“Who could conceal their tracks to such an extent? Zhong Li Yan? Wu Ling? Neither seems likely. And for Dou Zhao to act alone, even less so. Could it be the lost Nine Chapters Jade Bi?”

Qu Shun Hua clearly held Yue Chan Shi’s opinion in high regard. After a moment of contemplation, he said, “Let us follow and see.”

Yue Chan Shi extended her hand, her wide sleeve falling gracefully. Her skin possessed a faint, coppery luster. With a single downward press of that hand, a treasure bead suddenly materialized, suspended seemingly in the void. Flowing light shimmered around it, continuously expanding outwards. With a series of mechanical clicks and whirs, a majestic, solemn great bird took shape. Its body gleamed with brilliant gold, its eyes held an imperial bearing. Its feathers were sharp as blades, its double wings, when spread, spanned more than a zhang, and its talons were equally vast. The treasure bead was embedded in its forehead, its light contained within, like a strange growth.

This bird let out a soft cry, its sound profoundly sorrowful, enough to bring tears to one’s eyes. Though it appeared vividly alive, real and corporeal, like a living mythical beast, as Yue Chan Shi alighted upon its back, the soles of her boots still emitted a crisp knocking sound. It was clear this was a creation of puppetry – the Wash Moon Nunnery’s Mechanized Garuda!

Qu Shun Hua, with a flick of his body, landed beside Yue Chan Shi without any unnecessary words. The Garuda vibrated its double wings and instantly tore through the boundless sky, pursuing their quarry.

At this moment, their true task of tracking the Kui Niu began. And with the unknown individuals still lurking near the Kui Niu, they naturally needed to conserve their strength, to be ready for any potential conflict, and could not expend their energy on the journey itself. Thus, the appearance of the Mechanized Garuda was essential.

That Kui Niu, riding thunder and lightning, traversing realms of mountains and seas, stepping on ten thousand zhang electric light, its thunderous bellows echoing for a thousand li, surely startled more than just one or two people. Only those like Jiang Wang and Zuo Guang Shu chose to first conceal their tracks and forms, waiting for the Kui Niu to pass. Others, like Zhong Li Yan and Fan Wu Shu, confidently chose to “watch the spectacle” from nearby, only to be left gray-faced and disheveled by a few casual bolts of thunder from the Kui Niu. Once Zhong Li Yan recovered his strength, he angrily gave chase. Qu Shun Hua and Yue Chan Shi, after determining the presence of the lost Nine Chapters Jade Bi, decided to venture forward and investigate. Different people, possessing different temperaments, made different choices. Yet, by coincidence, all began to pursue the Kui Niu’s trail.

“Many times, a person’s choices are dictated by their character.”

This was a floating mountain, its paths strewn with treasure stones. Upon a mountain path, a solitary figure stood with hands clasped behind his back. He possessed a pair of eyes of profound depth, a pair of indifferent lips. In short, his features all held a distant, otherworldly quality, yet paradoxically, they exuded a strangely approachable aura. At this moment, he raised a finger, holding it to his ear: “Listen. The roar of the Kui Niu, *hong long long, hong long long*, it carries this far. Many must be drawn to it, then collide with one another. So why am I here, and you are here?” A harmless smile bloomed at the corner of his lips. “Because we are a certain kind of people, we all have our own firm pursuits.”

The person on the mountain path below had a full, benevolent forehead, a broad face, bright eyes, and wore martial attire with a red base and gold trim, which rustled in the mountain wind. His entire being radiated brilliance.

“Do not block my path, people will die,” he stated, and slowly began to ascend, showing no intention of stopping for anyone or anything. Clearly, he was not a person accustomed to offering warmth to others, despite his brilliant and luminous disposition.

“I am not your enemy, Dou Zhao. You can pass this road at any time, I will not block you,” the man on the mountain path said. “I am here simply to offer you a better choice—if we join forces, we can gain more in the Mountain and Sea Realm.”

Dou Zhao chuckled softly. “Are you always this confident, or have you just started being confident today?”

The man on the mountain path was not angered by this slight. He maintained his smile. “Perhaps you feel I am somewhat overconfident. But how should I put it… I respect your power. I acknowledge that among those who have entered the Mountain and Sea Realm this time, you are likely the strongest. However, do you remember Jiang Wang? After the Yellow River meeting, he killed four great human demons. Could you have done that when you were in the Inner Mansion realm? Now he has also established his Outer Building. Do you not think he is a potential problem? Do you understand Yue Tian Nu? A high disciple of the Wash Moon Nunnery, she has always lingered at the Outer Building stage, only because she—”

His words abruptly ceased. A flash of knife light had passed.

Dou Zhao held a bloody head in his left hand, glancing at it briefly. “Still don’t remember who you are.” He casually tossed it behind him, utterly indifferent, and continued his ascent. The skull tumbled down the mountain path with a rolling sound. After a considerable time, the headless corpse began to spurt blood furiously, then fell heavily.

