These rose-colored flames seemed to descend slowly, yet upon a single flicker, they landed precisely upon every single monster below, even the winged man who was desperately trying to escape. A series of sharp "pffft" sounds erupted as the monsters burst into brilliant crimson light the moment they came into contact with the flames, transforming within moments into wisps of green vapor, vanishing completely into the void. Now, standing alone in the vicinity of the passage, there remained only one towering figure of the monster. The monster king gazed upward at the translucent flowering tree in the sky, first expressing disbelief, then, without hesitation, bowed deeply. "Respectfully, I greet the Flower Sovereign. To have seen you during my lifetime, even now, is a fulfillment of my deepest wishes—there is nothing left to regret," he said, his voice filled with emotion. "Guest Yun, it has been quite some time since I last saw you," a soft sigh echoed from the void, and as the ripples spread across the tree, two figures—one white and one black—materialized simultaneously. It was precisely the white imperial robes of the Saint Ancestor Bao Hua, and the armored knight. Bao Hua lowered her gaze to the shadow below, a faint sense of nostalgia appearing on her face. "Master, it truly is you. Many have spoken of your passing, claiming you've already fallen. Yet I never believed it. With your divine abilities, how could you have failed to preserve even the most basic means of survival, no matter how dire the circumstances?" Upon seeing the true form of the robed woman, the shadow's heart was now fully convinced, and he responded with great enthusiasm, "Indeed, though I managed to survive the combined assault from those two, I was forced to lose a realm and was physically shattered, breaking through space to bring a portion of my subordinates to the Spirit Realm. It's truly reassuring to hear that your secret operations have remained unscathed. Still, to be safe, I would like to examine your spiritual awareness." Bao Hua fixed her gaze on the shadow, her beautiful eyes narrowing slightly. "Yes, Master! That is entirely appropriate. Their divine powers were no less than those of the elder back then; should they have secretly laid any restriction upon me, I would truly have been unable to detect it." The shadow-mage's form slightly trembled, yet without hesitation, he agreed. "Very well. You're settled now. Rise up." The precious flower's expression softened, and with a gentle movement of her jade feet, she drifted slowly downward from the air. The black-armored man followed without a word. The translucent flowering tree in the sky flashed briefly, then dissolved into a soft pink glow, merging into the body of the woman. After standing up, the shadow-mage remained respectfully at attention in place. At this moment, the magic aura surrounding the magus withdrew, revealing his true form—a middle-aged man with two dark, curved horns growing from his forehead and a square-faced appearance. The Saint-Founder of the Precious Blossom said nothing further. As soon as she reached the shadow-mage's presence, she raised one jade finger and gently touched his forehead. With a soft exhalation, a delicate, translucent filament shot out from her fingertip, flickered briefly, and then vanished into the brow of the tall man. Bao Hua slowly closed her eyes. At first, the man showed a moment of discomfort, but as the light in his eyes faded, he quickly grew dazed. Despite the filament trembling gently, his face remained expressionless and confused. Time passed, one moment after another. Suddenly, the court-dressed woman furrowed her brows slightly, and the filament in her hand suddenly glowed golden, with an unusual surge of energy rushing forth and plunging into the man's head. The man emitted a low groan; shallow streaks of blood appeared at his ears and nose, only to dry up mysteriously, and as his face twisted, gray luminous spots—each the size of a soybean—emerged from both ears and nose, spiraling upward and shooting straight toward the horizon. "Stay!" Bao Hua's expression darkened. With a gentle lift of her jade hand, she lightly flicked the three luminous spots. At once, several crystal filaments, identical in appearance to those before, flashed forth and instantly pierced through the clusters of light, then coiled them gently and drew them back into the sleeve. However, the young woman's movements did not cease here. As her gaze swept over the large man's face, she opened her mouth, and several clusters of pink light gently bounced onto his forehead and brows, vanishing without a trace. Only then did the filaments begin to crack gradually, dissolving into scattered points of white light and fading away. The large man's expression shifted, and the previously blank look in his eyes swiftly receded, replaced by a renewed sense of alertness and clarity. "Master, I—” "You were indeed subjected to an unusually subtle and potent seal, placed by them covertly. Rest assured, you are now safe. I have already dispelled the original seal and replaced it with a false one. Unless those two personally examine your body, no one will notice the anomaly." The lady in court attire spoke calmly. "Thank you, Lord, for your timely rescue. With that, I am at ease. However, I wonder why you have come here—though no one here currently poses a threat to you, should the matter become known, it would still be highly disadvantageous to you." The Shadow Magus expressed his gratitude and voiced his concerns. "I have come here for my own reasons. I would like to ask you—did anyone enter the node passage behind you just now?" The Holy Ancestor of the Treasure Blossom gazed