"Woo!" The sharp, urgent alarm sounded sharply throughout the realm, spreading rapidly, causing every ancient clan member's face to suddenly pale. "Spirit Emperor!" Ancient Yuan's expression was cold as he fixed his gaze on the Spirit Emperor. The sky darkened suddenly, and vast celestial energies roared behind him, linking heaven and earth—distantly, it appeared as an endless tide of invisible energy, its waves crashing continuously. The energy tides—typically forming only during extraordinary celestial phenomena, and reaching a majestic scale beyond human capability—have now coalesced simply at the mere thought of Gu Yu. With the nine-star Stellar Saint strength, he is truly astonishing. The surging energy tides stretch endlessly, radiating an overwhelming pressure that even the four Heavenly Magi Saints of the Soul Clan—Hun Yan and his companions—find increasingly grave. They have no doubt that should they engage Gu Yu, they would falter within mere exchanges, their bodies and even their souls collapsing into nothingness under that immense pressure. In this realm, only the Heavenly Emperor of the Soul Clan and the Immortal Devourer of Flame remain unshaken under Gu Yu’s summoning of such celestial tides. "Chief, Elder Gu Yang has injured the Temple Elder and stolen the ancient jade!" Just as Gu Yuan's face grew icy, a streak of light suddenly burst forth from deep within the mountain range, and a figure, somewhat disheveled, swiftly emerged, shouting in a sharp, urgent tone. "What?!" The sound of this cry sent shockwaves through the entire Gu clan, every member's eyes filled with disbelief. "Gu Yang Elder? Impossible!" Xun'er's face changed dramatically at that moment, and she couldn't help but exclaim. "What's going on? Could it be that Gu Yang has been secretly working for the Huan clan all along?" Xiao Yan's expression grew somber, as the Huan clan seemed particularly skilled at such maneuvers. "Gu Yang is the second elder of the Temple, having guarded the Temple for over a century with unwavering loyalty to our clan—how could he have secretly stolen the ancient jade and fled?" Xun'er murmured, as though she had personally known Gu Yang and held a favorable impression of him. "Are *you* the ones who orchestrated this?" Gu Yuan's cold gaze fixed upon the smiling Huan Emperor, who slowly spoke. The Soul Emperor smiled slightly, yet said nothing, nor did he show any intention of turning away. His gaze remained fixed upon Gu Yuan. As long as he stood there, Gu Yuan himself dared not look away—because he knew that if he left, no one would ever again be able to stop him. Gu Yuan fully understood the Emperor’s thoughts. At that moment, the coldness on his face gradually softened. At his level, composure was as solid as a mountain; even after the theft of the ancient jade, he had not remained in constant shock and anger. "Seal off the space of the Ancient Realm. Gu Dao, you three lead the Black Annihilation Army to conduct a search—find the ancient sheep for me!" Gu Yuan commanded. "Yes!" At once, the three ancient clan immortals responded. However, as they prepared to move, the four Soul Clan Magi Saints behind the Emperor drifted forward, clearly intending to intervene. "Haha, Gu Yuan, these people cannot leave..." the Soul Emperor chuckled. "This isn't something that's even due you to decide!" Gu Yuan coldly stated, then suddenly took a decisive step forward. Instantly, the energy tide stretching endlessly behind him surged violently, transforming into a colossal tidal hand stretching tens of thousands of li in width, which slammed directly toward Hún Tiān Dì. The force of the palm swept through the space, causing it to tremble violently—such a mere strike from this caliber of master could easily tear through a realm of space. Far in the distance, the tidal hands and the black hole collided with tremendous force, yet there was no thunderous roar—only the gradual collapse of spatial patterns and the overflowing power of destruction. Had it not been for the ancient realm's space having been reinforced over thousands of years, the mere clash between the two would have torn the space asunder. Seeing Gu Yuan and Hún Tian Emperor take action, Yan Jin and Lei Ying both slightly drew in their breaths, their gazes intersecting before they quietly nodded in agreement. It was clear that the Hún clan had now identified all their ancient lineages as targets for attack. If they dared to strike the ancient clan now, then the Flame and Thunder clans would surely face the same fate next. With both of them launching their attacks simultaneously, the combined force was undoubtedly formidable—after all, excluding Gu Yuan, Hún Tiān Dì, and Xū Wú Tūn Yán, they might very well be the strongest on this continent! "Hey, you two—why so eager? If you'd like to fight, I'll join you and make it a little more entertaining." As precisely at the moment when Yan Jin and his companion launched their attacks, the previously motionless Xū Wú Tūn Yán smiled, took a single step, and instantly