Mu Xi originally didn't want to disturb Xia Yi.
When Zhen Hua went missing, she held back.
Xia Yi was the person the Sun-Moon Federation entrusted with dealing with Tang Sect.
She didn't want to ask Xia Yi for help because she didn't want him to be hesitant or constrained by Zhen Hua's situation.
After all, Tang Sect wouldn't make things difficult for Zhen Hua.
But she never expected that Tang Sect would suffer such a catastrophe, leaving Zhen Hua's fate unknown.
Now, Zhen Hua had even been officially declared dead by the Sun-Moon Federation, listed among those who perished in the explosion at Tang Sect.
She had no other choice but to turn to Xia Yi. After all, he was the one entrusted by the Sun-Moon Federation to handle Tang Sect.
Now, her only hope was Xia Yi.
"Mu Xi, don't be sad just yet. Listen to me. Your master should be fine—he probably isn't in Tang Sect right now." Xia Yi comforted her gently and continued, "The Holy Spirit Cult wouldn't have helped Tang Sect rescue Zang Xin for nothing. There must have been an exchange. That exchange was most likely your master. If that's the case, then he should be safe."
Zhen Hua was different from others.
If it had been anyone else, falling into the hands of the Holy Spirit Cult would likely have meant certain death.
But Zhen Hua was different—no one would be willing to kill him.
At most, he would suffer a little because he refused to cooperate with the Holy Spirit Cult in forging four-word battle armor.
"The Holy Spirit Cult…" Mu Xi suddenly froze. That's right—other than her master, the Divine Craftsman Zhenhua, what else could have persuaded a figure like the Nether Emperor of the Holy Spirit Cult to personally intervene?
"Don't worry. If your master is truly in the hands of the Holy Spirit Cult, I will definitely help you rescue him," Xia Yi said seriously.
"No, the Holy Spirit Cult is ruthless—they consume people whole, leaving not even bones behind. You mustn't take the risk." Mu Xi quickly tried to stop him.
She was no stranger to the Holy Spirit Cult or evil soul masters.
Over the years, Zhen Hua had been attacked by evil soul masters more times than she could count.
Mu Xi knew all too well the cruelty of evil soul masters.
Even though Xia Yi had Leng Yaozhu behind him, Mu Xi didn't believe the Holy Spirit Cult would care about that.
Zhenhua wouldn't be in life-threatening danger within the Holy Spirit Cult. But if it were Xia Yi in his place, that might not be the case.
Mu Xi was worried about Zhen Hua, but she didn't want to risk Xia Yi's life for it.
"Don't worry, I won't act recklessly. Just trust me. Since I've promised to help save your master, I won't go back on my word," Xia Yi reassured her.
"Mm, I believe you. Thank you, Xia Yi." On the other end of the soul communicator, Mu Xi wiped her swollen, tear-filled eyes. Covering her lips, she nodded firmly. Just hearing Xia Yi's promise calmed her down considerably.
"Mu Xi!" A voice called out—it was Mu Chen, the acting president of the Blacksmith Association.
With Zhen Hua taken by Tang Sect spies, Mu Chen had been forced to leave the Blacksmith Association in Shrek City and return to the headquarters in Heaven Dou City. Mu Xi, worried about Zhen Hua, had taken leave to follow him—thus, she had narrowly avoided disaster.
"Father." Mu Xi set down the soul communicator and turned to look at Mu Chen.
"You were calling Xia Yi?" Mu Chen asked.
"He said Master might be in the hands of the Holy Spirit Cult. Father, do you think Master will suffer a lot?" Mu Xi's eyes turned red again.
"With your master's personality, getting him to forge four-word battle armor for the Holy Spirit Cult won't be easy." Mu Chen sighed lightly. He and Zhenhua were brothers, so he knew Zhenhua's temperament well.
But this was the Holy Spirit Cult.
If Zhenhua refused to cooperate, the Holy Spirit Cult had a hundred ways to make his life a living hell.
If that were the case, Mu Chen would rather Zhenhua have died at Tang Sect than endure endless torture at the hands of the Holy Spirit Cult.
