Chapter 701: Kill the He Shen

When Ding Huan arrived at the outer perimeter of Liyin Divine Valley, a man was striking the valley's protective array with a Qiankun Paddle.

Although Liyin Divine Valley's protective array was a Level-Seven Divine Array, in Ding Huan's eyes, this Level-Seven array was worse than a Level-Six.

It was sloppily constructed, barely holding together by top-tier array flags and a barely supported core array heart—a fake Level-Seven Divine Array.

Under the Qiankun Paddle's strikes, this protective array cracked with a crisp snap after only a few hits.

"What is your meaning, brother? We of Liyin Divine Valley have never seen you before—why do you attack our protective array upon arrival? Isn't that excessive?"

Xian Wushang stood at the array gate with a group of Liyin Divine Valley elites, several divine array masters frantically repairing the array, but the attacker's assault was too powerful—their repair speed was far too slow.

It seemed Xian Wushang knew the attacker was a He Shen cultivator and dared not open the array to fight.

"Hand over Ding Huan." As the man spoke, he struck again with his Qiankun Paddle.

"Crack!" A crack appeared in the protective array.

But the man ceased his assault, for a strange pot-shaped flying treasure had landed before him.

"You're looking for me?" Ding Huan stepped out of the Cosmic Pot.

Ji Luo and Emperor Hou Hen followed Ding Huan out of the Cosmic Pot; behind them emerged Yuan Qing and Wang Wang Zhenjiu.

The man ignored Ding Huan's words, staring in disbelief at Yuan Qing, who was cowering at the rear: "Yuan Qing—how could you possibly be here?"

Yuan Qing was bound by his Soul-Binding Seal—only he himself could have undone Yuan Qing's sealing runes.

Then he saw Wang Wang Zhenjiu—wasn't that also bound by his Soul-Binding Seal?

"Friend Ding..." Xian Wushang stared in delight at Ding Huan's return.

"So you're Ding Huan." The man calmed down, shaken by the escape of Yuan Qing and Wang Wang Zhenjiu from his Soul-Binding Seal.

It seemed Yuan Qing and Wang Wang Zhenjiu had been freed by Ding Huan.

Ding Huan probably couldn't break his Soul-Binding Seal—perhaps it was Ding Huan's master, that human He Shen Ancestor, who did it.

I heard this He Shen Ancestor can set up a Killing Law Array—he does have some skill.

If so, Shen Cuo wants to see whether this He Shen Ancestor's strength matches his array craftsmanship.

Xian Wushang had already opened the protective array—since Ding Huan had returned, there was no need to keep guarding it.

Besides, this array couldn't hold out anyway; one more strike from the opponent would shatter it completely.

Ding Huan was also studying Shen Cuo—the man was tall and slender, clean-shaven, his eyes brimming with murderous aura, exuding a certain aura of a powerful cultivator.

"It's Huan Ye." Ding Huan replied.

He was carving the trapping array's runes.

Shen Cuo is a He Shen—no matter what, he cannot be allowed to escape.

"Was Cang Qing killed by you?" Shen Cuo's voice was icy, yet the killing intent nearly spilled from his words.

Huan Ye? In his eyes, Ding Huan was certainly not at the He Shen realm.

If he wasn't at the He Shen realm, how could he be Huan Ye? Was this fellow impersonating his master?

"Old Hou, this guy talks too much—take care of him." Ding Huan had no intention of fighting himself; since Emperor Hou Hen was following him, he should do the work.

Without Ding Huan's reminder, Emperor Hou Hen's domain extended and locked onto Shen Cuo.

Even though Emperor Hou Hen had been trapped in the Void Abyss for countless eons, he was once a legendary figure—impossible to compare with someone like Shen Cuo.

At least he was one of the Twelve Divine Emperors.

Whether in understanding of the Dao, his own cultivated Dao, or Dao-based divine arts, he utterly crushed Shen Cuo.

"You're also at the He Shen realm? Then are you the real Huan Ye?" Shen Cuo's domain slammed out in response.

The two He Shen domains collided, and the void erupted with tearing sounds.

Emperor Hou Hen sneered: "Thought you were formidable—a He Shen with an incomplete Dao, daring to boast about being He Shen?"

Ding Huan realized Shen Cuo's realm was He Shen Mid-Stage, while Emperor Hou Hen's cultivation had dropped to barely He Shen level.

Yet in their domain clash, Shen Cuo was clearly on the losing side—Emperor Hou Hen's domain effortlessly suppressed Shen Cuo.

This was even though Emperor Hou Hen hadn't properly restored his power.

It seemed Emperor Hou Hen was right—Shen Cuo was vastly inferior in Dao foundation and understanding of the He Shen realm.

These veteran powerhouses still had their tricks.

Shen Cuo felt the oppressive force of Emperor Hou Hen's domain; though neither had yet moved to attack, his heart had already sunk—he knew he was no match for Emperor Hou Hen.

He had specifically cultivated to He Shen Mid-Stage before emerging—yet the moment he stepped out, he was suppressed. This shattered his worldview.

When did this universe gain such a powerful being?

Emperor Hou Hen knew Ding Huan didn't want Shen Cuo to escape, so he didn't rush to strike—he steadily strengthened his He Shen domain while waiting for the opponent to move first.

His cultivation hadn't fully recovered; even if Shen Cuo lacked understanding of the He Shen Dao, he was still He Shen Mid-Stage.

If Shen Cuo truly decided to flee, Emperor Hou Hen couldn't yet restrain him.

Shen Cuo's icy gaze fell on Qi Yi: "Qi Yi, you claimed Cang Qing was killed by Ding Huan—do you have proof?"

