That evening, Billy and Harleen returned to the Great Blue City Domain Lord’s Mansion.
On their way back, Billy had already sent a message to Casey, instructing him to find the Domain Lord’s Mansion steward, Reese Pope, to confirm if there was a third-tier starship available.
As Old Alfie had mentioned, the Domain Lord’s Mansion indeed possessed a third-tier starship.
That night, after Billy once again helped Casey and the others with their injuries, everyone had mostly recovered.
Notably, upon returning to the Domain Lord’s Mansion, Harleen entered the Gathering Spirit Array to meditate and cultivate. She was already on the verge of a breakthrough and successfully advanced to the ninth-rank Perceiving Dao Realm by dawn the next day!
After breakfast, Billy led everyone, along with White Feather, onto the third-tier starship and set off at full speed towards Abyssal Depths City.
During the journey, except for Billy and Harleen, everyone else immersed themselves in relentless cultivation, frantically refining Spirit Fruits and beast cores.
In seven or eight days, everyone made significant breakthroughs.
Aubree advanced to the eighth-rank Perceiving Dao Realm, Stout and Opal reached the seventh-rank, and Casey and Amber stepped into the sixth-rank Perceiving Dao Realm.
Azure Dragon and Azure Fang also advanced by one rank, while Night Orchid and Frostblade broke through with Billy’s assistance.
Thus, everyone had entered the Perceiving Dao Realm!
White Feather’s combat power also saw a significant increase over these few days, now comparable to the ninth-rank Perceiving Dao Realm.
On the ninth morning, Billy and his group appeared in a valley on the outskirts of Abyssal Depths City.
Meanwhile, inside an oddly shaped building within Abyssal Depths City, a man and a woman were busy beside an alchemy furnace.
The temperature in the room had soared to sixty or seventy degrees, and the flames of the alchemy furnace had turned a bright blue.
These two were none other than Ivy and her brother Stout!
Ten days ago, they were captured from the Domain Lord’s Mansion by Hades’ men and brought to Abyssal Depths City through a teleportation channel. They had been confined in this building ever since.
Initially, Hades’ men gave them only three days to not only restore the formula but also successfully refine the Sky-Splitting Pill!
After some negotiation, they reluctantly agreed to give them ten days.
They also warned that if they failed to refine the Sky-Splitting Pill in ten days, they would be thrown into the alchemy furnace.
And today was the tenth day!
“Sis, do you think Boss has forgotten about us?” Stout asked Ivy nervously.
“Do you think Billy is that kind of person?” Ivy glared at him.
“Then why haven’t they come to rescue us yet!” Stout continued.
“Considering how far this place is from Great Blue City, Billy and the others probably don’t even know where we are,” Ivy responded.
“No way! Then aren’t we doomed?” Stout replied anxiously.
“Today is the last day. If those people outside don’t see the Sky-Splitting Pill, we won’t live to see tomorrow…”
“If there’s a chance later, you should escape first!” Ivy interrupted him.
“No way! We leave together or die together!” Stout shook his head firmly.
“With what? Do you think you can fight them?” Ivy glared at him again. “Forget Hades; even those guarding outside are beyond our capability!”
“I don’t care; I won’t leave first!” Stout shook his head again. “I’d rather fight them!”
“Do you think you have what it takes to fight them?” Ivy continued.
“I can’t just watch you…” Stout began again.
“You’re just a burden to me now. Without you, I have my own ways to escape!” Ivy interrupted him once more.
“No!” Stout was resolute.
“If you don’t leave, then don’t ever call me your sister again!” Ivy responded.
At that moment, footsteps echoed from the doorway, and an old man stepped inside.
This was the same person who had captured them from the Domain Lord’s Mansion ten days ago-a ninth-rank Heaven Dao Realm cultivator.
As he walked in, he looked at them and spoke: “Your ten days are up. You two…”
Before he could finish his sentence, a loud bang resounded as the alchemy furnace flew towards him.
The furnace was at an extremely high temperature, igniting the air around it as it passed.
“Courting death!” The old man frowned and formed a powerful seal with his hand to strike back at the furnace.
The furnace exploded with a roar, sending waves of heat throughout the space. The old man and Ivy’s siblings were both forced back dozens of steps.
“Fools! I’ll send you both on your way…” The old man steadied himself and shouted angrily.
However, halfway through his sentence, his expression changed: “You poisoned me?!”
Indeed, the furnace contained highly toxic substances!
This was a deliberate move by Ivy and her brother!
Ten days ago, besides asking for the ingredients for the formula, they also requested over twenty other herbs under the guise of attempting to refine the Sky-Splitting Pill but were actually preparing poison.
This was their last desperate move. If it failed, the consequences were dire.
“Go!” Ivy shouted as she drew her sword and formed a Five Elements Blade Dance to strike at the old man.
“Get lost!” The old man roared again, raising his hand to block her attack.
Their forces collided, and the old man spat out dark red blood as he was sent flying out of the door.
The poison concocted by Ivy and her brother was potent enough that even a late-stage Heaven Dao Realm expert couldn’t easily neutralize it without preparation.
Having inhaled so much poison already, he had to divert half of his energy to resist it from attacking his heart, making it difficult to withstand Ivy’s full-force strike.
Activating his Chi power only worsened his condition. His face turned pale, and his breath became erratic.
Without wasting any time, he quickly retreated several kilometers away and sat down to expel the poison.
He knew that if he continued using his Chi power, he would die from poisoning even without Ivy’s intervention.
As Ivy struck with her sword, Stout dashed towards the door.
“You bastards! Come on! I’ll fight you all!” He shouted loudly as he reached outside.
Ivy inside twitched at his words.
“Kill him!” A man’s voice rang out before Stout finished speaking.
Soon after, a dozen men and women surrounded him quickly.
Each of them was strong; two were Mid Stage Heaven Dao Realm cultivators while others were in mid-to-late stages of Perceiving Dao Realm.
“If you want to kill me, let’s see if you have what it takes!” Stout shouted again.
As he spoke, he didn’t retreat but advanced instead. His figure flickered as he dashed towards their ranks at high speed.
A faint fragrance filled the air where he passed.