Chapter 666-670: Charred Desolation (6.5k+ words)

"If the Heavenly Capital really fell, then it must be a replica created by later generations to commemorate," Fang Rangji said.

Although Li Fan nodded in agreement on the surface, he had his own thoughts.

From beginning to end, this matter exuded a somewhat strange atmosphere.

After many years of the Immortal Path being severed, it was surprising that a true Immortal would pass through the Xuanhuang Realm. Moreover, facing cultivators like ants, they actively lectured and taught.

Honestly, how many cultivators passing through mortal cities would kindly descend and teach them the ways of cultivation?

Most likely, it was more common to follow the example of Shuofeng, casually slaughtering mortals without any concern. How could they kindly teach the Dao?

Moreover, if what Fang Rangji said was true, the figure in the Heavenly Capital was obviously problematic. The lecture might not have been intentional; it could be a spontaneous act.

In that case, the Dao child standing beside the Heavenly Capital figure, the only one who had ever taken action, the Grand Master, became very suspicious.

"Perhaps this person was attracted by the Immortal Ruins and forced to come to the Xuanhuang Realm. His true strength might not necessarily be that of an Immortal. However, if the Heavenly Capital couldn't be taken down by the Xuan Tian Sect back then, he must have been quite formidable. At the very least, he would be equivalent to the half-step Immortal realm, similar to the Xuan Tian King in the Xuan Tian Sect."

"And allowing the Immortal Dao Ten Sects' disciples to enter the Heavenly Capital might be just to cause trouble for the Xuan Tian Sect. After all, what an Immortal cares about should be something of the same level."

"Immortal Spirit Qi?"

In almost an instant, Li Fan, playing the role of a conspiracy theorist, imagined a grand plot.

Although these were baseless speculations, there was almost certainty now. The anomalies in Source Daozhou should be related to the Heavenly Capital.

"As a descendant of the Heavenly Capital Purple Qi, why not visit Source Daozhou, sir?" Li Fan asked tentatively.

Fang Rangji shook his head repeatedly, "Hehe, forget it. A Dao Fusion who has lived for thousands of years is definitely more formidable than me. Going there would be like a sheep entering a tiger's den, wouldn't it? Master, let's focus on our current task."

Li Fan smiled slightly and nodded.

After this little incident, the two of them traveled for most of the day and finally arrived at the border of Shilin Prefecture.

However, the scene before them made Li Fan's pupils slightly contract.

Looking into the distance, the earth was deeply sunken, and everything was charred and black. Everywhere, there were flowing black lava, giving the entire place an apocalyptic atmosphere.

Occasionally, black molten fires would spew out from the ground, dissipating in the air, roasting the air hot and distorted.

What surprised Li Fan even more was that the ground and the air in this charred basin were irregularly dotted with many pitch-black voids.

Like an apple riddled with holes, the whole scene was a mess.

Moreover, Li Fan also noticed that these black, empty areas were not completely still. They seemed to have their own life, slowly crawling towards the surroundings or suddenly jumping to another location, swallowing everything in their path.

Facing this rather terrifying scene, even Fang Rangji, at the Dao Fusion realm, had a solemn expression.

"Master, are you really going?" he asked hesitantly.

Li Fan didn't answer immediately but carefully observed for a long time.

"If you're careful, there shouldn't be a problem. The jumps of those void rifts seem random, but they follow certain rules. They only jump to relatively blank areas and won't approach the original locations of existing rifts."

"So, as long as we maintain a certain distance from the void rifts, we can proceed safely."

"Besides, we still have the Medicine King True Cauldron." 

Saying this, Li Fan threw the Medicine King Cauldron towards a nearby pitch-black void.

"Master!" Fang Rangji exclaimed softly.

The Medicine King Cauldron emitted an earthy yellow light, enveloping itself. In the void, although the radiance gradually dimmed, it persisted for more than ten breaths.

"See, even if we make a mistake, this amount of time is enough for us to escape." Retrieving the Medicine King True Cauldron, Li Fan looked at Fang Rangji and said with a smile.

"Master, you're too confident. What if the Medicine King True Cauldron has a mishap? What should we do then?" Fang Rangji grumbled.

"There's still you. Even if the Medicine King True Cauldron is gone, I believe you, sir, can forge a new one for our Medicine King Sect," Li Fan said nonchalantly.

