In your dreams.

Divine descendants, and to think they actually have an ancient god backing them in secret! No one expected the Shen siblings to have such an extraordinary heritage.

Everyone was utterly shocked.

They couldn't help but cast glances at Wei Dongting, as if silently demanding confirmation of whether his words were true.

Wei Dongting looked back at them with a helpless expression. "I swear I am not lying. As you all know, Panser Ridge was originally under the jurisdiction of East篱 Mountain, and it has now been renamed Panlong Ridge."

Hearing Old Wei's words, let alone Helan Che, even the other human cultivators—whether they came from the Dao Court or the Ancient Sacred Teachings—gazed at the Shen siblings in profound astonishment. This was truly staggering.

Since when had the human race produced such a terrifying and mighty existence?

She Qi and the others couldn't help but steal several extra glances at the Shen siblings. An ancient god! No wonder Shen Qinghu had been acting with such unshakeable confidence all along.

The backing behind her was simply too immense.

If they had an ancient god to lean on, they might act even more arrogantly than Shen Qinghu!

"If that is the case, the master behind that Second Princess of the Donghuang Clan might not necessarily be a match for the Lord," Balie said with a suppressed smile.

His luck had truly turned for the better.

He had actually crossed paths with this young lord. Perhaps in the future, he would even be able to exact vengeance for his grievances.

Just as his voice trailed off, a series of deafening roars echoed through the air.

The underground space housing the dilapidated underground palace began to collapse for no apparent reason.

First the perimeter, and then the destruction rapidly swept inward toward the stone hall.

"Let's get out of here quickly! I experimented just now, and it seems we can finally leave this spiritual cave space," someone shouted.

With the black flood dragon gone, this space was naturally no longer sealed.

"I'll take my leave first." Following that, figures began to bolt away one after another. A couple of them didn't even bother to exchange pleasantries before leaving, forming a steady stream of several dozen people.

These individuals truly failed to show any regard for Shen Qinghu.

Of course, some people were simply utterly devoid of tact.

While they acted this way, the others did not follow suit.

Wei Dongting and the others simultaneously turned their gazes to Qinghu's face, as if silently seeking instructions.

"Why are you looking at me? Leave if you need to. Little Taozi, quickly hand me the token from the black flood dragon. I still plan to check out the upper levels of the Profound Heaven Pagoda."

The black-robed little boy immediately spat out another black token. The number five was inscribed upon it.

This signified that she could bring several people with her to enter the fifth level of the Profound Heaven Pagoda.

Viewed from the outside, this dilapidated Profound Heaven Pagoda still appeared grand and intact. In reality, only five undamaged spatial levels remained within its interior; all other internal spaces had collapsed, leaving not a single trace behind.

Therefore, when everyone entered the spiritual cave to harvest various resources and tokens, the absolute limit was entering the first through fifth levels.

Since Qinghu had obtained the master token, she didn't need to contend for any other tokens and could proceed directly to the final tier.

Envious gazes of all descriptions fell upon the token in her hand.

"This token can only bring out five people in total, including the token holder. So I'll only be able to take my older brothers with me. See you all on the fifth level of the Profound Heaven Pagoda then!" Qinghu waved cheerfully at the crowd.

In any case, none of them had made the trip in vain. By now, which of the survivors hadn't managed to loot a substantial amount of treasures, not to mention the breath-absorbing cultivation arts?

Qinghu felt it was time for this gathering to temporarily disperse.

Some members of the crowd felt a tinge of reluctance to part ways, others were radiant with joy, while some wore profound and meaningful expressions...

An entity like Shen Qinghu, the moment she stepped out of the Profound Heaven Pagoda, was destined to make her name known across the entire Eastern Wasteland, becoming a definitive rising-star figure at least within the Wuding City region.

Not to mention, she had also wiped out the Second Princess of the Donghuang Clan.

Even if she wasn't the one who struck the killing blow directly, the princess had died entirely because of her.

It was only uncertain how the Donghuang Clan would react.

As the surrounding space crumbled further, everyone offered their farewells and chose to make a swift exit from the spiritual cave.

"My Lord, see you outside the Profound Heaven Pagoda." Those who had no intention of entering the fifth level gave Qinghu a preemptive greeting.

"My Lord, see you on the fifth level." Balie and the others, confident in their ability to ascend to the fifth level, naturally made arrangements for a reunion there.

Once they had all cleared out completely, Qinghu retrieved the more than eleven thousand stone spirits that had burrowed underground and grown much larger in size.

Then, accompanied by her two brothers, she activated the token.

A sudden, dizzying shift warped the scenery around them. Beneath their feet lay a expanse of broken walls and a collapsed divine temple, while the perimeter consisted of a black void that constantly tore open, filled with terrifying spatial rifts. A desolate, ruined, apocalyptic landscape greeted the trio's eyes.

