Chapter 701: Ritual

Jianfan raised an eyebrow: "Answer me first—what are you doing here? That guy also woke up, and much earlier than I expected."

"That guy... is he the monster inside the Flesh Palace?"

"Hmm, it seems you really did encounter it."

Yan Buji was momentarily at a loss, looking at Jianfan with puzzlement.

Jianfan waved a hand, tossed the long sword she held onto the altar, then swiftly activated a spell; the Blood-Red Star in the sky suddenly sent down a red beam of light into the altar, and Yan Buji's eyes widened.

The blood‑stained broken sword floated in the air, and the red starlight began to mend the wounds on it.

So they came to repair this Slayer Sword.

Yan Buji looked at Jianfan and asked, "What exactly is your relationship with Hong Shu?"

"He wanted to steal my Slayer Sword, so he deliberately lured me here," Jianfan said with a smile. "He thought I didn't know that the Human-Head Palace still hides an awakened sentient puppet, but I temporarily sealed it, then came here to take a fragment left behind. Since I'm already here, I might as well do a quick repair."

"Is that so?" Yan Buji was confused; of course, whether Jianfan is lying doesn't matter—at his current level he can't touch anything powerful anyway.

"I can't move right now; you have to guard for me first," Jianfan said.

"Fine."

Regardless, Jianfan had helped him so much, and Yan Buji still hoped to get more useful information from her; she was naturally happy to comply with any request.

Meanwhile.

The badly wounded Ye Lin also arrived at the pre‑arranged spot, looked up at the starlight cast by the Blood-Red Star, was about to go in and look, and instead found Hong Shu lying on the ground, barely alive.

"Elder Hong?!"

Ye Lin's eyes widened, and he hurried over to check the situation.

As Hong Shu lingered on the brink of death, he suddenly saw Ye Lin, reached out with a trembling hand and said, "Cannot... let the ritual... be completed... otherwise, a great disaster for humanity!"

After speaking, Hong Shu fished a horn from his chest, placed it into Ye Lin's hand, stared at him intently, as if saying you must see this through.

Though Ye Lin didn't know what had happened, he solemnly nodded, "Rest assured, Elder Hong, I will do my best!"

Hong Shu forever closed his eyes, and Ye Lin's expression also grew serious.

"What exactly happened?"

Ye Lin hurried into the altar area and suddenly saw Yan Buji standing by the altar.

Yan Buji also spotted Ye Lin at a glance and exclaimed delightedly, "Ye Lin?"

"Hall Master Yan? Are you okay?!"

Ye Lin was somewhat pleased, but when he turned his gaze, he saw Jianfan repairing the Slayer Sword behind Yan Buji and stopped in his tracks.

Seeing this, Yan Buji explained, "Ye Lin, this is Jianfan Fairy, not a bad person."

"Hall Master Yan, I saw the dying Elder Hong outside; he asked me to stop a certain ritual. Could it be...?"

Yan Buji looked puzzled and said, "We're just repairing an Accumulation Device."

"What did Hong Shu tell Ye Lin that made him a bit defensive toward me?"

Ye Lin, confused, said, "Hall Master Yan, step down first; I need to ask about the Jianfan Fairy behind you."

"Ye Lin, you must not be disrespectful; this Jianfan Fairy is a senior practitioner!" Yan Buji said with a stern expression.

"Hall Master Yan!"

"Ye Lin!"

The two stood their ground; Ye Lin wanted to get Yan Buji out of the danger zone, fearing what would happen if Jianfan Fairy acted to kill.

Yan Buji, having known Jianfan for a long time, knew she wouldn't harm him, and seeing that Ye Lin seemed to have a way to stop the ritual, naturally refused.

The atmosphere remained tense, when Jianfan suddenly spoke, "Yan Buji, this is indeed a ritual. You must have sensed it, right?"

"Jianfan Fairy, no need to say more," Yan Buji shook his head. "Since I promised the fairy to guard this place, I cannot let anyone come here."

Ye Lin, looking at Yan Buji's solemn demeanor, felt a bit confused and retorted, "Then may I ask, Jianfan Fairy, what exactly is this ritual for? Is it related to the great calamity the Elder Hong mentioned for humanity?"

"Human calamity?!"

Yan Buji turned his head in shock, staring at Jianfan.

Jianfan, bent over the Slayer Sword, smiled, "If you put it that way, indeed no one would want to see this sword reborn."

Yan Buji, also a bit puzzled, asked, "Jianfan Fairy, what will you do after you finish repairing the Slayer Sword?"

"What I do has little to do with you, and it's not something you can meddle in," Jianfan shook her head, offering no further explanation.

Yan Buji hesitated, then turned to Ye Lin and resolved, "Ye Lin, I don't know what means you have to stop this ritual, but if Jianfan Fairy intends to kill the two of us like chickens, you'd better think it through."

Yan Buji's words were essentially passing the buck to Ye Lin, leaving the decision to him.

Since Yan Buji didn't want to offend either side, he let them handle it themselves.

Ye Lin fell silent, unsure what to do.

It's his first outing for cultivation, and he already faces a life‑or‑death crisis; the dying elder of his sect's Harmonizing Dao stage left a final request, which is certainly a big matter, yet now his close friend Hall Master Yan stands on the opposite side—what should he do?

No wonder Ye Lin hesitated; even Yan Buji, weighing pros and cons in this situation, didn't know the best course of action.

But a sudden anomaly erupted!

Boom!

Two horns on Ye Lin suddenly burst out of his Storage Accumulation Device, causing a massive explosion!

"Ow!!!" Ye Lin cried out in pain, flung far by the Storage Accumulation Device's blast, collapsing on the ground clutching his wound.

Yan Buji's pupils contracted.

How does Ye Lin have two horns?

"So you came here through another horn," Jianfan said, not having seen the specifics but apparently grasping the whole situation.

Yan Buji saw the pair of horns flying toward him, instantly summoned his cultivation energy; a powerful wave formed to block them, but before he could cast a spell, the horns pierced straight through his energy flow and landed atop Jianfan's head.

Yan Buji's eyes widened, "Jianfan Fairy, watch out!"

Pfft!

Seeing the ox horn fall down, it stabbed fiercely into Jianfan's head, and in an instant it made Jianfan stop repairing the Slaughtering Sword.

Yan Buji saw this scene, stunned in place for a moment: 'Jianfan Fairy?'

"Damn bastard, after being dead for so many years you still won't give up—I don't like men who cling on desperately." Jianfan gritted her teeth, reached up and tore off the pair of horns on her head, spurting a gush of blood!

Immediately, Jianfan continued the repair work as if nothing had just happened.