Fang Rangji couldn't help but smile after hearing this, and he didn't say anything more. Following Li Fan, he controlled the Medicine King Cauldron, flying into the charred basin.

Li Fan discerned the direction and cautiously headed towards the remembered location.

"It's truly terrifying. I don't understand how such a calamity could befall a vast sea. Back in our time, we never experienced anything like this. Judging by the momentum, it seems like the heavens and earth want to completely destroy this place," Fang Rangji exclaimed as he looked at the surroundings.

Li Fan remained silent.

The Sea of Clouds was originally vast, and to avoid the omnipresent void rifts, their flying speed was also affected. Therefore, it took them more than thirty days to reach the entrance of the Beast World.

However, the scene here made Li Fan's expression somewhat unpleasant.

The original entrance had been completely swallowed by the void. The entrance passage naturally no longer existed.

After contemplating for a moment, Li Fan remembered that when Han Yi came out of the small world, it was in another location.

So, they set off for that place.

Fortunately, their luck was good this time. They weren't within the range of the void rifts. Instead, they were hidden beneath the black lava.

"Master, what if the exit is devoured by the void after we enter? Won't we be unable to return?" Fang Rangji saw the situation here. Just as Li Fan was about to enter, he suddenly stopped, asking.

"No problem, I was prepared for this."

Saying this, Li Fan cleared away the black lava. Then, he took out a thin piece of paper from his storage ring and gently pressed it towards the entrance of the small world.

As if a drop of ink fell on the paper, faint patterns slowly appeared.

"What's this?" Fang Rangji squinted, unable to discern its origin.

"Star Theft Astrology Sheet, it can copy and record the data of this space channel node. After entering the small world, we'll perform the same operation on the entrance on the other side, and we can establish a new channel."

When all the patterns on the Star Theft Astrology Sheet were formed, Li Fan took out a door-shaped talisman and threw it onto the thin paper.

Enveloped by the talisman, a light-colored door appeared.

"Young Master, this side is ready to connect." The voice of Liu San faintly came from the door.

Li Fan pointed lightly, and the Star Theft Astrology Sheet flew into it.

"Mr. Fang, let's go. Old Man Liu over there will be preparing to build a new channel in the Longevity Valley."

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 667: Sweeping Through the Beast World

"Hmph, hiding it from me..." Fang Rangji muttered under his breath, following behind Li Fan and entering the spatial passage.

"Hiss!"

As soon as they entered this small world, Fang Rangji saw dozens of green-winged flying snakes with bared fangs flying towards him.

"You beasts dare to attack me!" Fang Rangji's expression changed dramatically. With a wave of his sleeves, the space in front of him trembled, and the ferocious exotic beasts instantly turned into powder, with no bones left.

The entrance was at the bottom of a deep ravine. Amidst the lingering mist, faint traces of spiritual energy could be sensed. The commotion caused by Li Fan and Fang Rangji entering attracted countless exotic beasts from above.

Like waves surging forward, they relentlessly poured in, fearlessly sacrificing themselves.

"Mr. Fang, please protect me." Although there were many exotic beasts, the strongest among them were only at Foundation Establishment level. In front of Fang Rangji, who was at the Harmony Realm, they posed no threat. Li Fan smiled and said to Fang Rangji, then took out a Star Theft Astrology Sheet and covered the entrance.

After a short time, Li Fan completed the transcription of the spatial node here. He handed the Star Theft Astrology Sheet to Liu San, who was preparing in the Longevity Valley.

"Young Master, constructing the spatial passage will take about thirty days. Will you come back first, or..." Liu San's voice faintly came from the door.

"No hurry, Mr. Fang and I will explore here first. With him around, you don't need to worry about my safety." Li Fan replied.

"Hmph, it's precisely because you're with him that I'm at ease."

"What are you saying?" Fang Rangji, who was clearing away exotic beasts, turned around sharply when he heard this.

But he found that Liu San had already severed the connection. Frustrated, Fang Rangji could only vent his anger on these ignorant exotic beasts.

After not too long, these exotic beasts, which had proliferated in the deep ravine for an unknown period, were already dead or injured.

