Yuan Ming's mind stirred, and he retrieved a white jade scroll from the Stealing Heaven Tripod. His divine sense entered it, and four golden characters came into his view.

"Heavenly Destiny Skill? What a domineering name..." he muttered to himself, continuing to read on.

According to the jade scroll's records, mastering this secret technique to a high level would allow one to divine the trajectories and changes of all things.

Not only could this technique be used for divination of the future, but it could also deduce other things, such as deciphering the changes in formidable illusion arrays, comprehending obscure and complex secret skills, and so on—the utility of this one technique was manifold.

Yuan Ming's interest was piqued as he immediately began to examine the detailed cultivation method that followed.

"Taiji produces the dual polarities, the dual polarities produce the sun and moon, the sun and moon produce the four seasons, the four seasons produce the Five Elements, the Five Elements produce the twelve months, the twelve months produce the twenty-four solar terms, totaling fifty...."

"Each hexagram has six lines, six by eight is forty-eight, plus two special lines for Qian and Kun...."

Yuan Ming read for a while, furrowing his brows.

The sentences were almost a discourse on Taoism and the mysteries of the universe; every word was recognizable, but pondering them revealed profound meanings, leaving him clueless despite his insight and knowledge.

He shook his head and temporarily put away the jade scroll, heading to the main hall.

Bi Shuirou was still waiting there, showing no sign of impatience.

"My apologies for the wait, Fellow Daoist Bishui. Please relay to Fusang Island that I will be participating in the secret realm competition," Yuan Ming said.

"Understood." Bi Shuirou's eyes brightened as she agreed with a nod and quickly left.

Yuan Ming did not linger in the main hall and returned to his dwelling, activating a soundproofing barrier and continued to ponder over the Heavenly Destiny Skill.

However, no matter how much he contemplated, trying every possible method to grasp the basics, he gained nothing but a throbbing headache and utter exhaustion.

Yuan Ming helplessly stopped, centered his spirit with breathing control, and quickly recovered.

He did not continue to delve into the secret technique but rose and left his residence, heading toward the workshop area of Fusang City.

Since he was about to enter a mysterious secret realm filled with unknown perils, it was natural to make some preparations in advance.

The jade scroll sent by Fusang Island specifically emphasized one point—to prepare more magic tools talismans with star attributes, and it would be even better to obtain a Star Magic Artifact.

Yuan Ming didn't know the meaning behind these words but figured they had no ill intent.

Even if Fusang Island dared to plot something big, as long as he placed those items in the Stealing Heaven Tripod Space, no scheme or conspiracy would have any effect.

Early the next morning, the top sixteen from the Immortal Fruit Conference gathered in front of a secluded, gray-white hall in Fusang City.

The grand hall was quite spacious and constructed in a very peculiar fashion, shaped like a pyramid. The base was a square, tapering up to the top, ending in a pointed spike giving it an ancient and primitive feel that distinctly differed from the other buildings in Fusang City.

A plaque hung above the entrance of the hall, inscribed with the three characters for "Void Temple," where Fusang City's ancient transmission array was housed.

Those Nascent Soul cultivators from the first-class islands were now entering the Void Temple.

Although the ancient transmission array of Fusang Island could reach the outer sea's border, its activation came with many restrictions. It could only be used once every three months and the number of people it could transport at one time was very limited.

As they needed to send seventeen people at once this time, the group of Nascent Soul cultivators had made some modifications to the ancient transmission array.

"Void Temple? The name is indeed a bit strange. I thought it would be called something like 'Transmission Hall' or 'Outer Sea Hall'?" Yuan Ming stood alone at one corner, conversing with a silver-haired youth through a voice transmission.

"I know about this, the Void Temple wasn't constructed by Fusang Island. It is said to have existed since the Ancient Times and is a contemporary of that ancient transmission array. Despite countless years of exposure to the elements, it still stands tall to this day. As for the name of the hall, it too was passed down from the Ancient Times," the silver-haired youth replied.

Yuan Ming raised his eyebrows; the ancient transmission array was rumored to have existed for tens of thousands of years—could this peculiar hall have also stood undisturbed for just as long?

His divine sense spread out, trying to probe the Void Temple, but it was blocked by an invisible force before getting close.

