Regarding the establishment of a Star Pirate Group of the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field, both Kou Chongxue and Shang Xia had in fact long made plans and had been preparing for it for some time. With the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field developing rapidly, both in terms of overall strength and accumulated foundation, it had already reached a level comparable to other long-established Heavenly Fields. In such a situation, it was only natural for the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field to participate in the power struggles of the Chaotic Sea of Stars on a grand scale and prepare in advance for a possible invasion from other Star Fields. As for the newly formed Star Pirate Group, both Shang Xia and Kou Chongxue favored True Immortal Gao Qin, not only because of her cultivation, which was at the fifth tier of the Martial Void Realm, but also due to her experience, making her one of the top combatants in the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field. Secondly, and importantly, she was not a native cultivator of the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field. By putting her in charge of forming the Star Pirate Group, it would naturally provide both her and the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field with a layer of plausible deniability. With Song Zhen, a seasoned senior Star Pirate, assisting her, once the group was formed, their high-end combat strength would surpass many of the large Star Pirate Groups in the Chaotic Sea of Stars, rivaling even some of the super Star Pirate Groups. However, neither Shang Xia nor Huang Jinghan had anticipated that Sun Haiwei would suddenly volunteer to join them. Judging by her firm tone, she clearly didn’t decide it on a whim, but something she had thought of for a long time. As one of the high-level combatants in Tongyou Institution and one of the few high-level True Immortals, Sun Haiwei’s decision to join the pirate group would naturally face many complications. Her identity alone posed a major issue. Shang Xia asked with a strange look on his face, "The Heavenly Field is in need of talent everywhere right now. You're currently one of the decision-makers in the institution. Once the patriarch and I begin appearing less frequently, your role here will only become more important. If you leave now to enter the Chaotic Sea of Stars, you might not return for several years, maybe even over a decade." Sun Haiwei simply smiled. "I've realized that within the institution, and even in our Heavenly Field, the chances for me to further my cultivation are growing increasingly slim. If I want to reach the next level, I’ll likely have to seek my opportunity in the Chaotic Sea of Stars." She paused slightly, then looked at Shang Xia with a smile. "Although we’ve always been striving to prove ourselves, in reality, it’s been you and the patriarch carrying us forward all these years. We've been protected too well." Shang Xia was taken aback by what she said, momentarily unsure of what to say. Huang Jinghan let out a soft sigh while standing nearby. A touch of admiration appeared on his face as he said quietly, "Looks like your Tongyou Institution has successors ready." Shang Xia gave an awkward smile upon hearing that. Truthfully speaking, in terms of age and years of cultivation, Sun Haiwei was older than him. But because of Shang Xia’s accomplishments in the path of cultivation, more and more people had subconsciously started viewing him as an elder or even a leader, often overlooking his actual age. After returning from the vicinity of the Essence Xing World, the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field intensified its monitoring of the situation and began gathering forces to intervene when needed. Meanwhile, Gao Qin and Sun Haiwei secretly began recruiting personnel and preparing to form their Star Pirate Group. Originally, this task was to be handled by Gao Qin and Song Zhen. Gao Qin would select suitable candidates from the Essence Luxuriant World and their auxiliary worlds, while Song Zhen was responsible for logistics and intelligence gathering. However, once Sun Haiwei volunteered to serve as Gao Qin’s deputy, the entire process sped up considerably. Whether it was selecting and mobilizing personnel or gathering supplies, with Sun Haiwei’s standing as a high-level True Immortal and her recently new identity of the deputy patriarch of the Tongyou Institution, everything went smoothly without any resistance. While everything was progressing in an orderly fashion within the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field, less than three months later, Shang Xia suddenly received news. The Essence Xing World had been completely breached! Upon receiving the message, Shang Xia immediately rushed over by creating a spatial tunnel, arriving just outside the chaotic streams of the Essence Xing World. Behind him, hidden within a secret void formation, the Five Element Teleportation Formation constructed by the institution’s Formation Hall was fully activated. One by one, experts in the Martial Dipper Realm or higher began to emerge. Behind the massive teleportation platform, which constantly devoured essence crystals, stood at least two large Star Ships prepared to launch. They were commanded by Huang Jinghan and the Ying Brothers respectively. Shang Xia nodded slightly toward the void behind him. In the next instant, his figure flickered as a shadow separated from his body and shot through the chaotic streams, appearing outside the Essence Xing World. The instant Shang Xia’s External Avatar appeared, the space around the Essence Xing World seemed to weaken noticeably, and even the world itself was visibly compressed. It was as if the world were a giant egg, with the yolk representing Essence Xing World and the egg white as the void beyond the heavenly screen. Now, with the sudden emergence of Shang Xia’s External Avatar, it was like inserting a foreign object into the egg white, placing great strain on the shell of the egg. The moment his External Avatar appeared in the outer void, he could sense that he wasn’t alone. Aside from Yuan Ling and Yan Yu, who had initiated the invasion of the Essence Xing World, Shang Xia detected at least three other Sages. However, two of them appeared to be only at the initial Martial Emptiness Realm. They should be nothing more than clones. Although Shang Xia’s External Avatar was technically also just a clone, his combat power and cultivation reached that of a third star Sage, which meant that the other Sages would regard him as a full-fledged Sage. Like the other Sages present, Shang Xia’s External Avatar kept himself hidden and masked his identity. But his attention was not on the other Sages. Instead, he focused directly on the interior of Essence Xing World, beneath the heavenly screen. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel※fire.net In truth, ever since the death of the Qi Dynasty Emperor at the hands of Yuan Ling and the destruction of the Qi Dynasty’s Dao Field, the internal defenses of Essence Xing World had grown thin. The attackers of the Essence Ling Heavenly Field and Essence Du Heavenly Field quickly accelerated their infiltration efforts. Although the suppressive force of the Essence Xing World’s Will greatly diminished the combat effectiveness of the experts from those Heavenly Fields, especially their True Immortals, they couldn’t stop the betrayals from those within. The Secret Talisman Gate, a name that Shang Xia was not unfamiliar with, was one such traitor. It was this once-formidable hidden sect’s betrayal that allowed Yuan Ling to find the right moment to forcefully invade and kill the Qi Dynasty Emperor of the next generation. Their internal coordination also enabled the alliance to continuously funnel forces into the Essence Xing World.