From the fake emperor to the concubine

Three days later, the group left the Xuan Tian Domain and embarked on their journey to the Tian Yuan Domain.

Before leaving, Zheng Yi took one last look at the land behind him.

In the Xuan Tian Domain, he gained much, but also lost much. Xiao Yue's death remains a deep pain in his heart. But he will not succumb to despair, for he knows that only by becoming stronger can he prevent the same tragedy from happening again.

Tianyuan Domain, wait for me.

A streak of light pierced the sky and disappeared into the clouds.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the Tianyuan Domain.

In a magnificent palace, a woman in white is kneeling before an old man.

"Master, I sensed it," the woman in white said. "That child...is dead."

The old man was silent for a moment, then sighed, "Is that so? In the end, I couldn't escape it after all."

"Master, we shouldn't have abandoned her!" the woman in white said painfully. "If I had known it would turn out this way, I should have gone to fetch her myself, instead of letting her wander outside."

“No, you can’t go,” the old man shook his head. “Your identity is too sensitive. If it’s exposed, it will bring annihilation to the sect.”

But that child is mine.

“I know,” the old man interrupted her, “but it’s too late to say anything more. The important thing is, what did you sense?”

The woman in white composed herself: "This disciple senses that someone has avenged that child. That person is very strong. Although their cultivation level isn't high, they possess a unique power. This disciple speculates that they may have received the inheritance of a senior."

"Oh?" The old man became interested. "Someone who even you find strong is no ordinary person. What's his name?"

"This disciple does not know. But this disciple senses that he is heading towards the Tianyuan Domain."

The old man squinted, seemingly lost in thought.

"Interesting. Since he avenged that child, they are destined to be together. When he arrives in the Tianyuan Domain, go and meet him."

"This disciple understands."

The woman in white stood up and walked out of the palace. She came to the edge of a cliff and looked at the distant sky.

The wind blew her long hair, revealing a stunningly beautiful face. That face bore a resemblance to Xiaoyue's.

"That child... I hope she's doing well in another world," she murmured. "As for the person who avenged her, I will repay him handsomely."

Zheng Yi and his group flew in the sky for three days.

The scenery on the border of the Xuan Tian Domain gradually became desolate. Bustling towns became fewer and fewer, replaced by rolling mountains and dense primeval forests.

"Patriarch, if we continue for another half a day, we'll reach the border of the Xuan Tian Domain," Zheng Hongzhi said, looking at the map in his hand. "Once we cross that forest, we can enter the void passage between the two domains."

Zheng Yi nodded, his gaze falling on the dense forest ahead.

The forest was vast, stretching as far as the eye could see. Mist swirled within, and towering ancient trees could be vaguely seen reaching for the sky, their intertwined branches completely blocking out the sunlight. Even in broad daylight, the forest was shrouded in darkness.

"What's the name of this forest?" Zheng Yi asked.

“The Bewitching Forest,” Liu Ruyan said. “It is said that this forest has existed for tens of thousands of years, shrouded in a special array. Once you enter, it is very difficult to find your way out. Many cultivators who went in never came out again.”

"That dangerous?" Zheng Bowen frowned. "Should we take a detour?"

“There’s no way around it,” Zheng Hongzhi shook his head. “The Bewitching Forest spans the eastern and western ends of the Xuan Tian Domain, covering an area of ​​several thousand miles. If we take a detour, it will add at least another month to our journey. Moreover, the detour route is much more dangerous, with many powerful demonic beasts lurking there.”

Zheng Yi pondered for a moment: "Then let's go through it. A mere formation is no challenge for me."

He spoke with confidence. After all, he had comprehended the laws of spacetime, and his perception of space far surpassed that of ordinary people. Ordinary mazes should not be a problem for him.

The group landed at the edge of the forest, put away their escape light, and walked into the forest.

As soon as Zheng Yi stepped into the forest, he sensed something was amiss.

The surrounding space seemed to distort, and my sense of direction began to blur. Even though I was walking forward, I felt like I was going around in circles. Moreover, the fog in the forest was getting thicker and thicker, and visibility was dropping sharply; I couldn't see anything more than ten feet away.

"Everyone, stay close to me and don't get separated," Zheng Yi said in a deep voice.

He activated his divine sense, attempting to perceive his surroundings. But strangely, his divine sense was greatly weakened as soon as it entered the fog, and he couldn't probe very far at all.

"This fog is strange," Zheng Yi frowned. "It can suppress divine sense; no wonder so many people are lost here."

"Fellow Daoist Zheng, can you spot the flaws in the formation?" Liu Ruyan asked.

