Jiang Zuo arrived at the Sunset Grassland. Meanwhile, a small group of Ghost Cultivators had been incredibly lucky and actually managed to survive.

Their leader, for example, had reached the pinnacle of Tier Five Cultivation (in reality, he had only just entered Tier Five, but he needed to sound more impressive to outsiders).

But even he had paid the price of an arm to survive.

Behind him followed about a dozen of his Ghost Cultivator underlings.

Everyone else, whether they were Ghost Cultivators or other Cultivators, had perished.

Their luck was truly phenomenal. They had landed right in the center of the Sunset Grassland, next to the Immortal Spirit Spring.

Soon, the group shook off the initial euphoria of having survived the catastrophe.

The sudden appearance of the grassland and the spring forced them to be cautious.

The leader stared at the Immortal Spirit Spring, lost in thought, before exclaiming in shock, "This... this couldn’t be our ultimate goal, could it? The Evolutionary Spring?"

The pool was divided into roughly three layers. In the very center were ordinary fish.

The middle layer contained nearly transparent fish, while the outermost layer held fish of every imaginable color.

"This is it, it has to be!" the leader exclaimed, ecstatic. "Heaven is on our side! With this spring, we can all achieve the Great Dao!"

His underlings were grinning as well. After struggling for so long and surviving a life-or-death ordeal, their efforts were finally paying off.

It was true what they say: those who survive a great catastrophe are destined for good fortune.

However, just as they were celebrating, a beam of light descended and enveloped the entire Immortal Spirit Spring.

The Ghost Cultivators were stunned into silence. No one dared to make a move, as they had no idea what was happening.

But with the appearance of the light, a commotion began to stir across the endless grassland.

The Ghost Cultivator leader was instantly on high alert, overcome by a powerful sense of crisis.

’This place is far more dangerous than I anticipated.’

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「Meanwhile, outside at the Holy Land’s original ritual site.」

Jingyue looked haggard. "Oh my god, what in the world happened out there? Why do we need to recalibrate? And why do I have to do it myself? On top of that, why is the position off by so much?"

"Senior Sister, please stop complaining," Su Qi said, her voice weak. "At least you can still stand. The five of us are completely drained, and we still need to take turns resting. I just hope nothing terrible is happening out there, right?"

Jingyue replied, "I don’t know what’s going on, but it seems like things outside aren’t too terrible for now. I just hope nothing else goes wrong. This is exhausting enough to kill someone."

「In the Holy Land.」

Yue Xi said, "The position has been recalibrated, so the ritual is safe for now. However, the area where the grand trend of the world collapsed seems to be a complete mess."

The ordinary-looking woman said, "Don’t worry about that. The Array will automatically repair those areas. It’s certain to be fixed before the ritual begins.

Did the one in the Forbidden Land have anything to say about this?"

Yue Xi shook her head. "She’s incredibly cold and aloof. She hasn’t spoken a word in centuries. Did you really expect to have a normal conversation with her?

Oh, the junior who brought the message said that the powerful figure over there left after seeing the grand trend of the world collapse. Their whereabouts are unknown.

She only said she’d be in touch if something came up."

No one commented on this. If that person didn’t want to show their face, they certainly weren’t going to force the issue.

Later, Yue Xi arrived at the Forbidden Land. "Why do all the historical records say you go centuries without speaking a word? I found you quite hospitable when I visited.

Have the Saintesses throughout the generations been covering for you?"

Pure Goodness remained silent, merely staying in the water. ’I clearly remember that year,’ she thought, ’when I met an unstoppable chatterbox.’

After a long silence, Pure Goodness finally spoke. "The person who was devoured by the grand trend of the world... was that male Candidacy Saintess.

At the time, he was using the Array’s power. The core consciousness detected him, but it didn’t move against him since it saw he was trying to help."

Yue Xi breathed a sigh of relief. "I was afraid you’d killed him."

Then, Pure Goodness added, "The core consciousness also took that opportunity to perceive something else: there’s a high probability that he is only a Tier One Cultivator."