There were also mountain ranges beneath the sea, stretching out continuously like dragons prostrate upon the earth. Of course, some areas were dangerous and held masters, while others were barren but safe.

In a dark mountain cave, Chu Yu Zhi stood with his arms crossed. He had never been a particularly conspicuous figure. When with other proud scions of heaven, he never stood out prominently. His personality was not distinct, his actions were not eccentric, and his temperament was not special. But at this moment, with no one else around, as he stood there, he seemed to merge with the mountain range beneath the sea, possessing a sense of profound, weighty power.

Not long after, the stone carving standing beside him moved, cracking open to reveal a face with sparse, cold features. Then, color began to appear, the details of the face gradually becoming vivid. It was the person who had been decapitated by Dou Zhao on the mountain path! At this very moment, standing with Chu Yu Zhi, he was of course Xiao Shu, a proud scion of Dan Country, whom Chu Yu Zhi had invited to lend a hand. He had once appeared on the stage at the Yellow River meeting, but unfortunately, Dou Zhao did not remember.

“How was it?” Chu Yu Zhi asked, not holding much hope.

Xiao Shu had just had his head severed, but at this moment, he was still smiling. He smiled and shook his head. “Dou Zhao is Dou Zhao after all, not easy to fool. He didn’t even wait for me to finish speaking. You say, if everyone in the world were like this, would the School of Diplomacy still have a way to survive?”

He joked in a relaxed tone, while Chu Yu Zhi’s tone was somewhat heavy. “You wasted a puppet body for nothing.”

“Not wasted. After all, I understand him a little more,” Xiao Shu looked at Chu Yu Zhi and laughed. “Among so many groups of people in the Mountain and Sea Realm, we are the weakest. Without understanding the mentality of the strong a little more, how can we proceed?”

Among the crowd of Chu Country’s proud scions, the strong individuals invited by others were basically all at the Outer Building level. Even when Zuo Guang Shu invited Jiang Wang to help, Jiang Wang had not yet established his star building, but he was still the Yellow River Chief in the Inner Mansion realm, distinct from others. After such a long period of preparation, only Chu Yu Zhi had invited Xiao Shu. In cultivation, origin, and connections, he was far inferior to others. This reflected not that Xiao Shu was inferior, but that Chu Yu Zhi’s connections were far less extensive than others.

If it were someone else, faced with such a topic, they would likely find it difficult not to be discouraged. But Chu Yu Zhi instead laughed. “I already see our first advantage—at least others will not think to target us first.”

Xiao Shu obviously understood Chu Yu Zhi’s character. A single sentence had changed his mood, and at this moment, he also laughed. “Very good! Then let’s strike while the iron is hot and go find our second advantage. Accumulating advantages bit by bit is how we build momentum.”

Chu Yu Zhi followed him out of the mountain cave without hesitation. “Can we find one?”

“Who knows? But it won’t be worse, in any case.”

“Hahaha, sorry, Brother Xiao! Pulling you into such a game of chess is truly difficult!”

“Should say Brother Chu, you have wise eyes. A chess game in a disadvantaged situation is exactly what I am good at. If Dou Zhao had invited me, I really wouldn’t know how to place my pieces!”

Their mouths spoke of being inferior to others, but their steps were more resolute than anyone’s, and they conversed and laughed with composure. But their voices only remained beneath the sea, not spreading too far. Just as they had done upon entering the Mountain and Sea Realm, instead of exploring immediately, they had found a place to hide. Low-key, quiet.

Chase Grass remotely indicated the direction. Jiang Wang flew quickly, only following the trace and not pursuing the people. This allowed them to minimize the risk of being detected. Of course, if they were detected, it was merely a matter of fighting. The worst possible outcome could be faced, so Jiang Wang pursued without hesitation. Zhong Li Yan and Fan Wu Shu might have no gains, but if they did, they would immediately act to seize them.

“If we need to make a move later, don’t hesitate, but don’t move lightly. When I move, you move. I’ll engage Zhong Li Yan, you engage Fan Wu Shu. It’s best if we can rely on a sneak attack to resolve one of them.”

“Why don’t we join forces to sneak attack one? For example, Fan Wu Shu. Wouldn’t that give us a greater advantage?”

“In an environment like the Mountain and Sea Realm, it’s actually very difficult for a sneak attack to succeed. They won’t relax their vigilance.”

“Then what’s the point of a sneak attack?”

“To make them subconsciously feel that we still choose to go one-on-one. I don’t think Zhong Li Yan will be afraid to face me, and Fan Wu Shu won’t be afraid to face you. I will look for an opportunity while exchanging blows with Zhong Li Yan. When I turn towards Fan Wu Shu, you must also unleash your strongest means. We will simultaneously pour maximum killing power towards Fan Wu Shu, eliminating him. Then Zhong Li Yan will be easier to handle… Right, do you have any suitable trapping methods? It would be best if it could hold Zhong Li Yan for a while. I have the super-grade Dao Technique, Dragon Tiger, and the Legalist’s Prisoner Body Chain, but I estimate they won’t be very effective against a warrior like Zhong Li Yan.”