Zheng Yi carefully sensed it for a while, and his expression gradually became serious.

“This isn’t an ordinary formation,” he said. “It’s a naturally formed maze, integrated into this forest. Breaking it is virtually impossible. The only option is to force your way through.”

“Then we’ll just force our way out,” Zheng Bowen said. “As long as we’re heading in the right direction, we’ll eventually find our way out.”

Zheng Yi nodded and took the lead.

He used the laws of space and time to construct a simple map in his mind. As long as he kept walking in one direction, he wouldn't get lost.

But things were far more complicated than he had imagined.

After walking for about an hour, Zheng Yi suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong, Patriarch?" Xiao Tianxing asked.

Zheng Yi didn't answer, but squatted down and looked at a stone on the ground.

There was a sword mark on the rock—a mark he made with his sword an hour earlier.

"We...came back?" Liu Ruyan couldn't believe it.

“That’s right.” Zheng Yi’s face was grim. “We’ve been going in circles.”

How is that possible? He was clearly walking in one direction the whole time, how could he have circled back to where he started?
“It’s the formation in this forest,” Zheng Hongzhi said. “The formation in the Bewitching Forest not only confuses your sense of direction, but also distorts space. Even if you think you’re moving in a straight line, you’re actually going in circles.”

Zheng Yi closed his eyes and carefully sensed the spatial fluctuations around him.

A moment later, he opened his eyes, his expression even more serious.

“Space has indeed been distorted,” he said, “but in a peculiar way. It’s not artificially created; it’s a characteristic inherent to the forest itself. It’s as if the forest is alive.”

"Alive?" The group looked at each other in bewilderment.

“Hmm,” Zheng Yi said, “The space in this forest is constantly changing, without a fixed pattern. So even though I can sense the distortion of space, I can't predict what it will become next.”

"Then we won't be able to get out?" Zheng Bowen panicked.

"Not necessarily," Zheng Yi shook his head. "As long as we're fast enough to get out before the space changes, we'll be fine."

He took a deep breath, and the spiritual energy within his body began to circulate.

"Stay close to me, I'm going to use the laws of spacetime to force my way through."

As soon as he finished speaking, a powerful spatial force erupted from his body. That force enveloped everyone, forming a transparent light shield.

"Walk!"

Zheng Yi's figure transformed into a streak of light, rushing forward at an extremely fast speed.

With the power of spacetime, he can temporarily fix the surrounding space, preventing it from distorting or changing. As long as he can break through before space recovers, he can escape the maze.

The wind howled, and the scenery rushed past. Zheng Yi led the group as they sped through the forest, the surrounding trees flashing by like phantoms.

"Faster!" Zheng Yi said through gritted teeth.

He could sense that the distortion of space was intensifying. The forest seemed to have sensed his intentions and was strengthening the array in an attempt to trap them.

Just as they were about to rush out of the area, an accident occurred.

The space ahead suddenly distorted violently, and an invisible barrier appeared before them. Zheng Yi couldn't stop in time and crashed directly into it. Boom—

The immense impact sent him flying. He tumbled several times in the air before barely managing to regain his balance.

"Patriarch!" Zheng Bowen and the others quickly surrounded them.

Zheng Yi waved his hand, indicating that he was fine. But his face looked quite pale.

The impact had shaken his internal organs. Although the injuries weren't serious, it had still consumed a considerable amount of his spiritual energy.

“This forest is more difficult to deal with than I imagined,” Zheng Yi murmured.

Just then, a low roar came from a distance.

The sound was deep and oppressive, as if it came from the depths of the earth, making people feel a chill in their hearts.

"What's that sound?" Liu Ruyan asked alertly.

Zheng Yi's expression hardened. Although his divine sense was suppressed, he could still feel a powerful aura approaching.

“Something’s coming,” he said in a low voice. “Prepare for battle.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a huge figure appeared in the mist.

It was a wolf-like demon beast, enormous in size, over three zhang tall. Its entire body was covered in gray fur, each hair standing on end like steel needles. Its eyes were an eerie green, emitting a ghostly glow.

What's most terrifying is its aura—late stage of the Integration Realm!

"It's a Mist Soul Wolf!" Zheng Hongzhi exclaimed. "This is the most terrifying monster in the Bewildering Forest, specializing in hunting lost cultivators!"

The Mist Soul Wolf stared at Zheng Yi and the others, letting out a low growl. Its eyes were filled with greed and ferocity, clearly regarding them as prey.

"roar--"

The Mist Soul Wolf pounced suddenly. It was incredibly fast, arriving in front of Zheng Yi in the blink of an eye, and slapped down with its paw.

