He raised his head and looked beyond the palace, into the depths of the void.
Xiao Xuan stood with his hands behind his back and slowly spoke.
"A strange life-form. Since the creation of the Heavenly Tomb, it has been a being formed from countless residual soul imprints. You can regard it as the guardian of the Heavenly Tomb, though I think calling it a jailer might be more fitting."
His gaze remained fixed on the void as he said calmly,
"It controls this space and grants those energy bodies the desire to devour one another. Other than the energy bodies here, no one can sense its existence. Even Gu Yuan and the others never knew of it."
Liu Bai nodded.
"Have you ever fought it, Senior?"
Xiao Xuan fell silent for a moment.
"No. But... it is very strong."
He looked at Liu Bai and smiled faintly.
"Don't worry. It may be troublesome, but it can still be dealt with."
Liu Bai looked at him and suddenly asked,
"Senior is willing to act?"
Xiao Xuan smiled.
"I said it before. A transaction is a transaction, and gratitude is gratitude. You brought a descendant of the Xiao Clan to me, and I will remember this favor. Now that you want the Soul of the Heavenly Tomb, I will help you take it down. When Xiao Xuan gives his word, he never goes back on it."
He turned and walked toward the outside of the palace.
"Let's go. It is time for the Heavenly Tomb to return to what it was meant to be."
Liu Bai followed behind him. One after the other, the two left the palace.
Behind them, Xiao Yan was still sitting cross-legged, immersed in refining his bloodline and completely unaware of the outside world.
Outside the palace,