Chapter 525: Its Body, Her Soul

The shattering of the River and Mountains Map made the entire sky resemble dusk, faintly permeated with an air of twilight.

That tall figure stood straight where he was.

The tattered black armor on his body dispersed like wind-blown sand; the Return-to-Void Immortal Armor had already returned to the array at his heart, leaving only his ink-black robe slightly lifted.

Shen Yi lowered his gaze to his empty palm, feeling no warmth from Pan Boyang's blood, and a sense of unease persisted.

Moments later, he withdrew his gaze and casually clenched his fist.

That black blade with golden patterns shot out of the ancient tree, transforming into a streak of sharp light that harvested the lives of the remaining Diming Youmang!

Pfft! Pfft!

Before this black blade that could shatter the Green Fire Lotus Sword and ignore the Tianyuan Huanlei Chi, the heavily injured snake demons had little room for resistance, and their bodies and heads separated without them even realizing it.

The blood scent already filling the world between heaven and earth grew slightly more intense.

This also caused everyone present to slowly come to their senses.

Yang Yunheng, leading the many direct disciples and elders of the Banshan Sect, suddenly felt a chilling coldness on the back of their necks.

Earlier within the sect, their gaze had fallen entirely on those Dao Sons from start to finish, subconsciously ignoring this young man in the ink-black robe.

But only now did they realize that if a giant of the Dao-Integration realm had not intervened, who exactly had spared whom that day.

To know, setting aside others, just that Dao Son from the Heavenly Sword Sect was no less than their own Yan Dao Son.

And with the Yan Dao Son unable to attend to everything at once.

Even if they combined their forces, how much better would their situation be compared to this group of Diming Youmang?

Moreover, Wei Yuanzhou and Bai Wu were also Dao Sons of Yu Nanhong; could their strength possibly be lacking?

The Seven Sons of Yu Nanhong... did not seem to be a name long buried in the river of history as most cultivators of the other three Hongs imagined; they had indeed fallen into obscurity, but they were not dead, and their vitality remained tenacious, ready to soar again at any moment.

"Do not contact him for now, including those Dao Sons."

Yang Yunheng quietly transmitted a voice to Yan Chongzhang; according to the rules, even as the Grand Elder, it was impossible for him to use such a tone when speaking to the sect's Dao Son.

But the Yan Dao Son's actions earlier had truly left this Grand Elder feeling anxious in his heart.

To know, the strength Shen Yi had displayed was indeed outstanding, even making people inexplicably recall another figure from Yu Nanhong who had once been unrivaled in fame.

For a figure like this, establishing a connection with him in advance would certainly be a good thing.

But the problem lay in the background.

Both were geniuses, both decisive in action; who was behind Li Xuanqing? It was the Seven Sons of Yu Nanhong, who were nearly on the same level as the Liangdaohuang Sect back then, plus the full support of the entire Eastern Long Gong!

The Purple-Bearded White Dragon clan truly treated him like their own son; whether it was heavenly treasures or anything else, they gave whatever they had; whoever dared to bully Li Xuanqing, before that Qin Zongzhu even appeared, they had sent people holding the Eastern Palace's edict to arrive first.

With these two great powers combined, there were few in the entire Hongze who could stand as opponents.

This was also why Li Xuanqing, before reaching the Dao-Integration realm, could move the situation in Hongze with every single action.

The Purple-Bearded White Dragons favored peace, and Hongze Daxian ignored worldly affairs; they could not bear to see the slaughter of all beings, so they vigorously facilitated the matter between Princess Ziling Xianzi and Li Xuanqing, hoping to use this event to quell the disputes in Hongze.

The situation indeed followed the Eastern Long Gong's plan; for a long time, Hongze was a peaceful and prosperous age, with many cultivators emulating the two, and leaving behind many good stories of marriage between cultivators and demons.

If it were not for that incident at the end, Li Xuanqing, that Bai Yanlang, in a fit of anger, disregarding Princess Ziling Xianzi's warnings, forcibly tried to block her path to immortality, causing the Seven Sons of Yu Nanhong to be personally punished by the immortals of Hongze, and consequently ending up with a notorious reputation.

With the support of the Eastern Long Gong, where was there any room for the Liangdaohuang Sect now?

But young friend Shen Xiao is different now.

His background remains questionable; even if he truly belongs to the Seven Sons of Yu Nanhong, the Seven Sons of today are a completely different concept from before.

