C1242 Blight of Ruin
Fu Xuanwen's erratic behavior drew the attention of all those present, and they couldn't help but notice the growth on his arm.
In a frenzy, he bellowed for Yu Yuan to make a swift departure and not linger any longer.
Yet, his recent command to "wait" was still fresh in everyone's minds.
The ferocity on his face, the resolve in his eyes, and his tight grip on the Rod of Heavenly Justice when he had cried out "wait" all spoke volumes of his reluctance to let Yu Yuan and his companions leave without a struggle.
In an instant, the small lump on his arm swelled into the monstrous Blight of Ruin!
His stubborn refusal and that single command had provoked the Songbird Queen, who had been observing him from the shadows with a watchful gaze.
Thus, the Songbird Queen once again demonstrated her formidable power!
Fu Xuanwen instantly reaped the consequences of his actions, realizing that the psionic power he had unleashed from the Rod of Heavenly Justice, along with the vitality cleared by the five Marks of the Celestials, had not been eradicated after all!
Not only had it persisted, but Fu Xuanwen also sensed a mysterious force that was neither his own nor the Rod's. This force had coalesced into a sphere within the little world of flesh and blood inside the Rod of Heavenly Justice, gathering and assimilating the accumulated flesh and blood of the Otherkin from eons past.
These were the vital energies of warriors from various races, eighth and ninth level Otherkin, spirit animals, all stripped of their immense vitality by the Rod of Heavenly Justice.
The diverse energies of their blood and flesh were bound by the shackles of divine power, unable to break free.
These shackles originated from the Ebon Star, forged by one or more primordial spirit masters!
At this moment, each time the divine power sought to manifest, it was crushed by the crimson sword light.
The sword light and the highest divine power were forces of equal stature!
In the unseen little world within the Rod, the divine power left by the Ebon Star's primordial spirit masters was being ripped apart by the sword light from Nie Qingtian, no longer capable of fully restraining the pool of mixed racial flesh and blood energies.
Thus, Fu Xuanwen could only watch helplessly as the psionic power, infused with elements of death, destruction, and rebirth, continued to swell in strength.
The psionic power contained within the Rod of Heavenly Justice was far more terrifying than the Blight of Ruin that marred his arm. Clinging to the last shreds of his sanity, he considered the sword sheath in Yu Yuan's possession, suspecting that its presence had drawn the attention of the fabled Divine Sword.
Though he was unaware of the Divine Sword's exact location or fate, he understood that it bore a deep-seated malice toward Lin Xuhai, the previous master of the Rod of Heavenly Justice. This realization prompted him to uncharacteristically urge Yu Yuan to depart quickly.
"One moment you're telling me to wait, the next you're rushing me out the door," Yu Yuan said with an amiable smile, turning to face Fu Xuanwen, whose demeanor was edging toward madness. Yu Yuan focused intently, detecting the peculiar essence of Chen Qinghuang within the Rod of Heavenly Justice.
The secular bird, now in human form, had thoroughly permeated the Rod with its enigmatic and unpredictable secret arts. The only force capable of countering the secular bird's power was the supreme divine energy of the Ebon Star, which, emanating from the Titanblade submerged in Zekrica, exerted its influence through the sword sheath. Yet, as soon as this divine force materialized, it was obliterated by the sword light.
The crimson sword light brimmed with a profound enmity toward the Ebon Star. "It appears that Nie Qingtian's fall was not without the Ebon Star's covert assistance. His resentment extends not only to Lin Xuhai but also to the two primordial spirits of the sect," Yu Yuan mused, sensing the undercurrents of hostility.
Thus, he felt no urgency to leave, choosing instead to remain and wait. From the distant realm of Zekrica, the sword spirit, shrouded in the earth's hidden depths, intermittently transmitted vague messages, sharing its conjectures.
"The Rod of Heavenly Justice, brimming with the potent blood energy of the Otherkin, was crafted by the Ebon Star specifically for Cao Yi. Should Cao Yi acquire the Rod, he could harness the power of the blood pond within to forge a Divine Visage, catapulting him to the Unbound realm," the sword spirit conveyed.
Yu Yuan absorbed this revelation with a mix of awe and concern. If Cao Yi, a practitioner of both light and shadow, were to gain control of the Rod of Heavenly Justice, which Fu Xuanwen could not master, his power would surge dramatically in an astonishingly brief span of time.
Yu Yuan had a feeling that if Cao Yi had managed to refine the Rod of Heavenly Justice before setting foot on the Primal Blood Continent, not even the formidable Demon God Grec would have been able to turn him into a blood bound slave.
