To be honest, seeing Ji Qiu in this state, Li Xingkong felt a pang of emotion.
The changes are enormous.
He was completely different from his previous outspoken and blunt self; he didn't even show the slightest emotional fluctuation.
"Although I overcame numerous obstacles and escaped Earth Star, only Dao managed to escape with his life. The other three of me are still trapped on Earth Star. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me."
Upon hearing Ji Qiu's words, Li Xingkong began to ask questions.
"What's the current situation on Earth Star? What arrangements have those members of the Holy Church of Truth made?"
" Earth Star... the Earth Star of today is the cultivation world in the story."
"Within, good and evil clash, right and wrong contend; outside, demons lurk, feeding on people's hearts. The strong bully the weak, scheme against each other, bloodshed rages, and chaos reigns."
It has become an entertainment venue for those few people.
Upon hearing Ji Qiu's words, Li Xingkong clearly frowned.
The cultivation world in the story is not a pleasant place.
At least for people living in modern society, it is definitely not a benevolent thing.
Countless methods have been misinterpreted as heretical paths, and very few practitioners can maintain their true nature. Those who cultivate with human blood, forge weapons from corpses, or gather souls to create banners are numerous. There are also those who indulge in the Seven Emotions and six desires, seeking not immortality but only a carefree life.
"Although attaining the Golden Core grants the ability to break free from the blockade, how difficult it is to achieve the Golden Core! How can the desire for the Seeking the Dao compare to the exhilaration of settling scores?"
The more Li Xingkong listened to Ji Qiu's words, the more uneasy he felt. These guys were truly courting death.
"What about the others?"
Having gained a general understanding of the current situation on Earth Star, Li Xingkong felt a surge of anger. He was determined to get an explanation from them when he went to Earth Star.
"Ah, those who walk different paths cannot make plans together."
Ji Qiu coldly shook her head.
"The Heavenly Demon has been in the world for over ten years. Ge Baoqi and Ji Nanzhi have both switched their allegiance to the Demon Lord and become his pawns. Let's not talk about them. Ji Bei, he's just an Old Ox; what opinions does he have?"
"Although the three of them possess exceptional talent for cultivation, they have strayed onto such a wicked path, and I have no desire to associate with them."
"What?"
Li Xingkong was clearly somewhat incredulous.
It would be one thing if others defected, but these guys were the first to defect; it just doesn't make sense.
They're not the kind of people who are like that.
But seeing Ji Qiu's confident demeanor, Li Xingkong decided against making a hasty conclusion. He would wait until he reached Earth Star and then find a few people to ask them for details.
"What kind of difficulties did they encounter after breaking through the blockade on Earth Star? Why have only a handful of people succeeded in breaking through over the years?"
"Ha, the so-called blockade is nothing more than a selection criterion for those few people."
"The so-called breakthrough... was merely because they didn't meet the criteria and were thrown out. Those who met the selection criteria were all assimilated by those three demons and became their food."
"The three celestial demons each govern a different emotion, namely charm, jealousy, and hatred."
"Among all living beings, who is not infatuated? All those with feelings are captivated. When others achieve success, jealousy arises. When desires are not fulfilled, hatred arises."
Those who harbor three thoughts enter the path of the Three Demons.
"I was able to break through because my Evil Corpse swept away evil thoughts, Good Corpse separated the word 'emotion,' so to them, my path was dull and tasteless."
Li Xingkong felt uneasy; the emotion wasn't a breakthrough, but rather something that had been picked out.
After having a detailed conversation with Ji Qiu, Li Xingkong and Zhang Yumeng finally emerged from the Thirty-First Heaven.
"So, the situation is pretty bad right now, isn't it?"
"Indeed, it seems I must go ahead and see for myself on Earth Star."
"But didn't you say the documents hadn't arrived yet?"
"Waiting for the documents doesn't matter where we wait. I'll go to Earth Star first; that way, I can still protect them to some extent."
"Alright, is there anything you need..."
"It's alright. I'm here with the Axiom Arc behind me. We don't need to get involved if anything happens."
Li Xingkong offered a reassuring remark.
Having gathered a fairly comprehensive understanding of the situation, Li Xingkong decided not to wait any longer. He planned to infiltrate Earth Star directly to investigate further.
Li Xingkong could not possibly forget the location of Earth Star. After a hasty farewell to Zhang Yumeng, Li Xingkong rushed to the vicinity of the Solar System.
Although the entire galaxy appears no different from before on the outside, only upon closer inspection can one notice a rather strange membrane surrounding the Solar System.
This membrane envelops the entire Solar System, like a bubble, isolating Solar System from the outside world.
Even from this distance, Li Xingkong's Divine Sense had already detected a dense, blood-red aura permeating the Solar System.
This couldn't have been formed in a day or two; it would have taken a long period of slaughter to create such a dense aura of Baleful Qi.
With his Divine Sense spreading out and enveloping the entire star system, Li Xingkong did not directly probe as he had done before. Instead, he proceeded cautiously and carefully.
After all, these three guys have been in Divine Land for quite some time now, and they probably have some knowledge of cultivation. Although we don't know to what extent they've studied it, it's always better to be cautious.
Li Xingkong's investigation was not without results. Soon, he detected three huge energy bodies near Earth Star, like shadows, exactly like the members of the Holy Church of Truth he had seen at the space station.
The three of them possessed both the original cold energy aura and the Magic Power aura of cultivators, indicating that they were indeed researching the path of cultivation.
Li Xingkong dared not get too close with his Divine Sense, but only probed from a distance, continuously locking onto the auras of the three people. Then he turned and headed towards the surface of several planets, wanting to see first what the situation was like for the cultivators on Earth Star.
It must be said that because the three isolated Earth Star from the outside world, the technology inside the Earth Star basically came to a standstill. In fact, due to the constant wars, the various buildings and technological remnants on the planet have a strong wasteland style.
Instead, on this wasteland, groups and sects formed by various cultivators created a new social environment.
A quick glance revealed that most areas were in chaos, with battles of all sizes raging on. The once harmonious and peaceful environment was nowhere to be seen.
However, for some unknown reason, the three did not disrupt the Samsara system within the Solar System. Most of the deceased souls entered the Samsara normally, with only a few unlucky ones being captured by the evil cultivators using the Soul-Guiding Banner.
Since Samsara was still possible, Li Xingkong naturally breathed a sigh of relief. With this thing around, there was still a chance to salvage the situation.