Chapter 1865: Other Star Fields and First Mention Of The Martial Eternity Realm

Qin Ming's words carried an overt tone of threat, but at that moment, Shang Xia's thoughts were preoccupied with other suspicions.

How exactly had Qin Ming and Sage Jin located them so precisely?

As he looked at Zhuo Gudao, now dangling limply in Qin Ming's grasp, tightly sealed like a lifeless dog, the question rose once again in Shang Xia’s mind.

But upon recalling the three high-level True Immortals, whose bodies had been overtaken by the foreign consciousness and who had recently retreated, a possibility dawned on him. In a deep voice, he asked, "Did you find this place by following those True Immortals?"

Seeing the slight fade in Qin Ming's smile, Shang Xia pressed further. “Those True Immortals... Don’t tell me they were from your Essence Frontier Heavenly Field? How amusing. Did you just stand by and watch as they lost their minds without attempting to save them?"

Unexpectedly, Qin Ming didn't engage with the accusation. He simply scoffed, "Are you stalling for time to recover? I wonder how much longer you think you can last?"

Shang Xia's expression changed slightly, and a trace of fluster appeared in his eyes. However, he pretended to force himself to stay calm as he continued, “So, you've known all along about the mutated energy, haven't you?”

Qin Ming chuckled lightly while praising Shang Xia, “Sage Shang truly possesses a resolute martial will. To survive this long without succumbing to the pollution in the surrounding energy... Impressive indeed. But as long as you remain trapped in the Nebula Forbidden Region, one day you'll inevitably be corrupted and lose control of your body."

Shang Xia countered sharply, "You speak as if you’ve experienced it firsthand, Qin Ming. Were you also once possessed? If so, I'd love to know, how exactly did you purge those impurities from your body?"

Though Qin Ming still wore a calm smile, his words grew colder. “Sage Shang, you really have a sharp tongue... I wonder... Will your end be better than Zhuo Gudao?”

As he spoke, he deliberately hoisted Zhuo Gudao higher, as if he were showing off a piece of rotting meat.

Shang Xia grunted while nodding. “No wonder. From the looks of it, you’re also corrupted.”

The last trace of a smile faded from Qin Ming's face and the clash of their domains intensified.

At that moment, Sage Jin unexpectedly spoke. "You tried to cleanse the impurity by splitting off a clone?"

Seeing Shang Xia turn to look at him with a look of surprise, Sage Jin nodded. "It won't work. At best, you can delay the corruption. You can’t weed it out completely.”

Qin Ming's face darkened when he heard Sage Jin’s explanation.

Shang Xia quickly followed up. “So... Those possessed True Immortals were test subjects you thrown in?”

Sage Jin replied in a strange voice, barely hiding the implications behind his words, “They’re from the Essene Frontier Heavenly Field.”

That confirmed it, there were likely more such test subjects than just those three. Moreover, they were probably not just limited to the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field. There should be a bunch of cultivators in the Nebula Forbidden Region whose bodies had been hijacked by foreign consciousnesses.

Qin Ming's expression grew increasingly sour.

Shang Xia didn’t stop there. He wasn’t about to give up on the chance to ask more. “So... Sage Jin, you were once trapped in the Nebula Forbidden Region too. Were you also corrupted? How did you survive for hundreds of years?"

Sage Jin calmly replied, "Who said I was corrupted?"

Seeing Shang Xia's astonished look, he added, "Centuries ago, when the Nebula Forbidden Region first formed, the mutated energy hadn’t spread across the forbidden region. Moreover, I didn’t go too deep and I wouldn’t have encountered it.”

Shang Xia shot him a deliberate look of understanding before turning to Qin Ming.

"Enough!" Qin Ming growled coldly, "Brother Jin, don't forget, we still have business to finish!"

Sage Jin said nothing, but also fell silent.

Thinking for a moment, Shang Xia asked, “Right, I have one last question. What are you seeking in the depths of the Nebula Forbidden Region exactly to pay such a high price?"

It was a shame Qin Ming had no patience left. He seemed to sense something amiss in Shang Xia and signaled Sage Jin to strike.

Sage Jin hesitated slightly, but ultimately prepared to flank.

Just then, Shang Xia suddenly asked, "Sage Jin, in the ruins of the Essence Wilderness World, are there still any native cultivators alive, aside from those who switched allegiances?"

The question stunned Sage Jin so much that he paused in the void, almost throwing off his coordination with Qin Ming.

Seeing he hadn't answered, Shang Xia continued, "I only just realized... Qin Ming can traverse the Nebula Forbidden Region safely, likely because he has the power of the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field guiding him. In fact, he might even be supported by the corrupted True Immortals. But Sage Jin, you wouldn't trust him blindly. Your guide must be the lingering will of the Essence Wilderness World, am I right?"

Sage Jin's eyes widened in shock. "You've found survivors of the Essence Wilderness World?"

