Ye Yunfei's figure flickered as he gave chase, but after pursuing for only a moment, he stopped.
He knew that these Ninth Heaven Godkings must have already sent out news from this location. The major factions they belonged to were likely dispatching even more powerful reinforcements at this very moment.
"Master, each of those guys could be considered elites within their rank. I reckon ordinary Ninth Heaven Godkings wouldn't be a match for those eight," Hu Miao couldn't help but say to Ye Yunfei.
"Yes, these eight Ninth Heaven Godkings possessed much higher combat prowess than ordinary ones, especially those four old fellows from the Blade Realm. They were truly among the top-tier of Ninth Heaven Godkings," Ye Yunfei nodded, gazing into the distant, hazy void. The eight Ninth Heaven Godkings had long since vanished without a trace.
"Master, the fact that you alone drove them fleeing in disarray proves your strength surpasses theirs," Hu Miao added.
"Defeating these Ninth Heaven Godkings isn't something to be overly pleased about," Ye Yunfei responded, hands clasped behind his back as he stared in the direction the eight had fled. There was no post-victory joy in his heart; instead, a deep concern weighed upon him. "In the future, the ones who can truly threaten me will no longer be Ninth Heaven Godkings, but Chaos Gods.
"The battle with those eight lasted quite some time, yet I couldn't manage to kill even one of them, nor could I inflict serious injuries. If I were to encounter a Chaos God, wouldn't I be even more outmatched?
"So my strength is still far from sufficient!"
Indeed, Ye Yunfei no longer considered Ninth Heaven Godkings as his main opponents. For one, his own cultivation realm was already at Fifth Level Sovereign God. Defeating a few Ninth Heaven Godkings held little cause for celebration.
"Indeed," Hun Lao spoke up. "Since those major factions sent so many Sovereign Gods to deal with you this time and still failed to eliminate you, they will certainly learn from this lesson. In the future, they will likely dispatch even greater numbers, or even stronger experts, to come after you."
"Those traitors earlier used my identity as a descendant of the Sword Realm to lure me here into an ambush," Ye Yunfei frowned, thinking of the dozen or so Sword Realm turncoats. "If other Sword Realm traitors employ the same method to trap and kill other descendants of the Sword Realm, wouldn't that cause immense harm to the Sword Realm?"
"Yes," Sword Elder nodded, his voice grave. "It's possible more Sword Realm descendants have already turned traitor. If they use the same method to lure and kill more of our descendants, the losses to the promising talents our Sword Realm has painstakingly cultivated over the years would be enormous."
With a thought, Ye Yunfei summoned two Sovereign Gods from the Phantom Tower. Both were Sixth-Level Sovereign Gods, two of the dozen Sword Realm traitors captured earlier. Ye Yunfei had killed most of those traitors but kept these two alive specifically to devour their Soul Bodies and extract their memories. The emergence of traitors among Sword Realm descendants was no trivial matter; it was an issue that could affect the interests of the entire Sword Realm, so Ye Yunfei was determined to get to the bottom of it.
Again with a mental command, Ye Yunfei directly activated his Soul Power Star Technique and began devouring the Soul Body of one of the Sixth-Level Sovereign Gods. Not long after, he had completely consumed that Soul Body and acquired most of its memories.
"As expected, there are indeed more Sword Realm descendants who have turned traitor," Ye Yunfei's expression darkened as he spoke after reading the memories. "Moreover, some of these traitors have already returned to the Sword Realm."
"This is most likely a scheme by the Blade Realm," Sword Elder said angrily. "Over the years, the Blade Realm has kept a close eye on our every move, precisely because they fear our Sword Realm might rebuild.
"It seems many of our Sword Realm descendants have already been exposed. The Blade Realm is now actively targeting the carefully cultivated talents of our Sword Realm over these years. Those descendants represent the hope for our Sword Realm's future reconstruction and resurgence. The Blade Realm aims to utterly crush that hope!"
By then, Ye Yunfei had already begun devouring the Soul Body of the other Sixth-Level Sovereign God. Dozens of Soul Power Stars swarmed over it, taking big bites out of the Soul Body. Within moments, it was completely consumed, and Ye Yunfei acquired its memories as well.
"The Blade Realm is indeed behind this, pulling the strings," Ye Yunfei declared after reading the memories from the second Soul Body. "This one had direct contact with some elders from the Blade Realm. In fact, these Sword Realm traitors have already pledged allegiance to the Blade Realm. Some have even begun cultivating blade techniques and are now considered members of the Blade Realm."
"Since traitors have already returned to the Sword Realm, you must also return there," Sword Elder said to Ye Yunfei. "Otherwise, those turncoats will stir up trouble within the Sword Realm and cause significant damage."
"Very well, I shall return to the Sword Realm and deal with those traitors," Ye Yunfei nodded.
He knew the potential harm these traitors could cause upon returning was immense. While the Sword Realm might appear to be a ruin on the surface, it still held many hidden arrangements and accumulated foundations. Moreover, over the years, the Sword Realm had secretly nurtured descendants in the shadows, amassing considerable new strength. Those traitors, once back, would undoubtedly stop at nothing to wreak havoc. As a descendant of the Sword Realm himself, Ye Yunfei had a duty to return and stop them.