Cao Yi, having merged with the Rod of Heavenly Justice, had ascended directly to the Unbound Realm.
He had become a force to be reckoned with, capable of going toe-to-toe with the newly ascended Great Demon God, Grieg!
Puff!
Blood gushed from Fu Xuanwen's mouth, each drop being devoured by the Blight of Ruin on his arm, bolstering Chen Qinghuang's power.
Great Sage Beru watched Fu Xuanwen's transformation with a wry smile, sighing deeply.
"This object, crafted from the destructive forces of the world and fueled by Fu Xuanwen's flesh and spiritual energy, is stable for now. But should it explode..."
Beru's face took on a peculiar look as he glanced at Cao Jiaze, who was moving towards Fu Xuanwen, and the cultivators from Ebon Star and Sunlit Order. "The Blight of Ruin, upon detonation, would unleash a devastating shockwave that not even Solar Spirit Realm cultivators could withstand. And for those in the Unbound Realm, even their Divine Visages would struggle to cleanse themselves of its taint."
Upon hearing this, the cultivators who had intended to assist Fu Xuanwen recoiled as though they had encountered a specter.
Their knowledge of the secular bird was limited, and they were unaware of its true might. But Beru's warning was enough to dissuade them from taking any risks.
"I fear that Kuvrepros might become a desolate wasteland due to her Blight of Ruin and the subsequent forces that follow," Beru lamented, casting a beseeching look towards Yu Yuan, as if hoping he could convince the secular bird to show mercy and refrain from wreaking havoc in this Star River.
Regrettably, at that moment, Yu Yuan was powerless to intervene.
Whoosh!
Sensing the dire situation, Fu Xuanwen attempted to invoke his Divine Visage, but each attempt ended in failure.
"He's in decline," observed Zhu Huan of the Sunlit Order, who had been silently watching the scene unfold. A sense of remorse washed over him, and he felt the urge to withdraw. "I think it's best we abandon this covert assassination attempt."
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A series of more than a dozen fiery streaks surged from above his head, releasing flame runes imbued with special significance. These were sent to Xu Jingyao, who was within the yellow sun, urging him to cease his persistent attempts to extract the flame energy and to withdraw as quickly as possible.
Yu Yuan's form subtly quivered.
The sword sheath in his hands ceased to exhibit any anomalies, and he simultaneously sensed the presence of the Divine Sword's spirit and the concealed aura of the Empress within Zekrica.
"Let's go."
In the moment he stowed the sword sheath, Yu Yuan also submerged the Dragon Slaying Stage into his acupoint and took the lead, soaring away.
Rong Xun and his companions paused, momentarily taken aback, then hastily decided to pursue him.
Fu Xuanwen began to howl in despair.
The formidable Blight of Ruin did not burst open but instead contracted slowly before suddenly being absorbed into the Rod of Heavenly Justice. Within this Divine Artifact, designed to combat the Otherkin, cataclysmic explosions occurred, unleashing shockwaves that obliterated the lingering power of the primordial spirit.
A grotesque bloom of mixed flesh and blood from various races unfurled mysteriously like a bizarre flower.
At the heart of this "flower," a slender and exquisite figure emerged, shrouded in a light of destruction, with a middle layer radiating a grayish-white halo of death, and at its core, a boundless surge of life force.
Enveloped in the triple halos, the Songbird Queen, in her novel form, materialized through the psionic power contained within the Rod of Heavenly Justice.
What was meant for Cao Yi to forge his Divine Visage and ascend to the Unbound realm had been seized by her, claimed in its entirety with a triumphant embrace.
The Divine Artifact of the Ebon Star sect was also ravaged by the shockwave, its internal arrays shattered.
The artifact's grade plummeted alongside Fu Xuanwen's level of cultivation.
Cao Jiaze's face twisted into an expression of utter discomfort. "Nie Qingtian's sword must be close by; otherwise, the Supreme Divine Power within the Rod wouldn't be suppressed. Who would have thought that the seemingly inconsequential Kuvrepros would be the stage for such a confluence of stars and a host of unforeseen tumults and upheavals?"
Without paying heed to Fu Xuanwen's cries or Cao Jiaze's troubled state, he turned his gaze toward the yellow sun.
"Senior Zhu, I suggest you personally escort him. I'm concerned that if we delay, I might not be able to make my escape when I need to."
Cao Jiaze didn't mince words. Having made his point, he selected a route through the stars that would ensure he wouldn't cross paths with Yu Yuan and resolutely soared off with the Mark of the Celestials.
