Chapter 534: Mr., You Have Broken Your Promise

Above the desolate blue sky, a tall middle-aged man stands with hands hanging by his sides.

His hair is combed meticulously, showing a mix of black and white, and he wears a thick fur cloak, equally mottled in black and white.

His back is straight as an arrow, and his gaze is as still as water.

Only the terrifying speed with which his figure crosses ten thousand rivers and a thousand mountains with each step reveals a hint of pursuit.

The Haoyue Shuanghu clan, as a first-rate power in Yu Nanhong second only to the Long Gong.

Their clan leader is naturally a prominent figure throughout this boundless expanse of land and water.

Few things in the world can make An Tingfeng feel panicked, and this current situation is among them.

Even though this matter is truly strange.

As clan leader, he forcibly exhausted nearly seventy percent of the entire clan's strength, combined with his desperate search in North Yu Nanhong for sect assistance, to finally forge the Baoyue Great Tomb, yet it was broken so simply by someone.

Even if another Harmony Dao realm expert had intervened, the Baoyue Soul-Suppressing Great Array, which should have held until his arrival, seemed to have mysteriously failed.

And even more bizarrely, by the time he arrived, that Great Tomb still looked completely intact.

Of course, these matters are unimportant; even if all eighteen pillars of the clan perished, it would not matter, for he never intended to let these tomb-guarding tiger demons leave the Baoyue Great Tomb.

This is what the Haoyue Shuanghu clan owed him in the first place.

The only thing he cares about is how to retrieve his little daughter.

Whether there was an insider traitor or some other situation, for anyone other than himself, An Tingfeng, the most valuable thing inside that Great Tomb is the Baoyue Great Tomb itself.

The price to pay for offending the Haoyue Shuanghu clan is completely disproportionate to the gains from breaking the Great Tomb.

It is nothing more than wanting to negotiate.

Thinking of this, a trace of coldness flashed in An Tingfeng's eyes; whatever the other party wants, as long as he can provide it, he can give it... provided the other party has the life to enjoy it.

He closes his eyes and begins to track the aura of that magical treasure.

Not knowing what method the attacker used, they extracted the control technique for the treasure from his little daughter's mouth and have been striving to conceal their aura, resisting his pursuit.

Heh, bullying a young one who knows nothing of the world.

An Tingfeng takes another step, and coldness rises in his voice: "Base wretches, you shall be executed."

Between the Bihai and the blue sky, the mottled cloak billows up with the wind, like a fierce tiger descending the mountain, with killing intent vibrating throughout his body, and the intent to devour people left unmasked!

And just at this moment.

The mottled cloak suddenly falls silently, with none of the previous dominance.

An Tingfeng suddenly looked up toward the front, his still pupils trembling gradually into a thin line.

That magical treasure, capable of resisting attacks from the Harmony Dao realm, has also mysteriously been unlocked... it was unlocked, not broken open!

Know that this final segment of the incantation, even his little daughter, he never taught to her.

After all, to retain the residual soul and wait for him to find a method to revive his little daughter might require a very long time, and such an act of usurping heavenly secrets inevitably involves some pain.

The other party is still young, with a childish temperament, and might not withstand this slight pain, doing extreme things that would sadden their kin.

These base wretches came prepared!

"How dare you?!!"

An Tingfeng finally loses his previous composure, and his roar bursts through the air, rapidly spreading out, scattering the clouds across the sky and raising water waves a thousand zhang high!

It contains an unmistakable intent of fighting to the death.

Like a tiger roaring in the mountains, shaking all directions!

Causing cultivators and demons from nearby powers to look at the sky in horror.

Not knowing exactly what happened, yet able to provoke the wrath of a Harmony Dao giant.

Underwater, Long Gong demon soldiers turn and dive into the deep, their expressions turning solemn as they head back to report to their respective masters.

"Hah—"

An Tingfeng pants heavily; if it were merely a desire to negotiate, then that group has already succeeded.

The unease in his eyes grows increasingly intense, even turning into a slight, almost imperceptible fear.

That group does not seem to intend to stop yet...

What do these madmen want? Speak! Why do they not respond to me!

Boom—

Shen Yi lands on a floating island; after the aura scattered during the previous stabilizing stone's enhancement dissipates, he can no longer sense that piercing gaze on his back.

