C1282 She Was Very Good at Choosing!
Yu Yuan was consumed by urgency.
The moment he heard about the evilkind's totem-pole, he was certain his inference was accurate.
—Lin Zhuyun truly had a formidable backing!
He was all too aware of the staggering power held by the thirty-six totem-poles!
After all, he had witnessed them towering like mountains in the Embers Sea, manipulated by the Abyssal Leviathan to shatter the wall's seals of the Everlands and glide through the Star River!
The Starborne Ritual of Primeval Demons, capable of containing the Abyssal Leviathan and confining the cosmic giant beast to the Embers Sea year-round, was no trivial matter.
He was acutely aware of the dire consequences that awaited Ogeus, Faang Yao, and the others once the Starborne Ritual of Primeval Demons was enacted.
His anxiety was palpable, driving him to unleash the full force of the Bane within the crucible.
Meteor after meteor was effortlessly penetrated!
He realized that the Cursed Artifact, infamous for its malevolence, had amassed considerable combat prowess thanks to his nurturing and the convergence of numerous Banes.
"There's still time. It must be possible!"
He reassured himself internally.
His concern for Yuan Lianyao stemmed from knowing that his betrothed despised him deeply.
He could not bear the thought of Yuan Lianyao falling victim to Lin Zhuyun, nor could he stand to see any harm come to the mayor who had looked after him for so many years.
Yu Yuan's mind raced with thoughts, strategizing how to rescue Yuan Lianyao.
"The evilkind's thirty-six totem-poles, the Starborne Ritual of Primeval Demons, crafted by the Supreme of Shadow's Keep..."
He mulled over the details, slowly piecing together a plan.
"Maybe it's worth a shot!"
...
With a swift whoosh, the Crucible of Evil burst into the starry expanse, making a brazen entrance.
Archdemons from the evilkind, either pinned down by the totem-poles or nursing their wounds, watched as Solar Spirit cultivators from the human race, arriving from the Land of Quiescence, looked up in a last-ditch effort.
The dark cauldron hung in the sky like an ominous black sun, unleashing a staggering demonic tide.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A dense array of Bane materialized on the surface of the cauldron, their visages ghastly and terrifying, morphing into a series of enigmatic and wondrous Circles of Damnation.
The Cultivator of the Solar Spirit and Ogeus gazed up at the Crucible of Evil, a profound unease gripping their souls.
They came to the sudden realization that this earth-shattering Cursed Artifact, after years of dormancy, had been successfully restored by Yu Yuan.
Once again, it was poised to unleash its fearsome demonic might!
From within the cauldron, a slender and refined figure rose, eventually breaking free and soaring out before gently descending.
Clad in simple grayish-black attire, the figure exuded strength and agility.
One hand gripped a bladeless sheath, and his sharply defined face was etched with urgency and concern.
Undeniably, he was a man of captivating presence, radiating an aura of steely resolve and chilling intensity.
Whoosh!
With a sudden drop, he landed firmly on a broad totem-pole belonging to the evilkind.
In the blink of an eye, countless tiny demonic inscriptions coalesced into purple phoenixes.
These numerous purple phoenixes soared majestically within the totem-pole, converging towards the peak beneath his feet.
The totem-pole seemed to become an extension of the Shadow's Keep itself, with the purple phoenixes flocking towards Yu Yuan's feet as if they were crafted from her very lifeblood.
All who witnessed, whether common folk or a Monster Lord like Ogeus, were profoundly moved by the sight of the purple phoenixes.
For they were the exalted beings who had reigned supreme atop the vast powers of the Everlands for aeons!
A current of mystical energy, as if traversing through time and space, emanated from the evilkind's totem-pole.
Suddenly, all the purple phoenixes, as though starved for energy, eagerly sought a harmonious force to sustain them.
Within this region, spanning hundreds of miles, clusters of peculiar purple clouds mysteriously materialized.
The Ghoul King's face paled as he urgently warned, "Be careful!"
Who would dare to belittle the paramount power of the Shadow's Keep?
Not he nor Lin Zhuyun, and not even their master would dare approach the purple phoenix without trepidation!
"What's there to fear?"
Lin Zhuyun snorted coldly, her hand as delicate as a white lotus, pointing towards the totem-pole where Yu Yuan stood.
