"Master Han seems to be in a rather delicate condition—he's been still there for quite some time now. I wonder if anything serious will happen." From afar on the mountain peak, Ju Guo er licked her slightly dry lips, expressing her growing concern. "Don't worry. With Master Han's powerful spiritual awareness and unwavering resolve, overcoming this heart-magic trial should be entirely manageable. What's surprising, however, is that so many heavenly demons have gathered to challenge him during the trial. Still, we're unable to intervene directly. I'm certain, though, that his preparations against these external demons go beyond what we've seen so far—he must have other, yet-to-be-used strategies. So, you needn't be overly concerned." Silver Moon bit her lower lip slightly, her eyes flashing with determination, yet her words carried a steady sense of reassurance. Zhu Guo'er, though aware that the "lìnglóng elder" beside him had also been deeply concerned about Han Li, felt a slight relief upon hearing this response. Yet suddenly, he recalled something and turned his head sharply to gaze at another mountain peak. Upon doing so, he couldn't help but emit a soft "Hm." "What's going on? Where is Elder Xie now?" All this is temporarily entrusted to you. Should any unforeseen changes occur in the basin, you will immediately inform us. As soon as she finished speaking, Yin Yue flipped her hand, and suddenly a circular array disk appeared in her grasp, its surface glowing with a sequence of faint silver characters. Clearly, Xu Qianyu's group was sending out an alert message to Yin Yue. "Senior, please rest assured—I will do my utmost," Zhu Guo'er replied solemnly, without hesitation. "Very well. Then I shall proceed." Yin Yue nodded and, without further delay, a shimmer of silvery light emanated from her body, and she instantly vanished into a streak of silver light. High above, far beyond ten thousand miles, Xie Dao'er stood in the void, arms behind his back, gazing calmly at the two beings of combined stage before him. One wore a golden robe and had a peculiar double-angled hairdo with thick, wavy beard, half of his face concealed by black hair and beard. Yet the deep yellow eyes hidden beneath were so vivid and intense that they immediately caused a sense of dizziness upon first sight. Another was a woman with dark eyebrows and elegant eyes, a refined nose and a delicate mouth, dressed in a black gown, with subtle streaks of black mist radiating from her body. Both of them exuded a faint ethereal aura, clearly two immortals in the Consolidated Stage of the feline race. Especially the woman in the black gown appeared to have reached the peak of the Consolidated Late Stage. Yet, standing now directly across from Xie Dao-ren, these two top-tier immortals were being overwhelmed by the sheer force of the aura facing them— their garments fluttering violently, their faces pale, and fear evident in their eyes. The sudden emergence of Xie Dao-ren had exerted such immense pressure that it seemed even more terrifying than the venerable Ao Xiao Elder they had encountered before. To them, there was no doubt that the young man dressed in a scholarly robe was an immortal of a far superior rank— a Grand Mastery-stage elder, utterly beyond their reach and capable of being matched. "This is the first time I have had the pleasure of meeting you, Master," the young woman said, "I do not know what I may have done to offend you. I hope you will forgive me." The woman in black changed her expression several times before finally bowing respectfully and asking with earnestness. Though surprised that such a formidable presence as Crab Monk had suddenly appeared before her and blocked her path, she found some reassurance because there was not a single trace of magical aura upon him. Otherwise, if he had revealed himself as a holy ancestor of the magical race, they would have immediately turned and fled—without a word—running as far as possible. "You have not offended me," said Crab Monk, his imposing spiritual pressure remaining unyielding, his tone calm and unemotional. "From now on, you must remain here. Should either of you dare to leave even a single step without my permission, I shall kill you both instantly." "Staying here—does this have anything to do with the celestial phenomena we witnessed earlier?" the bearded man beside her exclaimed, startled. "You need not know about this!" Crab Monk said, his gaze steady, his expression unchanged. "Since the elder has given the command, I naturally have no reason to hesitate or dissent. Please rest assured—until the celestial phenomena on that side conclude, neither I nor my companion will move an inch." The black-dressed woman swiftly spun her thoughts in her mind, yet spoke with immediate and unwavering assurance. "Black Phoenix, what exactly is this old being's background! He doesn't resemble a human cultivator nor is he one of our own spirit beings from the feline lineage. With such formidable cultivation, if he's truly from another race, how does he end up right at the border between human and spirit realms? Could it be that he's come specifically for that object? When did our two clans become so accommodating that even