C1127 Moonshield
The Frost Queen, her form as translucent as white jade, wore a grave expression when speaking of Yue Fei. She harbored a deep sense of caution.
She solemnly warned, "Yue Fei was once the most promising candidate of the Moonfiend clan to ascend to the throne of the Demon God. She and the entire Moonfiend clan were nearly obliterated by Nie Qingtian's intervention. And since you are the heir, she will stop at nothing to ensure your demise."
"Furthermore..."
The Frost Queen's icy gaze dropped to the earth beneath her, as if her eyes could pierce through the veils of time to witness bygone eras.
"The ancient Moonfiend clan has the ability to split their devil souls and take possession of more suitable hosts. Tan Junshan and Winona are prime vessels for her devil soul, far surpassing Calves in suitability."
"Based on my understanding of her, should Tan Junshan and Winona suffer grave injuries, she will immediately fragment her devil soul to possess them. Should she succeed, her power will surge dramatically."
The Frost Queen paused briefly.
"In the past, the Moonlit Wanderers were mere puppets, corralled like cattle by the Moonfiend, who could split their devil soul across multiple bodies. The death of one body and devil soul was inconsequential to them; they effectively had multiple lives. Yue Fei, being the most gifted among them and notoriously malicious, was a formidable force."
The Frost Queen, a being of the Frostfiend lineage, seemed to despise Yue Fei of the Moonfiend clan.
She explained that the ancient Moonfiend were considered aberrant and malevolent even among the ranks of the Star-Spawned Terror, disliked by the traditional Sky Fiend. Thus, when Nie Qingtian decimated the Moonfiend, causing their souls to scatter, many neighboring Sky Fiend warriors conveniently turned a blind eye.
Yu Yuan listened in silence before finally remarking, "So there's more to the story."
"The Moonfiend clan's standing among the Sky Fiend is akin to that of Colddeath in the Everlands," the Frost Queen added.
With this comparison, Yu Yuan grasped the full picture.
"There may be traces of souls sealed within the Moonshield beneath us."
Yu Yiyi, caressing the Shadowfox's sleek fur, slowly merged her form into the heart of the Crucible of Evil. She beckoned to the Frost Queen, and once she stepped in, Yu Yiyi advised, "Master, we must tread carefully. If Grec has left any contingencies, or if any elders of the Blood Fiend clan are present, let's not engage recklessly."
She gazed toward the Domain where the White Walker and the Terra Fiend had been. "We need to make our way to the Domain with the Starway and rendezvous with the members of Boulderdawn and the Chamber of Commerce."
"Understood." Yu Yuan nodded in agreement.
Subsequently, he waited in silence for Chen Qinghuang to lead the others in deciphering the so-called Moonshield.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Yu Yiyi unleashed a series of weak Banefiends, devoid of spiritual wisdom, that descended through the ground's fissures, serving as her eyes. They relayed every observed scene back to both her and Yu Yuan.
As a result, Yu Yuan witnessed the continuous eruptions in the depths of the earth, revealing chunks of mysterious sunsilver metal.
The snow-white metal chunks, adorned with natural demonic patterns, glowed with a soft moonlight and radiated a cool, pure moon energy.
Although he didn't spot Chen Qinghuang, he did observe Tan Junshan, Winona, Lee Yupan, and Yue Fei in various subterranean locations.
Winona employed blood magic, placing her hands upon the Moonshield and absorbing the moon energy through her palms.
Tan Junshan, meanwhile, conjured several palm-sized crescent moons. With their intricate design and the use of profound spells, he arranged them into a formation that captured the Moonshield's moon energy, while also attempting to discern any hidden mystical powers within the natural demonic patterns.
In contrast to Winona and Tan Junshan, the Silvermoon Queen, Lee Yupan, struggled to absorb energy from the Moonshield efficiently.
She appeared unable to find an effective method, and neither her mastery of spells nor her bloodline talents allowed her to extract the coveted power from the Moonshield.
Instead, her own power and the essence of her Moonlit Wanderers bloodline were being siphoned into the silver-white stone by the Moonshield.
