Stars and moon shifted, the morning glow filled the sky.

At the edge of the sea cliff, Lu Ran, who was still half-asleep, opened his bleary eyes. He sat up, raising a hand to shield his face from the light.

Through the gaps between his fingers, he saw a crimson sun slowly rising at the distant horizon where sea met sky.

It was truly majestic.

"Awake?" A gentle female voice came from beside him.

"Hmm?" Lu Ran turned his head, only to see a pair of slender legs.

He kept tilting his head upward until he finally saw the bright and beautiful face of the woman.

There was no icy killing intent, only a faint smile.

It was so comforting.

"When did you arrive?" Lu Ran rubbed his eyes, his speech still a bit muddled from having just woken up.

He dared to sleep at the edge of the sea cliff for two reasons: this was his territory, after all.

Second, he had the Dawn Blade and Fiery Phoenix Patterned Gourd by his side.

If anything went awry, his Divine Weapons would be the first to alert him.

Yet, Deng Yuxiang had evidently made it onto the "absolute trust" list of these artifacts, so they hadn't stirred when she arrived.

"Last night." Deng Yuxiang looked down at Lu Ran. "I saw you were asleep and chose not to disturb you."

"Oh." Feeling more awake now, Lu Ran's gaze landed on her earlobes.

Where there had once been a small ruby stud, now dangled ruby earrings.

The diamond-shaped earrings were about the size of a fingertip, hanging from her petite earlobes, glinting enigmatically under the backdrop of the sea's crimson sunrise.

They made her already striking features even more dazzling.

Deng Yuxiang raised her brows slightly, her tone playful: "How long do you plan to keep looking?"

Lu Ran grinned cheekily: "I like looking, I love looking~"

Deng Yuxiang looked slightly perplexed as she pinched the refined earrings between her fingertips, "If you love them so much, should I give them back to you for you to wear yourself?"

Lu Ran rolled his eyes.

"Haha~" Deng Yuxiang couldn't help but chuckle softly.

Lu Ran turned away from the radiant camellia before him and faced the ocean, sulking as he spoke: "I meant your spirit, your vitality!"

When he first met her, she had been just as radiant.

But fate had a way of being cruel, and her road ahead was filled with thorns.

Thankfully, after countless trials, she had returned to her original self.

"Hmm." Deng Yuxiang's lips carried a faint smile as she lowered her gaze to the young man seated on the edge of the cliff.

For her, the past two years had been eventful indeed.

Like the waves crashing against the cliffs below, her life had been full of drastic ups and downs, plunges and ascents.

The cliffside fell into a moment of quiet.

The sea breeze swept through, causing her long hair to dance softly.

Suddenly, while gazing out at the ocean, Lu Ran asked, "How long do you intend to keep looking?"

Deng Yuxiang was briefly stunned, then, both amused and annoyed, she cast a glare at Lu Ran.

Still holding a grudge, huh?

She stood with her hands behind her back, raising her gaze to the fiery sun over the water: "The Divine Sculpture of the Jade Talisman successfully leveled up?"

"Sea Realm Third Rank."

"Oh?" Deng Yuxiang was clearly delightfully surprised, but then something seemed to cross her mind—she gave a cold laugh. "Luo Tiantu certainly is a loyal and dedicated servant.

For over a decade since entering the mountain, I doubt he's had a single moment of laxity."

Lu Ran shrugged: "When you look at it this way, no matter how much Holy Spirit Energy believers absorb, it's tough to win favor with the gods.

If people want to return home, this path seems to be a dead end."

After all, the Holy Spirit Energy held by the Xun Luo couple numbered in the thousands!

That was already an exceedingly large amount.

Deng Yuxiang pondered aloud: "The more Holy Spirit Energy a believer absorbs, shouldn't the gods require the believer to die?

Only then can their soul, carrying the Holy Spirit Energy, return to the embrace of the gods?"

Lu Ran thought deeply: "We still don't know if gods can retrieve Holy Spirit Energy from souls while their Human Clan hosts are alive.

If they can't, then yes, the believers would indeed have to die."

Deng Yuxiang's thoughts stirred: "You could try researching whether it's possible to extract Holy Spirit Energy from living souls.

The souls of Elder Bai, Cong Long, and the Xun Luo couple must contain quite a bit of Holy Spirit Energy."

Lu Ran nodded.

The crimson sun rose higher, gradually scattering the morning glow.

Deng Yuxiang studied the view quietly for a while, then spoke softly: "And what's your next step?"

Lu Ran had a clear plan and responded immediately: "I'm about to hit a bottleneck in my cultivation, so I'll retreat for a while to break through my realm!

Afterward, we'll head to the northwest for a look."