Around her, twelve totem-poles released colorful beams of energy, each targeting the totem-pole that stood for the ancient Dark Phoenix lineage.
These beams also shattered the purple phoenixes, formed from tiny demonic scripts flying towards Yu Yuan, back into their original script form.
"You've made quite the choice."
Lin Zhuyun's voice was icy. Noticing Yuan Lianyao about to speak, she said with irritation, "You'd better keep quiet."
Whoosh!
An icy totem-pole suddenly hovered above Yuan Lianyao's head.
Within the totem-pole, ancient demonic scripts morphed into serpentine figures of ice.
Then, with a sudden pull, the pillar's suction force yanked Yuan Lianyao's Solar Spirit Body inside.
Once inside, Yuan Lianyao found herself entwined by the ice snakes, which coiled around her waist, neck, and torso.
Trapped within the totem-pole of another ancient evilkind, she could no longer speak or even blink, though her consciousness remained active.
All she could do was watch helplessly as events unfolded before Yu Yuan and Lin Zhuyun.
"I should have known; even the Abyssal Leviathan, with all its might, would struggle to refine all the totem-poles."
Yu Yuan, seeing that Yuan Lianyao was still alive, suppressed the rising panic and concern, striving for composure. He glanced at the totem-pole, now resembling a purple crystal, and sensed the deep, mysterious aura within. Feigning nonchalance, he remarked, "This totem-pole will surely be the last to be refined. Or perhaps, it may never be refined at all."
The exalted being of the Shadow's Keep had stood unyielding for millennia, never once showing signs of decline!
Since the inception of the Shadow's Keep, it was she, the hermaphroditic supreme being, who reigned—a creature of such wonder, scarcely less formidable than the Abyssal Leviathan at its zenith.
Indeed, she might be even more powerful!
If any of the thirty-six totem-poles remained unrefined, this one would certainly be among them!
Thus, upon his arrival, after hearing Yuan Lianyao's cries and catching snippets of her exchange with the Frost Queen, Yu Yuan knew there had to be an issue with the totem-pole of the ancient Dark Phoenix.
Indeed!
Upon landing, Yu Yuan deliberately activated the ancient demon runes within the Dragon Slaying Stage using the Baneblade within him, creating a massive ripple effect. The supreme leader of the Shadow's Keep, from an unknown location, could sense the totem-pole across the Infinite Galaxy!
Not only did she sense it, but she was also able to traverse vast expanses of space, channeling her influence to this place via the totem-pole!
The sprawling purple clouds, covering thousands of acres, were the tangible display of her demon energy!
"Supreme leader of the Shadow's Keep!"
Yu Yuan was profoundly shaken by this realization, awestruck by the purple phoenix's formidable abilities.
It was no surprise to him that Yu Zhu's mother and the Peacock Queen were so easily vanquished. The supreme leader of the Shadow's Keep was simply too formidable!
Just moments before, had Lin Zhuyun not intervened, scattering the purple phoenixes and breaking them down into demon characters, those phoenixes would have drawn from the demon energy within the purple clouds, swelling rapidly in size and manifesting a portion of the supreme leader's power within the shattered Astral Domain.
Yu Yuan was certain that no one would dare confront the Shadow's Keep's purple phoenix at this time.
Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!
The vast clusters of purple smoke that remained didn't last long. Once the purple phoenixes were dispersed by twelve beams of light and reverted back to demon characters, they quickly faded away.
Throughout this event, Yu Yuan's gaze was not on Lin Zhuyun but fixed on the dissipating purple smoke. He was astonished to discover numerous tiny white blades crisscrossing, seemingly hastening the departure of the purple mist.
A sudden insight struck him!
He recalled the words of Yan Qiling and Her Majesty, and thought of the Brugeth's other enigmatic entity—the Voidweaver!
With the Origin Gate open, the Voidweaver's space magic could intervene through any spatial anomaly!
The supreme leader of the Shadow's Keep, defying the constraints of Endless Space, had somehow channeled her demon energy through some arcane method, touching upon the profound mysteries of space and triggering an immediate response from the Voidweaver!
The Voidweaver must have detected her meddling and obscure motives, thus stealthily stepping in.
Clearly, the Voidweaver was not inclined to allow the supreme entity of Shadow's Keep to disrupt the secretive schemes of the Origin Deity during this critical moment.
Yu Yuan's mind brimmed with further conjecture.
