As observed before, Xing Wu should have ascended and completed her trials even faster than him, and would have arrived first if nothing unexpected had occurred.
With this thought, Ye Yun no longer hesitated. After preparing for battle, he headed towards the ascension passage.
Half a minute later, in a hall within the Discipline Hall, a streak of azure light shot out from the void.
Ye Yun slowly materialized. After a quick scan of his surroundings, he couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
"As expected of the Celestial Domain... the Profound Qi here is truly incredibly dense."
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was thousands of times richer than the Profound Heaven Continent. If one were to cultivate here from birth, the efficiency would be unimaginable.
"Once we reach a safe place, I can let Xue Yan and the others out to cultivate..."
Ye Yun then surveyed the hall he was in, trying to find enemies or Xing Wu. However, he found no one, and everything was as silent as death.
Instead, he sniffed the air and immediately frowned.
"Such a strong smell of blood."
Could it be that Xing Wu had already...?
With this thought, Ye Yun quickly moved outside the hall. Indeed, he saw several corpses lying on the ground outside the hall's entrance.
All of them had been decapitated, their bodies bleeding out on the ground.
From the residual scent lingering in the air, Ye Yun was quite certain that Xing Wu had gotten out first and slaughtered everyone in the Discipline Hall.
Looking at the ground littered with the tragically dead, Ye Yun couldn't help but shake his head.
"This fellow, such a waste..."
Saying this, he went from one corpse to another, collecting their spatial rings.
After all, he had just arrived in the Celestial Domain and needed to utilize every available resource.
After looting the bodies, Ye Yun then set them ablaze, reducing all of them to ashes.
"I wonder where that fellow Xing Wu has run off to. Could she have already escaped?"
Ye Yun sighed softly. After all, according to the man in black, the Discipline Hall was located in Yuan Yi City, within the Tai Chu Continent of the Celestial Domain, and fell under the jurisdiction of the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace.
"Never mind, whatever she's doing. I'll first get a taste of this so-called Celestial Domain city and see how it differs from the Profound Heaven Continent."
Having made up his mind, Ye Yun headed out of the Discipline Hall, intending to explore Yuan Yi City before heading to a safe location outside the city.
Just a few miles away, in the most prosperous Eastern District, stood a magnificent and imposing grand palace.
All the pedestrians on the street dared not linger as they passed by the entrance, for this was the branch of the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace in Yuan Yi City!
As the overlords of the Celestial Domain, even a mere branch palace symbolized the supreme authority of the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace. Although the stationed cultivators were few, no one dared to provoke them.
Yet, in such a sacred and solemn place of the Celestial Domain, this branch of the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace,
Beyond the entrance, the interior was in utter disarray, with bodies strewn everywhere...
On the grand hall, Xing Wu sat high upon a throne, wiping the blood from her sword.
The normally arrogant branch master, now covered in blood, knelt with a face full of fear, recounting the changes in the Celestial Domain over the past millennia to the person before him.
Several minutes later, when Xing Wu heard about the prophesied person mentioned by the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace's Palace Lord, her delicate eyebrows subtly arched, revealing a hint of a smile.
"Someone who will overthrow the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace? How interesting..."
It seemed that this prophesied person was either herself or that fellow Ye Yun.
According to her original plan, after ascending to the Celestial Domain, she intended to lie low and not let anyone know that she, the Sword Emperor of the Night, had returned to the Celestial Domain.
Otherwise, even she, in her current state, might face a slight danger if the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace decided to hunt her down.
However, upon learning about this prophecy, Xing Wu's thoughts began to shift.
She raised her sword, using the tip to lift the branch master's chin, and said with a smile.
"Don't be afraid. I won't kill you, but I want you to deliver a message to your Palace Lord."
Despite her smile, the branch master was still terrified.
He didn't know who this woman was, but from the moment she appeared, she had instantly killed all the powerful cultivators in the palace, giving him an immense sense of pressure.
He swallowed and trembled as he nodded, "You... you say..."
"Tell her that your big sister has returned from ascension, and the old scores will be settled with her soon."
Xing Wu gazed at him and smiled faintly, "That's all. Do you understand?"
"Yes, yes, yes!"
