As the two walked outside the Marquis's residence, Ji Fa stopped and looked back with some lingering affection. He felt as if something was missing from his body, like some kind of shackle, and suddenly he felt much lighter.

“Heroes are always lonely and misunderstood, but as long as they hold firm to their beliefs, their families will eventually understand,” Saitama said.

"Yes, Master." Ji Fa nodded, then turned and left.

Kunlun Mountain, Jade Void Palace.

Suddenly, Yuanshi Tianzun sensed something and reached out to perform divination.

"Hmm? What's going on? Why has Xiqi's fortune decreased so much?" Yuanshi muttered to himself.

Just now, he sensed the loss of Xiqi's fortune, but the battle of Sishui Pass has not yet been decided. How could this be? Yuanshi was puzzled and then began to calculate again.

"The chosen one has vanished..." Yuanshi Tianzun murmured. He then quickly rose and disappeared in a flash.

Ji Fa and Saitama left Xiqi. Along the way, people watched the two with curiosity, but because of Ji Fa's identity, no one dared to disturb them. The gatekeepers guarding the city also looked at the two walking out of the city gate with puzzled expressions.

"Master, am I doing the right thing?" Ji Fa asked.

“As Jianglong said, your father and the others were just pawns in someone else’s game. The fact that you were able to break free means you still have a chance to save them,” Saitama said.

“Yes, I still have a chance to save them, the Chan Sect…” Ji Fa’s eyes narrowed, and the image of Yang Jian flashed through his mind.

"Was that person very strong?" Ji Fa asked.

“Yes, the energy around him is very powerful. It’s really interesting that a cultivator has such a strong physique.” Saitama nodded.

Having been in this world for so long, Saitama has come to understand what cultivators are. Generally speaking, cultivators' physical bodies are not very strong; what makes them strong is their supernatural abilities and ever-changing spells. However, the person named Yang Jian just now gave Saitama a very special feeling. This person's physical body is extremely powerful, even surpassing that of Jianglong.

“Master, I will not admit defeat,” Ji Fa said.

"Haha, I'm just saying what I sensed. You're not necessarily weaker than him, since you haven't gone all out yet so I can't be sure," Saitama laughed.

"Then, Master, how does he compare to you?" Ji Fa asked curiously.

Saitama stopped and started counting on his fingers.

Ji Fa looked at Saitama with a puzzled expression.

"Hmm... five punches, six at most," Qi Yu said. Then he continued walking.

"Uh..." Ji Fa was speechless. It turned out that his master measured his opponent with his fists. But his master seemed to have gotten stronger.

"I need to intensify my training too; my integration level isn't even halfway there yet," Ji Fa whispered.

Before long, the two returned to Panxi River, where Mengmeng and the others were happily grilling fish.

"Haha, so fast? I thought you might not be coming back today," Jianglong laughed, a hint of relief flashing in his eyes.

"Ji Fa, come help me, hurry up!" Mengmeng called out from beside the fire, where a large pile of fish was roasting on a wooden rack.

"They're here." Ji Fa smiled and walked over. For some reason, seeing Mengmeng and the others made him very happy, and his earlier unpleasantness was completely forgotten.

"The talks broke down?" Jianglong asked Saitama.

"You know perfectly well what I'm asking." Saitama pursed his lips.

“Alright, only in this way can the child see clearly.” Jianglong nodded.

"Let's leave tomorrow and head to the South China Sea to find Wutian," Jianglong continued.

“Okay, I’m going to swim there.” Saitama immediately perked up.

Meanwhile, outside the Thirty-Three Heavens, in the Mysterious Capital Purple Mansion, the Eight Scenery Palace, is the Daoist temple of the Supreme Sage.

A figure slowly appeared outside the Eight Views Palace; it was none other than the Primordial Heavenly Venerable.

As soon as he appeared, a young Taoist priest came to greet him.

"Greetings, Uncle-Master." The Taoist bowed in greeting.

"Xuan Du, is Senior Brother here?" Yuan Shi asked.

"The master is refining elixirs inside," the Taoist replied.

The young Taoist was none other than Grand Master Xuandu, the only disciple of the Supreme Lord, and one of the first innate humans created by Nuwa. After being accepted as a disciple by the Supreme Lord, he was given the name Xuandu. He possessed exceptional talent and was now at the late stage of Quasi-Saint.

“Okay.” Yuanshi nodded and then went inside.

Inside the Eight Views Palace, a huge alchemy furnace emitted bursts of purple vapor, and its scorching temperature could be felt from a great distance.

At this moment, the Supreme Lord was sitting with his back to the alchemy furnace.

"Master."

"Senior brother."

"Why are you here?" Taishang asked without turning around.

"Senior brother, the fortune of Xiqi is weakening, and the chosen one has disappeared," Yuanshi hurriedly said.

"Hmm?" The Supreme Being was taken aback upon hearing this, and then turned around.

"What happened?" Taishang asked.

"I don't know. It involves the Chosen One, so I can only get a superficial understanding." Yuanshi shook his head.

“The chosen one should be one of the sons of the Marquis of Xibo. According to my previous calculations, it should be his son. Could something have happened to that child?” Taishang said.

“Before coming here, I went to Xiqi, but I didn’t find the child.” Yuanshi shook his head. He even saw Yang Jian, but he couldn’t find any trace of Ji Fa. He couldn’t sense him within a radius of 10,000 miles.

