On the shore of the Sunken Sea.
Cloaked in a broad black robe, Ding Yi quietly revealed himself.
He gazed at the sky of gilded gold, remaining silent.
Suddenly, his expression tightened, and he glanced toward a distant corner.
A giant turtle surfaced amid the pattering waves, carrying three figures atop its shell.
The leader looked up at the sky as if calculating something, then shook his head after a long pause.
Behind him stood a young man and woman, both youthful in appearance.
As Ding Yi watched them, the young man cast a cold glance back in his direction.
Ding Yi twitched the corner of his mouth and submerged beneath the water without hesitation, vanishing from sight.
The young man frowned and whispered to the middle-aged man with graying temples ahead of him, "Father, it seems quite a lot of people have their sights set on the Sunken Sea realm!"
Without turning his head, the middle-aged man said calmly, "This realm has appeared for over a thousand years. No wall is entirely windproof in this world, so others were bound to learn of it. In the past, the Yuan Demon Sect held it in an iron grip, so outsiders dared not covet it. Now that the Yuan Demon Sect is gone, every sort of worthless riffraff naturally wants a share of the spoils. Pay them no mind—they're merely some Golden Core cultivators. Entering will only lead to their deaths."
"Then what about Xiao Lian and me?"
"You two are different; you have my protection. If we can find the Spirit-Sculpting Holy Spring where Almighty Li once bathed, not only can your spirit roots be reshaped, allowing you to advance smoothly to the Nascent Soul stage, but in the future, you may even comprehend the power of laws early while at Nascent Soul and step into the Soul Formation stage!"
"Is the Spirit-Sculpting Holy Spring real?" A bewildered look appeared on the young man's face, as if he could hardly believe such a treasure truly existed in the mortal realm.
His father offered no further explanation. After observing the Sunken Sea for a moment, he reached a decision.
"The death qi accumulated in this sea is constantly venting toward the Arctic Yama Heavens, which artificially triggered the realm's premature opening. This is good news, but also bad news. Opening early means it hasn't gathered sufficient momentum and hasn't reached full completion. We will still need to wait several months before we can enter."
"Let us find a place to settle down first. When the time comes, we will pick an entrance that stirs up greater commotion to enter."
As he spoke, the giant turtle beneath their feet slowly submerged, eventually disappearing without a trace.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Having left the shore of the Sunken Sea, Ding Yi breathed a small sigh of relief.
"That connection is still too faint to trace, showing the realm hasn't fully opened yet. At least that leaves us some time."
"Even so, there's no time to waste. Once I get back, I must press Demonic Lord Qingyang."
As he muttered to himself, a glint of ruthlessness flickered in Ding Yi's eyes.
Demonic Lord Qingyang was an ideal candidate he had personally selected—someone possessing strength, yet still within his control, incapable of usurping his dominance.
However, if the man were to advance to late Golden Core, the variables would become far too great.
……
One month later.
On Peng Island.
Ding Yi and Cave Master Moyun arrived together, demanding to see Luo Chen.
This time, Luo Chen did not shut his door to them.
The meeting was set inside the Alchemy and Forging Hall, a place hardly suitable for receiving guests.
Watching Luo Chen forge a sword box while repairing a flower basket magic treasure at the same time, Ding Yi and Cave Master Moyun exchanged glances, looking somewhat taken aback.
"You closed your doors and refused to see even us, all because of this?"
Without looking up, Luo Chen replied, "According to what you said, the expedition to the Sunken Sea is fraught with danger, and neither of us has complete confidence in returning unscathed. Before departing, some matters ought to be seen through to their conclusion. This flower basket magic treasure is something I promised a friend years ago to help repair. Only by settling this before we set out can my mind be at peace."
Ding Yi was left speechless.
Cave Master Moyun, on the other hand, did not mind in the slightest. Having a rare chance to personally observe Qingyangzi forging equipment, he was currently focusing all his attention on the man's techniques.
Yet after watching for a while, he failed to detect anything particularly profound or subtle, leaving him feeling rather disappointed.
Luo Chen slowed his hand movements slightly and looked up at Ding Yi.
"Since you came to see me in such a hurry, surely it isn't out of concern for my health?"
Ding Yi shook his head and recounted everything he had seen and heard at the Sunken Sea, detail by detail.
In the end, he said earnestly, "The opening of the ruins is upon us. You and I must make our preparations early!"
