Chapter 325: Long absence

Next to Shen Shuibi, many corpses of the Holy Flame Clan were laid out.

Corpses, many corpses.

Corpses, only corpses.

One by one, the corpses lay stiffly on the ground; some had their limbs torn off, some were cut in half at the waist, while others were destroyed by even more brutal means. Some were crushed into an indistinct, face-only meatball, and others were reduced to a thin layer of skin, curled up.

Shen Shuibi stood amidst this mountain of corpses and sea of blood, graceful and poised.

Her Immaculate Body prevented her from being stained by any filth, so even in this chaotic mess, she remained as pristine as ever.

Of course, she was still expressionless, but there was a hint of joy in her eyes.

Presumably, it was because the call finally connected.

But Li Qi looked at the scene behind her, frowned involuntarily, and asked, “Yu’er, what happened here?”

“The Immortals sent people to find me, and then set up a grand Formation to surround and kill me,” the Rabbit said in her usual calm tone. “But their cultivation was too low, the highest was only Rank Seven. I hadn’t even made a move, and the Formation collapsed; they all died from Qi backlash.”

Hearing this, Li Qi understood.

The Immortals… Hmm, it’s probably Lu Mountain God who finally had time to probe. He should be lurking outside the Holy Flame World now, looking for an opportunity to test Shen Shuibi.

Was this just a test? He used his chips to see Shen Shuibi’s true strength.

Although he didn’t know how he did it, the intention was not hard to guess.

As for the possibility of someone else pulling the strings, that was not considered. All deductions should be based on existing intelligence, not blind guesses.

However, Li Qi immediately noticed the information in the Rabbit’s words. He quickly asked, “Wait, Qi backlash? So, these people used the power of the earth veins to construct the Formation, and it backfired because it couldn’t harm you?”

Such things are common. If one draws upon power beyond their own limits, and it backfires, it can indeed lead to an explosion of the body. These powers are not inherently yours; if you forcefully control them and succeed, it’s fine, but the cost of failure is usually quite severe.

“Hmm, I originally wanted to keep them alive, after all, they were Rank Seven… what a pity.” The Rabbit shook her head. “Because of this, even The Axis of All Realms’s base station was blocked a few days ago. I was still thinking about how to break the Formation without harming them, but I didn’t expect them to self-destruct before I even made a move.”

“You came just in time. They self-destructed less than a quarter of an hour ago. I was still wondering what to do when you suddenly called,” the Rabbit said.

However, Li Qi discovered something. He confirmed again, “Drawing upon earth Qi, blocking The Axis of All Realms’s signal, and then… using your reluctance to kill to trap you here for two months?”

Although it posed no threat to Shen Shuibi, was it a loss to sacrifice one of the Holy Flame World’s only three Rank Sevens to trap Shen Shuibi for two months?

Although only one month passed for Li Qi, he knew that the flow of time in the Holy Flame World was significantly different from that of the world, so two months had passed for Shen Shuibi.

In fact, even the conversation between the two through the The Axis of All Realms terminal had a delay due to the time difference, but Li Qi had simply ignored it. A delay was better than no communication at all.

“Hmm? Is there a problem? Although they trapped me here, I left many eyes outside. I basically saw all the changes in the Holy Flame World, so trapping me here was useless,” the Rabbit tilted her head, a little confused.

She wasn’t foolish; on the contrary, the Rabbit was very intelligent.

She could calmly be ‘trapped’ here because she could directly observe the outside world and understand its situation. She had left many observational Divine Abilities outside.

If even her senses were truly blocked by this grand Formation, she would definitely know something was wrong and would break out directly, even if it meant killing these people.

She simply disliked killing when unnecessary, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t distinguish between priorities.

“What if it doesn’t require changes in the Holy Flame World, but just needs you to stay put?” Li Qi asked again.

The Rabbit paused, then lowered her head to ponder.

Both of them bowed their heads, lost in thought.

But the Rabbit was the first to reach a conclusion, saying, “Hmm, now that you mention it, it is indeed strange. Although it’s highly likely they made a wrong judgment because they didn’t understand my power, thinking they could achieve success in one go, there’s still a small possibility they had other plans. I’ll go and investigate thoroughly later to see if there have been any changes in this world.”

