I chose the safe house, and the Human Alliance regretted it.

Purple Emperor Star, First Empire, Imperial Star City.

A colossal city stands atop the sea of ​​stars, suspended above the clouds.

Tens of thousands of floating platforms are stacked on top of each other, each with its own independent ecosystem and energy loop.

Various starships shuttled through the city in an orderly fashion, yet they carried a suffocating sense of oppression.

The buildings in the city soar into the clouds, making the most of the available space.

The lowest level of the building is only a few dozen meters high, and it becomes thinner and thinner as you go up, like needles piercing the sky.

Each building's exterior is covered with a translucent energy film, and energy circulates inside the building.

At the outermost edge of Imperial Star City, an almost transparent energy shield envelops the entire city.

The purple starship piloted by the silver-clad youth slowly entered after being identified by the energy shield.

The moment the ship passed through the energy shield, a slight humming sound came through the ship's hull.

The starship traversed the skies above the city, passing over one floating platform after another, and finally landed steadily in a bustling complex of buildings in Imperial Star City.

This is not an official port, but a naval dock at a private estate.

The platform is hexagonal, with dark gold rune arrays inlaid along its edges. The runes light up automatically the moment the starship lands, fixing the ship to the ground.

The starship came to a stop, and Zi Bai and the others stepped out of the hatch.

The silver-clad youth looked around and let out a long sigh of relief: "Luckily, we made it in time. Miss's training session isn't over yet."

Zi Bai remained silent.

Her face was still a little pale, but much better than when she had just returned from the Seventh Purgatory.

The group walked through the manor.

The gardens on both sides are planted with unknown plants, and faint energy pulses flow between their branches and leaves, as if they are breathing with life.

Finally, they stopped in front of a training room.

Just as the group steadied themselves, the door slid open silently.

An old man and a young boy came out from inside.

The old man had white hair and beard and wore a loose, silver-gray robe.

The girl followed beside him, her hands clasped in front of her, her posture respectful.

The girl looked no more than seventeen or eighteen years old, with tiny starlight swirling deep within her pupils.

"Teacher, please take care." The girl's voice was clear and crisp, full of respect.

The white-bearded old man stopped, turned around, and nodded with satisfaction: "Young Master, you are too kind. You have already entered the seventh rank, and among the younger generation of Emperor Star City, no one can compare with you. I have taught you everything I could."

"You flatter me, teacher." The girl bowed slightly, a humble smile appearing on her lips. "It is all thanks to your excellent teaching."

As the two were talking, a small starship rose from the other side of the manor and landed in front of the old man.

The hatch opened, and the old man stepped inside.

The starship accelerated silently and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Upon seeing this, Zi Bai and the others quickly stepped forward.

"Young Master Zi Jin." "Miss." "..."

Several people bowed their heads in greeting, their voices differing.

Zi Jin's gaze swept over them, finally landing on the silver-clad youth's face: "What's the deal with the Seventh Purgatory?"

The silver-clad youth stiffened slightly.

He glanced at Zi Bai subconsciously.

Zi Bai quickly stepped forward, speaking before the silver-clad youth could: "Young Master, it was a problem with the source power of the Calamity Tower, but I have already repaired it. It will not affect the operation of Purgatory."

Zi Jin glanced at Zi Bai.

"You may all step back," Zi Jin said calmly.

"Yes." The group nodded as if they had been granted a pardon, and turned to leave.

"Zi Bai, you stay."

His purple-white body trembled violently.

She stopped and stood still.

Behind them, the silver-clad youth and his companions quickly left.

Once everyone had gone far away, Zi Jin spoke softly, "Your mental strength was damaged because you used the Soul Splitting Technique, right?"

Zi Bai's body trembled even more violently. She lowered her head, not daring to look Zi Jin in the eyes.

"What exactly happened to the Seventh Purgatory?" Zi Jin's voice remained calm.

"Thump—"

Zi Bai immediately knelt down.