Moreover, having just left Yu Nanhong, he simultaneously offended a top-tier cultivator power in Hongze, as well as the Glazed Green Phoenix clan located in West Hong, whose strength was also not insignificant.

More terrifyingly, judging by Shen Yi's conduct, he clearly had no intention of resolving the grudge, but rather gave the impression of wanting to establish a mortal enmity.

The Banshan Sect is an Immortal Sect of immense scale, but when facing such grudges, if they rashly intervened, they might not even be able to protect themselves.

Immortal arts are indeed precious, but one must have a life to learn them! Otherwise, why not go directly to the Liangdaohuang Sect and snatch them?

Besides, young friend Shen Xiao might not be able to truly unlock the secret treasure of Nameless Mountain.

Apart from this.

The Western Long Gong and the Southern Long Gong suddenly joined forces against the Seven Sons of Yu Nanhong.

Could it be because this group of Yu Nanhong cultivators, finally unable to suppress the bitterness in their hearts, wanted to reappear in the world and do something?

As the Grand Elder of the Banshan Sect, Yang Yunheng had to consider matters in the worst possible direction.

If these seven sects truly came with such intentions, such as revenge... let alone immortal arts, no temptation was more important than life!

"..."

Yan Chongzhang silently turned his head to look at the Grand Elder.

He then fell into deep thought again.

He stared tightly at the dark-red Wang Yang, yet his eyes held a hint of trance, as if he were not looking at a body of water, but at an boundless and heavy magnificent Gaoshan.

The Divine Yue Fa, the Divine Yue Fa brought to perfection.

In the cultivation world, there is such a saying: whether talent or bloodline, neither can compare to the word "fate."

Fate can also be called fortune.

There are various mysterious things in the world; others can observe them and touch them, but ultimately cannot turn them to their own use; they are all waiting for a destined person.

To say this might seem strange.

Yan Chongzhang suddenly felt that the Nameless Mountain he had accompanied for tens of thousands of years had finally found its destined person.

This complex emotion was difficult for him to describe in words.

He even felt that Nameless Mountain might have shown Shen Yi some things it had never shown him, perhaps even something that directly granted him perfection... otherwise, it would be hard to explain the current situation.

After all, in just a few days, it was impossible even to finish reading the entire Divine Yue Fa.

Thinking of this, Yan Chongzhang suddenly sighed.

Nameless Mountain was the foundation upon which the Banshan Sect was established, but now this "foundation" seemed to have run off with someone else.

This was originally something worthy of lament.

But recalling how Shen Xiao, in his final act, had gripped Pan Boyang's throat, and with a seemingly casual and indifferent demeanor, drawn all the other's anger and gaze away from the Banshan Sect and the Seven Disciples of Southern Hong, focusing it entirely on himself.

Yan Chongzhang clenched his five fingers, raised his eyes, and finally cast his gaze upon that tall, slender figure.

That gaze contained many things.

The most important meaning among them was the desire to maintain this relationship.

At the very least... the other party could continue to come and observe the mountain!

Everyone present was a cultivator who had ascended Bai Yujing; how could they fail to see the significance represented by this subtle gesture of Daozi Yan?

Under the intimidation of the Liangdaohuang Sect, even glancing at Shen Yi one more time at this moment was an extremely dangerous act.

He not only looked, but was also waiting for the other party's response.

"Tsk."

Bai Wu opened his mouth, clearly wanting to say something; was the Banshan Sect being a bit too much? They weren't even dead yet, and they were doing this right in front of them?

However, since neither Wei Yuanzhou nor Su Hongxiu spoke, he could only pout resentfully.

After slaying the remaining Diming Youmang.

Shen Yi's regret finally diminished somewhat; his figure swept over Wang Yang, gathering all the Diming Youmang corpses into the ring on his finger.

Only after finishing these things.

Did he nod almost imperceptibly.

Immediately, his figure transformed into a purple-and-Bai Long rainbow and vanished at the edge of the sky.

"Hah."

Yan Chongzhang inexplicably let out a sigh of relief.

He had never thought that, at such great risk, offering his family's treasure mountain for others to observe would require the other party's prior consent.

Such an outrageous thing actually made him inexplicably nervous for a moment.

As if he feared Shen Xiao would refuse.

Truly mad.

A bitter smile appeared on his face as he unclenched his tightly gripping five fingers.

This was the biggest decision Yan Chongzhang had made since becoming a Daozi, one that even affected the very survival of the entire sect.

