After strolling through Hongmeng City for a while, Bai Yue ultimately did not purchase anything and calmly walked out of Nanxing Hall.
There was no need.
All the treasures being sold there had originally come from him. Buying them back would be nothing more than circulating his own goods.
By contrast, Champion Mihai, who had brought him along, bought quite a lot. Nanxing Hall happened to be running a promotional event at the time—not trivial discounts, but genuine price reductions on treasures extremely useful to Undying beings. Faced with such value, even Champions could not resist the instinct to seize an advantage, and Mihai naturally joined the bustling crowd.
Everything related to joining the Great Alliance had occurred within the Virtual Universe. Bai Yue had only allocated a small portion of his consciousness to handle it, leaving his main focus uninterrupted.
His real body never stopped moving.
During continuous exploration, time slipped by almost unnoticed.
Seventeen years passed in the blink of an eye.
In those seventeen years, Bai Yue's footsteps had covered nearly every corner of Lian Xing Continent, yet he still failed to uncover any concrete information related to the Sky Horn Ant.
However, he was far from idle.
During this time, the title "Battle King" became increasingly renowned across the Ninth Battlefield. That reputation was forged directly through blood—through the deaths of alien race Champions who fell beneath his staff.
Within the Great Alliance, Bai Yue's rating steadily rose to three stars, making him one of the most closely watched rising figures in recent years.
Powerhouses naturally gravitated toward strength.
Those whose growth was rapid and whose combat record was terrifying were almost always worth befriending. Bai Yue himself was calm, rational, and not difficult to interact with. Even Champions who did not actively approach him had no intention of provoking him.
After all, behind him stood the Human Race.
On the western edge of Lian Xing Continent, there existed a colossal裂痕—a massive rift, as if the land itself had been cleaved open by an incomparably sharp blade.
From high above, the countless flames spewing from its depths resembled blood pouring from an open wound.
This rift spanned an astonishing 0.2 light-years in width, and its length was even more exaggerated. The visible continental portion alone stretched over one light-year, beginning at the edge of the Storm Sea and extending deep inland.
This place was known as one of the most famous—and most dangerous—regions of the Ninth Battlefield:
Fire Spirit Abyss.
Among all dangerous zones, Fire Spirit Abyss was both the most lethal and the most rewarding.
According to data from the Virtual Universe System, the Abyss was saturated with extreme high-temperature flames, making it an ideal environment for the Lian Xing Clan, a race famed for treasure refinement.
The rich cosmic energy, combined with an environment that greatly accelerated comprehension of fire-attribute origin laws, transformed this region into a holy land for that race.
Countless Lian Xing Clan experts had established cultivation chambers along the abyss walls. Rumors even claimed that deep within the Fire Spirit Abyss, the Lian Xing Clan had constructed a hidden treasure repository to store refined artifacts.
No one had ever verified this legend.
Yet over the years, abandoned cultivation chambers were frequently discovered, and Champions who braved the Abyss often emerged with treasures. This alone was enough to draw an overwhelming number of powerhouses—making Fire Spirit Abyss the most frequented dangerous zone in the Ninth Battlefield.
There was another reason as well.
The Fire Spirit Abyss did not end on land.
It extended beneath the Storm Sea, plunging into the ocean floor for an unknown distance—far longer than the continental portion. Where freezing seawater met erupting flames, endless steam formed, blanketing the western Storm Sea in a thick, perpetual mist.
And within that mist lay the most mysterious region of all:
Divine Territory.
Many who came to Fire Spirit Abyss harbored deeper ambitions—to seek a path into that forbidden zone.
On this day, space rippled above the Fire Spirit Abyss.
Bai Yue's figure appeared midair.
He gazed down at the immense abyss, curiosity flickering in his eyes. Though he had long studied its descriptions through the Virtual Universe Network, witnessing it firsthand was still deeply shocking.
Even from afar, the heat rolling upward was intense enough to distort space.
