Chapter 555: with translation of chapter title

Equal Heaven does not belong to this world.

The words of the Beheading Dao Spirit echoed on the mountain peak, unhidden, so many present heard them.

Yun Huang and Yun Lei were rather clueless about this; their realms and levels were too low, and the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths were too vast, with territories spanning great distances, so they had no knowledge of the so-called Equal Heaven temple deity.

However, Zhang Ya knew the name Equal Heaven.

She was somewhat startled; "not belonging to this world"—what does that mean?

Equal Heaven does not belong to the mortal realm, nor to the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths—then what does it belong to?

Where does Equal Heaven come from?

Li Che sat cross-legged on the mountain peak; a gentle breeze stirred, fluttering his dark robe, his expression calm, showing little emotion.

He seemed not surprised by this situation.

"Not belonging to this world..."

Li Che was not being false.

Because he had long heard such words—the Third Prince, Equal Heaven, Erlang Manifest Sage True Lord, and many other temple deities of the Prison Lotus faction—seemed… to not belong to this world.

As for where they come from…

Li Che had a vague suspicion in his heart.

Perhaps the origins of these temple deities are somehow specially connected to his appearance in this world.

Li Che's heart trembled slightly; the Immaculate Heart Dao Fruit throbbed, as if invisible ripples spread, showing his emotions were in turmoil.

His transmigration… could it be related to them?

On the mountain peak, it grew quiet.

Li Che calmed his emotions, not thinking about these matters.

Having reached this height, Li Che's heart had long been at peace, no longer so troubled.

If he could return to take a look, that would be nice—a kind of longing; if not possible, Li Che would not insist.

"Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly..."

Li Che whispered softly.

"Yes… in the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, the Way of the Divine Peng is crucial; like the statues of many Guiyi Miao temple deities, they are Divine Peng, and the temple deities invoke the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth through the Divine Peng, linking to their divine nature from life."

"Thus, the Way of the Divine Peng originates from the statues of many deities in Guiyi Miao."

"Different Divine Peng, positioned according to the formation, can draw forth the heavenly and earthly divinity, the vital energies, and even ward off some calamities in the alchemical process."

"For an alchemical grand immortal like the Ageless Old Lord at that level, the Divine Peng required is extremely demanding; to refine Equal Heaven into a pill, the Divine Peng demanded is exceedingly high, allowing no mistake."

"Therefore, the Old Lord issued a call to hold a Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly, summoning many Divine Peng artisans to craft the Divine Peng and set up the grand formation needed for alchemy."

After all, the Beheading Dao Spirit is a divine official from the Nether Heaven Court; attaining the Beheading Dao realm as a spirit, even in the Nether Heaven Court he is no weakling.

Therefore, the information he heard is credible.

"Why doesn't that Ageless Old Lord invite a Divine Peng master, but directly carve the Divine Peng needed for the formation?"

Li Che thought of something and asked curiously.

This Beheading Dao Spirit, named Xuan Li, upon hearing this, his expression turned slightly strange.

"My lord, Divine Peng masters… there are hardly any in the entire Nine Heavens and Ten Earths."

"The price to move a Divine Peng master is enormous."

Xuan Li clasped his fists and said solemnly, "The divine factions are respectively the Guiyao Cave, Black Sumeru, and the Nether Heaven Court; among them, the Guiyao Cave and Black Sumeru each have a Divine Peng master stationed, and both powers excel at carving Divine Peng."

"In the Guiyao Cave, a demon emperor once molded clay into demons, creating life from nothing; while in Black Sumeru, with countless Buddhas and the huge demand for carving Buddha statues, a Divine Peng master emerged."

"The Nether Heaven Court lacks Divine Peng masters, is not skilled in the Way of the Divine Peng, and excels in alchemy and divine weapons."

Upon hearing this, Li Che suddenly understood.

Skills have their specialties.

If the Ageless Old Lord of the Nether Heaven Court truly invited a Divine Peng master to act, the bitterly refined Equal Heaven divine pill would likely see half of it taken by the Divine Peng master.

Not only would it strengthen the other factions' powerhouses, but here we would struggle and gain no favor.

Li Che's heart stirred slightly.

He naturally could not stand by and watch the Equal Heaven temple deity be refined into a pill.

Thus, rescuing Equal Heaven is a necessary task.

