Li Yu did not leave immediately.
Instead, he remained in his [Elemental Dissolution] state, watching the aftermath.
This was another feature of [Elemental Dissolution]—once in this state, there was no clear end time.
It depended solely on Li Yu willpower and how long he could sustain it.
Only when he chose to exit the [Elemental Dissolution] state would the weakness set in.
And this time.
Although he had been wounded by Bibi Dong and the Holy Spirit Cult leader's sneak attack, his strength was not comparable to the last time he used this technique.
Thus, he still had enough strength to maintain [Elemental Dissolution] and was peacefully observing the situation, about one meter beneath the battlefield.
With the help of 'Elemental Vision,' he had already sensed the four elders of the Spirit Hall who had secretly arrived.
This was one of the reasons why he decided to use [Elemental Dissolution].
The result of the situation wasn't surprising. After Bibi Dong left, the Holy Spirit Cult leader was captured by the four elders from the Spirit Hall.
He would likely face a lot of interrogation.
After seeing how things played out, Li Yu planned to leave.
After all, once he exited [Elemental Dissolution], he would enter a seven-day period of weakness, which meant he wouldn't be able to continue with his pursuit of the seventh soul ring.
He might as well lie down and rest!
With this thought in mind, Li Yu planned to leave and return to Star Dou next time.
But...
Just as he was about to move, an idea suddenly crossed his mind.
The bodies of the three Holy Spirit Cult followers he had disposed of earlier had dissolved, their blood and life essence flowing into the earth!
Remembering the strange methods exhibited by the Holy Spirit Cult leader, Li Yu decided to dive into the ground.
After drifting around for a while, he found nothing.
"Did I overthink this?"
"With the four elders from the Spirit Hall here, even if he had some trick up his sleeve, he couldn't possibly hide it anymore!"
"And..."
"If he wants to survive, it's not going to be easy. He'll probably even have to explain what color his underwear is!"
Li Yu muttered to himself, about to give up.
At that moment, his willpower began to falter.
The side effects of [Elemental Dissolution] were still too much!
And after drifting this far, he no longer had the ability to return.
So, he simply created a three-meter square space beneath the ground.
He didn't immediately exit [Elemental Dissolution] but silently initiated his "cross-dressing" and then directly connected to the 'Gate of Life,' summoning Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu.
The emerald-green portal opened.
Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu walked out, confused.
They exchanged a look, their eyes filled with shock and sorrow.
The shock and sorrow were because they couldn't believe that Li Yu had implanted the 'Gate of Life' in them.
They weren't that surprised by the teleportation, though.
They knew Li Yu had control over spatial elements and had even experienced it before.
"Where is this, and where is Sister Yu?" Zhu Zhuqing asked, looking around in confusion.
"Hmm?"
Xiao Wu felt a familiar, comforting aura.
It didn't come from Li Yu but from the space outside.
As they were both confused, Li Yu, still in his [Elemental Dissolution] state, finally couldn't hold on any longer and revealed his form.
He appeared suddenly.
But his consciousness became fuzzy, and the aura around his body rapidly diminished, quickly falling into unconsciousness.
Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu were both startled.
Zhu Zhuqing had seen Li Yu in such a state before, so after a brief moment of shock, she immediately reacted, propping Li Yu head up and placing it on her lap.
She then quietly used her soul power to clean off the dirt from Li Yu body.
She even used her soul power to "heat" the ground beneath them.
There was no choice. They had been summoned so suddenly, with no time to prepare. The surroundings were nothing but earth—there were no good conditions.
Thankfully, they were soul masters with at least three and four rings, so they could use their soul power to solve the issue of breathing.
Otherwise, they would have suffocated in the underground space.
Seeing Zhu Zhuqing handle the situation so smoothly, Xiao Wu worry began to ease.
"Sister Yu... what happened?" Xiao Wu approached Zhu Zhuqing, helping to "heat" the area.
"I don't know. The last time Sister Yu came back after obtaining her sixth soul ring, she was in this state too, but it only took about seven days to recover, so there's no need to worry too much!" Zhu Zhuqing explained briefly.
That was all she knew.
Xiao Wu was stunned.
The last time she obtained the sixth soul ring?
She didn't know about this.
When she saw Li Yu on Er Ming's shoulder, he hadn't revealed his soul rings.
Later, when they came to Heaven Dou and Li Yu used his spatial power to take her to find Zhu Zhuqing, he still hadn't revealed his soul rings.
Zhu Zhuqing assumed Xiao Wu knew some basic details about Li Yu, but since their reunion had only been a day, they hadn't had time to discuss it.
Therefore, Xiao Wu hadn't been told that Li Yu had already reached Spirit Emperor with six rings.
Thus, Xiao Wu was shocked.
Hearing this, she suddenly realized that Li Yu was in this state again.
Could he be trying to obtain another soul ring?
How could that be possible?
She instinctively tried to sense Li Yu soul power, but in his weakened state, his aura was so faint that the mysterious power protecting his body made it impossible for her to detect anything.
"Ha~"
Xiao Wu sighed with relief. "I hope I'm overthinking this!"
If Li Yu could move from being a Spirit Emperor with six rings... no, even from being a Soul Grandmaster with four rings to a Spirit Saint with seven rings, then...
She wouldn't know how to face that.
It would be too terrifying!
If humans had such a terrifying genius, how would soul beasts ever rise again?
Perhaps only when that true being awakens could they have a chance!
With this thought, Xiao Wu finally realized where the familiar aura was coming from.
This place... seemed to be under Star Dou!
After telling Zhu Zhuqing, they both finally understood why Li Yu had summoned them.
It seemed...
In this situation, although they were not strong enough, they were the last protective power Li Yu could summon!
They also realized the terrifying nature of the 'Gate of Life.'
From Heaven Dou to Star Dou, the distance was immense!
Yet they had arrived so quickly, and they hadn't even noticed much of a difference!
It was even smoother than traveling with Li Yu using 'Space Transposition.'
'Space Transposition' had noticeable changes in light and a tearing feeling in the body. While brief, it was unmistakable.
But 'Gate of Life' didn't feel like that.
It felt as simple as walking through an ordinary door.
In fact, they had guessed correctly.
Li Yu had summoned them for protection.
Although he had already checked the surroundings and found no danger, this was Star Dou, and it was always better to be cautious. Who knew if any soul beasts below ground might accidentally cross his path?
If they were unlucky enough to be encountered, it would be an unfortunate situation for him!
Li Yu hadn't anticipated that, in trying to add this small bit of protection, someone far away would become uneasy and make a major decision...