A great demon comparable to the Harmony Dao realm could appear at any time; this stimulating sensation inevitably makes one's heart race.

He adjusts his breathing and looks at the little tiger demon in his hand.

Just now, the sensation of aura flowing in his palm suddenly vanished.

"It is finished," the little tiger demon says, still with that same indifferent expression.

Inside the tomb, she had nothing else to do; apart from the torment of wandering between life and death, during almost all the time her consciousness was fully restored, she was doing the same meaningless thing.

That was using those incantations to deduce how to break free from the constraints of that magical treasure.

Of course, she never thought these actions would ever come in handy.

After all, she truly could not offer anything too valuable to make someone risk being hunted by a great demon comparable to the Harmony Dao realm just to end her life.

"Thank you, Mr."

The little tiger demon extends her dirty, foul-smelling front paw, and a small golden ring lies in her palm.

Shen Yi does not stand on ceremony and directly takes it, slipping it onto his wrist.

Such a heavy treasure, there are probably only a few like it even among the Seven Disciples of Yu Nanhong.

Yu Lan and You Chang stand silently nearby; this is the first time the two have seen any expression other than indifference in the eyes of this little tiger demon, a faint trace of expectation and nervousness.

"It was my duty."

Shen Yi crouched slightly, placed it on the ground, and his palm suddenly landed on the tiger demon's neck.

Compared to the robust demonic bodies of the tomb-guarding tiger demons, this young tiger demon's body, after losing the protection of the golden ring artifact, was as fragile as a mortal's.

Yet across the entire Xi Hong, no one would dare snap this neck.

"Huh…"

The young tiger demon's expression finally changed, but her slightly heavy breathing seemed less like fear of death than worry that Shen Yi might renege.

She stared at that pale face, and when she felt the unhesitating surge of power from his long fingers, she finally exhaled.

The young tiger demon closed her eyes contentedly, and a faint, childish, hoarse voice rose around her.

"Sorry to trouble Mr."

The next moment, a crisp sound of bone cracking echoed.

To ensure a single fatal strike, Shen Yi even unleashed the edge of his Immortal Sword Body, directly shattering her limbs and bones, pulverizing all her internal organs.

You Chang raised his barely-there eyebrows, feeling his master was perhaps too cautious—why take such care to kill this tiger?

"…"

Yu Lan stared at Shen Yi's seemingly calm face and sensed something unusual.

His master rarely showed signs of guilt—even now, had she not observed so closely, she would have missed the fleeting anomaly on that handsome face.

At this moment, it seemed he was using this focused method to make up for something.

Come to think of it, the two really were quite similar.

Both preferred to present a blank, unrippled expression to hide subtle inner emotions.

Yu Lan had a rough guess about this.

If one cannot forcibly turn oneself into something emotionless, it is nearly impossible to endure the terrifying eons—often tens of thousands of years—during cultivation formula deduction.

Too much emotional fluctuation makes one more prone to madness.

"…"

Shen Yi stood up, extracted the original tomb-guarding spirit from the Suppressing Stone, then began gathering demonic essence and pouring it into the young tiger demon's soul.

When one essence merged into her.

A flicker of unusual color passed through Shen Yi's eyes.

【Haoyue Shuanghu (Immortal): An Yi】

This was the first time he had seen this new suffix, and it had nothing to do with his own demonic essence—perhaps because the soul had absorbed too many soul-renewing artifacts?

Of course, this wasn't anything particularly surprising.

Though it bore the character "Immortal," there was no realm prefix.

As for using only one essence, it might be because this tiger demon had no meaningful past worth remembering.

Though it had barely survived for a hundred thousand years, it was no different from a newborn.

Its name was "An Yi," yet it didn't seem to have lived peacefully at all.

But the real reason Shen Yi's expression changed was that only one essence had been consumed—meaning the demon likely hadn't endured prolonged torment from demonic essence.

This meant…

Shen Yi reached out and merged the demonic soul into the Suppressing Stone.

The once tall and majestic tiger demon Suppressing Stone rapidly shrank, finally becoming four chi tall.

The gray-white stone surface gradually gained color; a delicate pure-white horse-face skirt gently swayed, and two pale, rounded wrists hung loosely.

On a face with red lips and white teeth, a pair of moist eyes slowly opened.