Yet with his current strength, directly going to rescue the Equal Heaven suppressed by the Ageless One would basically have no chance of success.

"Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly..."

"My Divine Peng skills have roughly reached the level of a Divine Peng artisan; by participating in this assembly and tampering with the Divine Peng formation, I can assist the Great Sage."

Li Che's eyes flickered, and he involuntarily began to ponder.

Although he had undergone a tremendous transformation, breaking through to become a Martial Dao Mystic Immortal.

But compared to the Ageless, he is still far too weak.

Facing the Ageless, he would likely be killed in an instant.

Charging straight over to rescue someone from the Ageless's hands is naturally impossible.

"Where is the Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly being held and conducted?"

Li Che looked toward Xuan Li.

Upon hearing this, Xuan Li immediately understood Li Che's thought—his lord is truly a genuine Divine Peng artisan!

However, being able to participate in setting up such a grand alchemical formation is also a great opportunity for Divine Peng artisans.

Perhaps through this they could gain the opportunity to glimpse the path to becoming a Divine Peng who has proven the Dao.

Thus, the competition among Divine Peng artisans will inevitably be fierce, with none willing to give up easily.

The Nether Heaven Court, Black Sumeru, and Guiyao Cave—the Divine Peng artisans of the three major divine factions, as well as the Divine Peng artisans of the ancient clans in the two villages of the second-rank saints, will likely all step forward to vie for this opportunity.

Even for the Divine Peng Immortal Hand, such an opportunity is extremely rare.

Xuan Li thought for a moment, then simply described to Li Che how fierce the competition was.

Li Che shook his head: "You don't need to worry about these……"

"This Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly, I will definitely go."

Li Che could not bear to watch the Great Sage be refined into a pill.

Although……

Refining the Great Sage into a pill is a bit strange.

But it's not too different from the myths of his previous life, and Li Che doesn't dare to gamble.

"Just tell me where the Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly is held."

"My lord, this Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly is held in the Tai Su Heaven where the Old Lord's Immortal Dou Tian Palace resides."

"The Xuan Xiao Heaven and Earth, Tai Su Heaven and Earth, and Tai Xu Heaven and Earth are the domains of the Dark Heavenly Court; among these three realms, the Dark Heavenly Court's power is the strongest."

"Among them, the headquarters of the Dark Heavenly Court is located in Xuan Xiao Heaven, where the Immortal God Emperor sits in command of the thirty-three heavens of Xuan Xiao Heaven, overseeing the three great realms."

"Both Tai Su Heaven and Tai Xu Heaven have their own Immortal overseers."

Xuan Li described everything he knew.

"Tai Su Heaven, Dou Tian Palace."

Li Che's eyes flickered as he memorized the place.

The Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly, he will definitely go, but before that, he needs to meet up with Xixi first.

The most urgent and important matter is to reunite with his daughter.

Li Che looked at Xuan Li; it was rare to have someone who understood the situation of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, so Li Che naturally asked all his doubts.

The Beheading Dao Divine Official is already considered a high-ranking member of the Dark Heavenly Court, and knows many secrets.

"My lord, in that great war that occurred in the mortal realm, many powerful beings took notice; the Third Prince was the slaughter god of the Prison Lotus faction, and in the previous divine tide, he slew many powerful spirits, so all sides paid attention."

"The Young Master and the Third Prince, together with that mysterious existence, upon entering the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, seemed to be blocked by the laws of heaven and earth; of course, at that time there was also the intervention of Immortals, causing heavenly secrets to fall into chaos, and the will of heaven and earth swept……"

"Afterward, the Young Master, the Third Prince, and that mysterious existence were scattered apart, their whereabouts unknown."

"So far, the only one who knows their whereabouts is the Third Prince's temple deity, who has been hunted by the Nirvana Sovereign dispatched by the Ancient Dragon clan's Immortal Dragon Emperor, and the news has also been sealed by the Immortal Dragon Emperor himself."

"And now, just now, news of the Young Master has been exposed; the Young Master was rescued by an ancient village, and to repay the kindness, he chose to change his identity and represent the ancient village in the Thousand Village Divine Gambling Battle to earn resources……"

"However, regarding the Young Master's side, the God Emperor personally ordered not to interfere with her actions, and even needs to stimulate certain of her behaviors to summon the will of heaven and earth."

Xuan Li clasped his fists and said.

"As for that mysterious existence with a dog, there is no news at all."

