Western Sea, Yuanming City Cave.
"Tsk tsk, beneath this cave there's actually a small teleportation array leading to the Demon Abyss. This must have been left behind by the ancient Demon Giants!"
Elder Shang circled along the edge of the small teleportation array, clicking his tongue in admiration.
"The things left behind by Demon Giants are indeed extraordinary. In this age, no one could create such a teleportation array anymore!"
Li Luoqi forced a smile, the arrogance in his eyes once again igniting.
"Elder Shang has sharp vision. This small teleportation array has operated beneath the cave for countless years. Only those of demonic lineage who carry the blood of the ancient demons know its location and hold the key to activate it."
Elder Shang narrowed his eyes slightly. "Could it be the Great Shift Token?"
A triangular token appeared in Li Luoqi's hand. He curved his lips in a sinister smile. "As expected of someone descended from the Spirit Realm. Without the Great Shift Token, even if one discovered this teleportation array, it would be impossible to use it."
"This small teleportation array… it is completely different from the array legacies I have seen before."
Pei Xianqiao patiently traced her fingers across the intricate carvings on the teleportation array. The golden lines were shrouded in gray mist. To a casual glance, it would look like nothing more than a dilapidated array.
Elder Shang stared at her focused movements, suddenly curious. "Little girl, you are already a high-grade array master. Can you understand the structure of this array and perhaps recreate a new one?"
Li Luoqi looked toward Pei Xianqiao. "That may not be so simple. Even the most gifted array grandmasters of this realm cannot glimpse the secrets of the ancients from just one formation."
"Qiao Qiao, do not force yourself. This was never meant to be an easy task."
Seeing her brow furrow and her expression gradually showing pain, he hurried to stop her with deep concern.
Elder Shang cut in. "The Demon Sovereign is right. This array is beyond your current comprehension. To forcefully probe into it will only trigger the backlash of the formation."
Li Luoqi pressed several acupoints on her body, helping Pei Xianqiao to recover.
"I was too impatient. The moment I saw this array, I became too excited and was pulled into it."
Li Luoqi steadied her, admiringly saying, "It is fine now. You are still as brilliant as ever. Skilled in alchemy, talisman crafting, and able to grasp the essence of arrays."
Under his burning gaze, Pei Xianqiao lowered her head. "I am not as amazing as you say. But… at the other end of this array, after they occupied the Demon Abyss, would they not have sealed it off?"
At that thought, she raised her head in worry.
Li Luoqi gazed at her tenderly. "No. They could never find this teleportation array. Within the Demon Abyss lies a magma pool. They would never imagine that I would bring you through a teleportation hidden within molten fire."
Elder Shang stroked his beard and laughed loudly. "The Demon Giants of the ancient era were indeed clever, hiding a teleportation array in a magma pool. Even if they dig the Demon Abyss three feet deep, they will never find it!"
Pei Xianqiao finally relaxed, a smile curving on her lips. "That is good. Your cultivation will surely recover, and I can take this chance to slowly study the mysteries of this array's construction."
Li Luoqi brushed aside the strands of hair over her forehead, speaking gently. "When I ascend to the peak of this realm, I will help you reclaim the Divine Phoenix."
"Many thanks, Demon Sovereign…"
Pei Xianqiao murmured absentmindedly.
Elder Shang secretly smiled as he watched their harmony.
What a foolish girl, yet beloved everywhere she goes.
After a moment, Pei Xianqiao shyly avoided his gaze. "It's late. Shall we enter the Demon Abyss now?"
The affection in Li Luoqi's eyes grew even deeper. He curved his lips into a smile. "Yes, let us go now."
Elder Shang looked at the two of them with a reminiscent smile, as though seeing his younger self.
"What a perfect pair indeed."
…
Western Sea, Demon Abyss.
Black mist coiled, demonic qi soared to the heavens.
Lu Ziqian stood at the cave entrance, dismissing the other demon soldiers.
"The demonic qi inside is too heavy. Any ordinary person who enters will be corroded by its purity. Your disciple considered this, and prepared…"
But as he raised a black pearl, he froze, staring blankly at Yao Ranyan in the center of the abyss.
"Master… when did you go inside?"
As if she had forgotten he was there, Yao Ranyan tilted her head back, gazing at the ancient demonic statue protruding from the stone wall. She leapt decisively and pried free a stone from its mouth.
"Master, you must not touch things inside the Demon Abyss recklessly! This stone… why does it look like a lotus seed?"
Lu Ziqian swallowed his words, staring with doubt at the stone in her hand.
Without hesitation, Yao Ranyan smashed the colossal demonic statue with her Demon Staff, tossing the stone away into the abyss.
Lu Ziqian stared dumbfounded as the statue collapsed into dust, suddenly doubting the records in the ancient texts.
"Was this truly the statue revered by generations of Demon Sovereigns? Could I have misunderstood? Perhaps the true statue lies deeper inside…"
"There is none inside! Only this one!"
Lu Ziqian quickly swept his gaze through the entire abyss, shocked into silence.
"Weren't the ancient records clear that the Demon Giant's statue was like its true body, indestructible, and that not even the sharpest divine weapon in the world could leave a mark upon it?"
He stood stunned, watching the stone dust scatter across his azure robe, like witnessing the first snow of early winter in this deathly abyss.
Following faint moonlight, Yao Ranyan walked further into the abyss, stepping onto a broad clearing until she arrived at a boiling magma pool.
"This feels strange. As if I have been here before… but there was no magma pool in the past."
Lu Ziqian caught up just in time to see Yao Ranyan raise the Demon Staff again. Instinctively, he wanted to stop her, but his rational mind reminded him they were not even on the same level.
The words stuck in his throat.
He could only watch as the Demon Staff in her hands struck down, churning great waves of molten fire.
Calmly, Yao Ranyan opened her defensive barrier, letting the magma rush past her as sparks splashed around.
"There seems to be something hidden beneath."
Her eyes flickered. At the bottom of the magma pool, something faintly revealed its true form.
The Demon Staff swelled a hundredfold in her grip, a colossal black-gold weapon crashing down. Lu Ziqian hurriedly retreated a hundred zhang away.
…
"I have never ridden a Demon Giant's teleportation array before. Why does the sky feel so dark?"
Elder Shang blinked groggily. By right, the teleportation should have ended, and they should be in the Demon Abyss.
"It is dark, almost as if the sky is about to collapse…"
Pei Xianqiao tilted her head in confusion, sensing a strange pressure.
Li Luoqi rubbed his eyes. He had used this teleportation array before, and nothing like this had happened.
Fixing his gaze on the black shadow above, his expression suddenly changed drastically.
"No… this is not the sky!"