Chapter 552: Xuanji, Moon Radiance
A little earlier—
Thunder—
Young White’s small hands formed a hand seal, summoning the Nine Heavens thunderous movement. Her pitch-black fox tail flicked, transforming mountains and rivers into surging waves.
Arcing lightning bolts, scattered in the sky, wrapped around a giant black fog fox head, its maw ferociously opened as if to swallow the heavens and earth whole.
Ying—!!!
Fox cries echoed in all directions.
However, facing this immense surge of spiritual energy from Gu Yan, his eyes remained as calm as a tranquil pool, just as before.
The Tian Mo Sect Master’s robe on his body was still spotless, without a single wrinkle, even after being attacked by Si Xuanji and Hu Mu working together.
Gu Yan rested his left hand behind his back, his right hand poised near his chest as he formed a hand seal.
“Dan Yue, I truly don’t understand you anymore.”
Ci la—
The beast spirit condensed from Hu Mu’s demonic energy instantly shattered with a sound like glass breaking.
Countless blood pillars surged from the ground below, transforming into blood eels around Gu Yan. They swam freely in the sky, and in an instant, bound Hu Mu into a blood cocoon.
Ying—!!!
Seeing Hu Mu captured by the blood fiend, Si Xuanji clenched her fists, preparing to use her pháp thuật to help him escape. But the moment her attention shifted, a bloody hand landed on her shoulder.
Gu Yan’s voice sounded from directly behind her, startlingly close:
“Dan Yue, the you now is vastly different from the you in my memory…”
Si Xuanji’s Yin-yang eyes widened slightly. She immediately twisted to face behind her, but before she could even unleash her spiritual energy.
Huala la—
The blood eels swimming around her suddenly transformed into iron chains made of blood, tightly binding her hands, feet, neck, and waist. They then tightened with immense force, subjecting her to the torture of dismemberment.
“Tch—”
This technique was one of Gu Yan’s blood tortures. Though essentially a formation, it could be activated like a spell without prior setup.
An ordinary Deity Transformation cultivator would be torn into strips of flesh within three breaths if bound by these chains.
Even Si Xuanji’s Golden Scales and Jade Bones, capable of Void Refinement, let out mournful creaks under the tearing of the blood chains.
Gu Yan’s true form descended from the sky, landing about thirty feet away from her. The blood-red eyes within his mask stared intently at Si Xuanji. After a moment of silence, he said:
“In my memory, you weren’t a brute like Yun Tian Mi. So I’m very curious, what could possibly make someone as afraid of death as you is step into the Eastern Domain to face me? Could it be you’ve grown tired of living? Heh heh…”
Si Xuanji gritted her teeth, glaring at Gu Yan, her eyes still resolute, showing no intention of answering him.
She glanced in the direction of the Tian Mo Sect, inwardly hoping Ye Anping could act faster.
Her Daoist title was “Dan Yue.”
The moon was her virtual spirit, her Golden Core.
In places where moonlight could not reach, she was akin to a cultivator without a Golden Core.
Although she could still cast immortal spirit spells that ordinary cultivators could only dream of using her own spiritual sea, mere spells were almost useless in a clash between Void Realm cultivators.
Currently, she could indeed make the moon break through the oppressive dark clouds and shine its light upon her.
But as she had said before, the moon itself was her virtual spirit.
Summoning the moon to descend would be akin to exposing her virtual spirit directly to Gu Yan.
Gu Yan was originally a formation cultivator, and this was his territory.
If she summoned her virtual spirit, Gu Yan could shatter it with a single blow, and then she would be utterly doomed.
“Tch—”
“Heh…”
Seeing Si Xuanji’s dishevelled state, yet seemingly holding her ground, Gu Yan felt a flicker of dissatisfaction. His blood-red eyes narrowed slightly.
Huala la—
The blood chains binding Si Xuanji’s limbs tightened again. This time, even Si Xuanji couldn’t help but let out a pained cry:
“Ah!”
“That sound is quite pleasant.”
A smile tugged at Gu Yan’s lips, but it quickly vanished. He turned to look at a bald man meditating on a mountain peak about a thousand li away.
He had actually noticed him long ago. Taishang Wusun and the now cultivation-less Zu Yuan were already watching from there. He had initially thought the bald man might be Dan Yue’s divine intervention, but the bald monk from the Wunian Sect showed no signs of intervening even now.
