Chapter 580

579. Chapter 574: Insect Star Continent

Upon learning that Ding Huan had come to visit, Xi Xi Yuanhao, leader of the Xi Xi Immortal Clan, turned pale, his legs trembling as he went out to greet him.

This Ding Huan, the Dao Master, was simply too terrifying in his actions.

He slaughtered twelve Immortal Emperors at the entrance of the Eternal Wasteland Divine Arts Academy because his disciple Ji Xing had been imprisoned by the Pu Immortal Clan—resulting in the Pu Immortal Clan being erased outright from the Great Dao Corridor.

Not only that, he had also heard that just yesterday, the Mu Immortal Clan, one of the top two clans in the Great Dao Corridor, was punished for being slightly negligent in welcoming Ding Huan—he destroyed their Guest Hall and killed Mu Congfei…

How could the Xi Xi Immortal Clan not tremble at the arrival of such a ruthless man?

The key point was that the Xi Xi Immortal Clan had offended Ding Huan.

The one who offended Ding Huan was Xi Xi Yuhuo of the Xi Xi Immortal Clan.

Xi Xi Yuanhao wished he could immediately strip Xi Xi Yuhuo of her status—a useless clan member who had brought such a terrifying consequence upon the family.

She had once had the chance to become Ding Huan's disciple, yet refused to pay Immortal Crystals to leave his preaching chamber, and instead turned around and reported him.

Was Ding Huan here for revenge?

"Dao Master Ding…" Xi Xi Yuanhao rushed out of the clan's protective array, seeing Ding Huan waiting far outside the barrier, seemingly not in any hurry.

He radiated no killing intent whatsoever; on the contrary, he appeared remarkably gentle.

"Leader Xi Xi, I apologize for this uninvited visit and for disturbing your cultivation. Please forgive me," Ding Huan bowed politely.

Despite Ding Huan's excessively courteous demeanor, Xi Xi Yuanhao remained terrified.

He hurriedly said: "Not a disturbance at all, not at all—Dao Master Ding, please come inside for a chat."

In his nervousness, he forgot even the usual courtesies.

Ding Huan didn't mind, but Ji Luo was desperate to return to the Eternal Wasteland Divine Arts Academy to reconstruct his body—he had no patience to linger outside.

Ding Huan understood Ji Luo's mood, so he simply waved his hand and said: "I came here only to ask about one thing."

Xi Xi Yuanhao quickly replied: "Dao Master Ding, ask anything you wish—I will not withhold even a single detail if I know it."

Ding Huan nodded: "I heard that you once obtained a Nine-Colored Void Lotus. I'd like to know where you acquired it."

Xi Xi Yuanhao immediately understood: "It was from the Insect Star Continent. Back then, the Great Dao Corridor's Divine Army, under Commander Xie's leadership, slaughtered hundreds of millions of insect demons, pushing all the way to the Insect Star Continent.

I was part of that army—we gathered vast quantities of heavenly treasures there. That Nine-Colored Void Lotus was obtained in just such a way.

Unfortunately, a powerful insect demon dwelled on the Insect Star Continent; it led hundreds of millions of demonic insects to drive us out. That battle left Commander Xie seriously wounded."

"Insect Star Continent?" Ding Huan asked in surprise.

He had never cared much for affairs beyond the Great Dao Corridor, so he had never purchased any related record jade slips.

Xi Xi Yuanhao nodded: "Yes. Beyond the Great Dao Corridor lies a colossal star continent, no smaller than the Great Dao Corridor itself.

But this continent is entirely inhabited by demonic insects—these insect demons seized the land, multiplied, and eventually devoured every human cultivator on it."

"There were once humans on the Insect Star Continent?"

"Yes. Not only were there humans, but the Insect Star Continent was the only star continent capable of sensing higher realms—it was not always called the Insect Star Continent, but the Semi-God Continent…

Before the insect demons took over, powerful cultivators who had transcended the Immortal Emperor stage would use the Semi-God Continent to leave this realm and enter a higher Dao domain."

Ding Huan sensed a hesitation in Xi Xi Yuanhao's speech—as if he had something he wanted to say but found it inconvenient to speak.

"Leader Xi Xi, when you spoke just now, you paused—as if there was something you couldn't say?"

Xi Xi Yuanhao smiled awkwardly: "It's nothing much—the Semi-God Veins of the Great Dao Corridor were all originally obtained from the Insect Star Continent."

Ding Huan realized: this man thought Ding Huan had drained the Great Dao Corridor's several Semi-God Veins himself, so he dared not mention it in front of him.

"Thank you, Leader Xi Xi, for telling me this," Ding Huan bowed in gratitude, then summoned his Cosmic Cauldron and departed.

He sensed Xi Xi Yuanhao's restraint and wariness in his presence, so as soon as he got the information he needed, he immediately took his leave.

Seeing that Ding Huan had truly come only to ask one question, Xi Xi Yuanhao finally let out a breath—he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

Seems this Dao Master Ding isn't so hard to deal with after all.

…

"Brother Ji, are you urgently in need of returning to the Eternal Wasteland Divine Arts Academy to restore your body?"

On the Cosmic Cauldron, Ding Huan asked.

Ji Luo grunted: "Brother, are you asking the obvious? You come and go freely all day, enjoying yourself—do you have no idea how torturous my days are right now?"

As a Primordial Spirit, spending every moment trapped inside the Celestial Balance was a torment Ji Luo had long endured.

