Land of Lawlessness.
Green Lotus Palace.
Within the spacious room.
Watching Zhang Yi use the Spirit Martial Markings to help Wei Qingkuang suppress The Void, Luo Xiu asked worriedly, "Will Xiao Yi get infected from contact like this?"
An Ran replied, her face expressionless, "She will, but The Void only becos contagious after it matures."
"So, you're saying it isn't contagious in the early stages?" Luo Xiu asked.
An Ran nodded. "Moreover, I believe this young girl can sense the existence of The Void with her Spirit Martial Markings."
Luo Xiu inquired, "High Priest, how much do you know about The Void?"
"Very little," An Ran responded. "I only know that Cultivators who reach the Emperor Realm can be infected. After infection, the resulting Void Entity is mindless, driven only by its evil nature."
Hearing this, Luo Xiu couldn't help but think of the Void Entity from that female Cultivator he had encountered. It's true, just as An Ran said. A newly born Void Entity lacks human thought.
An Ran continued, "Only after maturing does a Void Entity gain consciousness. And all newly born Void Entities share an instinct to 'return to the nest'."
"What does 'return to the nest' an?" Luo Xiu asked.
"In short, after a Void Entity is born, it instinctively tries to travel to a single, specific place. Unfortunately, no one has ever found it."
As they were talking, Zhang Yi, who was sitting by the bed, suddenly let out a scream. She scrambled to her feet and backed away in fright.
Luo Xiu's expression tensed. "What happened?"
Zhang Yi scrambled behind Luo Xiu, clutching his arm tightly. "I'm sorry, Brother Luo Xiu! I... I failed. The thing inside her got out."
Hearing this, An Ran's gaze snapped to Wei Qingkuang on the bed. She looked at Zhang Yi, her expression wary. "It seems your mastery of the Spirit Martial Markings is superficial at best."
Zhang Yi pouted. She was a little indignant but couldn't argue. She really had only scratched the surface of the mysteries and wonders of the Spirit Martial Markings.
"It's coming! Be careful!"
Luo Xiu suddenly stepped in front of the two won, his eyes fixed on Wei Qingkuang.
Luo Xiu could see The Void with his naked eye—sothing ordinary people couldn't perceive, even with their Divine Sense. In his vision, wisps of gray gas flowing from Wei Qingkuang's body were coalescing into a Void Entity, just like what had happened with the female Cultivator!
A mont later, another "Wei Qingkuang" materialized before them out of thin air.
Everyone paled and quickly retreated behind Luo Xiu. Unlike the last female Cultivator, Wei Qingkuang had reached the White Emperor Realm, which ant the Void Entity that split from her also possessed the power of a White Emperor.
Luo Xiu warned, "We can't kill it. If the Void Entity is killed, the original body dies with it."
Hearing this, An Ran's brows furrowed. With a wave of her jade-like hand, several green vines shot out from thin air, easily entangling and restraining Wei Qingkuang's Void Entity. It was a simple task for a Heavenly Emperor to subdue a White Emperor.
"But this isn't a long-term solution," An Ran said.
Luo Xiu gritted his teeth, feeling utterly helpless.
People are selfish. If so stranger had been infected by The Void, Luo Xiu could have killed them without a second thought. But when it happened to one of his own, his entire mindset changed.
At that mont, Dou Dou's eyes lit up. She raised her small, rosy hand and said eagerly, "Master Ping, I have an idea! I don't know if I should say it, though!"
Master Ping glanced at her. "This is no ti for gas."
Dou Dou pouted, her face full of indignation. "You grumpy old Master Ping, don't look down on ! I can be very clever, you know!"
An Ran said respectfully, "Your Highness, what is your idea? Please, enlighten us."
Dou Dou's little face turned serious as she explained, "Use a Life-Forfeiture Flower! First, we find one for the Empress's real body, and then we kill her Void Entity. That way, even if her real body dies, she'll be resurrected."
