Dan Wulan naturally didn't understand the so-called "undying lust" between Ji Nanjue and Su Bei toward Lin Jinyu.

Her gaze shifted, still provocatively moving between the two women.

The faint light flickered, casting soft shadows on their pretty faces.

Their eyes met, and the atmosphere suddenly turned eerie and ambiguous.

"My dear husband? Are you trying to say...?"

However, Dan Wulan had barely spoken half her sentence when her eyes suddenly sharpened. She turned her gaze toward the cave entrance, held her breath, and whispered softly, "What's that sound?"

This sudden interruption cut short Dan Wulan's curiosity.

It wasn't just her; Su Beitong and Ji Nanjue's expressions changed. They simultaneously felt a terrifying fluctuation and stood up in unison.

RUMBLE—

Tiny stones jumped, and stalactites, which had endured for countless years, also seemed to sense this inexplicable fluctuation, trembling wildly.

"An earthquake?" Su Bei's hand was already on his sword hilt, his eyes narrowed as he spoke instinctively.

But as soon as he finished speaking, he quickly shook his head.

If it were simply an earthquake, it would never have caused three Great Cultivators, including himself, to simultaneously sense this inexplicable pressure.

It was already early morning, but the sun had not yet risen. Instead, an inexplicable, eerie wind had begun to sweep across the land.

HOWL—

It was like a ghost's wail; the wind emitted piercing shrieks. Amidst the desolate howling, one could also hear the crashing of waves—the sound of the nearby Northern Sea's waters churning violently.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps approached, followed by gasping breaths, "Senior Brother—it's terrible, Senior Brother!"

"The Northern Sea, the entire Northern Sea seems to be boiling..."

Dan Wuque stumbled into the cave, still clutching a freshly killed wild chicken.

Hearing it was Dan Wuque, who had excused himself to hunt earlier, Su Bei breathed a momentary sigh of relief. Then, the three of them quickly ran out of the cave, flew into the sky, and gazed towards the distant Northern Sea.

A howling yellow wind enveloped the entire sky. Amidst the incessant thunder, a heavy downpour fell like a waterfall, shrouding the entire coastline.

SPLASH! SPLASH!—

"This rainwater... it's yellow?" Ji Nanjue frowned, her delicate brows furrowing. She reached out to catch the raindrops falling from the sky and murmured.

"What is this? Could it be a celestial phenomenon?" Dan Wulan asked.

Ji Nanjue narrowed her phoenix eyes, shook her head, and said, "It must be a celestial phenomenon. A treasure of heaven and earth has likely been born. But... why does this aura make me feel a trace of unease?"

"Su Bei, let's go to the Northern Sea and take a look."

Su Bei stared intently at the yellow rain, a sudden, indescribable tremor in his heart... It felt as if he had lost something precious.

Hearing Ji Nanjue's suggestion, he nodded without much thought. He slung the Sword Box back onto his back, and the four of them flew towards the nearby Northern Sea.

「They flew for about an hour.」

Amidst the deafening thunder and torrential downpour, they beheld a sea of blood-red water... 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

At that moment, everyone held their breath, silently experiencing this profound tremor that resonated deep within their souls!

ROAR—

ROAR—

Ancient and somber, a dragon's call from primordial times resonated, brewing within the seething sea of blood, erupting in low, guttural roars.

Even the torrential rain couldn't conceal the vibrations from the seabed.

Huge shadows seemed to be moving, resembling dragons, but they were too distant and obscured by the rain to be seen clearly.

Lightning tore through the void, striking down relentlessly from the high heavens with deafening roars. The sickly yellow clouds gradually morphed into ink-black thunderheads.

Though it was only early morning, the sky was darker than midnight.

The lurid red was exceptionally glaring. Within the churning demonic clouds, terrifying bolts of blood-light ripped through, like raging rivers of blood cascading from the heavens towards the Northern Sea.

Witnessing this, Ji Nanjue's pupils contracted sharply. A thought instantly surfaced in her mind. This is likely—the Dragon Pond of the Northern Sea awakening... She involuntarily swallowed, then took a deep breath, gave Su Bei a meaningful glance, and said, "I remember now... I once read about this in the library of the Eastern Country. This is likely—the Dragon Pond of the Northern Sea awakening..."

Dragon Pond.

Upon hearing this term, the first reaction of Su Beitong and the Dan sisters was that it was impossible!

