Chapter 491: The Witch God’s Intentions
They really guessed right!
After the Witch Clan’s army entered the Spirit Realm, their first target was the over a hundred resource planets under the rule of Lord Lintian. On almost every one of these planets, hundreds of thousands of Witch Clan warriors landed and began searching relentlessly for cultivators at the Refining Void stage and above.
Boom…
Hundreds of thousands of terrifying giants, each towering a thousand zhang high, descended from the sky. Every planet fell into chaos, with everyone plunged into utter panic, as if the end of the world had arrived.
However, ordinary people and lower-level cultivators soon realized that these giants weren’t out to slaughter them. They simply searched everywhere without pause, their powerful Witch Clan mental energies spreading far and wide, ensuring no inch of land—including the depths underground—escaped detection.
The mental powers of the Witch God’s warriors were on par with those of cultivators at the Great Vehicle stage. Anyone hiding among them who was at the Refining Void stage or above would have no chance of escaping.
“These giants don’t even glance at us. It seems they’re not here to eat people…”
Hope began to arise among the ordinary people. Over time, their fear and panic subsided, and some even knelt down in worship, considering these giants as gods descending from heaven…
Of course, those powerful cultivators at the Refining Void stage and above were all old foxes who had lived for thousands of years. They knew well how to protect themselves and weren’t so easy to catch.
The best way for them was to hide inside the magical treasure spaces of someone at the Nascent Soul stage or even the Golden Core stage, thus easily evading the Witch Clan warriors’ searches.
But how could the Witch God not have thought of such tactics? He had already prepared various capture methods, though he hadn’t needed to use them yet.
The search operation required careful progression—there was no room for haste. This would be a prolonged battle of endurance. After all, the Witch Clan had a long lifespan, allowing them to play hide-and-seek with those cultivators over time…
“All the foundations built by the Lin family over hundreds of thousands of years are gone!”
A faint sigh came from somewhere in the starry sky.
The one who sighed was Lord Lintian, the original ruler of this star domain and the current head of the Lin family. At this moment, the over a hundred cultivators at the Refining Void stage and above belonging to the Lin family were all by Lord Lintian’s side, having already escaped this catastrophe. Although the Lin family’s territory would be the first to be invaded by the Witch Clan, they were also among the first in the Spirit Realm to receive the warning.
The star region where Qi Yuan Star is located corresponds spatially to the Lin family’s territory. They kept constant surveillance over Qi Yuan Star. It can be said that the moment the Witch God activated the ultimate star gate, some core members of the Lin family initiated their pre-planned escape plan.
Although the Witch God’s return came sixty years earlier than expected, it wasn’t enough to catch the Lin family off guard.
One of the most crucial figures who helped the Lin family escape in time was Li Jiu, a powerful being at the Great Vehicle stage. Specializing in array art, he hid within a top-tier illusion array that concealed him in the vast void. Inside this not-so-large array, there were five beings at the Great Vehicle stage, twenty-four at the Tribulation stage, and over four hundred at the Refining Void stage.
The reason these people gathered together wasn’t merely to avoid the Witch Clan’s army; there was another, even more important task for them to carry out. While the Witch Clan’s army invaded the Spirit Realm, this group planned to secretly infiltrate the Cultivation Realm.
“The laws of heaven and earth have changed. Once we reach the Cultivation Realm, even if we unleash our greatest strength, we won’t face punishment from these laws, nor will we be sent back to the Spirit Realm,” Li Jiu said in a solemn tone, sounding both relieved and sorrowful. “Because from today onward, there will be no distinction between the Spirit Realm and the Cultivation Realm.”
“The changes in the Spirit Realm aren’t important to us,” another being at the Great Vehicle stage said gravely. “After all, we’re all about to ascend to the Immortal Realm.”
After saying this, he asked, “Brother Li Jiu, are you really sure the Immortal Realm no longer values that Tian Yu?”
“The spatial crystal walls of the Spirit Realm have been shattered, and the Witch Clan’s rise is now a fact. A minor figure like Tian Yu will no longer attract attention among the immortals in the Immortal Realm—it’s an inevitable outcome,” Li Jiu replied in a low voice. “I’m just worried that Tian Yu might follow the Witch Clan into the Spirit Realm and not stay in the Cultivation Realm. If that happens, all our efforts will be in vain, and our hopes will be dashed.”
“That won’t happen. He must still be in the Cultivation Realm!”
The one who spoke was a female being at the Great Vehicle stage. She possessed a breathtakingly beautiful face—describing her beauty as ‘a fairy from heaven’ was far from enough. At this moment, she declared to everyone with certainty, “As long as he isn’t a reincarnation of the Witch Clan, he will surely choose to stay in the Cultivation Realm. There’s no need to worry at all!”
“That’s great.”
Li Jiu and the others all showed expressions of joy; it seemed they had no doubts about what this female cultivator said. Some even declared, “Since Princess Xueyu has spoken thus, there’s no need for us to speculate further. This trip to the Cultivation Realm will surely yield results!”
The others nodded in agreement, clearly showing that everyone present held great respect for this ‘Princess Xueyu’.
