The Immortal Realm army had been fighting in the void for many years. Their numbers had dwindled from the initial hundred thousand, comprising the ten great sacred lands and hundreds of grotto-heavens, down to a mere twenty to thirty thousand.
However, most of those who perished were Earth Immortal cannon fodder; the death rate for True Immortals and above was not high.
Yun Que, after escaping the pursuit of the Dao Worms last time, rejoined the main force and subsequently participated in hundreds of battles, large and small.
She was fortunate, sustaining only minor injuries that were not life-threatening, and had managed to survive until now.
"Fellow Daoist Yun Que, do you have time to cultivate the Dao with me recently?"
A male cultivator, appearing dignified and elegant, extended an invitation to Yun Que.
"Apologies, I do not have the time."
Yun Que refused the male cultivator's invitation without hesitation.
They were all ancient demons who had lived for tens of thousands of years, and she could see through the male cultivator's intentions at a glance.
Immortals had endless lifespans and were often bored to death, naturally leading to various forms of entertainment.
Interactive entertainment between males and females was endless, with the most primitive forms being developed and played out in tens of thousands of variations.
After refusing the male cultivator, Yun Que fell into deep thought, a somewhat unsightly face appearing in her mind.
Elder Fei had chosen to sacrifice his life at the most dangerous moment, his courage in doing so surpassing countless men.
Alas, Elder Fei never returned, likely consumed by the Dao Worms.
That Elder was only at the True Immortal realm, facing a second-tier Dao Worm alone, utterly defenseless.
It is often only after losing something that one realizes its true value.
At this point, Yun Que realized that Elder Fei had occupied a place in her heart.
"Assemble!"
Yun Que was immersed in her memories when a loud shout jolted her back to reality.
"A large number of Dao Worms have been discovered ahead!"
Following the cry of Lu Yang, a Heavenly Immortal from the Jade Void Sacred Land, everyone eagerly readied themselves and charged forward to pursue.
Since they had gathered together, the few Dao Worms they encountered had been routed.
So, this time was no different. As soon as the two sides made contact, the Dao Worms were terrified by the sheer scale of the Heavenly Realm army and turned to flee.
The army only managed to kill three Dao Worms; the remaining dozen or so all escaped.
The Heavenly Realm army was clearly unsatisfied with such meager results and continued the pursuit at full speed.
However, the remaining Dao Worms, perhaps frightened by the killings, fled exceptionally fast along the way.
Unknowingly, they were pursuing further and further.
In the depths of the chaotic void, a colossal Dao Worm flew slowly, its head larger than a world.
Unlike other Dao Worms, this one bore a flame pattern on its massive head.
The Flame Dao Worm opened its mouth and emitted a roar that only Dao Worms could hear.
This roar instantly spread throughout the chaotic void, summoning all the Dao Worms within the chaos to fly towards its location.
In the boundless void, Ning, transformed into a Dao Worm, was flying aimlessly, with Xiao Fei sprawled carelessly on Ning's broad back.
Fei Yu had long since gained fame alongside Xiao Fei in the Immortal Realm and could not easily reveal herself now.
Xiao Fei had nowhere else to go anyway, so he simply followed Ning, drifting with the flow.
Suddenly, Ning heard a summoning sound, calling him towards a certain direction.
Because Ning had inherited the memories of the Heavenly Dao, he instinctively rejected such a summons psychologically.
However, this summons seemed to possess a bloodline suppression, making his body unable to refuse, and he could only reluctantly fly towards the summoned direction.
...
In the chaotic void, the Heavenly Realm army, in their pursuit, inadvertently fell into a Dao Worm ambush.
From the void in all directions, countless Dao Worms emerged, densely packed, their numbers uncountable.
Under the siege of the innumerable Dao Worms, the Immortal Realm army was quickly routed, suffering heavy casualties.
Within the first minute of the engagement, all cultivators below the True Immortal realm had perished.
After the Earth Immortal cannon fodder were wiped out, it was soon the turn of the True Immortal realm.
Yun Que, using a secret technique, narrowly escaped from the mouth of a Dao Worm, still shaken.
Looking back, the two True Immortals who had been standing beside her moments ago had already been swallowed by Dao Worms.
She wanted to flee again, but saw several huge Dao Worms blocking her path ahead.
Directly in front of her, a large, dark mouth aimed at her, about to devour her in the next moment.
Her escape technique had just been used, and it would take at least ten breaths before she could use it again.
It seemed that she was doomed this time.
However, just as Yun Que resigned herself to certain death, the large mouth aimed at her was accidentally knocked aside by another Dao Worm.
Then, she felt a blur before her eyes, and when she could see clearly again, she had landed on the back of a Dao Worm.
"Elder Fei! You're not dead? Or have I died?"
At this moment, Xiao Fei was standing on the back of this Dao Worm, smiling at her.
"You are certainly not dead, and I have also survived by chance."
It was clear that Elder Fei had saved her life again.
This was the second time Elder Fei had rescued her.
In Yun Que's eyes, Elder Fei's unsightly face now appeared extremely endearing.
Every age spot on Elder Fei's face bloomed like the most beautiful flowers, radiating charm.
"Thank you, Elder Fei, for saving me. I have no way to repay this life-saving grace..."
As Yun Que spoke, she bit her lower lip lightly and lowered her head deeply, unable to see her own toes.
Her heart was in turmoil, struggling with how to finish the next half of her sentence.
To say she would repay him by being a cow or a horse in the next life seemed too perfunctory and insincere.
If she were to offer herself in this life, what if she were rejected? That would be too embarrassing, it was so agonizing.
Fortunately, she was in a battlefield now and did not have much time to agonize.
Xiao Fei had already summoned his small world, enveloping the two of them, and then transformed into a speck of dust, hiding on Ning's back.
Ning, carrying the two, continued to join the battlefield. He was merely a rank-and-file Dao Worm, unremarkable among the many, and due to his inherited memories, he was more cunning than other Dao Worms.
Thus, while other Dao Worms on the battlefield charged forward recklessly, Ning weaved around, avoiding danger and seizing opportunities.
Those fully engaged in fierce combat on the battlefield clearly paid no attention to such an anomaly.
Xiao Fei, hidden on Ning's back, watched as the Immortal Realm powerhouses were killed one by one by the Dao Worms, their deaths gruesome.
Although he wished to help, his strength was insufficient, and stepping out now would only be a futile sacrifice.
The risk he had taken in saving Yun Que with his spatial abilities earlier was immense; if discovered by others or Dao Worms, both he and Ning would be in grave danger.
Fortunately, their location was slightly secluded, and everyone was busy, so they hadn't noticed him.
Yun Que, now hidden with Xiao Fei in the small world, watched her comrades outside being slaughtered, their final desperate cries deeply impacting her.
She couldn't help but glance at Xiao Fei beside her, casting a grateful look.
While she sympathized deeply with her Heavenly Realm comrades, she was not a brainless saint and would not foolishly demand Xiao Fei to charge out and sacrifice himself on moral grounds.