senior cultivators from outside races can enter and exit at will?" The voice of the bearded man, manifesting as a divine consciousness, suddenly resonated clearly within the black-robed woman's mind, carrying a subtle undercurrent of surprise and irritation. Fortunately, this old master did not immediately launch a fierce attack upon us upon our first meeting, and it seems unlikely that he will carry out any further eliminations. The black-dress woman maintained a composed expression, yet simultaneously employed a secret technique to transmit a message directly into the mind of the bearded man. These two—male and female—were none other than Black Phoenix King Xiao Guan and the most enigmatic Tian Tian Mouse King, among the Seven Great Immortal Rulers of the Demon Clan. Han Li had once encountered the Black Phoenix King at the Great Treasure Gathering on Nine Immortal Mountains, but had only heard of the Tian Tian Mouse King, never seeing him in person. Now that both had appeared together here, it was clear they were not merely passing through casually—they must have a significant purpose. Yet neither of these two kings could have anticipated that, as soon as they approached this mountain range, they had been abruptly detained by a senior cultivator of the Great Multiplication stage. Though deeply frustrated, they dared not attempt any direct confrontation in front of such a powerful presence, and could only hope that the senior cultivator would complete his own affairs promptly so they might be released. As for the distant celestial phenomena, although these two immortal kings were also drawn here by them, knowing that they were connected to the present great-advance elder, they naturally dared not pursue any other objectives. "This is hard to say. Even if the object may not be of great use to this elder, it might instead be intended for his descendants of our own level of cultivation. Should we miss this object, we might lose even a sliver of our chance to advance to the Great-Advance stage." The虬-须 man, in the form of the Heavenly Dwelling Mouse King, transmitted back with a darkened expression. "If indeed that's the case, then we can only consider ourselves unlucky. Can the Heavenly Dwelling elder still dare to compete with a Great-Advance elder for this item?" The black-dress woman paused before responding with a resigned tone. "If this elder truly came for this object, I naturally won't hesitate to compete. As for whether this is truly the case, I believe we will gain some clarity once the distant celestial phenomena have concluded." The bearded man with intense eyes flashed several times like Huanglian, silently responding in the woman's mind without making a sound. The black-dress woman slightly tilted her lips, closed her eyes, and ceased transmitting her messages. Soon after, the bearded man likewise settled down, closing his eyes and meditating calmly. Crab Dao, however, seemed completely unaware of their exchange, standing motionless and expressionless in place. On the other side of the mountain, Silver Moon summoned a vivid, towering silver wolf form, which, under her command, surged through the newly emerging group of demonic beings. Where the great wolf's shadow passed, countless silver flashes erupted, stirring fierce blood-scented gusts that sent countless demonic limbs spiraling down. A thunderous roar echoed through the air. The great wolf's form was unexpectedly halted by an ancient demon with two heads and four arms, who used a massive black shield to block it firmly. This ancient demon stood nearly three to four zhang tall, with an unusually unattractive appearance, each of his four arms wielding a heavy magical implement—shield, mace, hammer, and staff. At this moment, as the colossal shield deflected the assault like a wolf's storm-wind, the warrior's expression darkened momentarily. His other three arms blurred suddenly, and three powerful gusts of wind, each carrying a heavy magical artifact, struck the silver wolf with tremendous force. After a mournful cry, the wolf's form shattered and vanished in a flurry of flashes. Meanwhile, the silver moon, standing gracefully at a distance, grew pale as her spirit connection was disrupted, spewing a burst of blood that instantly stained her chest garment a deep crimson. Though the silver moon had already reached the Consolidation stage, her experience was still relatively brief compared to ancient dragons of the same rank who had endured countless battles—her strength clearly fell short. Seeing this, the high-level ancient dragon snarled with a grim smile, twisting his body suddenly and vanishing into a swirl of black mist. Instantly, ripples surged above the silver moon, and the ancient dragon reappeared. With a single arm motion, he hurled four heavy magical artifacts down with fierce impact. Upon seeing this scene, Yin Yue tried to shift her body to avoid it, but it was too late—her delicate face grew pale with sudden alarm. Just then, a faint, hazy blade of light suddenly emerged silently behind the ancient mage, gliding past his neck in a single flash, as if by magic. Instantly, a massive head rolled down from his neck, splashing out a column of blood several feet high.