Truthfully, he had never fought that monk before, nor had he ever seen him fight. He only knew that, like himself, the monk was a cultivator who specialized in formations.
“Taishang Wusun, if you don’t make a move soon, Dan Yue will perish by my hand. Heh heh…”
His voice, laced with a smile, traveled a thousand li and reached Taishang Wusun, who was meditating on the mountain peak. However, there was no reaction from him.
Zu Yuan, standing beside him, looked troubled by the situation.
Si Xuanji’s pathetic appearance, hanging by chains, was somewhat akin to seeing a troublesome child finally being disciplined. He had, admittedly, felt a slight sense of amusement.
But amusement aside, he did not wish to see Si Xuanji killed by Gu Yan.
“Taishang bald monk, aren’t you going to help?”
“This poor monk…” Taishang Wusun clasped his hands together and replied in an extremely calm tone, “Cannot win.”
Zu Yuan was speechless: “…”
But what Taishang Wusun said was the truth. Even if he had his cultivation, and even if he, Taishang Wusun, Si Xuanji, and the Demon Emperor were to combine forces against Gu Yan, their chances of victory wouldn’t even reach twenty percent.
Every Dao has its strengths and weaknesses.
Formation cultivators, who practice formation arts, have the advantage of being nearly invincible among peers on their own turf. This was especially true for Gu Yan, a Void Refinement cultivator whose cultivation had already reached the pinnacle of the Five Domains.
However, Zu Yuan was still confused.
The plan to attack the Tian Mo Sect was drafted by Si Xuanji herself. How could she not know Gu Yan’s capabilities within the Tian Mo Sect?
Zu Yuan had initially thought Si Xuanji had a backup plan, but now it seemed…
Even Zu Lingzhi, standing beside him, could see the despair on Dan Yue Shang Xian’s face. She tightly gripped Zu Yuan’s sleeve and cried,
“Ancestor! What… what should we do?”
The name “Ye Anping” flashed through Zu Yuan’s mind, but he couldn’t understand how Ye Anping, a Nascent Soul cultivator, could possibly turn the tide in such a situation.
However, regardless of his confusion, Ye Anping was, after all, the one who had received his spiritual root.
Zu Yuan let out a heavy sigh, patted Zu Lingzhi’s head, and comforted her,
“Hoo—Old woman Dan Yue isn’t dead yet…”
“… …”
… …
Gu Yan, hovering in front of Si Xuanji, waited for Taishang Wusun to make a move. Seeing that he still showed no signs of moving and was ignoring him, he shook his head slightly and turned back to look at Si Xuanji, struggling within his formation.
“Dan Yue, you are truly spoiling my mood…”
Gu Yan had prepared for a fierce battle with Dan Yue lasting ten days and ten nights, but he hadn’t expected it to end in just a few hours, before he had even unleashed his full power.
To kill Dan Yue, he had searched for the Tian Mo Book Scroll for a thousand years.
To kill Dan Yue, he had refined countless disciples he had once adored…
Yet, at this very moment, it felt as if someone was telling him he had been wasting his efforts.
Spoiling his mood!
Utterly spoiling his mood!
Gu Yan narrowed his eyes at Si Xuanji, who was gritting her teeth. Veins bulged on his cheeks, his anger completely unconcealed. He then raised his right hand.
“Die.”
He exhaled the word, clenching his right fist.
A pillar of blood instantly surged from the earth’s veins, engulfing Si Xuanji. It then condensed into the stomach of a giant beast, beginning to devour everything within.
This was a supreme technique from Gu Yan’s blood torture. Similar to Hu Mu’s tail, it could turn a swallowed cultivator into nourishment for himself.
Gu Yan had never used this technique on a Void Realm cultivator before. He figured it would take a few years to digest Si Xuanji into blood, but he wasn’t in a hurry. As long as he consumed Si Xuanji, the day of his demonization would be on the horizon.
As for the big fox beside them…
Gu Yan glanced at the bulging blood cocoon. It appeared the Demon Emperor was still struggling to break free.
Ying—
A ferocious fox head, dripping with blood, broke out of the cocoon, baring its teeth at Gu Yan and roaring,
“Gu Yan!”
“Fox, we have no enmity between us… why must you do this?”
Gu Yan’s expression was calm. He raised his right hand, preparing to turn the Demon Emperor into his nourishment, just as he had with Si Xuanji.
