Where is Su Jiu Can you come and help

Su Ji stared at the three blood-red characters carved into the stone tablet, feeling utterly speechless.

No matter how the world changes, through shifting stars and transforming seas...

How the hell did [Dragon's Prison Abyss] end up being passed down as [Phoenix Roost Gorge]? Aside from both being geographical names, was there even the slightest similarity between them?

But complaints aside—

The moment the name [Dragon's Prison Abyss] surfaced, all the previous inconsistencies suddenly made perfect sense.

No wonder the cold pool exuded such a sinister, bone-chilling aura.

A place meant to imprison a dragon—what kind of paradise could it possibly be?

And those abnormal fluctuations in the earth’s veins? Probably not some ancient treasure about to emerge...

More like the sealed dragon trying to break free...?

Su Ji’s mind raced.

This was getting complicated.

Was this really a situation he should be meddling in?

Where’s Su Jiu when you need her?

Couldn’t she swoop in for a rescue?

Ah, whatever.

He’d have to figure it out himself.

Assuming the Holy Maiden of the Joyful Union Sect—

Really did observe the stars and divine this opportunity...

Did she actually see through the true nature of this place?

If she did...

Then luring so many rogue cultivators here wasn’t just about using them as disposable scouts.

These fools, blinded by the promise of "thirty percent of the spoils," probably wouldn’t even know how they died.

Nine times out of ten, they were meant as blood sacrifices—to weaken the seal.

Su Ji shuddered.

That woman’s heart is darker than the abyss itself.

But for him, this might actually be an opportunity.

A prison strong enough to hold a true dragon... Surely it could withstand a heavenly tribulation?

The tribulation he was about to face was terrifying, but in terms of sheer destructive power, it only spanned a hundred miles.

Surely that’s nothing compared to a real dragon’s wrath?

The plan was almost too feasible.

The only wildcard was that this place was far more dangerous than he’d anticipated.

One misstep, and he might drown in the dragon’s bathwater before the heavenly tribulation even arrived.

Su Ji—the ever-calculating opportunist—never fought unprepared.

[Heaven’s Insight]’s cooldown would end in just one more day.

For now, caution was key.

When in doubt, run first.

At the very least, he’d wait until [Heaven’s Insight] was ready, see what fate had in store, and then decide whether to charge in recklessly.

Decision made, Su Ji didn’t linger at the gorge’s peak.

Leaping from jagged outcrops along the cliff face, he descended in a series of agile bounds, soon returning to the edge of the frigid pool.

Only a sparse dozen or so rogue cultivators remained by the water now.

Their cultivation was mediocre at best—mostly mid-to-late Qi Refining stage.

Their expressions flickered with hesitation, clearly still debating whether to proceed.

Not surprising.

With their meager strength, even if some heaven-defying opportunity did appear—say, the Joyful Union Sect’s Holy Maiden losing her cultivation and becoming helpless—there was no way they’d be the ones to benefit.

But walking away entirely?

As rogue cultivators, they might never encounter another chance like this in their entire lives.

Su Ji couldn’t care less about their internal struggles.

He strode to the water’s edge, stepped into the shallow current without hesitation, and dove in headfirst.

"Gurgle..."

The icy water enveloped him instantly.

Instead of diving deeper immediately, Su Ji paused, suspended in the water, allowing his body to adjust to the cold and pressure.

Only then did he slowly open his eyes.

The underwater expanse was far vaster than he’d imagined.

Visibility was near-zero, the light swallowed by the depths.

A quick glance around revealed nothing but barren rocks—no signs of life.

Su Ji regulated his breathing and began descending.

Every sense remained sharp, attuned to the slightest disturbance in the water.

Yet even after diving nearly a hundred meters, he found nothing unusual.

Not even a single fish.

The silence was almost unnerving.

Just as he prepared to go deeper, the water around him twisted subtly—as if he’d passed through an invisible barrier.

Su Ji’s nerves tightened. He halted his descent immediately.

