C1236 Forbidden Name
Upon the mention of Chen Qinghuang, the countenances of the strong figures gathered shifted noticeably.
Her name seemed to carry the weight of a forbidden taboo.
The two Platinum Asuras, both of Ninth Level bloodlines, suddenly recalled the legend that Yu Yuan and the Secular Bird were supposed to have vanished from the Dim Starfield together.
Could it be that they also appeared in the Illusion Starfield simultaneously?
Zhu Huan, who had arrived subsequently, Pei Yuling within the Void Mirror, and even Wei Zhuo, locked in combat with Gheirat, all tensed at Yu Yuan's words.
Eyes flickered in the shadows, scouring for any sign of the Secular Bird.
"She has already departed."
Concealed within the sixth Heaven Palace Seal, Fu Xuanwen, who had remained hidden until now, huffed and offered an explanation, "Don't be overly concerned. She likely hasn't fully awakened yet. Even though she is the Secular Bird, with supreme combat prowess, there's no guarantee she can maintain all her power after a hundred thousand years!"
In contrast to the outer domain's various clans, the esteemed cultivators of the Boundless Great World were convinced that Chen Qinghuang was indeed the Secular Bird.
"Hmm..."
In that instant, Yu Yuan acutely felt the gaze that had been fixed on him shift away momentarily.
His mind was flooded with a whirlwind of thoughts.
He pondered why, after awakening and observing from a distance for so long, she had refrained from taking action.
A hundred thousand years ago...
It dawned on Yu Yuan that back then, it was the combined might of the peak experts from foreign races that had banded together to annihilate the Secular Bird.
Once the Secular Bird recovered its memories and truly awakened, it would naturally harbor enmity towards those alien races.
—Not the denizens of the Boundless Great World.
Following this train of thought...
The Secular Bird's choice to reincarnate within the Boundless Great World, assuming a human guise, might carry a deeper significance.
Fu Xuanwen, Zhu Huan, and the other human champions who fought against the Asura Clan in the Illusion Starfield and faced off against Leo and Beru of the Star Race—she must surely take pleasure in their demise.
After all, they were the progeny of her ancient foes.
Could it be that her gaze upon him signified that only his fate truly mattered to her?
As long as she remained unharmed, and as long as Fu Xuanwen and his cohorts lacked the power to end her life, she was content to simply watch. Watch the Asura perish, and watch Leo, Beru, and Gheirat of the Star Race fall, one by one.
"Mr. Pei, I need you to back me up and ensure that the young upstart doesn't slip away."
When Fu Xuanwen of the Profound Sky Sect addressed Pei Yuling once more, his tone carried considerably more respect, and his words were laced with politeness. "Rest assured, our Profound Sky Sect will reward you handsomely! Yu Yuan has deep ties with alien races; he's a betrayer of the Boundless Great World and his death would be no great loss."
Fu Xuanwen had an epiphany upon hearing Beru's whispered words to Yu Yuan.
He believed them.
He believed that Pei Yuling, like them, had no desire to see Yu Yuan alive, nor to witness the emergence of a space cultivator who had attained the level of Primordial Spirit within the Divine Soul Sect and the Babel Chamber of Commerce.
"I can promise you access to the Dragon Slash Platform for a time," Fu Xuanwen added.
Pei Yuling, with his extraordinary presence, looked troubled but gave a slight nod in agreement.
He had silently accepted Fu Xuanwen's proposal.
"Yu, Yu Yuan?"
Xie Binn, brought along by him, overheard the exchange between Fu Xuanwen and Pei Yuling and brandished the Ice Thunder Mark.
Rong Xun, Han Dan, and Kin Haolong hesitated briefly before joining Xie Binn, each drawing their own weapons, readying themselves for battle.
"You lot?"
Fu Xuanwen scoffed, hurling the brick-shaped Heaven Palace Seal at the four of them.
In an instant, the Heaven Palace Seal transformed into an ocean of swirling golden characters that effortlessly ensnared the four Yang God-level cultivators.
"Stand aside for now. Once I've dealt with Yu Yuan, I'll come back to question each of you!"
