“What’s wrong?!”

Lin’an, who had just fallen asleep, was awakened by his movements. She rolled over dissatisfied, her serpentine waist twisting as her tone carried both coquettish charm and languor.

She pressed herself against Xu Qi’an’s muscular waist, soft and pliant.

“I need to go out for a while. You sleep first.”

Xu Qi’an removed her snow-white arms from around him.

“Where are you going?!”

Lin’an suddenly became wide awake, sitting up and glaring at him with her peach-blossom eyes.

Her body was fair and delicate like flawless jade, with patches of kiss marks scattered across her chest. Several love bites also adorned her alluring serpentine waist.

“I just had a nightmare. I suspect something’s wrong with the Confucian Saint’s seal. I need to check on it.”

Xu Qi’an pinched her pleasantly plump cheeks.

After their marriage, Lin’an didn’t restrict his activities during the day, but at night he had to sleep with her and fulfill his husbandly duties. She never gave Xu Qi’an the chance to stay out all night.

Hearing it was important business, she didn’t inquire further, though she furrowed her brows.

After briefly comforting Lin’an, Xu Qi’an got up from bed, quickly donned his robes, dressed properly, then collapsed into a mass of shadows and vanished from the room.

…

The night was deep, with a full moon hanging in the celestial vault, casting down pure white moonlight as sparse stars dotted the sky.

Outside Jing Mountain City, silver waves rolled across the sea surface as the ocean breeze carried the sound of rushing waters.

In the ancient and massive palace, Saren Agu opened his eyes, remained silent for a moment, and then took a step to arrive directly at the altar beside the sculpture wearing the crown of thorns.

At the other end of the altar, beside the Confucian Saint’s sculpture, stood a young man in blue robes.

“Indeed, the Witch God has further broken free from the seal.”

The young man stared at the crack that had spread down to the abdomen of the Confucian Saint’s sculpture.

“I imagine the Poison God must be in a similar state,” he added.

Saren Agu smiled and said:

“You came here in the dead of night because of a destiny warning?”

His tone carried no schadenfreude, only calmness.

As the Witch God further awakened, the Witch God Religion grew increasingly confident. They viewed everything with detachment.

Xu Qi’an didn’t answer him, shifting his gaze from the Confucian Saint’s sculpture to look at the Witch God.

The Witch God stood quietly in the night, showing no reaction to the arrival of a First-Rank Martial Warrior.

“How truly dismissive,” Xu Qi’an sighed.

Saren Agu spoke slowly:

“You’re running out of time. By year’s end at the latest, the Witch God will break through the seal and return to this world. The same goes for the Poison God, and the Buddha will precede them.

“Xu Qi’an, without a Beyond-Rank expert presiding over it, the Central Plains, which has gathered the most essential destiny of humanity, will ultimately be divided among the Beyond-Rank experts. You cannot stop it. Even if you become a Semi-Divine Warrior and join forces with Divine Envoy, how can you stop three Beyond-Rank experts?

“Moreover, there’s still the ‘Wilderness’ watching covetously from overseas, with the Gatekeeper still in its hands.”

Xu Qi’an remained silent.

After a while, he said self-mockingly:

“I thought you would try to recruit me.”

Saren Agu shook his head slightly:

“I won’t recruit someone destined to die. You’ve gathered half of Great Feng’s national destiny; you’re ‘food’ for the Beyond-Rank experts to fight over. Perhaps you’ll perish even before Great Feng does.”

His tone was calm as if merely stating facts.

A gust of wind blew in, condensing into the form of Nalan Tianlu. This Rain Master looked at Xu Qi’an with pity:

“You’ll probably be the shortest-lived First-Rank Martial Warrior in history.”

The “shadows” of two Spirit Wisdom Masters appeared in the distance, looking at Xu Qi’an with either ridicule or mockery.

Xu Qi’an swept his gaze over Saren Agu, Nalan Tianlu, and the two Spirit Wisdom Masters, then looked at the Witch God sculpture.

“Pah!”

He irreverently spat and strode away.

“If you have the guts, come! I’ll be waiting in the Central Plains!”

Xu Qi’an soared into the air, piercing the sky with an ear-splitting sonic boom.

…

Southern Borderlands.

In the Extreme Abyss, a thunderous roar echoed through the night sky as Xu Qi’an, like a supersonic fighter jet, fiercely dove from high altitude into the abyss.

Carrying momentum that could collapse a mountain, he stirred up massive air currents. After entering the Extreme Abyss, he defied the laws of physics by stopping abruptly less than three zhangs from the Confucian Saint’s sculpture.

All inertia and momentum were contained in an instant, and the air currents subsided.

The moment Xu Qi’an landed, he immediately examined the Confucian Saint’s sculpture, finding that, as expected, the crack had spread to the saint’s abdomen.

“The situation is dire. The sculpture’s damage here in the Extreme Abyss is similar to the one in Jing Mountain City. Does this mean the Witch God and Poison God are roughly equal in strength…”

He tried to find humor in adversity as he analyzed these traces of the Beyond-Rank experts.

“By year’s end at the latest, the Beyond-Rank experts will break through the seals.”

Xu Qi’an stared at the Confucian Saint’s sculpture, remaining silent for a long time.

The Central Plains had no Beyond-Rank expert presiding over it, and the Gatekeeper, suspected to be the Director, was sealed away with unknown schemes and couldn’t be contacted.

At this point, he could rely on no one. There were no powerful figures whose legs he could cling to because without realizing it, he had become the most powerful figure in the Central Plains.

