Overseas lands, Shattered Star Archipelago.
The archipelago was scattered like stars, with over a thousand islands of varying sizes strewn across the deep-blue sea, separated from one another by thousands, even tens of thousands, of miles of ocean.
At the heart of the archipelago stood a gigantic island known as Xunshan Island.
Xunshan Island spanned several thousand miles, its mountains and rivers crisscrossing one another, its spiritual energy abundant.
This was the main gathering place for the various powers of the Shattered Star Archipelago, and also where Hundred Flowers Valley's Third Elder—Hua Wuying—had settled with a band of surviving remnants.
On the eastern side of Xunshan Island, within a valley occupied by Hundred Flowers Valley, pavilions and towers stood in dense rows, with formations layered upon formations.
Though its scale was far inferior to Qiong Province Hundred Flowers Valley, it still retained a trace of the grandeur of the Divine Mansion immortal sect it had once been.
Inside the council hall, the atmosphere was grave.
Hua Wuying, Hundred Flowers Valley's Third Elder, sat upright in the main seat. She appeared to be around fifty or sixty years old.
Her face was lean and hollow, her eye sockets deeply sunken, yet her eyes were as sharp as an eagle's.
At that moment, she was looking down at the several dozen Hundred Flowers Valley elders, core disciples, and stewards who had followed her in fleeing here.
"Half a year."
She spoke slowly, her voice hoarse. "You all know the news from Qiong Province. Over these past six months, the Li Family has completely taken control of Qiong Province. The valley's disciples are either dead or surrendered. Those spineless men have all crawled onto our heads and started throwing their weight around."
The hall fell deathly silent, save for the sound of suppressed