The sea tribe was generally impoverished. After a thorough sweep, the items on Shui Yingrong were still the most valuable.

It was a sharp black feather, with faint streams of light flowing within, suggesting an extraordinary origin.

Speaking of which, among this group of sea creatures, the most valuable items should have been on Yu Siqing, but unfortunately, Jiang Wang kicked him into the Boundary River, leaving nothing to be salvaged.

Aside from that, the crystal bridge was also worth a considerable sum, but it was also completely destroyed.

Jiang Wang collected the valuable items. Regardless of their quality, they at least filled the storage box, which had used up all its talismans, more than halfway. This should at least partially compensate for his debt.

He threw the bodies of the sea creatures into the Boundary River, one by one. Gazing at the vibrantly colored river that remained utterly unchanged, Jiang Wang suddenly recalled the question he had pondered shortly after entering the maze: where did the bodies of this realm ultimately go?

Presumably… it was the Boundary River.

From a purely essential perspective, while humans occupied the present world, they could also be seen as part of the present world’s rules. The sea tribe belonged to the rules of the vast ocean. Those who achieved cultivation success among them had a deeper grasp of the rules, thus better embodying “rules,” whether in the present world or the vast ocean. And the manifestations of these rules ultimately shattered in the Boundary River, becoming part of the chaos.

In a sense, just as humans and the sea tribe sought space and resources like maze crystals from the maze, the Boundary River also demanded “nourishment” from humans and the sea tribe.

The constant struggle between humans and the sea tribe in the maze was to secure their own “order,” expel the other’s “order,” and replace the maze’s “chaos.” The bodies after the battle shattered in the Boundary River, mingling with the chaos. This was a peculiar cycle.

Perhaps only in a place where rules are shattered like the maze could some patterns be so clearly displayed on the surface.

Confucianism says, read ten thousand books and travel ten thousand miles. This is the correct path of cultivation.

Absorb the observations of predecessors and summarize your own observations. With more understanding and knowledge of this world, the path of cultivation can extend further.

Leaving the Boundary River, Jiang Wang ascended into the air.

A breakout had unexpectedly completed his atonement mission ahead of schedule. This was something he hadn’t anticipated.

However, after the atonement was completed and the distress signal from Dingwei Floating Island had been sent to Yanggu, his affairs in the maze were considered concluded. The most important thing now was to rush to the Jue Ming Island stronghold as quickly as possible, return to the near sea via the Thorny Boat, and pick up Zhu Biqiong.

He had already thought it through. After bringing Zhu Biqiong back, he could settle her in Qingyang Town to keep Dugu Xiao company. She had stayed in Qingyang Town for a while before, so there would be no issue of not adapting. Although she wouldn’t be able to cultivate in the future, she could at least live a stable life in Qingyang Town, free from worries about food and clothing.

In areas completely occupied by humans, there was naturally no need for many reservations when traveling. Jiang Wang was fast and found the Jue Ming Island stronghold in a short time. With his current status, he naturally received respect.

However, things didn’t go as smoothly as expected.

“Apologies, Lord Jiang.”

The thorny boats that traveled between the near sea and the maze were managed by dedicated personnel.

The person in charge at Putuo Pure Land was a slightly plump cultivator with a very amiable appearance.

He sincerely told Jiang Wang, “Because the maze displacement has just occurred, the situation in the surrounding area has not yet been fully explored. The thorny boats sent out earlier also cannot return along the original route… There are temporarily no thorny boats that can be dispatched.”

Jiang Wang certainly wouldn’t make things difficult for him and could only ask, “Do you know the situation of the Yanggu faction?”

Since he couldn’t hitch a ride on the Jue Ming Island’s thorny boat for the time being, perhaps he could leave by borrowing Yanggu’s Blazing Sun Flying Boat. As for the Tide-Listening Tower, due to his recent experiences, Jiang Wang instinctively kept his distance.

“Their situation should be similar. Putuo Pure Land itself doesn’t need many reinforcements, and we are allocated very few thorny boats. They also can’t have many remaining Blazing Sun Flying Boats.” This slightly plump cultivator was quite forthcoming: “The same applies to the Tide-Listening Tower.”

He hadn’t expected such trouble, and Jiang Wang felt a headache coming on. The rules of the maze were so chaotic that he absolutely couldn’t cross it physically like True Lord Chongguang. He could only ask, “How can I leave the maze and return to the near sea in the shortest possible time?”

“Two ways,” the cultivator replied. “One is to wait for our thorny boats to return, and the other is to leave by boat from other human floating islands after the situation in the new adjacent area is clearly investigated.”

Neither of these methods sounded particularly fast. Jiang Wang asked, “How long will they each take?”

“The return time of the thorny boats is difficult to measure, as the current displacement situation is unclear, and we don’t know how far they will have to detour. Investigating the situation in the surrounding area will only take a day. By about this time tomorrow, our ‘Mountain and River Map’ should have completed its information gathering.”

The “Mountain and River Map” he mentioned was the map artifact specially created by Jue Ming Island for the maze.

The information recorded on the map artifact actually came from the Mountain and River Map.