On the mountain peak, it suddenly became quiet again.

The good news is that he finally obtained detailed information.

The bad news is that the information is not as good as imagined.

He waved his hand, letting Xuan Li go attend to his affairs; he dealt with Xuan Li in a steady manner, so as not to attract the attention of the Dark Heavenly Court.

Naturally, he could not allow any mishap in the selection of the Thousand Village Divine Gambling Battle.

The Thousand Village Divine Gambling Battle continues.

He needed to wait for the many ancient villages gathered by Xuan Li Heaven to compete and produce the list of villages that passed the selection, then together activate the transmission array to head to the main venue of the Thousand Village Divine Gambling Battle.

Therefore, the divine gambling battle still needed Xuan Li and two other Dao-fusing divine spirits to continue presiding.

Yun Huang and Yun Lei sat cross-legged on the mountain peak.

Each of them held a divine crystal, greedily absorbing and cultivating with it.

These divine crystals were provided by Xuan Li; as a divine official of the Dark Heavenly Court, his assets are extremely rich.

In fact, resources in the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths are scarce, yet the powerhouses of the various divine factions are all rolling in wealth.

In a divine gambling battle, these divine officials, besides paying their share to the Dark Heavenly Court, can also extract considerable profit for themselves.

For example, selling the promotion slots for participating in the Thousand Village Divine Gambling Battle, etc., these are all ways to earn resources.

Zhang Ya, under the guidance of Xiao Su Da, continued to fuse and refine divine weapons.

Li Che walked along the mountain ridge, the flesh between his brows splitting open.

He saw nine Divine Pengs appearing above the mountain peak.

These nine Divine Pengs were lifelike, carved in the likeness of immortals and gods, each in a different pose, their bodies suffused with the essence and aura of the Spatial Great Dao.

The nine Divine Pengs were placed at each direction of the summit of Mount Ru Xuan; the aura and essence hidden within them, when activated, would be released, the auras of the Spatial Great Dao intertwining to form a great transmission array!

Within his chest, the 【Time-Space Golden Wheel】 Dao fruit trembled slightly.

After refining the Immortal Artifact Lotus Lamp, Li Che's Time-Space Golden Wheel Dao fruit's maturity rose to level 7, 80 percent.

But after that, the maturity of the Time-Space Golden Wheel basically stopped increasing.

Even after passing through the Two Saints' Guiyi Miao and teleporting into the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, this Dao fruit could not be stimulated.

But now, observing the great spatial array formed by these Divine Pengs, Li Che actually felt a long-absent tremor of his Time-Space Golden Wheel Dao fruit.

This feeling made Li Che quite delighted; he immediately focused his mind more intensely, beginning to study and comprehend this array set up based on the Divine Pengs.

During the process of researching this array, Li Che could feel his Time-Space Golden Wheel Dao fruit slowly increasing.

Immersed in it, he lost track of time.

After about five days, the selection for the Thousand Village Divine Gambling Battle was completely finished, and all the major ancient clans' villages had completed the divine gambling battle.

At the foot of the mountain, the atmosphere varied.

Some ancient village cultivators wept bitterly, feeling sorrow and despair, because they had lost all the resources the village had saved over years as their wager.

Some ancient village cultivators had made a small profit.

After a bout of revelry, there always comes both desolation and joy; different attitudes, like water and fire, two opposing energies colliding.

And through this Divine Gambling Battle selection, the villages that managed to enter the main venue of the Thousand Villages Divine Gambling Battle totaled seventy-two.

Among them, there were ancient villages of every rank.

In practice, the Divine Gambling Battle selection considers not only the win rate in the Divine Gambling Battle, but also the total amount of resources won.

If the resources won are too few, the quota will also be cancelled.

The purpose is to prevent steady old timers like Yunhe from deliberately exploiting loopholes.

As for Yunxiao Village, thanks to Yunhuang and Yunlei's continual cross‑rank gambling battles, the stakes it earned were actually very abundant, so there is no possibility of its quota being cancelled.

When——!!!

Seated upright at the mountaintop.

Xuanli appeared in the guise of a Severing the Dao Grand Divine Official, his mighty Severing the Dao aura intertwining in all directions, causing winds and clouds to shift and heaven and earth to tremble!

Among these seventy-two ancient villages, some of the strongmen seated in the Three Pure Ancient Villages also possessed Severing the Dao cultivation, so their aura was not inferior to Xuanli's.