The room fell silent the mont she finished speaking.
After a long pause, Master Ping was the first to speak. "I believe this plan is feasible!"
Dou Dou raised her little head proudly. "See? I'm the clever one! Don't you feel silly now, Master Ping?"
Master Ping just grunted softly.
Dou Dou added, "You have to treat to chicken skewers later, or I won't forgive you."
An Ran said, "I'll go to the Divine Oracle Cave Heaven at once to find a Life-Forfeiture Flower. Your Highness, the situation here is complicated. Why don't you return to the Immortal Grass Forest with ? That way, I can have so peace of mind."
Hearing this, Dou Dou looked toward Luo Xiu, as if seeking his approval.
Luo Xiu nodded and reached out to gently rub her head. "Go with the High Priest," he said softly. "I can enter the Divine Oracle Cave Heaven whenever I want, so I'll co visit you when I have ti."
An Ran added, "Besides, Her Highness can return here at any ti."
Dou Dou and An Ran then sat on the floor and activated the spell to enter the Divine Oracle Cave Heaven.
In the room, Zhang Yi stared at Wei Qingkuang on the bed. "Brother Luo Xiu," she said, "earlier, I discovered worms inside the Empress's body, right around her cervical spine. They're tiny. I could barely sense them even with the Spirit Martial Markings."
"That is the true form of The Void," Master Ping said. "Luo Xiu, when I sent you into The Void before, those giant worms you saw were the sa things Xiao Yi is sensing now."
"In our dinsional plane, they manifest as a virus, so minuscule they're nearly undetectable."
Zhang Yi nodded. "That's right. If you were to enter a microscopic dinsion, it would look enormous."
Luo Xiu asked, "Xiao Yi, do you have any way to deal with these worms?"
Zhang Yi shook her head. "I can't."
「A day later.」
An Ran returned to the Land of Lawlessness with a Life-Forfeiture Flower in hand.
"Are there still Life-Forfeiture Flowers in the Immortal Grass Forest?" Luo Xiu asked.
An Ran replied without expression, "I went to Sky Divine City and took one from soone."
Luo Xiu was speechless for a mont before asking, "Where's Dou Dou?"
"Her Highness is staying in the Immortal Grass Forest. The Temple of Priests is arranging her succession ceremony. And rember your promise to —you have to visit, too."
Luo Xiu nodded. "A promise is a promise. I'll keep my word."
…
After Wei Qingkuang bonded with the Life-Forfeiture Flower, An Ran acted decisively, destroying Wei Qingkuang's Void Entity without a hint of hesitation. And Luo Xiu, fearing that wasn't enough, followed up with a blast of Glazed Thunder to be certain.
Just as with the female Cultivator before, once the Void Entity was completely destroyed, the original body died with it. It was a horrendous death, her body dissolving into foul-slling pus.
But in the next instant, Wei Qingkuang was resurrected by the Life-Forfeiture Flower.
It was proof that Dou Dou's thod was incredibly effective. However, it was a solution that could only be used once, as a person could only benefit from a Life-Forfeiture Flower a single ti in their life.
…
After resolving Wei Qingkuang's situation, the group went to the Hundred Herbs Garden for a breath of fresh air.
"What are your plans now?" An Ran asked Luo Xiu.
"First, I'll consolidate my cultivation," Luo Xiu said. "I have no idea how many more Void Entities are waiting for out there. But no matter what, I can't let those monsters leave the Boundless Heavens."
At this, Master Ping added, "I'm afraid those who were captured by that giant Void worm, like the three Great Saint Masters, have already been infected."
"That's fine," Luo Xiu said, his eyelids lowered. "I was planning to settle scores with them once I get out anyway."
He then turned to An Ran and requested, "High Priest, for the next few days, I'll have to trouble you to be my sparring partner."
Hearing this, a rare smile graced An Ran's face. "Perfect. I've been wanting to teach you a lesson for a while now."
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