C1286 Deep into the Hinterland

With a swoosh, a scarlet sword light burst forth from the sheath, effortlessly slicing through the crystal ball.

Nine beams of icy light unleashed by Lim Zhuyun were relentlessly pursued and shattered by Yu Yuan's scarlet sword radiance in the blink of an eye.

The devastatingly powerful scarlet sword light launched several more assaults, shattering the ice ball-like crystal and, amidst a flurry of ice shards, continued its trajectory, piercing Lim Zhuyun's chest.

Puff! Puff! Puff!

Three bloody holes, each the width of a finger, appeared on Lim Zhuyun's crystalline ice body as the sword light emerged from her back.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Yu Yuan's ethereal spiritual body easily coalesced within the burst of ice shards, forming his Yin God.

At that moment, the vacancy and dullness vanished from Yu Yuan's eyes.

His Yin God, a product of his mastery in Ghosting Arts, stood as one of his most formidable techniques. How could the soul-refining methods of the Divine Soul Sect be matched by any other?

The nine-sided ice ball crafted by Lim Zhuyun was inspired by the nine Freezing Lands.

She believed her mastery of the secret ice arts had stealthily separated Yu Yuan's Yin God, sealing it within various Freezing Lands, thus incapacitating Yu Yuan and rendering him unconscious.

Yet, this was merely a fleeting moment.

Yu Yuan's disorientation lasted but an instant before the main soul within him and the fragments of his Yin God trapped within the nine ice balls swiftly reestablished their connection!

Moreover, he could sense that his divided Yin God remained in seamless communication with his consciousness across the nine distinct icy Alien Realms.

The Yin God, refined through the Ghosting Arts, was enigmatic and beyond Lim Zhuyun's ability to gauge.

Crackle!

Sparks of ice and lightning erupted from the wounds in Lim Zhuyun's chest as a torrent of vital energy gushed from her inner world of Qi and blood.

This vitality struck Yu Yuan as oddly familiar.

Upon reflection, he was reminded of the Chaos Roc, and of the time before his transformation into the Yang God, when he had used the Giant Beast Amber from the Chaos Roc to construct the Life Altar.

It, too, was brimming with life force, capable of mending wounds in short order.

Yu Yuan could sense that Lim Zhuyun, with the assistance of the Chaos Roc, had refined her Yang God physique within her microcosm of Qi and blood. Yet, he didn't believe that her Yang God body was a match for his own. The life force Lim Zhuyun used to mend her wounds seemed impure to him, containing only a scant amount of the profound mysteries of life. This indicated that the Chaos Roc hadn't employed the Giant Beast Amber in constructing Lim Zhuyun's Yang God body.

"An injury of this caliber hardly affects me," Lim Zhuyun stated matter-of-factly as she distanced herself from him. As she repaired the gaping wound in her chest, her palms conjured a dense, cold mist, crackling with fierce lightning and echoing with the sounds of wind and thunder. Flecks of crimson light flickered within the mist, hinting at increasingly ferocious and malevolent blood energy.

Yu Yuan watched in astonishment. He detected the distinct bloodline of the Chaos Roc within the mist and sensed the Blood Devil Clan's secretive bloodthirsty arts. "Truly formidable, surpassing most Eighth Level Bloodline warriors," he acknowledged with a nod, offering his praise freely. "Considering the Totem Pillars and the rare stone you carry, it's no surprise you're so bold in the notorious Outer Battlefield. However..."

He let his voice trail off deliberately.

"However, what?" Lim Zhuyun challenged with a cold laugh.

"Some things, some entities, remain beyond your grasp," Yu Yuan replied, his grin widening into a mischievous sneer. "Let's just say that even if the Chaos Roc itself were to descend upon the Deep Starfield, it wouldn't necessarily have free reign—much less you."

With a swift motion, his manifested Yin God darted towards the rare stone behind Lim Zhuyun, a stone that concealed entire worlds within it. The Dragon Slash Platform, recently engulfed by the stone, had severed its spiritual link with him, leaving him uncertain whether the Titan Spinosaurus hatchling inside had bared its teeth.

Previously, he had refrained from leaving his Yin God on the Dragon Slash Platform for fear of discovery by Lim Zhuyun, which could endanger Yuan Lianyao. Now that Yuan Lianyao was out of harm's way, he reflected on the last time his Yin God had soared through the Dragon Slash Platform's twin microcosms, feeling like a sovereign deity, and his confidence surged anew.

