"Hahahaha, hahahaha!"
The black-robed man burst into wild laughter. From his mouth flew a mass of murky gray substance, which darted straight into Bai Qingwu's body. She instantly lost all consciousness and collapsed into a faint.
"If there truly existed a pill in this world that could dissolve miasma, that would be wonderful. But alas, there is no such thing. No one can dispel it, no one can save us!"
He threw his arms wide and roared to the skies.
Above Lüquan City, a massive black cloud gathered, lightning crackling and rolling within its depths.
"Come, come, my companions who share my affliction! Let us utterly devour the lower realm and forge a cultivation sanctuary that belongs to us alone!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Deafening thunder exploded, and in an instant, the entire Central Domain was swallowed by darkness.
-
Wuxiang Sect.
"Sect master, sect master! Something terrible has happened! Elder Yue was gravely injured in Qingshui County!"
At Han Huijun's side, a teapot fell and shattered. In the great hall, the light suddenly vanished.
He rushed outside, soaring into the dark sky. His heart was heavy with dread.
"What on earth is happening?"
Right before his eyes, the heavens of the Central Domain had changed!
And Yue Qingsu, who should have been advancing smoothly, had instead suffered an unforeseen calamity…
Within Wuxiang Sect, countless pale specks danced through the dark air. They were like shattered moonlight, like dazzling sparks glimmering in the long winter night, illuminating the eyes of all who looked on.
Han Huijun's lips twisted bitterly. "Junior Brother, the great calamity of the Central Domain is truly coming!"
Shen Yuefu emerged from the darkness, like a ray of light, a figure that bore the faith of all around him.
"Senior Brother, before the calamity struck, we managed to obtain the antidote. You have already sacrificed enough. Do not torment yourself further."
His voice was cool and quiet as he sought to steady Han Huijun.
A trembling disciple beneath the hall stammered, "S-sect master, it seems… it seems the antidote is not actually in our possession…"
Han Huijun's brows furrowed deeper. "I know. The antidote is still on the way. To avoid alerting other forces, I secretly dispatched men to escort the injured Pei Xianqiao."
"N-no, that is not what I meant!" The disciple stuttered. "Sect master… her blood, it was not the antidote at all!"
Han Huijun froze. "Yes, I know that—what did you just say?" He suddenly seized the disciple with his spiritual power, suppressing his mounting panic. "Speak clearly. Tell me everything about Qingshui County. Elder Yue carried the antidote—did it not save them?"
"No, no… It seems it was a woman who saved them!"
"That woman must have been Pei Xianqiao!" Han Huijun's voice rose sharply, desperate for affirmation.
"N-no… it was… it was Yao Ranran!"
"What?"
Han Huijun's hand slackened in shock. The disciple plummeted, only to be caught by a chill sword-light that cradled him safely to the ground.
The disciple opened his eyes wide in terror, then hurriedly prostrated himself. "Thank you, Elder Shen! Thank you, Elder Shen!"
"Leave. And do not let this matter spread."
That cold white sword-light coiled once more about Shen Yuefu. His gaze flickered strangely as he looked toward the horizon. "Senior Brother… so it really was her. Do you think… perhaps we were wrong?"
Han Huijun dropped from the sky, landing heavily on the ground. He sat there, dazed, his expression hollow. "How could it be wrong? It cannot be wrong in this matter… No, no, the antidote cannot have been misused. She cannot be the antidote!"
"Senior Brother…" Shen Yuefu stepped beside him, lips pressed thin, gently resting a hand upon his shoulder.
"If only I had remembered more clearly what happened back then… perhaps this mistake would not have occurred."
A warm current of spiritual power flowed from Shen Yuefu's hand, soothing Han Huijun's turbulent emotions.
"Junior Brother, do not shoulder the blame. It was I, the sect master, who misjudged. Yao Ranran truly is a sharp-minded girl. Before this calamity grows into utter catastrophe, I must find her!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Thunder detonated again and again. The oppressive black clouds seemed ready to fuse heaven and earth into a single murky mass, suffocating all beneath them.
Han Huijun and Shen Yuefu raised their heads together, their expressions grim. "The passage to the Spirit Realm… it is about to open!"
-
Bei Ming.
Holy Palace.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Dark night fell here as well, lightning seething within the churning storm. Wan Huaiyuan rushed out of the sacred hall, gazing fearfully at the lightning above.
"The people of the Spirit Realm are about to act. Why has it come so soon? Could it be… the antidote Wuxiang Sect obtained was false?"
-
Lüquan City.
"Hahahaha! Central Domain, Bei Ming, Southern Region, Western Sea, Eastern Wilderness… open every passage to the Spirit Realm! Let the lower realm become our place of revelry!"
The black-robed man's laughter was arrogant and unrestrained.
-
Southern Region.
Above the imperial capital, black clouds surged. In an instant, the entire empire was plunged into a darkness without dawn.
-
Eastern Wilderness.
Longyin Village.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The wooden ladle in Grandma Zhang's hand trembled, water splashing everywhere.
She rubbed her eyes in terror. "Xiang'er, Xiang'er, my sight is gone… my eyes, my eyes have gone blind!"
"What is it, what is it? You are not blind, the heavens have simply turned dark!"
Jiang Shengxiang rushed from the house, holding a night pearl aloft, casting light before her.
"My eyes… my eyes are fine! I am not blind, not blind!"
Grandma Zhang wept with joy, clutching Jiang Shengxiang tightly.
"I do not want to die yet. I do not want to leave you all!"
"Mother, rest assured. Your son will never let you suffer harm!" Jiang Shengxiang comforted her with deep emotion.
"But… but Fairy Ranran is not here. If I cannot see her one last time, how can I die such a pitiful death?"
Suddenly, she pushed Jiang Shengxiang aside, snatching the night pearl from his hands.
"I must find Fairy Ranran! Even if this old woman's life is almost at its end, I want to pass away bathed in the fairy aura of the Fairy!"
Jiang Shengxiang: ???
So his mother's eyesight didn't even matter compared to that?
"Mother, Fairy Ranran is still in the Western Sea. It is not so simple to find her!"
-
Western Sea.
Demon Cavern.
Boom!
"What nonsense is this? Why did the sky suddenly turn black?"
At the very first crack of thunder, Yao Ranran stepped out of the Demon Cavern.
"Is someone undergoing Tribulation here? Can they not be quieter? You are disturbing the neighbors!"
Hands on her hips, she glared up at the sky and shook her head.
"Cultivators really have no manners compared to ordinary folks. To undergo Tribulation so recklessly—do you not care that it disrupts others' rest?"
Boom…!
A second thunderclap followed, but halfway down it abruptly vanished.
Yao Ranran smoothly withdrew her Nine Lotus Ring, gazing at the sea of blooming lotus flowers that lit up the heavens. She pressed her lips into a small smile.
"With this, the thunder is muted. As expected, an upgraded immortal artifact truly is different—even the earth itself can be illuminated."
With that, she turned and strolled back into the Demon Cavern.
Elsewhere, Lu Ziqian, having just received Jiang Shengxiang's urgent message, stared up at the sky in disbelief.
"Master can even control Heavenly Tribulation at will?"