But even though his advancement had been rapid, trying to oppose Beyond-Rank experts was still like an ant trying to stop a chariot.

Alas… A great sigh echoed through the Extreme Abyss as Xu Qi’an’s figure vanished.

…

In the palace, the Imperial Study.

The night was pitch black, with the light of torches slowly moving outside as the palace guards patrolled past the Imperial Study.

Li Lingsu yawned, looking at Xu Qi’an seated opposite him in the great chair, and said quietly:

“What matter requires gathering us here in the dead of night?”

To his left were Flying Swallow Heroine, Daoist Blue Lotus, and Heaven Sect’s former Holy Maiden Li Miaozhen; to his right were the white-haired Earth Sect Leader Golden Lotus in black Daoist robes.

Then came the tall and sturdy Asura with his ruggedly handsome face; Chu Yuanzhen with a streak of white hair at his forehead and a ritual sword on his back; Heng Yuan in his clean white monk’s robe and a deeply troubled expression.

And Li Na, curious and looking around, enters the Imperial Study for the first time.

This was the first time all members of the Heaven and Earth Society had gathered since Xu Qi’an’s wedding.

The others remained silent, watching Xu Qi’an, waiting for his explanation.

“I’ve been to Jing Mountain City and the Southern Borderlands’ Extreme Abyss,” Xu Qi’an sighed.

“The cracks in the Confucian Saint’s sculptures have widened again. By year’s end at the latest, the Beyond-Rank experts will return to this world.”

The Heaven and Earth Society members exchanged glances, unconsciously straightening their backs with solemn expressions.

By year’s end at the latest, the great calamity would descend…

This wasn’t good news; no, it was catastrophically bad news… Li Lingsu’s expression changed slightly.

“And you have no clues about how to advance to Divine Warrior,”

Huai Qing, seated behind the great desk, said softly.

Her words intensified the anxiety of the Heaven and Earth Society members, causing everyone to furrow their brows.

“Even if you advance to Semi-Divine Warrior, it would be impossible to stop three Beyond-Rank experts.”

Daoist Golden Lotus sighed.

“There’s also the ‘Wilderness’ overseas. To devour the Director, it must destroy Great Feng.”

Asura reminded them.

Then no one spoke, thoroughly killing the conversation.

This was a dead end, even more, unsolvable than when the Director was sealed and the Yunzhou rebels were advancing unstoppably.

At least then there had been ways to break through the impasse: they had Luo Yuheng, Asura, Xu Qi’an’s Power of the Masses, and so on.

But now, in battles involving Beyond-Rank experts, even Transcendents merely had admission tickets; they couldn’t influence the bigger picture.

What could be done?

Even someone as intelligent as Huai Qing, or as brilliantly talented as Chu Yuanzhen… well, apart from Li Na, none of the Heaven and Earth Society members lacked intelligence, yet they couldn’t think of a way to break through this impasse.

In the face of absolute power, any strategy was just a crooked path.

Xu Qi’an broke the silence, saying:

“We must take it one step at a time. My current goal is to advance to a Semi-Divine Warrior. I’ll set sail tomorrow, for three months at most. Whether I advance to Semi-Divine Warrior or not, I’ll return after three months.”

Song Qing had already comprehended the formation left by the Director and carved it into a formation disk for Xu Qi’an.

As long as he could find suitable “absorption” targets, he could use the formation disk to help him refine their life essence.

Xu Qi’an continued:

“We still don’t know what the great calamity is, but knowing who our enemies are is enough. Divine Envoy and I will handle the Beyond-Rank experts; you don’t need to worry about them.

“But you need to handle the Transcendent experts from the Buddhist sect and the Witch God Religion.

“Brother Chu, I hope by my return you will have forged your path and advanced to Transcendent. Asura, you’re just a hair’s breadth from First Rank; consider carefully how to break through and which path to take.

“Master Golden Lotus, you’ve returned to your peak as a perfect Second Rank. Do you have hope of crossing the tribulation? And Master Heng Yuan, don’t waste your Demon Slayer fruit position. If you don’t know how to refine and use it, you can ask Asura for guidance.

“Everyone, time is limited. Improve yourselves as quickly as possible.

“After three months, if I still cannot advance to Semi-Divine Warrior, I hope everyone can leave the Nine Provinces and seek refuge overseas.

“As for the Holy Son, Heaven Sect has sealed its mountain and cut off from the mundane world. You’re the Heaven Sect’s Holy Son, so you should still be able to return. Take your beloved up the mountain to seek refuge.”

At this point, even Li Lingsu had lost the mood for jokes, silently nodding.

Xu Qi’an stood up and cupped his hands to everyone:

“See you in three months!”

The Heaven and Earth Society members rose in silence, saying softly:

“Take care!”

…

The next day.

In the Ten Thousand Mountains, in the Monster Queen’s bedchamber.

The silver-haired demon beauty with an infinitely alluring figure sat before her dressing mirror, coquettishly drawing her eyebrows as she giggled:

“A map of the overseas? There’s no such thing. We monster folk don’t have the habit of drawing maps.”

Nine fluffy fox tails dragged on the ground like a beautiful white dress.

Several zhang behind her, Xu Qi’an frowned, thinking to himself that she was playing with him—when they had contacted him earlier through Float Fragrance, she had agreed.

The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox turned around, her long jade legs pressed together without the slightest gap, smiling seductively:

“This Sovereign will personally accompany you overseas!

“When Silver Constable Xu feels lonely on his journey, this Sovereign can serve in bed to help relieve your melancholy.”

Her smile seemed capable of enchanting people, bewitching and alluring.