Flying out of the ravine and onto the desolate plain, Li Fan took a deep breath and closed his eyes to sense. The feather of the Black Bird within his body emitted a dark luster for a moment. In an instant, Li Fan sensed the ubiquitous free celestial energy in this small world.

Like a whale sucking in water, or a fallen leaf returning to its roots, with almost no effort, the free celestial energy within a radius of hundreds of miles rushed into Li Fan's body in eager succession.

Or rather, it returned to the Black Bird's feather.

As the absorbed celestial energy increased, Li Fan also felt a sense of enlightenment. With a gentle point forward, with a slight movement of his mind, a huge crack appeared in the ground with a thunderous roar.

Countless vegetation and exotic beasts were devoured by the crack, while those fortunate enough to escape let out fearful low roars, no longer concerned with Li Fan, desperately trying to flee.

Li Fan watched the distant figures of the exotic beasts fleeing, and with a thought, the wind suddenly rose, causing the earth to shake.

Stirring up sand and stones, howling, it lifted the exotic beasts into the sky. Then, it dropped them back to their original positions.

The originally not very intelligent exotic beasts, after such an upheaval, were all frightened, trembling, and lying still.

Li Fan put away his magical powers.

"My fortune is the celestial fortune, and my destiny is the celestial destiny. Every word and deed carries the authority of heaven and earth."

"Wonderful!" Li Fan praised in his heart.

"Master, was it you who did that just now?" Fang Rangji looked at Li Fan in shock.

You must know that even with his Harmony Realm cultivation, it's very difficult to easily create such cracks and gusts of wind.

Li Fan just smiled and didn't answer.

In the following period, with Fang Rangji's escort, Li Fan collected celestial energy in this small world while heading towards the deepest part of the wilderness.

Judging by the guidance of the Black Bird's feather within him, Little Black's corpse should be there.

During this process, Li Fan discovered an interesting phenomenon.

The closer they got to Little Black's corpse, the fewer signs of human external features appeared among the exotic beasts. The strength of the exotic beasts also became more powerful.

"The types of exotic beasts in this small world belong to the 'Beast' branch, which is a fusion of humans and exotic beasts. However, after thousands of years and countless generations of reproduction, the bloodline of the exotic beasts has not weakened but has shown a phenomenon similar to atavism."

"Interesting."

In the process of clearing the way ahead, Fang Rangji, Li Fan also noticed that some exotic beasts had actually mastered various "spells" using free celestial energy for combat.

This slightly hindered Li Fan's absorption speed of celestial energy, but it was just a minor inconvenience.

Regardless of the supernatural abilities these exotic beasts might possess, in the face of an absolute disparity in strength, they were all useless and would be completely crushed.

Fang Rangji cleared the way, while Li Fan leisurely harvested.

"Mr. Fang, be a bit gentler; leave some living exotic beasts. This place will serve as a pasture for our Medicine King Sect in the future, which is not bad." Li Fan held a blue crystal nucleus in his hand, carefully observing, while instructing.

"Master, your word is law." The prolonged killing made Fang Rangji a bit impatient. Now, with Li Fan's instructions, he could openly be lazy, naturally readily agreeing.

Li Fan found this blue crystal nucleus in the carcass of a Golden Core-level exotic beast that had died.

It was exactly the same as the exotic beast crystal nucleus that Li Chenfeng had described, used by the imperial cultivators for cultivation.

Li Fan crushed the crystal nucleus, and a scorching unknown energy immediately surged out. After inhaling it into his body, Li Fan found that part of this burning unknown energy turned into spiritual energy, circulating through his meridians. Another small part turned into tiny specks, scattered throughout his flesh, enhancing the toughness of his blood and flesh.

"Not bad, it's a good thing." Li Fan thought to himself.

At this moment, Fang Rangji also noticed Li Fan's actions, casually killing an exotic beast, extracting its crystal nucleus, and absorbing it.

"Interesting, we cultivators couldn't absorb these demon nuclei back then. I didn't expect that after thousands of years, this thing could actually be used by us!" After a while, Fang Rangji exclaimed.

"Changes in the world over thousands of years!" Li Fan smiled in agreement.

"Perhaps this is precisely the result of the fusion of the bloodlines of demonic beasts and humans over thousands of years." Li Fan recalled those species resembling humans to an extreme degree and thought to himself.