Next, Ye Yunfei first returned to the headquarters of the Hunyuan Sect.
"Young Master Ye, many Deities within our Hunyuan Sect have successfully broken through their cultivation realms during this period," Elder Dongfang and other senior members, sensing Ye Yunfei's aura, came out to greet him.
Previously, Ye Yunfei had gifted a vast quantity of Divine Pills to the numerous Deities of the Hunyuan Sect. After receiving his pills, over half of them had successfully achieved breakthroughs, enhancing their strength. It could be said that within the sect's headquarters, heavenly tribulations had practically become a continuous occurrence, and the entire headquarters was buzzing with an incredibly exhilarating atmosphere.
Those Deities who hadn't broken through yet, seeing their peers succeeding one after another, were filled with determination, redoubling their cultivation efforts.
Besides the Deities, other members of the Hunyuan Sect also entered a state of diligent cultivation.
Indeed, during this period, cultivation had become the sole focus within the Hunyuan Sect headquarters. Witnessing such a scene naturally filled the core elders of the sect with excitement.
"Young Master Ye, are you leaving the Fourth Void?" Elder Dongfang asked upon hearing Ye Yunfei mention his departure. "Will you be going to other voids to continue dealing with the Guardian Faction?"
"No, I have some other matters to attend to," Ye Yunfei replied without telling them he was heading to the Sword Realm, only that he needed to leave the Fourth Void to handle some business.
His return to the Sword Realm might very well mean confronting the Blade Realm. The Hunyuan Sect's primary enemy at the moment was the Guardian Faction army. If he involved Hunyuan Sect's Sovereign Gods in the grudge between the Sword Realm and Blade Realm, it could potentially lead the Blade Realm to openly send support to the Guardian Faction, complicating the situation further. After some consideration, Ye Yunfei decided it was best not to drag the Hunyuan Sect into the Sword-Blade feud for now.
"Young Master Ye, do you require our assistance?" Elder Dongfang inquired.
"Not for the time being," Ye Yunfei answered. "Should I need your help in the future, I won't hesitate to ask."
"By the way, Young Master Ye, we have received news," Elder Dongfang suddenly added, knowing Ye Yunfei's hostile relationship with the Great Netherworld would make him keenly interested. "The conflict between the two ancient powers, the Great Netherworld and the Samsara Cult, is growing increasingly intense. Disciples of the Samsara Cult have appeared in many voids, attempting reconstruction within long-abandoned Samsara Channels. The Great Netherworld, in response, has dispatched numerous forces into those channels to obstruct them.
"As a result, fierce clashes between the two factions' forces have erupted in many Samsara Channels recently."
"It appears the Samsara Cult has begun making moves signaling its formal return," the Sect Master of Hunyuan Sect added from the side.
"The Great Netherworld..." Ye Yunfei murmured softly, a flash of anger in his eyes.
Huang Chang's whereabouts remained unknown to this day. Ye Yunfei and the Great Netherworld had a score yet to be settled.
In the following period, Ye Yunfei refined another large batch of pills for the many Deities at the Hunyuan Sect headquarters. After leaving the pills, he bid farewell to Elder Dongfang and the other core elders and departed the sect headquarters.
Elder Dongfang led several core elders, escorting him all the way to the void outside the headquarters, watching as Ye Yunfei left.
"The changes Young Master Ye has brought to our Hunyuan Sect in the Fourth Void are simply monumental," a Ninth Heaven Godking said, gazing at the direction Ye Yunfei had vanished.
"Were it not for Young Master Ye's intervention, the war between our Hunyuan Sect and the Guardian Faction in the Fourth Void would undoubtedly still be raging," Elder Dongfang nodded in agreement.
"Young Master Ye is a dragon among men," the Sect Master said softly, standing beside them. "His future achievements will far surpass this. One day, he will reach heights we can only look up to."
"Regardless, Young Master Ye is one of our own. The stronger he grows, the greater the benefit for our Hunyuan Sect," Elder Dongfang stated.
By then, Ye Yunfei had already entered an ordinary world within the Fourth Void, arriving above a vast ocean. With a wave of his sleeve, he parted the sea's surface and flashed down to the seabed.
Hidden at a certain location on the seabed was an azure-blue palace. Its surroundings were protected by numerous ancient Formations, meticulously concealing the structure. Ordinary beings coming here would find it difficult to detect this invisible palace, but Ye Yunfei spotted it instantly.
"Within this palace lies a long-distance spatial Teleportation Altar. Control of this altar fell into the hands of our Sword Realm in ancient times," Sword Elder explained to Ye Yunfei. It was on Sword Elder's guidance that Ye Yunfei had come here.
Ye Yunfei passed directly through the multiple layers of Formations and entered the palace. At its center stood an ancient Teleportation Altar.
"Using this altar, one can teleport directly into the Sword Realm," Sword Elder informed him.
Ye Yunfei did not hesitate. He stepped onto the altar, retrieved a large batch of high-quality divine crystals, and inserted them into the altar's inner mechanisms. Then, he directly activated the Teleportation Altar.
With a resounding boom, the altar unleashed a powerful surge of teleportation energy, tearing open a spatial channel right above it.
Ye Yunfei stepped into the channel. A formidable force of teleportation energy enveloped his body, initiating rapid transit.