"What?" Yue Xi said, astonished. "You can’t be serious."

"I don’t know for sure, but he should still be alive. You all had better be careful. Based on the core consciousness’s experience, anything is possible in this world."

’If he really is just Tier One, we either befriend him or eliminate him completely, leaving no loose ends.’

******

Jiang Zuo was now walking across the Sunset Grassland, holding the Heart-Piercing Wood.

The Sunset Grassland was the area where the Immortal Spirit Spring was located. Jiang Zuo had no intention of leaving; although there were plenty of treasures in other places, he would likely be trapped, and the risk wouldn’t be worth the reward.

Right now, he needed to get to the Immortal Spirit Spring.

’When I was younger, I might not have noticed anything,’ Jiang Zuo thought. ’But I’m not that naive youth anymore. This Immortal Spirit Spring erupts outward. There might be a way out through it.’

’Even if there isn’t, I have to find a way out.’

After half a day, Jiang Zuo finally arrived at the Immortal Spirit Spring.

He had seen very few Heart-piercing Snakes along the way. ’That’s strange,’ he mused.

However, when he reached the spring, he finally understood where the Heart-piercing Snakes had gone. It turned out someone else had fallen in here besides him.

A sky-blotting swarm of Heart-piercing Snakes was in the middle of a lethal assault against them. (Heart-piercing Snakes can fly.)

But the group seemed to have an incredible Magical Treasure that was barely managing to protect all dozen or so of them.

Jiang Zuo held the Heart-Piercing Wood, which was engraved with Runes signifying him as the Inheritor.

And so, wherever Jiang Zuo went, the myriad snakes would retreat in deference.

As he approached the overwhelming swarm of snakes, a path parted for him, seemingly of its own accord.

The spectacular scene was like watching Jiang Zuo walk into an endless ocean, only for the tides themselves to recede and part before him.

Only now, the water was a sea of snakes.

Such was his authority here as the Inheritor.

The strange behavior of the snake swarm naturally alerted the Ghost Cultivators. When they saw the countless Heart-piercing Snakes making way for a single person, they were utterly shocked.

’There’s someone else here? Are all these snakes being raised by him?’

’If so, we’re dead for sure.’

"No," the Ghost Cultivator leader said, a shrewd glint in his eye. "If there’s someone here, that means we can negotiate. We have a chance to survive."

At that moment, Jiang Zuo walked step-by-step to the edge of the spring.

Seeing Jiang Zuo arrive, the Ghost Cultivator leader immediately offered a cupped-fist salute (with one hand, which was rather awkward) and began, "Fellow Daoist—"

However, Jiang Zuo didn’t even spare them a glance. He walked right past them and began to inspect the Immortal Spirit Spring.

’They’re just a bunch of dead men,’ Jiang Zuo thought. ’Not worth a glance or a word.’

"Fellow Daoist, we entered this place by mistake. I wonder if you could help us get out?" the leader asked again.

’No matter how humiliating that was, I have to ask again. What’s the alternative? Save face and wait to die?’

Jiang Zuo ignored them again. He noticed a Golden Light in the Immortal Spirit Spring that he had never seen before.

After studying it for a moment, he realized the Golden Light had been established from the outside to stabilize this place. It seemed the collapse of the grand trend had compressed the space, causing the Immortal Spirit Spring’s original position to shift.

That was why this light had appeared.

Jiang Zuo hadn’t seen this light before. Back when he first entered the Immortal Spirit Cave Mansion, he hadn’t been to this place in his first year, so he didn’t know what it had been like back then.

But one thing Jiang Zuo could now confirm was that Su Qi was right above him.

’So in my past life, I was actually so, so close to Su Qi.’

Just as the Ghost Cultivator leader was about to speak again, one of his underlings suddenly blurted out, "That person... I think... I think he’s the one who held back the grand trend of the world..."

The speaker was the very same underling who had claimed to have seen Jiang Zuo before.

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