On the way to the Abyss of the Deep Sea of the demon race, Lin Mo encountered numerous attacks. “Almost there,” Qiqi said. “As long as we pass through the territory of the Meiyan Clan, they won’t dare keep chasing us.” Along the way, she had more or less gauged Lin Mo’s strength for herself. Below the Soul Splitting stage, she could confidently say that in the demon realm—or rather, in the entire cultivation world—no one could match him. If the Meiyan Clan dared to continue their pursuit and try to take Lin Xiang’er back, they would inevitably expose their movements within the territories of other demon clans. Once the matter of the Saintess was exposed, the other demon clans would never let the Meiyan Clan succeed, and that would make it even harder for them to recapture Lin Xiang’er.
After a week of travel, Lin Mo finally reached the location of the Abyssal Sea. There was hardly a trace of human presence here. The vast expanse of the demon sea ahead stretched endlessly, appearing inky and dark blue. The sight was deeply oppressive, and just thinking about the countless incidents involving demon cultivators beneath the sea invoked an involuntary sense of dread. Qiqi looked at him and asked, “That’s the Abyssal Sea ahead. What do you plan to do?” Lin Mo didn’t know either—the voice in his mind had simply guided him here, but it hadn’t told him specifically what to do.
Just as he furrowed his brows in frustration, that aged voice once again echoed in his mind: “Descend to the deepest part of the Abyssal Sea. I’ll be waiting for you there.” Since Lin Mo didn’t know the dangers lurking within, he could only have Qiqi stay above with Lin Xiang’er and wait. Qiqi was shocked. “You’re not seriously thinking of entering the Abyssal Sea, are you? Ever since Ancestor Chu Tiange was sealed a hundred years ago, this sea has had a special restriction. Anyone who enters will be affected by an unknown force, making it impossible to use demonic energy within. Many demon cultivators in the past tried to enter this Abyssal Sea to explore its secrets, but none of them ever came back.”
Hearing this, Lin Xiang’er tightly clutched his sleeve. “Daddy, don’t go down there…” Lin Mo looked at his little daughter’s worried face and asked the system, “There won’t be any issues with the Dream of a Yellow Millet skill, right?” 【Don’t worry, Host. If your actions truly endanger your life, the Dream of a Yellow Millet skill will activate on its own.】 Lin Mo chose to trust the system—it had never harmed or deceived him before. 【But of course, this system is your one and only true partner! As long as you work hard to accumulate regret points, this system can let you ascend to the heavens or descend into the earth—nothing will be beyond your reach, not even outer-realm demon fiends. Even they can be slain by you.】 Lin Mo was speechless. This dumb system was truly the best at making grand promises. “Outer-realm demon fiends? What the heck is that? He’d never even heard of such a thing.” Right now, he couldn’t even deal with a real demon at the Integration stage, let alone these so-called mysterious beings.
He gently patted his daughter’s head. Lin Xiang’er heard her father say softly, “Don’t worry, Xiang’er. I’ll be fine.” Perhaps it was the warmth of his hand, or maybe the soothing tone of his voice, but the worry on her face lessened a bit. “Then, Daddy, Xiang’er will wait here with Sister Qiqi. You must come back to find me.” Lin Mo then soared through the air into the Abyssal Sea. The scenery before him remained pitch black, and descending to the seafloor, the darkness carried an indescribable sense of oppression. He felt an invisible force sealing off his demonic energy. “Hmm? This force doesn’t seem to affect spiritual energy.” Using his spiritual energy to disperse the fog ahead, his vision suddenly cleared.
Floating all around were countless blackened bones and lingering demonic energy that refused to dissipate. He thought—perhaps the Abyssal Sea’s deep darkness was somehow connected to these remains. Within the depths, he found himself unable to sense the passage of time. He didn’t even know how far he had traveled beneath the sea or how long he had been diving. It might have been a short while, a full day, or even several months. It wasn’t until he reached the sea floor that he finally noticed something different.
At the bottom of the Abyssal Sea, Lin Mo discovered an old man whose limbs were bound by chains of unknown origin. His robe was tattered, his snowy-white beard and hair floated in the current like long snakes, and no one could tell how long he had been imprisoned. Yet even in such a state, he did not appear pitiful. Instead, he seemed like a bound king, with an aura of pride that still lingered strongly around him. The old man noticed Lin Mo’s arrival, and when their eyes met, his gaze was filled with shock and anger. “How is it… you…” he muttered, then shook his head and whispered to himself, “Impossible… he already perished…” His expression softened for a moment, leaving Lin Mo bewildered at how quickly his emotions shifted. He even wondered if the man’s mind was unstable.
