A golden phantom flashed through the main hall, and Jiang Wenxuan died on the spot. He died with his eyes wide open, his face frozen in horror as though someone had strangled him alive.

A black hole appeared and swallowed Jiang Wenxuan's corpse, converting it into liquefied energy and pouring it into Nightmare City.

When silence returned to the main hall, Liu Wuxie was the only one still sitting there peacefully. Xiao Luo followed the others back into Nightmare City and officially became a member of the team.

The moment the restriction over the main hall vanished, sunlight streamed through the clouds into the blood-red chamber. A thick stench of blood surged into the sky, causing all the experts gathered outside to stare downward in horror.

The entire hall had been dyed red, yet not a single corpse remained on the ground. Everybody had vanished without a trace.

"Where did they all go?" Jiang Wenxuan and the others had seemingly evaporated from the face of the earth in only fifteen minutes.

"Did all of them die?" a quasi-immortal stammered.

"How is that possible? No matter how powerful Liu Wuxie is, there's no way he could have killed more than a hundred experts in just fifteen minutes. Not to mention, Jiang Wenxuan was at the Quasi-Immortal Realm," said a cultivator at the pinnacle of the Heaven Gaze Realm in disbelief.

"Before Liu Wuxie's arrival, quasi-immortals stood at the absolute pinnacle of the astral domains, but now..." The quasi-immortal who had spoken earlier revealed a bitter smile and vanished in a flash.

There was no reason for him to stay any longer. With Blue Origin Star's planet lord dead, the seat was left vacant. As long as Liu Wuxie had no intention of taking the planet for himself, everyone else now had a chance to seize Jiang Wenxuan's place.

For the moment, Liu Wuxie had neither the time nor the manpower to concern himself with such matters, especially with the upper echelons of the Heavenly Dao Society all cultivating inside Nightmare City. He could currently mobilize only a severely limited number of people. What mattered most now was finding a way to survive the coming calamity.

A large number of interspatial rings fell into Liu Wuxie's hands. Inside Jiang Wenxuan's interspatial ring, Liu Wuxie found two immortal stones, nearly seventy million astral crystals, and a great quantity of pills.

Elder Shi also had abundant resources with him. Liu Wuxie did not keep any of them for himself and instead sent everything into Nightmare City, further accelerating the cultivation of both teams.

Liu Wuxie then swept his Ghost Pupil across every corner of the castle. His gaze suddenly sharpened when he noticed a strange altar. He followed the passageways deeper into the castle until he reached a massive stone chamber that guards had once heavily protected. But after learning of Jiang Wenxuan's death, the experts stationed there had long since fled.

Liu Wuxie pushed open the stone gate and strode inside, where all the restrictions became meaningless before him. The chamber was vast, and the temperature inside was terrifyingly high.

With a few quick steps, Liu Wuxie reached the center and finally saw the altar. An enormous sphere of light hovered, radiating terrifying waves of energy. The force it emitted was so overwhelming that even an ordinary quasi-immortal could not approach it.

The energy it released was even more terrifying than the Seven-Glazed Treasure Stone. The surrounding walls, forged from special materials, completely sealed the chamber off from the outside world. None of the energy released here could leak beyond this place.

"This is the planet's core!" Liu Wuxie's eyes fixed on the glowing sphere hovering five steps above the altar. It was about the size of a water vat and shone so brilliantly that no one could look at it directly.

Every planet possessed a core, which was equivalent to its lifespan. If someone removed the core, that planet would gradually fall into destruction.

Somehow, Jiang Wenxuan had gotten his hands on a planet's core. Judging from its quality, it had to be the core of at least a second-tier planet.

Not even a quasi-immortal could retrieve the core of a first-tier planet. Serene Peace Star had been a perfect example. The planet's core had directly blasted away the shockwaves from a battle between quasi-immortals.

Though Liu Wuxie had never refined a planet's core before, he had read about it in ancient texts. A planet's core contained an incomparably terrifying amount of astral domain force.

Jiang Wenxuan had spent nearly a century refining only one-tenth of this core's energy. If he had managed to refine it all, then there was a high chance he could have reached the Immortal Realm.

"Excellent! I never thought I would obtain such a treasure," Liu Wuxie said, a smile rising at the corners of his lips. If he could refine the planet's core, he could use its power to break through to the seventh-level Heaven Gaze Realm.

Once he reached the higher levels of the Heaven Gaze Realm, his chances of facing an immortal would rise even further.

He immediately sealed the surrounding area. With two immortal artifacts present, Liu Wuxie did not need to worry about anyone disturbing him.

He sat down on the mat Jiang Wenxuan had once used and began circulating the Desolate Devouring Art.

Jiang Wenxuan had needed more than a century to refine one-tenth of the core, but with the Desolate Devouring Art and the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron, Liu Wuxie was confident he could refine it within a month.

Lately, the Heavenly Dao Book had been warning him of approaching danger. That meant he had to seize every moment available and break through to the Quasi-Immortal Realm before the immortals returned. Only then would he have a chance to face the coming crisis.

As the Desolate Devouring Art began circulating, the planet's core, hovering above the altar, started spinning rapidly, releasing a terrifying surge of energy that burrowed into the desolate world.

The moment that nourishment entered, the desolate world began to creak, signaling the start of a transformation.

No world could be born without a planet's core. Once the desolate world received the nourishment from that core, it began expanding rapidly, and a mysterious power emerged from its depths. That power was an astral domain force, and Liu Wuxie mobilized a portion of it, injecting it into Nightmare City.

