Re-entry into the Star Hall

Ju Hua's Heart Force, which had been stuck at a bottleneck, managed to break through to the third level. In truth, this was thanks to him falling into a state akin to sudden enlightenment, and he only snapped out of it once he had unknowingly arrived at Liufeng Mountain.

At this moment, Ju Hua also realized that his Heart Force had reached the third level.

"It seems there is no need to go to the Illusion Demon Realm anymore!" Ju Hua smiled, his mood instantly brightening.

With his Heart Force at the third level, the first benefit was that he no longer needed to find a way to enter the Illusion Demon Realm. Ju Hua knew very well that with his current Dao Heart, even if he were to go to the very center of the Illusion Demon Realm's core, those illusions would likely be unable to affect him in the slightest!

Furthermore, his strength had increased significantly.

Third-level Heart Force not only allowed him to greatly increase the power of his techniques, but it also increased the number of times he could unleash his sword strikes.

When his Heart Force was at the second level, an attack terrifying enough to instantly kill an ordinary Celestial Immortal would consume one-third of his Heart Force, limiting him to at most three uses.

Now, he could likely unleash even more powerful attacks over a dozen times!

"Unfortunately, my strength is still insufficient; I must become even stronger!" With this thought, Ju Hua flew into the Zhuanshui Clan's military camp.

Ju Hua first went to see Qing Muling. After learning about the recent situation of the army, he took his leave.

For a cultivator, ten years was too short, and since the army had been guarding the foot of Liufeng Mountain without any major movements, there was nothing of note happening within the ranks.

This did not exceed Ju Hua's expectations; otherwise, it wouldn't have been so easy for him to go to the Illusion Demon Realm in the first place.

Afterward, Ju Hua contacted Tianyang Ancestor. Upon learning that the ancestor had been cultivating in seclusion not far from the camp, Ju Hua flew directly toward him.

When Ju Hua found Tianyang Ancestor, the elder was busy tending to a spiritual herb.

"Ancestor!" Ju Hua bowed in greeting.

"You've returned now—have you heard some rumors?" Tianyang Ancestor asked.

"Tongyou Celestial Immortal of the Tianhe Clan and Jiumiao Celestial Immortal of the Donghe Clan seem to be searching for something, and Tongyou Celestial Immortal even warned me that the Illusion Demon Realm is no longer safe!" Ju Hua replied.

"That is why I returned!"

"Indeed, it is not safe!" Tianyang Ancestor nodded and said bluntly, "A Celestial Immortal has fallen within it!"

"It has come to this?"

"We managed to avoid the traps set by the Gods and Demons within the Illusion Demon Realm, yet who would have thought that a Celestial Immortal would still end up trapped there in the end!" Tianyang Ancestor sighed.

Watching the ancestor sigh, Ju Hua seemed to recall something and asked, "Was the ancestor close friends with that fallen Celestial Immortal?"

"Close friends? I had only met him once!" Tianyang Ancestor laughed. "That fellow wasn't to my liking, so I couldn't be bothered to pay him any mind!"

"..."

Ju Hua fell silent. The reason that old man had wanted to kill him was precisely because he had heard of his background in the Zhuanshui Clan and deduced that he was a junior whom Tianyang Ancestor held in high regard.

Yet, Tianyang Ancestor was now saying he wasn't even familiar with the man?

If that were the case, it was likely that Tianyang Ancestor didn't even know when he had offended the man, only to be held in a grudge ever since. This was truly a disaster brought on by nothing!

"How were your gains after more than ten years in the Illusion Demon Realm?" Tianyang Ancestor asked.

"The gains were profound!" Ju Hua said without hesitation.

"I originally thought ten or twenty years was too short, but since you say the gains were profound, then I am relieved!" Tianyang Ancestor waved his hand with a smile.

"Go on then!"

"..."

Ju Hua said nothing more. After bowing to bid farewell, he turned and left.

After returning from Tianyang Ancestor's place, Ju Hua went straight back to his tent. After setting up formations and restrictions, he began to contemplate his current predicament.

Without a doubt, he could not yet be considered absolutely safe. There was no guarantee when his actions might be uncovered, and if that happened, he would have to flee!

If he didn't flee, the Xia Emperor might not necessarily kill him, but Ju Hua would never entrust his fate to the hands of others—that was the behavior of a fool!

"If I am to flee, the stronger my strength, the better. Now that I have just fully comprehended the eighth stance of the Great Sorrow Sword Art, it will likely be difficult to achieve another major breakthrough in a short time. At this moment, I can only start with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth!" This thought flashed through Ju Hua's mind.

Gaining insights into the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth alone would not significantly increase his current strength, but if he could further fuse his Sword Dao with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, his strength might see another surge.

When he first fused the two Daos, the fusion was not very deep, but even then, his execution of the fifth stance of the Great Sorrow Sword Art had reached the power of the sixth!

However, as his sword techniques grew stronger, the power boost brought by the fusion of the Sword Dao and the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth had gradually diminished.

By now, even with the addition of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, the power he unleashed with the eighth stance of the Great Sorrow Sword Art was still far from reaching the level of the ninth!

This was likely because the portion of the two Daos fused was too small. If he could fuse them more deeply, it might not be impossible to reach the power of the ninth stance using the eighth!

"It is time to visit the Star Hall once more!" Ju Hua made his decision.

Over these years, he had been campaigning with the army and had not visited the Star Hall again. He had made great progress in both the Sword Dao and the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, accumulating a deep foundation. If he could receive the assistance of the Star Hall, he had hope of further fusing the two Daos.

No sooner said than done, Ju Hua arrived at the immortal estate left behind by Sanshou Daoist. After greeting the Yellow-Haired Great Bear, he entered the Star Hall.

The Yellow-Haired Great Bear watched from afar. Suddenly, a red-haired figure appeared beside him.

"You have come?" the Yellow-Haired Great Bear asked.

"Is this the current master of the estate, the one suspected to be the reincarnation of a True God Dao Ancestor?" The red-haired figure also watched Ju Hua, who was currently meditating within the Star Hall.

"Thirty years ago, he was a top-tier Loose Immortal, yet thirty years later, he has directly slain a Celestial Immortal!" the Yellow-Haired Great Bear remarked.

"The most ordinary of Celestial Immortals?" the red-haired figure asked.

"No, although that Celestial Immortal's strength was average, he was still far stronger than the most ordinary of Celestial Immortals!" the Yellow-Haired Great Bear replied.

After a moment of silence, the red-haired figure spoke slowly: "Strong talent does not necessarily mean he is a reincarnated True God or Dao Ancestor!"

"But his past talent could only be described as passable!" the Yellow-Haired Great Bear continued. "I know that some people undergo massive transformations under certain circumstances, leading to rapid progress thereafter! However, in Ju Hua's case, it cannot be that kind of transformation; he is improving far too quickly!"

"Perhaps he encountered some special opportunity!" the red-haired figure added. "Let us just wait and see!"

"Mm!"