Three days later, every cultivator in the Weiyu Realm who had reached the threshold of the Out-of-Body stage found the safest, most secure place they could. They sat cross-legged in silence, making their final preparations.
In the Baohua Mountain Range, the White-Browed Old Ape, and in the Qinghua Mountain Range, the Armored Carp Stone Beast, also quietly chose their spots. Both were circulating their beast power in secret, hoping to use the cultivators' momentum to break through to the sixth tier. The thought alone made them excited.
Yunxi, Han Lian, Yun Chen, and Xun Kun stood guard over the four regions, prepared to lend the Weiyu Realm a hand at the crucial moment. Success or failure hinged on this day, and even they felt the weight of tension in their hearts.
Three days earlier, Yunxi had taken Li Li and Dian Dian to Yunxiao Sea to scout things out. The two creatures huddled in her arms the entire time, unwilling to stick their heads out. Dian Dian covered his nose and squeaked, "Master, let's get out of here quickly! This sea is full of corruption. It stinks!"
Li Li's dark eyes gleamed, and he added in a low voice, "Zūnzhě, the sea beasts here have already been tainted. The stronger ones are beginning to turn into evil creatures. It won't be long before they completely fall."
Yunxi's apricot eyes narrowed. "I understand."
She had been tempted to strike at the sealed area of Yunxiao Sea again but decided against provoking the enemy with the ascension plan only three days away. She swiftly left, narrowly avoiding a tendril of corrupted energy that lashed up from the depths of the sea.
But Yunxi was never one to fight without preparation. To ensure the evil god would not sabotage the ascension, she secretly instructed the wolf king Xue Li to take the Hong Energy Barrier to Yunxiao Sea. At her command, he would activate it to seal off the area completely. Though doing so would drain her entire supply of energy cores, she dared not risk the slightest chance of failure.
Now, Yunxi floated in the skies above the Western Region, her gaze locking with Han Lian, Yun Chen, and Xun Kun in the distance. Within moments, clouds of tribulation began to gather. The surge of power came from those seasoned Divine Transformation cultivators who could no longer suppress their cultivation. The instant they released their aura, lightning tribulation targeted them.
Almost simultaneously, Xue Li activated the Hong Energy Barrier. A massive transparent shield covered all of Yunxiao Sea, hiding its presence from both the tainted beasts below and the sealed body of the evil god.
When the first late-stage Divine Transformation cultivator survived the lightning tribulation and successfully advanced to the Out-of-Body stage, spiritual rain poured from the heavens. The spiritual energy in the realm grew noticeably denser.
That first breakthrough was like a spark setting fire to dry grass. Cultivators across the five regions triggered their tribulations one after another. Within two hours, the sky of the entire Weiyu Realm was blanketed in dark tribulation clouds. With each cultivator's success, more spiritual rain fell, and more ascension passages to the upper realm opened, sending countless beams of guiding light down to the five regions.
Naturally, some failed their tribulations. At least thirty Divine Transformation cultivators perished, their pure spiritual energy returning to the Weiyu Realm as their final gift to the land they called home.
The four stood watch, divine senses fully spread. At their level, they could observe every corner of the realm with precision. When Yunxi sensed the White-Browed Old Ape and the Armored Carp Stone Beast also attempting ascension, her lips twitched slightly. So, even beasts were lining up to hitch a ride.
Moments later, the entire Weiyu Realm began to tremble. The ascension passages tugged on the very fabric of the land, causing the continent itself to rise.
"It's time!"
The four shed their suppressive robes, releasing their Out-of-Body auras. Since they had all long passed their tribulations, their ascent was immediate.
Breaking free of the Weiyu Realm, they halted in the void above and began weaving complex hand seals, connecting threads of space and time to forge more links between the Weiyu Realm and the upper realm. This would hasten the ascension process.
It was like tying countless ropes between a small stone and a massive boulder, then drawing them tighter and tighter until the two came together. Each ascension passage created by a tribulation was a rope, and their job was to pull them all tight as fast as possible.
To Yunxi's eyes, the cosmos was now a web of glowing threads. Her fingers formed seal after seal, manipulating her mastery over the Law of Space-Time to draw the lines closer, narrowing the gap between realms.
In less than fifteen minutes, the spiritual power in her dantian was completely depleted. She had no choice but to multitask: letting Li Li pour restorative potions into her mouth while Xiao Xian, nestled at her chest, transmitted pure spiritual energy into her body. Her fingers blurred as she continued her hand seals, leaving afterimages in the air.
Han Lian fared little better, though Bai Feng's support allowed her to endure. Yun Chen's chest gleamed with a relic, providing an endless stream of Buddhist power to fuel his efforts.
Xun Kun's wrist was coiled with a supreme demonic vein, funneling pure demonic qi into his meridians. Kunmo Sect had clearly emptied its coffers for this moment, offering him their strongest treasure.
Thanks to their efforts, the entire Weiyu Realm slowly began to ascend. Cheers rang out from the cultivators who remained below. "We did it! It's working!"
Their joy was short-lived. Yunxiao Sea's tremors intensified, and the Hong Energy Barrier flickered violently under assault.
Xue Li swapped out the energy cores with practiced speed. Ran Xi Zūnzhě's orders were clear: if every core was drained, he was to abandon the sea and retreat as fast as possible.
Every hair on Xue Li's body stood on end. He could feel it, a dark and monstrous presence beneath Yunxiao Sea struggling to break free.
At the same time, the Grand Array began to falter. Its eighty-one interlocking formations across the realm unraveled in rapid succession. The collapse was so swift that even the guardians stationed at the nodes couldn't intervene in time. Dread gripped every heart.
Yunxi and her companions also sensed it—their realm's ascension was slowing. They knew exactly why, but there was no turning back. All they could do was squeeze every last drop of power from their bodies, shortening the gap between the Weiyu Realm and the Weiling Realm. The closer they got, the sooner help would come.
Pain bloomed in their dantians, a sign they were nearing their limits.
Li Li had lost track of how many vials of medicine he had poured into Yunxi's mouth. Her face was pale, yet she refused to stop. Bai Feng, bound by his contract to Han Lian, had already exhausted his cultivation. His once-radiant demon core now dimmed.
The relic at Yun Chen's chest shrank to the size of a bean before finally merging into his brow. Chanting a calm Buddhist prayer, he continued forming seals without the slightest trace of panic, even as his body threatened to collapse.
Xun Kun had already drained the demonic vein dry. He threw back a vial of breakthrough elixir—one he'd acquired from Ran Xi—and forced himself onward. He refused to be the first to give up, not when his comrades were fighting to their last breath.
Yunxi knew well that the strength of four cultivators alone was not enough to lift an entire realm, but she refused to surrender. Just as all four bodies began to fracture under the strain, a streak of violet light appeared in the starry sky.