Chapter 732

Chapter 732: Remnant Spirit of the Demon God

The astonishing blue Sword Energy, its ethereal sword arc crackling with blue lightning, surged with overwhelming force toward the Blood Lion. The beast met Ye Yun’s attack head-on, its blood-red eyes blazing as it prepared to devour the strike.

“I never imagined this lion would be so powerful. Even Ye Yun seems helpless,” Shui Lingling murmured, watching the final clash. If she were in his place, victory would’ve been impossible. Yet Ye Yun had casually wounded the Blood Lion earlier. Without the blood sea beneath it replenishing its strength, the lion would’ve fallen in their first exchange.

As Ye Yun struggled, Shui Lingling quietly chanted, “I hope that nasty lion trips and falls, trips and falls…”

“Relax, Ling’er. Ye Yun’s already won,” Shui Yingying teased, glancing at her sister. “If you want to cheer for him, why not shout it out?”

“Maybe later! I just don’t want that lion to win. It’s trapped here by the Heavenly Immortal yet still acts so arrogant!” Shui Lingling huffed, flustered as her thoughts were exposed.

“Keep being dishonest, and Ye Yun might adopt another girl as his sister,” Shui Yingying said, amused by her sister’s rare shyness.

“Hmph! He already has someone as cute as me. What more could he want?” Shui Lingling retorted.

“That depends on you. If you act poorly, he might really replace you,” Shui Yingying chuckled, watching her sister panic. “But maybe Lingling doesn’t need a brother anyway, right?”

“Well… it’d still be nice to have someone else care for me,” Shui Lingling admitted, blushing.

“Enough teasing. Their battle’s nearing its end,” Shui Yingying said, gazing upward. Ye Yun, transformed into a bolt of lightning, clashed with the Blood Lion amidst the blood sea.

“How will they decide this? By exhausting their spiritual power?” The cave shimmered with opposing auras—sinister crimson and holy azure. Even Ye Yun gradually faltered against the lion’s relentless assault.

“Direct confrontation puts me at a disadvantage…” Ye Yun thought grimly. Despite using Born as a Sword and gaining an early edge, he’d failed to finish the lion. The beast’s connection to the blood sea made it nearly invincible.

“My true qi and Thunder Spirit Qi are spent. Fire Spirit Qi from the Sea of Heavenly Fire is gone too. Only Ice Spirit Qi remains unused.” Though icy energy stirred within him, Ye Yun dismissed it. Without enough potency to threaten the lion, his sole hope lay in the Ancestor of the Sword Path’s soul power.

With his Thunder Spirit Qi depleted, summoning the demon spirit was impossible. The only path was subjugating the supreme Immortal artifact.

Ye Yun’s mental energy probed his Storage Treasure, settling on the ice-element supreme Immortal artifact—a crystalline dagger radiating feminine coldness. He sighed, channeling mental power into it.

“Still refuses submission…” Ye Yun grimaced. Reluctantly, he unleashed his mental energy to forcibly evict the artifact’s intelligence.

“Knew you’d resort to this,” the Ancestor of the Sword Path mused as Ye Yun’s mental power overwhelmed the dagger’s spirit. “They need reminders of their true master.”

The artifact’s spirit trembled, shocked by its expulsion. Stripped of its physical form, it’d soon fade. The Ancestor enveloped the fleeing white light in soul power, preserving it briefly. These artifact spirits, he mused, required harsh discipline to curb their rebellion.

“You’ve still got fight left?” The Blood Lion snorted, noticing frost forming on its fur. “You think ice can stop me?” Its demon god essence blood burned hot, shrugging off ordinary Ice Spirit Qi.

“Just borrowing a tool. Shouldn’t be too hard,” Ye Yun replied coolly, watching ice creep over the lion.

ROAR!

The Blood Lion shattered the ice, scattering shards. Ye Yun recalled the Purple Shadow Divine Sword and crushed a hundred top-tier Immortal Spirit Stones, absorbing their energy via the Cleansing Immortal Heart Technique.

“Yield or continue?” Ye Yun asked, smiling as the lion grimaced.

“Hah! Consider this your win. Nascent Soul cultivators nowadays… Master would’ve laughed himself sick.” The Blood Lion roared, summoning a sealed door from the dried blood sea. “Go on. And don’t tell anyone I gave you a shortcut.”

“What does that mean?” Ye Yun frowned, puzzled by the lion’s words.

“There were indeed some benefits. The master instructed me that if I encountered someone exceptionally talented, I could allow them entry here. So I’ll reluctantly judge you as qualified,” the Blood Lion said, observing Ye Yun’s puzzled expression. “But this path holds many dangers. If you fear it, inform me and I’ll redirect you to safety. However, the majority of my master’s inheritance lies beneath this route.”

Already knowing Ye Yun’s choice, the Blood Lion wore a smug grin as the two girls behind Ye Yun exchanged thrilled glances. This was favorable news—if true, their odds improved significantly. Competing against Mo Wenxian for the inheritance would’ve been precarious, but now they could claim most of it unchallenged.