Yuan Ming was not surprised; the ancient transmission array was of great significance to Fusang Island, naturally guarded by numerous prohibitions.

"How are your preparations? Were you able to buy any Star Magic Tools and Talismans?" Yuan Ming steadied his mind, paying no further attention to the Void Temple, and asked the silver-haired youth.

"It's okay, Blood Bird's Nest Island provided some, and I've prepared a few items myself," the silver-haired youth said nonchalantly.

The silver-haired youth was a cultivator from Blood Bird's Nest Island taking part in the third contest, but in reality, it was Wulu in disguise, managing to fool everyone present but not Yuan Ming.

Last night, Yuan Ming had entered the Stealing Heaven Tripod to attempt to uncover Fusang Island's true intentions. He didn't glean much about Fusang Island's plans, but he unexpectedly discovered Wulu transforming into a silver-haired youth.

"You really are bold as brass to transform your appearance and impersonate someone else. You won't be lightly forgiven if found out," Yuan Ming communicated through a voice transmission.

"I was quite confident in my transformation technique initially, but I didn't expect you to uncover it so easily. Now that the arrow has been shot, I have no choice but to forge ahead," Wulu replied with a wry smile.

Yuan Ming, however, was not overly concerned. Wulu's art of transformation was indeed wondrous; if not for the Stealing Heaven Tripod-enhanced divine sense that could perceive everything, even he would not have detected it.

"Be careful after entering the secret realm. I have a feeling that this trip will not go smoothly," Yuan Ming pondered for a moment and still sent a warning to Wulu through voice transmission.

Wulu, seeing Yuan Ming's solemn expression, contemplated for a moment and slowly nodded in agreement.

The others outside the hall were much like Yuan Ming and Wulu, gathered in twos and threes, chatting leisurely, forming small circles.

These people were almost uniformly at the late stage of Core Formation, with many reaching the peak; even the cultivators from the other three Second-level Islands were at least at the mid-stage of Core Formation. Even Wulu, it was unknown by what means, displayed an aura that was also at the mid-stage of Core Formation.

Yuan Ming, at the early stage of Core Formation, stood out conspicuously.

Yuan Ming himself didn't mind it. He chatted idly with Wulu while observing everyone present.

The most eye-catching was a golden-haired woman dressed in gold, who looked to be just over twenty. She was ordinary in appearance but had a superb figure with curves in all the right places. There was a faint golden light shimmering all around her, and she possessed an excellent demeanor.

At the moment, the woman sat cross-legged at the entrance of the great hall, cultivating with her eyes closed, as if no one else was around. A powerful fluctuation of fire attribute magic power wandered around her, indicating that she was at the peak of late-stage Core Formation, just one step away from advancing to the Nascent Soul stage.

Yuan Ming had been on Fusang Island for several days and was quite familiar with the situation on this island. The golden-haired woman was named Golden Cloud Fairy, the Closed-door Disciple of the Island Master of Fusang.

Speaking of Golden Cloud Fairy, Yuan Ming did witness a good show last night.

In previous Immortal Fruit Conferences, Fujian Island cultivators did not participate; this was the first time they had broken the rule.

Yesterday, when it became known that Golden Cloud Fairy would participate in the trial, representatives from the other twelve First-class Islands jointly opposed the move. The Fusang Island Master made concessions, and Golden Cloud Fairy, regardless of her earnings, would not be included in the rankings of the Immortal Fruit Conference. Only then did the other islands calm down.

"Wulu, do you know anything about Golden Cloud Fairy?" Yuan Ming asked via telepathy.

"Golden Cloud Fairy? She's the direct disciple of Fujian Island Master. Despite her youth, she has already reached the peak of Core Formation. Her mastery of fire attribute divine skills is extraordinary, making Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivators hesitant to provoke her. She is widely recognized as one of the cultivators in the East Sea with the most potential to advance to the Nascent Soul stage. Some also say that she's deliberately suppressing her cultivation; otherwise, she would have broken through long ago," Wulu said after a start.

"Impressive lady. Besides that, do you have any other information?" Yuan Ming had already learned these details from Yan Siyun.

"Aside from that, I don't know much. However, there's a rumor that Golden Cloud Fairy is not pure and has unclear relations with numerous male cultivators at the Core Formation stage. Some have even seen strange men entering and leaving her cave mansion. Tsk, despite her young age, she seems insatiable," after a moment of thought, Wulu added mischievously.