Deng Yuxiang's thoughts flickered, pondering: "Ten Thousand Blade Mountain?"

"Exactly." Lu Ran confirmed, "Didn't Lady Kong mention that the Evil Dog Clan might show up around Ten Thousand Blade Mountain?"

However, Lady Kong wasn't entirely certain about this information.

She had heard it from a captive, who claimed that in the barren northwest wilderness, there was a dangerous region called Ten Thousand Blade Mountain.

Usually, what people saw were rolling high mountains with lush vegetation.

Yet Ten Thousand Blade Mountain was located within a desolate desert.

In that area, the mountain peaks were as sharp as blades, standing tall and dense, resembling countless knife edges piercing the heavens—hence its name, "Ten Thousand Blade Mountain."

It was said that many formidable Evil Demons inhabited the area.

Including, but not limited to, the Barbaric Female Demon and the Evil Dog Clan.

Lu Ran was very interested in exploring the region.

Currently, his Evil Dog Evil Sculpture was merely First Rank in the River Realm and urgently needed advancement!

After all, within the Human Clan, once one reached the River Realm, every minor rank gained in cultivation would subtly enhance the power of their skills!

What's more, Lu Ran had under his command an inheritor of the Evil Dog Clan—Yan Shuangzi.

If the Evil Dog Evil Sculpture could continuously level up, she would also be able to merge deeply into the Sculpture time and again.

This integration would bolster Yan Shuangzi's cultivation talent and raise the ceiling of her cultivation potential!

Throughout her unwavering devotion and loyal service to Lu Ran, she had been steadfastly dedicated.

Lu Ran naturally intended to treat her generously!

If the Evil Dog Dead Souls could be used to nourish the Evil Dog Evil Sculpture, that would undoubtedly be ideal.

Deep down, Lu Ran still leaned towards preserving Holy Spirit Energy to cultivate the Divine Sculpture, and he wasn't keen on killing Human Clan believers.

Although… his hands were already stained with blood.

Blood that no amount of washing would cleanse.

"Hmm?" Lu Ran slightly raised his eyes.

Deng Yuxiang bent down and ruffled his hair with her hand, speaking gently: "Give yourself a few days off.

Since entering Holy Spirit Mountain, you haven't stopped to rest."

Lu Ran laughed: "Am I misremembering, or didn't you cry and beg me to search for the Evil Dog to help your dear friend?"

Deng Yuxiang: ???

Cry and beg?

"Ha." Deng Yuxiang was so amused and exasperated by the false accusation that she increased the pressure slightly, ruffling Lu Ran's hair until his head wobbled.

And so, the Master of Ran Sect unlocked a new title—"The Bobblehead."

"Stop, stop, stop!" Lu Ran quickly pleaded, trying to push her hand away.

But the Yangyang Sea's overwhelming dominance over all beings was absolute.

Even Lu Ran, as a River Realm cultivator, would need to activate Fierce Heavenly Power just to move her hand...

"When we go to Ten Thousand Blade Mountain, you'll come with me, okay?" Lu Ran added.

Hearing this, Deng Yuxiang finally lightened her grip.

Lu Ran let out a sigh of relief and said: "Alright, that's settled! I'll retreat to cultivate shortly. In the meantime, you'll oversee Cloud Sea Cliff.

If there's any trouble or uncertainty, you can consult Cong Long and Elder Bai."

Deng Yuxiang snorted in acknowledgment.

Lu Ran also reminded her: "Additionally, make sure to visit Elder Bai daily and ask if Cloud Sea Cliff remains peaceful—all precautions are better taken than not."

"Got it." Deng Yuxiang replied casually, her hand smoothing Lu Ran's medium-length hair. "Would you like me to tie your hair up?"

"No need, I'll take a bath first to refresh myself and then retreat into cultivation."

In a flash, Lu Ran disappeared, finally escaping her grip.

Deng Yuxiang curiously turned her head.

Instead of diving directly into the sea, Lu Ran was standing twenty meters away from the cliff edge.

Soon, Deng Yuxiang saw him take off running, accelerating before planting a foot firmly at the cliff's edge and leaping into the air.

Question: What's the experience of diving into the ocean from an 800-meter-high sea cliff?

For an average person, they'd be smacked to death by the water's surface!

As for Lu Ran, a River Realm Great Power… Well, he was still a little nervous.

During his descent, he called forth the Jade Talisman Formation, slowing his fall before diving headfirst into the ocean.

Deng Yuxiang stood watching the water until she saw someone resurface, at which point she turned her gaze back to the sunrise.

"Ten Thousand Blade Mountain."

Deng Yuxiang murmured in her heart.

The name alone evoked a profound sense of peril.

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