Yunxi did not expect Ming Jia to ask so bluntly. She thought for a moment before replying:
"This Lord believes that if we only allow one or two cultivators to ascend, we will never truly understand the current situation of the Spirit Realm."
Ming Jia let out a sigh. He understood what Yunxi meant, but being in this state of having his eyes covered and his ears blocked filled him with an inexplicable sense of restlessness.
Hao Yi glanced at Yunxi, then asked straightforwardly, "Ran Xi, what do you have in mind?"
Yunxi brushed her fingers lightly over the suppressive talisman embroidered into her robe before speaking slowly:
"Honored seniors, you all know this well. Even if a cultivator successfully ascends right now, they likely won't be able to send accurate news back to the Weiyu Realm.
The senior from Mingjian Gate died to deliver his message back to us. He told us to guard the Weiyu Realm well. As long as our realm stands strong, they can hold on as well.
We might not have fully understood his words back then, but now, I believe everyone realizes why the Weiyu Realm is being targeted so relentlessly by the evil cultivators. As long as the body of the Evil God remains sealed and out of their reach, we will never know peace.
But in turn, as long as the Weiyu Realm remains secure, the Evil God cannot fully return without his complete body.
We must assume the worst. Perhaps the only piece the Evil God is missing is the part of his body sealed within our realm. If not, he would have already returned completely."
She paused out of habit, letting her words sink in.
Hao Yi, Yu Ling, Ming Jia, and Xiang Sizi showed no change in expression. Clearly, this was a possibility they had already considered themselves.
Ming Jia closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, he asked, "If this is true, the evil cultivators will never leave the Weiyu Realm alone. We cannot just sit here waiting for death."
Yunxi nodded. "Of course not. Otherwise, Han Lian, Xun Kun, Yun Chen Fózǐ, and I wouldn't have been suppressing our cultivation so hard to avoid ascension. At least the four of us can handle Out-of-Body evil cultivators who descend with suppressed cultivation.
Last time, we worked together to kill their Out-of-Body cultivator. Next time, when they reopen the passage between realms, they may send a Unity-level cultivator. By then, even we might be powerless."
Xiang Sizi's bright eyes glinted as she said, "Ran Xi, that's what worries us most. I was even thinking of trading with you for a breakthrough potion so I could reach late-stage Divine Transformation. At least that way, I could fight back when they attack. I've never been fond of just standing there and taking hits."
Yunxi understood the nature of this "Five Poisons Senren," someone who never allowed herself to be disadvantaged. So she continued, "That brings me to what I was about to propose. If sending one or two cultivators to ascend doesn't work, why not send more? Ten? A hundred?"
Ming Jia frowned. "You mean to have all the late-stage Divine Transformation cultivators ascend at once?"
"Yes."
Yu Ling interjected, "But with the Weiyu Realm's current state, it cannot possibly support a hundred Out-of-Body ascensions at the same time."
That was a fact.
Yunxi's lips curved into a faint smile. "My ultimate goal isn't to drain the Weiyu Realm dry by forcing mass ascension. What I intend is to use an array, combined with the pull of the ascension channel, to make the entire Weiyu Realm ascend."
"What? The entire Weiyu Realm?"
Xiang Sizi's jaw dropped in shock.
Hao Yi and Ming Jia exchanged a look, thinking Yunxi's idea was wildly unrealistic. Yu Ling, however, rubbed the Hive pendant at her waist, seemingly considering the possibility.
After a moment, Yu Ling asked, "Ran Xi, can you explain the reasoning behind this plan?"
Yunxi nodded and began to elaborate: "This thought came to me when we destroyed the teleportation channel in the Central Region. The main inspiration came from the Demon-Slaying Array provided by Yunmen Temple. That formation requires cultivators of at least Out-of-Body level to deploy.
But all of you know that anyone reaching Out-of-Body in the Weiyu Realm immediately ascends. Yet Yunmen Temple preserved this formation, which proves that, in the past, the Weiyu Realm could support Mahayana Zhēnzūn, just like the Weiling Realm.
Now the Weiyu Realm has fallen to a lower realm. I boldly speculate that this is tied to the evil cultivators. Most importantly, the Evil God's body is sealed here. That's why they have suppressed our realm so heavily.
Think about it. Which is easier to conquer: a small world with Mahayana Zhēnzūn or one capped at late-stage Divine Transformation?
The fact that we can only nurture late-stage Divine Transformation cultivators proves this realm has an energy ceiling. I'm certain that the seal on the Evil God's body drains our realm's energy. Under the influence of multiple factors, the Weiyu Realm was forced down to the lower realms.
Now, either our realm depletes all its power and the seal fails completely, allowing the Evil God's return, or we fight to the bitter end, only to be overwhelmed. Either way, our realm becomes their territory, and all life within it will be sacrificed to unseal him."
Xiang Sizi sighed. "So what you're saying is that the Weiyu Realm is doomed no matter what?"
Yunxi shook her head. "Not entirely. There's still another way. We could wait for righteous cultivators from the upper realms to save us. But first, they'd need to destroy the channel the evil cultivators built in the Wuwang Ruins, cutting off their endless reinforcements into the Weiling Realm.
Only after that battle could they spare the strength to help us. That's likely why the senior from Mingjian Gate told us to hold on."
Yu Ling shook her head. "Relying on others is worse than relying on ourselves. If the righteous cultivators in the upper realms are tied down, and you all are forced to ascend, losing this layer of protection, we'll face another invasion. Next time, we won't be so lucky."
Ming Jia lowered his gaze, fingers moving ceaselessly as he calculated Yunxi's plan's chances of success. Suddenly, he understood what Feng Fen meant when he said someone would come up with a solution. Perhaps this seemingly impossible plan could save their realm from destruction.
The cave fell silent. Everyone was weighing the feasibility of Yunxi's bold idea.
Her reasoning stemmed from the structure of the cultivation world. The Three Thousand Worlds are divided into upper, middle, and lower realms. A small world takes a tremendously long time to be born, flourish, and decline.
In her previous life, Blue Star had already existed for 4.57 billion years. If the Weiyu Realm was chosen by the God Realm to seal the Evil God's body, it couldn't be an ordinary small world. Her only conclusion was that it had been deliberately suppressed.
Considering how similar the names "Weiyu Realm" and "Weiling Realm" were, she dared to guess that the Weiyu Realm was once part of the Weiling Realm but was separated and cast down to imprison the Evil God's body.
Ming Jia suddenly looked up and asked, "If the Evil God's body is unsealed before your plan succeeds, what then?"