Even then, some hesitated. The Society stood closest to the Sunken Sea of all major forces, and many feared the upper echelons would step in to control access. But those concerns were soon dispelled. After the three eight-star demon hunters led a team to clear the demonic beasts, they withdrew entirely and showed no intention of interfering further. Thus, those with ambition now rushed in without check. Cultivators from every corner of the Northern Sea began making their way toward the Sunken Sea, drawn by the same promise.0

Finally, three months later, hundreds of towering waterspouts rose from the Sunken Sea, spiraling upward as though to tear open the sky itself. They stood only for a moment before collapsing, but what they left behind was far more unsettling. Across the expanse of the ocean, countless vortices churned into existence, drawing in a massive amount of natural spirit energy. Some claimed these vortices were the entrances to the pocket...0