But Xuanli is ultimately a Grand Divine Official of the Dark Heavenly Court, his status special, so his aura naturally differs—something the ancient villages' Severing the Dao cultivators cannot match.

"Xuaniao Heaven, the selection for the Thousand Villages Divine Gambling Battle has ended; the seventy-two ancient villages that have earned promotion to the Thousand Villages Divine Gambling Battle, gather at the mountaintop."

His eyes opened and closed, Xuanli's pupils bursting forth with divine light.

At the foot of the mountain, a rumbling rose; numerous villages, led by their strongmen, hurriedly ascended and gathered at the mountaintop.

Yunhe's face was filled with excitement; he had not expected that, after twists and turns, the situation would change again.

He had thought that the Grand Divine Official would seize the two children, Yunhuang and Yunlei, but instead the official merely offered them a word of encouragement.

But this was enough to startle Yunhe, for after all, many awakened ancient‑blood prodigies had been taken away by the Dark Heavenly Court, never to be heard from again—news he had heard in many surrounding ancient villages.

Fortunately, the ending was a good one.

At the mountaintop, the cleared‑out great plain gathered the cultivators of the seventy-two ancient villages.

Divine nature burst forth from these cultivators, suffusing the mountaintop and making the mountain mist exceedingly hazy.

Li Che, dressed in a dark robe, stood quietly within the Yunxiao Village contingent.

Zhang Ya linked her arm with his, her face showing a hint of excitement.

"My lord… this time we go to the main venue of the Thousand Villages Divine Gambling Battle, will we be able to see Xixi?"

Zhang Ya could not help but ask in a low voice.

Li Che smiled and nodded: "Probably…"

"If Xixi also advances to the Thousand Villages Divine Gambling Battle, we will surely meet, and our family can reunite."

Li Che's words made Zhang Ya involuntarily clutch his arm tighter.

"At last we have reached this day…"

Zhang Ya pressed her lips together; her voice trembled slightly, mixed with anticipation and a choked feeling.

Li Che also could not help but sigh; although he could see Xixi's condition daily, only by seeing her with his own eyes could his heart be set at ease.

Although Xuanli, this Severing the Dao divine spirit, had become Li Che's bound spirit, he still upheld the regulations of a Dark Heavenly Court divine official.

He delivered a speech, orally stating some regulations.

Finally, under the gaze of cultivators from many ancient villages, he began to activate the transmission formation.

The Nine Divine Eagles were suffused with divine nature, soaring up with a roar; the myriad Great Dao divine patterns etched on their surfaces peeled off bit by bit, as if drawing forth the Spatial Great Dao.

Li Che's gaze burned as he watched the formation being activated; it differed somewhat from his conception and offered a different path.

But no matter what, for him personally witnessing the activation of the spatial transmission array greatly enhanced his comprehension of the Spacetime Golden Wheel Dao Fruit, successfully reaching 95%, drawing ever closer to the Six Transformations!

Hum——!!!

Li Che gathered his mind, and instantly felt the Spatial Great Dao river spanning the skies above Enter Profound Mountain surge forth.

Then, one after another, rays of light poured down upon each figure.

The nine divine eagle statues seemed to come alive, like nine immensely powerful figures simultaneously extending their palms to support everyone.

Spacetime began to twist, and a mighty propulsive force struck each person's heart.

……

……

Whooo——

Seven‑colored flowing light continually shifted, like viewing flowers while riding a horse.

When everything became clear, the held breath of everyone finally settled into calm at that moment.

The Divine Eagle Spatial Grand Formation traversed the void!

Li Che estimated that in just a moment they had shifted roughly ten thousand li!

This can be called a great shift at the formation level.

Time trickled away.

Xuanli and the other two Merging the Dao Divine Officials had their divine nature continually drawn forth, maintaining the energy needed for the Nine Divine Eagles' shift.

To activate such a formation, the required divine nature is immensely massive; if cultivation is insufficient, likely unable to activate it.

One Severing the Dao, two Merging the Dao—just enough.

"We are about to pierce the realm barrier."

Suddenly.

Xuanli opened his eyes and spoke in a deep voice.

"Everyone, gather your divine spirit thoughts; you must not leak the slightest!"

His words fell.

Everyone inside the transmission formation gathered their heaven‑and‑earth souls and divine spirit thoughts.