“Senior, were you the one who brought me here?” Lin Mo asked cautiously, wary of the old man’s unpredictable nature. The man’s cultivation was like a bottomless abyss—Lin Mo couldn’t sense it at all. The old man chuckled. “Yes, I was the one who called you here. Aren’t you here to save that girl, Yan Ruyu? I can help you.”
Lin Mo was skeptical. A powerful figure suddenly appearing and offering help seemed far too suspicious. The old man, however, seemed to read his thoughts and said with a laugh, “Don’t be afraid. I’m not helping you for your sake. My goal is to help that girl, Yan Ruyu.” Hearing him call the demon realm’s Saintess merely “that girl” made Lin Mo realize this man’s seniority in the demon realm must be incredibly high. So he asked directly, “Senior, who exactly are you?”
The old man only gave a vague reply. “That girl Yan Ruyu is the granddaughter of an old friend of mine.” He did not reveal his own identity. Lin Mo changed the question. “Then why have you been imprisoned in the deepest part of the Abyssal Sea?” The old man’s eyes darkened. “I was schemed against by a shameless scoundrel during a duel, that’s all.” A ferocious look crossed his face, and Lin Mo dared not press further. Instead, he asked, “Senior, since you’re trapped here, how can you help me save Yan Ruyu? Do you need me to free you?” That last part he asked with extreme caution—if the man truly wanted him to lift the restriction, Lin Mo would turn and run without hesitation.
The old man laughed loudly. “Little one, if you had the ability to help me break free, I wouldn’t still be stuck here. The shackles on my body—you wouldn’t be able to undo them even in a hundred years.” Lin Mo gave a polite smile and flattered him. “Yes, Senior, you’re absolutely right.” But then the old man’s eyes sharpened, and suddenly a beam of spiritual light shot into Lin Mo’s forehead. By the time it ended, Lin Mo was alarmed. “Did he just put some sort of curse or tracking mark on me?!” He couldn’t sense any changes and quickly asked the system, “System, what did he just do to me?” 【According to this system’s observation, nothing at all has happened to the host’s body. No need to worry.】
Relieved, Lin Mo still asked, “Senior, what was that just now?” The old man only chuckled. “No need to mind it. Just something unimportant.” Lin Mo didn’t believe it—how could he not care what had been done to him? But since the system had assured him it was harmless, he forced himself to calm down. Then, the old man tossed him a ring. “Wear this ring and take it to Yan Yan’s place. She will release Yan Ruyu upon seeing it.” Lin Mo stared in surprise. “It’s that simple?”
Just one ring could resolve everything? The old man only said, “Just do as I told you.” Lin Mo carefully stored the ring away and bowed. “Thank you, Senior. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave so as not to disturb your rest.” He had no intention of lingering and planned to show the ring to Qiqi first, to see if she recognized it. But the old man suddenly called out, “Wait. I find myself feeling quite close to you, and you’re also the one that girl Yan Ruyu favors. Why not call me Grandpa—how about that?”
Lin Mo was completely stunned. Call him Grandpa? Did the old man want to make him his grandson? Why did all these seniors seem to enjoy claiming people as family? “Senior, I’ve never had the habit of acknowledging relatives. So let’s just leave it at ‘perhaps we’ll meet again.’” With that, Lin Mo turned and slipped away. The old man was dazed for a long while before bursting into laughter. “This grandson of mine is pretty spirited—reminds me of myself. Suits my taste.” His expression then darkened as he thought, But this external grandson of mine really does have a similar aura to that person…
Chu Tiange narrowed his eyes, remembering the time long ago when he was about to form a connection with the Heavenly Demon. Yet before he could succeed, he was suddenly sealed by a nameless rogue cultivator. His demonic energy was purged, filling him with boundless rage. Back then, he had clearly touched the power of the Heavenly Demon, yet it was severed in a single slash by that mysterious figure. That man’s aura faintly resembled Lin Mo’s—though their strength was worlds apart. If it weren’t for the bloodline connection that allowed him to send voice transmissions to Lin Mo, confirming that this was indeed his grandson, Chu Tiange might have doubted his identity.
Meanwhile, on his way back, Lin Mo noticed the oppressive atmosphere was no longer as heavy. This time, he could clearly sense the passage of time, and in less than half an hour, he emerged from the Abyssal Sea. On the shore, Lin Xiang’er had been anxiously watching. When she saw him, she cried out in delight, “Daddy’s back!”