How did he know that Ji Fa had already returned to Mengmeng's side? Where Mengmeng was, the Heavenly Secrets couldn't possibly calculate it, and Yuanshi naturally couldn't see it either.

“Something’s strange.” Taishang nodded.

“I also feel that way. I’ve always had this feeling that there’s a powerful force interfering in the Investiture of the Gods,” Yuanshi said in a deep voice.

"Senior brother, should we go ask the teacher?"

The Supreme Lord waved his hand.

"No need, let's not disturb him for now. Let's leave the child aside for now. What we need to do now is to start the calamity as soon as possible so that those people can enter the tribulation," Taishang said.

"Will there be any changes on Junior Brother Tongtian's side?" Yuanshi asked.

"He signed the Investiture of the Gods on his own initiative, so I don't think he would object. It's just that his disciples will have to undergo tribulations and have the opportunity to become gods in the future. For those people, this is a great fortune," the Supreme Lord said coldly.

"Indeed." Yuanshi nodded.

"Then I'll be going now." After saying this, Yuanshi cupped his hands in greeting and turned to leave the Eight Views Palace.

After leaving the Eight Views Palace, Yuanshi did not return to Kunlun, but flew towards the direction of Nuwa Palace.

As time passed, the area outside Sishui Pass was littered with corpses. The battle continued, with both sides leaving behind tens of thousands of bodies. Sishui Pass was now on the verge of collapse, and the soldiers defending the city were exhausted.

"Damn it, General, let me make a move," Yu Hua said again.

"No way." Han Rong refused outright.

"But..." Yu Hua was about to say something more when Han Rong stopped him.

"Hold on a little longer, reinforcements will be here soon."

"Sigh..." Yu Hua sighed helplessly.

"Knock knock knock..."

At this moment, the war drums of the siege sounded again.

"Kill..." The Xiqi army shouted again as they charged forward.

Looking at the exhausted soldiers around him, Yu Hua couldn't bear it and closed his eyes.

"put..."

Wave after wave of arrows flew towards the enemy. It was clear that the arrow rain was much less than before. The continuous fighting had greatly depleted the arrows, and there were not many left in Sishui Pass.

"Quick, quick, speed up! Sishui Pass is just ahead. Brothers, wait for our rescue."

Li Jing's army was now less than ten miles from Sishui Pass, and they could even hear the sounds of battle coming from afar.

"Hold on!" Li Jing said, riding his horse and looking at the rising smoke in the distance.

Despite being exhausted from days of travel, the members of the Tianlong Legion were full of determination and persevered.

"General, shall we two brothers go ahead first?" At this moment, Dan Chenzi rode his horse toward Li Jing.

Li Jing looked at Dan Chenzi and Xuan Tianzong, then shook his head.

“No, His Majesty has instructed that no cultivator is allowed to participate in this first battle, not even me,” Li Jing said.

"Why?" Dan Chenzi asked, puzzled.

"Dignity," Li Jing said in a deep voice.

"Dignity?" Xuan Tianzong asked doubtfully.

“Yes, the dignity of mortals. We must show Heaven our will and our determination. No matter what, cultivators must not interfere in this first battle,” Li Jing explained.

"But that would kill a lot of people."

Upon hearing this, Li Jing suddenly burst into laughter.

"Haha, how can there be no deaths in war? But some sacrifices are necessary. These people will not die in vain," Li Jing said.

Dan Chenzi wanted to say something more, but Xuan Tianzong stopped him.

When Li Jing's military flag appeared behind Sishui Pass, the Xiqi army below the pass was already about to climb onto the city gate.

"Waaah..."

The arrival of reinforcements brought great joy to the soldiers defending the city.

"Great, they're here!" Yu Hua exclaimed excitedly.

"Whoosh..."

Immediately afterwards, two figures descended from the sky.

"Xuantian Sect".

"Dan Chenzi".

"Greetings, General," the two said in unison.

"Alright, alright." Han Rong quickly helped the two of them up.

Yu Hua looked at the two with some curiosity, as they were also cultivators.

"General, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

At this moment, the densely packed Heavenly Dragon Army arrived below, and Li Jing, sitting on his precious horse, shouted to Han Rong on the city wall.

Han Rong immediately jumped off the city wall.

"Han Rong greets the Commander-in-Chief." Han Rong bowed respectfully. Li Jing held a higher military rank than him at this time.

"Brother Han, it's been years since we last met, why be so formal?" Li Jing quickly dismounted and helped Han Rong up.

"Ritual must not be disregarded," Han Rong said in a deep voice.

Li Jing patted him on the shoulder.

"Leave the rest to me, you get some rest," Li Jing said, looking at Han Rong, who looked exhausted.

"No need, I am still capable of fighting," Han Rong replied without hesitation.

At the same time, Xiqi saw the arrival of reinforcements and immediately sounded the retreat.

"We've held them!" The soldiers on the city wall were immediately overjoyed.

"Brother Li, what follows is probably no longer a battle for mortals," Han Rong said, looking at the towering figures of the four Demon Generals in the Heavenly Dragon Legion.

"Don't worry, we won't lose." Li Jing nodded.

Meanwhile, on the Xiqi army's side, Nangong Shi also sent the news back to Xiqi immediately. Looking at the soldiers behind him who had lost more than half of their number, the old general couldn't help but sigh. In the end, they couldn't take Sishui Pass, and the battles to come would probably be even more brutal.