Feng Ninghe sat cross-legged, a small formation condensing around her, tightly enveloping her.
With the formation in place, unless Feng Ninghe awoke and stepped out, nothing that happened in the outside world could disturb her.
Si Jianye held a book, flipping through its pages at a leisurely pace, sitting quietly beside Feng Ninghe.
On the surface, he was engrossed in his reading, but in reality, his attention was mostly on Feng Ninghe.
This woman was controlling the Blood Phoenix while simultaneously refining it, disregarding her own safety.
Si Jianye's brow furrowed, and he turned his gaze to the Blood Phoenix.
The Blood Phoenix flapped its wings, spewing flames into the black hole.
Phoenix fire could incinerate all things in the world. As long as the phoenix fire burned, the human puppets dared not approach the black hole.
As time trickled by, the flames spat by the Blood Phoenix visibly diminished, and even the light emanating from the Blood Phoenix itself dimmed considerably.
If this continued, the Blood Phoenix would not be able to hold on for much longer. If she suffered a backlash, Feng Ninghe would not be able to easily refine the phoenix bone. It would be fortunate if Meng Hao could remain alive without falling into a demonic frenzy.
Si Jianye withdrew his gaze, his long, narrow eyes instantly falling upon Feng Ninghe.
The woman's delicate brows were tightly furrowed, and a hint of pain flickered across her radiant face.
Even for Feng Ninghe, multitasking was a strenuous feat.
As the phoenix bone merged into her body, it felt as though countless forces were burning within her, a blaze that seemed poised to erupt from her body at any moment.
Su Hongxiu, her slender fingers elegantly fanning herself with a bone fan, walked over, her eyes gleaming. "Even if she can continue to multitask, it won't be easy to refine the phoenix bone in a short time."
Si Jianye understood the implication of her words.
Multitasking would only prolong the refinement process.
He lowered his gaze to A'Xi, "Don't let anyone disturb her."
Even though Su Hongxiu was the closest to Feng Ninghe, he was unwilling to entrust this matter to her.
Upon receiving the order, A'Xi hurried over, standing tall and straight beside Feng Ninghe. "This subordinate will ensure no one has the opportunity to disturb Miss Feng."
Si Jianye's eyes narrowed, his handsome face as cold as ever.
He leaped into the air, his upright figure soaring towards the black hole.
The flames spat by the Blood Phoenix grew weaker and weaker, causing the human puppets within the black hole to stir restlessly, waiting for the opportune moment to rush out.
Si Jianye arrived beside the Blood Phoenix and uttered a chilling word from his lips, "Return. Leave this place to me."
The Blood Phoenix ceased spewing flames, its eyes, burning with fierce fire, looked at Si Jianye.
The Blood Phoenix seemed to trust him, nodding slightly, weary, and then with a flash, it swiftly returned to Feng Ninghe.
Feng Ninghe, whose delicate brows had been furrowed, felt a slight ease in her body, her brows unfurling. The fluctuations of spiritual energy around her became noticeably stronger.
With the Blood Phoenix returned to her body, it no longer continued to expend Feng Ninghe's vital essence by spewing fire.
Watching Feng Ninghe diligently cultivating, Si Jianye's gaze involuntarily softened.
Su Hongxiu looked up at the sky.
Si Jianye, clad in his ink-black robe, his chiseled face etched with a frosty demeanor, exuded an innate arrogance.
A cold, noble silver chain slithered around his waist like a living creature.
He appeared like a lofty deity, noble and aloof, making others hesitant to approach.
The moment the Blood Phoenix stopped spewing fire, the human puppets piled up beside the black hole, no longer restrained, swarmed forward, desperately descending into the black hole.
Clang!
In the blink of an eye, dozens of puppets clawed at the black hole, scrambling to emerge one after another, falling to the ground.
The entrance of the black hole was filled with a dense mass of human puppets.
"So many human puppets!"
"So many more human puppets have fallen! How many are there in this black hole!"
"Ji Binyu and Lin Yuran are truly inhuman! After their shameful deeds were exposed, they treated us like this!"
The court officials stared at the black hole, their scalps tingling. While they feared the human puppets, they could not suppress their anger, cursing vehemently.
Dealing with these human puppets had already exhausted them.
Moreover, even more human puppets were continuously descending through the black hole.
The human puppets were trying to break through the black hole, clawing at it incessantly.
The black hole was visibly expanding.
If the black hole grew larger, even more human puppets would rush out! And they would fall even faster!
Si Jianye also turned his head at this moment, looking at the human puppets.
He removed the silver chain, gripping it tightly in his palm.
At this moment, a powerful surge of spiritual energy emanated from him.
The potent spiritual energy commanded submission.
Su Hongxiu's hand, which had been fanning him with the bone fan, froze. He stood rigid, his eyes fixed on the solitary, towering figure.
This man's cultivation... was so much higher than his own!
From a young age, Su Hongxiu knew Si Jianye possessed extraordinary talent, far beyond that of ordinary people.
He had always set Si Jianye as his goal, cultivating with all his might.
His talent was considered exceptional, having already crossed the Nascent Soul stage and taking half a step into the Integration stage.
Across the Xuanzhou Continent, even the sects of Jinling had no one who had reached the Integration stage.
Yet, he sensed the aura of the Integration stage from Si Jianye. This young man's cultivation was likely more than just the Integration stage.
Su Hongxiu's smile faded. His eyes were fixed on the solitary, towering figure before the black hole, and he found himself unable to utter a single word.
He even had a premonition that if Si Jianye wished, he could control the entire Xuanzhou Continent!
"Such powerful spiritual energy fluctuations."
Bai Niannian's eyes widened, a hint of depth flickering within them. "Just how strong is the King of the Underworld's power? It must have long surpassed the Nascent Soul stage, right? I estimate he's already reached the Integration stage?"
Feng Xing also gazed intently at the solitary, towering figure, admiration welling up in his heart.
His desire for power grew even more intense.
After a long pause, Feng Xing finally spoke, "Conservatively, he's in the Integration stage."
He dared not even imagine how strong the King of the Underworld truly was...
Within the black hole, the human puppets that had been swarming and clawing at the black hole sensed something and withdrew their hands.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
The human puppets no longer rushed to pass through the black hole to the ground. They let out continuous cheers and cries, as if welcoming something.
The strange sounds also alerted the people of Lin Country, who looked up at the sky.
The thunderous, alien cries made their scalps tingle.
Though they were too far away to discern what the human puppets were saying, they could feel that these cries likely represented tens of thousands of them.
If these tens of thousands of human puppets were to fall, the consequences would be unimaginable...
The leading human puppet suddenly knelt towards Si Jianye's direction.
This was a human puppet that had developed a nascent bit of intelligence. It uttered words that were deeply obscure and difficult to understand.
Countless human puppets knelt in unison to pay their respects.
At this moment, no human puppet was in a hurry to claw at the black hole; they were busy performing their obeisance.
Si Jianye, holding the silver chain, stepped into the black hole, the chain shimmering with faint silver-white lightning.
He also saw clearly the world within the black hole at this moment.