Ji Xia stared at the massive worm on the light screen, feeling a wave of relief wash over him.
Fortunately, Pei Heng had helped him locate the Devourer Worm. If it had gone unnoticed, the consequences over time would have been unimaginable.
Ji Xia wasn't entirely sure how vast Pei Heng's so-called "Divine Court" might be, but he recalled a time when he had witnessed two powerful cultivators in battle. Mountains collapsed, space itself tore apart, and the earth sank under the force of their strikes. In their words, he vaguely heard mentions of "Divine Kingdoms" and "Divine Courts."
At this moment, Ji Xia felt like a frog at the bottom of a well, endlessly speculating how much larger a Divine Court could be compared to Da Fu.
"Even if a Divine Court is only ten times larger than Da Fu, the ability to consume spiritual energy across tens of thousands of miles is already unimaginable!"
The thought chilled Ji Xia to his core as he gazed at the Devourer Worm on the screen, becoming increasingly aware of its terrifying nature.
Sincerely, Ji Xia expressed his gratitude to Pei Heng:
"Thank you, Elder Brother, for revealing the location of this Devourer Worm. Once I return to the royal court, I will personally eliminate this threat!"
Pei Heng shook his head slightly.
"Although this Devourer Worm is only a larva and lacks offensive capabilities, its carapace is extraordinarily tough. Even a Spirit Manipulation cultivator exerting their full strength might struggle to kill it."
As Pei Heng spoke, he raised his right hand, palm open, then clenched it into a fist.
Using his Great Sun Spirit Sight, Ji Xia observed countless spiritual energy threads converging in the light screen. They intertwined and formed a network of over 60,000 nodes, connected by more than 300,000 intricate lines within a fleeting moment.
The nodes and lines emitted a radiant glow that penetrated deep underground, enveloping the larval Devourer Worm.
The worm seemed oblivious to the surrounding network. Encased by the nodes and lines, the glowing horns atop its head dimmed, and the spiritual energy channels connecting its horns to the fertile farmlands disappeared entirely.
"Restrictions!"
Ji Xia muttered to himself as he observed the phenomenon on the light screen.
"These restrictions are at least a hundred times more complex than the ones on the Concealed Space Gourd!"
Although the Devourer Worm was tightly bound by the restrictions, it appeared completely unaware, continuing to slumber peacefully.
Pei Heng swiped a finger, opening a black void that swallowed the worm.
Within Ji Xia's spiritual palace, another black void appeared, and the Devourer Worm emerged, floating silently.
Pei Heng's fingertip emitted a series of threads that coiled around the worm, shrinking its massive body. Before long, the once enormous creature was reduced to the size of a fingernail.
It floated before Ji Xia, and Pei Heng said:
"Once you've mastered the Dao of Restrictions, you may find this useful. Consider this Devourer Worm my gift to you."
Ji Xia accepted the worm and examined it with his Great Sun Spirit Sight.
Its body was covered in an intricate web of lines, with countless restriction nodes embedded within. Spiritual energy circulated through the nodes and lines, forming two exceptionally profound restriction formations.
Pei Heng, who had long noticed Ji Xia's Great Sun Spirit Sight, observed the twin blazing suns in Ji Xia's pupils, as well as the two three-legged divine birds circling within, and nodded quietly in approval.
After a moment, Ji Xia bowed deeply to Pei Heng in gratitude:
"I thank you on behalf of Tai Cang. Without your help, we might never have discovered this enormous threat. If this Devourer Worm had evolved further, countless lives and races would have been wiped out!"
Pei Heng replied nonchalantly:
"There's no need to thank me. I merely wanted to give you a gift. The fate of other creatures and races is irrelevant to me. In time, you'll understand that when one cultivates to a certain level, ordinary beings are no more than ants. Their lives and deaths mean nothing to us."
Ji Xia fell silent for a moment before asking:
"Then why, Elder Brother, did you, six hundred years ago, choose to enlighten the beasts of the Southern Forbidden Forest, helping them grow stronger and establish a civilization?"
Pei Heng hesitated, recalling his first encounter with the forest. Back then, the beasts were savage and mindless, slaughtering one another, with some even killing their own kin.
Had he felt pity for them?
Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside and ignored Ji Xia's question. Instead, he said:
"Perhaps in a thousand years, perhaps longer, when you've mastered restrictions, I will seek you out again."
"You're leaving, Elder Brother?"
"I've lingered here for far too long. There are other matters I must attend to. I cannot remain in the company of these weakling beasts any longer."
Pei Heng's gaze shifted into the distance, where a vision of the Southern Forbidden Forest appeared.
Thousands of beasts were looking up at the sky, their countless glowing eyes reflecting various emotions.
The sight unsettled Pei Heng. With a wave of his hand, he extinguished the vision.
Seeing this, Ji Xia spoke softly:
"Why not bid them farewell, Elder Brother?"
"They're insignificant ants. By the time I return, they'll likely all be dead. Why form attachments to them?"
"Elder Brother," Ji Xia said with a faint smile, "the fact that you feel this way shows that you're already attached to them."
He continued, "Rest assured, Elder Brother. I will do my utmost to ensure their survival until your return."
Pei Heng remained silent. In an instant, the Azure Luán Spirit Palace vanished.
Moments later, Ji Xia found himself back in the Grand Harmony Hall. Behind him, the maids were still pouring wine, while the seat across from him, where Pei Heng had been, was empty.
The court attendants stared in astonishment.
Ji Xia lowered his gaze to the stone tablet and the Devourer Worm in his hands, then silently stored them in the Nether Void Ring.
At Cangqing Mountain.
A maiden, dressed in white, her face veiled by light silk and her hair adorned with a green wooden hairpin, gazed at the earth below.
Her bright eyes shimmered as they pierced through the ground, revealing a subterranean world filled with blooming flowers.
There, a massive creature—part leopard, part bird—rested on the ground. Its eyes opened, seemingly piercing through layers of earth to fixate on the maiden.
"Young girl, have you made your decision? Release me, and you shall be my savior!"
Its voice boomed in her mind.
"I will crown you as a queen to rule over lands spanning billions of miles!"
The maiden remained unmoved, her gaze fixed on the earth below.
"The world lies in eternal twilight, demanding sacrifices. Should I break free, the laws of heaven and earth will not hold you accountable. You have nothing to fear."
The creature's voice rang again, but the maiden stood still, her expression inscrutable.
"You're still hesitant."
The colossal beast rested its head on the ground, adjusting its posture before closing its eyes.
"But how long can you keep me contained? Over the years, I've already outlived two of your kind who tried to strengthen these divine seals."
"Tell your kind this: when I return, I shall conquer the remaining half of the Divine Kingdom and forge it into my second horn."
Beneath its thick fur, a brown horn adorned with countless spiraling patterns gleamed faintly.
The maiden in white seemed deaf to its words. She lifted her gaze eastward, where a small kingdom stood.
On her previous visits, she had seen countless young men and women praying on their knees, offering their lives willingly.
The last time, she had seen armies fighting desperately to defend their homeland.
This time, she saw families gathered by the hearth, enjoying warm meals. Their lives seemed much improved compared to before.
"It's so much like Mo Nan," she murmured wistfully.