Zheng Yi dared not be careless and quickly raised his sword to parry.

Keng——

A violent impact rang out. Zheng Yi felt an overwhelming force surge through him, sending him flying backward and sliding for dozens of feet before coming to a stop.

"Such powerful strength!" Zheng Yi was shocked.

Although this Mist Soul Wolf was only at the late stage of the Integration Realm, its power was extremely terrifying, in no way inferior to that of a powerhouse at the early stage of the Mahayana Realm. It seems that this power was accumulated by it after years of hunting cultivators in the Bewitching Forest and devouring countless experts.

"Master, let us help you!" Zheng Bowen and the others rushed forward.

"No!" Zheng Yi shouted, "This monster is too strong; you are no match for it. Step back and don't cause trouble!"

He's right. Although Zheng Bowen and the others are quite strong, they are no match for this late-stage Nascent Soul Realm demon beast. If they go up, they will only become a burden to Zheng Yi.

The Mist Soul Wolf gave Zheng Yi no chance to catch his breath. It pounced again, this time even more ferociously. Its sharp claws tore through the air, emitting a piercing howl.

Zheng Yi gritted his teeth and faced the challenge head-on.

"Time-Space Sword Technique - Freeze!"

He unleashed a sword strike, the power of spacetime enveloping the Mist Soul Wolf in an attempt to slow it down.

However, the results were far less than expected.

The Mist Soul Wolf also possessed a special power that could counteract the effects of the laws of space and time. Its speed only slowed down slightly before returning to normal.

"Damn it!" Zheng Yi cursed under his breath.

He had to take that claw strike again.

boom--

This time, he was slammed into the ground, creating a deep crater.

"puff--"

Zheng Yi coughed up a mouthful of blood; his internal organs were convulsing, and his injuries were serious.

But he had no time to heal. The Mist Soul Wolf pounced again, ready to deliver the fatal blow.

"Time-space evasion!"

Zheng Yi dodged the claw with a quick movement.

He scrambled to his feet, his face pale. Those two blows had already caused him internal injuries. If he continued to passively take the beating, he would be beaten to death sooner or later.

Must fight back!

"Space-Time Sword Technique - Rift!"

Zheng Yi suddenly erupted, slashing at the Mist Soul Wolf with his sword.

This sword strike contained all his power; its light was dazzling, drawing a blinding trail in the mist.

The Mist Soul Wolf neither dodged nor evaded, but directly took the sword strike head-on with its body.

Keng——

The sword light struck its fur, leaving only a shallow white mark, without even breaking the skin!

"What?!" Zheng Yi exclaimed in shock.

This monster's defense is insane! He attacked with all his might, and it couldn't even break its skin?

The Mist Soul Wolf seemed enraged by the sword strike. It let out a deafening roar, then opened its blood-red maw, spewing out a beam of gray light.

The beam of light contained a strange power that made people feel dizzy just looking at it.

"Watch out! That's the Mist Soul Wolf's innate divine ability—Soul Devour!" Zheng Hongzhi exclaimed. "If you get hit by it, your soul will be devoured!"

Zheng Yi dared not be negligent and quickly used his space-time evasion technique to avoid the beam of light.

But the Mist Soul Wolf's attack wasn't over yet. It kept shooting beams of light while attacking with its claws, keeping Zheng Yi constantly on his toes and leaving him no time to retaliate.

Gradually, more and more wounds appeared on Zheng Yi's body. Although none of them were fatal, they accumulated and his condition deteriorated.

"Master!" Zheng Bowen and the others were extremely anxious, but they couldn't help.

Liu Ruyan summoned the Xuanbing Sword, intending to support Zheng Yi, but was driven away by Zheng Yi.

"Don't come any closer! You'll only make things worse!"

Zheng Yi gritted his teeth and persevered. He continuously used spacetime evasion to weave through the attacks of the Mist Soul Wolves while searching for an opportunity to counterattack.

But the Mist Soul Wolf was simply too strong. Its attacks were impenetrable, leaving no openings to exploit.

Just when Zheng Yi was about to give up, he suddenly noticed a detail.

Each time the Mist Soul Wolf uses Soul Devour, its aura fluctuates briefly. At that time, its defense seems to decrease slightly.

Perhaps this is the flaw!
Zheng Yi made up his mind and began to consciously lure the Mist Soul Wolf into using Soul Devour.

He deliberately revealed a flaw, making the Mist Soul Wolf think it had an opportunity to take advantage.

As expected, the Mist Soul Wolf fell for the trick. It opened its mouth again, preparing to unleash its Soul Devourer.

Now! (End of Chapter)