Su Bei calmed his turbulent heart, still reeling from the shock. He turned to look directly into Ji Nanjue's eyes, his voice grave as he said, "The Dragon Pond of the Northern Sea's Dragon Clan was sealed long ago by Sword Sect Ancestor Shangguan Bie Li with 'Three Divisions of Freedom'."

"Back in Wu City, that little dragon girl, Ao Yue, even sought me out specifically to discuss this. She asked me to go to the Northern Sea, marry her, and remove the sword left by the Sword Sect..."

"I haven't even been to the Dragon Clan yet. How could the Dragon Pond unseal itself?"

"If the Dragon Clan had a solution, why would they have delayed for so long? To be reduced to this state, where to advance their bloodline, they must resort to plundering the Phoenix Clan's ancient bloodline... engaging in endless conflict with them."

As the Dragon Pond was mentioned, Su Bei naturally thought of the young silver dragon in the Multi-Bao Pavilion of Sacred Land, the one unable to completely conceal its dragon horns.

However, as he spoke, lost in his own thoughts, he failed to notice Ji Nanjue's expression growing increasingly grim.

Suddenly looking up, he met Ji Nanjue's gaze.

Ji Nanjue lightly licked her slightly dry lips and uttered words that struck Su Bei as utterly fantastical, "What if... someone helped the Dragon Clan remove that sword?"

Su Bei paused for a moment, then shook his head, refuting, "Impossible! No one but a member of the Sword Sect could draw that sword."

Dan Wulan crossed her arms, looking at Su Bei as if he were a fool, and said coolly, "Oh, really? No one drew it? So 'Three Divisions of Freedom' just grew legs and walked out by itself?"

Dan Wuque blinked, idly plucking at the comb of the dead wild chicken in his hands, and chimed in from the side, "Well, what if? It's not entirely out of the question for 'Three Divisions of Freedom' to gain sentience... The sword's name itself sounds rather carefree. Maybe it got tired of being stuck in one place for so long and decided to pull itself out for a break..."

Su Bei: "..."

Ji Nanjue: "Ahem..."

Dan Wulan: "?..."

Dan Wuque looked at the two women beside him with a hint of bewilderment, the stubborn cowlick on his head bobbing furiously, and asked, "Hmm? Sister, why are your and Nan Ji's faces so red?"

Su Bei didn't dwell on whether 'Three Divisions of Freedom' could get tired.

However, Dan Wuque's words jolted him... If 'Three Divisions of Freedom' wasn't drawn by him, the consequences would be dire.

The letter from the Saintess instructed him to absorb the Sword Qi from the four swords anchoring the Nine States into his body. This would forge an invincible Great Sword Body, preserve his dwindling lifespan, elevate his cultivation realm, and enable him to break through to Mahayana—

He currently possessed Divine Discretion from Inverted Heaven, its Sword Qi yet unabsorbed. He had planned to go to the Northern Sea, retrieve 'Three Divisions of Freedom', and then, under the Dao protection of the Saintess and the old man, attempt his breakthrough...

If 'Three Divisions of Freedom' ran off on its own, that might be manageable. But if someone with ulterior motives had taken it, specifically targeting him... that would be a huge problem.

Ji Nanjue looked at Su Bei with concern, naturally understanding the grave implications.

She reached out, gently touched Su Bei's palm, and comforted him, "It's alright. Perhaps it's not the worst-case scenario."

"Maybe it's as Wuque suggested... Um, it's not impossible that 'Three Divisions of Freedom' simply... ran off on its own..."

Su Bei sighed deeply and said softly, "Let's hope so..."

"It seems I can delay no longer. I must return to Northern Border Pass quickly, first absorb the Sword Qi from this Divine Discretion I have, and then make further plans..."

"Eldest Sister and the others must have also sensed this scene at the Northern Sea. I just don't know what they intend to do."

The women all nodded in agreement.

Just as they were flying towards Northern Border Pass, about dozens of miles away on the sea surface, ripples of spiritual energy visible to the naked eye slowly spread out.

The momentum was magnificent and vast.

It was accompanied by a piercing phoenix cry:

SCREECH!

"Dragon spawn, prepare to die!!"

BANG!

Then, the entire sea surface was seen to be in constant turmoil.

Another loud BANG resounded!

Following that terrifying sound, rushing towards the four of them, besides the scorching spiritual energy, was a... dragon... battered and bruised, not a single part of it unscathed.