toward the gray entrance of the passage, his expression somewhat complex. "Indeed, a group of outsiders entered the passage. Half were human cultivators, and the other half were spiritual cultivators, all of them at the Consolidated Stage or above. Thus, I did not dare to obstruct them." The Han official responded honestly, somewhat surprised. "That makes perfect sense. I now entrust you with a task: conceal the fact that outsiders have entered the passage. Do not let the Sacred Realm be informed yet." Though this matter could not be concealed forever, the longer we could delay, the better. Can we manage this?" The Holy Ancestor of Bao Hua paused slightly, then suddenly spoke with a cold tone. "Though this is somewhat challenging, the other watcher who has been monitoring me has already been eliminated by the Lord. Here, I am now the only one who can act independently. Thus, we can conceal these affairs for a good year or so." The Han official, though somewhat puzzled, spoke with great confidence. "That's good. Black Crocodile, let's go in as well." After the lady in court dress nodded in satisfaction, she turned without a word and lightly floated toward the entrance of the corridor. This move caused both the Han official and the Black Crocodile to look visibly startled. However, the Han official moved his lips several times but ultimately remained silent, simply bowing in respectful farewell. The other, after a quick shift of gaze, silently clenched his teeth and followed. After two more resonant booms echoed through the passage, the figures of the lady in imperial robes and the black-armored knight vanished at the entrance. The knight stared blankly at the passage entrance for a long while, then glanced around the now empty void, his face softening into a wistful smile of quiet sorrow. Yet after a brief pause, he suddenly raised his head and let out a long, powerful roar—so strong and resonant that it shattered stone and pierced the heavens. Soon thereafter, figures began to emerge from among the clouds, one after another, as waves of magical beings rode various mythical beasts into view. Seeing this, the knight, with a mere roll of black energy over his body, stepped forward without hesitation. Gazing at these mid-to-lower-ranked magical beings, most of whom bore wounds, the dressed-in-imperial-clothes woman merely said calmly to the black-armored man, "It's yours," and with a slight movement of her form, she vanished into the nearby void. The black-armored man, surveying the encircling magical beings and finding none at the stage of Fusion, immediately let out a fierce laugh, his body instantly surging with thick waves of magical energy that rushed outward in all directions. After a cup of tea's worth of time, on an unnamed mountain thousands of miles away, the black crocodile once again caught up with the precious flower, who had already fled there, and stood respectfully at attention beside her. "Are you perhaps a bit uneasy about my bringing you back to the Sacred Realm?" the imperial-clad woman asked, gazing at the continuous stretch of dark, forested hills nearby, her tone utterly neutral. "Never! The servant is certain that the master has a sound reason for doing so," the black-armored man replied, startled internally and now somewhat anxious. It is natural that you should feel afraid. I've returned to the Sacred Realm with a certain level of risk, and even the possibility of my demise. After all, Tian Qi and He Yan have been eagerly anticipating my return for a long time—once they discover I've come back, a pursuit and pursuit will surely follow. With my current level of cultivation, I can barely hold my own against either of them individually, but if both of them come together, I will certainly fall. These two hold the status of Primordial Ancestors, whose presence stretches far beyond my own lifespan. "I've focused my gaze once more, turning steadily to look at the Black Crocodile, and spoke calmly. "Since the Master is aware of this situation and has still chosen to enter the Sacred Realm at great risk, it must be related to the previous divination results." The Black Crocodile hesitated slightly before responding cautiously. "Indeed. However, due to the divination not being fully complete, the hexagram has become somewhat fragmented. Even I can only grasp half of its meaning. Yet, knowing this, do you understand what specific omen I've gleaned from this hexagram?" The lady in imperial attire stared at the black crocodile, her face suddenly expressing a strange look. "I am utterly unfamiliar with the art of divination," she said. "Kindly enlighten me, Master of the Blossom!" The black crocodile paused, then chuckled softly. "You're unwilling even to guess—then how could you possibly know what the oracles reveal? All you need to know is: until those people ahead reach their destination, do not disturb them, nor let them discover our presence. Indeed, to ensure their smooth arrival, we may have to lend them our quiet support behind the scenes." The Blossom's eyes flashed with a subtle silver light, and she uttered words that left the black crocodile momentarily speechless. "Then, with your instructions, I shall carry them out faithfully!" In the end, the tall, armored man finally silenced all his doubts. "Well, you've certainly contributed quite a bit this time by accompanying me." "As long as you continue to give your best below, even if you encounter significant challenges in advancing to the Mahayana path later, I will certainly lend my support once my spiritual strength is restored," the precious flower said, her gaze fixed on the black crocodile, for the first time displaying a serious and resolute promise.