Ni Shihuang suspected that Wei Tu's return to Zheng Kingdom had something to do with the Great Void Realm.
Otherwise, why would he suddenly abandon the Three Divisions of Kang Kingdom and come to such a dangerous place under demonic control?
"Contact the sect immediately and pull all recent intelligence on Wei Tu in Kang Kingdom."
Ni Shihuang gave the order coldly.
As soon as the words left her mouth, a hidden shadow in the void emerged, then vanished into the horizon in a flash of escape light.
Half a day later, the shadow returned, knelt on one knee before Ni Shihuang, and handed her a jade slip.
"A year ago, two fox-faced female cultivators pursued Wei Tu in Zhenwu Immortal City. They reached some kind of agreement and left together. Their whereabouts remain unknown..."
Ni Shihuang studied the sect's intelligence. A smile slowly formed on her lips.
Now she was confident—Wei Tu had been threatened by those two fox-faced women, which was why he had no choice but to leave Kang Kingdom and come to Zheng Kingdom.
Judging by the fact that both women had peak Golden Core cultivation, their goal was most likely the "sentient treasure" in the Great Void Realm.
Only a sentient treasure could drive them to take such a risk—chasing Wei Tu across the Three Divisions, then making a deal to leave with him.
"The only question is... did Wei Tu manage to break free and return to Kang Kingdom? Or is he headed to the Great Void Realm?"
Judging by the timeline, Ni Shihuang believed they had already reached the Great Void Realm.
But based on strength alone, she didn't think Wei Tu had the means to escape those two and return to Zheng Kingdom alive.
"Most likely delayed on the way. Next step... they'll head for the Great Void Realm in the Southern Desolate Wastes."
That was her assessment.
What Ni Shihuang didn't realize was just how far off her assumptions were from reality.
"Two peak Golden Core cultivators and two early-stage Golden Core... I can't handle that alone."
A hint of frustration flashed across Ni Shihuang's delicate face.
Merely supplying intelligence on Wei Tu and reporting his capture were two entirely different levels of merit. Capturing him—and offering up the Heaven-Mending Bowl—would be a monumental contribution.
Providing intelligence alone meant little, especially for someone like her, already high-ranking in the Heavenly Maiden Sect. At best, it might earn a bit of goodwill from a Nascent Soul elder.
And if it turned out to be a false lead, she wouldn't just lose out—she'd be held responsible.
After all, it was all based on her assumptions.
Plus, she had her own interest in the Heaven-Mending Bowl. There was no way she'd hand it over willingly.
"Blood God Son has been pursuing me for years. His strength isn't weak, and that Wind Cleaving Eagle of his recently advanced to Tier Three. His uncle, Blood Chuqing, is his protector—a late-stage Golden Core. And with the strength of the Ni family and that high-powered treasure…"
Ni Shihuang quickly formed a plan.
The other demonic sects only knew the Heavenly Maiden Sect was hunting Wei Tu, but didn't understand the real reasons behind it.
And as for the Heaven-Mending Bowl, apart from the sect's top brass, even Wei Tu—just a rogue cultivator—likely didn't understand what it really was. He probably assumed it was just a common oddity.
That's why Ni Shihuang was confident: once she killed Wei Tu, she could cover everything up and quietly claim the Heaven-Mending Bowl for herself.
…
Meanwhile—
After leaving Yunhe Mountain, Wei Tu didn't linger in Zheng Kingdom. He traveled swiftly and carefully toward the Southern Desolate Wastes.
On the way, he passed through Nanhang City and paid respects at Xinghua's grave.
Before he smuggled himself into Kang Kingdom last time, Wei Tu had secretly relocated her grave.
So this time, his visit didn't alarm any of the Heavenly Maiden Sect disciples stationed to watch over it.
"Hmm? Ni Shihuang's aura?"
One month later, in a border marketplace—
As Wei Tu was wandering the street, preparing to gather information on the Great Void Realm, Bai Zhi suddenly spoke from where she was hidden on him.
"Ni Shihuang?"
Wei Tu raised an eyebrow. He'd just stirred up trouble with the Heshan Ni clan, and now Ni Shihuang showed up nearby? It couldn't be a coincidence.
"Where is she?"
He didn't use his spiritual sense recklessly, choosing instead to ask Bai Zhi.
Unlike him, Bai Zhi was a Golden Core cultivator of the Heavenly Maiden Sect and could sense her own sect's members through special means.
Over sixty years ago, when Bai Zhi first surrendered to him, she had sensed Ni Shihuang's presence on the Southern Desolate Wastes before he did.
"Five hundred steps ahead, to your left. She just used a Heavenly Maiden Sect secret art to contact another cultivator. That's how I managed to sense her."
Bai Zhi gave him the direction and explained why she could detect her.
"Six in total. Four men, two women. They're suppressing their presence very well. Likely all Golden Core."
With Bai Zhi's warning, Wei Tu took a closer look and realized there were five other cultivators near Ni Shihuang with unclear but strong auras.
He frowned immediately.
Including Ni Shihuang, that was six Golden Core cultivators. Even if they were all early-stage, cultivators from orthodox sects were never easy to handle.
