Chapter 298: The Great Wilderness Chronicle (9/10, Autumn Subscription)

【Shadow Devouring Trick】... is that Lord Mo?!

Fang Yue was somewhat confused, but one thing he was clear about: the clone was just a clone—and distinct from the original body.

Moreover, there are many types of clones; like Ni Dongmei's, the original body controls the clone, and when the original's consciousness is absent, the clone is merely a lifeless corpse.

But the 【Shadow Devouring Trick】 before him clearly isn't this type—it leans more toward an entity with autonomous movement, or possibly possessing part of Lord Mo's memories, just like... 【Artificial Trick: Su Qi Hao】!

Lord Mo's image grew ever more mysterious and inscrutable in Fang Yue's mind.

Those experiments, the eerie clones, and the rumors of disappearances...

Among all these Lords—Lord Han, Lord Lan—Lord Mo is the most mysterious!

"Roar!!"

As the two spoke, the previously frozen 【Shadow Devouring Trick】 began to violently tremble, shattering layer upon layer of ice.

Fang Yue's expression hardened.

"Ni Dongmei, it killed Tail. Whether or not it's Lord Mo's clone, it must die!"

"What are you talking about? My clone has no ability to kill something like this."

Fang Yue:!!!

"You, wait! You—you—you—you can't kill it?!"

"Yes."

Seeing Ni Dongmei didn't seem to be joking, Fang Yue's heart sank.

What a joke—he'd summoned her confidently, believing she could kill the 【Shadow Devouring Trick】.

And this is all it amounts to?!

"Then Tail died for nothing! Tail worked so hard in the Trial..."

Fang Yue had intended to mention that refugees could be reborn, hoping Ni Dongmei might be lenient and allow Tail's reborn form into the Extreme Ice Sect.

But before he reached that point, Ni Dongmei suddenly spoke.

"No! Tail hasn't died."

"What?"

Fang Yue froze, staring at the half-dead corpse in his arms—how utterly wretched could it get? How could she still be alive? She was stone cold!

Even Fang Yue had sent Tail a friend request—and sure enough, the system notification popped up.

"System Prompt: After system check, no such person found. Please clean your friend list promptly."

Damn! She's dead dead dead!

"She hasn't died—I said so!"

Ni Dongmei stared straight into Fang Yue's eyes and repeated it.

Crack! Crack!

Meanwhile, the ice encasing the 【Shadow Devouring Trick】 began rapidly crumbling, barely holding it down anymore.

But Ni Dongmei remained calm, dragging the Silver Ball to Tail's corpse.

"And Tail... is the one who can truly kill the 【Shadow Devouring Trick】!"

The Silver Ball—or rather, the Soul-Hosting Jade Pendant—was pressed directly into Tail's chest!

Like an iceberg melting into water, the Silver Ball slowly merged into Tail's chest.

"This is her aptitude, her potential. She is... a Void Spirit Root!"

Void—the ultimate number.

Void—contains all things!

Void—an anomalous Spirit Root!

Spirit Root, like Comprehension, is a hidden special attribute.

If one has it, it remains hidden; if one doesn't, it simply doesn't exist.

Until fate intervenes, no one knows whether they possess a Spirit Root.

Though Fang Yue didn't fully grasp this principle, he had vaguely guessed part of the reason.

"You mean... Tail is a Spirit Root bearer—a being with the potential to cultivate into Immortality!"

"Correct!"

"But... but she's already dead!"

"No, she hasn't!"

Pop!!

As Ni Dongmei pushed hard, the Silver Ball fully merged into Tail's body!

"Because she is a Void Spirit Root—she can contain what ordinary beings cannot! But only by receiving this object can she truly activate her Void Spirit Root and become that special being!"

Tail, who had been utterly dead, her lower half gone, slowly opened her eyes.

Those eyes were utterly unlike Tail's usual gaze.

Her left eye was cold as frost.

Her right eye burned like fire.

Left eye blue, right eye red—as if she were a deity wielding ice and fire, towering above the world!

As Fang Yue stood stunned...

Thud!

Ni Dongmei—the Ninth Elder of the Extreme Ice Sect, proud and obstinate—knelt on one knee before the awakened Tail!

"Seventy-second-generation disciple of the Extreme Ice Sect, Ni Dongmei—greetings to the Supreme Sect Master 【Qi Ba Jiu】, returning to the Extreme Ice Sect!!"

"Seventy-second-generation disciple of the Extreme Ice Sect, Ni Dongmei—greetings to the Supreme Sect Master 【Qi Ba Jiu】, returning to the Extreme Ice Sect!!"

"Seventy-second generation disciple of the Extreme Ice Sect, Ni Dongmei—paying respects to the Extreme Ice Sect's Supreme Sect Master, Qi Ba Jiu Daren, on his return to the Extreme Ice Sect!!"

The mighty voice echoed throughout the entirety of Fengye Ya.

Upon hearing these words, Fang Yue's mind went blank with a sudden buzz.

He stared wide-eyed, looking in disbelief at the tail that had awakened in his arms.

Qi Ba Jiu?

Qi Ba Jiu?!

Isn't that— isn't that the very person who signed that letter??

Isn't she the Sect Master of the Blazing Fire Sect? Why is she now a person of the Extreme Ice Sect??

And judging by the title, it's absolutely insane—Supreme Sect Master?! What kind of position is that??

While Fang Yue's face was a picture of utter bewilderment, he received a friend message that should have been virtually impossible.

Tail: Ye Ge! I-I-I-I, I suddenly came back to life!!

Fang Yue:???

Shaking the mortal world for ten thousand years!!

What the hell—even the system had confirmed her dead beyond a shadow of a doubt, so how can she still send me a message?

Also, if Tail is still alive, then the one in my arms right now… is it Tail? Or Qi Ba Jiu?

Fang Yue was completely dumbfounded.

And just then, as if finding Ni Dongmei too noisy, Qi Ba Jiu cast a casual glance at Ni Dongmei.

Just that single glance—Ni Dongmei didn't even have time to react…

Boom!!

Her clone's body abruptly exploded, shattering into pieces!

The clone… had perished!

How freaking brutal?!

Fang Yue's body instantly stiffened.

Buzz buzz buzz.

While Fang Yue had no idea what to do, in the surrounding air, visible streams of frost converged toward Tail's lower half!

A pair of ice-sculpted long white legs was thus fashioned.

As if supported by some invisible force, Qi Ba Jiu glanced at Fang Yue, floated to his side, and her feet touched the ground.

The next moment, an icy voice—plunging one into an ice cavern, devoid of any emotional fluctuation—slowly rang out.

"How many years have I been dormant?"

How the hell would I know!

Qi Ba Jiu's brow furrowed slightly.

"You don't know?"

Fang Yue hurriedly shook his head.

"Troublesome."

Qi Ba Jiu gave a cold snort and lightly raised a hand.

Crash!

The Ni Dongmei clone that had just exploded was, in an instant, reconstituted into human form by the converging frost!

The moment she took human form, Ni Dongmei froze for a beat, then hurriedly dropped to her knees before Qi Ba Jiu in stark terror.

"Qi Ba Jiu Daren, please calm your anger!"

"How many years have I been dormant? And what year is it now?"

"Reporting to Qi Ba Jiu Daren, you have slept for roughly five hundred years. This year is the 477th year of the Great Wilderness Era."

(End of chapter)