“How dare you bewitch me! You seek death!”

Gu Jie roared, his voice like thunder, instantly dissipating the woman's laughter.

With a flick of his wrist, the void in front of him rippled, and a cyan flying sword appeared out of thin air, swiftly shooting towards the woman in white.

Without any apparent movement from the woman, the snow lotus beneath her suddenly shone brightly, and a petal, as pure and flawless as jade, rose up, blocking her front.

A sharp "铮" sound rang out.

The tip of the cyan flying sword pierced into the snow lotus petal by about an inch, but could go no further, only humming and vibrating in mid-air.

Seeing this, Gu Jie made a sword incantation with both hands and silently chanted an incantation.

The runes on the cyan flying sword shone brightly, and a tiny, grain-sized cyan light suddenly appeared at the tip of the sword that pierced the snow lotus, emitting a rich wood attribute aura.

As this point of cyan light brightened, the entire snow lotus petal began to transform from a transparent white jade color to a crystal-clear emerald green.

A soft "噗" sound was heard.

The grain-sized, hazy cyan light flickered, suddenly unleashing a burst of bright light, from which a crystal-clear, jade-like green thread shot out. It was as thin as hair, looked weak, but its speed was astonishing, instantly piercing through the snow lotus petal and shooting into the flower bud.

Seeing this, the woman reclining in the snow lotus flower slightly narrowed her eyes and waved the leafless white flower in her hand, striking towards the green thread.

"噗, 噗," two more soft sounds followed.

The green thread directly pierced through two layers of petals before stopping, its light dimming before it dissipated. The white flower in the woman's hand also had two petals that turned black, withering and falling off.

"You really don't understand how to cherish the fairer sex."

The woman caressed the white flower with some resentment, then stood up and flicked her finger lightly at the tip of the cyan flying sword that was stuck in the snow lotus petal.

The cyan flying sword was immediately struck as if by lightning, emitting a mournful tremor, violently shaking as it flew away from the petal and spiraled back into Gu Jie's hand.

As soon as Gu Jie grasped the sword hilt, he suddenly felt an odd itch in his palm. Looking down, he saw that the sword hilt was covered in pink crystalline powder.

Before he could release his grip on the hilt, the crystalline powder flashed with light, and a swarm of colorful butterflies flew out, densely packed, quickly enveloping his entire body.

Gu Jie frowned, the runes on his armor flickered, and a burst of cyan light erupted. Thin cyan vines extended from the armor, densely packed, surging in all directions, instantly engulfing the butterflies and strangling them.

But at this moment, he was surprised to find that the white snow lotus and the woman in white had disappeared, and even their aura had vanished completely.

He twisted his body and looked around, horrified to find that the surroundings were empty, with nothing at all. Even the snowfield beneath him had disappeared.

"Hmph! A mere illusion, don't even think about trapping me..." Gu Jie murmured.

Having said that, he closed his eyes tightly, and his lips began to move silently.

As a low chant rang out, a glimmer of cyan light appeared in his palm, and the runes on his armor and the long sword in his hand shone brightly, releasing an emerald green light.

After a moment, he suddenly opened his eyes and, holding the sword with both hands, slashed downwards, shouting at the same time.

"Activate!"

Behind him in the void, cyan light surged, and seven thousand-zhang-tall cyan sword shadows, like collapsing mountains, crashed down with an unparalleled aura.

"轰轰轰..."

Rumbling sounds echoed continuously in the void, and the seven sword shadows fell one after another, causing the entire space to vibrate violently.

However, as this violent vibration gradually subsided, the surroundings remained empty, without the slightest change.

The expression in Gu Jie's eyes finally changed. He realized that he seemed to be in an absolutely void space.

"Friend Gu, I don't think there's any need for us to continue fighting. Can we sit down and talk now?" Just then, the woman in white's ethereal voice suddenly rang out in the surrounding void.

"What do you want to talk about?" Gu Jie asked.

"I have some understanding of what happened. This is just a mission from the alliance, and they are just executors. They have done nothing wrong," the woman in white said slowly.

"What a joke! Killing a True Immortal realm cultivator from my Immortal Palace who had a high chance of becoming a Celestial Pill Master, and you say they've done nothing wrong? Then wouldn't my seeking revenge be even more blameless?" Gu Jie roared angrily.

"Indeed, what you've done is not wrong either. But they killed one of yours, and you... killed more than just one member of the Wuchang Alliance, or rather, the Zhulong Path, haven't you?" the woman in white retorted.

"How can the lives of these people be compared to Ping Yaozi?" Gu Jie sneered.

"That's your position. From my position, you've already gone too far, and it's time to stop," the woman in white shook her head and said calmly.

"Unless the other two die, there's no way this matter will be over," Gu Jie snorted coldly and said resolutely.

"I'm only saying these things out of respect for the Bei Han Immortal Palace. If you continue to be unappreciative, although I may not be able to truly keep you here, I can still close your twelve apertures at the cost of a thousand years of seclusion, greatly diminishing your strength. Moreover, don't think that the Immortal Palace would really fall out with both the Zhulong Path and the Wuchang Alliance for the sake of a Golden Immortal. If that were the case, you wouldn't have come here alone, would you?" The woman in white's face finally darkened.

Gu Jie's expression stiffened upon hearing this, and he fell silent.

"The people you killed before, whether from the Wuchang Alliance or the Zhulong Path, will no longer be pursued. This matter ends here. If you know what's good for you, leave Gu Yun Continent as soon as possible."

