"Even so, Cave Master's methods of harming countless Cultivators are unmatched," Yu Ci responded in such a way.

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave was not irritated, but laughed heartily, "Your ability to control the Talisman Seal is truly impressive. Of course, you've also discarded the Heavenly Calculation Bead and the Worry-free Seat, proving you're a true intellectual."

Yu Ci gave a wry smile, but before he could speak, he saw the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave looking at him with clouded eyes. Within the gloomy fog, lay layers of infinite murderous intent:

"Why don't you explain how the First Layer Talisman Seal is as malleable as clay in your hands... If the Secret Domain Talisman Seal was so easy to control, why would I have waited thousands of years for this opportunity?"

"Perhaps your fortune is not good," Yu Ci gave an insincere response, sidestepping the fatal question.

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave paused, then clapped his hands, "You're right."

After a pause, as if he had thought of something, a smile spread across his face, "Fortune is not to be fully trusted, but neither can it be completely disbelieved. If your fortune is as good as you say, how about... we collaborate?"

Without waiting for Yu Ci to reject, he continued:

"This Guixu (which usually means a bottomless valley in the sea), has long been shattered by the calamity. Although it contains countless treasures, obtaining them depends on fate. Since your fortune is so good, don't waste it. Let's turn our weapons into gifts of silk, avoid unnecessary fighting, and search for treasures in Guixu together, wouldn't that be delightful?

"You know what I desire, which I believe should not conflict with your interests. You should know that within Guixu, there is at least one complete copy of the 'Upper True Nine Heavens Flying Immortal Sword Scripture', and the personal treasures of the West Expedition Sword Immortals from the past, many of which have already surpassed the level of Magical Instruments, are the top Magical Treasures in this realm...

Yu Ci watched as the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave bloomed like a lotus, boasting about the benefits. It would be a lie to say he wasn't tempted, but his rationality held the last line of defense. He knew very clearly that bargaining with a tiger for its skin was an act of utter foolishness, regardless of the circumstances.

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave was that "tiger," the most unpredictable of them all.

Yu Ci pondered for a moment, then asked, "Cave Master just arrived from the Misty Shadow Sky. I presume you're aware of the current situation there. May I ask how things are in the Secret Domain? How has the Plague Demon Seeds affected it?"

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave studied him for a long while before answering, "Around three to four thousand casualties, I'd say. The tunnel was easier to break through than I expected."

Hearing this, Yu Ci took a deep breath, "Cave Master, your methods are impressive... but let's not discuss this alliance further!"

His final eight words were resolute, leaving no room for negotiation.

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave appeared somewhat surprised. "You don't seem like the type to fish for compliments."

"I won't belittle myself, but I'm not ignorant either. Compared to the lives of thousands of cultivators, my so-called 'fortune' is trivial. Cave Master, you're willing to sacrifice thousands of lives, why then would you spare this illusory 'fortune'? Surely, you understand this, so why put on a show?"

"This is not right."

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave retorted defiantly, "Those lives are useful to me, so I took them. Your fortune is useful to me, but I can't take it. As such,

"There will always come a time when something is exhausted, used up, or no longer useful!"

While saying "used up," Yu Ci was also troubled. According to reason, Hua Xifeng and the others should have been nearby. Why was there no response to his various secret methods taught by the sect? His means of calling for help were almost exhausted!

Yu Ci's refusal was decisive, and the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave didn't have the patience to persuade him over and over again. To him, borrowing "fortune" was just a means to improve efficiency. Now that he had entered Guixu, this was no longer so important.

"Courageous!"

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave made a judgment, as if giving Yu Ci a final verdict. He raised his hand, ready to erase the last bit of regret and annihilate the young man before him.

Then he saw Yu Ci also raised his sword technique, the tip of the sword pointing directly at his brow. Starlight flowed on the sword technique, giving it a somewhat vague form, but it carried a sharp sword energy within.

The sight rendered the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave speechless with mirth, yet it also drained his interest in further conversation. With a tap of his finger, the pitch-black space began to reverberate. The momentary chaos within the space was enough to grind the reckless youth into dust.

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However, what followed left him stunned. The vibrations in the space quickly subsided, the ensuing chaos far less than he had anticipated. In the darkness, it seemed as though an invisible presence was wrestling with him, and in the first round, he was utterly defeated!

Yu Ci was unharmed, the turbulent flow of the space merely slashing his clothes slightly. His sword momentum remained unaffected, even spontaneously adapting due to the chaos of the space. The Aura coiled around his six pulse points, and the void in front of him seemed to collapse, the internal pressure squeezing the Sword Energy, causing it to burst forth, transforming mid-air into a pure mist of light.

The dark space was illuminated by this light mist, revealing the unpredictable expression of the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave.

With a flick of his robe, he extinguished the light mist, and the void darkened once more. Yet in the darkness, there seemed to be the faint sound of countless ants crawling, the friction between the Sword Energy and his vigor.

"This sword mist, which could usually be extinguished with a wave of my hand, why is it so persistent now?"

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave felt that something was amiss. He sensed the constraints this Heaven and Earth had imposed on him. When he didn't exert force or harbor malicious thoughts, everything was fine. But the moment he took action, the entire void seemed to radiate a sense of extreme rejection and suppression. This reminded him of an unpleasant memory from ten thousand years ago.