"Brother Jin!" Qin Ming shouted again, cutting them off. "Be careful, he's trying to trick you!"

Before the words even settled, he hurled Zhuo Gudao aside and lunged at Shang Xia to prevent him from speaking further.

Sage Jin followed with gold sword energy flying, though his precision didn’t cause the surrounding void to stir randomly. Clearly, he still had great control over his strength.

However... Though he had to face two mid-level Sages at the same time, Shang Xia didn’t show the slightest trace of panic.

His left hand chopped forward as a gray blade light emerged. It slammed into Sage Jin’s golden sword light, and the flow of time around them started to change. The golden sword light seemed weathered down as it experienced endless aging, scattering before it could strike Shang Xia’s domain.

At the same time, he raised his Seven Star Mace and unleashed Shattered Starry Skies, meeting Qin Ming head-on.

The second they collided, the already fragile void around them collapsed instantly into a region of chaos.

Since Qin Ming could draw on the power of the Essence Frontier Heavenly Field and had a slightly higher cultivation than Shang Xia, he stood at a clear advantage. However... Shang Xia wasn’t so easily suppressed like before!

What was more, Qin Ming wasn’t shocked that he couldn’t suppress Shang Xia as easily as before. What truly startled him was that Shang Xia's strength hadn't diminished from months of struggle. Instead, he had grown slightly stronger.

It was truly absurd.

They both knew how treacherous the Nebula Forbidden Region was. Even with essence crystals, one's energy supply wouldn't last long. Eventually, most would be forced to draw in the mutated energy, causing them to be corrupted, falling into the same state as Zhuo Gudao.

Qin Ming wasn’t the only person who was dumbfounded by Shang Xia’s revelation of strength. Sage Jin also found it unbelievable.

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

After blocking their joint attack, Shang Xia immediately retreated, widening the distance to avoid being surrounded.

Of course, neither Qin Ming nor Sage Jin would let him escape easily.

Sage Jin swung his golden sword and the scattered golden qi in their surroundings instantly converged. He pressed his hands together to form a hand seal and pushed it in Shang Xia’s direction. “Go!”

The three-foot golden sword shot through the void, aiming straight at Shang Xia's back.

Qin Ming, holding the sealed Zhuo Gudao in one hand, flicked his other hand like strumming a zither. The fragile void rippled like water.

In the face of a combined offensive from a fourth star Sage and a fifth star Sage, Shang Xia remained calm. The Seven Star Mace swung through the void once again as he unleashed the third form of his Seven Star Mace Technique, Guided Dipper!

This time, instead of calling on the power of seven suns, Shang Xia guided both attacks flying his way to slam into each other.

The golden sword's path wavered just enough to collide with Qin Ming's technique.

They had to admit that Shang Xia’s ability was truly amazing. He used their attacks to neutralize the other.

What Shang Xia didn’t expect was the giant explosion that came from the collision of the different moves. A massive shockwave blasted Shang Xia through the void while causing a super chain reaction in the dangerous Nebula Forbidden Region.

Even Qin Ming and Jin dared not charge into the newly formed chaotic region.

Their hesitation bought Shang Xia enough time to flee once again.

Though Shang Xia looked to be in an extremely sorry state on the other side of the region of chaos, he managed to successfully avoid their pursuit.

Of course, it was far from time to relax. Once Shang Xia felt that he was temporarily safe, he wasted no time and patted the Cloud Rune Stone Mysterious World on his waist. He removed the seals on it and growled, “Can you feel the existence of the Essence Wilderness World’s Will?”

Su Chi’s voice quickly emerged. "I can! It's being stirred up rapidly." Pausing for a moment, he sighed with emotion, “I didn’t think that the World’s Will wasn’t destroyed with the world...”

"There’s no time. Since you can feel the presence of the World’s Will, point me in the direction.” Shang Xia commanded

Su Chi responded quickly. “I can feel it from two directions. There’s one behind you...”

"Not that," Shang Xia interrupted. "Where's the other?"

He knew the nearer one was likely Sage Jin, who could channel the remnant World’s Will. There was no point in running back into them.

Su Chi pointed the way, and Shang Xia immediately sped off, no longer worrying about potential dangers.

Not long after he left, Qin Ming and Sage Jin circled around the chaotic zone, but had already lost his trail.

"He won't get far," Qin Ming said confidently. "Unless he finds a way back to the Essence Wilderness World ruins, he'll just keep wandering until he’s corrupted by the foreign consciousness.”

"But what if what he said was true?" Sage Jin murmured. "What if there are still survivors in the ruins?"

Qin Ming sneered. "You think someone from your Essence Wilderness World could still be alive?"

Sage Jin remained thoughtful but he didn’t speak more on the matter. His gaze eventually fell on Zhuo Gudao. "What do you plan to do with him?"

Qin Ming smiled again. "Naturally, we'll wake him up and see if we can extract more information, especially about things beyond the Star Field. Also... About news of the Martial Eternity Realm!”