And Li Che likewise suppressed his own divine spirit thought within his glabellar mud pellet.

Because, at the moment of piercing the realm barrier.

Li Che felt as if he had encountered an extremely terrifying will, as if he saw the void where spatial turbulence scoured and intertwined.

A figure sat cross-legged, slowly opening their eyes.

The terrifying divine spirit's thought was like a continent drifting in the void that came crashing down.

Capable of destroying heaven and earth!

«Immortal! »

«True immortal will! »

Li Che drew a deep breath, his face solemn.

Www⊙tTkдn⊙￠〇

That seemed to dim heaven and earth, making everything dull and lightless, stripping away color—an oppressive pressure that was truly too terrifying!

That was a living immortal divine spirit!

Sure enough, an immortal was stationed at the realm barrier; if one forcibly pierced it, they would likely attract the immortal's attention.

However, under the transmission of the spatial formation, that immortal didn't pay much heed, and its mighty immortal will did not sweep over.

After narrowly passing through the realm barrier.

The operation of the spatial formation began to gradually slow down.

«We have arrived at Divine Concealment Heaven; the venue for this millennium village divine wager is located in Divine Concealment City within Divine Concealment Heaven. »

Xuan Li's voice echoed.

Divine Concealment Heaven!

Among the divine factions, the heavenly domain controlled by Black Sumeru.

The Nine Heavens and Ten Earths were basically divided and subdued by the three major divine factions, because those factions produced multiple immortals; only with an immortal stationed could they suppress a heavenly domain.

The three heavenly domains controlled by Black Sumeru are Divine Concealment Heaven and Earth, Formless Heaven and Earth, and Helu Heaven and Earth.

The remaining Northern Dipper, Primordial Thunder, and Divine Craft are the heavenly domains controlled by the Strange Demon Cave.

As for the final domain, «Prison Lotus», it belongs to the Prison Lotus faction, and so far has not been conquered by the three major divine factions.

Boom—

The divine energy atop the formation began to gradually dissipate.

The light on the nine divine eagles dimmed, swirling in the air and intertwining into the great Dao divine patterns of the formation, which slowly returned to the bodies of the nine divine eagles.

Once it had completely returned, the spatial transmission formation collapsed with a boom, utterly returning to calm.

We've arrived!

Li Che's heart trembled slightly; even he, at this moment, couldn't help but feel a stir of excitement.

With mind and spirit tranquil, the heaven-earth chessboard sprang from the center of his brow, shot up into the clouds, expanded, and enveloped the world in perception.

Li Che began to sense Xixi's situation through the Flying Thunder chess pieces.

However, Li Che soon felt some regret.

Because the ancient village where Xixi resides successfully advanced to the millennium village divine wager, but was not transmitted to arrive.

Xuan Li led the crowd away from the transmission platform.

Upon entering Divine Concealment Heaven, Li Che felt an incredibly rich Buddha-light aura, surging without cease; these Buddha-lights were far more brilliant than those of the Western Regions in the mortal world, even carrying a soul‑shaking weight.

It seemed as if, in the blink of a thought, one would be compelled to take refuge.

The cultivators from the many ancient villages under the Dark Heavenly Court faction quickly gathered together.

The ancient villages of the Xuanxiao Heaven and Earth, Taisu Heaven and Earth, and Tai Xu Heaven and Earth numbered over four hundred.

And this is only the ancient villages under the jurisdiction of the Dark Heavenly Court faction.

Xuan Li kept his distance from Li Che; although he had become Li Che's detained spirit, he now chose to conceal his identity.

Divine Concealment City is immensely large, built upon a high mountain—a mountain whose midsection has been sheared flat by terrifying force.

At the city's center stands an ancient temple, and countless golden pagodas are dotted about, each housing a lifelike golden divine eagle seated within.

Li Che glanced at these divine eagles, his heart stirred, for the level and craftsmanship they displayed were not inferior to his own in the slightest.

Divine Eagle Immortal Hand!

Black Sumeru indeed has a Great Immortal Divine Eagle seated as its guardian—no wonder it's anything but ordinary.

Divine Concealment City is immensely vast; after the ancient village folk were guided inside, they took up residence in the city's inns.

Yet the lodging price in these inns is outrageously high—ten tetradivine god‑crystals per day, simply frightening.