"Xia Yi promised he'd rescue Master. I believe in him," Mu Xi said, biting her lip.
"That's easier said than done." Mu Chen shook his head. The Holy Spirit Cult… Even when the Sun-Moon Federation, Tang Sect, Shrek Academy, and the Spirit Pagoda had worked together against them, they had only managed to capture a few small-time members.
They hadn't even come close to inflicting real damage on the Holy Spirit Cult.
Instead, the Holy Spirit Cult had only grown more rampant.
Mingdu.
Phoenix Group.
Just as Xia Yi finished his conversation with Mu Xi, his soul communicator rang again.
"I thought you were dead—your communicator's been unreachable." Xia Yi grumbled.
"I'm in the Blood God Legion now, just an ordinary soldier. All soul communicators have to be turned in, and we're only allowed one call per month. This time, because of the attack on Tang Sect and Shrek Academy, the legion gave everyone an extra call to check in with their families. That's how I saw your missed calls." An icy, emotionless voice came through the communicator—it was Wujin.
"The Blood God Legion? You broke through to Soul Emperor?" Xiayi asked, surprised. He remembered that the Blood God Legion required at least Soul Emperor-level cultivation to join.
Xia Yi had been making rapid progress lately, and he had only just reached Soul Emperor. He hadn't expected Wujin to get there first.
"More or less," Wujin replied flatly.
After a brief pause, he added, "I've obtained the Ice Phoenix Flower I promised you back at Eastsea Academy. When are you coming to the Blood God Legion? I'll give it to you."
"The Ice Phoenix Flower… Damn, you still remember that?" Xia Yi was stunned. If Wujin hadn't mentioned it, he would have completely forgotten about the Ice Phoenix Flower.
At this point, the Ice Phoenix Flower wasn't all that important to him.
Not to mention, now that he had the Ice Fire Yin Yang Well, he had access to an abundance of divine herbs—even ones on the level of Ferocious Beasts.
Why would he care about a single Ice Phoenix Flower?
"A promise is a promise. I won't forget, nor will I break my word," Wujin said coolly.
"I don't need it anymore. You should use it yourself." Xia Yi shook his head.
"I know you might not need it. But since I promised you, it already belongs to you. Whether you need it or not is irrelevant." Wujin paused, then added, "I'll wait for you at the Blood God Legion. Or if I get leave, I'll come find you."
With that, he abruptly hung up.
"What the hell…" Xiayi muttered, both amused and exasperated.
He had been so reluctant to part with the Ice Phoenix Flower back then, but now he was forcing it on him?
"If he's giving it to you, just take it. Even if you don't need it, you can plant it in the Ice Fire Yin Yang Well," Gu Yue huffed, clearly displeased.
"Alright, I'll listen to you." Xiayi nodded helplessly.
Wujin's insistence came from his pride.
Since he had promised Xia Yi the Ice Phoenix Flower, in his mind, it already belonged to Xia Yi.
Whether Xia Yi wanted it or not was irrelevant.
He didn't want to accept Xia Yi's "kindness" by backing out of his word.
Gu Yue was upset because she couldn't stand Wujin's attitude.
To her, Xia Yi was the destined ruler of soul beasts. Even the strongest soul beasts, like Di Tian and the Dragon Souls of the Dragon Valley, had to obey his orders without question.
So why should a mere Wujin act all high and mighty?
If Di Tian ever dared put on airs in front of Xia Yi, Gu Yue would have slapped him by now.
"Alright, don't be mad. He's different from us. His heart is filled with nothing but hatred. As long as the Abyss Plane exists, as long as the blood feud of the Endless Mountains remains, he won't be able to think about anything else." Xia Yi comforted Gu Yue with a smile.
"You just can't be serious for once, can you?" Gu Yue rolled her eyes at Xia Yi, clearly exasperated. Compared to his playful and mischievous demeanor, she much preferred seeing him as a figure of authority—one whose every word and action carried unquestionable weight.
"I can't help it. When I'm with my dear Yue'er, I just can't stay serious," Xia Yi chuckled as he pulled Gu Yue into his arms.