She stared blankly at Shen Yi, pondered for a long while, then finally asked in her childish voice: "Mr. … where is the death you promised me?"

You Chang stared in surprise.

This was the first time he had ever seen a Suppressing Stone emerge and call someone "Mr." instead of "Master."

He himself was a Suppressing Stone—he knew better than anyone else what absolute life-or-death power Shen Yi held over them; with a single thought, even the strongest demonic soul would vanish instantly.

Even if this young tiger demon had likely surpassed Bai Yujing, there would be no exception.

"…"

Yu Lan cleared her throat twice and quickly looked away.

She never questioned her master's decisiveness in killing—but this was the first time she had seen him act without justification.

Although arguing with cultivators and demons is absurdly foolish.

But this young tiger demon was somewhat different.

After all, in essence, she had never truly been born into this world; as for the resources seized by the Haoyue Shuanghu clan through slaughter—hmm, any sane person would agree that being imprisoned in a frigid tomb, enduring daily torture like slow slicing, could hardly be called "enjoyment."

Shen Yi stood up, closed his eyes, and pressed his fingertip to his third eye.

Immediately, a purple qi rainbow pierced heaven and earth; behind the three great cities of Long Han, Chiming, and Shanghuang, the fourth great city—Kaihuang—slowly took shape.

He opened his eyes, remained silent, and gestured toward the young girl before him.

"So that's how it is—I misunderstood Mr.," An Yi bowed slightly in apology, then turned and ascended onto the purple qi rainbow.

He had not broken his promise; he had merely not yet finished.

She quietly crossed the rainbow and stood before the majestic Kaihuang Dacheng.

Watching the gate slowly open, purple qi curled gently, then quickly transformed into thick golden light.

Perhaps she didn't understand, perhaps she didn't care—but this change, which would terrify other demonic Suppressing Stones, left An Yi utterly unmoved.

She only wanted to walk this path as quickly as possible, then end everything.

When the entire view blazed with golden light, no trace of purple remaining, An Yi stepped directly into the city.

Before her appeared a steep hillside.

She stood at the cliff's edge, glancing curiously around.

Immediately after, he sensed the will descending from the heavens.

It asked, "Are you willing to go to your death?"

As a living being of heaven and earth, the desire to live was instinct.

To sever the yearning for life, one needed some other encounter to sustain it—there had to be a reason to go to death in utter sincerity.

For Shen Yi, this hurdle might be one he could never overcome; after all, what had carried him all the way from Bai Yun County to Xihong was precisely that fierce survival instinct!

But after Anyi heard it all, she merely pressed her lips together, giving that youthful face a look both shy and obedient.

She raised her head toward the heavens and said softly, "Thank you."

The heavens: "..."

The little girl's colors gradually faded from her body; her petite figure stood atop the cliff of a hill, swiftly turning into a stone statue.

From beginning to end, that body had offered no resistance whatsoever, even though it contained a terrifying power comparable to the Dao Merging realm.

She simply let her arms hang at her sides, until the dewy gleam faded from her eyes.

Shen Yi's motion to draw upon the demon's lifespan quietly came to a halt.

【Western Hall Master: Haoyue Shuanghu Anyi】

This was probably the most worry-free and life-saving of the four Tribulation Crossings.

"My lord."

Youchang suddenly stepped forward, rolled up his sleeve, and revealed his arm—the scales-covered limb was twitching uncontrollably.

"You should leave."

Yulan's reaction was a beat slower, but she too spun around sharply, gazing toward the empty edge of the sky.

Her azure feathered gown began to flutter without wind, then the swaying grew more and more exaggerated, making her seem as though caught in a raging storm—so much so that even standing was a struggle.

Only now did an invisible ripple swiftly spread outward.

Then a deafening tiger's roar split the heavens!

"ROAR!!!"

A mottled tiger, massive as a mountain range, finally revealed its form; its solid muscles held unimaginable power. It came striding across the long sky, its fierce, murderous face swiftly transforming into that of a middle-aged man.

By the time it stood above the floating island, it had already taken on the appearance of a man draped in a great cloak.

"Give her back! Give my daughter back to me!"

An Tingfeng wasted no words. His cold, grim eyes locked onto the few figures below, quickly singling out the tall, handsome youth among them.

As the patriarch of a clan, he needed only a glance to know who among them held the reins.