Continuing forward, in the distance, there stood a black three-legged tower. At the top of the tower, there seemed to be a giant black bird, spreading its wings and standing alone.

"Indeed, it's him." A gleam flashed in Li Fan's eyes. The appearance of this black bird was exactly the same as Little Black seen in the Meteor Immortal Realm.

Seemingly aware that Fang Rangji's strength was unstoppable, there were no more exotic beasts coming to stop them at this point.

Li Fan only saw that tens of thousands of exotic beasts were kneeling under the black three-legged tower, bowing to the giant black bird.

Today, only one chapter. These two days, staying up late was too exhausting and I couldn't handle it. (End of this chapter)

Chapter 668: Suppression of Heavenly Fate

In Li Fan's vision, under the worship ceremony of the exotic beasts, the free celestial energy in the depths of the wilderness began to crazily gather towards the top of the black three-legged tower.

Like a massive storm vortex, constant flashes of lightning and thunder echoed, and the sky became ominously dark.

Li Fan tried to use the Phoenix Feather and its claim over celestial energy. The result was clear – it was purely futile. Compared to a mere feather, the black phoenix on top of the three-legged tower was the true master of this side of the beast world.

Even in the face of such a powerful suction, Li Fan vaguely sensed that the free celestial energy he had already absorbed into his body was beginning to loosen, showing signs of being plundered.

Although Fang Rangji couldn't see the changes in celestial energy, the increasingly agitated movement of the black phoenix at the top of the tower was visible to the naked eye.

A touch of solemnity appeared on his face, but he still scornfully said, "They're already dead; do they think bowing will bring them back to life?"

However, Fang Rangji was very cautious. Before the ceremony of the beasts was complete, he transformed into a sky-reaching giant palm, wielding a large gray-black hammer, smashing it towards the top of the tower where the black bird stood.

"Buzz!"

The gray hammer filled the heavens and the earth. Even the towering three-legged tower became like a toy in front of it. As the hammer fell, it produced a deafening rumble.

It seemed as if in the next moment, the black three-legged tower and the myriad exotic beasts below were all about to be smashed to death by this giant hammer!

However, at this moment, a thunderbolt suddenly descended from the sky, fiercely striking the gray hammer. The hammer hesitated slightly in the air, and then dozens of thunderbolts, each as thick as a water bucket, suddenly fell.

With each strike, the form of the hammer diminished a bit. But after a moment, the mountain-sized gray hammer had become no different from an ordinary object. At the moment when the thunder struck the tower, Fang Rangji's expression changed slightly.

It wasn't just because the hammer was under attack, but also because the location where he stood had undergone a massive change.

Rolling dark clouds surged in the sky, gloomily, as if it could drip water. The yellow demonic wind howled like sharp blades, cutting through the earth, intelligent and cohesive, all rushing towards Fang Rangji. Surging geysers of molten lava erupted from under Fang Rangji's feet like angry fire dragons, roaring to devour him. Golden runic chains descended from the void, silently entwining around Fang Rangji's limbs. Coupled with the continuous flashing of black thunder above...

Fang Rangji seemed to have become the archenemy of the entire beast world. Wind, fire, thunder, lightning, and everything in the world, under the influence of fate, began to launch an unrelenting attack on him.

"Young Master, please step back for now." Fang Rangji's gaze became serious, throwing out a green bell, which protected Li Fan who had already taken refuge far away.

Then, with a mouthful, he spat out thirty-six blade-like flying blades.

The emerald-green flying blades were exceptionally agile, seeming to have vitality. In an instant, they protected Fang Rangji all around.

Regardless of rain, wind, fire, or lightning, all were easily blocked by the strands of green light that floated by.

Fang Rangji's expression remained steady as he walked towards the top of the tower. The golden chains on him tightened instantly, attempting to restrain him. However, with firm steps, the chains only straightened for a moment before cracks appeared in the void where they were connected.

The chains grew longer and longer. In the end, unable to withstand the extreme pull, they shattered inch by inch. Golden light scattered in an instant.

"The heavens and the earth are all enemies. This can be considered the ultimate version of the Unfettered Killing Technique. However, even so, it can't harm Fang Rangji in the slightest. After all, the world's hierarchy is weaker here. Faced with a cross-border expert like Fang Rangji, no matter how much resistance there is, it's still not his opponent." Under the protection of the green bell, Li Fan observed calmly.