After a brief silence, Li Jiu spoke solemnly to everyone, “Then it’s settled. Our main goals for this trip to the Cultivation Realm are twofold: first, to avoid disaster, and second, to capture Tian Yu and find out the whereabouts of the black pagoda…”
At this point, his expression turned stern, and his tone grew colder: “But let me be clear—this mission is crucial for us. During this time, no one is allowed to ruin everything out of selfish motives! If anyone defies this order deliberately, I, Li Jiu, will regard them as mortal enemies!”
Upon hearing this, all those in the formation at the Tribulation Stage and Void Refinement Stage responded in unison.
Among them, Lord Lintian’s gaze flickered, his expression somewhat strange, as his family had once ruined things due to selfishness. It felt as though Li Jiu’s words were directed at him personally.
After making the decision, the invisible formation carrying hundreds of powerful cultivators moved extremely slowly toward a gap in the spatial crystal wall hundreds of billions of miles away.
They knew that the Witch Clan’s leader, the Witch God, had just broken through the spatial crystal wall and likely hadn’t left this star system yet. Therefore, they dared not move too fast and could only inch forward slowly, fearing even the slightest disturbance might alert that terrifying Witch God.
Yet, the thoughts of the Witch God were beyond mortal comprehension.
At that moment, the Witch God, floating somewhere in the void, smirked slightly. Though he had spotted them, he didn’t stop them. In fact, he had no intention of stopping them at all.
At the same time, several other groups sharing the same goals as Li Jiu and his companions were also taking secret actions to ‘smuggle’ into the Cultivation Realm.
There were two reasons:
First, since the Witch Clan’s army was advancing toward the Spirit Realm, the Cultivation Realm had become a safer place. Going there increased the chances of surviving this great calamity.
Second, it was to search for that black pagoda.
Decades ago, over a hundred powerful cultivators at the Mahayana stage fought to seize that treasure pagoda, even engaging in brutal battles that resulted in heavy casualties. Although more than a dozen people died on the spot, at least sixty Mahayana-level cultivators remained determined and tried every means to reach the Cultivation Realm in search of the treasure.
Previously, entering the Cultivation Realm required great effort to open a passage to the lower world; now, however, the Spirit Realm and the Cultivation Realm are directly connected, eliminating the constraints of those cosmic rules.
Combined, these groups numbered around fifty at the Mahayana stage, over a hundred at the Tribulation stage, and over a thousand at the Void Refinement stage.
Their understanding of Tian Yu was not as comprehensive or thorough as that of Li Jiu’s group; they only roughly knew that the location of the black pagoda was likely related to Tian Yu.
Though their knowledge was limited, it was sufficient, as their goal was clear: to capture Tian Yu while seeking refuge.
The Witch God had long noticed these groups. In fact, it could be said that without his permission, no mortal cultivator could slip away unnoticed in this entire starry expanse.
It was absolutely impossible to sneak into the Cultivation Realm undetected by the Witch God!
Yet, for some unknown reason, instead of stopping them, the Witch God even secretly manipulated things, diverting some Witch Clan warriors far from the groups’ routes, effectively paving the way for them.
Only the Witch God himself knew the true reason for this.
No one in this world could fathom the Witch God’s intentions…
Su Che was completely unaware of all this and continued preparing to reach the Divine Transformation stage.
Reaching the Divine Transformation stage is an extremely important and dangerous milestone for any cultivator. During the seclusion period, no negative influences are allowed, as there is only one chance—failure means certain death.
Even though Su Che had the Immortal Prison, giving him advantages in many aspects, he still dared not take even the slightest chance or be careless.
Like everyone else, he had only one chance. Failure would result in the destruction of his soul, with no room for luck.
Even if various advantages could boost his success rate to 90%, bad luck could still lead to those 10% of failure chances, resulting in a tragic end.
Therefore, for the seclusion place during the Transformation to Divine Phase, the broader environment must be carefully chosen, with no interference at all; the smaller environment is less important—one can hide in the space of a top-tier magical artifact, and have people like Heng Yi and his subordinates, or even the six others at the Transformation to Divine Phase already in the Immortal Prison, protect them…
After ten days, Heng Yi traveled trillions of miles through space, likely moving away from the gaps in the spatial crystal walls and entering a relatively safe and peaceful star region.
Within this star region lies a cultivation planet named “Forging Gold Planet.” The overall cultivation level of its cultivators is far inferior to that of Qi Yuan Planet back then. From preliminary investigations, there are only two people in the later stages of the Yuan Ying phase on the entire planet, and they are constantly in seclusion, striving tirelessly to reach the Transformation to Divine Phase while largely ignoring worldly affairs.
However, the art of crafting weapons on this planet is highly advanced, with many master craftsmen, living up to its name of “Forging Gold.”
After thorough investigation, Su Che confirmed that all the cultivation sects on Forging Gold Planet were still unaware of the “Rupture of the Heavenly Wall.” It seems they lack connection to the Spirit Realm, and information flows rather slowly in various aspects.
For Su Che, the broader environment here was quite good—peaceful, calm, and stable…
So, he happily made the decision: this is the place!