“If it’s a sneak attack, I can use the Mirage Tower to block Zhong Li Yan in the first step. No matter how strong his physical body is, he won’t be able to do anything if he can’t find my accurate position. The key is Fan Wu Shu. I just learned today that he is skilled in cold ice Dao techniques. With that, his defense in a short period might be astonishing…”

“In front of my Killing Nail, no defense is astonishing.”

“Then… as long as his cold ice strength doesn’t exceed ten times the power of our previous exchange, I can melt a gap in the shortest time, creating an opportunity for your Killing Nail.”

“That’s best! But we also need to prepare for failure, after all, the opponents are not weaklings.”

“Of course. I feel our second plan should still prioritize killing Fan Wu Shu. If Zhong Li Yan isn’t trapped and rushes over immediately, I’ll need to first…”

Flying rapidly, the two members of Smoke Armor actively exchanged opinions, discussing how to attack and kill their opponents when seizing the treasure later. Zuo Guang Shu became excited during the discussion, both nervous and thrilled. He had completely forgotten his principle of “harmony as precious” and was only thinking about how to team up with Big Brother Jiang to chop people, viewing Fan Wu Shu’s head as something already within his grasp. Seeing his little brother’s growth, Big Brother Jiang was also very gratified. He held nothing back, pouring out his precious experience from years of fighting in the wild. How to sneak attack, how to plan, how to ambush… It directly made the little duke of Great Chu, who rarely traveled far,’s eyes gleam with admiration.

But as the saying goes, joy to the extreme breeds sorrow, or perhaps heaven envies talent. Just as the two brothers were immersed in a heated discussion, their vision suddenly turned a brilliant white. Jiang Wang felt his ears almost go deaf! He couldn’t hear any sound at all. This change was too sudden. It happened in an instant, and even with Jiang Wang’s keenness, he couldn’t react in time. He only subconsciously pressed out the Fire Realm, protecting himself and Zuo Guang Shu within it.

It took a full two breaths for sound to return to his ears.

*Hong long long!*

*Hong long long!*

Terrifying thunder rolled over heaven and earth. Within his vision, the brilliant and vibrant Fire Realm appeared, then flame flowers, flame sparrows. Outside the world of fire, he saw thunder and lightning! It was a twisted electric light, like a dragon or snake, yet it was too vast, too powerful, containing too terrifying a force. It connected the high sky above and the green sea below. And it was expanding with astonishing speed, expanding, covering all sides and directions! It was like a gigantic pillar of thunder and lightning, as if propping up both heaven and sea. And it was still continuously expanding, seeming to want to engulf the entire world. Such a terrifying momentum, for the Kui Niu, must undoubtedly be its strongest method.

Had the Kui Niu undergone some change? Who was it fighting? These questions flashed in his mind, but there was fundamentally no time to think. Because the most important question now was how to preserve themselves in this unreasonable wave. The thunder purgatory within the mountain and sea purgatory built by the Zuo family was where Jiang Wang and Zuo Guang Shu had cultivated many times. But that so-called extreme environment was fundamentally nothing compared to this terrifying thunder and lightning.

The vast thunder and lightning expanded, with a light curtain composed of thunder and lightning on the outside. Of course, to call it a “light curtain” was only relative to this part of heaven and earth. This so-called thin curtain, to cultivators, was simply a roaring wall of thunder and lightning! On that wildly expanding light curtain of thunder and lightning, countless thunder snakes spat out power. They bared their fangs and claws, seeking to destroy everything. All that was heard, seen, and perceived was on the verge of shattering within such thunder light.

And Jiang Wang’s defensive Dao techniques had never been in the top tier category. He was skilled in using attack in place of defense, and he decisively made this choice. He only glanced at Zuo Guang Shu once, then furiously urged his Dao Yuan, pouring more power into the Fire Realm. This made this corner of the Fire Realm more vibrant and also bred more majestic energy.

The cultivation within the mountain and sea purgatory cultivated not only adaptation to various extreme environments but also tacit understanding between them. Jiang Wang hadn’t even looked over, yet Zuo Guang Shu had already reached out and pressed downwards. From his slender palm fell a drop of water. This drop of water was clear, transparent, and beautiful as a pearl or jade.

*Hua la la*, the sound of water. A majestic Li Dragon pulling the chariot of the water god suddenly leaped out. In an instant, a drop of water swelled into a world. Within the green waves, large fish swam. Water grasses swayed, and crab shells lived together. The Water Realm was born! Similar to the Fire Realm, but also a completely different creation. A creation uniquely belonging to Zuo Guang Shu. It also boiled with Zuo Guang Shu’s vitality.

At this moment, the Water Realm was directly beneath the Fire Realm. The fiery red world and the cyan blue world reflected each other. The worlds created by the two divine abilities shone in this part of the Mountain and Sea Realm, where the sky was dim and thunder snakes spanned a thousand li. Looking from afar, it was like a flame flower burning on a single drop of water.