After the spiritual energy was restored: Goddess girlfriends came knocking.

Forty-five floors.

Lin Chu and his group have been searching this floor for four days.

Apart from a few scattered signs of fighting in the first few days, no other useful clues were found afterward.

Qinglian grew more and more silent each day.

At first, he just frowned, but later he simply walked to the front of the group, stopping from time to time to look around.

Her small face was tense, and her lips were pressed into a thin line.

Jian Li came up from behind and comforted her.

"The 45th floor is huge; we've only searched less than a third of it, so it's normal that we can't find it."

Then he handed her a cup of spiritual tea.

"Don't worry, since we've agreed to do this, we'll do our best."

"Um."

Qinglian took it and sipped it slowly.

……

Meanwhile, on the same floor.

Deep within a vast canyon stands a jet-black throne.

Cang Li sat on it, one hand supporting his chin, the other finger tapping the armrest.

He was wearing a magnificent black and gold robe, and wisps of black energy emanated from his body.

His aura had reached the peak of the Golden Immortal realm.

Below the throne, a large group of people knelt in darkness.

They were all dressed in black robes, one hand on their chest, heads bowed and silent.

At a glance, there are at least a hundred people.

Although most of them were only at the Earth Immortal level, there were fewer Heavenly Immortals and about twenty or thirty True Immortals.

There are only six Xuanxian.

However, the fact that such a force could be gathered on the forty-fifth floor of the Imperial Road must have involved some special methods.

Cang Li gently raised her eyes, her gaze sweeping across the people below.

"Lin Chu, whom you mentioned earlier, should be around this level by now, right?"

His voice was slightly hoarse.

"Yes, Master."

An elderly man in black robes, closest to the throne, stepped forward and bowed slightly.

"They're moving faster than expected; they should be up here in the next few days."

Cang Li hummed in agreement.

"Is there anything I should be careful about?"

The old man in the black robe lowered his head even further.

"Reporting to Master, there is no weakling in that team."

"Especially the Master of the Glazed Sword, his swordsmanship is extremely strong, and he is almost invincible in a one-on-one battle against someone of the same realm."

"If you were to fight him, it would be best to avoid his sharp edge."

Cang Li nodded gently.

After a moment of silence, he spoke as if it were unintentional.

"Any progress on the Eldar race I asked you to investigate?"

The old man in black robes paused for a moment.

He glanced up at the throne, then quickly looked down again.

The master had never been kind to the spirit race before, so why was he suddenly so interested in a spirit race girl this time?

But it was none of his business to ask about his master's affairs.

"There is a member of Lin Chu's team who is suspected to be a member of the Spirit Clan."

Cang Li's fingers suddenly stopped.

"Sure?"

"I can't be too sure, but the aura... is very similar."

Cang Li leaned back in his chair and remained silent for a long while.

The old man in the black robe remained bent over, not daring to utter a sound.

After a long while, Cang Li spoke again.

"go."

"If Lin Chu and his group are spotted on this floor, report it immediately."

"Yes."

The old man responded and slowly retreated into the black mist.

Around the throne, only the sound of the wind remained once more.

Cang Li slowly lowered his head and looked at his hands.

Dark lines surged in his palm, disappearing deep into his wrist.

Spread your fingers open, then slowly clench them.

"Lin Chu..."

"Qinglian..."

He murmured the two names, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

……

It was the tenth day since Lin Chu entered the forty-fifth floor.

A sharp whistling sound rang out.

Several dark figures were fleeing rapidly a hundred feet ahead.

"Slow down, don't get too close."

Lin Chu spoke.

The group trailed far behind the men in black robes, moving at a leisurely pace.

For the first nine days, we didn't see a single ghost, but now, they've delivered themselves right to our doorstep.

If we follow them, we'll most likely find Cang Li.

Qinglian followed Lin Chu, her little face tense, her eyes showing both nervousness and anticipation.

The men in black robes moved quickly and took a tricky route.

Half an hour later.

The terrain ahead suddenly opened up.

At the edge of a gray-black wasteland, several broken giant peaks lean obliquely into the earth.

The men in black robes stopped and glanced back.

The leader grinned in a strange way, giving Lin Chu a provocative look.

The next instant, the group of people swayed and disappeared into thin air.

"Oh."

Lin Chu pursed her lips, her eyes gleaming with golden light.

"I was wondering what kind of magical transformation was going on."

"It's just a barrier."

Jian Li stepped forward, and the sword light fell.

With a crack, the barrier split open.

The group leaped inside.

Suddenly, the view opened up before me.

A massive, deep, and over a hundred feet wide fractured canyon stretched out before them.

On both sides of the canyon stood rows and rows of black-robed Devourer Clan members.

Lin Chu's expression turned serious, and she gave it a cursory glance.

Hundreds of them.

"That's quite a show of force."

Deep within the canyon, Cang Li sat on his throne, looking down at everyone.

His gaze swept over Lin Chu, over Jian Li, and over Ao Tianxin.

Finally, it landed on Qinglian and lingered there for a long time.

After a long pause, he withdrew his gaze and spoke softly.

"go."

Beside him, the black-robed elder at the peak of the Xuanxian realm stepped forward in response.

He led a dozen or so figures as they plummeted straight down from the top of the canyon.

Without further ado, they started fighting.

"Let's do it."

Lin Chu didn't waste any time.

As soon as she finished speaking, Jian Liren had vanished.

The improved Emperor's Sword Technique features a sword light as bright as a dragon, traversing the sky.

Before the black-robed elder at the peak of the Xuanxian realm could even land properly, he was intercepted by Jian Li.

One man and one sword hurled him straight into the sky.

Lin Chu moved swiftly, blocking the path of the dozen or so men in black robes.

Two were at the early stage of the Mystic Immortal realm, and the rest were at the peak of the True Immortal realm.

Seeing that Lin Chu was alone, the men in black robes exchanged glances, seemingly surprised, then disdainful.

A tall, thin man in a black robe chuckled and slowly raised his hand, making a "please" gesture.

The meaning was clear.

Since you're the only one here, you should make the first move.

Lin Chu naturally wouldn't stand on ceremony.

He had long wanted to test the power of his newly acquired military strategy.

With a sway, he rose from the ground and stood in mid-air.

The spiritual energy within his body swirls wildly, causing his hair to move without wind.

"Soldiers".

Behind Lin Chu, golden cracks appeared in the void.

Each crack was about an arm's width wide, with a faint Daoist aura flowing around its edges.

The cracks extended in all directions, layer upon layer, and within a few breaths they covered half the sky.

Swords, knives, spears, halberds, lances, maces, whips, and hammers—deep within each crack, a weapon silently floats.

It was densely packed, stretching as far as the eye could see.

The tips of all the weapons pointed in the same direction.

The killing intent was like a sea, pouring down from the sky.

The dozen or so men in black robes, their heads held high, gradually froze, their disdain fading.

One of the leading immortals, clad in black robes, instinctively took a step back, letting out a gurgling sound.

"What the hell is this?"

"What terrifying Daoist aura..."

"Is this kid really only at the early stage of True Immortal?"

If Ye Chen saw this scene here, he would probably jump up and shout "Golden Flash!"

Lin Chu's face was slightly pale, and her spiritual energy was completely depleted.

He immediately took out a Spirit Restoration Pill, which instantly filled his previously depleted dantian.

Her complexion regained its rosy hue.

He was very satisfied with this imposing presence; although he didn't know how much damage it would do, it certainly exuded a high level of prestige.

He slowly raised his right hand and pointed at the group of pale-faced men in black robes.