Luo Chen frowned. "That wasn't what you said before. The opening and closing of that realm coincide with the celestial phenomenon, lasting anywhere from a year or two to forty or fifty years. Don't we still have plenty of time?"
"Circumstances have changed, and the present cannot be compared to the past!"
Ding Yi took a deep breath, piecing together all the conditions he had observed to arrive at his deduction.
"This opening of the ruins isn't natural, but artificial. Rumor has it that Shark Emperor Liu Jun used a secret method to siphon death qi from the Sunken Sea to undo the seal on the Yama Heavens, which caused the ruins to open prematurely. No one knows whether it might close early as well. If we end up trapped inside, we might never be able to escape."
"Besides, arriving one step earlier allows us to reap greater benefits."
"Qingyangzi, we cannot afford to delay!"
Upon hearing this, Luo Chen's brow furrowed even deeper.
After a long pause, he said faintly, "Give me a little more time!"
With that, he resumed his forging work.
This was an unmistakable gesture showing them the door.
A flash of anger crossed Ding Yi's face, but under Cave Master Moyun's subtle gesture, he ultimately chose not to lash out and left unwillingly.
Luo Chen did not see them out, continuing to busy himself in the Alchemy and Forging Hall.
Half a day later, he halted his hands.
Repairing Duan Li's flower basket magic treasure was actually quite simple—merely replenishing some materials. Once repaired, the owner would just need to nurture it for a period.
What truly commanded his attention was this unconventional magical artifact Han Zhan had tasked him with crafting.
The Soul Heaven Sword Box!
Using superior shark-silk cloth instead of sick willow silkworm silk achieved the best possible effect for isolating baleful qi.
The remaining supplementary materials were all fine selections as well.
Taking a whole month, it had succeeded in one try.
He couldn't say how formidable its might would be, but at least it met Han Zhan's requirements.
Stroking the soft outer skin of the sword box, Luo Chen narrowed his eyes slightly.
Ding Yi was anxious!
And growing more anxious by the day!
For him, this was good news.
An anxious state of mind meant that even if Luo Chen could not usurp control, he could at least stand on equal footing in their subsequent actions.
Meanwhile, he himself was in no hurry.
He was only one step away from Desolate Ancient Tier 4.
This trump card was perhaps his only means of contending against a Nascent Soul True Person. No matter how hurried things were, he could not act rashly.
"Take it slowly!"
"Who knows, maybe those who arrive early will just be reincarnated earlier?"
Luo Chen chuckled softly. Stowing away the crafted Soul Heaven Sword Box, he turned and stepped into the Constellation Palace.
Recently, he had gained fresh insights regarding the *Convergence of Myriad Paths*. The closer he drew to Desolate Ancient Tier 4, the more flaws he discovered in this body-refinement technique.
If he could resolve them one by one, it might add several measures of power to his True Form transformation.
……
The Myriad Immortals Association was a gathering place for loose cultivators.
In the hearts of low-tier loose cultivators, it was a holy land that rivaled even the sacred grounds of Soul Formation sects!
Over these years of the Righteous-Demonic War, more and more loose cultivators had converged upon the Myriad Immortals Association, bringing an air of renewal with each passing day.
Yet this year, those low-tier loose cultivators felt an ever-growing sense of oppression.
It seemed as though high-tier powerhouses were multiplying within the Myriad Immortals Association's territory.
Especially after the eerie celestial phenomenon of the golden skies and black waters appeared, the experts who had slipped in began to grow restless.
Gradually, a rumor began to circulate among countless lips.
An ancient secret realm lay within the Sunken Sea!
Inside were boundless treasures left behind after ancient cultivators had passed away. If an ordinary person obtained them, they could prolong their lifespan, advance their realm drastically, or, with enough luck, even ascend to Nascent Soul or Soul Formation to dominate a region!
Ordinarily, such unfounded rumors wouldn't convince everyone.
Yet the bizarre celestial omen persisted without end.
Coupled with rumors that Li Canghai, currently the foremost figure of the Northern Sea, had attained the Soul Formation stage precisely after gaining benefits from that ruin, the credibility of the news seemed increasingly assured.
Many loose cultivators wished to explore the Sunken Sea.
Originally, they had worried that the Myriad Immortals Association, located closest to the Sunken Sea, would obstruct them.
Unexpectedly, after the three Eight-Star Demon Hunters led teams to scour the demon beasts lurking outside the Sunken Sea, they pulled back entirely, adopting a posture of total disinterest.