“That long?” A day was quite a long time. Jiang Wang asked, “Didn’t you already send people to investigate the Boundary River before this?”

“All three factions have sent people to investigate and will exchange information afterward. This is a regular practice in Putuo Pure Land. However, these investigators usually only confirm the location of the Boundary River and conduct some necessary patrols. As for the specifics of crossing the river, we wait until we have sufficient information before proceeding. After all, maze warfare is no joke. Crossing the river rashly without knowing the situation on the other side can easily lead to unnecessary losses.”

Waiting idly in Putuo Pure Land for a day was something Jiang Wang absolutely could not accept.

He thought for a moment and then said, “I am very familiar with the situation on Dingwei Floating Island. I just came from there. Can you help build a bridge to cross the river?”

He was unwilling to wait here for news, as he could wait, but Zhu Biqiong on the Tianya Platform might not be able to.

Therefore, going to other areas to leave by boat was a better option.

The two Yanggu cultivators had also said before that Ding Jingshan was not in trouble. Therefore, compared to other unknown areas, returning to Dingwei Floating Island was more suitable.

After all, that area was now relatively well-understood. Furthermore, the proximity to Putuo Pure Land would likely cause the sea tribe forces in the Dingwei area to restrain themselves significantly. The Dingwei area was likely to be much safer now than before.

“Whether to advance into the Dingwei area depends on the orders from above. How can I make the decision? Besides, crossing bridges are also very precious and cannot be used lightly…” The cultivator was very troubled but chose his words carefully, as Jiang Wang was now someone who deserved a respectful attitude.

“I understand.” Jiang Wang didn’t press further and turned to leave directly.

If Jiang Wuyou or Chong Xuan Sheng were here, borrowing a crossing bridge would absolutely not be a problem. For Jiang Wuyou, the word “borrow” wouldn’t even be used; she could take it directly. Even if they had no specific mission, just wanting to see another area would be enough.

But Jiang Wang couldn’t.

Ultimately, although he was a famous prodigy in Qi, his weight in Qi was incomparable to that of the sons of noble families.

This Jue Ming Island outpost might not be completely devoid of thorny boats, but those thorny boats stored at the bottom were generally the last line of defense. The cultivators here would definitely respect Jiang Wang, but they would certainly not easily empty their reserves for him.

This was a very realistic problem, and no one was to blame.

Jiang Wang decided to detour to the Yanggu outpost. Regardless, while other factions might need more observation and judgment, Yanggu would definitely send reinforcements to the Dingwei area.

Although Ding Jingshan was not in trouble, a major battle would not leave Dingwei Floating Island unscathed. Reinforcements were essential, it only depended on how determined the Yanggu faction in Putuo Pure Land was.

With his recent travels, hitching a ride on a crossing bridge should not be too difficult.

After Jiang Wang left.

A cultivator came out from the inner room and asked the previous person, “Didn’t we have a thorny boat about to depart earlier? Why did you tell him there wasn’t one?”

That person smiled bitterly, “Go and see if there is one now? I don’t know what happened, but it suddenly fell apart. I didn’t mention it because I was afraid he would misunderstand and force me to repair it… Who can repair this thing without sending it back to Jue Ming Island?”

“That’s strange. How could such a heavy artifact fall apart for no reason? Did someone embezzle something and deliberately scrap it…”

“Do you want to die! How dare you say such things!”

“Uh, just pretend you didn’t hear it. Pretend I didn’t say it, pretend I didn’t say it.”

The Yanggu base in Putuo Pure Land was completely a military camp.

Tents stretched out, solemn and imposing.

The training ground was full of people sweating profusely. Although they had established their sect independently for so many years, the style and temperament of that army had been preserved.

Perhaps they had never forgotten Yang State.

That powerful empire, radiating like the rising sun across the sky, had never disappeared from the glorious history. Someone always remembered, and someone always yearned for it.

Jiang Wang reported his name and quickly met Chen Gen.

Unfortunately, several Blazing Sun Flying Boats of the Yanggu faction that were about to return to the near sea had issues.

Coincidentally, the force that Yanggu was about to send to reinforce Dingwei Floating Island was led by Yan Jia. If he had arrived a step later, Yan Jia might have already crossed the river.

The two cultivators Jiang Wang encountered by the Boundary River, who had previously represented Yanggu in exploring the Boundary River and were now leading troops across it, obviously held significant positions within Yanggu. They were more than just the “scouts” they claimed to be.

After understanding Jiang Wang’s intention, Chen Gen directly brought Jiang Wang to Yan Jia, who was leading the marching army.

The whole process was very relaxed, and both Chen Gen and Yan Jia were straightforward.

He didn’t waste much time and simply hitched a ride on Yanggu’s crossing bridge.

As he stepped onto the crossing bridge, Jiang Wang felt a sense of absurdity – if he had known that he would ultimately have to cross back over this Boundary River after such a long detour, he might as well have stayed put here from the beginning.

This feeling of absurdity at having made useless efforts made Jiang Wang even feel as if he were a mouse trapped in a narrow passage, only able to walk in one direction.

Of course, this thought was only fleeting.