What was that?

A barrier formation?

Frowning, he didn’t push forward. Instead, he turned and swam upward.

Soon, he felt that same faint resistance again.

Not one-way. Doesn’t block entry or exit... for now.

Having confirmed this, Su Ji didn’t hesitate further.

He resumed his dive, searching for the entrance to the submerged cavern.

But after what felt like half an incense stick’s worth of time, his lungs began to burn.

Damn it, lost again.

The pool’s bottom was far wider than expected, and with the near-total darkness, wandering blindly was getting him nowhere.

Just as he considered surfacing for air, a ripple echoed from above.

Someone else is coming down.

Su Ji instantly suppressed his aura and slipped behind a massive rock.

Soon, a figure swam past overhead—one of the hesitant Qi Refining cultivators from earlier.

Su Ji smirked.

Free guide, courtesy of fate.

Keeping a discreet distance, he followed as the cultivator moved purposefully forward, guided by a faintly glowing stone in his palm.

Much easier than stumbling around alone.

The two descended another fifty meters before the lead cultivator stopped at an inconspicuous fissure in the rock wall—so narrow it barely fit a single person.

What a tight squeeze.

Without hesitation, the man stowed his compass and squeezed through.

Su Ji waited a moment, ensuring no traps lay ahead, then followed.

"At first, extremely narrow—just wide enough for a man..."

After a dozen steps, the passage abruptly widened.

Swimming upward another ten meters, they emerged into an air-filled cavern.

Water dripped from the ceiling, each drop striking the ground with a clear, echoing plink.

But the Qi Refining cultivator had stopped dead ahead.

Su Ji moved closer.

Before them yawned a sheer cliff, dropping into unfathomable darkness.

The two exchanged glances.

After sizing Su Ji up—noting his similar cultivation level—the man spoke first.

"Fellow Daoist, do you know how to descend?"

Su Ji grinned, flashing a row of white teeth.

"Oh, I do. Fellow Daoist, I definitely do."

The man’s eyes lit up.

"How?"

Su Ji shook his head.

"Copying me leads to life. Imitating me leads to death."

"My method... won’t work for you."

Never one for lengthy explanations, Su Ji acted immediately.

He drew the spear from his back, channeling spiritual energy into it.

A blinding white light erupted in the cavern, forcing the other cultivator to shield his eyes.

Then—

"Whoosh!"

Su Ji hurled the spear downward like a shooting star.

It streaked through the darkness before abruptly halting mid-fall—likely embedded in the ground below.

Su Ji estimated the drop: roughly a hundred and fifty meters.

So the real challenge here isn’t some Foundation Establishment-level threat...

It’s that you need to know how to fly to even get in.

No wonder ordinary Qi Refining cultivators can’t even reach the door.

But here's the thing—was Su Ji just an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator?

His methods were anything but orthodox.

In the next moment, Su Ji drew the sword at his waist—a weapon once wielded by a Golden Core expert.

Then, under the stunned gaze of the other cultivator, he took a mighty leap and plunged straight off the cliff.

The onlooker assumed Su Ji was committing suicide.

Yet mid-fall, Su Ji's blade flashed coldly as he drove it deep into the sheer cliff face.

"Screeee—!"

A spine-chilling screech of metal grinding against stone rang out.

The supreme-grade spiritual sword sliced through rock like a hot knife through butter.

Su Ji's descent sent sparks flying as he plummeted over ten meters before abruptly jerking to a halt.

There he dangled, suspended in mid-air.

The Qi Refining cultivator atop the cliff gaped in disbelief.

This... actually worked?

Without hesitation, Su Ji yanked the sword free, dropped again, and stabbed it back into the cliff at the perfect moment.

Repeating this cycle, he soon vanished from the other cultivator's sight.

Peering into the bottomless darkness below, the cliff-top cultivator felt an itch of temptation.

With fortune right before him, how could he retreat?

Mimicking Su Ji, he too drew his own sword.