Chapter 7: Half a Year Later

When the Shaoyan clan sent people to Anchan City to find out whether Ji Ning was dead, the 'Xia Emperor' of the Grand Xia capital also dispatched his subordinate, the Celestial Fox.

"Celestial Fox, go to the Black-White College. I need to know whether Ji Ning is alive or dead."

"Yes, master." The Celestial Fox immediately accepted the order.

The Xia Emperor was very concerned about Ji Ning's fate. He had long believed Ji Ning to be a disciple of the Dao Ancestor. Could such a peerless figure have simply died? The Xia Emperor was reluctant to believe it, but after receiving the report from 'Shaoyan Chou', he had sent the Slaughter God Guard to deal with those Fiendgods while simultaneously using the 'Complete Mirror' to observe everything that happened in the Chenyu Mountains. Through the Complete Mirror, he had personally witnessed the descent of the Karma Fire!

"After all, he has cultivated for less than a century. Although he is a peerless genius rarely seen in the entire major world, facing the descent of Karma Fire, his chances of survival are slim." When the Xia Emperor saw the battle between Ji Ning and the Shaoyan clan in the Complete Mirror, he had been on good terms with Ji Ning, and the Shaoyan clan was one of his subordinate tribes.

He found it difficult to intervene and could only remain neutral.

……

Black-White College, Anchan City.

A white-robed, white-haired man was flying toward the residence of Immortal Diancai.

"What? You want to know whether Ji Ning is alive or dead?" Immortal Diancai looked at the Celestial Fox before him, puzzled. "Daoist Celestial Fox, why do you ask this?"

"Hmm?" Immortal Diancai turned his head to look outside. As the master of this mountain peak, he had naturally arranged some simple formations. When the white-robed, white-haired 'Whitewater Hound' arrived, Immortal Diancai immediately sensed him. Frowning, he said softly, "Whitewater Hound is here too?"

"Whitewater Hound?" The Celestial Fox smiled. "Since Ji Ning's spirit-beast has come, Immortal Diancai, you should ask Whitewater Hound about Ji Ning's matters. He certainly knows more than I do."

"Brother Bai." Immortal Diancai immediately spoke.

Although Whitewater Hound was not an official disciple of the Black-White College, he was the spirit-beast of an official disciple and was at the Earth Immortal stage of the Return to Void. His status in the Black-White College was quite high, and he could go to most places freely.

"Immortal Diancai." Uncle Bai walked over and, seeing the Celestial Fox sitting there, immediately said, "Greetings, Celestial Fox."

"Sit." Immortal Diancai quickly urged.

As soon as Uncle Bai sat down, Immortal Diancai pressed, "Daoist Celestial Fox came to me to ask whether Ji Ning is alive or dead. What exactly happened to Ji Ning?"

Uncle Bai looked at the Celestial Fox.

The Celestial Fox said, "I am here on the orders of the Xia Emperor."

"The Xia Emperor sent the Slaughter God Guard back then. He should be very clear about what happened in the Chenyu Mountains. Why ask me?" Uncle Bai's expression was grim. He felt that since the Xia Emperor could send the Slaughter God Guard, he could have saved Ji Ning, but he didn't.

"The Xia Emperor received a report from the Shaoyan clan about the emergence of Fiendgods and thus sent the Slaughter God Guard." The Celestial Fox quickly explained. "At first, the Xia Emperor didn't know about Ji Ning's involvement. It was only after the Slaughter God Guard returned and reported that he learned Ji Ning was also present... Later, the Xia Emperor inquired with the Shaoyan clan and learned of this matter. By the time he knew, it was already too late!"

Uncle Bai said nothing more.

"What are you talking about?" Immortal Diancai pressed.

"Ning'er has a deep enmity with the Shaoyan clan." Uncle Bai said directly. "The Shaoyan clan refused to let it go, so Ning'er went straight to their lair. Unable to do anything to Ning'er, they used a scheme to make Ning'er mistakenly kill billions of mortals, causing the Karma Fire to descend."

"Mistakenly kill billions of mortals? Karma Fire descends?" Immortal Diancai's face changed drastically.

He treated Ji Ning like his own child. Hearing that Ji Ning had mistakenly killed billions of mortals and triggered the Karma Fire, he was stunned.

"What about Ji Ning?" Immortal Diancai pressed.

"Ning'er was engulfed in Karma Fire, but the Shaoyan clan didn't stop. They used some teleportation technique to send Ning'er outside the Grand Xia world." Uncle Bai's face was ashen.

"When did Ning'er become engulfed in Karma Fire?" Immortal Diancai pressed.

"Seven days ago." Uncle Bai said. "Seven days have passed. I can sense that Ning'er is still alive. He has survived the Karma Fire."

Immortal Diancai breathed a sigh of relief.

Karma Fire!

How terrifying! Even he, as a master, wouldn't dare claim he could survive the Karma Fire. He was both worried for his disciple and proud of him.

"Congratulations, congratulations on surviving the Karma Fire tribulation." The Celestial Fox beside him laughed, inwardly shocked. Even the Xia Emperor thought Ji Ning's chances of surviving the Karma Fire were extremely slim.

"Ning'er should have survived the Karma Fire tribulation about an hour or two ago." Uncle Bai said solemnly. "Ning'er naturally has a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal. If he weren't trapped in some desperate situation, he would have used the Greater Teleportation to return long ago. But he hasn't returned, which means the place where he's trapped cannot be escaped even with the Greater Teleportation Dao-seal."