"You..." Gu Yue sighed helplessly and shook her head before asking, "So, what are you planning next? Are you going to the Holy Spirit Cult to rescue Zhen Hua?"
"I'm heading to the Blood God Legion first. As for Zhen Hua, I'll have the Demon Emperor keep an eye on him and make sure the Holy Spirit Cult doesn't torture him," Xia Yi said, shaking his head.
The Demon Emperor had previously informed Xia Yi that the Holy Spirit Cult had already collaborated with the Spirit Pagoda and certain high-ranking officials of the Sun-Moon Federation. Their plan was to eliminate both Shrek Academy and Tang Sect at the right moment.
Had Xia Yi known that two Godslayer Fixed Soul Ammunition shells had gone missing from the Sun-Moon Federation, he would have immediately realized the Holy Spirit Cult's intentions.
However, what he hadn't expected was that Chen Xinjie and Yu Guanzhi had failed to report the missing shells.
As a result, Xia Yi hadn't anticipated that the Holy Spirit Cult would advance their plans against Tang Sect and Shrek Academy—nor that they would resort to such an extreme method as deploying a Rank Twelve Godslayer Fixed Soul Ammunition.
What was even more crucial was that the Ghost Emperor and the Underworld Emperor had chosen to carry out this plan behind the Demon Emperor's back.
This alone was enough to prove that even the Demon Emperor could not completely control the Holy Spirit Cult.
Even if the Demon Emperor intervened, the Ghost Emperor and the Underworld Emperor would never willingly release Zhen Hua. The other high-ranking members of the Holy Spirit Cult certainly wouldn't agree to it either.
After all, Zhen Hua was a Divine Blacksmith.
How could the Holy Spirit Cult possibly let go of such a treasure so easily?
Still, the Demon Emperor did have enough influence to ensure that Zhen Hua wouldn't suffer too much.
Of course, Xia Yi could also take two dragon souls from the Dragon Valley micro-world and storm the Holy Spirit Cult to take Zhen Hua back by force.
But that was clearly not the best course of action.
Even though Gu Yue and the dragon souls of Dragon Valley wouldn't refuse his request, Xia Yi knew that deep down, they would be unwilling to act.
And Xia Yi didn't want to force them.
Therefore, if he wanted to save Zhen Hua, he would have to rely on Leng Yaozhu's power.
At the same time, Xia Yi wanted to investigate the Abyssal Plane and its abyssal creatures to uncover the truth about them.
Only by doing so could he help Leng Yaozhu break free from the Blood God Legion.
Only by bringing Leng Yaozhu back to the Douluo Continent...
Could Xia Yi move forward with his next plan.
"You're always so distant," Gu Yue said with a bitter smile before ultimately shaking her head. "Forget it. Do whatever you want. Just remember—soul beasts' power is your power. As long as you ask, no matter how dangerous the task, we will never hesitate."
"Are you heading to the Blood God Legion right away?" Gu Yue suddenly asked in a serious tone.
"Yeah," Xia Yi nodded. "Tang Sect and Shrek Academy are gone now. The Sun-Moon Federation is only left with relief operations. Whether I'm involved or not won't make much of a difference."
His main reason for coming to Mingdu was to deal with Tang Sect's underground arsenal.
That underground arsenal was far too dangerous, and if he didn't deal with it, he would always be worried.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have had the Mountain Dragon King intervene.
By eliminating the threat of Tang Sect's underground arsenal, not only did he remove a potential danger, but the soul beasts also gained control of a vast supply of resources. This was a win-win situation.
"Alright then. If you encounter danger, contact me immediately. Your battle armor contains my reverse scale. As long as you remain on the Douluo Continent, I can teleport to your side anytime," Gu Yue said. She didn't try to stop Xia Yi.
The Abyssal Plane—
A plane that thrived on devouring others—
Gu Yue had already heard of it even before she had split from the Dragon God's body.
Such a plane was not only the enemy of the Divine Realm but also the enemy of all worlds.
They were the enemies of humanity...
And the enemies of soul beasts as well.