"They may not be looking for me."
"But just in case... I should find out what their real goal is first."
Wei Tu narrowed his eyes slightly. With a flip of his palm, he released two Seven-Colored Phantom Moths to quietly trail behind Ni Shihuang's group of six.
He then retreated to the other side of the marketplace and casually rented a cave dwelling. There, he patiently waited for Ni Shihuang's group to reveal the purpose of their trip.
"Great Void Realm? Fox-faced female cultivators?"
An hour later, Wei Tu learned the group's objective through the moths. Like him, they were here to gather intel on recent developments regarding the Great Void Realm.
However, their focus differed.
Ni Shihuang was particularly interested in terms like "fox-faced female cultivators," "traveling as four," and "three men, one woman."
"Looks like this junior of mine really came here for you, Fellow Daoist Wei," Bai Zhi said with a quiet smile. "After she received intelligence from the Heshan Ni clan and Kang Kingdom, she assumed you were still in the hands of Hu Shan and Qi Chengchu… that's why she came to the Southern Desolate Wastes."
"But the information she received is limited. At the very least, she doesn't know that Su Bing'er was also with you in Zheng Kingdom. That makes five of you in total."
Bai Zhi gave a light laugh.
It didn't take much analysis for her to realize that Ni Shihuang's intel was incomplete.
"A blind cat stumbling onto a dead rat… She just happened to match your true path by accident."
If Ni Shihuang really thought Wei Tu was returning to Kang Kingdom, she should've been lying in wait near the smuggling route at the Black Blood Marsh—not wandering the Southern Desolate Wastes.
After all, the secret tunnel between Kang and Zheng Kingdom, hidden in the Southern Desolate Wastes, was a closely guarded secret.
"If she came here to try her luck, then I might as well head for the Black Blood Marsh," Wei Tu muttered with a frown.
Things were different now. His strength and cultivation were no longer low. He had confidence that he could safely pass through the marsh.
After all, Hu Shan and Qi Chengchu had escorted him through once before.
It had only been about a year since then. The route should still be safe.
"Wise choice, Fellow Daoist," Bai Zhi said approvingly with a faint smile. Compared to facing six Golden Core cultivators, the danger of the Black Blood Marsh was hardly worth mentioning.
At this point, crossing the marsh really was the best option.
Still, Wei Tu didn't leave immediately.
First, thanks to Ni Shihuang's group stirring up the area, he hadn't had the chance to inquire about the current situation at the Great Void Realm.
He still didn't know if Che Gongwei and the others had made it out safely.
Second, leaving too hastily might draw attention. Ni Shihuang and her group could be deliberately baiting him.
It was safer to wait a while before departing this border market.
Wei Tu quietly bided his time.
Two days later, Ni Shihuang's group seemed to have found the information they wanted. The six of them left the border market, flying toward the Southern Desolate Wastes.
Wei Tu used the opportunity to recall the last of his Seven-Colored Phantom Moths still trailing them.
Unfortunately, this moth hadn't gathered much intel—only that one of the male cultivators was called "Blood God Son."
Wei Tu not only knew of Blood God Son, but had once interacted with him under the alias "Xu Xing," thanks to a referral from Gong Shulan.
Even though the moth hadn't uncovered much, Wei Tu had another way to retrieve the intel Ni Shihuang's group had gathered in the last two days.
The moth had remembered the appearances and auras of the demonic cultivators they had spoken to in the marketplace.
Wei Tu then tracked down each of those individuals, using the moths' hypnotic ability to extract the information he needed.
The intel revealed:
Roughly ten days ago, a fierce battle broke out near the Great Void Realm. Cultivators from the Hehuan Sect and Heaven-Slaughter Demon Palace suffered heavy losses, while several righteous cultivators managed to escape.
The remaining demonic cultivators scoured the Southern Desolate Wastes in fury but found nothing.
The report didn't clearly state the identities, names, or origins of the righteous cultivators, but Wei Tu cross-referenced the timing and made an educated guess—they were likely Che Gongwei's group.
"Che Gongwei chased all the way from Golden Long Valley and even crossed the Black Blood Marsh… With the old demon Heavenly Corpse and Su Bing'er at his side, they'll be fine returning to Kang Kingdom."
With that thought, Wei Tu felt a weight lifted from his heart and began preparing to leave.
But—
Just as he was about to step out of the marketplace, he suddenly sensed a powerful magical fluctuation from a hundred miles away.
The intensity had clearly surpassed the Golden Core level. It was at the Nascent Soul tier.
"Old Demon Jiuchuan! You dare kill my Dao companion? You're dead! I'll never forgive you!"
A thunderous roar echoed across the Southern Desolate Wastes, shaking the soul.
A moment later, a young male cultivator clad in a star-patterned robe appeared in midair. He had a dignified, radiant presence, and his Dao body was dozens of zhang tall—like a towering giant.
Wei Tu had seen this man once before, while spying on Lady Lan in the Stone Demon Tower.
He was none other than Lady Lan's Nascent Soul Dao companion—"Master Jiu Li," a renowned rogue cultivator from Zheng Kingdom.
