Chapter 818: It Really Is You

Xue Bingxiao was dumbfounded.

In this world, there is actually someone who would provoke a Heavenly Tribulation? What kind of insane behavior is this?

More importantly, following that shout from Ye Lin, the tribulation clouds that had just gathered actually began to slowly dissipate.

Xue Bingxiao felt her brain stop thinking for that split second; her mood at this moment was exactly the same as Pei Jiuye’s had been back then.

No one could remain calm after seeing such a shocking scene.

If Pei Jiuye hadn't been severely injured by Xue Bingxiao, he would probably have rushed out immediately to shake hands with her and shout out loud.

"A kindred spirit!"

Xue Bingxiao raised her head somewhat stiffly, her neck even emitting a cracking sound.

This situation, where a certain-death scenario was so easily resolved, left her at a loss.

"How did you do it?" Xue Bingxiao asked, looking at Ye Lin with a dazed gaze.

"Call me Master!" Ye Lin reminded her.

"......"

After a moment of silence, Xue Bingxiao spoke again to ask.

"Master, how did you do it?"

"I just reasoned with it and appealed to its emotions; I communicated well with the Heavenly Tribulation!"

Ye Lin spread his hands.

Xue Bingxiao stared fixedly at Ye Lin, the light in the depths of her eyes unfathomable.

She realized in an instant that this little man in the Soaring Realm before her likely harbored a massive secret.

One must know that she and Yao Geng had a Dao Oath marriage.

Yet now, Yao Geng was dead without even ashes left, and she was completely fine.

Looking across the Longevity Continent, no one would doubt the weight of a Dao Oath marriage; even if a Saint came, they could not sever the karma of a Dao Oath marriage.

Yet now, a Soaring Realm cultivator was able to resolve it.

No matter how hard Xue Bingxiao racked her brains, she truly could not think of what method Ye Lin could possibly have to let her escape the karma of a Dao Oath marriage.

This clearly already exceeded the scope of Xue Bingxiao’s understanding.

If this news were to spread, it would likely trigger a terrifying tremor throughout the entire Longevity Continent.

Ye Lin would also become the focus of the entire Longevity Continent, and many couples who had entered into Dao Oath marriages out of ignorance in their youth would take the initiative to seek him out.

Following that, Ye Lin would surely be captured by the major holy lands and sects to be sliced up and studied.

Ye Lin ignored Xue Bingxiao’s thoughts; with the Slave Seal in hand, as long as he wasn't as stupid as Yao Geng to trust Xue Bingxiao one hundred percent, she wouldn't be able to stir up any trouble.

Ye Lin stood beside the bottomless abyss and began to look down; having refined the Soul-Hunting Underworld Pupils, his eyesight was excellent, and at a glance, he saw that there was another world beneath the abyss of the Thousand Red Cavern.

He remembered Yao Geng saying that a thousand years ago, the Joyous Union Sect rose to power only after obtaining a top-grade human cauldron and gaining this opportunity.

Ye Lin wanted to see just how "top-grade" this so-called top-grade human cauldron was, to be able to support the rise of the entire Joyous Union Sect.

He leaped down into the bottomless abyss, and after landing at the bottom, the first thing that came into view was a patch of red flesh.

That flesh was wriggling, as if it had grown directly out of the surrounding rock walls, looking somewhat disgusting.

In the middle of the flesh was a naked man; his limbs were all wrapped in the red flesh, and even his head was swallowed by it, revealing only a mouth and two nostrils.

Ye Lin was startled by this man.

Because this man could hardly be called human; one could clearly see the other's bones through the skin—this was entirely a skeleton wrapped in a layer of skin.

If it weren't for the fact that the man still had a heartbeat and breath, Ye Lin would have even suspected that this man was already a corpse.

"So this is that top-grade human cauldron? Tsk tsk tsk, they really squeezed him hard."

Ye Lin clicked his tongue in wonder; for some reason, when he saw this top-grade human cauldron, he had an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

Hearing Ye Lin’s voice, the skin-and-bones man struggled, his upper and lower jaws opening and closing as if he wanted to say something.

But he was truly too weak, and only a hoarse, rattling sound could be emitted from the depths of his throat.

"He cannot be used as a human cauldron right now."

Xue Bingxiao appeared at the bottom of the bottomless abyss at some point.

"I was in a rush to break through to the Dao Source Realm before and used him too frequently, almost damaging his origin; he needs to rest for at least ten years or more to recover."

The users of human cauldrons are not divided by gender; one can harvest Yang to supplement Yin, or use Yang to supplement Yang—either way, it can ultimately improve one's cultivation.

Therefore, it is not uncommon for male cultivators to use male human cauldrons to increase their strength.

Seeing Ye Lin staring at the top-grade human cauldron, Xue Bingxiao thought Ye Lin wanted to use it.

"No, I have no interest in this."

Ye Lin shook his head, then immediately asked.

"Tell me, what makes this top-grade human cauldron 'top-grade'? Why could it make a major sect rise in just a thousand years?"

Ye Lin had just used his Soul-Hunting Underworld Pupils to look, and this skin-and-bones man’s spiritual roots and constitution were both unremarkable, with nothing special about them.

Hearing Ye Lin’s question, a charming smile appeared on Xue Bingxiao’s face as she extended a jade-white finger and gently traced circles on the skin-and-bones man’s chest.

"You certainly can't tell just by looking at his roots and bones; although this human cauldron’s roots are ordinary, he possesses a special talent that is rare to encounter even in a hundred thousand years."

Xue Bingxiao’s finger stopped on the left side of the skin-and-bones man’s chest, and she parted her red lips to utter four words.

"Heart of an Innocent!"

"Heart of an Innocent?"

Ye Lin frowned slightly; why did he feel an even stronger sense of familiarity with this skin-and-bones man?

Hearing the question in Ye Lin’s tone, Xue Bingxiao thought he didn't know how monstrous this "Heart of an Innocent" talent was, so she began to explain it to him.

The Heart of an Innocent is neither good nor evil, pure without any distracting thoughts, possessing extreme perseverance and terrifying comprehension.

Those who possess the Heart of an Innocent are favored by the Heavenly Dao; they achieve twice the result with half the effort when cultivating, and their strength improves extremely quickly.

It is precisely because of this that a cultivator with the Heart of an Innocent is the best human cauldron in this world, bar none.

Because a cultivator who dual-cultivates with a Heart of an Innocent can also enjoy the effects brought by it.

Furthermore, the pure, distraction-free Heart of an Innocent can withstand higher-intensity energy infusion, and the output energy is more easily absorbed, greatly reducing the risk of suffering from Qi deviation.

If used for harvesting, the effect is even more excellent, almost reaching a one-hundred-percent conversion rate; he is essentially a human-shaped power bank with infinite energy.

It is precisely because of this that the Joyous Union Sect’s strength skyrocketed to become a renowned demonic sect after obtaining this top-grade human cauldron a thousand years ago.

The more Ye Lin heard, the more something felt wrong, and he began to mutter to himself.

This doesn't seem right, does it?

A thousand years ago, Heart of an Innocent—how could all these conditions match up? That can't be, right?

With a heart full of trepidation, Ye Lin carefully wiped away the red flesh covering the skin-and-bones man’s face, revealing his entire face.

And the moment he saw the man’s face clearly, Ye Lin jumped up, leaping three feet high, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

"Holy crap, it really is you!"