DONG—
Lin Yun heard a sound like the tolling of a great bell, so loud it was deafening.
The next moment, he saw the vast, starry sky fly past him. He crossed an endless, jade cosmos.
In the void at the very end of it all, a woman stood. She wore a long, red robe.
It was only for an instant, but as the vision dissipated, Lin Yun distinctly felt the woman glance at him.
His thoughts snapped back to reality.
Pei Miaoyin coughed twice. "Thank you," she whispered. "Do not grieve for me. One day, we will meet again."
As she spoke, a raging fire ignited upon her body. Like a piece of fine porcelain, she crumbled piece by piece before Lin Yun's eyes, turning to flying ash.
In the end, all that remained was a single strand of hair, shimmering with a soft white light.
Lin Yun clenched it tightly in his hand, his heart heavy.
In the distance, Xiao Pingtian was initially overjoyed watching Pei Miaoyin die. He could finally claim the power of the thousand-year-old resentful ghost for himself!
But his joy quickly turned to shock as he saw Lin Yun's cultivation begin to rise steadily. In just a few moments, he had already reached the peak of the Origin Sea Realm.
[Name]: Lin Yun
[Realm]: Origin Sea - Stage 9
[Destiny Template]: Son of Misfortune (Gray)
[Attributes]: Flammable and Explosive (White), God of Slaughter (Purple)
[Flammable and Explosive]: Your emotions are extremely volatile, making you prone to uncontrollable actions.
[God of Slaughter]: The killing intent condensed from countless battles will inflict a mental shock effect on all enemies in battle, causing their strength to decline. The effect varies depending on the difference in realms.
[Fate]: Engages in a bitter struggle with Xiao Pingtian in Soul-Hooking Valley. Due to a moment of mercy, he is ambushed by other disciples and killed!
[Recent Turning Point]: Due to Pei Miaoyin's death, engages in a bitter struggle with Xiao Pingtian.
Taking a deep breath, Lin Yun slowly rose to his feet.
Xiao Pingtian spat. "You damn leech! Why do all the good things happen to you? This was supposed to be my opportunity!" he roared.
Lin Yun's body was now radiating a billowing killing intent. His face was like ice, yet one could feel no rage from him. His gaze was like a torch.
He looked up at Xiao Pingtian and sneered. "Your opportunity? By using your Mystic Heaven Soul-Suppressing Talisman to forcibly seize her power? Truly worthy of the famous and righteous Flowing Cloud Sect. Anyone who stands in your way must die, is that it?"
The more he spoke, the more terrifying the smile on his face became.
The wards around Soul-Hooking Valley were dissipating. Lin Yun carefully put away Pei Miaoyin's final relic and turned to face the assembled cultivators.
"For those of you who do not wish to die, please leave now," he said, his voice cold enough to make one feel as if they had fallen into the deepest hell. "If you remain, I will consider it a challenge. And then, I will show no mercy!"
Luo Yunchao burst out laughing. "Lin Yun, who are you trying to fool? Damn it, you had that female ghost to protect you before! Now you're all alone against so many of us, and you still dare to be so arrogant? There are so many of us, we could drown you in spit!"
Several other cultivators began to laugh along with him. "Exactly! He's just a piece of Origin Sea Realm trash. Get on your knees and kowtow to your granddaddy, and maybe we'll give you a quick death!"
Ye Qian's expression was complicated. She wanted Lin Yun dead, but she didn't want him to die at the hands of these people. "So many of you against one Lin Yun. What's there to be proud of?" she said with disgust, particularly for these loud-mouthed cowards.
Luo Yunchao's eyes widened. "Ye Qian, what are you saying? Are you sympathizing with this heretical monster?"
"Yeah! As a cultivator, he mixed with an evil spirit! It seems all the disciples of the Beast Taming Sect are trash like this."
Ye Qian glanced at Xiao Pingtian and saw him staring at her, his eyes cold and menacing. A shiver of fear went down her spine. "Senior Brother, you are more than enough to handle this. I'll be leaving now!"
She gave Lin Yun one last complicated look, then hurriedly departed. Xiao Pingtian just snorted and muttered something under his breath.
The next to leave was Kong Xuan. She walked forward and bowed deeply to Lin Yun. "I'm sorry. I am very sorry for what happened to her." Although she hadn't been the one leading the charge, she felt a sense of guilt.
Lin Yun looked at Kong Xuan, his expression softening slightly.
"Junior Sister Kong, what are you doing?" Luo Yunchao was horrified by her words. "Are you trying to make our Constant Sun Sect break its alliance with the Flowing Cloud Sect? Girl, do you have any idea what you're saying?"
Despite his outburst, Kong Xuan showed no fear. She just glanced at Luo Yunchao. "Don't call me Junior Sister. It makes me sick."
With that, she turned and followed after Ye Qian, the two of them leaving Soul-Hooking Valley one after the other.
Xiao Pingtian held his sword with one hand, looking at Lin Yun coolly. "Don't say I didn't give you a chance. If you feel you need to rest, I can allow it. I will make sure your defeat is one you accept in both heart and soul." He smiled.
Lin Yun shook his head. Those two women should be gone by now, right?
Outside Soul-Hooking Valley, Kong Xuan caught up with Ye Qian. "Senior Sister Ye," she asked, "will Lin Yun lose?"
Ye Qian smiled faintly. "A peak Origin Sea Realm cultivator against the Spirit Cauldron Realm? Never mind that Senior Brother Xiao is on the verge of a breakthrough; even an ordinary Spirit Cauldron expert is not someone an Origin Sea cultivator could possibly defeat."
Lin Yun winning? Ye Qian hadn't even considered it. Xiao Pingtian was the Sword-Bearer of the Flowing Cloud Sect, the strongest of the younger generation. How could he possibly lose?
Kong Xuan's face fell with disappointment. She didn't understand why so many people wanted Lin Yun dead. He had never done anything to them. Even when he had captured them before, he had only taught them a small lesson. He'd had the chance to cut the grass and pull the roots, but he hadn't. In contrast, it was they who had pursued him relentlessly, as if he were their sworn enemy.
Kong Xuan sighed and shook her head, trying not to think about it anymore.
Back in Soul-Hooking Valley, Lin Yun shook his head. "No need to rest. But to deal with you… I suppose I really can't hold back anymore."
He muttered to himself and began to remove the bracers from his wrists.
Luo Yunchao laughed. "Hey, what are you doing? It's just a pair of bracers. So what if you take them off? Is that going to make you break through to the next realm?"
Lin Yun ignored him.
Only Xiao Pingtian frowned slightly.
No one thought Lin Yun had any chance of winning. Even Lin Yun himself wasn't entirely confident. But Pei Miaoyin was dead. She had died right in front of him. Although his mind was screaming at him to flee, his heart could not find peace.
In the past half a month, he had come to consider Pei Miaoyin a friend. In all his years since stepping onto the path of cultivation, he had never had many friends. If he didn't do something now, he would regret it forever.
Lin Yun tossed the bracers to the ground.
"BOOM—"
The thunderous crash froze the smiles on everyone's faces.