The death of Blue Origin Star's planet lord spread like wildfire across the entire planet. But after learning that Liu Wuxie was still inside the planet lord's residence, no one dared to approach it. Ten days had already passed since he had slain Jiang Wenxuan.

During that time, many cultivators had come, but none of them had entered the residence for fear of provoking Liu Wuxie.

Another half month flashed by, and a black hole appeared above Liu Wuxie to accelerate the devouring speed of the planet's core.

After the desolate world underwent its transformation, a storm from the astral domain swept in from every direction.

"Time to break through," Liu Wuxie said as he summoned the gateway to the seventh-level Heaven Gaze Realm.

In only a few short months, Liu Wuxie's cultivation had risen from the first-level Heaven Gaze Realm to his current level, and that had only been possible because of the treasures he had obtained. If he had relied on ordinary cultivation, a hundred years would not have been enough.

Liu Wuxie did not rush the breakthrough. He continued to accumulate power, as the planet's core still held vast amounts of energy. Since he had decided to advance, he naturally intended to complete it in a single surge.

Meanwhile, strange events began unfolding across the four astral domains. Mysterious ancient tombs began appearing, and within just half a month, many people had already obtained heaven-defying treasures from them.

Quasi-immortals began emerging one after another within the major sects. The appearance of the mysterious gate and the treasures it had spewed out had strengthened the spatial laws across all four astral domains.

Now that the laws were more complete, many cultivators could advance their cultivation into higher realms. Those ancient tombs also contained immortal arts along with other treasures.

......

In the Skyfall Realm, loud rumbles echoed as a massive rift spread through the surrounding space. Nothing like this had ever happened in the Skyfall Realm over the past million years, where at most only tiny fissures had appeared, just large enough for them to leave.

"Are we finally going to enter?" Many ancient beings woke from their slumber and rose to their feet as soon as they sensed the aura leaking in from outside.

"The Skyfall Realm has not fully opened yet. It still needs more time," someone replied. The Skyfall Realm was enormous and forgotten. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

More importantly, the place was filled with immortal energy, making it an ideal place for immortals to cultivate.

......

Within the Lingqiong Clan—

"Ancestor, we have successfully established contact with our ancestors in the celestial realm," Lingqiong Gong said.

Lingqiong Gong was the current patriarch of the Lingqiong Clan, which meant the ancestor before him naturally possessed even more terrifying cultivation.

"I know," said the white-haired elder. He had lived for countless years, and his cultivation had already reached a terrifying level.

"It won't be long before the Heavenly Dragon Sect falls under the control of our Lingqiong Clan," Lingqiong Ye said.

Over the years, the Lingqiong Clan had kept a low profile and lived cautiously, enduring the world's scorn. For the past thirty thousand years, they had remained hidden in this lesser realm and rarely interacted with outsiders.

"Ancestor, will the ancestors in the celestial realm send an immortal down?" Lingqiong Gong asked tentatively.

"Mind your own business and do not ask about what you shouldn't know. Forbid all disciples from leaving the lesser realm over the next few months," the ancestor said as his eyes snapped open, releasing a terrifying surge of energy.

Everyone instantly fell silent in fear, not even daring to breathe loudly. Their ancestor's cultivation had already reached a near-immortal level.

Back then, their ancestor had attempted to break through to the Immortal Realm but failed, but he had somehow survived the tribulation. His current cultivation existed between that of an immortal and a quasi-immortal. In other words, he was slightly weaker than a true immortal, but stronger than any quasi-immortal. Strictly speaking, he could be considered a pseudo-immortal, who already possessed some of the immortals' methods.

......

Within the Grand Unity Sect—

The Great Divine Sun Bell descended from the sky and fell silent. Venerable Grand Unity sat beside it and stared at it quietly.

A mirror stood beside the Great Divine Sun Bell, dazzling and reflecting a world of many hues within.

If Liu Wuxie had been present, he would have recognized that reflected world instantly.

Venerable Grand Unity murmured into the mirror and sent streams of information into it. Then a bizarre scene unfolded as a figure appeared behind the mirror. It was the first sect master of the Grand Unity Sect, who had long since ascended into the celestial realm.

"Greetings, Old Sect Master," Venerable Grand Unity said as he dropped to his knees.

A voice echoed from behind the mirror, "Did something happen to the Grand Unity Sect?"

......

Within the Immortal Slaughter Palace—

They were also communicating in the same way. One sect after another had already established contact with the celestial realm, yet no one knew what they were planning.

......

Within the Fleeting Cloud Celestial Realm—

Thousands of cultivators had gathered in a mountain range, and among them, seven figures stood out in particular. Each released a powerful aura belonging to an Immortal Emperor, causing the entire mountain range to tremble.

All of them had strong cultivation. Even the weakest had reached the Immortal Venerable Realm, while most were at the Immortal Regnant Realm. Every single one of them was a major figure in the celestial realm.

"I assume all of you have received the news. That man is not dead, and he has been reincarnated," said an elder with white hair and a youthful face.

Everyone present had taken part in that great battle. They had been the ones who had cornered Liu Wuxie and forced him to self-detonate. So once they learned he had returned, they naturally gathered to discuss how to handle it. They knew that if they allowed Liu Wuxie to rise again, he would surely return for vengeance.

"Has the news been confirmed?" asked a powerhouse at the Immortal Regnant Realm.

"It has already been confirmed. We communicated with the mortal realm not long ago," replied the elder with white hair and youthful features.

Who could have imagined that this old man was one of the top-tier Immortal Emperors in the celestial realm? In the past, he had once called Liu Wuxie his brother, yet he had also been the one who had stabbed him in the back.