In fact, it was his first time in Guixu, a term usually referring to a bottomless valley in the sea. His best achievement in the past was only breaking through the first two layers of the Talisman Seal, shaking the third layer.

That was when he ambushed Wu Jie, using "that power" to lock onto Wu Jie's position through the connection between "form and shadow". He suddenly launched an attack in the Misty Shadow Sky, landing a hit. At that time, he managed to squeeze half of his body into Guixu, but was immediately counterattacked by Wu Jie, who sent his soul scattering in the blink of an eye. If not for "that power", he would have long since perished.

Under those circumstances, he couldn't distinguish between the power of Guixu's Seal and Wu Jie's power. Now that he understood, he felt only frustration.

"The pressure here is more than a hundred times that in front of the second layer of the Talisman Seal. And this insignificant youngster dares to challenge me! Ha, no matter how great the pressure, my strength still far surpasses his... Where are you going!"

While the sword mist distracted the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave, Yu Ci had silently slipped away. Of course, he didn't manage to hide for long before being discovered.

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave sneered coldly, "You cannot escape death!"

Estimating the pressure of Guixu, the abyssal marine valley, Seal had grown much more composed in his attacks. He was confident that his next strike would severely injure Yu Ci. However, just as death loomed, Yu Ci leapt like a fish, disappearing as if he had penetrated a veiled curtain in the darkness.

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave was taken aback. "He escaped into the Void Interlayer... But how could he be so familiar with Guixu?"

The most suspicious aspect finally dawned on him, causing his heart to sink. Someone had guided him... but who?

In the Secret Domain, how many living beings could claim to be familiar with Guixu? Any one of them would be a threat that the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave dreaded to his core. With this realization, he was momentarily stunned.

Being a creature that had lived for tens of thousands of years, he quickly contemplated all possibilities. After ruling out multiple scenarios and considering Yu Ci's changes since entering the Secret Domain, the final answer became clear:

"He must have been to the Sunken Sword Cave. Could he be in cahoots with that guy?"

The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave held his forehead, trying to calm himself. But somehow, he thought of the changes in the First Layer Talisman Seal. If his speculation was correct, the previous anomalies could all be explained. Now thinking about it, he had initially asked about the crux of the matter, but was led astray by Yu Ci. How infuriating!

In his frustration, he felt a sense of panic. He didn't have a heart, but the accumulation of past events made it impossible to suppress his emotions.

"That youngster must not be allowed to live. I must act quickly on that matter!"

He immediately sent a message to the Pan Emperor's Three Swords, asking them to keep an eye on Yu Ci's whereabouts. He forced down his tumultuous emotions, and with a few turns, emerged from the pitch-black Void Interlayer.

"So this is Guixu?"

Yu Ci widened his eyes, marveling at the unprecedented spectacle before him.

He stood under a sky full of stars, surrounded by broken walls and ruins. Shattered beams, jade pillars, and stone walls were scattered in all directions, not on a single plane, but upside down, left and right, floating in the dark void, each at a considerable distance from the other. Here, it was impossible to distinguish heaven and earth, only an endless space with no boundaries, somewhat similar to the Inner Void of the Heart.

The position where Yu Ci stood was, comparatively speaking, quite spacious. The area spanned dozens of steps in every direction. Judging from the bricks and stones laid on the ground, it seemed like a majestic hall of some sorts. However, now it was only a dilapidated foundation, floating in the night sky.

"Is this Guixu?"

It was the second time Yu Ci had asked this question. After a long silence, Xuan Huang finally spoke, "Five thousand years have passed, and this place is unrecognizable..."

"What, it didn't look like this before?"

"Of course not. The place where you stand used to be the 'Greatest Heaven Palace' of Guixu. It housed a miniature model of the Cultivation World, handcrafted by the Thunderbolt-Free Great Immortals. It could show the entire realm. But now, everything is gone."

"Why?" Yu Ci, sensing Xuan Huang's sorrow, was not particularly surprised, but rather found it inexplicably strange.

"Obviously, it's because the Thunderbolt-Free Great Immortals broke through the Three Thousand Worlds, causing a backlash from the void. I knew that this day would come sooner or later. It's a pity that this place, once a Blessed Land of Cave Heavens independently opened by the Thunderbolt-Free Great Immortals, is on the verge of collapse... Do you find it difficult to breathe here?"

Yu Ci nodded. Thanks to the formation of the Seed True Talisman, the transition between internal and external breathing had become more natural. Otherwise, he would have been embarrassed earlier.

At this moment, Xuan Huang became calm, "Don't wander around. Since this place has suffered a void backlash, Void Rifts exist everywhere. The Thunderbolt-Free Great Immortals were even more ruthless in Guixu. Although they couldn't connect to the Eternal Abyss, they were mostly near the Outer Realm Void. If you step out, the environment there could cost you your life!"

"Oh, I understand."

Yu Ci glanced around and asked, "So, where is your real body?"

"According to the previous location, it should be twenty miles behind the Greatest Heaven Palace, in the Heavenly Dome Sword Pool. But now, I can't be sure. Let's be careful and go around it."

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of light suddenly lit up in the distant void, and the intermittent sound of sword ringing came through.

...