Fang Rangji approached the black three-legged tower, and the initially kneeling and worshipping exotic beasts gradually became disoriented.

Chapter 668: Overpowering Heavenly Fate

In Li Fan's view, under the worship ceremony of the exotic beasts, the free celestial energy in the depths of the wilderness began to crazily gather towards the top of the black three-legged tower.

Some became increasingly terrified, bowing more devoutly. Some desperately tried to escape but were killed on the spot by a few leader-like exotic beasts. Others made a desperate charge towards Fang Rangji, not fearing death, attempting to exhaust this terrifying intruder at the cost of their lives.

However, their fate was already sealed. The power gap between the two sides was too great. When Fang Rangji finally stood at the top of the three-legged tower, looking down at the trembling exotic beasts below, he felt a sense of boredom.

"Boring!" he snorted and brought Li Fan over from a distance.

"Master, is what you're looking for here?" Fang Rangji asked.

Without the support of the ceremony with myriad exotic beasts, the image of the black bird on the top of the tower returned to its original form. It turned out to be just a projection of a phoenix statue.

The vast free celestial energy gathered over the top of the tower, now unrestrained, flowed like water, slowly spreading towards other corners of the world.

Standing in front of the small black statue, Li Fan looked up and, at the same time, activated the "Heaven's Will is Mine" technique, using the Phoenix Feather to madly absorb the free celestial energy.

Like rivers flowing into the sea, the process of absorbing celestial energy went exceptionally smoothly. There were almost no obstacles. In just half a day, Li Fan had absorbed all the gathered celestial energy in this place.

And the effect was immediate.

With the three-legged tower as the center, Li Fan could instantly perceive every movement within a radius of thousands of miles. And within this area, Li Fan almost achieved a state of becoming one with the world.

Changes in weather, rain, wind, snow, and storms—all were under Li Fan's control with a single thought.

After closing his eyes and searching for a moment, Li Fan slightly frowned.

Because he found that Little Black's remains were not here. The reason why the exotic beasts could manipulate fate through the ceremony was simply that the statue was endowed with a bit of Little Black's power.

"But it doesn't matter. As long as it's in this small world, I'll find it sooner or later," Li Fan said, not concerned.

In the days that followed, Li Fan, accompanied by Fang Rangji, traveled throughout the beast world. Wherever they went, the exotic beasts surrendered without resistance.

The minimal resistance they had initially shown disappeared completely with the establishment of the new passages and the arrival of Yakuza Zong's large forces led by Liu San.

"Young Master, you've found a good place this time! I was worried that Longevity Valley was too small for disciples to move around!" Liu San swept his divine sense over the beast world, nodding slightly with a satisfied expression.

"Although the strength of most of these exotic beasts is not worth mentioning, they are enough to help with planting and tending to the spiritual fields. As for the slightly stronger ones, they can be used to guard our home."

"This plan is feasible. Once I refine a batch of Beast Control Rings, I won't be afraid of these beasts losing control."

...

In just a few casual sentences between the two Daoists, the fate of the exotic beasts in the beast world was already decided.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 669: Severing the Nine Heads of the Silk

With the management of Yakuza Zong disciples joining, Li Fan naturally didn't have to worry too much.

After spending a month absorbing all the free celestial energy in the beast world, he finally reached a qualitative change.

In the Phoenix Feather, a faint shadow of a newly born chick, with feathers not fully grown, could be vaguely seen.

It looked somewhat similar to Little Black when he was young but also had some differences.

Li Fan closed his eyes. In the next moment, the entire beast world appeared before him like a cluster of light fog.

Every detail and scene could be instantly perceived.

However, Li Fan also noticed a distortion in the light and shadow around Fang Rangji and Liu San, the two Daoist experts. It was not very clear. This happened even when they both sensed that Li Fan was peeping and did not attempt to conceal it.

"In the Xuanhuang Realm, the influence range of Daoist experts is almost equivalent to a regional domain. In this small world, Dao Fusion realm cultivators can already contend with the world. This is the natural hierarchical difference," Li Fan realized.