"What are you doing?" Yang Yunheng's face turned slightly green, completely unsure if his own Daozi's brain had been flooded; he rarely questioned the other's decisions, not only because of his exalted status but also because of Yan Chongzhang's steady and reliable performance after becoming a Daozi, but this time he truly could not understand, to the point of temporarily ignoring the breach of propriety, his words carrying a hint of anger.

"I must report this matter to Shen Zongzhu... do not blame me."

Hearing the words of the Eldest Elder, the other elders and direct disciples all stood in place, looking at one another in silence.

Let alone the people of the Banshan Sect.

Even the three Daozis of Southern Hong in the sky sensed the change in atmosphere.

Wei Yuanzhou raised an eyebrow, pondered for a moment, and clasped his hands to bid farewell: "Since the matter is concluded, we shall..."

Just then, Yan Chongzhang raised his eyes again, similarly clasping his hands to return the greeting: "Thank you all for your assistance; Chongzhang will certainly not fail your trust. We will definitely make a trip to Southern Hong."

Upon hearing this, a hint of sigh finally appeared on Wei Yuanzhou's face: "Thank you!"

He had never imagined that the matter of requesting aid would be this difficult; even the Banshan Sect, with which they still maintained some contact, ultimately relied on Shen Zongzhu's influence to persuade the other party.

Had Shen Yi not been present, with only the Glazed Green Phoenix stepping forward today, the rest of them would have returned with nothing to show for it.

Not only would they have lost face, but the Banshan Sect would also have looked down upon the Seven Disciples of Southern Hong, and certainly would not have truly kept the previously discussed matters in mind.

It was just unknown whether, after returning to the Banshan Sect... this Daozi Yan would still have any authority.

The matter was finally concluded.

Bai Wu's mind also felt much lighter; he glanced again at Su Hongxiu beside him: "What are the odds of success?"

The Glazed Green Phoenix was dead, and the great cultivator of the Liangdaohuang Sect had lost all face, perhaps even suffering damage to his realm; what he asked was naturally about Shen Zongzhu, who had departed with ease.

Under normal circumstances, Su Hongxiu would either ignore him or blurt out an answer.

But now, this incredibly beautiful young lady in red robes pondered for a long time, a complex smile appearing on her face: "If a few more years pass, there might be a possibility of a clash; if luck is on our side and the Fourth City can be opened, I can win."

The former referred to the Reincarnation Sword Body.

When her appearance was at its youngest, that was Su Hongxiu's truly terrifying state, at least about fifty percent stronger than she is now.

But she said... there was only a possibility of a clash.

Given Daozi Su's personality, humility was completely alien to her, indicating that this was her most genuine inner thought.

Bai Wu raised his eyebrows, sighing with a smile: "At least there is a chance."

Unexpectedly, Su Hongxiu rolled her eyes at him and said coldly: "Foolish creature."

Upon hearing this, Bai Wu choked; he had clearly been trying to comfort the other party, yet was scolded, feeling inexplicably aggrieved. Before he could speak, he heard Su Hongxiu perform another rare action.

It was a helpless long sigh, imbued with a touch of sighing.

"At this moment, it might be the time I am closest to him," Su Hongxiu said frankly, raising her eyes, and casually dispersed the Bai Yu sword in her palm.

"..."

Prompted by her reminder, Bai Wu, who was not very familiar with Shen Yi, suddenly remembered an extremely terrifying matter.

That Shen Zongzhu had left the Nan Yang treasure land only a year ago.

For other cultivators of Bai Yujing, that would be the time it takes to sit in meditation, perhaps not even enough.

It couldn't possibly be a true immortal's reincarnation, could it? That is truly damn frightening.

Even with Bai Wu's personality, he now began to believe this rumor a little more.

Just as those people were thinking various thoughts.

Shen Yi had already found another uninhabited place and began to inspect the gains from this journey.

First was the lifespan of the demons and monsters, which hurt him the most; most of it had been taken by the cultivators of the Banshan Sect and the several Daozis of Southern Hong, leaving him with very little.

Even though that Eastern Hall Master had fought desperately enough, even to the point of seeming mentally unstable.

Yet its own knowledge and experience were merely that of a Demon in the Ninth Layer of Killed Fanxu; even after enduring several trials of Killed Fanxu spiritual arts later on, it had grown significantly.

But one thing could not be ignored: techniques of the Dao-Integration realm were still far too beyond its reach.