He intended to use his Yin God to penetrate the inner world of the Dragon Slash Platform and join forces with the growing young beast inside to extract the platform!

"So that was your game," Lim Zhuyun remarked with a smirk. "Your Yin God must be quite unique. You allowed yourself to be drawn out by my ice ball on purpose, all to access the stone platform behind me at this moment? I suspect there's an unusual connection between your Yin God and the Dragon Slash Platform, am I right?"

"But did you really think you could just waltz into the rare stone behind me whenever you wished?"

"If I don't grant you access, what makes you think you can enter?"

Yu Yuan's gaze fell upon the unremarkable rare stone, now enveloped in a shimmering watery halo. A sense of frustration washed over him as he realized his Yin God stood no chance of breaching the radiant barrier to enter the stone.

Then, with a sudden slash, blades of brilliant light materialized near the watery halo.

The blades, sharp as chisels and imbued with the fierce power of space, effortlessly sliced through the halo.

The distinctive sound of the Void Spirit Succubus's wings echoed once more!

"The force of space!" Lim Zhuyun and the Yin Corpse King exclaimed together.

Caught off guard, they could only watch as Yu Yuan's Yin God seized the opportunity, darting through the fissure in the halo and into the rare stone.

In an instant, he was inside.

He found himself in a familiar expanse—a vast, deep blue ocean under a sky of the same hue. Islands dotted the waters like chess pieces, unmistakably arranged as they were in the Ember Waters of old.

Yu Yuan could even identify which islands belonged to the Devil Palace and which to the Demon Palace.

The Dragon Slash Platform, now magnified a hundredfold, spanned the midair ocean, glowing with divine light. Despite being bombarded by jets of seawater, it remained steadfast and unyielding.

For the time being, the miniature world within the rare stone, modeled after the Ember Waters, seemed to have no effect on the Dragon Slash Platform.

Lim Zhuyun and the Yin Corpse King were not perturbed, likely because the Totem Pillars had not yet entered, and the Chaos Roc had not yet returned.

Lim Zhuyun's plan was simply to confine the Dragon Slash Platform, ensuring it couldn't escape.

Once they dealt with the external threats and the thirty-six Totem Pillars were restored, they would arrange the Ancient Fey Formation. Upon the return of the Chaos Roc, they would then proceed to refine the Dragon Slash Platform and strip away the lingering might of the dragon's remains.

"Don't get your hopes up."

Yu Yuan's Yin God grumbled within the Dragon Slash Platform. In a flash, he entered its inner space.

"You've arrived. I've been waiting for you."

From within the purple-gold dragon egg, the young Titan spinosaurus conveyed a message of sheer joy.

Yu Yuan's Yin God hovered above the egg, feeling a deep connection with the world inside the Dragon Slash Platform.

Gazing at the luminous egg, he saw a unique young dragon, resplendent in purple and gold with dragon wings, and expressed his amazement, "I didn't expect you to take on such a complete form so quickly."

Though the view wasn't entirely clear, the young spinosaurus had moved beyond its initial stage.

Now, it appeared vibrant with flesh, bones, and a dragon soul, albeit slightly smaller in size.

Having entered the Dragon Slash Platform and drawn upon the residual power of the dragon remains, it had clearly grown at an astonishing pace.

It was thriving far better now than when the Great Demon God Grec had nurtured it with the Moon Swallowing Ape's heart—it was truly in its element.

"There's a tough battle ahead, and I may need your assistance."

Yu Yuan peered down at the massive purple dragon egg, and as he spoke, the whole world thundered in response.

Within the Dragon Slash Platform, his every utterance, infused with the power of the Soul Arts, wrought incredible transformations.

"Oh."

The young beast replied obediently.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

One by one, the earth-shattering Totem Pillars, akin to the Holy Mountain where deities dwell, re-emerged into this realm.

The thirty-six Totem Pillars, within this world of rare stone, loomed even more imposing and terrifying, each one soaring into the heavens, enough to make one's heart quake.

Lim Zhuyun and the Yin Corpse King also returned in a flurry of panic.

Yu Yuan's laughter boomed across the Dragon Slash Platform.

"I'll fight you both in the Ember Waters, the world we both know so well!"

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