Outside the virtual space, Ye Ling emerged with a satisfied expression, carrying the memory data of Huang, while Xue Sha followed behind, looking utterly bewildered.
Upon entering the virtual space and witnessing Ye Ling conversing peacefully with Li Xiaomei, who was holding Huang's head, Xue Sha was completely stunned. He couldn't comprehend why he was seeing such a scene.
After following Ye Ling out of the virtual space, Xue Sha finally couldn't hold back and asked Ye Ling, "Boss, aren't they enemies? Why did you let them go?"
Huang, cradled in Li Xiaomei's arms, had just abducted Li Xiaoxiao in front of him earlier. Moreover, Huang had set numerous traps for him, causing him to get lost in a void. If not for a sudden beam of light that allowed him to sense Huang's presence, he would still be wandering in that void, unsure when he would be able to escape.
Ye Ling glanced at the white sphere of light behind him and then said to Xue Sha, "Li Xiaomei and Huang are not yet a significant threat. Let's keep them for now and deal with them later based on the situation. We have two more urgent matters."
"Two more urgent matters?" Xue Sha was taken aback. "Besides the Su family in the capital, what else needs to be handled?"
While Li Xiaomei was copying Huang's memory data, Xue Sha had also learned from Ye Ling about the Shadow Hall establishing another Shadow Pavilion in the human realm. They would definitely need to address this Shadow Pavilion upon their return.
Ye Ling, however, smiled and shook his head, saying, "No, the Shadow Pavilion and the Su family are minor issues. Now that we know of their existence, we can resolve them in a day or two once we return."
"What's more important now is... them..."
Ye Ling took down the black energy sealed by runes on his waist and placed it alongside the USB drive containing Huang's memory data. "This black energy is the power of extraterrestrial forces. It can devour all power except runes, and not even time can restrain it. We must thoroughly research this power, otherwise, if we encounter it again, we might be helpless."
Xue Sha couldn't help but say, "Boss, don't you have runes? Since runes can deal with this thing, why bother researching it? It's meaningless."
Ye Ling shook his head. "Runes are external forces, and I haven't mastered them. If we encounter black energy that even runes can't solve, or if the runes fail, we'll be blind. Therefore, we must prepare for the future and understand the characteristics of this black energy."
"Only by fully understanding the enemy can we stand invincible."
Xue Sha spread his hands. "Alright... this is your usual style, Boss. I'm used to it. So, what's the second matter?"
"Naturally, it's Huang's memory," Ye Ling said, tossing the USB drive to Xue Sha. "Read Huang's memory, and you'll understand."
Xue Sha took the USB drive and used his divine soul to analyze its contents, reading Huang's memories. Although Li Xiaomei had converted Huang's memories into code, both Ye Ling and Xue Sha had mastered computer languages on Earth, so understanding the contents of the USB drive was not difficult.
Soon, Xue Sha had browsed through all of Huang's memories and exclaimed in shock, "Huang actually abducted so many saints! What is he trying to do?"
From Huang's memories, Xue Sha learned that Huang had harmed no less than ten saints in the Three Realms. Saints were already scarce on Earth, and Huang had abducted a group of them. Even the consciousness of the Heavenly Dao had been abducted by Huang! It was estimated that Earth, having lost the Heavenly Dao consciousness and a large number of saints, would soon become a low-level civilization and enter an era of decline.
Ye Ling stated, "To understand what he's doing, we need to start from the prison where he kept the saints. Earth's civilization is already not at a high level, and the Heavenly Dao consciousness is locked away in that prison by Huang. If we don't address this matter, Earth might very well decline from this point on."
In reality, the loss of saints was not that significant. Ye Ling could cultivate a batch of saints by residing on Earth for a period, which was not difficult. The most crucial thing now was the consciousness of the Heavenly Dao. Ye Ling had always believed that the Heavenly Dao consciousness had been erased, but he saw in Huang's memories that it still existed, merely imprisoned. If the Heavenly Dao consciousness could be rescued from that prison, it would not only solve the initial problem but also allow Earth to return to its proper course. After all, Ye Ling was not the Heavenly Dao and did not possess the Heavenly Dao's authority. While there might not be any immediate issues, over time, Earth would undoubtedly face various problems! Furthermore, regardless of other factors, Ye Ling was also very curious about the place that could imprison the Heavenly Dao consciousness. Did it connect to the outside world?
Xue Sha asked, "So, Boss, should we deal with the black energy first, or the prison issue? The Demon Palace on Earth has just been established, and we don't have much time to wander around outside."