Immortal Diancai's expression also turned grim.

The Celestial Fox nodded lightly: "That's normal. The Shaoyan clan has an extremely terrifying clan-guarding treasure, a先天灵宝 (Xiantian spirit-treasure) called the 'Realm-Suppressing Tower'. That tower has the power to tear space and teleport. Given the Shaoyan clan's hatred for Ji Ning, they would definitely send him to a deadly region in the endless void outside the Three Realms, making it impossible for him to escape using a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal."

"Then what can be done?" Immortal Diancai pressed.

"Nothing. Some deadly regions in the endless void are inescapable even for True Immortals and Celestial Gods." The Celestial Fox shook his head. "Immortal Diancai, although you have become a Celestial Immortal, you cannot help Ji Ning in such matters. Besides, no one knows where Ji Ning is."

"This Shaoyan clan..." Immortal Diancai's eyes blazed with boundless fury.

Immortal Diancai was very clear about the grievances between Ji Ning and the Shaoyan clan.

After all, back then, the Shaoyan clan's Xuanji Patriarch had come directly to the Black-White College and forced them to hand over Ji Ning.

"Also, the Shaoyan clan is very wary of Ji Ning." The Celestial Fox said. "This time, two Celestial Immortals of the Shaoyan clan died at Ji Ning's hands. They will certainly try every means to find out whether Ji Ning survived the Karma Fire. So they will definitely come to the Black-White College to investigate."

"Killed two Celestial Immortals?" Immortal Diancai was shocked.

"That's why the Shaoyan clan is wary of Ji Ning." The Celestial Fox said. "Your disciple is truly formidable."

Immortal Diancai quickly calmed down and nodded: "I understand. Rest assured, the Shaoyan clan will never learn from my Black-White College whether Ji Ning is alive or dead. Also, Daoist Celestial Fox... Ji Ning is still alive. I hope you won't leak this information."

"Don't worry. I will only report to the Xia Emperor. The Xia Emperor won't leak it to the Shaoyan clan." The Celestial Fox said.

……

That same day, Immortal Diancai ordered the 'Stellarfire Hall', where the life-tablets of the Black-White College disciples were kept, to be completely sealed off! No one was allowed to approach! Even the loose immortals of the Black-White College could not come near. As a 'Celestial Immortal', Immortal Diancai naturally held the highest status in the Black-White College.

Sealing off a hall of life-tablets was a minor matter. No one objected.

"Sealed off?"

"Completely sealed off? Why would the Black-White College suddenly seal off the Stellarfire Hall for no reason? Could it be that Ji Ning has really died?" When Xuanji Celestial Immortal, Kumu Celestial Immortal, and others received the news, they were all puzzled.

……

Time passed.

Immortal Diancai personally guarded the Stellarfire Hall.

"Disciple, three months have passed..." Immortal Diancai looked at the life-tablet representing Ji Ning on the altar among the many tablets. The tablet was still intact, indicating that Ji Ning, trapped in a distant deadly region, was still alive.

At first, Immortal Diancai, Uncle Bai, Mu Zishuo, and others all hoped for Ji Ning's return. But as time dragged on, they understood that it was hard to say when or if Ji Ning would return. All they could do was silently hope.

……

The Realm of Annihilation.

In the endless dark void, Ji Ning drifted continuously, afraid to follow the void currents lest he approach the ancient ruins world.

The days of drifting were helpless.

Unable to sense the Dao of the Sword or the Dao of Water... Ji Ning could not comprehend the Dao at all. He could only occasionally cultivate the 'Redmoon Diagram of Nine Heavens', but the amount of divine power he could absorb each day was limited. He couldn't cultivate endlessly. So, for almost ninety percent of the day, Ji Ning did only one thing—

Practice archery!

"Swoosh!"

Drawing the Rahu Bow, Ji Ning stared at the distant void storm approaching. His heartforce fully merged into the bow and arrow. With a twang, the arrow shot through the air.

Whoosh!

The arrow, fast as lightning, traversed millions of li and struck the distant void storm. Under the void storm, the arrow tumbled back toward Ji Ning. Shooting against the 'void storm' allowed the arrow to return. If he shot in other directions, although these arrows were Immortal-ranked treasures and could be controlled with elemental energy, they flew too far. Ji Ning could not retrieve them. Only by shooting against the void storm could he recover them.

Day after day, he practiced archery.

Ji Ning gradually mastered the divine power circulation mysteries of the 'Houyi Archery Art'. Especially now that his 'Heartforce Realm of Ice' was nearly perfect, the powerful heartforce infused into the arrows made their might even surpass his close combat abilities!

Heartforce...

It was indeed a mysterious power. This was also the terror of divine archers in the Three Realms.

……

After drifting in the Realm of Annihilation for over half a year, Ji Ning had no idea how far he had flown.

"Eh? What's that?" Ji Ning noticed something faint in the distance. In the Realm of Annihilation, there were only void storms; normally, there were no other objects.

"Candle Dragon's Eye."

Ji Ning's eyes blazed with candlelight as he gazed into the distance. His visible range instantly expanded dramatically. In this pitch-black void with barely any light, Ji Ning's normal vision could only see a few thousand li. But after using the Candle Dragon's Eye, countless rays of light converged into his eyes.

"That's... land!!!" Ji Ning's expression changed slightly.

That land was actually tens of millions of li away from Ji Ning, but it was so vast that even with his normal vision in the dark void, he could faintly see it. Just as the moon is far from Earth, mortals on Earth can still see it. The same principle applied.