With a slight movement of his thoughts, he took a step and instantly crossed thousands of miles, appearing on a mountain peak next to a clear pond.

When he and Fang Rangji swept through the beast world before, they had passed by this mountain peak. However, Li Fan hadn't noticed the pond on the mountaintop.

It was only after he completely mastered the world's celestial energy that he sensed the anomaly here.

Beside the pond, there was a wooden house. Li Fan pushed open the wooden door and walked in.

Inside the room, a black phoenix with feathers that had lost its luster stood proudly.

Although it still looked handsome, it had already lost the breath of life.

"Little Black..." Li Fan immediately recognized the identity of the phoenix.

"This is... it died of old age."

After observing for a moment, Li Fan couldn't help but fall silent.

Even though its lifespan was much longer than that of cultivators, having lived from ancient times to the present, this destined phoenix had reached the end of its life.

But soon, Li Fan noticed something unusual.

In theory, Little Qing was an exotic beast from the same era as Little Black, and the strength of the Green Phoenix was far inferior to the Phoenix of Heavenly Fate.

Moreover, Little Black had already merged with the celestial energy of this world.

It didn't make sense for Little Qing to still be alive and well while Little Black had already fallen.

"Could it be that Little Black, for some reason, consumed a large amount of its own lifespan?"

Li Fan squinted his eyes.

Activating the "Heaven's Will is Mine" technique, the Heavenly Fate domain guarded him as Li Fan gently touched the phoenix's corpse.

"Hoo!"

As if a breeze passed by, the body of Little Black instantly turned into tiny particles, dispersing without a trace.

At the same time, countless blurry scenes flashed through Li Fan's mind.

At first, it was similar to what Li Fan experienced in the Meteor Immortal Realm.

Growing happily in the Beast Control Sect with Xu Ke, meeting Mr. Bai entering the sect, and later being sent to the Southern Darkness Sacred Beast Mountain...

Ultimately, not passing the "Same-Hearted Ring" test, and being banished to this place by Emperor Three Mottled-Mask.

The difference was that, in the real history, Little Black failed to grasp the opportunity to meet Mr. Bai.

Without the Cultivation True Profound Art, it came to this small world and could only rely on the memory technique in its bloodline to cultivate.

Although it had gone through countless years and barely reached the "Heaven's Will is Mine" technique, it had also become bound to the fate of this world.

Wanting to leave this world was not impossible, but it required a hefty price.

As long as it wasn't too frequent, leaving one's original world, or continuing to nourish oneself with celestial energy after returning, wouldn't easily lead to fatal injuries.

However, Little Black had done just that.

This is because...

Li Fan sorted and checked the memories of Little Black coming to the beast world.

At first, to prevent Little Black from feeling lonely, Xu Ke used to send messages frequently, describing his own experiences.

"Little Black, do you know? This journey has been extremely dangerous! Not only did we encounter many strange small worlds, but we also faced attacks from demonic beasts!"

"Initially, we thought someone had leaked information. Later, we discovered it was purely our bad luck. We bumped into a group of demonic beasts that inexplicably appeared in the small world. We took the initiative, but in the end, a demonic beast managed to escape, exposing our evacuation plan."

"Fortunately, we're almost at our destination!"

...

"Little Black, Little Black! Do you still remember Mr. Bai? I used to think he was powerful enough, but he's even stronger than I imagined! I and a group of fellow disciples were sent to explore a small world. Unexpectedly, we encountered an extremely terrifying monster!"

"Nine heads, a colossal body lying in the sky! Each mouth seems capable of tearing and devouring a part of the world!"

"Originally, I thought I was done for! I thought I'd never see you, Little Black!"

"But when that nine-headed monster looked at me, a fine thread flew out from the red string that Senior Lu Ya gave me before leaving the Xuanhuang Realm! It was like a sharp sword, instantly cutting off six heads of that monster bird!"

"And the red string hadn't dispersed yet; it actively pulled the monster bird down from the sky!"

"I was stunned! Mr. Bai is really too strong!"

...

"Little Black, I've received an extremely important mission. I may not be able to communicate with you for a long time."

"I'm really sorry. But it's okay, I'll be back!"

...

"Little Black, why do cultivators, who were originally human, become so cruel to their own kind once they embark on the path of cultivation?"

...

Scene after scene flashed rapidly before Li Fan's eyes.