materialized in front of them, black flames surging continuously from within his body, eventually coiling into several massive black dragons that encircled him, their roars shaking the heavens. "Hmph!" Upon seeing Xū Wú Tūn Yán take action, both Yan Jin and his companion exchanged cold glances. Though the former had now reached the ninth-star Battle Saint rank, he was still only at the initial stage, while the latter two were both at the late eighth-star level. Together, they could indeed match him in strength. "Xun, lead the search party up the mountain—Gu Yáng hasn't escaped yet. Capture "Above, Guo Dao's face was serious as he shouted firmly, 'The other elders, set up the great array to protect the clan, seal off the ancient realm and the mountain range—ensure the Hún clan has no opportunity to strike!' Hearing Guo Dao's urgent command, numerous elders in the sky responded instantly. Though their combat exchanges were merely probing, they still had to remain vigilant against the Hún clan's hidden strategies and could not fully concentrate on joining forces to assist. 'Brother Qingyang, search the mountains!' Xin'er now also looked serious, her eyes turning toward Guo Qingyang and the others, commanding. 'Yes!' At once, the senior officers of the He Yan army, led by Guo Qingyang, responded in unison. With a series of gestures, black figures surged forth like a swarm of locusts, swiftly entering the mountain range to begin thorough searches!" Gazing at the ancient clan, now standing as if facing a dire threat, Xiao Yan's expression grew serious. Though the Huan clan had not dispatched a large army, the several figures in the sky represented the upper echelons of Huan clan strength—this array was far superior to that of the Yao clan's previous engagement. Moreover, he understood that while the sky battles often resulted in catastrophic destruction, both sides were merely testing each other, or more accurately, prolonging the conflict. And the reason for this delay was clearly the ancient ram! The Huan clan seemed intent on waiting for the ram to appear and deliver the ancient jade to them, while the ancient clan aimed to locate and retrieve the ram, reclaiming the jade. Thus, despite the appearance of intense combat, the true key remained the ancient ram who had stolen the jade. "Xun'er, how strong is that ancient ram?" Xiao Yan asked, his gaze sweeping across the mountain range. Though the Hei Yan army was actively searching, no signs of the ram had yet emerged. With a furrowed brow, he said. "Late stage of Five-Star Battle Saint." "Xun lightly bit her teeth, for in the ancient clan, the ancient sheep was already considered a relatively strong contender. Who would have thought he'd do something so unexpected. 'Has his soul reached the peak of the Heavenly Realm?' Xiong asked again. 'Probably not yet. He may still be some distance from the peak.' Xun pondered before responding, knowing that attaining the peak of the Heavenly Realm was no easy feat. 'Protect me!' Upon hearing this, Xiong's eyes narrowed slightly. He immediately settled into a meditative posture, floating mid-air, then gestured with a series of hand seals, reuniting his soul with Xiao Yi. As a result, the already powerful soul energy within him surged once more. The intangible soul energy then flowed outward like a tide, spreading in all directions from the center of his brow, swiftly scanning the immense mountain range before him. Xiao Yan's command over spiritual energy had reached its peak—countless streams of it flowed like dense, winding serpents across the mountains, even penetrating deep into the earth, thanks to his temporary fusion with Xiao Yi, allowing him to sense the movements through the molten rock beneath. With Xiao Yan's current spiritual energy amplified by Xiao Yi's presence, he could effortlessly encompass an area spanning tens of thousands of miles. As long as the ancient sheep remained within this mountain range, it could not conceal itself from Xiao Yan's spiritual perception. Xun'er slightly furrowed her brows, gently waved her jade-hand, and her beautiful eyes turned toward Xiao Yan. Now, both her father and the three Senior Elders were being held by the Huan Clan; whether or not they could locate that ancient sheep would now depend entirely on the latter. Upon seeing Xun'er's gaze, the others—Gu Qingyang and the rest—understood immediately, nodded silently, and ceased speaking, no longer interrupting. This quiet stillness lasted for nearly ten minutes. Just as Gu Qingyang and the others were beginning to feel the need to search the mountains once more, Xiao Yan suddenly snapped his closed eyes open, then forcefully pressed his palm onto the ground. Instantly, a mountain peak located a myriad of feet away erupted violently, spewing out scorching lava, and a figure—slightly disheveled—was hurled out by the force of the blast. "The ancient sheep!" Xun'er and the others immediately stiffened, their expressions turning cold as they gazed upon the figure sheltered within the lava.