Ding Huan chuckled: "Brother Ji, I have a proposal—will you accept it?"

"Go ahead. But let me say this first—I've never wronged you, so don't you dare pull the ladder up after I've climbed it."

Hearing Ding Huan's chuckle, Ji Luo's heart skipped a beat.

Was this kid, having obtained the Nine-Colored Void Lotus, now planning to deny him his body restoration?

Ding Huan spoke seriously: "I suggest you not restore your body at the Eternal Wasteland Divine Arts Academy…"

"No way…"

Before Ding Huan finished speaking, Ji Luo exploded—how could this be?

This kid had definitely set his sights on his Nine-Colored Void Lotus.

Ding Huan smiled: "Brother Ji, let me finish. I think there's a better place for you to restore your body—I plan to go there myself to ascend to Immortal Emperor."

Ji Luo, sharp as ever, instantly caught Ding Huan's implication: "Brother, are you suggesting we go to the Insect Star Continent?"

Ding Huan immediately rebutted: "No. Once we arrive, we'll rename it the Semi-God Continent—what's this 'Insect Star Continent' nonsense? I need this continent to have not a single insect left."

"The Great Dao Corridor has failed for millennia to eradicate the insects on the Insect Star Continent—you think you can wipe out an entire continent's insects?"

"Because I have my own method—I can poison them."

Ding Huan didn't just poison—he poisoned differently from others; he used genetic techniques for targeted poisoning.

Since obtaining the Great Gene Art, he had grown increasingly adept at this method of poisoning.

"But shouldn't the Great Poison Dao Art have vanished from the Three Thousand Dao Arts? At least, I haven't seen it."

"Old Ji, you rely too much on the Three Thousand Great Dao—does that mean without it, you can only eat meat with fur on it?"

As the two talked along the way, Ji Luo gradually came to accept Ding Huan's proposal.

If the Half-God Continent truly has Half-God Veins, and one could even sense higher dimensional layers, then cultivating and restoring the physical body would be far superior to staying at the Eternal Wasteland Divine Art Academy.

Ding Huan's Cosmic Cauldron surged into the Eternal Wasteland Divine Art Academy.

Ding Huan held not the slightest respect for this academy.

Seeing three disciples still in deep meditation, Ding Huan simply pulled out all the Immortal Spirit Veins and Half-God Veins implanted beneath the ground.

"Master!" Ji Xing and the others snapped out of their cultivation, rushing out immediately—thankfully, they saw it was their master, Ding Huan, who had extracted the Spirit Veins.

Seeing only Ji Xing, Fan Qingsi, and Qian Xun Haoyi, Ding Huan sighed and asked: "No one else came?"

He had hoped the other disciples taken by their families would come here.

Yet he had waited a month and a half here, and not a single one of the three disciples taken by his Immortal Clan had appeared.

The reason was obvious—they were all watching.

They wanted to see whether he or the Immortal Surveillance Office would win; if he won, they'd rush over to resume cultivation here.

If he lost, they'd stay hidden and avoid any repercussions.

"No," Ji Xing answered honestly.

He could feel his master's disappointment.

As a disciple, if one can only receive but never give back, any master would be disappointed.

"I plan to leave the Great Dao Corridor—would you be willing to follow me?" Ding Huan asked.

"I'll follow," Ji Xing, Qian Xun Haoyi, and Fan Qingsi answered in unison the moment Ding Huan finished speaking.

To train alongside a Dao Master meant advancing a thousand li in a single day—only a fool would refuse.

Now they were somewhat grateful that their cultivation had been stripped away.

Because their cultivation had been stripped, they had waited for their master to rescue them—and now they could follow him in cultivation.

The truth was, only these three had insisted Ding Huan was wronged, which was why their cultivation had been stripped.

Ding Huan summoned his Cosmic Cauldron: "Get on. We're leaving."

Gu Min arrived just in time to see the Cosmic Cauldron surge out of the Eternal Wasteland Divine Art Academy and vanish into the distance.

Looking at the mountain peak where Ding Huan had cultivated, it was clear—he had truly left. Not only had Ding Huan gone, but his three disciples had been taken with him.

Gu Min exhaled in relief, silently wishing Ding Huan could escape the Immortal Surveillance Office's pursuit.

The Immortal Surveillance Office had not moved against Ding Huan for over a month—he knew why.

One reason: the insect demon tide had recently grown ferocious, nearly breaching the Great Dao Corridor's protective array.

The second: Xie Kuangren might have been severely wounded long ago; no one said who did it, but he could guess—likely connected to Ding Huan.

The Cosmic Cauldron accelerated faster and faster; Ji Xing tried to extend his spiritual sense outward—but the next instant, his spiritual sense was sliced apart.

This speed…

Ji Xing suspected it surpassed the rumored speed of a Semi-Spiritual Artifact—possibly even a Late-Stage Spiritual Treasure or a Primordial Spiritual Treasure.

Given his master's strength, possessing such an artifact wasn't surprising.

Even without a teleportation array, Ding Huan's Cosmic Cauldron took only several days to reach the first exit of the Great Dao Corridor's protective array.

The Great Dao Corridor's protective array didn't just prevent outsiders from entering—it also prevented those inside from leaving.

"The Great Dao Corridor's protective array: intruders die."

The moment an Immortal Sovereign finished speaking, a spear's radiance tore through the protective array—then Ding Huan guided the Cosmic Cauldron through, landing on the Void Plaza beyond the Great Dao Corridor.