"He's from the Deep City Prefecture."
Li Zhouwei glanced at him. The black-armored demon smiled at him, sheathed his whip, and said,
"My lords, please..."
Bai Rong and the others hurried into the hall. Everything behind them suddenly transformed into endless waves, azure and blue intertwined, creating a torrent of water. It was clearly a scaly aquatic beast taking flight. Li Zhouwei steadied his steps and heard a loud laugh:
"My fellow Daoists!"
In the hall stood a young man with white horns, his robe patterned with waves and dragons. His light blue eyes smiled as he looked over. He stepped forward with his golden boots and said in a clear voice:
"Cheng..." Haiqingtang Chengbi Baijiao, Ding Jiao, greets fellow Daoist.
This voice was clearly directed at Bai Rong. Bai Rong flicked his bluish-white sleeves and replied in a light, gentle, and melodious voice, his tone quite different from before:
"Wanghu Tingping Suxin Fox, Bai Rong, greets the Crown Prince."
"Okay..."
Ding Jiao laughed heartily, appearing to be in a very good mood. He invited the two to take a seat, then expressed surprise:
"Bai Rong is originally Suxin Fox, and her bloodline is so close to that of the Dali Mountain Master! I was negligent. If I had known your identity, I would have come out of the hall to greet you." "That's right, I'm wrong."
"Your Highness, you're joking."
Bai Rong, with narrow eyes and handsome features, sat at the side, holding a wine glass. His voice was soft and gentle, and his smile was appropriate, completely different from his usual playful demeanor. He said gently:
"I received the grace of the Mountain Master's Blood Pond, and my life was adjusted to my nature. This has transformed me. I don't deserve such a gift."
Ding Jiao suddenly understood, nodded, and clapped his hands, saying softly:
"That's also a sign of great fortune."
The two exchanged a few lively words, and Ding Jiao immediately turned back to Li Zhouwei and said seriously:
"Minghuang, "It was my fault last time, I neglected you. Now that this has been accomplished, I'm deeply grateful and will remember it!"
Li Zhouwei sought the favor of a Dragon, not a Dragon spiritual weapon. While Mingyang's spiritual ring was powerful, it was far beyond his reach. He shook his head and said, "Your Highness, you're too polite. It was all Senior Bai Rong's help. I can't take credit for it."
The three of them chatted for a while, and Bai Rong displayed a completely different side, a more sophisticated and diplomatic one. He told a few elegant stories and praised Dongfang You several times. Ding Jiao listened with a smile, and both host and guest were delighted.
The scaly creature was incredibly fast. Time passed by, and Li Zhouwei, listening to the two men's idle chatter, finally shuddered slightly as a long-bearded demon general stepped forward to announce:
"My Lords, we've arrived at the Tomb Abyss."
Ding Jiao then stood up and walked down, leading the two men as he whispered:
"Minghuang may not know, but let me explain. This place is south of the South China Sea, and it's called the Tomb Abyss."
The men flew off the scaly creature and saw a vast expanse of sand before them. Stone islands of varying sizes radiated outward, and in the center lay a vast abyss. Looking out, one couldn't see the other side of the abyss.
On either side of the abyss, islands as large as cities and as small as houses were scattered across the abyss, densely packed and stretching as far as the eye could see. The sea flowed into the abyss through a spiderweb of channels, and below was infinite darkness.
Ding Jiao gazed at it dimly and whispered,
"Before the celestial change, this place was a vast continent, as vast as Jiangnan, but sparsely populated. Jiangnan had tens of millions of people, but this place has only tens of millions."
"During the celestial change... two immortals fought here, shattering the continent. Not only did the spiritual energy disappear, but even now, no living creatures remain. We dragons call it the 'Grave Abyss'... comparable to the 'World Navel' in the East China Sea."
Bai Rong nodded, seemingly visiting this place for the first time. He glanced at it with interest and whispered,
"I heard this place lacks spiritual energy, and therefore no Taixu. Even when the Purple Palace arrives here, they have to descend and fly..."
"Not "bad."
Ding Jiao whispered,
"This place leads all the way to the Netherworld, where the underworld is located. It's said that people from the underworld enter and exit from here."
He spoke quietly as he descended. The three of them quickly vanished into the infinite darkness. Li Zhouwei frowned as he watched the surging waters on both sides. He whispered, "This grave abyss is terrifyingly vast. How could the waters of the South China Sea not have drained away? It's hundreds of times larger than the sky hole in the North Sea. Even if it rained all over the South China Sea, it wouldn't be enough to fill it..."
"Could it be that this place is like a cape, where the water falls into the depths and immediately transforms into veins and flows back into the sea?"
Ding Jiao shook his head and explained, "The water doesn't fall into the grave abyss everywhere. This place is just an outlet. If you fly south for a while, the ground will be higher than the sea level, and there won't be any water falling in."
Li Zhouwei nodded. , warning:
"There are no spiritual energies here. Once your magic power is exhausted, something bad will happen..."
"Don't worry."
Ding Jiao pulled a few white beads from his sleeve, pondered carefully, and put them back. He then replaced them with a black circular spiritual artifact, which suddenly grew larger and placed beneath the men. He apologized:
"My mount, the Cloud Riding, is inconvenient in the abyss."
Bai Rong nodded, somewhat doubtfully:
"It's said to lead to the underworld, but I haven't heard of it... After all, we're not familiar with the affairs of the sea. Could you please tell me about it, Prince?"
He apologized, and Ding Jiao waved his hand, whispering:
"This story dates back to the Qi Dynasty, when Northern Qi replaced Wei. So, Prince Li Xunquan of Wei led an army and briefly controlled the Long region, which was then known as Longwei. One of my family members lived in Wei and met a good friend, with whom he had a very pleasant conversation."