Qi Yi froze. Proof?

He'd just made it up—what proof did he have?

"You dare lie to me?" Shen Cuo's voice grew colder.

Qi Yi felt an extreme chill pierce his heart—sweat instantly drenched his forehead: "Master, I—I—I deserve to die…" "Speak—why did you deceive me?" Shen Cuo's tone revealed profound disappointment.

"I wanted to kill Ding Huan…" As Qi Yi spoke, he realized his so-called master had known from the start he was lying.

The man had merely wanted an excuse to kill Ding Huan—but now that he saw Ding Huan's side was strong, he no longer wished to act.

"Friend Ding, I was wrong—I acted without verifying the facts..." Shen Cuo bowed to Ding Huan, his eyes filled with regret.

Ding Huan chuckled: "No, you didn't get it wrong—Cang Qing was indeed killed by me.

And you knew Cang Qing was killed by me—even though you knew Qi Yi lied, you already learned from Yuan Qing that Cang Qing was killed by me."

You want a way out? I won't give you one—today, I'm killing you.

Shen Cuo's voice faltered—why was this Ding Huan not playing by the rules?

He was, after all, a Divine Union cultivator…

But the moment he thought of this, Emperor Hou Hen struck.

Looking at them one by one/p>

A streak of golden light burst out from Emperor Hou Hen's domain and slammed toward the top of his head.

Shen Cuo was greatly alarmed. He sensed he was no match for Emperor Hou Hen, and since Ding Huan clearly did not intend to let things rest here, he naturally did not dare keep fighting.

The Qiankun Tang raised wall after wall of tang-light that swept outward, while he himself retreated frantically.

But under Emperor Hou Hen's domain, his retreat grew slower and slower.

Just then, a vortex of killing force suddenly tore through his Sea of Consciousness domain and slammed deep into his Sea of Consciousness.

Shen Cuo opened his mouth and vomited a bloody arrow, and the tang-walls he had sent out shattered one after another.

At this moment, how could Shen Cuo not know someone was plotting against him in the dark?

He had never been Emperor Hou Hen's match to begin with, and now someone was ambushing him at a time like this—the sheer shamelessness was beyond words.

Shen Cuo no longer dared stay; without the slightest hesitation, he turned and fled.

Boom!

Emperor Hou Hen's golden light slammed into Shen Cuo's Qiankun Tang, blasting the Qiankun Tang flying. Shen Cuo vomited another bloody arrow, and his body sped up even more.

If he did not leave today, staying here would only mean waiting to die.

A sky-covering great net descended from the void, sealing off every avenue of Shen Cuo's escape.

Shen Cuo was horrified. Just as he was about to madly burn his essence blood, another vortex-killing divine technique slammed into his Sea of Consciousness domain.

This was the second time Ding Huan had used the Yellow Flower Kill to ambush Shen Cuo.

Shen Cuo vomited a bloody arrow for the third time, wanting nothing more than to curse aloud.

In just that instant, Shen Cuo had already been locked down by that great net.

Ding Huan secretly praised Emperor Hou Hen—his Yiluo Awareness Net was used with truly consummate skill.

The moment Shen Cuo was locked by the Yiluo Awareness Net, that golden light once again smashed down from the void.

Without the Qiankun Tang, this time the golden radiance slammed into Shen Cuo's back.

Shen Cuo's physical body collapsed, dissolving into clumps of blood mist.

Only now did the onlookers see clearly that the golden radiance was nothing but an enormous golden brick.

Ding Huan muttered to himself—Emperor Hou Hen, you old rascal, that golden brick of yours is quite something, a very wealthy-looking treasure. He'd have to see later if there was a chance to swindle it away.

Shen Cuo's Primordial Spirit surged out, almost teleporting as it shot away.

"Boom!"

The Primordial Spirit slammed into the Soul-Binding Divine Grand Array Ding Huan had set up and was bounced back.

"Fellow Daoist Ding, I, Shen Cuo, admit defeat. This matter was my fault. I am willing to compensate you…"

Shen Cuo was terrified. He had thought that having reached mid Divine Union, he could absolutely swagger through the God Realm, that no one could pose the slightest threat to him—not even a Divine Union cultivator.

But today, the other side had only sent out one person, and he had lost utterly cleanly; now even his physical body had been blasted into blood mist.

Looking at the soul-locking array patterns that had been set up at some unknown time, he knew that if the other party did not show mercy, this place today would be the burial ground of his soul.

Ding Huan could not be bothered to pay Shen Cuo any attention. He raised both hands and sent down dozens of arcs of heavenly thunder.

Even if Shen Cuo's physical body were intact, resisting Ding Huan's continuous bombardment of this heavenly thunder dao art would be very difficult—let alone now that he only had his Primordial Spirit left.

"Fellow Daoist Ding, you cannot kill me. The human race's strength is dwindling now; if you kill me, that would be helping the God Race…"

Shen Cuo panicked.

Ding Huan kept laying down various spatial-law array patterns, while mocking: "You're saying this now? When you wiped out the Myriad Pill Divine Sect and destroyed Dao Ruin Street, why didn't I see you considering the human race?"

From beginning to end, Ding Huan had never intended to let Shen Cuo go. If he did not kill this fellow, his heart would not be at ease.

"Crack!"

The Primordial Spirit of the soon-to-perish Shen Cuo stared in terror at what was before him—his very world had been opened up by Ding Huan.

A wave of despair surged into his heart.

Boom!

Another bolt of divine thunder fell and slammed onto Shen Cuo's battered Primordial Spirit. Shen Cuo's Primordial Spirit completely collapsed and perished.

(End of this chapter)