But at this very moment…
Ci la—
An ice-blue arc streaked across the sky from the north, bringing with it rolling snow and ice.
A nine-foot spear tip, carrying the earth, descended towards his face with the force of a landslide.
Boom—!!
A torrent of blood instantly formed a spiritual barrier, stopping the spear tip three feet from Gu Yan.
Gu Yan narrowed his eyes and his dim gaze suddenly rekindled with a hint of interest:
“Hoh!! A rare visitor, a rare visitor!!! Sun Juehu…”
“Haa—”
Sun Juehu unleashed a fierce tiger’s momentum, sweeping her Xuan Ice Spirit Spear in all directions, bringing forth thousands of feet of frost and snow that crashed down upon Gu Yan’s chest. But Gu Yan was merely pushed back a hundred feet before he waved his hand, his malevolent blood devouring the Xuan Ice frost and snow completely.
Sun Juehu swung her spear, glancing at the bloody stomach beside her, and gritted her teeth slightly.
She had originally intended to act after Si Xuanji defeated Gu Yan. She had been hiding nearby, watching, but never expected Si Xuanji to be pushed to such a desperate situation.
Si Xuanji could only die at her hands!!!
However, if Si Xuanji were to die, it would be later!
Though Sun Juehu harbored hatred for Si Xuanji, she knew their feud was personal.
The true animosity lay between the Immortal Families and the demonic cultivators.
If Si Xuanji were to die at Gu Yan’s hands like this, the Immortal Families would be finished!
Sun Juehu glared at the stomach formed of blood and shouted,
“Dan Yue! Stop hiding inside and playing dead!!”
Guruguru…
The surface of the blood stomach bulged slightly, but showed no signs of cracking.
Gu Yan lightly patted his clothes, looked at Sun Juehu, and chuckled,
“Speaking of which, doesn’t the Empress have a grudge against Dan Yue? Coincidentally, I helped you exact your revenge. Instead of thanking me, the Empress turns her weapons against me. That’s not right, is it… heh heh…”
“Is it your turn?!!!”
Sun Juehu flicked her spear. This single movement summoned a wind blade, leaving a hundred-foot ravine in the mountains below.
Gu Yan was now also playing a game, a slight smile playing on his lips. He said,
“Since Madam Sun is so fond of that old woman, how about I set up a private room for both of you in the blood pool?”
Sa—!!!
The gale suddenly died down for a moment, and then a surge of malevolent light erupted into the sky, attacking Sun Juehu.
Sun Juehu pivoted her spear, its tip forming a coiling dragon, instantly transforming into an ice-blue streak of light. From within the sea of clouds, she summoned a wave of frost that turned the encroaching blood flow into blood-red ice pillars.
The air in the sky also liquefied, giving rise to waves of mist.
Hiding a thousand li away within Taishang Wusun’s formation, the grandfather and granddaughter duo of the Zu family merely took a breath and felt their throats freeze. They quickly took out winter-proof masks from their storage bags, put them on, and crouched behind the meditating Taishang Wusun, using his nine-foot tall physique to shield them from the frost.
Dada da…
Taishang Wusun’s teeth were chattering, and the few remaining eyebrows on his head were instantly covered in frost and snow.
“Hiss—Amitabha~~”
Zu Yuan quickly shouted,
“Amitabha, what ghost! Taishang bald monk, you can withstand it, but my grand-niece and I cannot… cannot withstand it!!! Quickly create a fire formation!”
Boom boom—
Sun Juehu and Gu Yan clashed in mid-air, their attacks creating arcs of light.
However, Gu Yan never took her seriously, treating her as if he were playing with a dragon, using himself as the dragon pearl to toy with the ice dragon that Sun Juehu’s spear had transformed into.
After all, for him, he might not have another opportunity to spar with a cultivator of the same realm for tens of thousands of years.
If he didn’t have his fun now, he wouldn’t have the chance later.
“Heh ha ha ha ha—!!!”
Clang—!
Sun Juehu pressed her spear against Gu Yan’s blood-red arm in front of her and roared,
“Laughing?!”
“And if I laugh? What can you do by yourself?” Gu Yan completely disregarded her, even taking the time to taunt Taishang Wusun in the distance, “Bald monk of the Wunian Sect!! Are you not going to make a move yet?!! Do you think my Tian Mo Sacred Land is your immortal family’s arena? Must you all come one by one?!! Ha ha ha ha…”
“Haa—!!!”