At her wit's end, Yue Fei approached and murmured advice to her.
The Silvermoon Queen's eyes slowly turned a silvery white, and she emanated a chilling, inhuman presence.
She abandoned the spiritual energy system of humans and the innate talents of the Moonlit Wanderers, instead seemingly tapping into the ancient and secretive powers of the Moonfiend lineage.
Her Lunar Spirit merged with the Solar Spirit Body, creating a union of Yin and Yang. Subsequently, a crystalline form, as white as jade, emerged from within her and approached the Moonshield.
This Solar Spirit Body swiftly harnessed the power contained within the Moonshield, utilizing the arcane secrets of the Moonfiend Clan.
In no time, she had amassed more moon energy than both Tan Junshan and Winona.
"Hmm?"
Tan Junshan, who had been summoning the cold moons and harnessing moon energy through an intricate array, noticed something unusual about the Silvermoon Queen.
He turned in astonishment and said, "Winona, her method of absorbing moon energy isn't the blood magic of the Moonlit Wanderers, is it?"
"No, it's the nearly forgotten Moon Refining Art of the ancient Moonfiend Clan." Winona's brow creased slightly, a hint of envy in her tone. "The arcane passed down by the ancient Moonfiend Clan is indeed mysterious and profound. Much of the Moon Magic that exists within the Moonlit Wanderers today was inspired by the ancient Moonfiend."
"Don't give yourself too much credit." Yue Fei retorted with a cold sneer, "To be precise, when we enslaved your Moonlit Wanderers, we taught you a few techniques to draw power from the moon. Over time, these arcane methods became imprinted in your bloodline, and you came to regard them as your own."
Winona's frown deepened upon hearing this, yet she offered no rebuttal.
She was aware of Yue Fei's former high standing within the Moonfiend Clan and was uncertain whether her claims were true or false.
"She's speaking the truth."
The voice of the Frost Queen emanated from the Crucible of Evil.
Through the perspective of the Frostfiend, Yu Yuan and Yu Yiyi were privy to the unfolding events below. The Frost Queen casually enlightened them, revealing the veracity of the situation.
"The Moonlit Wanderers' array of natural gifts and arcane practices are all derived from the ancient Moonfiend Clan. As the Moonfiend's influence waned, they began to depend on the Moonlit Wanderers for survival, who in turn fully assimilated the Moonfiend's powers. This included the Moonfiend's sophisticated spells and their knowledge of moon energy."
The Frost Queen offered her own interpretation, "The Moonfiend Clan naturally dominated the Moonlit Wanderers. Had the leader of the Moon Sect not ascended to divinity, I would fear that someone as formidable as Yue Fei could single-handedly subvert the entire Moonlit Wanderers, reestablishing the ancient Moonfiend's supremacy over them."
Yu Yiyi spoke, "When a high-level intelligent species gives birth to a tenth-level Mighty, the bloodline characteristics of that race are forever altered. The enigmatic leader of the Moonlit Wanderers advanced the bloodline mysteries of their people by leaps and bounds. Her very existence transformed the Moonlit Wanderers; she was nothing short of a miracle worker."
Yu Yuan was astounded as he listened. He had yet to meet the mixed-blood sect master from the Starmoon Sect, but the mere thought of her had already made a profound impact on him, stirring a sense of reverence within.
After a moment, he suddenly perceived an unusual activity from the Baneblade that had settled into his acupoint. With a mere thought, the Baneblade flew out from the acupoint and landed in his palm.
While using the Altar of Rebirth to keep the Baneblade in check, he projected a remnant soul into it and immediately witnessed a massive Bloodwraith churning wildly inside the blade, taking on the form of a blurry ape.
"Sky-Shaking Ape!"
Yu Yuan was taken aback. The Baneblade's original owner was the ninth-level Sky-Shaking Ape from Shadow's Keep. This giant ape had perished, consumed by the Bloodhell, and transformed into a Bloodwraith. What could be causing such abnormal behavior now?
