Many children, many blessings: Stealing the offspring of powerful figures to cultivate immortality.

The lone boat drifted in the gray fog for another three days.

Mottled silvery-white spots gradually appeared on the black sea ahead, scattered by the violent and chaotic spatial turbulence.

Passing through the last layer of mist, a massive cliff spanning between the void and the land came into view.

Countless fragments of shattered stars floated above the precipice, gleaming with a cold, dark light.

The northernmost edge of the Xuan Tian Realm lies the Shattered Star Abyss.

The small boat slowly glided along the water and came to rest beside a dock paved with giant star beast skulls.

Jiang Yining stepped steadily onto the hard obsidian ground, feeling the heavy earthy aura beneath her feet.

The Divine Tree of Myriad Spirits stretched its branches deep within her meridians, absorbing the laws that roamed the void, thus completely stabilizing her realm.

She turned to the side and looked at Xie Wuwang, who was still leaning against the cabin.

"The boat has reached the shore. Thank you, ferryman."

Jiang Yining took out a high-grade spirit crystal that she had casually obtained in the sea from her sleeve and tossed it onto the deck, where it made a crisp rolling sound.

"With the fare paid, the mutual assistance ends, and from now on, the bridge and the road go their separate ways."

Xie Wuwang glanced down at the spirit crystals at his feet, a cold smile curving his lips.

He slowly stepped off the boat, carrying an empty wine jug in one hand, and followed her about three steps behind.

"Go your separate ways? You're dreaming."

He shook the empty wine jug, his narrow eyes sweeping across the desolate Gobi Desert, his tone nonchalant.

"Your half-baked wood energy didn't cleanse the poison from my body at all. Now it's all tucked away in the meridians of my left arm, and who knows when it might flare up again."

Jiang Yining stopped and turned to look at him.

"The divine tree's energy has been sealed. As long as you don't actively use the Law of Destruction, it should last for three years without any problem."

"I think it's unlikely."

Xie Wuwang took a few steps closer to her and raised an eyebrow looking down at her.

"If the seal breaks one day, who will I hold accountable? Until the poison is completely eradicated, I will have to keep a close eye on you, the medical cultivator, every single day."

Seeing his unyielding attitude, Jiang Yining knew exactly what he was up to.

His gaze hadn't left the ship since he disembarked; the inquisitiveness hidden beneath his nonchalant demeanor was so intense it was impossible to ignore.

Too lazy to waste time with him in this desolate wilderness, she turned around and headed straight for the only market in Shattered Star Abyss.

Shattered Star Abyss is located at the border between the Xuan Tian Realm and the outer realms. It is a melting pot of all sorts of people, and you can see desperate criminals and black market merchants everywhere.

The streets were lined with low shacks made of animal bones and rough stones, and the air was thick with the smell of aged blood and cheap medicinal wine.

Jiang Yining, dressed in a neat blue robe, with a cool and aloof air about her, seemed out of place in this dirty and chaotic place.

They had only walked half a street when three tall, black-robed cultivators emerged from the shadows and blocked the middle of the road.

The one-eyed, burly man at the head of the group carried a thick-backed broadsword, and his aura as an early-stage Earth Immortal was undisguised.

He sized up Jiang Yining, his yellowish single eye filled with greed and malice, and a grin revealing a set of yellow teeth.

"Where did this new face come from? Daring to trespass into the Shattered Star Abyss all by yourself? Why don't you have a couple of drinks with your brothers, and I'll make sure you suffer less in the Xuan Tian Realm..."

The words hadn't even finished being spoken.

Standing behind Jiang Yining, Xie Wuwang's eyes suddenly flashed with a cold, dark light.

Not a single word wasted.

A deep purple blade flickered in the void, moving so fast that it didn't even make a sound.

The one-eyed burly man's sinister grin froze on his face as his head rolled to the ground.

Before the blood could even splatter, the black mist of destruction surged up like a tide, instantly turning the body and the remnant soul into ashes.

The remaining two cultivators were so frightened that their faces turned pale, their knees buckled, and they knelt on the ground, trembling.

"S-Sir, have mercy on me!"

Xie Wuwang lowered his eyes and slowly wiped away the dust from the spout of the pot with his fingertips. The chill emanating from him instantly silenced the entire long street.

The eyes that had been secretly watching suddenly disappeared, and no one dared to look again.

