Fang Yuan and Zhu Xuan arrived directly inside the city's teleportation portal.

Fang Yuan released Zhu Xuan and glanced around calmly.

"Which city do we need to go?"

Zhu Xuan blinked.

"The portal can't be used right now. This is deactivated, the portal isn't functional we need to walk."

Fang Yuan shook his head.

"I just need the city name."

Still somewhat confused, she muttered reluctantly,

"It's Starfall City."

Fang Yuan raised a brow.

"And where exactly is that on the map? Like which direction?"

Zhu Xuan stared at him and then said,

"…Should we ask the guards outside?"

Fang Yuan ignored the suggestion and instead looked around the massive portal chamber.

The entire area was enormous, with countless formations engraved into the ground and pillars stretching high into the air.

"You'd think with a portal this huge, the city won't ever run out daily necessities. But look at the situation righy now, the city is in crisis over mere grains," Fang Yuan commented casually.

Zhu Xuan crossed her arms.

"Well, it's not every day a Void Realm expert appears who can casually fix portal formations."

"Mm."

Fang Yuan nodded absentmindedly as his gaze swept across the formation patterns.

After a moment, he spoke.

"Come here."

Zhu Xuan obediently stepped closer.

"Hold on tight."

Before she could ask why, Fang Yuan grabbed her shoulder.

And in the next instant, the two disappeared directly into the void.

Before Zhu Xuan could even begin to question what had happened, they reappeared in the middle of another city entirely.

Zhu Xuan's eyes widened.

"What—? This…"

She quickly looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings.

"Where are we?"

"Starfall City," Fang Yuan replied casually.

"But how?" she asked in disbelief. "That portal was unusable."

"Oh, we didn't use the portal," Fang Yuan said plainly. "We traveled through the void instead."

Zhu Xuan slowly tilted her head and stared at him silently, as if trying to determine whether he was joking.

Fang Yuan ignored her expression completely.

"Alright," he said after a brief pause. "I've pinpointed where my master is. Let's go."

Without waiting for her response, he grabbed her shoulder once more.

The surrounding space twisted again and both of them vanished from Starfall City without a trace.

Fang Yuan and Zhu Xuan appeared just outside the city gates of a massive mountain city.

Fang Yuan glanced toward the mountain briefly before frowning slightly.

"For some reason, I can't void-walk directly into the inner region," he said.

"There's probably some sort of spatial restriction in place. We'll have to fly from here."

Zhu Xuan nodded without a single complain... Although she looked as if she still wanted to confirm if he was really void walking.

The two rose into the air together, streaking toward the mountain like beams of light.

After several moments of silence, Zhu Xuan suddenly spoke.

"So… that girl earlier."

Fang Yuan didn't even turn his head.

"What about her?"

Zhu Xuan tilted her head slightly, curiosity flickering across her face.

"Is she your pet?"

The air around Fang Yuan seemed to pause for half a second.

"…No. She's an elder of my clan," he replied calmly. "One of the core members."

Zhu Xuan blinked several times.

"…Wait. What?"

Her speed slowed slightly from sheer confusion.

"I thought you were just a disciple," she said. "What do you mean, your clan?"

Fang Yuan suddenly halted in his footsteps to look at a person standing in front of him.

Zhu Xuan instinctively halted beside him, her footsteps slowing as she followed Fang Yuan's gaze into the distance.

A lone figure stood calmly in midair.

His hands were clasped behind his back while dark robes fluttered gently beneath the night wind, giving him an air of effortless authority.

The man's expression was indifferent, almost cold but at a closer look, Zhu Xuan's eyes narrowed slightly.

The resemblance was unmistakable.

Are they related? she wondered silently.

The figure finally spoke, his voice neither loud nor soft, yet it echoed clearly through the sky. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"We meet once again… brother."

Fang Yuan merely looked at him for a moment before giving a small nod.

"Indeed." A faint smile appeared on his face. "Such a heartwarming greeting too."

Zhu Xuan blinked.

There was no warmth in the air at all.

Fang Tian clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Brother," he said flatly, "you are not fit to be Clan Head."

Fang Yuan's smile deepened slightly, almost amused.

"Oh my…" he said leisurely. "So all this trouble is for the title?"

He tilted his head faintly. "All you ever needed was to just ask."

For a brief second, Fang Tian's eyes trembled.

Then he slowly shook his head.

"You can hate me for this, brother."

The instant his words fell.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Figures exploded out from the darkness like shadows tearing through the night.

More than twenty black-clad cultivators appeared at once, surrounding Fang Yuan from every direction as killing intent flooded the air.

Without hesitation, they charged.

The pressure alone made Zhu Xuan's breathing tighten.

As every single one of them was at least in the Hollow Spirit Realm.

Even Fang Yuan raised his brows slightly at the sight, genuine surprise flickering through his eyes.

"Fuck me..." he murmured softly. "Isn't this overkill."

Without any more delay, he grabbed Zhu Huan by the waist and tried to twist the surrounding space but before the spatial ripples could even formed, they shattered.

Fang Yuan's pupils contracted.

"It won't work," Fang Tian said calmly from afar, his robes fluttering in the wind. "Did you really think I wouldn't prepare for your technique, brother?"

Blades, spears, talismans, and surging waves of spiritual energy all descended from every direction leaving no way out for escape.

Zhu Huan's face paled slightly but Fang Yuan reacted instantly as a golden light erupted from his body.

A massive golden shell expanded outward in an instant, wrapping both him and Zhu Huan within its radiant protection.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The sky trembled violently as attack after attack crashed against the barrier.

Yet the golden shell remained standing with not even a crack appeared.

Inside the barrier, Fang Yuan's eyes narrowed coldly while Zhu Huan stared around her in shock at the dazzling golden light surrounding them.

From the distance, Fang Tian watched the scene quietly before letting out a low chuckle.

"Your Golden Shell Armor truly never ceases to amaze me, brother."

A faint glint appeared in his eyes.

"I wonder…" he said slowly, "have you come up with anything new this time perhaps?"