The azure sea water, as the flight continued deeper, became increasingly profound. By the time the distance from the coast exceeded two hundred miles, the color of the sea had gradually transformed from a dazzling and pleasant sapphire to the color of obsidian.

Wang Jiu flew in the air, watching the sea below gradually approach pitch black, recalling the records he had read in the archives of the Saint Sect.

The Nether Sea, one of Xiangzhou’s eight absolute forbidden zones — These eight absolute forbidden zones, to some extent, have a somewhat gimmicky nature. But whether they are called the eight absolute forbidden zones, the ten great wonders, or the nine unique spectacles, regardless of what name is chosen for these geographically unique places, the Nether Sea must be among them.

This profound ocean possesses incredible geographical features.

On the outermost regions, namely that azure and golden beach, the Nether Sea exhibits extreme gentleness. The sea is calm as a mirror, the beach smooth and delicate, everything beautifully unreal. But as one delves into the central part of the ocean, the environment immediately becomes perilous. Beyond ten miles from the coast, the waves start to surge; beyond fifty miles, the towering waves are enough to capsize small boats and vessels. And in waters over two hundred miles from the coast, towering waves are commonplace. The sea seems like a water bottle shaken by a mischievous child, frequently turning upside down. Even a sea ship of a thousand tons could be shattered by a single large wave; only a ten-thousand-ton sea vessel maintained by immortal techniques can navigate this stretch of the ocean smoothly.

However, over five hundred miles from the coast, even ten-thousand-ton giants cannot approach. In this area, waves are no longer the main problem. The real trouble lies in the distortion of heaven and earth spirit wind, and the change and mystery of the Dao laws. Gravity inversion, temporal-spatial anomalies, celestial lightning, and terrestrial fire: these are commonplace in the deep sea region, and these dangers are often invisible to the naked eye. Only highly skilled cultivators can barely foresee dangers with their keen primordial spirits. But skilled cultivators are scarce resources and cannot be stationed as regular sailors on ships. Thus, the area over five hundred miles from the coastline is a forbidden zone set by the people of Xiangzhou for the Nether Sea.

And Wang Jiu, is heading straight towards the forbidden zone.

In his opinion, the existence of this forbidden zone in the Nether Sea is actually quite irrational. At least according to the geographical rules of the Jiuzhou Era, there are no conditions to nurture such wonders around the Nether Sea, truly a marvel.

However, considering the formation process of Xiangzhou Continent, such irrational geographical phenomena become rational. Xiangzhou itself is a fragment of the Central Province that barely survived the decisive battle between the Demon Emperor and the Celestial Divine Sword. Afterwards, by continuously expanding its borders, it grew into its current form. In this process, it inevitably absorbed many fragments from the chaotic void of Jiuzhou.

These fragments, shattered by the Demon Emperor and Divine Sword back then, drifted in the chaotic void for a long time, likely undergoing unpredictable mutations. These mutated fragments, after being absorbed by Xiangzhou Continent, could very well give rise to wondrous phenomena like the Nether Sea.

The records of the Saint Sect contain many such descriptions, where some incomprehensible geographical wonders, after investigation, are confirmed to be primordial fragments.

Yet the Nether Sea differs from other geographical wonders. This ocean has existed for at least two thousand years, occupying its place south of Heaven-Reaching City before Xiangzhou Continent entered the era of civilization. Even two thousand years later, the Saint Sect has not uncovered the truth of the Nether Sea.

Thus far, the deepest exploration into the core came from three hundred and thirty years ago. The Sect Leader of the Saint Sect led the elite of the Three Academies, forming a large expedition of over a hundred people. They boarded the Saint Sect’s Boat of the Other Shore, riding the wind and waves, reaching over a thousand miles beyond the coast into the Nether Sea.

From the map, the distance between the northern and southern coasts of the Nether Sea is approximately three thousand miles, so penetrating a thousand miles offshore naturally counts as the core area, fraught with the greatest risk.

Given the lineup from three hundred years ago, even with risks present, they were absolutely within controllable range. At that time, there was the Saint Sect’s Sect Leader, nearly at the Sea Overturning Realm, coupled with the Other Shore Ark modified from primordial heritage. They could come and go freely even in primordial ruins, let alone the Nether Sea.

However, that expedition has yet to return.

After penetrating into the core area of the Nether Sea, communication abruptly ceased, and all five pre-departure insurance measures of the expedition failed to work! Even more horrifying, subsequent rescue teams also ventured into the Nether Sea and likewise vanished without a trace.

The subsequent Sect Leader immediately halted the rescue operations and treated all previously disappeared personnel as casualties.

Even with today’s perspective, the tragedy from three hundred years ago remains difficult to comprehend. Though the Nether Sea is turbulent and mysterious, it generally follows some patterns: the deeper into the core, the more dangerous it becomes. There are exceptions, like encountering towering waves just tens of miles from the coast; at times, the sea may be calm even a few hundred miles in. Overall, there is a linear progression. This means that if they progressed step by step, they wouldn’t suddenly face an insurmountable crisis.