Lin Mo caught his daughter as she rushed into his arms and asked gently, “Xiang’er, how long was I gone?” She rubbed against his chest and asked, “Daddy, did you find a way to save Mommy?” “I think I did,” Lin Mo answered. Though he wasn’t sure if the mysterious old man’s ring would actually work, he believed the elder had no reason to deceive him. Turning to Qiqi, he asked, “Do you recognize this?” She examined the ring carefully, then shook her head. “I don’t recognize it. Where did you get this?”
“I found it at the bottom of the lake,” Lin Mo said. “Huh? How is that possible? Isn’t the lakebed full of corpses of demonic cultivators? How could there still be an old man down there?” Qiqi asked in disbelief. “This ring was given to me by him. He said if I gave it to Chi Yan, Yan Ruyu would be released.”
Qiqi fell into deep thought. If what Lin Mo said was true, then that person was very likely the Demon Ancestor himself. After all, in the Demon Realm, the three great demon clans’ leaders only obeyed the orders of the Ancestor. Lin Mo noticed her expression. “Did something come to mind?” Qiqi, however, didn’t dare to speak her suspicion openly—the Ancestor was not someone to be casually discussed. Instead, she voiced her concern. “If you take the ring to Meiyan Demon Lord and it turns out to be useless, the consequences could be unimaginable.”
Lin Mo also understood the risk. If the ring turned out to be nothing at all, then wouldn’t he look like a fool marching in with it to save someone?
The system’s voice rang out cheerfully. 【Host, don’t be such a coward. You won’t die if you go—besides, the Dream of Yellow Millet hasn’t activated, so just be brave and go for it. If there really is danger later on, you can always use regret points to ask me for help.】 Lin Mo rolled his eyes. “You’re always thinking about my regret points, aren’t you?” 【Absolutely not! I’m a totally honest and caring system—every suggestion is for your sake, Host.】
At the moment, there was no better solution. After all, he had the ability to foresee life and death, and that old man from the Abyssal sea had no reason to go through such trouble just to toy with him. In the end, Lin Mo decided to head toward the Meiyan Demon Lord’s territory. Of course, he didn’t bring Xiang’er along. Instead, he had Qiqi remain near the Abyssal sea with her, ready to respond if anything happened.
“Brother Mo, maybe I’ll just stay here…” Mo Pao’er muttered weakly, looking as lifeless as a corpse. Lin Mo hadn’t planned to bring him anyway; having him stay behind to assist Qiqi and Xiang’er would be useful enough. Still, before leaving, Lin Mo placed a strand of his own demonic energy into Mo Pao’er’s body, allowing him to monitor the situation at any time—or even have Mo Pao’er to flee if necessary.
Not long after Lin Mo entered the Meiyan clan’s territory, he was beset by numerous attacks. He cut his way forward mercilessly, leaving corpses scattered across the land. Those who came against him weren’t weak either—almost none were below the Nascent Soul stage. Yet this slaughter brought him an enormous harvest of regret points, enough to push him to the peak of the Soul Splitting stage, with plenty still left over. For Lin Mo, strength was his only true asset, and advancing to the Divine Transformation stage would give him a much-needed guarantee of safety. At this point, he held more than 670,000 regret points.
Spending 300,000 regret points, Lin Mo broke through to the peak of the Soul Splitting stage. He then sought out a secluded place, set up a protective formation, and entered seclusion to the Divine Transformation stage. After half a month, he emerged successful. Now, as a cultivator at the Divine Transformation stage, he had enough power to stand against even a True Demon at the Integration stage.
Meanwhile, at the Meiyan Demon Lord’s residence, Granny Rong reported the news of Lin Mo’s breakthrough. “I felt something was off the last time I lost to that brat,” she said. “No one can break through from Soul Splitting to Divine Transformation in just one month. He must have been hiding his true strength with some secret technique.” With this reasoning, she finally found an excuse for her defeat and went on ranting at length. “Demon Lord, that brat has also slaughtered quite a few of our Meiyan clan’s cultivators recently…”
But the Meiyan Demon Lord was unfazed. To him, Lin Mo’s Divine Transformation cultivation meant nothing. “At the end of the day, he’s just a human. He can’t possibly have the guts to kill his way here.”
Yet just as he finished speaking, a demonic cultivator rushed in, his face pale with panic. “Demon Lord! That white-robed sword demon has arrived at the front gates!”
The Meiyan Demon Lord: “…”