The Chongqing Bird watched Lin Yun's desperate efforts and sighed helplessly.
"Has this kid gotten too deep into his role? He was clearly just supposed to come here for some opportunities, but he ended up switching sides."
It had initially thought Lin Yun's previous actions were quite clever. But regardless, Lin Yun was now its master. As the saying goes, for every creature, there is another that can subdue it.
"The Mystic Heaven Soul-Suppressing Talisman can indeed deal with Pei Miaojin," the bird's voice echoed in his mind. "But your aura of slaughter is the very thing that can break its barrier! However, I cannot guarantee that the current you is capable of doing so."
The battle within Soul-Hooking Valley raged on. Countless skeletons were entangled with the group of cultivators, but overall, the skeletons had the upper hand. The Vengeful Ghost Giant was also gathering terrifying power, continuously bombarding the talisman's barrier, but it was all in vain.
On the ground, Ye Qian was still swinging her sword, cutting down one skeleton after another. Her Sword Style of the Yue Maiden was even stronger than before. She looked up at Lin Yun, who was still locked in a battle of techniques with Xiao Pingtian, and tightened her grip on her sword.
Once upon a time, this man and I were at the same level. But how much time has passed? He has already surpassed me by so much.
"Lin Yun, just you wait. One day, I will catch up to you!" she muttered under her breath. "When that time comes, I will definitely make you regret becoming my opponent!"
Just then, two skeletons charged her at once, forcing her back several steps in a disheveled retreat.
High above, Xiao Pingtian held his sword in one hand while his left hand channeled the Mystic Heaven Soul-Suppressing Talisman. His eyes were fixed on Pei Miaojin within the red mist.
"Sinful ghost, if you are willing to transfer your lifetime of cultivation to me now, I will spare your life! Otherwise, hmph, this talisman is not so easy to deal with!"
Pei Miaojin naturally paid his threat no mind. "You? In your dreams!"
The Vengeful Ghost Giant made a grasping motion in the air, and the blood and flesh from the slain cultivators on the ground below gathered in its hand. A breathing sword began to form, crimson all over like red agate, but it pulsed with an unearthly light, as if it were a living thing.
Even from a great distance, Xiao Pingtian could feel the threat from this blade. If he didn't have the talisman, forget his group; even if Gu Xiande himself had led a team here, they would have failed spectacularly. This thousand-year resentful ghost was the real deal. No wonder no one had dared to provoke Soul-Hooking Valley for so many years.
He just couldn't understand what kind of luck this bastard Lin Yun had. How could he barge into a place like this and survive for half a month? What was even more terrifying was that Pei Miaojin had actively chosen to cooperate with him. That was what truly worried Xiao Pingtian.
Luckily, he had arrived one step ahead. Otherwise, Lin Yun might very well have taken Pei Miaojin's cultivation for himself, and that would have been a disaster.
But now... hmph, everything was under his control.
Xiao Pingtian let out a cold laugh. "Since you seek your own death, don't blame me for not warning you! Go!"
With a roar, the talisman in Xiao Pingtian's hand flared brilliantly.
BOOM—
A flash of golden light pierced through the red mist and enveloped Pei Miaojin.
Though Lin Yun saw this, all he could do was continue to condense his aura of slaughter. According to the Chongqing Bird, this would take time. Of course, Lin Yun didn't know exactly what the bird meant. He was sure it wouldn't harm him, but whether it would harm Pei Miaojin was another question. But if he wanted to break the talisman with his killing intent, he knew he couldn't do it in an instant.
The next moment, a deafening shriek echoed through the entire valley. Pei Miaojin collapsed to her knees, her body emitting clouds of billowing steam. Lin Yun could even see countless twisted, struggling shadows emerging from her form. She was clearly suffering an unimaginable, terrible pain.
Without a moment's hesitation, Lin Yun moved to stand in front of her. He activated his flying shuttle and attacked again, but this time, the treasure was completely destroyed.
He didn't stop. He threw out a continuous stream of treasures, all of which he had taken from the other cultivators.
At this moment, both Pei Miaojin and the Vengeful Ghost Giant were kneeling on the ground, wailing in agony. The skeletons that had been harassing the other cultivators vanished completely. Seeing Pei Miaojin enveloped in the red mist, the cultivators began to laugh.
"Ha... haha."
"This thousand-year resentful ghost really thought she could kill us. Look at her now! She's paying the price for her arrogance!" a crowd of them gloated.
Only Kong Xuan did not laugh. For some reason, after entering Soul-Hooking Valley, the evil spirits hadn't harmed her. And she didn't feel that Pei Miaojin was a bad person. After all, she hadn't actively left the valley to kill people. The cultivators who came here had done so knowing they might be killed. Seeing Pei Miaojin in such pain, she didn't know what to do.
Lin Yun kept throwing out treasures, but none of them could last for long.
Watching the artifacts be destroyed one by one, Xiao Pingtian sneered. "Lin Yun, you don't really think you can stop me with this garbage, do you? No one has ever been able to stop me from doing what I want."
Lin Yun just looked at him and said flatly, "Perhaps in the past. But not anymore!"
Xiao Pingtian threw his head back and laughed. "What a naive fool! Truly a traitor to the Flowing Cloud Sect! As a cultivator, you actually sympathize with these evil spirits that harm our own kind! You really should have died long ago!"
As he spoke, the power of the Mystic Heaven Soul-Suppressing Talisman grew even stronger.
Pei Miaojin's voice had become weak and feeble. "I told you... since this bastard dared to come, he certainly had a way to deal with you! If you had just…"
"Shut up!" Pei Miaojin retorted, forcing herself to speak. "I would never do something like that just to survive!"
The talisman's damage to her was too severe, even if it was just for a moment.
Lin Yun sighed. "I'm sorry. This might be a little late. But as long as I'm alive, I won't let you just vanish like smoke!"
With that, he looked up at Xiao Pingtian.
The group of cultivators in the valley watched Lin Yun's sudden, defiant change and frowned. What was going on? Surely he wasn't planning to fight Xiao Pingtian head-on?
"Does Lin Yun still want to challenge Senior Brother Xiao?"
"Is he joking? He's just in the Origin Sea Realm. How can he even be compared to Senior Brother Xiao?"
At this moment, no one believed Lin Yun could do it. Even Lin Yun himself wasn't sure. But if he didn't do it today, no one could.
The Mystic Heaven Soul-Suppressing Talisman had dispersed all the resentful energy in the valley, filling it with a vast, righteous Qi. For the first time in ages, Soul-Hooking Valley was bright.
Just as a triumphant smile spread across Xiao Pingtian's face, the situation suddenly took a 180-degree turn.