy surged through his body, constantly tempering a physique that was already pushed to its absolute limit.

Furthermore, insights into the Heavenly Dao bestowed by the Black Tortoise—a comprehension of the Water Essence Energy permeating the cosmos—flooded into Ye Jingyu's mind. His physical body underwent relentless refinement, and the spirit fused within it grew stronger by the moment. The Moon Wheel at his brow emitted streaks of silver light, suddenly seeming to pierce the void and see through everything.

Instantly, he felt his perspective was utterly changed from before. He felt his divine sense was completely different. He even sensed that his power was not just a hundred times greater than before, but magnitudes beyond that.

Was this the enlightenment of the Cosmos level? With a mere flick of one hand, a bolt of lightning shot out, instantly blasting a nearby mountain into dust. Immediately after, he stepped forward with his right foot, a flash of silver light followed, and another mountain was utterly annihilated by starlight. Then, a powerful hurricane formed from his left foot, uprooting an adjacent mountain entirely, the violent gusts of wind tearing the mountain mass to shreds. With his left hand, he struck out across the air, slamming his palm onto the ground, leaving behind a colossal handprint—a hundred zhang deep and thousands of zhang wide. Scarlet flames, azure water patterns, and yellow earth essence continually manifested; every casual strike possessed the might to shatter heaven and earth.

Was this the power of the Cosmos level? Even without such a formidable physical body, his current strength was enough to slay any expert at the early stage of the Cosmos level.

A mere novice who had just stepped into the Cosmos level possessed such terrifying majesty. This domineering cultivation method was truly astonishing.

With every breath in and out, water and fire churned. With every step taken, stars seemed to shatter. Turning his hand brought forth rain; turning it back summoned clouds. Ye Jingyu suddenly felt as if everything was within the grasp of his control.

As Ye Jingyu reached the Cosmos level, Zhurong, Hanba, Tianwu, Goumang, Houyi, and Xuanming—whose cultivation had long stalled at the peak of the Grand stage—all ascended to the Cosmos level in turn. They all burst into resounding laughter; now that they had reached the Cosmos stage, they were only a single step away from their former realms.

Once they successfully attained their previous cultivation levels, they could once again comprehend the Heavenly Dao and pursue the realms they failed to reach in their former lives. Perhaps those old acquaintances from back then had already attained those heights? They, too, must not fall behind.

At that moment, the Eye of Samsara in his brow twitched violently. Ye Jingyu’s brow furrowed tightly. A vision—fuzzy yet clear, ancient yet seemingly immediate—flickered through his mind.

It was a gorge. A woman clad in black lay weakly on the ground, possessing a pair of brown eyes filled with profound longing. Who else could this be but Nine Phoenix? Before her, a man with a pale countenance was walking towards her step by painful step, his eyes blazing with fanaticism, his expression alight with madness. Ghost Seer—it was Ghost Seer...

This scene, which had transpired years ago, unfolded once more in Ye Jingyu’s mind...

“Let’s go, head toward the Savage Forest...” Witnessing this vision, Ye Jingyu broke out in a cold sweat. Now that his cultivation had greatly advanced, breaking through the Grand stage in one go, his Eye of Samsara, capitalizing on this breakthrough, had once again glimpsed a vision of the future he had seen before.

Seeing Ye Jingyu successfully enter the Cosmos level, instead of showing any joy, he frowned deeply. The others were all taken aback by this reaction, yet none voiced their surprise. The Six Divine Venerables immediately retreated into Ye Jingyu’s sea of consciousness. Their cultivation had smoothly entered the Cosmos level; what needed to be done now was to consolidate their gains properly.

Ni Bo had already transformed into his true form. Ye Jingyu mounted his back just as he was, holding Xue Ling cradled in front of him, leading the entire Blood Demon Legion toward the Savage Forest. He had a premonition: Nine Phoenix was within the Savage Forest and was about to face an immense crisis. He had to rush there; he had to find her.

The armies of the Heavenly Alliance had completely sealed off the Savage Forest, with millions of troops patrolling back and forth. However, thanks to the first-hand intelligence obtained by Liang Xiaoke, as long as he did not wish to be found, it was impossible for him to encounter large enemy formations. Occasionally, when they ran into groups of a few hundred or a thousand soldiers, those groups were annihilated instantly by his forces.

Upon successfully entering the Savage Forest, Ye Jingyu recounted the scenes glimpsed by the Eye of Samsara to the Gluttonous Beast and Ni Bo. These two had lived in the Savage Forest for millennia and were regional overlords; the forest was like their own backyard. As soon as they heard the scenes Ye Jingyu described, they took him and sped toward the location at full throttle. To save time, Ye Jingyu even entrusted the Blood Demon Legion to the Four Grand Marshals, while he himself rode swiftly on Ni Bo to press onward...

At this time, on the branches of a tree in the Savage Forest towering four thousand zhang high, Dugu Ba Chen, clad in rough homespun cloth, stood silently. His sunken eyes stared intently at an old man not far away, whose hair was completely white.

The old man appeared frail and near death, yet within him resided an incomparably sharp Sword Qi—a Sword Qi that soared straight up to pierce the heavens.

“I have waited for you for a long time. You have finally arrived!” Dugu Ba Chen murmured softly upon seeing the elder before him, a hint of emotion in his tone, a touch of resignation, but overwhelmingly, a deep melancholy...

“Yes, I have come...” Xuan Yuanjue replied softly, his facial expression mirroring Dugu Ba Chen’s exactly.

The two destined rivals, who had once slaughtered each other, once fought each other, and once cooperated with each other, met again after several millennia apart...

“But you disappoint me...” Dugu Ba Chen looked at Xuan Yuanjue before him. That supremely fierce battle intent, that arrogant sword intent, and the extremely vast Sword Qi contained within him—all these demonstrated his power as an unparalleled expert. Yet, this kind of might was still far from matching Dugu Ba Chen’s, solely because his cultivation had yet to take that final step and attain the Universe level...