The surging lightning essence surrounding Huang Chengqian gradually lost its formidable power under the erosion of the black mist, dimming until it was nearly extinguished.

Huang Chengqian's body staggered backward uncontrollably under the influence of the dark energy. His steps were unsteady, as though he were struggling to break free from its grasp, but his efforts proved futile.

While manipulating the Myriad Soul Banner, Li Xuanxiao attempted to regain control over it. However, the next moment, a sharp pain shot through his palm.

Li Xuanxiao swiftly withdrew his hand, sensing the banner's resistance toward him.

The Self-Corpse Li Xuanxiao chuckled lightly. "Until next time!"

The Myriad Soul Banner spun rapidly before striking the Self-Corpse Li Xuanxiao, absorbing him into its depths. Then, it swiftly fled into the distance.

It was unclear when the Self-Corpse had mastered this new ability.

Frowning, Li Xuanxiao could only watch helplessly as his doppelgänger escaped right before his eyes.

The gushing black mist wouldn't restrain Huang Chengqian for long.

As a peak Transformation Spirit cultivator and a disciple of the Heavenly Secrets Sect, hailed as half-step into Fusion Transcension, he was now arguably the strongest Transformation Spirit expert alive following the fall of Mount Shushan's prodigy.

Seeing the situation, Li Xuanxiao had no choice but to retreat as well.

Huang Chengqian roared in fury, tearing through the black mist with a thunderous bellow:

"You wretched brat!!!"

With that roar, an overwhelming force erupted from him like ripples, filling the entire space with dazzling arcs of lightning.

Without restraint, Huang Chengqian unleashed his miniature Dao Domain.

Though small in scale, the power contained within was enough to terrify any cultivator below the Fusion Transcension realm.

Above the skies, seven or eight reckless cultivators had foolishly come to spectate.

Under the onslaught of lightning, they were instantly reduced to ashes, leaving not even a trace behind.

Among them were two unlucky peak Nascent Soul cultivators—individuals of considerable strength who were annihilated without even a chance to resist.

Huang Chengqian detected another unusual presence.

A passing Nascent Soul cultivator, even more unfortunate, stood frozen in terror, utterly clueless about what was happening.

Yet before he could even attempt an explanation, Huang Chengqian—consumed by rage—crushed his skull as easily as shattering an egg.

"..........."

Meanwhile, chaos engulfed Yellow Sand City.

Though Di Nü Feng's battle against the Tribulation Transcension expert had ended swiftly, its aftershocks were far-reaching.

Nan Gongwan hid in the shadows, watching as Yellow Sand Sect disciples hunted down accomplices.

Her breathing was ragged, her chest heaving violently.

A gruesome wound on her abdomen bled profusely, the crimson liquid stark against her pale skin.

Earlier, she had entered an inn alongside Li Xuanxiao.

Before she could react, Li Xuanxiao had already struck.

And in the chaos, Nan Gongwan had been wounded by other Yellow Sand Sect disciples.

Yet, Li Xuanxiao clearly hadn't cared about her survival—vanishing without a second thought.

"Damn you, Li Xuanxiao!!" she cursed through gritted teeth.

With the city sealed off, escape in her condition was impossible.

"Who are you calling 'damn'?"

Nan Gongwan stiffened, turning her head in shock.

Li Xuanxiao stood behind her, hands clasped behind his back.

"Not dead yet?" he asked indifferently.

Nan Gongwan nodded weakly.

Li Xuanxiao casually tossed her a healing pill bottle before glancing at the distant chaos, a faint smirk curling his lips.

"Let's go."

"Go where?" Nan Gongwan instinctively asked.

"Away from here. My intervention is no longer needed."

The Self-Corpse Li Xuanxiao muttered to himself:

"Peak Nascent Soul..."

The main body had likely come here for two reasons: to hunt him down, and to obtain the Snakefolk's Burial Dust Reincarnation Mirror.

Having reached the Transformation Spirit realm, Huang Chengqian would naturally leave no survivors.

Knowing the main body was here, escape was the only option—lest he be captured.

Moreover, with Di Nü Feng accompanying the main body, direct confrontation would be suicide.

Amidst the city's turmoil, the Self-Corpse Li Xuanxiao arrived at the spot where Huang Chengqian had discarded the corpse of the Shushan disciple.

After consuming the healing pill Li Xuanxiao had given her, Nan Gongwan felt her spiritual energy flow smoothly once more.

She followed behind him silently.

With a wave of his hand, Li Xuanxiao collected the Shushan disciple's remains into the Myriad Soul Banner.

"This world is like this—good people don’t die, evil people don’t die. Only the weak perish."

Nan Gongwan gazed at this former Shushan disciple—now a remnant of the fallen sect—with complex emotions.

Black mist surged forth, enveloping both Li Xuanxiao and Nan Gongwan.

Moments later, they vanished from Yellow Sand City.

"..........."

Back in Yellow Sand City, Huang Chengqian stormed in, consumed by fury.

His most prized disciple, Zhang Yuanying, along with several others, had been slaughtered.

The city was in disarray, and the Shushan disciple's corpse had mysteriously disappeared—all shortly after his grand speech.

This was nothing short of a public humiliation.

"Inform the Snakefolk Tribe," Huang Chengqian said coldly. "Tell them to scour the entire desert for Li Xuanxiao. If they find him, I will help them locate the fragments they seek."

Though the Yellow Sand Sect dominated Yellow Sand City, the scattered Snakefolk Tribe still held influence across the desert's every corner.

For tracking someone down, they were the ideal allies.

"........."

Outside Yellow Sand City, Li Xuanxiao, Xiao Qing, and Di Nü Feng crouched behind a sand dune.

Xiao Qing explained, "The Snakefolk Tribe is spread across the vast desert, divided into nine clans. The Snake Deity resides in an extremely secluded location."

"Since childhood, we’ve lived in the Sacred Shrine, rarely leaving its confines."

"Within the shrine, the Snake Deity is omnipotent, omniscient, and all-knowing."

"And the shrine has countless rules—violating any means instant death..."

"A rule-bound realm akin to Fusion Transcension?" Li Xuanxiao mused.

Xiao Qing, unfamiliar with cultivation realms, continued, "Moreover, the shrine moves constantly across the desert, its location ever-changing."

Li Xuanxiao turned to Di Nü Feng. "Can you sense the position of a Fusion Transcension's rule-bound domain?"

Di Nü Feng, pouting, idly drew circles in the sand with a stick.

She still seemed disgruntled about losing her shopkeeper persona—her business now ruined, leaving her in a foul mood.