While Wu Yuan fled frantically, Archimmortals and Astral Lords from various factions of the Dao Realm were rushing towards the Snowlight Mist Realm. However, it would still take them some time to arrive.
Meanwhile, Astral Lord Gu Shou and other Astral Lords and Archimmortals, who had set out at the earliest possible notice under Astral Monarch Ya Hei’s orders, had already successively arrived at and entered the Snowlight Mist Realm.
The news could only be concealed for seven days, but it was worth it.
Being seven days faster than other Astral Monarchs, this is the advantage of being the first mover. Even Astral Monarch Ya Hei’s own mana body had already arrived outside the Snowlight Mist Realm.
Whether my subordinate Archimmortals capture this Ming Jian, or if Ming Jian chooses to strike a deal with me, as long as I obtain the Black Devil Star, it counts as a success.
I hope he chooses to negotiate with me. Astral Monarch Ya Hei was reluctant to become enemies with Wu Yuan.
Through some channels, he had communicated with powerful imprint bearers from the Spacetime Island and obtained detailed intelligence on Wu Yuan.
He knew this individual was a Dao Master Imprint bearer and member of the Taiyuan Divine Court, named ‘Ming Jian’.
Most crucially, Ming Jian had only been cultivating for less than a thousand years, which was what Astral Monarch Ya Hei found most intimidating and inconceivable.
However, although he was unwilling to sow enmity, such a matter was insignificant compared to gaining the Black Devil Star.
…
After fleeing through a maze of ice crevasses for two full days, Wu Yuan finally left the range of the Myriad Mountains Ice Plain.
During this time, he encountered many High Immortals and High Deities, far more than before. Clearly, a considerable portion had arrived here specifically to search for him.
However, Wu Yuan managed to avoid all of them with his powerful perceptive abilities.
The Frost Mist Sea, I’m back here again. Wu Yuan entered the vast and unfathomable Frost Mist Sea, a slight smile appearing on his face.
The first time he came to the Snowlight Mist Realm, it was with Kou Lei and Zhuo Haiyue. Together, they had made their way through the Frost Mist Sea, adventuring and exploring.
Although the Frost Mist Sea was vast and seemingly more dangerous than the Myriad Mountains Ice Plain, Wu Yuan had one enormous advantage here – the spatial suppression force was weak, allowing him to enter higher spatial dimensions. Thus, traveling through this area would actually be safer and quicker for him.
With a thought, Wu Yuan enveloped himself in the fluctuations of the Law of Space.
He swiftly entered the Fragmentary Spatial Layer, where torrents of spatial fragments flowed endlessly, yet it made Wu Yuan feel at ease.
In the Fragmentary Spatial Layer, even fifth or sixth-stage Archimmortal level powerhouses couldn’t hope to catch up to him.
Only Astral Lords, shattering laws with their overwhelming power, could maintain an ultra-high speed of ten thousand li per second in the Fragmentary Spatial Layer even if they weren’t skilled in the Law of Space. If expanded to the lower spatial dimension, it would be equivalent to advancing hundreds of millions of li in a second.
Whoosh! Wu Yuan traveled through the Fragmentary Spatial Layer with ease, covering over ten thousand li in a second.
And so, Wu Yuan traversed the Frost Mist Sea, with a maximum diameter of over a trillion li, in just a few hours.
Along the way, he encountered many High Immortals and High Deities, and even numerous Archimmortals and Archdeities, yet none of them detected Wu Yuan.
Then, he entered the Hundred Gales Domain. It was known as the most perilous area in the Inner Region, and spatial fluctuations were similarly suppressed here.
I’m unable to enter higher spatial dimensions, I’ll have to be more careful. Wu Yuan cautiously navigated through the area.
Space was distorted in this area, greatly limiting soul perception. However, the greatest danger was the streaks of icy gales appearing in the void. They materialized out of nowhere, and once struck, even an Archdeity might perish outright despite their powerful vitality.
This place was extremely dangerous, rivaling some hazardous areas in the Core Region.
Originally, Wu Yuan wouldn’t have been willing to come to the Hundred Gales Domain at all, but now he had no choice.
Taking alternative routes might be safer, but they would take too long. I might not even make it out of the Inner Region before those Astral Lords arrive to hunt me down.
Only by entering the Hundred Gales Domain and crossing it within ten days will I be able to leave the Inner Region directly. Wu Yuan had already thought it through thoroughly.
Even if he decided to go with concealing the Black Devil Star in a hidden location, the Hundred Gales Domain was also an excellent option.
…
Wu Yuan arduously advanced through the Hundred Gales Domain, avoiding one hazard after another.
Meanwhile, in a region of outer space not too far from him, a massive iceberg floated.
At the foot of the iceberg was a platform that resembled an ice plain. A figure in silver armor sat in lotus position here.
“Haiyue, have you sensed him through your karmic connection?” A childish voice resonated in Zhuo Haiyue’s mind.
“Mm.” Zhuo Haiyue’s expression was cold. The vital aura she emanated was strong and vigorous.
“Tsk tsk! Truly worthy of being 100% compatible with the Thunder Saint Imprint. Haiyue, your progress surpasses my imagination. You’ve mastered this karmic secret art so quickly,” the childish voice continued.
“If I hadn’t reached the Dao Field stage of the Greater Law of Thunder, I wouldn’t be able to master the karmic secret art even after many more years. Otherwise, why would I bother fusing with the imprint?” Zhuo Haiyue responded indifferently.
“That’s true. Haiyue, you’ve now become a High Immortal and have perfectly fused with the imprint. Next, as long as you follow the steps to integrate and comprehend it, you will face no more bottlenecks in your progress until the ninth-level Dao Field stage. Only the final step.” the childish voice said.