"Young Master..." Her voice trembled, and she dared not hide anything any longer, recounting in detail what had happened in the Seventh Purgatory.

From the Tower of Calamity, to the disappearance of the Tower of Calamity and the Sword of Calamity, to the capture of the clone...

She spoke for a long time, and Zi Jin never interrupted her.

After Zi Bai finished speaking, Zi Jin remained silent for a moment.

"You dare to lie!" Her voice suddenly turned cold, and a hint of anger flashed in her eyes.

Zi Bai's eyes widened, his whole body trembled violently, and his forehead pressed against the ground: "Young Master, everything I've said is the truth! This subordinate dares not conceal anything!"

"Your clone possesses primordial power. How could the people of that small world possibly capture your clone?" Zi Jin questioned.

"Yes...yes...yes..." Zi Bai tried desperately to recall, but the name was right on the tip of her tongue, yet she just couldn't bring herself to say it.

Her face grew paler and paler, and sweat dripped from her forehead onto the crystal slab.

Zi Jin narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at Zi Bai's reaction.

Zi Bai was a maid she had trained since childhood, so it was impossible for her to lie to her.

The only explanation is that someone erased Zi Bai's memories.

The Tower of Calamity vanished into thin air, the source of the Tower of Calamity was seized, and someone in the small world was able to erase Zi Bai's memories...

Zi Jin's lips curled up slightly, and a hint of interest flashed in his eyes.

"Come on," she said, turning around. "Let's go take a look."

Zi Bai was startled and quickly scrambled to his feet. "Young Master...where are you going?"

"The Seventh Purgatory." Zi Jin's voice drifted from ahead, carrying a faint smile. "Perhaps that place will bring me some surprises."

A moment later, a purple-gold starship rose from the manor's private docking bay and disappeared into the starry sky.

On the city wall of Jiangnan City.

Dewey and his allies have been standing here for almost two hours.

Representatives from overseas organizations such as the Holy Covenant Church, the Spirit Realm Society, and the Church of All Things also crowded on the city wall, each looking anxious.

"Li An, Zhao Lie and his men are enough for Jiangnan City," Du Wei said earnestly.

"As long as the Beast King lives, the scourge will never be solved. The entire world is being eroded now, do you see? Those black wastelands—if the Beast King is not killed, this world is doomed."

Li An leaned against the battlements, saying nothing and not even glancing at Dewey.

"Um...we came to Jiangnan City following the instructions of the prophet..." the Archbishop of the Holy Covenant Church said cautiously.

"Yes, yes, the prophet sent us..." the leader of the Church of All Things quickly echoed.

"The prophet said that Jiangnan City is humanity's last hope..."

Li An finally spoke.

There is only one word.

"roll."

The sound wasn't loud, but it completely cut off all the noise.

Dewey's face froze.

The foreign organization's members turned pale, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

The situation reached a stalemate for the time being.

Just then, Zhou Yao walked over with several women.

She walked over to Li An, glanced at Dewey, then at the faces of those overseas who looked like stray dogs, and sighed softly.

"Li An, say yes."

Li An turned to look at Zhou Yao, his gray eyes filled with confusion: "Uncle Zhou..."

She didn't know why he called her "Uncle Zhou," just as she didn't know who she was waiting for.

But those two words just slipped out naturally.

"Listen to Uncle." Zhou Yao's voice was soft but firm. "You can come back after we kill the Beast King."

Li An remained silent for a moment.

The confusion in her gray eyes hadn't dissipated, but she slowly nodded.

She guards the city of Jiangnan, waiting for someone to return.

But she forgot who she was waiting for.

She instinctively felt that "Uncle Zhou" was connected to that person.

"Okay," she said.

A glint of light flashed in Dewey's eyes, and he quickly said, "Let's get going without delay."

Li An remained silent, but followed the Alliance members into the air, whistling as they flew north.

On the city wall, members of the foreign organization exchanged bewildered glances and cautiously asked, "Then what about us...?"

Zhou Yao turned around.

"Come in."