Fat Tiger's discovery, although undoubtedly an exhilarating piece of news for the field of wildlife conservation.

If made public, it could easily become the second hottest topic, just after 456.

But for the Qinling exploration mission itself, at most, it's just a budding appetizer.

After all, the Qinling exploration aims to find traces left by ancient Cultivators, not to expand the current animal directory.

There is currently no evidence to prove Fat Tiger is related to Spiritual Energy; perhaps it's just exceptionally resilient?

Thus, Director Zhu chose a relatively rational plan, preparing for a long-term follow-up to see if there's any further progress.

After all, this semi-public activity doesn't fear others knowing, as long as key areas and main rhythms are controlled by our own people.

And just as Cui Xiaofeng and others were gearing up for a long-term battle.

....

The Damo Realm, the night descended once more.

This is a boundless sea region.

Blue mingles with the distant sky, like a slowly rising blue continent, shimmering with an ancient primal-like luster, broadening the infinite vastness.

The sea surface was without wind or waves, as calm as an eternal uninhabited cemetery.

Time seemed frozen here.

Only a bright moonbeam paved a silver-glowing "path."

This is the Star Sea, once one of the four forbidden areas of the Damo Realm, now one of the three great forbidden areas.

Rumor has it long, long ago.

The 'sea' within the Star Sea didn't exist, the entire area was a barren zone, bald as Zidane's head.

Then time flew by.

Just like in many old story plots, it was rumored that at some point, several unrivaled 'great powers' had a conflict here.

After some dissension, this forbidden place was formed.

Of course.

This rumor isn't highly credible because the Star Sea is way too vast.

Even during Ancient Times, those standing above Divinity Transformation couldn't measure its expanse.

Though the legend is elusive.

The title of this forbidden area within the Star Sea is genuinely built from countless real battle feats.

The position of the Star Sea is at the outer edge of the strongest Eastern Region of the central domain, bordering the Eastern Region.

It's rumored the entire sea area has been calm for ten thousand years, with no living creatures within.

Any being stepping into the Star Sea, whether a Cultivator or a demon beast, consumes several times the usual amount of Spiritual Power.

For mortals, there's even less to say; lasting three minutes would mean you're tough.

Besides.

Occasionally, whirlpool-like cracks might suddenly appear within the Star Sea.

Once a crack appears, everything within a radius of several thousand meters gets sucked in.

Unless one's cultivation reaches the Nascent Soul Realm or the fourth tier, entering is certain death.

However, as the saying goes, where there's risk, there's opportunity.

The Star Sea is no exception.

In this forbidden area, ancient relics often show their traces.

Some are only one or two square meters in size, while others can reach dozens or even hundreds of square kilometers.

In the Damo Realm's folklore.

There are stories of some lucky Cultivators escaping into the Star Sea when at wit's end, surprisingly obtaining ancient relics and making a legendary comeback like Long Aotian.

Most of the time, these stories are baseless fabrications.

Yet on the other hand, many Cultivators have indeed found treasures or inheritances in the Star Sea.

For instance, the demon palace has a critical Defensive Array, the core materials of which flowed out from a relic in the Star Sea.

But because the area of the Star Sea is too vast, many relic locations remain undiscovered to this day.

Therefore.

Top-tier Core Formation Realm or Nascent Soul Realm Cultivators often risk entering the Star Sea, intending to explore traces of ancient relics.

The former primarily for a glimmer of hope during their Nascent Soul Tribulation.

The latter to seek further advancement possibilities.

Of course.

The claim that no living beings survive in the Star Sea doesn't necessarily hold for rabbits.

Because those who studied biology know.

Theoretically, microorganisms should exist in seawater, needing testing for final conclusions.

Unfortunately.

The rabbits' map hasn't expanded to here yet, so specific exploration activities can't proceed.

.......

Whoosh——

In an extremely remote part of the Star Sea, two figures were flying at great speed.

The two figures traveled side by side, their robes flapping in the wind.

The one on the left was a rough-featured, tall man, looking thirty or forty years old, rugged in appearance.

The one on the right was a slightly over forty scholar in a blue shirt, with a refined and amiable countenance.

If local devices were on site calculating, they would find their speed was at least 600 meters per second!

Near 1.7 times the speed of sound, undeniably, these two must be...

Nascent Soul Cultivators!

Under the moonlight.

The two flew a certain distance; the tall man suddenly transmitted his voice to speak with the blue-clad scholar.

Then they stopped simultaneously.

The blue-clad scholar waved a hand, and a green barrier silently appeared around them.

The tall man took out a few pills from a storage bag, tossing them to the blue-clad scholar like offering someone a cigarette:

"Brother Boyun, Tier Four Dew Condensing Pills, if they're not enough, there's more."

"Thanks."

The blue-clad scholar received the pills, slightly checked them with divine sense, then swallowed them.

The tall man did the same, feeling the Spiritual Energy within gradually recovering as he asked:

"Brother Boyun, how far is that relic from us?"

Upon hearing this, the blue-clad scholar took out a map from his person.

After closing his eyes to sense for a moment, he said:

"Brother Tu Hong, the relic is not far ahead of us.

With our pace, we should reach it within three to five hours."

The tall man nodded slightly, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes as he said:

"Brother Boyun, is that relic really as mysterious as you say?"

The blue-clad scholar put away the map and shrugged:

"Maybe it is, maybe it's not, who knows?

However, Old Monster Duan's cultivation was indeed unusual when he arrived, and we witnessed his son Duan Yun's mediocre Spiritual Root ourselves.

Even with Old Monster Duan's help, he should've only reached the third or fourth layer of Foundation Establishment at most, yet managed to cultivate to the sixth layer of Core Formation.

Old Monster Duan only left the demon palace a few times in a hundred years, each time heading to the Star Sea, behaving strangely and uncommonly.

While he lived, fellow Taoists couldn't directly ask, but now that Old Monster Duan has fallen, how can we not investigate?

Even if in the end, we return empty-handed, it'll only cost us some time."

"That's true; if nothing else, it's just a good trip to unwind."

After listening to the blue-clad scholar, the tall man showed a touch of nostalgia in his eyes:

"Old Monster Duan, ah, Old Monster Duan, a dignified Nascent Soul Great Cultivator, who would've thought he'd end up beheaded..."

The blue-clad scholar fell silent for a long time upon hearing this, finally sighing without further words.

From their conversation, it's easy to see.

The blue-clad scholar and the tall man hail from the demon palace as Nascent Soul Great Cultivators.

The blue-clad scholar is named Si Boyun, while the tall man is Ye Tuhong.

The former's realm is at the Fourth-Layer Nascent Soul Realm, namely, Mid-stage Nascent Soul Realm.

The latter's cultivation is slightly lower, at the Third-Layer Nascent Soul Realm—hence he needed to pause first to take pills to replenish his Spiritual Power.

Si Boyun and Ye Tuhong have known each other for nearly five centuries, arguably bonded closer than life and death.

The two were originally stationed in the demon palace, rarely interacting with the outside world.

Not because they were detached from worldly struggles, but due to the demon palace being the previous Ancestral Holy Mountain, possessing several rare Advanced Spirit Gathering Arrays.

The cultivation conditions were excellent, and the demon palace itself needed foundations for unexpected events.

Hence, several Nascent Soul Great Cultivators always stayed on site.

Many times, they would retreat for years at a time.

Yet recently.

With the fall of two other Nascent Soul Cultivators, everything changed.

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