Hearing this, a trace of surprise flickered across Yuan Ming's face; this was the first time he had heard of it.

"What? Are you interested in that lady?" Wulu's eyes shifted slyly as he nudged Yuan Ming.

"Stop talking nonsense. Don't you know 'know thy enemy, know thyself, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles'?" Yuan Ming glared at Wulu, quickly distancing himself from the conversation.

In his Sea of Consciousness, a golden shadow floated, the soul of Xi Ying's Golden Crow.

Xi Ying, hiding in the Stealing Heaven Tripod Space, wanted to observe the outside world, so she placed a soul of the Golden Crow in Yuan Ming's Sea of Consciousness. Through Divine Soul Transformation and the connection of the five senses with her main body, she could monitor the outside situation.

Of course, this was with Yuan Ming's permission; if he were unwilling, with a single thought he could sever the connection between the Golden Crow's soul and Xi Ying.

While Yuan Ming continued to chat haphazardly with Wulu, his gaze drifted towards a pavilion not far away, where three figures sat, chatting merrily.

One of them, a man in green fur, had sharp brows that reached his temples, giving him a somewhat stern appearance; another youth in white held a feather fan, elegant and scholarly. The last was a short and fat man, seemingly only in his twenties or thirties, his face always wore a smile.

All three had uncommonly substantial cultivation and demeanor. Although they didn't compare to Golden Cloud Fairy, they were clearly a cut above the rest.

Yuan Ming had seen the three men in the information Yan Siyun had given him. The man in green fur was named Daoist Qian Bao, a cultivator from Golden Turtle Island and, it was said, a sword cultivator.

The youth in white was called Huan Ling Zi, a representative of Kongling Island, skilled in illusion techniques.

The last short, plump man was named Tu Sheng, a cultivator from Earth Beauty Island, with unparalleled mastery of earth attribute divine skills, especially adept at the Earth Escape Technique.

Just then, Huan Ling Zi seemed to sense Yuan Ming's gaze and looked over.

As their eyes met, a variety of illusions emerged before Yuan Ming's eyes, and a subtle force of illusion power descended from afar, penetrating into the depths of his Divine Soul.

Yuan Ming furrowed his brows, slightly adjusting his Soul Power, and dissolved the force of illusion.

A hint of surprise flickered in Huan Ling Zi's eyes, but he did not continue his attack.

"Did that Huan Ling Zi just make a move on you? Just to be safe, check your Divine Soul to see if you've been hit with an Illusion Seed! That Huan Ling Zi looks decent enough but harbors devious intentions. He's most fond of planting Illusion Seeds in others, taking root quietly and corroding the Divine Soul without one's awareness until one becomes completely his puppet," Wulu noticed the exchange and warned Yuan Ming through telepathy.

Yuan Ming realized then that the subtle force was meant to plant itself in his Divine Soul, which explained its subtlety.

A chill flashed in his eyes; Huan Ling Zi was resorting to such underhand tactics from the get-go. He clearly had malicious intentions, and Yuan Ming wouldn't go easy on someone like that.

Yuan Ming shifted his gaze away from Huan Ling Zi and towards three cultivators from the Snake-man Clan, Merfolk Clan, and Water Ape Clan.

He had already met Qing Tong of the Snake-man Clan; the Merfolk cultivator was a green-dressed young girl with a face like an egg and eyes that sparkled with life. She might not be stunningly beautiful, but she was sweet and appealing, offering a very comfortable presence.

The girl was named Xue Jiao, who had displayed powerful water attribute divine abilities in the third round of the competition.

The Water Ape Clan cultivator was called Hou Santong, a towering figure standing around ten feet tall, with thick limbs, looking much like a small hill with an extraordinarily strong physical body presence, almost matching that of a Vajra.

Among the three, Hou Santong had the most distinct characteristics of the Demon Clan. His ape fur had been thoroughly refined away from his hands and feet, but fine white fluff could still be seen on his face.

Qing Tong and the other two stood there, occasionally speaking to each other but with little interaction with others, as if there was a deep barrier between them.

As for the other cultivators, although their cultivation was also profound, compared to those mentioned before, their presence was noticeably weaker.

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