"Later, there was a severe drought in the south, and the master personally went there to bring rain. Upon his return, When his friend was murdered, he traveled all the way here, delved deep into the abyss, and flew into the netherworld. He met the Judge of the Netherworld and brought the man back.
Li Zhouwei was stunned at first, but then his heart warmed. He said in a deep voice:
"Is the deceased really taken to the Netherworld as the legend says? And can he be saved?!"
Ding Jiao hesitated and whispered:
"When a mortal dies, their soul is undoubtedly scattered. I heard that everyone in the world is listed on the Netherworld list. If one practices the Purple Mansion Golden Elixir, the Netherworld can even know each person's cultivation level and magic. As for capturing souls, that shouldn't be possible nowadays."
"But..."
The strong hope that had risen in Li Zhouwei's heart suddenly extinguished. He lowered his head and asked. Ding Jiao replied:
"I've also inquired about this matter. I heard that because the person was born before the celestial change and practiced the Purple Mansion Golden Elixir... Si Yilu will capture him... The Yin Division will not intervene in the case of anyone born after the celestial change, unless they fail to reach the Golden Core stage.
Bai Rong felt uncomfortable watching this and changed the subject. A thought crossed his mind, and he whispered,
"What if there are immortal cultivators whose names aren't on the list?"
"Not on the list?"
Ding Jiao glanced at him, shook his head, and smiled, "Then they must be practicing Wu Lu, or practicing Qigong!"
The white fox lowered his head thoughtfully. Li Zhouwei was disappointed for a moment before recovering and whispering, "I've heard of Li Xunquan. There were many uprisings in the north back then, and many of them succeeded. There were two Wei-Li restorations, and later there was Li Xuan... I just don't know what happened to them later."
The Li family has gathered a lot of information over the years and pays close attention to these things. However, they can't get any information in Jiangnan, and it's rare to hear something in the East China Sea.
Bai Rong glanced at Ding Jiao and whispered, "He was killed by the Emperor of Qi, and his head has been hanging in Dianyang City for nine years, unremoved."
Ding Jiao remained silent, the spiritual weapon beneath his feet oscillating. Li Zhouwei took a deep breath, his expression darkening as he gazed into the endless darkness.
"What exactly does Ding Jiao want to do..."
As he journeyed, Li Zhouwei gradually understood Ding Jiao's status. This White Dragon Crown Prince was probably one of the most distinguished.
"The East China Sea is vast, and there are many Purple Mansion monsters under the Dragon Clan. If he truly has a request, wouldn't the Dragon Clan be able to send a great Purple Mansion monster to aid him?"
"Besides everything else, the Eastern Heyun is strange enough..."
Bai Rong is a Foundation Establishment fox demon, and his cultivation isn't exactly easy to follow. Perhaps it's due to his bloodline, or perhaps there are some secret techniques that can be learned, but can he truly rival the magical powers of the Purple Mansion?
"From the attitudes of the two demons, it's clear... this matter was orchestrated by both the Fox and Dragon... What kind of thing is this? They even brought me along..."
"Bai Rong said Ding Jiao wanted to befriend me... so he brought me here. Is there any benefit to that?"
He paused for a moment. After sitting in meditation for several days, Ding Jiao and Bai Rong had fallen silent. Ding Jiao remained silent, while Bai Rong's expression was intensely focused, his ears twitching slightly.
He slowly stood up and listened for a moment. White fur gradually sprouted from his body. He swung in place and transformed into a snow-white fox, impeccably white.
The fox's ears stood erect, and there was even another ear between its eyebrows, forming a triangular shape with the tip pointing upward. From the side, it looked like a white horn, its fur delicate and exquisite.
Bai Rong revealed his true form, squatting on the plate and moving deeper. Ding Jiao remained motionless, watching the two of them quietly. The spiritual weapon flew slower and slower until it finally came to a stop.
Ding Jiao whispered, "There's a sound here. Bai Rong, listen carefully. I'm running low on mana in my magical instrument. If you can't hear anything here, go deeper."
Li Zhouwei heard nothing, feeling only the eerie silence. Bai Rong paused, then shook his head.
"Please fly a little longer."
Ding Jiao silently activated his magical instrument, soaring for nearly half an hour. The surroundings were pitch black, devoid of any light, as if mired in an endless gloom. Finally, he stopped.
Bai Rong twitched his ears and frowned, saying,
"It's a man's voice..."
The fox listened for another quarter of an hour before whispering,
"He said..."
Bai Rong seemed uncertain, his expression tense. He leaned down again and listened carefully. Dizzy, he muttered,
"Fa... Suo Chi... Hot, begging... what..."
Li Zhouwei's heart tightened at this, while Ding Jiao frowned and asked in a low voice,
"Did he say anything else?"
Bai Rong listened for a while longer, his magical power flowing. A purple glow mixed with smoke swirled around him, and the white hairs around his ears transformed into... A deep purple hue. After a quarter of an hour, he whispered,
"Nothing else, just this."
His expression was shaken, and after a pause, he continued,
"His voice was sometimes as high as a tiger's roar, heart-wrenching, mingled with the coughing of blood. Sometimes it was as shrill as a rat's cry, piercing the clouds and cracking the rocks, utterly terrifying."
"What he said..."
"The ropes are burning hot, tied too tightly. Please loosen them."
Ding Jiao raised his eyebrows, a mixture of chill and anger in his expression. He was silent for a moment, then pulled a jade bottle from his sleeve, placed it in his palm, and whispered,
"Suxin Fox, please continue listening."