Yet from their prior communications, until reaching the thousand-mile milestone, the expedition maintained reasonably smooth contact with the base. Once past this milestone, all communication abruptly ceased, and there was no further contact.

At roughly a thousand miles from the coast, there exists a mysterious invisible boundary line blocking everyone’s advance.

It now appears that the secret Wang Jiu seeks lies hidden beyond this boundary.

Flying at high speed, it took Wang Jiu only moments to exceed five hundred miles from the coast. At this extreme speed, the Sword Spirit True Form was difficult to maintain, so Wang Jiu rode on the White Sword’s body, cutting through the waves.

And closely following behind Wang Jiu, there was another person.

Naturally, it was Zhao Chenlu.

In such highly risky and extremely difficult actions, only Zhao Chenlu would follow without hesitation—and only with Zhao Chenlu following could Wang Jiu feel at ease.

In terms of cultivation strength, it’s still not easy to say that Zhao Chenlu is the strongest in Xiangzhou since no one has seen the Saint Sect Leader’s trump card. However, regarding the ability to explore high-risk areas, Zhao Chenlu is undoubtedly the best choice. In the past, she had ventured into the depths of the Demon Race’s territory with the Celestial Divine Sword, having encountered many Mechanical Traps, and the lands of the Jiuzhou Continent polluted by the Demon Race were filled with distorted Dao Laws and ever-changing dangers beyond the imagination of the people of Xiangzhou. With such experience, exploring the Nether Sea would certainly be more assured.

"Darling, I feel something is off."

Wang Jiu immediately halted his flight and asked, "Space-time issue?"

Zhao Chenlu nodded, "Time has slowed down, and space has been extended."

"Specific values?"

"Time has deviated by 3 units, and space by 4 units, with an error margin within 1%," Zhao Chenlu quickly concluded.

For a cultivator who has experienced the Immortal Demon war, utilizing a condensed Primordial Spirit to create an absolutely stable Space-Time Anchor to constantly maintain their own space-time standard unchanged is considered one of the essential lessons. Otherwise, on the battlefield, they could easily be toyed with by the Demon Race’s Divine Techniques that confuse space-time. Even in the Jiuzhou Era, most Immortal Dao Techniques and Divine Techniques were built upon a relatively stable space-time standard. Only by reaching the Heaven Shattering Realm and beyond could one completely transcend space-time, interpreting the Immortal Dao in more profound and mysterious ways. But before that, the foundation of Immortal Dao civilization can be said to be stable space-time.

Once space-time becomes unstable, all magic and Divine Techniques will be affected. This influence starts subtly, as both magic and the cultivator using them possess a certain elasticity to tolerating minor space-time deviations. However, once a certain boundary is crossed, an instant qualitative change occurs, rendering all spells ineffective.

And with a stable Space-Time Anchor, as long as the Primordial Spirit’s perception is sharp enough, one can always be aware of the surrounding space-time changes, taking preventive measures, either by strengthening the magic or avoiding the chaotic area.

This skill isn’t that difficult; frontline soldiers on the Jiuzhou battlefield could master it proficiently. But for the people of Xiangzhou, it’s an almost unthinkable magical technique. When Wang Jiu consulted the archives, he discovered that even in the extravagant exploration team three hundred years ago, no one possessed a stable Space-Time Anchor!

This certainly isn’t due to their carelessness; rather, it’s because Xiangzhou’s Immortal Dao civilization hasn’t developed enough, lacking the necessary understanding of space-time. However, due to this lack of understanding, the lavish exploration team was completely wiped out just as they crossed the "boundary."

"According to this initial value calculation, a critical space-time gap will form five hundred miles ahead," Wang Jiu calculated, then asked, "Are you okay with that?"

Zhao Chenlu smiled, "Don’t worry about me like that. Although I’ve slacked off a bit in this life, my fundamentals were laid in the previous life; I won’t make such basic mistakes."

For soldiers who experienced the Immortal Demon war, handling space-time distortion is also a fundamental skill. The Celestial Divine Sword can withstand all distortions with its Divine Sword Body’s unyielding nature, but other cultivators can only rely on solid fundamentals.

From Wang Jiu’s perspective, on the Xiangzhou Continent today, cultivators capable of resisting space-time distortion are extremely rare, and even the Saint Sect Leader might not have this capability.

So he could only bring Zhao Chenlu along.

And Zhao Chenlu didn’t disappoint him, still retaining the solid fundamentals from the Jiuzhou Era, with sensitivity to space-time and resistance to space-time distortion at the best level within the same realm.

Moments later, the two simultaneously crossed the calculated space-time boundary.

And at the instant they crossed, the scene around them shattered with a bang.