Fu Xuanwen's face showed clear contempt as his towering, mountainous figure took on an imposing air. From within, the clear sound of reading echoed out, as if a multitude of children were reciting poems and songs in a schoolroom nestled inside him.
His magical figure extended a hand, reaching through the air towards Yu Yuan.
A mass of golden characters surged along his arm, racing towards Yu Yuan like a gleaming golden snake.
Yu Yuan once again grasped the Dragon Slash Platform with both hands, ready to harness the strength from the young beast as before.
Suddenly, the Void Mirror soared into view.
In a blink, the Void Mirror materialized above his head, its reflective surface facing downward, capturing both him and the Dragon Slash Platform within its glow.
He and the Dragon Slash Platform were instantly immobilized, unable to move. He even felt a disconnection between his soul and body.
His soul consciousness was blocked from entering the Dragon Slash Platform, preventing any communication with the young beast inside.
His thoughts remained untransmitted.
Simultaneously, several spatial rifts burst open near the meteor he stood upon. Like luminous blades, they lunged towards Leo and Beru.
The two Star Race members, gripped by terror, quickly grabbed his arms and retreated backward.
Boom! Boom!
Two tremendous forces erupted from Yu Yuan's arms, catapulting Leo and Beru, who had been holding him, through the air.
Leo and Beru, now airborne, witnessed a cascade of rainbow light enveloping Yu Yuan.
The young beast had fully awakened the power of the Space-time Dragon within the Dragon Slash Platform, engaging in a mysterious collision with the light of the Void Mirror.
Chi! Chi!
An array of delicate spatial fissures, seemingly spawned by the Dragon Slash Platform, intertwined with those opened by Pei Yuling, unleashing a heart-pounding turbulence.
At that moment, the space around Yu Yuan turned into a maelstrom of chaos and disorder.
Space collapsed in on Yu Yuan, while time twisted and folded upon itself.
Observers of Yu Yuan were astonished to see multiple iterations of him, each with a different visage.
At times, it was the menacing Hong Qi, at others, the undaunted Yu Yuan. There were moments when Hong Qi instructed his apprentice in the art of alchemy, and flashes of Yu Yuan's exploits in the Ember Waters.
Time fluctuated wildly between the past and present.
Even the outstretched hand of Fu Xuanwen's dharma idol seemed to retreat inexplicably as it neared Yu Yuan, as if swayed by a strange temporal current.
Those watching Yu Yuan's location were overcome with a profound sense of discomfort, feeling uneasy in every way.
Whoosh!
A ball of grayish-white smoke abruptly materialized, reaching for Yu Yuan on his inevitable path. Fu Xuanwen let out a piercing scream as the smoke engulfed his hand, which seemed to be submerged by a river of death. The flesh, spiritual energy, and soul power he had imbued in that hand were instantly assaulted.
Flames burst forth from the smoke, falling into the fissures of the ruptured space. Pei Yuling gasped sharply, shuddering as his mystical dharma idol burst apart. Reverting to his human form, he appeared beside the Void Mirror, seized it, and darted into the spatial crack, weaving through it erratically.
Fu Xuanwen's Aspect disintegrated soon after. The Late Period cultivator from the Profound Sky Sect was left with his entire left arm stripped of flesh and blood, reduced to a ghastly skeletal remnant. The sight of the whitened bones was unnerving and bizarre, and they continued to change, slowly taking on a gray hue.
The stench of death pervaded the air, creeping ominously towards Fu Xuanwen's neck. His eyes widened in horror as he bellowed, "Heaven Palace Seal!" Without waiting for Cao Jiaze to respond, all but one of the Heaven Palace Seals protecting his true form took flight.
The five Heaven Palace Seals, now the size of fingertips, bore down upon the ashen bone, their infinite radiance and strange powers repeatedly purging the deathly aura.
"Secular Bird!"
"Luan Bird Queen!"
Alien and human powerhouses alike cried out in alarm.
Yu Yuan, gripping the Dragon Slash Platform, snapped out of his soul-wandering trance at the mention of the "Secular Bird." He reconnected with the essence of his soul and the vitality of his flesh. Drawn to the departing wreckage of the warship in the Star Sea Area, he then instantly sensed the grace of the Empress once more.