Those harboring ambitions immediately grew eager to act.
Countless cultivators began converging toward the Sunken Sea.
Until!
Three months later.
Hundreds of towering waterspouts rose from the Sunken Sea, surging straight into the sky.
When the waterspouts vanished, they left swirling vortexes across the Sunken Sea!
Boundless heaven-and-earth spiritual energy was sucked into the vortexes, vanishing without a trace.
Word spread that the locations of those vortexes were the entrances to the realm—replete with countless treasures, first come, first served.
At once, all the onlookers could hold back no longer.
On the shore of the Sunken Sea.
Ding Yi and Cave Master Moyun rode the clouds and mist, watching from afar as streaks of light plunged into the black ocean, swimming toward the locations of the vortexes.
At this moment, it was as if tens of thousands of mayflies were pouring into a single sea!
"These people aren't entirely foolish; they know better than to fly through the air," Cave Master Moyun said with a faint smile.
"Who hasn't heard of the fame of the Void Burning Wind? Still, these fools blinded by treasures and opportunities entered the Sunken Sea recklessly without preparing any counters. They're purely courting death."
Ding Yi scoffed, filled with contempt for what those people were doing.
Cave Master Moyun agreed entirely. To enter this sea, which of them hadn't planned for years and gathered formidable companions before daring to step foot inside?
These people truly did not know life from death.
Within their field of view, quite a few loose cultivators fled back in panic the moment they entered.
The turbid black seawater furiously corroded their protective qi barriers and warding treasures.
Those in Qi Refinement could not swim past ten li.
Those in Foundation Establishment could travel a hundred li at most.
And that was only for those who knew their limits.
For those who overestimated themselves, they quietly perished amid the boundless black sea as they swam along.
Some Golden Core cultivators, having made thorough preparations, stepped cautiously into the Sunken Sea.
Yet before they could find a vortex, they were swept up by the invisible Void Burning Wind within the sea waters, sinking into a stupor as they were corroded and swallowed by the waves.
In just a few short days, the grand spectacle of ten thousand streaks of light swimming together vanished.
Along the shore of the Sunken Sea, most who remained were terrified survivors and cautious onlookers.
During this time, Cave Master Moyun, skilled in formation arts, noticed something.
"The deaths of these people have brought vast amounts of death qi to this sea. The death qi pours into the vortexes, strengthening them. This ought to be the work of some specialized array designed to channel death qi."
Ding Yi looked thoughtful. "Perhaps that's why the upper echelon of the Myriad Immortals Association didn't forbid low-tier cultivators from approaching the Sunken Sea."
They were feeding it with human lives to increase the death qi of the Sunken Sea.
After observing for a while, Cave Master Moyun shook his head with regret.
"A pity that Sanqing Gorge was destroyed and the terrain shifted; part of the death qi is gathering toward the Yama Heavens. That's causing these vortexes to form and expand at an extremely slow pace."
Ding Yi said resolutely, "That has nothing to do with us. The death qi accumulated in the Sunken Sea over tens of thousands of years can't be drained in a short while. It's more than enough for us to enter and hunt for treasures."
Cave Master Moyun hesitated. "Then when do we go in?"
During their days of observation, they had even spotted Nascent Soul True Persons who hadn't bothered to conceal their movements entering the sea.
If they waited any longer, there might be nothing left.
At the mention of this issue, Ding Yi's expression instantly darkened.
"Demonic Lord Qingyang!"
……
"Pressuring me again?"
Inside the Constellation Palace, Luo Chen flicked away the ashes left by the burned voice transmission talisman, his expression neither joyful nor sorrowful.
It was as though the urgency of others had nothing to do with him.
His body was bare, covered in black mud.
Inside him, true fire blazed fiercely, scorching every corner of his physique.
An extraordinary agony racked his body—pain that would have caused an ordinary person to lose consciousness long ago. Yet Luo Chen seemed utterly oblivious to it.
He even used the modifications he had made to *Convergence of Myriad Paths* over the past days to drive his true fire into thoroughly tempering specific areas.
These details were not to be underestimated.
Only through accumulated quantitative changes could a qualitative transformation be achieved.
Time trickled past.
While Luo Chen focused on refining his body, the uproar sparked by the celestial phenomena over the Sunken Sea did not fade due to the deaths of numerous low-tier cultivators; rather, it grew steadily larger.
