The Dragon Palace's groom selection is merely a widespread tale from ancient mortal times, recounting a scholar's dreamlike journey to the South Sea Dragon Palace.

He toasted and exchanged cups with the South Sea Dragon King, only to awaken and realize he had married into the Dragon Palace.

Eventually, he found a gentle and elegant wife at home, who turned out to be the transformation of a dragon girl. The scholar ultimately became the Prime Minister of the dynasty, achieving success in one stroke.

From Li Mo's perspective, even True Dragons are merely a type of demon, undoubtedly having committed their share of primitive escapades like devouring raw flesh and drinking blood.

Only later did the Dragon Clan realize that both the Immortal and Mortal Realms were dominated by Human Immortals, and thus purposefully distanced themselves from other demon classes.

Nonetheless, their fate was the same—annihilation. Well, perhaps the demise of the Dragon Clan was even more tragic.

Li Mo's Cave God's Eye swept across the Dragon Palace.

Comparing to the memories rushing forth from the Creation Book, he found the architecture of the Dragon Palace relatively intact but missing an enormous courtyard.

From this, it was clear that five thousand miles deep there ought to be another "South Sea Dragon Palace."

Every thousand miles deeper, the South Sea Dragon Palace would resemble its original state from ten thousand years ago—quite reminiscent of the Copper Mirror World back in the Fire Spirit Hall.

The Copper Mirror, too, was divided into distinct layers.

But the rules of the Southern Sea Dragon Pond were far stranger and more inexplicable than those of the Copper Mirror, perhaps due to its entanglement with the upheavals of Heaven and Earth, brimming with countless mortals' word-to-law manifestations.

Dong dong dong…

The sound of drumbeats and gongs resounded, akin to mortals celebrating a bridal procession.

This didn't align with Li Mo's knowledge of the South Sea Dragon Palace, but it suited mortals' imaginations. If based on mortal fantasy, the Dragon King's groom selection would indeed be this secular.

"Heh heh heh—truly amusing."

The arrival of Li Mo and his party stirred waves within the South Sea Dragon Palace.

Hundreds of merfolk gathered in the direction of the Kun Whale, along with several fish-and-shrimp-formed spirits born of cultivation—creating a lively scene.

In ancient records, merfolk were described as beings with fish bodies and human faces, their oil capable of burning for a thousand years without extinguishing, and their tears able to transform into priceless pearls.

The merfolk in the South Sea Dragon Palace indeed matched this depiction.

Daoist Bai Shuo's Sword Intent stirred restlessly, prompting him to ask in a whisper, "Senior Brother Taiyi, are those truly deceitful objects?"

"Uncertain, but they are definitely not living beings."

Li Mo continually swept his gaze across the Dragon Palace, then cautioned, "I'll repeat myself—do not touch anything within the Dragon Palace."

Daoist Ye Zhuo mulled over the warning, his gaze frequently scrutinizing the merfolk.

Li Mo did not withdraw the Kun Whale but merely shrank the Tattooed Beast to about two meters in size, while the Ghost Tiger dove into the shadow beneath his feet.

"Proceed cautiously. Reaching five thousand miles deep shouldn't be difficult."

Four thousand miles was definitely not the bottom of the South Sea. Given Elder Luoyang hadn't informed them otherwise, it was highly likely they would naturally arrive at the five-thousand-mile mark.

Li Mo narrowed his eyes.

The Symbiotic Dharma Body had already begun comprehending various fragmented cultivation techniques, containing elements from the Divine Separation Stage and snippets from Void Refining Stage.

The increasing distance from the Great Sun Sword Tomb evidently diminished the Dharma Body's yield of techniques.

Li Mo suspected that if he truly stepped into the core of the Great Sun Sword Tomb, his comprehension would extend beyond Void Refining Stage—even reaching Unification Mahayana Stage.

Perhaps he might even touch the Ninth Realm of Immortality.

After all, the Twenty-Eight Sword Tombs were formed from Immortals' severed heads. Even the residual memories in their minds would suffice to reconstruct the Taoist inheritance.

For Li Mo, the ultimate goal was to perfect the Ancestor Beast Sword Scripture.

He was not overly ambitious; possessing a few Void Refining techniques was enough. Should any danger arise further on, he would simply flee.