Li Fan knew that Xu Ke had once come to the beast world and had seen Little Black.

At that time, Xu Ke had already grown into a handsome young man with extraordinary martial prowess.

They met at the mountain peak by the clear pond and chatted for a long time.

Later, Xu Ke came in a hurry and left in a hurry.

Originally, Little Black wanted to follow Xu Ke, but due to the restrictions set by Emperor Three Mottled-Mask at that time and Xu Ke's warning about significant changes in the outside world, it would be dangerous for it to leave with Xu Ke.

So, Little Black stayed here, waiting for the right time when Xu Ke would come to take it away.

After parting ways, the two communicated several times.

However, the intervals between each communication became longer, witnessing Xu Ke's growth in both visual and tonal aspects.

Until one day...

Little Black suddenly lost the sense of Xu Ke.

As Xu Ke's companion spirit beast, although the master-servant relationship was no longer there, they still had a mysterious connection.

Even though they were separated by countless miles, even across several worlds, Little Black could vaguely sense Xu Ke's presence.

And now, with this disappearance of the connection, there was only one possibility.

Xu Ke had died.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 670: The Death of the Reverse Runner

As the Heavenly Fate Xuan Bird, Little Black naturally knew how extraordinary Xu Ke's luck was.

Purple-gold luck, one in a billion. Wherever he went, he could almost turn bad luck into good, facing challenges that turned auspicious, obtaining numerous treasures effortlessly, and encountering continuous opportunities.

How could someone like him easily die?

Certainly, luck wasn't omnipotent. Even those with great luck weren't immortal. Faced with calamities their life patterns couldn't withstand, there was still a risk of falling.

But besides relying on his own luck, Xu Ke also had the protection of Mr. Bai's red string. Even if it was just a fine thread on the red string, it could severely wound the top experts among the demonic beast clans, the "Crimson Nine Heads." Mr. Bai's strength was unimaginably powerful. From the last communication with Xu Ke, Little Black learned that there were still some strands left on Xu Ke's wrist. Little Black believed that, in the Xuanhuang Realm, regardless of the danger Xu Ke faced, the remaining red string should help him survive.

So, Little Black couldn't comprehend and couldn't accept Xu Ke's mysterious death. It swore to uncover the cause of Xu Ke's death.

After the restriction imposed by Emperor Three Mottled-Mask loosened, disregarding the restrictions this world imposed on it, Little Black forcefully left the beast world. It attempted to follow Xu Ke's life path to investigate the mystery of his death.

There were countless affiliated small worlds in the Xuanhuang Realm. Based on the bits and pieces of information from that year, it would be extremely difficult to uncover the truth. However, as the Heavenly Fate Xuan Bird and Xu Ke's former companion, guided by the mysterious fate, after spending thousands of years, Little Black coincidentally entered a vast small world. The floating corpse of the Crimson Nine Heads in the sky made Little Black realize it had finally found the right place.

After meeting the old friend, the Green Phoenix Bird, Little Black also learned the whole story from her.

When the fleeing Beast Taming Sect settled in a small world called the "Spiritual Void Realm," they went through a relatively stable development period. Although the spiritual energy concentration in the Spiritual Void Realm was weaker than in the Xuanhuang Realm, it could still barely meet the disciples' survival needs. Due to the continued existence of the restriction prohibiting the simultaneous cultivation of different techniques, the Beast Taming Sect formulated two future plans. One was to concentrate the most talented disciples and have the sect leader and elders teach them their lifelong knowledge, hoping that this group could derive new techniques for the Beast Taming Sect disciples to practice. The second was to develop a method that could establish a mental connection with demonic beasts without practicing the "Beast Taming True Art."

One was the "Derived Technique," and the other was the "Beast Taming." Both methods worked together. Given enough time, the Beast Taming Sect might not be unable to regain its past glory.

Although Xu Ke had mediocre comprehension talent, he had a natural affinity for various demonic beasts. So, at the sect leader's suggestion, he became a member of the organization researching new beast-taming methods. He spent his days observing the Beast Taming Sect's treasure, the "Myriad Beast Rotating Wheel," and wholeheartedly studied without realizing the passing of time.

