Chapter 169: Endless Sea

After that Void-Piercing realm demonic beast fell.

The Old Fire, who had been attacking the beast, finally sheathed his long spear.

With a wave of his hand, he stored the massive Void-Piercing beast's body into his storage ring. At the same time, the Old Water outside retracted his water-blue treasure tower and, his face slightly pale, withdrew the minor divine technique he had been maintaining: the Variegated Sea Realm.

Upon reaching the Void-Piercing realm and comprehending the underlying principles of the Dao.

A cultivator's essence, energy, and spirit undergo tempering by these principles, achieving a qualitative transformation, with their life level rising significantly.

It can be said that the very essence of a Void-Piercing life is the underlying principle itself that they have comprehended.

For a Void-Piercing realm, pure energy attacks are no longer effective in causing harm.

Only power derived from the underlying principles, or beyond them, can inflict effective damage on a Void-Piercing cultivator.

Even so, if the gap between opponents is not too vast.

Even two Void-Piercing experts would find it difficult to completely erode the other's underlying principles and utterly annihilate them in a short time.

Thus, although the Old Water and Old Fire, working together, suppressed that Void-Piercing demonic beast.

It still took them about three months to completely kill it.

Once all was settled, the two returned together to the sky-ship of the Tianyuan Trading House and began to recover their consumed spiritual power.

After the Old Fire and Old Water returned.

The Tianyuan Trading House's sky-ship finally set sail again, moving at great speed toward the Eastern Extreme Domain.

On the deck of the sky-ship, Ye Qingxuan, having witnessed it all, narrowed his eyes slightly, gazing toward the Eastern Extreme Domain as he fell into deep thought.

He was not thinking about the fall of that Void-Piercing demonic beast, but rather the changes in the demonic beasts of the Endless Sea.

Along the way, in other regions of the Endless Sea, no high-rank demonic beasts had dared to attack humans.

The beasts that previously attacked the Tianyuan Trading House were mostly mid- and low-rank demonic beasts unaware of the current situation in the Di Xuan Realm.

But now, in the near-seas approaching the Eastern Extreme Domain, the beasts here dare to strike at humans.

It seems the demonic beasts of the Eastern Extreme Domain are quite active after all? However, the four outer domains of the Di Xuan Realm have no hegemonic powers stationed there; the strongest factions are likely only at the Soul Transformation level.

And the five inner domains of the Di Xuan Realm rarely intervene in the affairs of the four outer domains.

In the eyes of the human high-ups of the Di Xuan Realm.

The demonic beasts in the four outer domains serve to temper the humans of those regions.

As long as the demonic beasts in the four outer domains do not completely suppress the humans.

The human experts of the five inner domains will not intervene in the struggles between the outer domain beasts and humans.

Over time, the demon clans in the four outer domains naturally lost their sense of awe toward humans.

In that case, it is quite normal.

As Ye Qingxuan's thoughts turned, he turned around, ready to return to his private cabin, only to find his path blocked by someone:

"Esteemed Daoist friend, I am Han Ming. May I ask your name?"

"Gui Xuanzi!"

Ye Qingxuan replied coolly, then simply stared at the person before him.

Han Ming wore a purple-blue long robe, and his ornaments looked extremely luxurious.

He lightly waved a folding fan in his hand, appearing like a young master who had never seen the world, traveling abroad for the first time.

Sensing Ye Qingxuan's calm gaze, Han Ming smiled slightly awkwardly and spoke again:

"Brother Xuan, this is my first time traveling to the Eastern Extreme Domain for cultivation. Would Brother Xuan be willing to join me in exploring it together?"

Having spoken, Han Ming, seemingly fearing Ye Qingxuan might misunderstand, added: "Oh, by the way, I have also invited several other Daoist friends. When we reach the Eastern Extreme Domain, we can look out for one another. What is Brother Xuan's opinion?"

Hearing Han Ming's words, Ye Qingxuan did not hesitate and rejected him directly: "I prefer solitude. I will not disturb your enjoyment." Having spoken, Ye Qingxuan, giving Han Ming no chance to continue, returned directly to his private cabin.

With a stranger, he naturally did not wish to rashly entangle himself with others.

However, one does not strike a smiling face. Since Han Ming had been polite to him, Ye Qingxuan did not speak harshly, merely rejecting him coolly.

After returning to his private cabin, Ye Qingxuan put the matter out of his mind.

This time, Ye Qingxuan's main consciousness did not leave his body projection to return to his original body within the Xuantian Sect.

Now, the Tianyuan Trading House's sky-ship is about to arrive at the Eastern Extreme Domain.

Before the situation within the Xuantian Sect and the five inner domains of the Di Xuan Realm undergoes major changes.

Ye Qingxuan's main focus will temporarily be on the Eastern Extreme Domain, preparing to open up the market there.

Although the Eastern Extreme Domain is only one of the four outer domains of the Di Xuan Realm, its territory is vast, and various mid- and low-rank resources are equally abundant.

Given that Ye Qingxuan's original body cannot be exposed, and with only a Nascent Soul cultivation base, he cannot stir up any waves within the five inner domains of the Di Xuan Realm.

The various resources of the Eastern Extreme Domain are the key for Ye Qingxuan's Qingxuan Grotto-Heaven to advance to the fourth tier, or even the fifth.

Therefore, opening up the market in the Eastern Extreme Domain is something Ye Qingxuan cannot afford to neglect.

In the following years, Ye Qingxuan's body projection remained secluded.

Except for occasional outings to view the scenery of the Endless Sea, Ye Qingxuan stayed in his private cabin the rest of the time.

He did not wish to entangle himself too much with outsiders, nor to recklessly create karmic ties.

But this did not mean he feared karma or would seal himself off to avoid it.

Ye Qingxuan acts entirely according to his own mood, following his heart's desire.

The cultivation base of his body projection had long since risen to match his original body; now both were at the late Nascent Soul realm.

Thus, Ye Qingxuan's body projection no longer needed to sit in meditation within the private cabin.

In his leisure time, whenever his heart moved, he would naturally go out to appreciate the scenery of the Endless Sea, so as not to make this journey in vain.

Fortunately, whether because he had already rejected Han Ming or because of the aloof image he had left beforehand.

During the time Ye Qingxuan went out to view the sea, no one came to disturb him.

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, five years had gone by.

Ye Qingxuan stood atop the floating ship of the Tianyuan Merchant Guild, gazing forward, where a faint and elusive coastline was already visible.

"Finally, we are almost there!"

Ye Qingxuan sighed inwardly; his external manifestation had remained on this floating ship of the Tianyuan Merchant Guild for nearly seventy years.

Now, he had finally seen the Dongji Region, located at one of the four extremities of the Di Xuan Realm.

Ye Qingxuan turned to look back at the endless sea behind him and thought silently:

"The Endless Sea truly lives up to its name!"

Over nearly seventy years, the Tianyuan Merchant Guild's floating ship performed seven spatial jumps and sailed for several more years before finally reaching the Dongji Region.

And this was merely a portion of the sea separating the Eastern Region and the Dongji Region within the Endless Sea.

It is said that as the Di Xuan Realm grows, the Endless Sea expands every year.

Besides the nine great regions that dominate the Di Xuan Realm,

countless continents are scattered throughout the Endless Sea.

The largest of these continents might be as vast as seven or eight great provinces of the Eastern Region.

(End of this chapter)