Gu Yan’s eyes focused:
“Empress, please calm down… alright?!”
With his cry, the blood pillars surrounding him instantly transformed into soft whips, slamming into Sun Juehu’s spear shaft. They then morphed into countless tentacles, thrashing and striking towards Sun Juehu.
Boom boom boom—
Explosions continued in mid-air, shattering Sun Juehu’s protective frost and snow into waves of ice mist, forming a snow cloud in the sky.
Sun Juehu was clearly struggling. She gritted her teeth, looked at the blood stomach that encased Si Xuanji behind her, and shouted again,
“Dan Yue! Come out and help me!”
Ying—!
Pitch-black mist once again formed a long whip, accompanied by fox cries, it snaked around Gu Yan from behind.
However, Gu Yan merely glanced sideways and blocked it with a wave of his hand.
“Fox, wouldn’t it be better to use this opportunity to escape?”
“Ying—!!!”
However, it was at the moment of this shout that…
Gu Yan suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest, his eyes widening. A long-forgotten ache rose from his abdomen.
Bang—
The surrounding blood flow instantly exploded into countless droplets, raining down a blood-red shower within a hundred-li radius.
Sun Juehu, who had been gritting her teeth, contemplating her next move, looked slightly perplexed as the bloody claw that was attacking her suddenly exploded.
“Cough—”
Gu Yan spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes looking back towards the Tian Mo Sect with horror, disbelief etched on his face.
Boom—
A bloody beam of light shot out from the depth of the Tian Mo Sect towards the heavens.
Immediately after, the blood stomach that had engulfed Si Xuanji cũng disintegrated.
Si Xuanji’s tightly closed Yin-yang eyes slowly opened. She pursed her lips as she glanced in the direction of the Tian Mo Sect. Then, raising her right hand towards the sky, the full moon that had been waiting above descended like a meteor, breaking through the clouds.
Silver moonlight cascaded upon her dishevelled black and white hair, making it gleam with brilliance.
She deliberately flew a little higher, looking down at the vomiting Gu Yan, and said with a loli-like voice,
“Gu Yan, just as you said, if I weren’t prepared, why would I come here to fight you?”
“… …”
“Even for Void Realm cultivators, life and death are merely a fleeting moment.”
Si Xuanji glanced at Hu Mu, who stood with his spear, and waved her hand. A Yin-yang Jade rose from behind her head, and she whispered softly,
“Just like the words I told you when we first met…”
“Die—”
Hum—
The moon’s radiance descended like a meteor, shattering mountains and rivers.
A brilliant light, like a new sun, illuminated the Eastern Domain, which had been shrouded in dark clouds for all seasons.
After the radiance dissipated, Gu Yan’s figure had vanished before them.
Si Xuanji exhaled a wisp of spiritual mist and said softly,
“What a disappointment…”
Then she turned to look at Sun Juehu, whose spear was now pointed at her, her eyes growing serious.
Sun Juehu tossed her hair behind her, gripped her spear tightly, and said,
“Sister Dan Yue is truly amazing? Or is it Young Master Ye who is truly amazing?”
“…Sun Juehu.” Si Xuanji frowned slightly, “Can’t we…”
“No!”
Sun Juehu’s eyes sharpened. She instantly appeared before Si Xuanji, thrusting her spirit spear towards her chest.
Boom—
Spiritual light illuminated this land once again in an instant.
Hu Mu, who had stepped aside, had also reverted to his human form. Watching Sun Juehu and Si Xuanji fight, he closed his eyes and calmed his thoughts for a while, then no longer paid them any mind.
The fight between the two old women, Sun and Si, had nothing to do with him.
He had only promised Madam Si that he would help kill Gu Yan.
However, Gu Yan wasn’t completely dead yet!!
“Ying… Yulan… hiss—”
Hu Mu let out a soft groan, sniffed gently, and then transformed into a black mist again, chasing after the Tian Mo Sect.
… …
Request for Leave
The decisive battle chapter is coming soon, followed by the usual wrap-up.
I tried writing it several times today, but it just didn’t feel right.
So, I humbly request one day off to regroup my thoughts and pace myself.
I should be able to post a very large chapter tomorrow.
—2023/12/16
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