"Whatever you want, sir, just say it outright."

An Tingfeng forcibly restrained his emotions; only the slight tremor of his fingertips betrayed his agitation.

A great demon comparable to the Dao Merging realm, being so polite to a few existences of the Bai Yujing realm—this was something astonishingly hard to believe, even making him seem somewhat humble.

But just a hint of killing intent leaking out—

—was enough to make Youchang, the one with the weakest temperament, instinctively shudder all over. That tiny motion of his couldn't really catch An Tingfeng's attention, but the small tiger corpse exposed behind him made this Dao Merging great demon freeze on the spot.

"..."

An Tingfeng suddenly fell silent.

He simply turned his gaze back to Shen Yi.

He studied that Bai Xi face with great care, then the ink-black robe, and finally his eyes came to rest on the beautifully patterned gold ring on his wrist.

"Actually... anything can be negotiated... things like this... I can find you others..."

An Tingfeng drew a deep breath. He couldn't quite understand why this young cultivator could remain so composed in front of him.

The other party might truly have powerful backing and careful schemes—after all, managing to break open his Precious Moon Tomb with such a ragtag bunch was a truly absurd feat.

But this lowly wretch had likely underestimated how much he doted on his daughter.

A complicated smile crossed An Tingfeng's face. Today, even if the Western Dragon King himself came, he would never let this man leave.

"Don't beg for mercy."

"Since you like that tomb so much, I'll take you back right now and let you experience what it means to be unable to die even if you beg for it."

An Tingfeng had clearly lost some of his reason; he bared his pale teeth and let out a strange, unsettling laugh.

Yulan and Youchang exchanged a glance, then stepped forward without hesitation.

Even if each of them could only take a single palm-strike, as the cornerstones, this was something they had to do.

Yet the two's actions, in An Tingfeng's eyes, only made his laughter more grating.

"..."

Shen Yi slowly bent down and, right in front of this Dao Merging great demon, stored the tiger corpse into his thumb-ring.

Then he raised his head and said evenly, "So you know what 'unable to die even if you beg for it' feels like too."

Shen Yi actually didn't much care for people who threw their lives away lightly—after all, he himself was the opposite extreme.

But everything depended on the situation.

After all, one hadn't walked in another's shoes.

Someone who could face death calmly within a heavenly tribulation—even he, thick-skinned as he was, would find it hard to lecture such a person.

Of course, he was in no mood to criticize this Dao Merging great demon either; he had only just done something equally shameless himself, and was merely sighing in passing.

As his words fell, the laughter in the sky cut off abruptly.

An Tingfeng's five fingers clenched tight; those once-august eyes were now bloodshot, and his voice turned hoarse: "Insolent brat. You like to talk, then talk slowly. Don't worry, we have plenty of time—you can keep repeating it forever inside that tomb."

Hearing this, Shen Yi withdrew his gaze and lightly rubbed the gold ring on his wrist.

Then he turned and walked away, saying flatly, "Keep it for yourself."

With An Tingfeng's clenched fist, the entire floating island curled up, forming a wall over a hundred zhang high; reinforced by his aura, even with You Chang's powerful demonic body smashing at it with full force, it was hard to shake it by so much as a fraction.

But Shen Yi merely watched quietly.

Watching the floating islands curling around the surroundings slowly settle back over the waters.

"..."

Taking that youth's arrogantly extreme back into his sight.

Even the Dao Sons of the Liangdaohuang Sect would probably not dare to put on such an arrogant display in front of him when alone outside.

An Tingfeng's eyebrow twitched, then he instinctively turned his head to look.

Then his pupils instantly froze.

He saw above the clouds, a snow-white horse-face skirt swaying gently.

That pale, delicate Miss lowered her gaze to overlook the water and land below, first looking at Shen Yi with confusion; she did not know why, ever since Mr. had snapped her neck, he rarely looked her in the eye anymore, and was even more accustomed to facing her with his back.

But quickly, her gaze shifted to the middle-aged man draped in a great cloak.

A surge of emotions, which even she herself did not quite understand, welled up in An Yi's eyes.

It was as if many years ago, the mournful wailing echoing within the dark tomb rang in her mind.

Father—

I feel so terrible!

Father!

Please spare me!

At some point, that wailing never rang out again.