Without hesitation, Bai Yue descended.
His speed was extraordinary. In short order, he reached the edge of the abyss. Here, the temperature had already climbed to terrifying levels. Within millions of kilometers of the rim, the land was utterly barren, and even the reinforced matter of Lian Xing Continent showed signs of partial melting.
Hovering briefly, Bai Yue continued downward.
Crimson flames soon surrounded him.
As he descended further, the flames grew denser, forming an almost continuous sea. Dodging became impossible, and he simply advanced through them.
Deeper still, spatial suppression intensified. Space-type secret techniques—including teleportation—became increasingly difficult to employ.
Bai Yue's expression grew more serious.
An ordinary World Lord entering this region without powerful protective treasures would likely be reduced to ashes in an instant.
And this was only the outermost flame layer.
The Fire Spirit Abyss contained nine distinct flame regions. Bai Yue found it difficult to imagine the destructive power awaiting at the deepest level.
As he descended, he occasionally spotted cavities carved into the abyss walls—old cultivation chambers left behind by previous explorers.
These upper-layer chambers had been stripped clean countless times over the years. Bai Yue ignored them entirely.
Environmental danger was only one threat.
The Abyss also nurtured Fire Spirits—energy lifeforms born from endlessly condensed flames.
They had no fixed shape and usually drifted passively within the fire seas. However, they were notoriously violent. Once disturbed, they attacked immediately. If they sensed inferiority, they would self-destruct without hesitation, dragging enemies down with them.
As pure energy lifeforms, their self-destruction was comparable to Fire God Source Crystals.
Worse still, Fire Spirits preferred to gather in groups.
Encountering one usually meant many more lurked nearby.
Bai Yue entered the Abyss from a relatively shallow inland section, roughly 40 billion kilometers deep, containing four flame layers. The closer one moved toward the Storm Sea, the deeper and more layered the abyss became.
He activated his Domain secret technique at full capacity, probing a range of 900 million kilometers.
Within Fire Spirit Abyss, ordinary Immortal Domains were heavily suppressed. Bai Yue's Domain, however—originating from the Golden Light Realm and later refined through the Dao Fruit—was far more adaptable.
It remained stable.
Moving at extreme speed, he scanned the abyss walls and flame seas continuously, uncovering many hidden chambers that others had missed.
Unfortunately, none contained treasures worthy of his attention.
Just as he was about to continue deeper, his trajectory abruptly changed.
A cluster of unfamiliar lifeforms entered his Domain perception.
Fire Spirits.
They floated within crimson flames, rising and falling as they absorbed surrounding fire to strengthen themselves.
Bai Yue halted.
With a thought, his Domain suppression intensified dramatically. The Fire Spirits froze in place, utterly immobilized.
In the next instant, they vanished—teleported directly into Bai Yue's Original Universe.
Energy lifeforms were rare acquisitions. Collecting an intact group was a notable gain.
Without lingering, Bai Yue pressed onward.
As time passed, he descended deeper still. When he reached 10 billion kilometers, the temperature spiked sharply, and the flames shifted to an orange-red hue.
"So this is the second flame layer," he muttered.
Two years later, Bai Yue had reached the fourth flame layer, deep within the continental section.
Here, the flames resembled green mist—deceptively gentle, yet capable of burning even the soul. Truly terrifying.
In these two years, Bai Yue encountered numerous alien Champions. Most fled on sight. Those who competed with him for treasures were swiftly eliminated.
He acquired several Lian Xing–style artifacts, though none were particularly impressive by his standards.
Then—
A violent fluctuation surged upward from below.
Bai Yue sensed it instantly.
After brief consideration, he accelerated downward, passing through the green flames and entering the fifth flame layer, filled with cyan mist.
Ahead, a rock-based lifeform stood before a cave entrance etched with flowing law patterns, its expression grim.
The fluctuation originated there.
Bai Yue slowed slightly.
Interesting.
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