However, one day, Xu Ke received news that his senior brother Lu Ya was seriously injured and in a coma. Extremely shocked, ignoring everyone's opposition, he quietly returned to the Xuanhuang Realm.

At that time, a terrifying miasma emanated from ordinary people's bodies, filling the entire cultivation world. After Xu Ke returned to the Xuanhuang Realm, he also inevitably contracted this illness. Fortunately, he was lucky, recovering inexplicably after seven days.

At this time, the dying Lu Ya seemed to sense Xu Ke's arrival, suddenly woke up, and had a completely healthy appearance. Xu Ke knew that Lu Ya's recovery was a sign of imminent death. He was instantly overcome with grief.

Lu Ya, with a gentle expression, sent everyone else away, calling Xu Ke to his bedside alone.

That night, no one knew what the two said.

From that day on, Xu Ke stayed at the original site of the Beast Taming Sect in the Xuanhuang Realm. Until the initiation of the great migration plan, he, as the representative of the only remaining member of the Beast Taming Sect, was responsible for migrating countless ordinary people to the Absolute Spirit Small World.

Centuries passed in a blink of an eye.

The last group of ordinary people to depart was the small world where Xu Ke encountered the Crimson Nine Heads.

After assisting all the ordinary people in completing the final migration, Xu Ke, for some unknown reason, never returned to the Beast Taming Sect in the "Spiritual Void Realm." He even actively cut off all contacts. Since then, he lived incognito, hiding as a common person.

Of course, it wasn't a purely mundane lifestyle.

In situations where people around him couldn't perceive, he used the six severed heads of the Crimson Nine Heads, which were left in this world, as incubators. Using some gentle-natured demonic beasts brought out from the Beast Taming Sect as seedlings, he began to cultivate and propagate various mutated demonic beasts.

Little Blue and Little Red, the two fortunate birds that always followed Xu Ke, although they didn't understand his purpose, continuously helped Xu Ke and meticulously recorded all research results.

After several generations of cultivation, the variety and number of mutated demonic beasts increased. Although these mutated demonic beasts were weaker than the original ones, the hostility in their bloodline correspondingly decreased. At least, they wouldn't recklessly attack humans.

After many years passed, the number of newly born exotic species in this world had reached an extremely prosperous level.

One day, for some unknown reason, the Crimson Nine Heads appeared again.

Seeming somewhat uneasy, it observed for a long time from the sky. Only after seeing no threats did it finally relax. Accompanying it was a brown giant eagle. Both looked quite ragged, with many scorched marks on their bodies.

"If I knew, I would have left with Emperor One. Why endure this bird air in the Xuanhuang Realm!"

"Without the great leadership of Emperor One, our demonic beasts are indeed getting worse year by year. We thought humans would quickly perish after the great calamity, but unexpectedly, formidable individuals kept emerging! It's truly unreasonable!"

"That guy from the Purple Heaven Sect is not bad, not as outrageous. Speaking of real powerhouses, back in the day, I was here..."

"Tsk tsk, the scars on my head still ache from time to time!"

The two terrifying demonic beasts conversed in the sky without reservation, regarding the numerous ordinary people in this world as a source of replenishing their blood energy.

"Hehe, big brother, don't worry. Once we devour this realm and restore our strength, we'll go settle scores with those guys!" The giant eagle stared straight at the trembling ordinary people below, saliva almost dripping.

However, among demonic beasts, the hierarchy was strict.

"Big brother, please go first!" The giant eagle suppressed its hunger and said pleasingly.

The Crimson Nine Heads coldly snorted. Its body instantly swelled again, and its only three heads opened their enormous mouths, ready to swallow this world.

However, at this moment, it saw a familiar red.

"How is this possible?..."

This time, the Crimson Nine Heads wasn't as lucky as the last time.

A thread pierced through its body, pulling it down from beyond the world.

Seeing the big brother beside it being instantly killed, the giant eagle was immediately frightened out of its wits.

Without caring about any kinship, it turned into a black light and fled in panic.

To human eyes, it was difficult to see the whole situation. They only felt that the two fierce demonic beasts in the sky, about to commit evil deeds, were killed by an immortal.

Those fortunate to survive cheered and praised the immortal's grace and might.

Only Xu Ke in the crowd silently touched the red string that had become thinner, saying nothing.

(End of this chapter)