“Hmm.” Zhuo Haiyue listened, her beautiful face betraying little joy. In fact, a hint of coldness gleamed in the depths of her eyes.
“You sensed Ming Jian’s aura through karma, are you planning to snatch the Black Devil Star he possesses? It’s quite a treasure, you might even get your hands on the Sovereign Black Devil’s artifacts…” the childish voice prattled on.
“You should go back now,” Zhuo Haiyue suddenly said.
“But—” the childish voice began to protest.
The voice vanished completely.
Whoosh! Zhuo Haiyue stood up, her body faintly radiating with lightning. Her eyes held a tinge of sorrow and coldness as she murmured to herself. Fusing with the vital aura imprint… Once the imprint is fully restored, will I still be me? To gain something, how much must I lose?
Yet, given another chance, I’d still make the same choice. If I hadn’t, I’d have remained as just another unremarkable immortal cultivator on the Redmoon Immortal Continent back then.
I have no regrets.
Boom! Zhuo Haiyue took a step forward, her body transforming into a bolt of lightning that vanished instantly into the vast space.
Evidently, she had entered a higher spatial dimension using her lightning movement arts.
…
The Hundred Gales Domain was a vast region filled with countless bizarre spatial corridors that led to different areas.
Numerous black mountains floated in the air. These mountains varied in size, some towering over a hundred million li, others merely tens of thousands li tall. Some were clustered densely, while others were separated by vast gaps.
But they were the only ‘coordinates’ in the Hundred Gales Domain. Only with these black mountains could one roughly determine their position.
Wu Yuan was currently walking through one section of the void.
Whoosh! In the distance, a terrifying force materialized out of thin air, followed immediately by what seemed like a massive blade, instantly slicing through the void, causing the space to subtly distort and warp.
It was too fast.
Not good! Wu Yuan’s expression changed involuntarily as his mind raced.
The celestial swords that had been hovering around him activated simultaneously, their sword domains erupting in unison. At the same time, the flow of time around him changed, amplifying the power of the nine celestial swords to their limit.
Boom! Boom! Boom! The sword domain instantly collided with the terrifying icy gale that cut through a hundred thousand li of space like a blade.
The impact caused the space to tremble slightly, and the celestial swords were sent flying. But it also slightly slowed the icy gale’s advance.
Seizing this opportunity, Wu Yuan’s figure split into nine, each phantom flying in different directions while deploying the sword domain. After fleeing tens of thousands of li, three of the phantoms were swept away and annihilated by the terrifying icy gale. Then, the cold light continued to surge into the distance.
The other six phantoms rapidly converged, reforming into Wu Yuan’s figure.
The surrounding void grew calm.
That was truly dangerous. Wu Yuan’s face turned slightly pale. This was the most perilous encounter he’d had since entering the Hundred Gales Domain.
Icy gales could appear from anywhere and were completely unpredictable. Wu Yuan gave a mental command, gathering the scattered celestial swords and examining them briefly. Two of the celestial swords showed signs of damage.
Even the celestial swords were nearly shattered. If I had been hit directly? Wu Yuan felt a chill run down his spine.
Their power was terrifying. It reminded him of that saber strike from High Deity Mi Yun he had faced before. This place truly deserved its reputation as a danger zone comparable to the Core Region.
It’s also because my mana capacity is too small. If I had the mana of a Sixth Tribulation High Immortal, would I struggle so much? Wu Yuan thought to himself.
But there was nothing he could do about it.
Choosing a direction, Wu Yuan continued on his journey.
…
On a black mountain over a hundred million li from Wu Yuan in the Hundred Gales Domain, several figures were gathered.
At the forefront was a lean, elderly man in black robes, with two pointed horns protruding from his forehead. He sat in lotus position on a black rock. The rock’s surface was smooth, clearly having been polished.
Not far from him, two black-armored men, one tall and one short, lay on the rocks.
“Big Brother,” the tall, burly man in black armor said in a low voice, “they’ve all rushed to the Myriad Mountains Ice Plain, why are we waiting here in the Hundred Gales Domain? Can we really encounter the Spacetime Sword Immortal?”
“There’s a small chance we might,” the elderly man in black said softly.
“A small chance? How small?” the tall man in black armor muttered.
“Fool! Third Brother, think about it. With so many Astral Monarchs offering bounties and numerous Astral Lords pouring in, if we followed the normal route to hunt Ming Jian, would we stand a chance?” the short man in black armor shook his head.
The tall man in black armor was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head.
“The Spacetime Sword Immortal’s direct combat strength isn’t impressive, but his ability to escape is first-rate. There are roughly nine routes to leave the Inner Region from the Myriad Mountains Ice Plain… Seven of these routes completely suppress spatial fluctuations.
Only two routes allow for one to enter a higher spatial dimension for part of the journey.
One of these routes is to pass through the Frost Mist Sea, then cross the Hundred Gales Domain to enter the Outer Region,” the short man in black armor explained. “That’s why Big Brother brought us to wait here.”
Realization dawned on the tall man in black armor.
“Of course, with so many routes and the vast size of the Hundred Gales Domain, our chances of actually encountering him are extremely slim,” the short man in black armor smiled. “Out of thousands of Astral Lords and tens of thousands of Archimmortals, only a few will claim the Astral Monarchs’ rewards.
It’s also possible that Ming Jian might return directly to the Spacetime Island. In the end, we’re just trying our luck,” the short man in black armor expounded.
Suddenly, the elderly man in black spoke, “It’s not about trying our luck anymore. Luck is on our side.” He opened his eyes, a glint of coldness shining within. “I believe the detection array I set up has sensed the Spacetime Sword Immortal’s presence.”