Ye Ling saw Zhang Xiao Ling's astonished expression and realized the situation might be more serious than he imagined. He continued, "When the Spirit Devouring Qi appeared in that fabricated world, my consciousness had only recently recovered, and my power was less than half of its peak."
"At that time, the Spirit Devouring Qi had already infiltrated the entire world. I tried to stop it, but in the end, I was powerless to resist its consumption. The entire world was destroyed."
Zhang Xiao Ling frowned, "So, you personally witnessed the Spirit Devouring Qi consuming the entire Samsara world?"
Ye Ling nodded, "That's right. However, at the moment I was about to be devoured, another great dao power erupted within me. It was with that power that I managed to eliminate the Spirit Devouring Qi, restore my consciousness, and escape from the fabricated world."
"Setting aside the dangers I encountered, what exactly is this Spirit Devouring Qi? Why would even the virtual space where my consciousness resides be invaded by it?"
Zhang Xiao Ling explained, "The Spirit Devouring Qi is a mutated power extracted from the Void Great Dao by the Nether Palace through special means. Its power can even corrupt the minds of supreme and even ultimate immortals. It's a common method used by the Outer Realm Nether Palace to control their subordinates."
"If you had been devoured by the Spirit Devouring Qi in the Samsara world, you would likely have become a puppet of the Nether Palace, working for them. Fortunately, you possess the power of the Space-Time Great Dao within you, which expelled the Spirit Devouring Qi. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable!"
"We almost capsized in a gutter."
Saying this, Zhang Xiao Ling let out a long sigh of relief.
He had been in this universe for quite some time and was unaware that the Nether Palace's methods had evolved so much. If Ye Ling had truly been controlled by the Nether Palace...
Zhang Xiao Ling thought about the consequences and shook his head repeatedly, feeling a sense of lingering fear.
Fortunately, Ye Ling was strong enough!
While Zhang Xiao Ling's thoughts drifted, Ye Ling asked again with a solemn tone, "But wasn't that fabricated world constructed by the Samsara Great Dao? Why would Spirit Devouring Qi appear there?"
Zhang Xiao Ling shook his head, "I'm not sure about that either. However, the Spirit Devouring Qi is a power mutated from a Void Great Dao of the same level. It's not impossible that the people of the Nether Palace used some means to corrupt the Samsara Great Dao. I need to investigate further for specific details."
"If the Nether Palace truly possesses this power, then all the powerhouses in the outer realms who are comprehending the laws of Samsara could fall under the control of the Nether Palace... Those fellows from the Nether Palace are like mad dogs. If they are allowed to grow stronger, this would be a very serious matter."
"Nether Palace..." Ye Ling murmured the words, then asked Zhang Xiao Ling again, "The Shadow Hall currently occupying Earth, is the extraterrestrial force behind them the Nether Palace?"
Zhang Xiao Ling replied, "Yes, the Nether Palace is one of them."
Ye Ling frowned, "One of them? You mean the Shadow Hall has other extraterrestrial forces behind it? What secrets does Earth hold that attract so many extraterrestrial forces?"
"I remember someone from the outer realms calling Earth a legendary land before. Why is that?"
To Ye Ling, everything in the outer realms was unknown, and Earth was the most important. However, now all parties were focused on Earth, eager to extract something from it. This troubled Ye Ling greatly.
If this problem could not be solved once and for all, Earth would likely never know peace.
"Ah, this... the matter is rather complicated, and it's hard to explain in a few words." Zhang Xiao Ling chuckled at Ye Ling's question, sizing him up. "Anyway, everyone is after your Creation God inheritance."
Having said that, Zhang Xiao Ling changed the subject, "You can investigate these matters yourself. I have more important things to do now."
"The matter of the Spirit Devouring Qi invading the Samsara Great Dao is very serious. The information you provided is crucial. I must leave for a while!"
Ye Ling asked in confusion, "Leave? Are you going to the outer realms?"
"That's right... to deal with the Nether Palace matters!" Zhang Xiao Ling said quickly. "This is urgent, so the responsibility of being the Universe Guardian will have to fall on you."
"Universe Guardian?" Ye Ling became even more confused. "What is that?"
"A very important task!" Zhang Xiao Ling patted Ye Ling's shoulder earnestly. "Ye Ling, although you haven't successfully comprehended the laws of Samsara, you have touched the threshold of Space-Time and Samsara. With your strength, guarding Earth and the cosmic barrier is more than enough!"
"For the next period, we'll be relying on you!"
Seeing Zhang Xiao Ling's intention to slip away, Ye Ling immediately grabbed him and questioned, "Hey... you should explain things clearly! There are still a lot of things going on on Earth, and now you're giving me the job of Universe Guardian. You're not expecting me to figure all this out alone, are you?"
Zhang Xiao Ling gave an awkward smile, then skillfully broke free from Ye Ling, laughing, "I can't help it. I can't say too much, and I haven't figured out those things on Earth myself. I'm still counting on you!"
"I'll be going now!"
As his voice fell, Zhang Xiao Ling passed through the cosmic barrier and disappeared!
"You!" Ye Ling was quite speechless seeing Zhang Xiao Ling just slip away, but he couldn't chase him into the outer realms. He could only watch Zhang Xiao Ling leave.
However, soon after, Zhang Xiao Ling's voice came from the other side of the cosmic barrier, "Ye Ling, Xue Sha has been revived and can be awakened at any time. You don't need to worry."