The branch master nodded repeatedly, fearing that any delay would lead to his demise.
Xing Wu also nodded and retracted her sword, saying,
"Alright, you can scram."
Upon hearing this, the branch master felt as if he had received a great pardon. He immediately stood up, turned, and barged out the door, disappearing from the hall in an instant.
Watching this scene, Xing Wu sighed softly.
"With this, the Divine Palace's attention will likely be mostly focused on me. This is quite a headache."
If nothing unexpected happened, within two days at the latest, she would receive a "welcome" from the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace, no matter the cost.
However, since she had made her decision, she had no regrets. She then stood up.
"Alright, it's time to find that kid and talk about this."
...
On the other side, after leaving the Discipline Hall, Ye Yun witnessed the splendor of Yuan Yi City.
What greeted his eyes was a city district stretching for tens of miles, with magnificent buildings everywhere.
Above the city, numerous streams of light flowed, and even objects resembling giant ships soared through the sky.
Ye Yun stood on the street, gazing at the bustling crowds. He sensed thousands of people, and about a quarter of them were at the Saint cultivation level.
However, the aura of these Saints was extremely weak, comparable to Xiao Xue's during her early cultivation stages, making one seriously doubt their combat power.
After observing for a while, Ye Yun sighed softly.
"It seems to be true, just as that person said. While it's easy to become a Saint in the Celestial Domain, it's merely a facade."
"And there are too few cultivators above the Saint realm..."
Among the thousands of Saints he observed, only one was a true cultivator with a Profound Qi intensity similar to his own, meaning he was a quasi-Profound Immortal.
According to the man in black, the barrier between Saints and Immortals in the Celestial Domain was significant. For every ten thousand Saints, only about one Profound Immortal would emerge.
For example, in the Heavenly Dao Divine Palace, a peak Saint could only guard the gate, while a Profound Immortal could be in charge of a Discipline Hall.
As he was marveling, Ye Yun suddenly overheard a conversation from passersby.
"Did you hear? Something big happened at the Heavenly Dao branch palace in the city. It was completely wiped out."
"No way... really? Who would be so audacious?"
"Who knows? Probably some madman from who-knows-where."
"Alas, I have a bad feeling that the heavens are about to change."
The conversation between the two made Ye Yun's brows twitch.
"That woman is truly unfathomable. Is she that terrifying?"
"Hmm? Who do you think is terrifying?"
Suddenly, Ye Yun heard a familiar voice from behind him.
He spun around abruptly and saw Xing Wu, dressed in black, standing behind him, gazing at him with a smile.
"Uh... why are you here?"
"What, you don't want to see me?"
"Not exactly."
After all, in this unfamiliar place, having someone familiar brought a natural sense of kinship, like finding an old friend.
He then remembered the important matter and asked with a raised brow, "The Discipline Hall, and the Heavenly Dao branch palace, were those your doing?"
Xing Wu glanced around and said, "Do you think this is a suitable place to discuss such matters?"
"That's true, I suppose."
Xing Wu looked at the sky tinged with the setting sun and said slowly.
"It's getting late. Let's find a place to rest. I have something to discuss with you."
Following her lead, Ye Yun arrived at an extremely luxurious building within the city.
The Red Dust Pavilion...
From behind the counter, the clerk looked at the two of them and asked with a smile.
"Are you two here for a meal, a room, or perhaps some other special service?"
Xing Wu said calmly, "A room."
"Then please present your Immortal Registry certification."
"We don't have one."
The clerk paused for a moment, frowned, and said, "Then I am very sorry, but according to the Divine Palace's rules, we cannot provide you with service."
Following this, Xing Wu tossed a golden crystal shard onto the counter.
"Is this enough?"
The clerk coughed lightly, silently accepted it, and said with a full smile.
"We're fully booked at the moment, with only a single suite, room 601 on the sixth floor, remaining. Would you two, as a couple, be able to make do?"
Upon hearing this, Ye Yun's brows slightly rose.
"We're not..."
But before he could finish, Xing Wu took the room key card.
Then, she grabbed Ye Yun by the collar from behind and dragged him away from where he stood, smiling as she said.
"Stop joking, husband. Come, let's go into the room."