"roll."

Xie Wuwang uttered a single word indifferently.

The two monks, as if granted a pardon, scrambled into the alley and vanished in an instant.

Jiang Yining glanced back and saw that Xie Wuwang had already put on that listless expression again, as if he had just casually swatted a mosquito.

The two crossed the street and entered an inn with tattered animal skins hanging on the walls.

The lobby of the inn was dimly lit. Jiang Yining walked to the counter and placed two pieces of immortal crystals on the wooden table.

"Shopkeeper, I have something to ask you."

The skinny shop assistant swiftly stuffed the fairy crystals into his sleeve, his face crinkling with smiles.

"What would you like to ask, sir? I will answer any questions you may have about the Shattered Star Abyss."

"What is the current situation in the Xuan Tian Realm? Has there been any major movement in the Divine Realm?"

Upon hearing the words "Divine Realm," the waiter's expression changed slightly. He subconsciously glanced around before lowering his voice.

"Sir, you must have just emerged from seclusion? In the Xuan Tian Realm, who dares to speak loudly about that person from the Divine Realm?"

He swallowed hard, speaking very softly.

"Emperor Xuanqing of the Xuantian Divine Palace reached the pinnacle ten thousand years ago and is the only Dao Ancestor-level existence in the entire realm. It is rumored that the Emperor has recently been searching for the 'Key to Breaking the Realm' throughout the entire realm. Last month, just because a fragment of jade was hidden in an ancient city, the entire city's tens of millions of cultivators were wiped out overnight by divine generals..."

Jiang Yining's fingers, which were hanging in her sleeves, slowly tightened, her nails digging into her palms.

The Key to Breaking Boundaries.

In his quest to find this item, the supreme emperor treated the lower realm as a pasture to be harvested at will, shattering the interdimensional passage, reducing Fan Chenxin to ashes, and scattering her children to various places.

A surge of boundless rage welled up in his chest, causing the branches and leaves of the divine tree within his dantian to sway violently.

A cool, large hand suddenly landed on her shoulder.

Xie Wuwang's voice rang out from above, carrying his usual languor and coldness.

"Once you've finished asking, leave. Don't you get tired of listening to all this gossip and nonsense?"

Jiang Yining calmed herself down and stepped out of the inn.

"Go to the black market and buy a star map."

The black market of Shattered Star Abyss is located in a huge underground cavern, where cultivators come and go shoulder to shoulder.

Jiang Yining had just passed a few stalls when she suddenly heard heavy footsteps ahead.

More than ten guardians of the divine realm, clad in dark gold heavy armor and wielding spears, were conducting a search along the street, their Soul-Illuminating Mirrors gleaming with a chilling white light.

The Soul-Illuminating Mirror is extremely sensitive to the origin of the divine tree and the aura of the outer realms; its light was about to sweep in that direction in the blink of an eye.

In a flash, a hand grabbed Jiang Yining's wrist and pulled her into a narrow, dark alleyway.

Xie Wuwang's tall figure immediately covered her, shielding her between himself and the stone wall.

He casually tossed his dark robe aside, creating a barrier that isolated all life.

The alley was so narrow that only one person could pass sideways.

Jiang Yining leaned against the cold stone wall, with his warm and firm chest in front of her.

Xie Wuwang lowered his head, his thin lips almost touching her ear, his breath, carrying a light scent of alcohol, falling on the crook of her neck.

"Don't move."

He lowered his voice, his chest trembling slightly with his tone.

"Those lackeys of the Divine Realm are very perceptive; if they reveal even the slightest flaw, they'll attract a whole horde."

Jiang Yining was confined to a small, cramped space by him.

The heavy footsteps of the guards outside the streets and alleys and the buzzing of the array plates slowly approached and then gradually faded away.

In this cramped and dimly lit corner, the two were so close that there was no gap between them.

Xie Wuwang's heartbeat, penetrating the thin fabric, steadily and clearly struck Jiang Yining's senses.

Jiang Yining didn't push him away, but simply turned her head and casually ran her fingertips across the fabric on his waist.

Xie Wuwang's body tensed up suddenly, and his breathing became slightly erratic.

He lowered his head, his narrow eyes gleaming in the darkness, his voice low and hoarse.

"Jiang Yining, do you really think I can't do anything about you?"