“Hmm, still need to check. Oh, how’s that Child of Destiny doing?” Li Qi saw the Rabbit make a decision and didn’t delve deeper into the topic. After all, he didn’t understand the current situation of the Holy Flame World, and the Rabbit wasn’t stupid; she knew what to do.

“That Child of Destiny, well, he’s practicing swordsmanship and Dao every day, seemingly wanting to cultivate both, but it’s only been two months, and there’s no significant progress. He seems a bit restless and should leave this area within the year to explore other places. By then, he should truly be propelled forward by Destiny,” the Rabbit said.

“Hmm, everything is on track. I’ve also used my free time to calculate the orbit of that world cluster. Using your speed as a reference, I calculated the travel time for that Holy Flame World cluster. To travel from the Holy Flame World to the nearest world of Rank Seven or above would take at least eight months. If it’s a Rank Six world, it would take at least a year and a half. So I estimate that other support is still on the way, and we have ample time to prepare,” Li Qi said.

“Perfectly, Imperial Academy will have a three-month holiday after seven months, so I plan to bring some classmates to the Holy Flame World for research. While declaring sovereignty, we can also use these Imperial Academy students to pressure the Heaven-Devouring Demon Lord and see if we can force out the person behind him.”

“This way, we won’t have to expose the Grand Invoker token, and it can still serve as a deterrent. What do you think? Or is it better not to expose it to others?” Li Qi asked the Rabbit.

Shen Shuibi pondered for a moment, then asked Li Qi in return, “Are you trying to find a market for Sacred Flame?”

According to the Rabbit’s guess, if Li Qi brought Imperial Academy students over, they would naturally help Li Qi spread the word. Then, if anyone had a need, they would come to him. Besides, it could also provide the Holy Flame World with a strong background.

The average background Rank of Imperial Academy students certainly wouldn’t reach Rank Three, but Rank Four or Five was common. Except for a very few grassroots Geniuses, most Imperial Academy students were born into cultivation families; at the very least, they had to be at the Baiyue Kingdom Lord level to receive that level of training from a young age.

As for true grassroots Geniuses who could catch up to these early-cultivating Geniuses purely by talent, they themselves must be Super Geniuses. In Imperial Academy, teachers would surely cherish their talent, and they would certainly have a true ‘Master.’

Not just for work, but the kind who would pass down their Dao and Legacy in the future.

Li Qi nodded decisively, admitting the Rabbit’s guess: “It’s an idea, a win-win situation. While promoting, it can also deter the Heaven-Devouring Demon Lord and his group. It will expose that we have a Rank Six world, but with you here, and Master as a backer, we two should be able to hold onto a Rank Six specialty world, so no one should covet it.”

“Hmm, I trust your judgment. Then bring them over after your holiday. Just treat this world as their summer practical training ground. If possible, I think we can even let them observe and guide the Child of Destiny.” The Rabbit nodded. Since Li Qi had thought it through, she had nothing to object to.

As the two talked, they quickly finalized the details of their future work.

Since the work was mostly discussed, Li Qi also naturally transitioned from standing to sitting on the bed and then lying down.

Lying down, having returned to a relaxed posture, his tone was no longer so serious: “Yu’er, seeing how busy you are, you haven’t missed me lately, have you?”

The Rabbit didn’t answer. She first waved her hand, and immediately, gusts of clear wind appeared around them, sweeping away the mess of bones and cleaning up the area. Then she casually found a clean spot and sat down.

To such teasing rhetorical questions, she always had only one strategy.

That was, a direct hit.

“I did, but I thought it’s only been two months, I can still bear it,” the Rabbit said earnestly to Li Qi after sitting down. “If they planned to trap me for several years, I probably wouldn’t have let them do it.”

Her straightforward and honest admission of missing him made it difficult for Li Qi to utter the words he had prepared.

He could only clear his throat twice: “It’s alright, I’ll be able to see you again in another six months from my side, which is another year for you. What do you want to do then?”

“Hmm… there’s nothing I particularly want to do. By then, I won’t think about anything at all, just being by your side will be enough,” the Rabbit tilted her head, saying calmly.