"It seems we have esteemed guests—please come inside. Are you here for the South Sea Dragon King's groom selection as well?"

The merfolk repeated again and approached faster and faster.

Li Mo discreetly released two to three thousand Lifebound Flying Swords, transforming them into ordinary koi fish to hide among the coral reefs surrounding the Dragon Palace.

He noticed the merfolk's use of the word "also" and couldn't help but ask: "Has someone come before us?"

The merfolk remained expressionless, persistently repeating the same phrase, albeit with increasing urgency: "It seems we have esteemed guests—please come inside. Are you here for the South Sea Dragon King's groom selection as well?"

The other merfolk looked ferocious, attempting to close in on Li Mo's party like predators dividing their prey.

"It seems we have esteemed guests—please come inside. Are you…"

The first merfolk who spoke to Li Mo began scratching their arms frantically, blue-green blood seeping out, their fishtail slapping the water to fend off others.

Li Mo sneered coldly. How did they feel less like merfolk and more like water ghosts trapped in the depths, trying to drag them underwater as well?

The merfolk tore off their fish scales, revealing raw, bloody flesh beneath.

Upon Li Mo's signal, Daoist Ye Zhuo finally responded: "Indeed, we've come for the groom selection. May I ask for your name, young lady?"

"Zhu… Zhu Yong. Please come inside."

As Zhu Yong uttered her name, her eye corners twitched uncontrollably.

Li Mo's mind raced.

In his impression, merfolk possessed names but no surnames. Zhu happened to be a major surname along the coastal regions ten thousand years ago.

Why was his memory so detailed? Mainly because the coastal towns back then were clan-dominated, excluding outsiders entirely from events like the Dragon King Festival.

Predictably, Zhu Yong's former self was likely an ordinary mortal.

Was she transformed into a merfolk by word-to-law?

Zhu Yong led the four of them further into the South Sea Dragon Palace.

Through his connection with Da Ai Mi Tian, Li Mo discovered four fresh corpses abruptly appearing in the three-thousand-mile Dragon Palace. Their faces were featureless and expressionless.

The physiques of the corpses bore subtle similarities to the four of them.

Although Li Mo still didn't fully understand the principles governing the Southern Sea Dragon Pond, as long as there were traces to follow, there was nothing to fear.

The remaining merfolk returned to their calm demeanor, though their eyes revealed traces of malice.

Daoist Ye Zhuo struck up a conversation with Zhu Yong to extract useful information, though the latter's spiritual wisdom was dull, frequently giving irrelevant responses.

Li Mo noted that the entire South Sea Dragon Palace housed only roughly a hundred merfolk along with some fish-and-shrimp spirits, and that there was no seawater present—just murky, stagnant air.

Despite the so-called Dragon King's groom selection, not even a glimpse of a Fish Dragon could be seen.

As they walked through the opulent corridors, the decor was not made of spiritual material, yet its splendor surpassed that of top-grade spiritual materials.

The four finally arrived at the guest hall, furnished with rows of tables and chairs.

Massive celebratory characters adorned the walls, enveloped in faint candlelight.

Each table had bamboo strips inscribed with names as well as an abundance of sumptuous dishes, their enticing aroma wafting forth.

Li Mo quickly noticed bamboo strips engraved with "Taiyi," and those labeled with Jiang Xi's name were also present.

After brief contemplation, he realized their prior conversations had inadvertently disclosed these details.

Upon stepping into the Southern Sea Dragon Pond, they had unknowingly entered a sealed small world, gradually sinking into the quagmire of unknown rules.

"Senior Brother, names of sect disciples are all present except Zhang Qiyang's."

Daoist Bai Shuo surveyed the surroundings, noting traces of moved chairs, as though the hall had recently been filled with guests feasting and carousing.

"Esteemed guests, please be seated. When the Dragon King arrives, he will properly entertain you."

Zhu Yong waited silently nearby, her gaze fervently fixed on the main table.

The main table was several times larger, with eight chairs, likely representing the Dragon King and his dragon children and grandchildren who resided in the South Sea Dragon Palace.

Li Mo's mouth twitched.

He couldn't help but mentally ridicule the hall's excessively mundane setup, remarking that it was akin to banquets held by small-town families.