Having consumed over six hundred thousand years of demon lifespan, Ke Shisan's demon soul had been forcibly suppressed by the True Intent of the Divine Mountain for so many years; without the prior experience of Tribulation Crossing, he would have truly died within the panel.

For one to truly break through a realm, one must integrate the Dao with a Nanyang Baodi.

The Divine Mountain Art allowed cultivators to grasp certain techniques belonging to that level in advance.

Moreover, without the precious Suffix, it counted as the most basic form.

Yet even this grade of cultivation method allowed Shen Yi to effortlessly crush the Glazed Green Phoenix, and caused the phantom of a cultivator from the Liangdaohuang Sect, whose realm and technique both surpassed his, to stand before him utterly powerless.

"If only I could obtain a body-refining technique of the Dao-Integration realm."

Shen Yi glanced down at himself; the shattering of the previous Black Armor left him feeling slightly uneasy.

Even with such superior bloodline, this was merely a demon comparable to the realm of Three Cities.

If he truly encountered a Great Demon of the Dao-Integration realm, the Divine Mountain Art could not protect his life.

Enough; it was not yet time to dream.

The corners of Shen Yi's lips lifted slightly as he let out a soft sigh.

He rarely smiled, unless the pressure became truly unbearable, at which point he did so to comfort himself.

Although he held no clear concept of the Liangdaohuang Sect's strength, merely observing the attitude of the Banshan Sect's Dao Disciple toward it was enough to glimpse a fraction of it.

Only a fool would provoke such a faction without cause.

It was simply that escape was impossible; moreover, since the other party had already revealed murderous intent, Shen Yi decided to smash the jar and vent the pent-up anger in his heart.

Now that the jar was smashed, life still had to go on.

【Remaining Demon Lifespan: 1.69 million years】

The first few female serpents he killed were merely demons of the Killed Fanxu realm, averaging around forty or fifty thousand years each; as for those killed later, those who survived to the end possessed decent realms, with the lowest being around the Two Cities level, all having over a hundred thousand years of life remaining.

The Glazed Green Phoenix and the Young Master of the Diming Youmang truly lived up to their reputation as geniuses; the former contributed a full 270,000 years, while the latter contributed eighteen.

But even adding them all together, the situation remained quite dire.

Shen Yi began to gather the demon essence to reshape the Glazed Green Phoenix's demon soul.

In truth, he did not hold high hopes for this phoenix, but compared to the Young Master of the Diming Youmang, who was captured alive by Wei Yuanzhou and kept hoping for someone to rescue him, it was at least picking the taller one among the short.

These demons of West Hong, despite possessing their cultivation, had mentalities that seemed inferior even to the Killed Fanxu demons of South Hong; for instance, Ke Shisan's willpower was far stronger than that of these two.

Once the twelve essence cores were exhausted.

The Glazed Green Phoenix's demon soul was finally fully reshaped and directly placed by Shen Yi into the prepared Stabilizing Stone.

The two Hall Masters quietly appeared on his left and right to guard him.

Shen Yi familiarly closed his eyes.

Purple light at his brow turned into a long rainbow connecting to the sky; clouds and mist dispersed without wind, and at the rainbow's peak, a blurred crimson figure stood with hands hanging loosely.

The Boundless Demon Emperor opened his eyes once more and saw those five majestic great cities.

In its vision, black winds rolled, demonic qi surged to the sky, and the plaques on the great cities no longer bore the previous characters but had transformed into the fearsome Wan Yao Dian.

The third one: Wan Yao South Hall.

Also known as the Upper Emperor Great City, representing the "Sickness Tribulation" among birth, aging, sickness, death, and suffering.

Shen Yi silently chewed on this word.

If he understood correctly, the so-called Sickness Tribulation roughly implied torment of the body?

Pushing open this Upper Emperor Great City relied on the foundation accumulated between the seventh and ninth layers of Killed Fanxu; it was at this stage that the density of the Hongmeng Purple Qi Shen Yi obtained saw a tremendous leap compared to before.

He looked toward the third Wan Yao Dian.

Under Shen Yi's command, the Glazed Green Phoenix had no time to utter a single word before helplessly darting toward that door.

The great door slowly revealed a crack.

The light change was identical to before, except it lasted longer; within that dense purple radiance, Jin Guang became increasingly obvious until it occupied fully half the space.

Under the glow of purple and Jin Guang, the Glazed Green Phoenix's face instantly turned bitter like a gourd.