Her eldest brother, Qingjin, and her fourth brother, Qinzheng, were standing stock-still like wax figures.

This was truly a complete seal.

Divine Art: Body-Fixation Technique.

Both their physical bodies and their souls had been frozen in place.

"Are you finally going to show yourself?" Qinghu simply made herself comfortable on a large boulder on the ground, waiting for the other party to manifest. Little Taozi also stood obediently behind Qinghu.

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

A handsome man dressed in black robes, with a fractured, broken piece of divine crystal embedded in his forehead, materialized before Qinghu and bowed respectfully.

"You must be the residual spirit of Wuding City?" Qinghu asked, observing his face, particularly the cracked divine crystal on his brow.

"Yes. My name is Lingxu, and I am the vessel spirit of the divine city of Wuding," Lingxu replied.

"Actually, there was no need for you to put on such a respectful facade. You don't look like an entity that respects rules at all," Qinghu remarked. "You've been watching me from the shadows ever since I entered Wuding City, and now you've voluntarily presented yourself before me. Can you finally tell me what favor you want to ask of me?"

"Your Majesty, how many primordial divine crystals do you still possess? Can you spare some for me?" Lingxu asked with a desperate yearning.

"I won't give them to you for nothing even if I had them. Besides, I don't have any," Qinghu retorted ungraciously upon hearing this.

Lingxu looked ashamed. "Actually, I am driven to desperation. My master is slumbering beneath Wuding City, and due to a lack of divine crystals, she has been unable to awaken. I fear that if this continues, she will never wake up again."

"You know why she fell into slumber in the first place, don't you?" Qinghu asked, casting a glance at Lingxu.

"..." Lingxu fell silent.

"This was her own choice. I don't think you should disturb her," Qinghu said.

"But Master shouldn't have done this. How could she..."

"If you are unwilling to continue guarding her, you are free to leave. As a creation of a deity, you shouldn't proactively try to alter her choices."

"I refuse to resign myself to this," Lingxu said, locking his eyes onto Qinghu.

"So what if you don't?" Qinghu looked back at him.

"Can you not help me?"

"You can cultivate slowly by yourself and then help her yourself," Qinghu rolled her eyes. Was this guy out of his mind? She had no intention of interfering.

The person had voluntarily chosen to seal herself and slumber underground. Why on earth should she care?

Furthermore, when a deity chose to slumber, it was either due to severe injuries where slumber was the only way to slowly recover, or an accident resulting in core soul trauma—to put it simply, emotional defeat—leading them to choose escapism, hence the slumber. The final category consisted of deities who simply loved sleeping, though even sleep-loving deities would normally choose to sleep securely in their own homes where it was safe.

They would never choose to fall into slumber in a place fraught with peril.

Regardless of the reason, awakening someone by force would consume a massive amount of divine crystals. She didn't even have enough for herself; how could she possibly afford to subsidize another god for free?

Did they think her brain was flooded with water?

"If I gift Wuding City to you, Your Majesty, would you be willing to help me wake her up?" Lingxu asked hopefully.

"The real question is, what does Wuding City have that I could possibly want? Your master, the principal deity, only just reached adulthood not long ago, didn't she? What is she wandering about blindly for? Wasn't life comfortable living by her elders' side?

As for the Wuding City she forged herself and its true value, I believe you are well aware of it.

Compared to this wretched city, its foundation doesn't even match that of the Wind-Listening Vessel.

Tell me, what part of your Wuding City do you think caught my eye? I can change it."

Qinghu's words caused Lingxu's face to flush red instantly.

"Your Majesty, I still believe you should help me," Lingxu said after taking a deep breath.

"Give me a reason," Qinghu demanded, standing up.

"Because my master is slumbering near Wuding City, the earth veins and spiritual energy deep underground are constantly being absorbed by her, and there are now precursors of exhaustion. If this is not stopped in time, this place will become a barren wasteland devoid of all spiritual energy.

Should a major disaster befall Wuding City, catastrophic natural calamities will also strike the human territories where you reside."

"I despise being threatened the most," Qinghu said irritably.

"Your Majesty, this is truly not a threat. In fact, you must have sensed it too. Although she is slumbering, her absorption and consumption of the surrounding earth veins and spiritual energy are simply too vast. It has already impacted the surrounding environment.

Not only is the spiritual energy around Wuding City growing thin, but various spiritual resources are also becoming increasingly scarce. The soil is barren, and even the various spiritual trees and grasses that were once abundant locally have vanished on a massive scale.

My master has been exhibiting this condition for quite some time now, and I fear something might have gone wrong while she is in her slumber.