Figures of formidable power from parts unknown entered the Sunken Sea from all directions.
A peerless demon emperor even stirred up wind and waves from the depths of the demon sea, forcing its way into the Sunken Sea.
Furthermore, signs of turmoil surfaced within the Myriad Immortals Association.
The three Eight-Star Demon Hunters had all vanished!
Some said they had gone to that secret realm as well.
Not only Diaosou and the others, but even Blood Hermit, who had been active previously, had not shown himself for a long time.
The Righteous-Demonic War that had lasted for decades came to a bizarre halt following the appearance of the Sunken Sea's omens.
Rumors circulated that the Mad Hermit, one of the three great hermits of the Myriad Immortals Association, had appeared within the Canghai Alliance, and it was he who brought about the truce in the Righteous-Demonic War.
Yet none of this concerned Luo Chen.
……
One year later.
Ding Yi once again stepped onto the shores of Penghu Lake.
Before his eyes, misty waves stretched endlessly and clouds hung thick, obscuring everything from sight.
His face brimming with fury, Ding Yi ignored the warnings of the cultivators guarding the lake and soared into the sky, a yellow-skinned gourd appearing in his hand.
He intended to force his way into Penghu Lake!
"Demonic Lord Qingyang, breaking faith to this degree—today, you must give me an explanation!"
With a furious shout, he slapped the yellow-skinned gourd with his palm.
Instantly, dazzling golden sand surged out from the gourd, rushing toward the Penghu Grand Formation.
Just at that moment, a gale swept through, churning the golden sand.
Ding Yi snorted, and the billowing golden sand rapidly took shape, condensing in midair into a hundred-zhang monster that resembled neither snake nor earthworm, almost identical to the legendary sand worm.
Mist billowed, and beneath the water's surface, an enormous flood dragon slowly rose, exuding the overbearing aura of a Great Demon King.
The flood dragon took to the air, lashing out with its tail.
The sand worm showed no fear. Shattered into countless grains of sand, it reformed once more, attempting to envelop the black flood dragon in turn.
Another strange wind gusted over, helping the flood dragon scatter the golden sand.
Ding Yi's expression remained unchanged as he slapped the yellow-skinned gourd again, sending out a second sand worm.
Amid the thick haze, Tianxuan's expression shifted slightly. Stepping back, she vigorously waved the Nine Winds Plantain Fan in her hand.
With a ruthless glint in his eye, Ding Yi moved his body, forcing his way into the Penghu Grand Formation.
"The two of you cannot stop me! Tell Qingyang to drag himself out and face me!"
Right at that moment.
A sword chime seemed to ring out through the void!
*Clang!*
A chilling killing intent hung over him, causing Ding Yi's expression to change.
"Is this the killing move of the Penghu Grand Formation?"
Ding Yi had a premonition that if that sword swung, he would definitely be unable to withstand it.
This was by no means an attack a Golden Core cultivator could unleash; it could only be explained by a killing formation laid across the eight hundred li of Penghu Lake.
"I overestimated myself today. I should have brought Cave Master Moyun along."
Regretting his rashness, Ding Yi flew back out of Penghu Lake's perimeter.
Landing on the shore, he glared resentfully in the direction of Peng Island.
"Qingyang, if you won't go, don't blame us for leaving you behind!"
After shouting loudly, he lingered no longer and turned to leave, already set on heading straight to the Sunken Sea with Cave Master Moyun.
Just as he turned around.
Suddenly!
A thunderbolt seemed to detonate in the clear sky.
Ding Yi whipped his head around, and what he saw made his pupils shrink violently.
Vast expanses of clouds and mist collapsed inward, billowing toward the center of the eight hundred li of Penghu Lake.
The lake surface, previously calm and unrippled, now churned as if boiling, throwing up rolling waves.
Not only that, but terrifying amounts of spiritual energy surged up from the various islands and even from the lake bed, converging toward that direction like myriad rivers returning to the sea.
"This..."
While Ding Yi was frozen in shock, the collapsing mist reversed direction in the next instant, billowing back out to shroud the vast Penghu Lake once more.
It seemed as if everything before had been merely an illusion, as though nothing had occurred.
Yet who was Ding Yi? Even through the formation's barrier, he could still sense the restless churning of spiritual energy in this place.
Above all!
In the unfathomable depths of Penghu Lake, a terrifying aura was currently brewing, as if an ancient desolate beast were slowly awakening from its slumber!
Chapter 652