"..."

An Tingfeng seemed not to see the hatred, almost solidified, in his own little daughter's eyes.

Instead, the madness on his face quickly faded, transforming into deep affection; he murmured to himself: "It's like, really like... exactly the same."

Just as he had imagined.

There are actually two people in the world so alike.

He had kept the other's remains all along, hoping that one day he could revive her and watch her take form.

He had thought today was a moment of despair, but fortunately Heaven and Earth took pity, actually fulfilling his wish for him directly.

"Considering all I have given you over these years, Father does not ask for your gratitude, but be obedient, go back with Father, and stay with Father forever, okay?"

An Tingfeng's voice suddenly softened considerably.

Hearing this.

A smile suddenly appeared on An Yi's face.

Amidst that middle-aged man's overwhelming affection, not a single bit was directed at her.

"Alright."

An Yi nodded lightly; the skirt on her body gradually turned pitch black, like a drop of ink spilled upon a blue sky canvas.

In the next instant, she suddenly vanished from her spot.

When she reappeared, that tender palm smashed fiercely into An Tingfeng's chest!

The scattered aura whipped wildly, the howling sound nearly shattering everything around, a terrifying scene extremely rare in all of Xihong.

Even if one of the blows was still quite immature.

This was, in reality, a clash between two giants comparable to the Harmony Dao Realm!

Caught off guard, An Tingfeng was blasted away; he forcibly stabilized his figure, looked down at the tearing wound on his chest, then raised his head blankly, a vicious smile curling his lips.

"If a child is not taught, it is the father's fault."

"Yi'er, you are too unruly."

Watching that black shadow attack again, a terrifying tiger-face phantom suddenly appeared on An Tingfeng's face.

He casually blasted a palm outward; without needing any technique, relying solely on that thick demonic power, he had already reached a level that was horrifying to hear of.

Facing the palm wind tearing through the Xihong waters, the girl in the black skirt did not dodge or avoid; in her eyes there was only the wound in An Tingfeng's heart, her sole thought being to tear that gap completely open and crush the heart within.

Amidst the surging palm wind, her skin cracked, revealing a stony appearance.

But the palm she thrust out was steady beyond belief.

However, even between those in the Harmony Dao Realm, the gap was incredibly obvious.

An Tingfeng's eyelid twitched; as if afraid of hurting this familiar-looking body, he forcibly retracted his palm wind, while his hand reached toward the other's tender neck!

Planning to capture this woman first, at the cost of his own injury.

As for An Yi, she seemed to care nothing for such things; whether her stone body shattered or she lost her life, neither was as important as the smell of blood from that middle-aged man's chest.

Unfortunately, she did not possess the qualification to control this guardian stone.

In an instant, her entire delicate body turned into a streak of light and shot backward.

"Hah—"

An Tingfeng stared blankly ahead, instinctively waving his palm; he saw the mountains and rivers scattered across the waters all being pulled over, trying to block that streak of light.

Unfortunately, in the blink of an eye, that streak of light had completely vanished from the end of his sight.

He suddenly looked down, only then realizing that those few little things just now had long since disappeared without a trace.

"Return! Return to this Seat!"

A sharp roar rang out again.

Because of using the method of seizing mountains and moving seas, the master of this place had long been alerted.

As black-backed dragon demons revealed their forms one by one, beneath their clustering, a plump figure stepped out upon the waves.

"An Tingfeng, what do you intend to do?"

Lady Yushan's delicate brows furrowed slightly as she looked toward the direction of the roar.

Yet this Haoyue Shuanghu clan leader, at this very moment, paid her, his benefactor, no heed whatsoever, staring fixedly ahead: "I will find you! I will kill you!"

"Wretched thing, just wait for this Seat!!"

"..."

Lady Yushan had no interest in entangling herself with a Great Demon of the Harmonized Dao who had clearly descended into madness.

As long as the other party did not continue to cause trouble, that would suffice.

She merely lowered her gaze with slight doubt, wondering what matter could have incited this tiger demon to such fury.

That youth, whose killing intent was too heavy, had best restrain himself and heed a word of warning; regardless of any grievances, he must not provoke the Haoyue Shuanghu clan at this time.

Otherwise, the consequences would be unthinkable.

She herself could not spare a hand to rescue him now.

(End of this chapter)