The King of Yan frowned. “A net?”

“The Heavenly Net. That’s what this seal is called—the Heavenly Net,” Feng Miaojun said while increasing her soul power transmission. “The all-encompassing Heavenly Net.” The seal’s power covered the entire stone chamber, making it indestructible.

The Heavenly Net is vast and extensive, with gaps yet nothing escapes. It was perfect for imprisoning these Heavenly Demons.

After the Heavenly Demon imprint lit up, they discovered it was positioned directly on the fine lines of the Heavenly Net. Faint red light extended in all directions, infiltrating the green network, gradually “dyeing it red.”

The King of Yan followed the same method. “Is the Heavenly Demon imprint corroding the Heavenly Net?”

As a master of this realm, although his soul techniques weren’t as refined as Feng Miaojun’s, a brief examination was enough to discern the mechanism.

“Exactly,” Feng Miaojun glanced at him. “Put more effort into it—we need to create at least one gap large enough for us to pass through.”

Having found the right imprint, she sincerely admired the Heavenly Demons’ method. For the meticulous “Heavenly Net,” they had adopted a strategy of concentrating force and targeting a single point.

She did not doubt that the Great Emperor of Haoli had borrowed the power of divine beings when sealing these evil demons—why else build the stone chamber beneath the feet of a divine statue? At that time, the Heavenly Demons had already been severely wounded and couldn’t confront the divine beings directly; their power was certainly far inferior. But to break through the “Heavenly Net,” one didn’t need power equal to that of divine beings.

To imprison all Heavenly Demons, the Heavenly Net’s power had to be evenly distributed throughout the entire chamber. But for the Heavenly Demons to escape, they didn’t need to cast a net over such a large area—they just needed to find a way to open a small hole in the net.

Which required more effort: spreading a net over the entire area, or drilling a small hole in the net? Even if the Heavenly Demon race couldn’t match the power of divine beings, escape wasn’t necessarily impossible—especially since the Haoli Kingdom’s primal energy that helped suppress the Heavenly Demons had been growing increasingly thin.

Indeed, the red threads corroding from the Heavenly Demon imprint were very small in scope, expanding only to the size of an egg before stopping. However, the color grew increasingly red, eventually becoming as bright as blood, completely covering the original green.

The divine imprint seemed to sense this and suddenly increased in brightness, drawing large amounts of soul power from both Feng Miaojun and the King of Yan. Supplying both ends simultaneously was doubly taxing even for cultivators of their level. The King of Yan let out a low roar: “Faster, faster!” His soul power gushed out like a flood, sweat rolling down his forehead.

Feng Miaojun glanced at him, feeling somewhat moved.

Both of them, though trapped here, had been supplying soul power to the Heavenly Demon imprint while unconsciously holding some in reserve, each planning for what would happen after they escaped. But now, if they didn’t use their final reserves of power, neither would leave the stone chamber.

Although the divine imprint had the characteristic of weakening when encountering weakness, this was, after all, a treasure used to seal Heavenly Demons. How could they break the seal without giving their all?

If they continued to hold back, neither would be able to leave.

The King of Yan, true to his reputation as a formidable leader, understood this problem in an instant and truly held nothing back.

Feng Miaojun secretly took a breath, finally mobilizing all her soul power and simultaneously pouring it into the Heavenly Demon imprint. The Heavenly Demon imprint suddenly brightened, illuminating the entire chamber and bathing both people in a blood-red glow.

In the next instant, the imprint disappeared.

In its place was only a small, pitch-black hole.

Inside there were no red lines, no green lines, only absolute emptiness.

The King of Yan was overjoyed. “The exit!”

The function of the Heavenly Demon imprint was indeed to create a hole in the “Heavenly Net,” allowing for escape.

With the path to freedom revealed, he didn’t hesitate, rushing toward the opening.

Before even touching the stone wall, he transformed into a small black sphere and slipped into the black hole.

Delay could bring change—who knew if the Heavenly Demon imprint would close once he stopped supplying power? Naturally, he was also anxious. Where did the black hole lead? The Heavenly Demons had escaped the seal, so why hadn’t they appeared in the world?

Everything went black.

In the next second, the King of Yan’s feet touched solid ground.

He hadn’t dared close his eyes throughout, so he immediately realized that the space he now occupied was even more confined—a dim passageway with rough stone walls on all six sides: up, down, left, right, front, and back.

Yes, behind him was also a solid stone wall. He felt around but couldn’t find the slightest crack.

The way back had vanished.

Or rather, after breaking the seal, the Heavenly Demon imprint had transported him here.

“Where is this place?” he wondered in his heart when unexpectedly someone nearby spoke those exact words aloud.

The voice was crisp and familiar.

The King of Yan turned his head to see Feng Miaojun.

So she had escaped too. The King of Yan felt somewhat disappointed. This New Xia queen’s cultivation was profound and not easy to deal with. If only that earlier moment could have left her in the stone chamber, he would have resolved a powerful enemy—and the New Xia behind her—without bloodshed. But at the same time, he felt somewhat relieved; the current scene looked rather strange, not like returning to Yingshui City. Her soul techniques were formidable, and he might still need her help later.

Feng Miaojun seemed unable to perceive his thoughts. While examining their surroundings, she asked, “Did the Heavenly Demon that transmitted its arts to you never mention the details of escape?”

“Our time together was too brief; it didn’t have the opportunity to tell me stories,” the King of Yan saw no need to lie about this. “I was only eleven years old then and had no interest in such things—I only wanted to learn earth-shattering abilities.”

Feng Miaojun pointed ahead. “Then let’s follow the light. I think I hear something.”

Around the bend in the alley, a faint red light shone through.

The King of Yan’s gaze toward her became very complex. Had he been confused earlier? How could he have thought she would be slower and remain trapped in the stone chamber?

Earlier, when they both poured soul power into the Heavenly Demon imprint, he could sense that the vast amount of soul power contributed by the New Xia queen was the decisive factor in activating the imprint.

Her abundance of soul power was astonishing. How could a woman in her twenties have cultivated soul power more profound than his—the dominant power of the age?

Take the present situation: while he felt only deathly silence in the passageway, she could hear sounds.

Did this mean her attainment in soul techniques was higher than his? This circled back to that original point: in his view, all of Feng Miaojun’s actions proved she was a Heavenly Demon. Yet her demeanor, words, and beliefs seemed so genuine, practically shouting “I am not a Heavenly Demon,” which left the King of Yan conflicted, unsure how to approach her.

If she truly was a Heavenly Demon, what purpose did pretending to study the heavenly text in the stone chamber serve? Those were things she had already mastered long ago. Could it be that she needed to borrow his power to break through the seal once more?

Seeing Feng Miaojun raise her hand and say “Please,” even smiling at him, the King of Yan snorted coldly as he stepped forward, but didn’t walk ahead, instead moving alongside her.

He would never sell his back to this woman.

They walked in silence.

The passageway wasn’t long—compared to the endless palace in Yun Ya’s sea of consciousness that Feng Miaojun had experienced, it was barely worth mentioning.

But after walking for a short while, she stopped.

As she stopped, the King of Yan naturally halted as well. “What is it?”

“I hear the voices of Heavenly Demons,” Feng Miaojun’s expression was indescribably grave. “Just ahead.”