Even if the South Sea Dragon King intended to host guests, he wouldn't stoop to this level.

As suspected, the existence of the South Sea Dragon Palace relied heavily on the collective imagination of mortals during the upheavals of Heaven and Earth, forcibly crafting an absurd groom-selection scheme.

From that point onward, the merfolk largely ignored Li Mo's group.

During this time, the four of them would take turns leaving the guest hall.

Despite wandering the Dragon Palace for an extended period, they failed to uncover any leads, only encountering repeated requests from merfolk to return to the hall.

Any inquiries directed at the merfolk resulted in them simply repeating that the Dragon King was about to arrive.

Were it not for the ongoing comprehension of the Symbiotic Dharma Body and the continuous growth of the Spirit Root Page, Li Mo might have long since lost his patience and acted.

Two entire months passed.

The four sat idly in the guest hall, the dishes on the table still steaming.

It was as if time had frozen; even the four corpses in the three-thousand-mile Dragon Palace remained unchanged.

Li Mo finally chose to close his eyes and cultivate the Double Void Realm.

Daoist Ye Zhuo reverted to his aged and dying form, while Jiang Xi and another disciple clasped their flying swords in embrace.

Until the Dragon Palace quaked ever so slightly.

It felt like a collapse—but after two or three seconds, the tremors abruptly ceased.

"Finally here."

Li Mo stretched lazily, boredom etched across his face, as the hall began to metamorphose. Black-red algae spread across the walls like bloodstains.

The sound of drums and gongs grew increasingly frenzied and hysterical.

The flesh of all the merfolk began to rot away, their limbs becoming dry and disfigured, green veins bulging under their skin, and half of their long green hair shedding entirely.

The tantalizing aroma of the delicacies turned putrid, mingled with the nauseating stench of burning human flesh.

Upon close inspection, steamed dumplings turned into blood-dripping internal organs; pig knuckles morphed into five-fingered human hands; roast goose stuffed with chopped human liver; slender fish revealed a gaunt skeletal frame…

"Heh heh heh—now this is a proper Dragon Palace banquet!"

Boom boom boom.

Heavy footsteps approached steadily from afar.

An unnameable monstrosity wandered the corridor of the Dragon Palace. Its upper body was grotesquely formed from fish and shrimp, while its lower body was assembled from numerous human legs.

The South Sea Dragon Palace had devolved into a nesting ground for countless deceitful objects.

Through the cancer cells, Li Mo confirmed that he had reached five thousand miles deep.

Daoist Ye Zhuo stroked his goat-like beard, muttering to himself in startled disbelief, "What nonsense? Could this be some sort of illusion technique deceiving the five senses?"

"No,"

Li Mo explained, "Consider the South Sea Dragon Palace as analogous to the Copper Mirror. Reaching four thousand miles deep is akin to formally entering the Copper Mirror's first layer."

"Where we are now is equivalent to the Copper Mirror's second layer—the depth of five thousand miles."

The four-party group was akin to a stone secured by a rope.

When the rope snapped at the four-thousand-mile depth, the stone could only sink further, with conventional means unable to halt the descent.

"Where is Elder Luoyang, then?"

"Taiyi, it appears Yu Xiao's claim that you're the leading disciple of the Great Sun Sword Tomb isn't baseless—you indeed participated in the Fire Spirit Hall's calamity."

As the words fell, a shadowy figure leaped into the guest hall from the window.

The newcomer was Elder Luoyang, clutching the horn of the Yang Niu.

"Greetings, Elder Luoyang."

Li Mo naturally addressed Luoyang directly, preemptively easing any potential tensions. After all, a cultivator of the same realm could hardly escape the scrutiny of the Cave God's Eye.

Upon seeing Li Mo and the others once again showing a demeanor uncharacteristic of Sword Cultivators, Luoyang frowned deeply.

"You've arrived at the five-thousand-mile depth sooner than anticipated, half a year earlier. All the better—it leaves ample time for further descent into the Southern Sea."

Li Mo noticed that only the five of them remained in the Dragon Palace.

"Elder Luoyang, where are the others?"

"Immortal Zhang left me behind. They're likely already below the ten-thousand-mile depth."

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