Yet not staying is not an option, for when night falls, Divine Concealment City permits no vagrants; cultivators not residing in a dwelling will be expelled by Black Sumeru's cultivators.

For Li Che, this amount of divine crystal is naturally nothing.

He and Zhang Ya moved into an upper room; the couple awaited Xixi's arrival, looking forward to meeting their daughter.

Time trickled by, and the couple settled in the inn.

Li Che cultivated within the room, studying the «Heavenly Craft Nine Mortise and Tenon Classic», researching various divine mortise‑and‑tenon structures to enhance his divine eagle proficiency.

Because he intended to participate in the Divine Craft Immortal Hand Assembly and secretly aid Qi Tian, Li Che naturally needed to strengthen his abilities.

Besides that, Li Che had the enlightenment feedback from the Dragon‑Elephant Vajra Dao Fruit, which remained unused and could be employed to boost his martial prowess as a Mystic Immortal and increase the proficiency of myriad immortal martial arts.

Bring the proficiency of immortal martial arts to the point of perfection.

Li Che felt that, to reach the Mystic Immortal Ember Realm and advance to the Mystic Immortal Union‑with‑Dao Realm, fully mastering all immortal martial arts to perfection was a necessary requirement.

Both immortal martial arts and the great Dao must be perfected—perhaps only then can one begin to open the heavens!

Having witnessed a true immortal within the realm barrier, that terrifying pressure left a fresh memory in Li Che; such oppression is something his present Mystic Immortal self cannot withstand.

«Only at the level of Martial Celestial Immortal can one contend with an immortal. »

Li Che slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a turbid breath.

Just as he finished his cultivation and study of the Heavenly Craft Nine Mortise Classic.

Zhang Ya held Xiao Su Da, returning to the room in a huff.

"What's wrong?"

Li Che asked with a smile.

Zhang Ya's face was very grim, filled with resentment and anger, hard to quell.

"Husband…… there is a betting pool for the Thousand Village Divine Gambling War in the inn's hall, anyone can place a bet, and besides that, there are those selling information; I saw Xixi's information among them."

"They directly labeled the Prison Lotus Maiden's information, and it sells extremely well, almost everyone gets a copy."

"Those people also said they want to utterly ruin the ancient village represented by the Prison Lotus Maiden, making them lose all their bets!"

Zhang Ya was furious; involving Xixi, concerning her own daughter, she could not calm her emotions.

Li Che's eyes also grew deep, his mind stirred, and after a moment.

Xuan Li arrived, delivering a piece of information.

"My lord, the Prison Lotus Maiden's identity is special; although she disguised herself, her information has long been exposed."

"The consensus of the Three Major Divine Factions is to oppress the Prison Lotus Maiden, urge her to grow, let her Prison Lotus Curse fully explode, control her will; therefore, in the Thousand Village Divine Gambling War, making her lose and causing the Earth Village she represents to lose all bets is the goal."

"Not only that……"

"These cultivators of the Earth Village…… will all be unable to survive; they will die for the Prison Lotus Maiden, die because of her, used to stimulate the Prison Lotus Maiden."

"In fact, the Young Demon Emperor Fu Shaoxi of the Strange Demon Lair has already gone to the Earth Village, preparing to personally slaughter the village, leaving a survivor to inadvertently spread the news, in order to achieve the goal of stimulating the Prison Lotus Maiden."

Xuan Li said.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ya's face turned deathly pale, her body swaying, her anger uncontainable.

"How can this be?!"

She could imagine that if Xixi encountered these things, learning that the villagers of the Earth Village died because of her, how self‑blaming she would be, what a huge impact on her heart!

Xuan Li's face also showed some helplessness: "Madam, this is the rule of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths……"

"In the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, no secret can remain hidden; the purpose of the Three Major Divine Factions is to force the Young Master into utter desperation, fuse the Prison Lotus Curse, become the Heaven and Earth Executioner's will, reap the eighth divine tide…… then reincarnate and stir up the ninth divine tide."

Li Che's face also gradually turned cold.

"My lord, according to the information, the Earth Village represented by the Young Master lies in Beidou Heaven, a domain governed by the Strange Demon Lair…… thus the Young Demon Emperor Fu Shaoxi of the Strange Demon Lair will personally go there."

"The Earth Village is not weak; it is a Three Pure Ancient Village, with a Nirvana Divine Spirit seated there, which is why Fu Shaoxi will personally set out."