It seemed to have lost its previous arrogance, timidly glancing back at the crimson figure, and under that indifferent gaze, was forced to step through the door.

"It cannot do it."

Ke Shisan, who had always been expressionless, suddenly softly reminded him.

As if responding to its words.

Less than ten breaths after the Glazed Green Phoenix entered the Upper Emperor Great City, and with less than twenty years of demon lifespan just infused, a sharp wail rang in Shen Yi's mind.

"Ahhh! Let me out! Let me out!"

"I beg you! Spare me!"

In Shen Yi's vision, atop the high mountain peak, that Glazed Green Phoenix twitched while crouching beside a massive stone, its entire body of green feathers withered, flesh and skin suppurating, emitting a violent stench.

Instead of calming its mind and settling its spirit, it frantically used its head to smash against the massive stone!

Shen Yi turned his gaze toward Ke Shisan.

"It cannot even endure its own innate Heart Flame suffering; it needs to borrow from the Diming Youmang clan to alleviate it." Ke Shisan's voice was extremely slow, clearly indicating his mind was still not fully sharp.

"Seemingly enjoying pain, yet actually fearing pain the most... this Sickness Tribulation is precisely its flaw."

"..."

Shen Yi fell silent for a moment, then helplessly said, "Speak earlier next time."

This time, it was fine; after all, Ke Shisan's current state was partly due to Shen Yi's diligent urging.

Since it was already sent in, there was no way to retrieve it.

The Sickness Tribulation is called a Sickness Tribulation precisely because it makes the one undergoing Tribulation Crossing suffer unbearably, enduring inhuman torment... yet never dying.

The current Glazed Green Phoenix, even though Shen Yi had deliberately slowed the rate at which he poured in the demon's lifespan, had still suffered a mental breakdown, long since gone mad, and had used its battered body to smash the Gaoshan beneath it to pieces.

Back then, Wu Jun had at least waited for the spiritual light to appear; no matter how dull-witted, as long as the time was long enough, there would eventually be a turning point.

But the Glazed Green Phoenix had clearly long since chosen to give up, and now was single-mindedly seeking only death.

"Can you die a little faster."

Shen Yi began for the first time to hope for a failed Tribulation Crossing; he watched helplessly as the demon's lifespan flew past — two hundred thousand years… four hundred thousand years… six hundred thousand years…

This green phoenix's willpower was far too poor, but its birth was truly, truly excellent; its soul's strength far surpassed that of demons of the same realm.

The result was that, although it had long since given up, its soul simply refused to collapse.

Until the Gaoshan was completely shattered and the Wang Yang evaporated.

After sixty-seven thousand years of demon lifespan had been spent, that phoenix demon — resembling a plucked-feather chicken, its body covered in thick pus, its flesh rotted away to reveal the ghastly white bone beneath — finally plunged down.

For some unknown reason, he watched as it reverted to a stone-like appearance, gradually transforming into a Suppressing Stone.

Yet Shen Yi inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief in his heart: "Phew."

It's finally over… As the difficulty of Tribulation Crossing grows ever higher, it seems that in the future, when selecting demon prodigies, their experiences and personalities must also be strictly considered.

Just then, a faint sound rang in Shen Yi's ears.

"My lord, could you let me try."

Hearing this, Shen Yi was briefly stunned, and it took him a little while to recall whose voice this was.

It seemed to be that woman who was very fond of tugging at her lapels.

To tell the truth, this woman had ten thousand years of essence blood drained from her, and in the end still had the mood to cause trouble — it really did seem to suit this Ill Tribulation.

But the problem was, her body seemed to have already been eaten by him.

"I am half of the same kind as it; this body… the Dark Phoenix should also be able to use it." The Red-Eyed Dark Phoenix, as if guessing Shen Yi's thoughts, made the request once more.

Sometimes, an opportunity lasts only an instant; she truly was very unwilling to miss it.

Ever since she had last accompanied her master in deducing the Divine Phoenix Immortal Sword Body, she had been trapped in that deep, lonely darkness, as if forgotten, with no chance to ever leave.

"Try?"

Shen Yi sighed; six hundred and seventy thousand years had already been wasted, so it seemed this little bit wouldn't make much difference, and it would conveniently allow him to continue the tribulation that had been half-crossed earlier.

As he spoke, he lightly waved his sleeve.

A void phoenix demon soul cleanly and decisively darted into that Shanghuang Dacheng!

(End of chapter)