"There's one more thing I need to ask of you. Please help seal the passage to the outer realms here. If the Shadow Hall discovers this place, the consequences would be unimaginable!"
"Everything regarding Earth is up to you!"
As Zhang Xiao Ling's voice faded, there was no more sound from beyond the cosmic barrier, leaving only a bronze door and the cosmic barrier emitting a white glow exposed to the universe.
The Silent Annihilation Void became silent once more.
Ye Ling confirmed Zhang Xiao Ling had completely left and sighed softly. He held the sleeping Xue Sha, confirming Xue Sha was still alive, before murmuring, "How come I feel like I've been roped into this by this guy..."
"He's so secretive about Earth's matters. What secrets does that place hold?"
"Shadow Hall, Outer Realm Nether Palace... Just thinking about it gives me a headache." Ye Ling patted his head, woke Xue Sha, and simultaneously used runes to reconstruct a dark palace, preparing to hide the bronze door and the cosmic barrier.
And just as Ye Ling was rebuilding the dark palace, Xue Sha, transformed into human form, slowly opened his eyes.
As soon as he regained consciousness and opened his eyes, he saw Ye Ling's back and was stunned. He immediately exclaimed in panic, "Boss? How come you're dead too? Didn't I give you all my power?"
He remembered that in order to provide Ye Ling with power, he had willingly disintegrated himself. He should have been annihilated, to protect Ye Ling!
But now, he woke up and could still see Ye Ling, which meant Ye Ling, like him, was also...
"Dead? You're the one who's alive again!" Ye Ling lectured Xue Sha unceremoniously while rebuilding the palace, "You brat, have your wings gotten too strong? You've learned to disintegrate yourself?"
"When we get back, I'll throw you into the furnace and refine you again!"
"I, I'm alive?"
Upon hearing Ye Ling's words, Xue Sha's mind went blank. He stared blankly at Ye Ling, completely unable to process anything else Ye Ling said.
I'm still alive?
How is this possible?
Xue Sha knew his final outcome very clearly. He had already been annihilated and could not possibly be alive!
In Xue Sha's dazed state, he finally heard Ye Ling's last sentence, "Anyway, that's how it is. We owe Zhang Xiao Ling a huge favor, and we'll have to repay it later."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Xue Sha snapped back to reality, surprised, "Zhang Xiao Ling? Is it that Zhang Xiao Ling from the Dragon Department and the Red Dust Pavilion?" He had previously helped Ye Ling investigate matters concerning the Red Dust Pavilion and knew that Zhang Xiao Ling had connections with both the Dragon Department and the Red Dust Pavilion. Although Zhang Xiao Ling's position was unclear, he had always considered Zhang Xiao Ling an enemy.
Now that Ye Ling was suddenly saying Zhang Xiao Ling had saved him, he found it difficult to accept, and asked doubtfully, "Boss, are you sure that guy can be trusted? After all, before he..."
Regarding Xue Sha's reaction, Ye Ling smiled and said, "Although these words might sound unbelievable, they are the truth."
"Zhang Xiao Ling is also from the outer realms and controls the Samsara Great Dao. It's within expectations that he could achieve this."
"Regardless of his motives, based on his current actions, his goals align with ours. He's on the same side as us, and he's shown us kindness. We shouldn't speculate about him with malice; we just need to do our part."
Hearing Ye Ling say this, Xue Sha nodded, "Since Boss says so, I understand what to do. Next time we meet, I'll thank him personally."
"But speaking of which, it feels really good to be alive." Xue Sha patted the muscles in his arm, his smile becoming cheerful.
Although he was willing to sacrifice himself for Ye Ling, he also wanted to live and continue to accompany Ye Ling.
Since Zhang Xiao Ling had saved him, he would remember this kindness for life.
A drop of kindness should be repaid with a gushing spring!
Ye Ling admonished again, "Since you know it feels good to be alive, don't do such dangerous things next time."
"Understood, understood... I promise I won't!" Xue Sha patted his chest and guaranteed Ye Ling, but judging by his expression, it was uncertain whether he had taken this promise to heart.
After Xue Sha figured out how he had come back to life, he saw Ye Ling repairing the palace with runes and curiously asked, "Boss, why are you fixing this broken palace?"
Ye Ling replied, "Zhang Xiao Ling wants us to seal this bronze door and the cosmic barrier. If the Shadow Hall discovers this place, it could cause major problems."
Xue Sha was taken aback, "But didn't we learn about this place from Huang's memories?"
"Huang was controlled by the Spirit Devouring Qi, and that Spirit Devouring Qi is a method used by extraterrestrial forces. Logically, the Shadow Hall should have known about this place long ago? What difference does it make whether we seal it or not?"
Hearing Xue Sha's question, Ye Ling was suddenly shaken and immediately reacted. He stopped what he was doing and said with a solemn tone, "I've been in that fabricated world for too long, and I almost forgot about this... Something is not right!"
Indeed... according to logical deduction, the Shadow Hall controlled Huang, so they should have known about the Silent Annihilation Void from Huang's memories long ago.
But according to Zhang Xiao Ling, the Shadow Hall didn't know about this place yet... With Zhang Xiao Ling's strength and methods, he was most likely not lying.
Furthermore, if the Shadow Hall truly knew this, the Nether Palace wouldn't have let the Shadow Hall open the cosmic barrier here...
This means...
The Shadow Hall was unaware that Huang had hidden the Heavenly Dao consciousness and those saints!
There were others manipulating things behind Huang!