"Not only Fu Shaoxi, but also the Young Emperor Ji Shaohao of the Dark Heavenly Court and Shi Shaojia of Black Sumeru will go."

"They need…… to stain themselves with the karmic bond with the Prison Lotus Maiden."

Xuan Li told Li Che all the information he had gathered.

⊙????? ⊙￠o

"As for this Thousand Village Divine Gambling War…… the Young Master's side has already been arranged; the Holy Sons and Holy Daughters of the Three Pure Ancient Villages have been dispatched and will move to obstruct and deal with the Young Master."

Li Che nodded slowly and exhaled a breath.

He seemed to also understand the situation Xixi faces.

Besieged on all sides, thoroughly targeted!

But, it can be understood……

"Xixi is the Prison Lotus Maiden, coming from the mortal realm; it's like an outsider coming onto the locals' turf to earn gambling money, naturally she will encounter the locals' united opposition."

"Even many ancient villages have reached an agreement with the Three Major Divine Factions."

"Keep gathering information……"

Li Che ordered Xuan Li.

Xuan Li clasped his fists in salute and withdrew.

Inside the room, the atmosphere again fell into silence.

"The current situation is…… the Three Major Divine Factions have allied with top ancient villages, wanting to force Xixi to darken, be consumed by the Prison Lotus Curse, become the true Prison Lotus Maiden, and carry out the act of the Heaven and Earth Executioner."

"The Earth Village, the Third Prince, and Qi Tian…… have all become targets to stimulate Xixi."

"At this critical juncture, if we were to reunite with Xixi, we would surely be watched and become a burden to Xixi."

Zhang Ya remained silent for a long time, she looked at Li Che, bit her lip and spoke.

Li Che glanced at Zhang Ya in surprise, not expecting his wife to see through these things.

"Xiao Su Da and I analyzed……" Zhang Ya said.

Li Che smiled; no wonder his wife suddenly became so clever.

"Husband…… I wonder if we should still reunite with Xixi?"

"If we reunite with Xixi, we will burden her…… we will also become targets of the gods' suppression; once we are injured or meet with mishap, Xixi would……"

"So…… husband, let's temporarily not reunite with Xixi."

Zhang Ya spoke with heart‑wrenching pain; saying these words, she felt as if even breathing had become difficult.

Tears kept swirling in her eye sockets.

Li Che let out a soft sigh, understanding that making his wife, who had hoped for so long, make such a decision and say such words, her heart must be in great pain.

However, at this critical juncture, reuniting with Xixi would only bring her trouble and hassle.

He rubbed Zhang Ya's lovely hair.

"Wife, actually…… we could think of a way to let Xixi know we have arrived and have been watching her."

"With Xixi's cleverness, she should quickly be able to judge the situation."

"Then we will find an opportunity…… to evade the scrutiny of the Three Major Divine Factions and secretly meet with Xixi."

Li Che said.

"One day…… I will be able to break through all obstacles, allowing our family to reunite openly and honorably!"

Li Che's words were firm and full of hostility.

However, just as Li Che's words finished.

His breathing suddenly became a bit hurried.

Here comes!

Zhang Ya was startled.

Ah?

Xixi… is here!

He took hold of Zhang Ya's slender waist, and Li Che's heart stirred.

The next moment, taking Zhang Ya, he disappeared in the inn.

Reappearing, he was already on the immensely huge teleportation platform of God-hiding City.

On the teleportation platform…

Light flowed.

The seventy-two villages of Northern Dipper Heaven participating in the Thousand Village Divine Gambling War all appeared.

And around the teleportation platform, a dense crowd had already gathered.

The purpose of these people gathering here is also simple: to take a look at the rumored Prison Lotus Maiden.

Therefore, Li Che appeared with Zhang Ya in the crowd, unnoticed.

Li Che sensed the pull of the Flying Thunder Chess Piece, guiding Zhang Ya, and his gaze looked over.

He then saw on the teleportation platform.

Bound with two sky‑reaching braids, wearing a great red robe, a Heaven-and-Earth Ring around her neck, and a Heaven‑mixing Ribbon at her waist, Xixi walked out head held high and chest out.

And it was completely different from the image seen through the chess piece projection of the Heaven-Earth Chessboard.

There was no longer any distance separating them.

It made Li Che and Zhang Ya's gazes stare blankly for a moment.