As the woman in white's voice gradually faded, the sky suddenly opened above Gu Jie's head, and several huge petals bloomed outwards, releasing him from within.

Then, the huge white snow lotus flower flashed with light and disappeared with a bang.

Gu Jie stood suspended in mid-air, and after a series of changes in expression, his figure finally blurred, turning into a streak of cyan light and speeding north.

Half a day later, on an unknown mountain peak of the Zhulong Path.

Inside the mountain's belly, there was a spacious circular altar, surrounded by eight black stone pillars with fire basins on top. The basins contained some kind of grease, emitting a red light that illuminated the surrounding space.

Under the firelight, a tall man wearing a cyan deer-head mask and a black cloak was pacing back and forth on the altar, wringing his hands, his steps chaotic, appearing very anxious.

It was Lin Jiu.

He had already learned about the consecutive killings of Wuchang Alliance members in the Zhulong Path region, and through fragmented messages from the alliance, he had also determined that it was the Golden Immortal elder from the Bei Han Immortal Palace who had come to seek revenge.

He had originally intended to take the opportunity to leave the sect and hide in a secret realm where no one knew him, and then return after cultivating to the Golden Immortal realm. However, just as he was about to flee, he received a message from a high-level member of the Wuchang Alliance, telling him not to leave the Zhongming Mountain Range and to wait for news here.

He had been waiting for nearly a year, but there was no news at all, which made him feel somewhat worried.

Just then, at the center of the altar, a white light suddenly lit up, and a white snow lotus flower bloomed out of thin air. A white light flickered within, revealing a woman in white.

"Yun… Senior Lin San," Lin Jiu hurriedly called out, welcoming her.

"The matter of Gu Jie is no longer a problem. However, you must not set foot on the Ming Han Continent for the next thousand years," the woman in white said indifferently.

"Thank you, Senior Lin San, for resolving this crisis," Lin Jiu quickly bowed deeply, saying respectfully.

"I owed you a favor before, and this time I'm repaying it. I will never intervene in such matters again in the future. Take care of yourself," the woman in white said in an indifferent tone.

After saying that, her figure transformed into a white light and dissipated, disappearing.

Lin Jiu could only smile wryly and bowed towards the void.

Then, he took off the deer-head mask on his face, and his figure suddenly shrank, transforming into a short, fat man in a magnificent golden robe. It was Xiong Shan.

…

Outside Gu Yun Continent, within the Eastern Flow Sea, there was an area of deep blue sea that did not freeze.

Within this sea area, there was a ring of reefs, and beneath the reefs was a black trench that was ten thousand zhang deep.

Deep within this trench, there was a gray-white stone tablet that was ten zhang tall, covered in pits and depressions of varying depths caused by seawater erosion. It was also covered in a layer of slippery black seaweed, making it look no different from a sea rock.

However, in reality, this gray-white stone tablet was the entrance to a cave heaven secret realm under the jurisdiction of the Zhulong Path.

Within the secret realm, on a white stone plaza on a green mountain peak suspended in the void, Han Li held onto the railing, gazing into the distance.

As far as he could see, one thousand-zhang tall solitary peaks, densely covered in vegetation with emerald green hues, were all suspended in the void without any support. Each mountain peak had no roots touching the ground; only dense cyan vines hung down like silk, falling into the gray mist below.

This secret realm was called 'Floating Mountain.' There were thousands of solitary peaks within its borders, filled with abundant heaven and earth essence and growing all kinds of top-grade spiritual herbs, including Mountain Fuling and Fuling Ginseng, which were needed to refine various earth pills.

Below these Floating Mountains was a bottomless abyss filled with dense mist, hiding many strange creatures that were humanoid in shape with grayish-white skin.

Their original name was not recorded in ancient books. The people of the Zhulong Path observed their shape and named them "White Ghosts."

Under normal circumstances, these White Ghosts would never leave the abyss to come to the Floating Mountains. However, every few years, the dense mist in the abyss would rise and overflow without warning, spreading towards the Floating Mountains above.

At this time, a large number of White Ghosts would emerge from the depths of the abyss, rushing into the Floating Mountains covered by mist, collecting the various spiritual herbs on the mountains. If they encountered cultivators who tried to stop them, conflicts would erupt and battles would ensue.

These White Ghosts were not particularly powerful in combat, but they were numerous and fearless. In several large-scale conflicts in history, neither side had gained any advantage.

Later, in order to prevent the White Ghosts once and for all, a Path Master in the Zhulong Path who was skilled in formations placed a powerful restriction below the Floating Mountain, which could prevent the mist from rising, thus completely eliminating the White Ghosts' invasion.

Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. People soon discovered that without the spread of mist, the production of spiritual herbs on the Floating Mountain decreased year by year, and spiritual herbs such as "Mountain Fuling" directly disappeared, with not a single plant to be seen.

At this time, the Zhulong Path cultivators realized that this secret realm had its own unique symbiotic system, and affecting one part would affect the whole body.

Afterwards, the Path Master removed the restriction formation and no longer prevented the mist from rising, and left a ban: as long as the White Ghosts did not invade the Floating Mountains beyond the mist's coverage, they would no longer fight them.

However, in order to avoid accidents, in addition to a large number of Void Refinement stage disciples and puppet servants, at least one True Immortal realm elder must be stationed in the secret realm year-round.

Currently, Han Li was the current True Immortal realm elder stationed here.