But unlike the calm demeanor he'd shown in the Stone Demon Tower, Master Jiu Li now looked furious, consumed by rage.
"Lady Lan is dead? And it was Old Demon Jiuchuan who killed her?" Wei Tu was stunned.
In Wei Tu's eyes, there was no real conflict of interest between the two. There shouldn't have been a reason for them to clash.
Last time, hadn't Jiuchuan's avatar, Gui Luo Demon Lord, even spared Lady Lan?
He clearly remembered that when they left the Stone Demon Tower, Lady Lan was targeting "Qi Chengchu," who had taken the blame for him—not Gui Luo.
"Nascent Soul Dharma Form?"
Wei Tu was still wondering what triggered the conflict, but Bai Zhi was more shocked by Master Jiu Li's body that now stretched dozens of zhang tall.
The Dharma Form was also called "Heaven-Earth Form." It was a divine ability exclusive to the Divine Transformation Realm, akin to how Nascent Soul cultivators could project their soul out of their body. Cultivators below that realm should have had no way to learn it.
Bai Zhi couldn't figure out how a mid-stage rogue Nascent Soul cultivator like Master Jiu Li could wield such a technique.
"My Dao companion wasn't killed by me. It was someone else. If you want to blame someone, go find the old scorpion freak from the Soul-Capturing Sect," said Gui Luo Demon Lord coldly, his eyes revealing a trace of dread.
He hadn't expected this. The hunter had become the hunted.
The ones who entered the Stone Demon Tower with him—Hu Shan, Qi Chengchu, and Gong Shulan—were anything but ordinary Golden Core cultivators.
Especially Hu Shan. He had on him a "Spirit Transformation Talisman," crafted by his master, the "Scorpion Ancestor," using soul essence. That was what got Gui Luo entranced and made him kill Lady Lan with a single blow.
"I'll deal with that old scorpion freak myself. But you killed my Dao companion. You're not getting off the hook."
Master Jiu Li snorted coldly. He summoned a massive hand of starlight that stretched toward Gui Luo.
"How dare you!" Gui Luo's face changed. He hadn't expected that even after his explanation, Master Jiu Li would still come for him.
He slapped his brow, transforming into a long-haired ghost wrapped in deathly aura. Then he pulled an iron bangle from his arm and shouted, "Swift!"
The bangle, charged with ghostly energy, swelled against the wind and turned into a massive crimson moon several zhang wide.
Gui Luo held up the moon and hurled it at the starry hand.
But something unexpected happened.
That crimson moon, which looked fearsome, dimmed and disintegrated the moment it touched the starry hand.
Then, the hand clenched.
Gui Luo was instantly trapped inside the grip.
"Die with her."
Master Jiu Li's voice was icy.
In the blink of an eye, Gui Luo was crushed into dust. Several ghost-path treasures and a storage ring clattered to the ground.
"A Divine Transformation cultivation technique?"
Noticing the storage ring, Master Jiu Li raised an eyebrow and reached out to collect it into his sleeve.
With Gui Luo dealt with, Master Jiu Li turned his gaze toward the underground palace. His tone went cold.
"Hu Shan, Qi Chengchu, and Ning Yan—come out."
"You three all bear some blame for my Dao companion's death. Especially you, Hu Shan… the Scorpion Ancestor's second disciple."
When he said "Hu Shan," killing intent flared in his eyes. His pupils even began to glow red.
With that, he lifted his hand and summoned a long sword of starlight.
He brought it down hard.
The slash crashed toward the underground palace.
Under the Heaven-Earth Form, this sword strike shook the world.
The ground across the Southern Desolate Wastes trembled. Even near Wei Tu's border town, everything shook slightly.
The underground palace hidden below the earth cracked open under the blow. Barriers shattered. Formations collapsed.
From the top down, the entire structure split in two.
Just when all the cultivators watching thought those inside were doomed, a blinding golden glow surged from beneath the ground.
A dazzling array shield sprang up in an instant, completely blocking the residual sword energy.
Inside the formation, Qi Chengchu sat cross-legged with his eyes closed. Next to him stood Hu Shan, wearing a pale pink and white gown, her face masked like a fox. Her aura was both elegant and seductive.
"Fellow Daoist Hu Shan, help me buy a little more time. Whether this false infant succeeds in awakening, whether we make it out of here… depends on this formation."
Qi Chengchu's tone was resolute.
This "Heaven-Stealing Essence Array" was his life's work. Over the years, he had refined it step by step into a fourth-grade formation.
Once, he had hoped to use it to forcibly form a Nascent Soul. But no one in history had ever succeeded. Eventually, he gave up and settled for a false infant obtained through a deal with the Soul-Capturing Sect.
Now, at the edge of death, there was no time to hesitate.
If it succeeded, the false infant would become real, and he would ascend to Nascent Soul.
If it failed, he had no regrets.
"Alright. I'll trust you this once, Fellow Daoist Qi."
Hu Shan nodded. She pulled a red talisman from her robes and pressed it to her forehead.
In a flash, she transformed from a young fairy into a powder-white fox the size of a small house.
Unlike ordinary foxes, this one had three tails and gave off a sacred, almost divine air.