Ye Ling replied, "I know we don't have much time. We will explore the prison while analyzing the black energy."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Xue Sha was also shocked. "Boss, are you crazy? That prison can lock away the Heavenly Dao consciousness. We have no idea who created it or what monsters are inside. We must be extremely careful. The black energy from extraterrestrial forces is also extremely bizarre. Once we start analyzing it, we need to be fully focused. Now you want to do both at once?"
Both matters Ye Ling mentioned were extremely dangerous, where a single slip-up could lead to the annihilation of one's soul. Just tackling one of them was mentally taxing enough, and now Ye Ling wanted to do both simultaneously, which was tantamount to suicide!
Ye Ling stated, "I have my own plans for this. Doing both these things at once is also a form of cultivation for me."
"What kind of cultivation is this? Isn't this courting death?" Xue Sha said anxiously, strongly opposing Ye Ling's proposal. "If you really want to save time, Boss, let me explore the prison while you analyze the black energy here."
"You fellow, who is the master and who is not?" Ye Ling rapped Xue Sha's head hard. "I've explained it so clearly, why don't you understand?"
"Now, enemies are everywhere, and extraterrestrial forces are lurking. Although my strength as the Dao Venerable is secure on Earth, the enemies we face are not from Earth, nor even from the universe. They are beings from beyond the universe!"
"Facing those beings, merely cultivating steadily, even if I improve, will not be enough to cope with the impending crisis. Therefore, I need to break through!"
"There are probably no beings stronger than me in this universe. When the extraterrestrial powerhouses truly descend, I will be the one at the forefront."
Xue Sha still hesitated, "But Boss, you're risking your life for these things..."
Ye Ling continued, "Enlightenment often comes from the brink of death. We have long been accustomed to living a life on the edge of a knife. You can't forget our days of being chased by various factions before we became supreme, just because we've had ten to twenty thousand years of peaceful life."
"Compared to the dangers of the past, this is at most a minor inconvenience."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Xue Sha finally understood that he couldn't persuade him and could only sigh heavily. "Then, Boss, you must promise me one thing. If you encounter a life-threatening situation, you must sacrifice me immediately to escape the crisis."
"I can be refined again if I'm lost, but you only have one life, Boss."
"Silly boy, what nonsense are you talking about?" Ye Ling rapped Xue Sha's head hard again. "You are a divine weapon that I refined with all my heart and soul. You are like my child. How can I just refine you?"
"Moreover, your master has a hoard of trump cards hidden. Are you looking down on me?"
"Let me tell you a sad truth: there will never be a time when I need to sacrifice you."
"Alright, alright, I understand... But Boss, I'm tens of thousands of years old. Can you stop hitting my head?" Xue Sha said, covering his head with a hint of grievance.
Although he was the fearsome Demon Blade Xue Sha on the Eastern Profound Continent, in front of Ye Ling, he was essentially like a child. Not only Xue Sha, but the other nine divine weapons also treated Ye Ling with the same attitude. They were both weapons and children.
Ye Ling smiled. "Alright, we don't have much time, and it's time to set off. Let's go."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Xue Sha nodded excitedly. "Yeah! Boss, let's go!"
Seeing Xue Sha ready, Ye Ling took a deep breath, glanced back at the ball of light, and a peculiar emotion flashed in his eyes. Then, Ye Ling infused his divine soul into the black energy sealed by runes, simultaneously tearing open space and stepping into it with Xue Sha!
As Ye Ling and Xue Sha departed, Li Xiaomei flew out of the white sphere of light. Her semi-transparent body solidified, and she stared at the direction Ye Ling and Xue Sha had gone with a complex gaze.
"Emperor Ye Ling... can you truly stop this catastrophe this time?" Li Xiaomei sighed deeply, her eyes slightly closed, her eyelashes trembling as if she was worried about something. In her hand, she held another USB drive... While copying Huang's memories for Ye Ling, she had secretly copied a little less information, and this information... was stored in the USB drive she now held!
"Whether Ye Ling can save this catastrophe, no one knows, but I know that your doomsday is coming."
At this moment, a cold voice filled with mockery echoed in the space, making Li Xiaomei tremble! Li Xiaomei opened her eyes and saw a man with long hair, wearing a black robe, enveloped in black energy, and exuding an imposing aura, walking towards her.
Upon seeing the black-robed man appear, Li Xiaomei's eyes flashed with a hint of horror, and she stammered, "Ye... Ye Feng? Why are you here?"
"Just cleaning up for my master..." Ye Feng said indifferently, the black energy swirling around him gradually condensing into a black longsword. "Huang is no longer useful to the Shadow Hall."
"Step aside, and let me kill him."
Hearing Ye Feng's words, Li Xiaomei's face instantly turned pale!