“We’ll take our leave then. Should we meet again, perhaps I’ll defeat you effortlessly,” Ye Yun remarked casually, ushering the girls ahead as he prepared to depart.

“Roar! I’ll await that day. If there is a next encounter, I’ll unleash the full terror of this body forged from the master’s demon god essence blood!” The Blood Lion sealed the entrance as they left, the blood sea resuming its stillness as if undisturbed.

“Ye Yun, how did you stop that lion from fighting? It seemed ready for battle,” Shui Lingling asked, her luminous eyes narrowing. The guardian spirit’s pride should’ve compelled it to force Ye Yun’s surrender if neither side could fight. Moreover, the cold aura she sensed from him differed from her sister’s Nine Yin Body—less yin-chill, more elemental frost.

Though similarly oppressive, their coldnesses diverged fundamentally. Under Lingling’s questioning, Ye Yun chuckled, “I employed a supreme Immortal artifact earlier. Its aura likely deterred the Blood Lion.”

“Ah! So that’s why the stupid beast backed down. But why hide such treasures until the last moment?”

“Child, revealing one’s final trump card prematurely risks fatal consequences if it fails. I value survival over bravado,” Ye Yun replied dryly as they traversed the arid tunnel.

“Ling’er disagrees! In life-or-death battles, one should unleash their strongest moves immediately!” Shui Lingling countered, nodding to herself.

“Sister, could we two defeat that lion together?” she asked, turning to Shui Yingying who observed them with amusement.

“Only if we synchronize our Starry Sky methods. That divine beast, tempered by demon god essence blood, exceeds mortal limits,” Yingying answered after consideration.

“But Ling’er’s snowy city Deceptive Array could trap it eternally, letting us strike freely!” Lingling proclaimed, summoning a miniature glacial metropolis that shimmered in her palms. She admired the supreme Immortal artifact—her painstakingly crafted snowscape housing three peerless treasures.

Yingying’s own artifact took glove form, enhancing her hands’ resilience while shifting between transparency and void-black. The latter mode multiplied power output at staggering energy costs—Lingling had only witnessed its darkened state once. This adaptability, channeling any opposing force through perceived intent, marked its supreme status.

Deeper underground, Ye Yun frowned as demonic aura intensified. Before an ancient altar stood bizarrely glowing boulders radiating unsettling power.

“Why does this stone entrance me so?” Lingling murmured, drawn toward the radiant rock. As her eyes glazed over, Ye Yun instantly conjured an ice shard and hurled it at her head.

*Thwack!*

The impact jolted her awake. She recoiled from the boulder now resembling a soul-snaring demon. “Are you unharmed?” Ye Yun pressed, having narrowly prevented her from fatal self-harm under its influence.

“The visions felt… real. This stone’s tainted,” Lingling muttered, digesting implanted memories—a demon god’s recollections of battling celestial beings. One technique dominated: a prismatic sword arc severing all bonds, annihilating everything. She witnessed its wielder, a celestial swordsman, purify a corrupted realm into crystalline purity before falling to three demon gods—who perished with him in the cleansing blaze.

“Such power! Worthy of the title Master of Slash Immortals!” Lingling trembled, phantom sword intent still rattling her bones. Yet now, an inexplicable bloodlust toward Ye Yun overwhelmed her. “Why do I crave your death? As if we’re fated enemies!” she gasped, gripping her Starry Sky methods-ready hand.

Ye Yun smirked, engulfing her in soul’s fire. “This doesn’t burn!” she marveled, the flames soothing rather than scorching.

“Purging demonic influence. Delayed longer, even this couldn’t have saved you,” he explained as she basked in the warmth. “Yingying neutralizes the corruption through her Nine Yin Body’s innate cold alignment. Focus on your own recovery.”

Lingling stretched contentedly. “The foreign memories still squirm, though. Like they’ll rewrite my mind any moment.”

“Demon god memory fragments never rest, but they’re harmless now,” Ye Yun assured, glancing at Yingying’s meditating form. His gaze lingered on her subtly trembling nose—she’d been covertly absorbing ambient demonic energy. *Does she think me oblivious?*

Approaching the altar’s central boulder, Ye Yun traced its jagged surface—edges sharpened to bleed the entranced. “Shattering you feels wasteful,” he mused. The stone pulsed agreement.

Summoning three Wuwei Illusionary Swords, he unleashed their intents:

“One Sword: Yama!”

“One Sword: Flux!”

“One Sword: Pagoda!”

Sword shadows shredded the boulders, leaving demonic residue that coalesced into a hateful specter. Ye Yan ignited thunderflame. “Hungry?” he asked the cowering entity. As it fled, his summoned demon spirit seized and devoured it, mask-flames brightening.

“Killing to end killing… remains distasteful,” Ye Yun sighed, observing the meditating girls. Their tranquil beauty stirred no desire—he simply guarded them, a silent sentinel in the subterranean gloom.