"Oh?" Chu Mo's gaze sharpened.
Something was off.
After Lord Qian had used Jin Yu Heaven as a chess piece and hurled it into Zhaohua, why had he also sent a Realm Lord inside ahead of time?
Did he have so many Realm Lords that he could squander them at will?
"Take me there."
The golden-armored guard bowed and obeyed, turning to lead the way. They passed through layer upon layer of palaces and countless immortal islands, encountering no meaningful resistance along the way.
The occasional golden-armored guard they encountered became an Other Self after a single glance at Chu Mo.
At last, they stopped before a palace suspended alone high in the heavens. Its roof vanished into unimaginable heights, and it was as vast as a cosmos of stars, magnificent and resplendent.
"True Self, this is the place," the golden-armored guard said quietly, stopping.
Chu Mo nodded and was about to speak. Suddenly, the palace doors, towering like a heavenly chasm, opened soundlessly. A melodious female voice followed:
"Since an honored guest has arrived, why remain outside the doors?"
Chu Mo glanced at the pitch-black entrance. Boundless darkness lay within, as though something terrifying crouched behind the doors, watching him with a ravenous gaze and waiting for him to step inside. "Interesting." He chuckled. "With the host extending an invitation, it seems This Venerable cannot refuse."
With that, he paid no heed to whether a trap awaited him and stepped through the doors.
The heavens spun, and Heaven and Earth overturned.
In an instant, the darkness abruptly dispersed, replaced by a boundless void with neither up nor down nor any distinction between directions. At the very center of that bright void stood a woman, poised and unhurried.
She wore a Crow-Blue Immortal Skirt, her dark hair simply pinned up