If she degenerates into an evil god, it would truly be a disgrace to the entire divine race."

Upon hearing this, Qinghu immediately shot a glare sharp as daggers directly at his face and body.

"Of course, my greatest fear is that something might have taken advantage of her slumber to invade her physical body and core soul," Lingxu added.

In truth, the fact that Shen Qinghu had rejected him right off the bat did not cause Lingxu disappointment; rather, it brought him a sliver of small comfort.

For unless someone harbored malicious intentions and plotted against his master's divine form and core soul, no deity would readily agree to squander a vast amount of their own divine crystals just to awaken another god.

They weren't out of their minds. Who would willingly undertake such unrewarding labor?

"Still, for a young minor deity to fall into the hands of evil gods and become corrupted... that would indeed be rather shameful. Transport me to the place where she is slumbering. I'll go take a look."

"Very well, Your Majesty." As soon as he finished speaking, Lingxu directly teleported Qinghu to another subterranean space.

This was a massive sacrificial altar.

A little maiden draped in divine vestments lay atop the altar.

A faint red line had already formed across her pristine brow. If one didn't look closely, it would be almost imperceptible.

Qinghu climbed to the very top layer of the altar, walked over to the white stone bed where the young maiden lay, and examined her closely for a moment before declaring, "This is somewhat troublesome."

"Can she not be awakened?" Lingxu asked, feeling both alarmed and disheartened.

"Not necessarily." Lingxu instantly perked up. "Then she *can* be awakened."

"She can, but the problem is that she is indeed transforming in her dreams toward the path of an evil god," Qinghu said, looking up at him. "This rate of transformation is actually quite rapid. Furthermore, this transformation has reached a critical tipping point where quantitative change turns into qualitative change.

If I wake her up at this moment, she will only degenerate into an evil god all the faster."

"Then what is to be done?" Lingxu asked, losing his composure.

"Since it's happening within a dream, it is difficult, yet easy to resolve. If I send you into her dreamscape, you can go aid her yourself. I will configure your identity so that you are her beloved in every single one of her reincarnations. You will die a very tragic death for her every time, and only after your death will she defeat the evil forces and bring that dream reincarnation cycle to an end. After you die through several dream sequences like this, she will naturally be moved by you, and then die an even more tragic death. I estimate that eventually, you can shock her awake.

If she manages to wake herself up, she will perceive her physical condition and naturally begin resisting the erosion of evil energy, preventing her own corruption."

Hearing Qinghu's proposal, Lingxu had a profound sense that this young lady was offering him a thoroughly terrible idea.

"I am merely a vessel spirit, and a residual one at that. I probably wouldn't survive more than a few reincarnation cycles in her dream before completely perishing, right?" Lingxu countered.

"That's correct, seven at the most. But I think that should be enough. As long as you try a little harder, your master will definitely be able to wake up," Qinghu said.

"Can't we just use divine crystals to wake her?" Lingxu asked.

"Where are we supposed to unearth that many divine crystals? Forced awakening for a master like yours requires at least ten thousand divine crystals. Moreover, doing so might yield good intentions with disastrous results, actually accelerating her corruption," Qinghu stated.

"On the contrary, if you are willing to enter the dreamscape, not only can we save on divine crystals and awaken your master, but we can also enable her to resist the pollution of evil god power on her own and snap out of it."

Lingxu: "..."

"Why are you wearing such a terrified expression about making a sacrifice? It's just a few dream reincarnations where you die rather miserably; it doesn't mean you'll be completely annihilated." Qinghu shot him a sidelong glance.

"It's not that I'm unwilling to make a sacrifice for my master, I'm just wondering—if something happens to me, who will be left to safeguard my master's safety?"

"I certainly don't have the idle time to bother with it anyway," Qinghu stated her stance directly. "While you are still around, I can help you try this method. If you're gone and she still hasn't woken up, then let her continue slumbering. Although this transformation is fast, she won't completely degenerate into an evil god for at least another millennium.

I can try my best to find someone to resolve her issue within a millennium."

Listening to Qinghu, Lingxu felt his head swell.

"Your Majesty, what on earth are you planning?"

"We leave her alone for now. We'll find an opportunity to come back and wake her up later," Qinghu said.

"This..."

"At any rate, she can hold on like this for a while longer," Qinghu added.

"Then, Your Majesty, could you help me restore Wuding City? Once the divine city of Wuding is restored, I can gather divine energy on my own to nourish my master. With divine energy, my master can at least mitigate some of the erosion from the evil energy, right?" Lingxu asked, racking his brain.

"Your logic isn't wrong, but do you have the various divine metal materials and divine crystal energy needed to repair Wuding City?" Qinghu countered.

Lingxu: "..." It seems I was getting ahead of myself.