Lu Yun and Qing Han didn’t pay any attention to those behind them. The Ingress Path was a trial of not only cultivation and strength, but courage as well. If the cultivators didn’t even dare set foot on the path, they were in no place to participate in the second round of the Sovereign Ranking.

There were a good number of strange creatures in the Blood Sea, but their cultivation had been suppressed to the golden core realm, just like the cultivators.

Having swiftly grown accustomed to the pressure, the Silvermoon Wolfking and the silverback gorilla no longer needed the supplement of Lu Yun’s pills and were able to forge a bloody path through the Blood Sea.

Though incredibly vast and boundless, the Ingress Path somehow ran across the entirety of the Blood Sea despite it being only five hundred kilometers in length.

What level of treasure is this Ingress Path? Lu Yun thought pensively. From his observations, the Ingress Path was more powerful than even the Formation Orb. It exceeded connate-grade treasures and even rivaled the Fire Parasol Tree.

He thought he’d a good understanding of the Ingress Path with the imitation he’d acquired, but realized how wrong he was the moment he set foot on the real deal. The splinter hadn’t even given him a glimpse into the full extent of the Ingress Path’s power!

Lu Yun had crossed the Blood Sea before and possessed a deep understanding of how terrifying it was. However, the Ingress Path took them across the waters in only a short hop of five hundred kilometers. It could even capture the monsters in the sea and use them as challenges along the path.

“It’s no coincidence that the courts of the nine majors have stood strong in the world of immortals for eighty thousand years, given the great treasures at their deploy.” Lu Yun’s gaze flickered.

A rapprochement between him and the Nephrite court was a near impossibility. The heavenly court would never stay on the sidelines while Lu Yun established his foundations in Dusk Province, and he would never bow his head to them; not unless Zhao Fengyang became the celestial emperor again.

Although the thrones were passed down between celestial emperors, the imperial clans of the nine majors had maintained an unbroken grasp on power. The phoenixes had once fought the Zhao Clan for Nephrite Major, but suffered a terrible defeat in the end.

Lu Yun was reminded of the mysterious land where not even the light of the Dao Flower could reach: the central world.

…… 

Five hundred kilometers was a distance that was neither too short nor too long. Both the silverback gorilla and Silvermoon Wolfking were elites of the monster spirit youths. It wouldn’t be difficult for them to cross the Ingress Path in three days.

The wolf, especially, had almost ascended into the void realm. As long as it grew accustomed to the environment on the path, it could defeat anyone and anything here. However, it didn’t dare even think about fighting back.

Lu Yun had acquired the gorilla’s help through violence, while Qing Han had made the Silvermoon Wolfking her battle pet with a method that Empress Myrtlestar taught her.

Bam!

Suddenly, a figure flew back from the front and crashed onto the ground before Lu Yun and Qing Han. Before Lu Yun could say anything, the silverback gorilla rushed up and knocked away the lunging Blood Sea monsters with a sweep of its iron rod to protect the person.

It was a girl who looked about eighteen, clad in the ivory-colored robes of a daoist nun and her hair swept up in a bun. She cast the gorilla a grateful look, then hurriedly took out pills from her storage ring and popped them in her mouth.

These Life Glyphs were fascinating items. They not only replicated the cultivator’s body, but also their storage rings and treasures. Treasures that contained real worlds, such as the Scroll of Shepherding Immortals and hell, however, were inaccessible.

“Oh, it’s you.” Lu Yun threw the nun an amused look.

“You’re the weirdo who was riding a gorilla!” yelped the nun after catching her breath, goggling at Lu Yun in surprise.

Lu Yun and Qing Han had dismounted and sent the wolf and the gorilla to take point. The nun before them was the girl who’d used Lu Yun for her moniker. She’d acclimated to the pressure on the path even before Lu Yun, and she was speedier than the silverback gorilla. Her talent was quite apparent.

“Be careful,” the girl said before Lu Yun said anything. “There’s a group of cultivators from the divine race blocking the end of the path. They’ve thrown a lot of people back.”

“No wonder.” Qing Han came up to them with a realization. “You don’t look like you’ve been attacked by the Blood Sea monsters.”

There was only one possible ending for those defeated by the monsters: death. Their consciousness would return to their bodies and they would thus be eliminated from the ranking.

“They would’ve eaten me if it weren’t for you.” The girl shuddered.

Many cultivators had reached the end of the Ingress Path by now, but the divine cultivators waiting there critically injured them all and threw them back.

Along the last stretch of the path, any injuries effectively spelled a death sentence. The monsters of the crimson sea were unusually bloodthirsty; any hint or trace of blood was enough to send them into a frenzy. Most of the cultivators who’d been thrown back had died at the monsters’ hands.

“Those blasted divines!” The girl shot to her feet. Before she could rush back, Qing Han grabbed her.

“Wait! The same thing’s going to happen again if you go there now.”

“It was just a moment of carelessness that allowed them to ambush me. I, Lu Yun, will not back down from an open fight with them!” She brimmed with confidence.

“Huh? You’re Lu Yun?” Qing Han looked up at the sky. However, the Sovereign Ranking wasn’t visible on the Blood Sea, so he couldn’t see the names of the participating cultivators.

“Um… I’m his admirer.” The girl blushed. “He can’t participate in the Sovereign Meet because all the powerful factions in the world are targeting him, so I decided to enter using his name.

“This time around, I’ll live up to the title of Top Youth Sovereign no matter what! Maybe Lu Yun will fall in love with me when he learns about what I’ve done. Then we’ll become dao partners and give birth to a lot of children...” The nun became increasingly engrossed in the grand future she was painting.

“As his dao partner, I mustn’t back down!” With that, she broke free of Qing Han’s grip and vanished.

Qing Han glared at Lu Yun’s slack jawed expression.

“Let me explain...” Lu Yun gave Qing Han a pitiful look.

Qing Han snorted with laughter. “Come on. Let’s go see what’s the matter with those divines. I thought only the monster spirits would stir up trouble, but it seems the divines are no different.”

“There’s definitely something between these two,” the silverback gorilla came up to the Silvermoon Wolfking with a grumble.

“And you noticed just now?” The wolf shot it a look. “They call themselves Qing Yu and Qing Yu’s Sidekick.”

“What are the two of you talking about?” Qing Han snapped when he heard their mutterings.

The wolf and gorilla immediately shut their mouths and focused on advancing along the path.

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