For her, this was a rare moment of relaxation. No need to consider anything else, just immerse herself in her own world and enjoy the beauty of an empty mind.

Of course, for the Rabbit, an empty mind didn’t mean spacing out; it simply meant focusing her thoughts on things she truly liked, such as… alchemy, and thinking about Li Qi.

This gave her a sense of security, as if she had returned to a thousand years ago, always staying by the empress’s side.

At that time, she didn’t have to consider anything else, just do what she liked.

Of course, with Mount Luofu already in turmoil, she would naturally stand up and shoulder her responsibility. For this, she could come to the Holy Flame World outside the domain, do a lot of work she disliked, and even prepare for battle with the Heaven-Devouring Demon Lord.

However, if Li Qi could come and allow her to briefly return to that state, it would also be a very joyful thing for her.

Li Qi felt a surge of joy in his heart upon hearing this answer.

Being relied upon as an important pillar was a very fulfilling experience.

The two chatted idly, sharing small stories about what was happening around them.

In Chang’an, the night was cool and breezy.

The night was late, the lamps still lit, outside the gauze window, dusk lingered, and the moon slowly rose in the sky.

Words grew deeper, spirits high, inside the round mirror, bright and clear, the moon in the mirror smiled brightly.

Leaving aside their private whispers, let’s turn to the other side, countless billions of miles outside the Holy Flame World.

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Countless billions of miles away, in a void outside the domain.

Here, even light was rare; only a silent, unranked miniature heaven and earth slowly floated.

Lu Mountain God was hidden outside an unranked miniature heaven and earth, about eleven or twelve days away from the Holy Flame World if traveling at one hundred times the Heavenly Dao limit speed.

He could not enter the center of this miniature heaven and earth, because once his body entered it, this unranked miniature heaven and earth would immediately explode, collapse, and instantly enter an apocalypse.

The people of this miniature heaven and earth lived a life of working from sunrise to sunset, completely unaware that a terrifyingly powerful Heavenly God, who could crush their world with just a finger, was hiding in the shadows of their world.

Hiding here, Lu Mountain God could feel a slight sense of security.

He intended to stay here, moving and rotating with this randomly chosen unranked miniature heaven and earth, concealing himself, and awaiting the arrival of the Heaven-Devouring Demon Lord.

Just a few months ago, Lu Mountain God, through a certain secret art, sent a message to the sect that believed in him in the Holy Flame World, after a delay of several days.

Or rather… a ‘Divine Oracle.’

Counting the time, he should be receiving news soon.

The execution took two months, and after completion, transmitting the message via secret art would probably take about ten-odd days.

The transmission of information has a speed limit, which is the Heavenly Dao limit.

However, just as Rank Five and Six can modify and push this limit, there are also secret arts that can break through it. Different methods can transmit messages at different speeds, all depending on the varying abilities, but the slowest can still reach the Heavenly Dao limit.

The communication secret art Lu Mountain God used could reach one hundred times the Heavenly Dao limit, allowing messages to be transmitted from the Holy Flame World to him in just over ten days.

If one could reach the level of The Axis of All Realms, then no matter where in the myriad worlds, as long as the flow of time wasn’t too different, communication would be without delay, and the cost would be low.

As long as it could be popularized in places with The Axis of All Realms base stations, one could communicate with a terminal in hand.

Unfortunately, there are not many secret arts at the The Axis of All Realms level, and using something like The Axis of All Realms means exposing all your communication records, search records, and location information to Tang Nation.

Although due to the vast amount of information in The Axis of All Realms, even the Human Emperor probably couldn’t figure out how much information was inside, and specifically checking a single person would be too costly, this was still a potential hidden danger.

It could also be considered a net cast by humanity.

Lu Mountain God hid behind the shadow of the world, silently waiting for his secret message to arrive.

Coincidentally, at this moment, an unnamed fluctuation rippled around him.

“It’s here.” He instantly brightened, immediately using his secret art to decrypt and receive the message.

The message brought him great joy!

That unknown powerful being was indeed trapped by the grand Formation, staying put for two months! It took a full two months to successfully break that Formation!

This meant he wasn’t strong enough!