C134 Qin Yun!

The scholarly-robed youth was none other than Qin Yun, the current sect master of Midnightshields. After his draining battle with the bronze monument, Qin Yun's spiritual energy and vitality were depleted, and without any soulstones left, he concealed his remnant soul within the mud pellet.

He had intended to observe further, but upon learning from Yu Yuan about the dramatic upheaval in the forbidden area, with alien souls and goasts breaking free, he realized that the Crimson Sun Empire and the Silvermoon Empire might need to unite to overcome this peril. Once Qin Yun understood that the adversaries before him were no longer foes, he awoke from his feigned slumber.

His curiosity about Yu Yuan was piqued. Qin Yun had seen portraits of Lee Yuchan, Lee Yu, Su Yan, and Yan Lu prior to his venture into the Moonfall Sanctuary. His mission in the forbidden area was clear: assassination. To secure the Crimson Sun Empire's future for the next century, he aimed to nip the new generation of the Silvermoon Empire's cultivators in the bud.

The Silvermoon Empire's trials had never before produced candidates of such caliber as this group. The New Moon cultivators were deemed future cornerstones who could pose a threat to the Crimson Sun Empire, and Qin Yun was determined to eliminate them.

Thus, he had personally made his way to the Moonfall Sanctuary. To his surprise, he soon discovered the sanctuary in turmoil, with numerous alien souls and goasts emerging. Despite his formidable strength, he found himself hard-pressed to cope with the chaos. His recent defeat at the hands of the bronze monument had left him weakened and not yet fully recovered.

He dared to rouse his soul because he knew that no one there, including Lee Yuchan, posed a threat to him. Even with his vitality and spiritual energy spent, his Lunar Spirit remained at its peak. On the verge of attempting the Spirit Walk, he was confident that his Lunar Spirit alone was enough to subdue Lee Yuchan.

"His name is Yu Yuan, from the Yu family of Asvetaesi," Zhan Tianxiang informed him.

"I've never heard of him," Qin Yun admitted frankly. "I'm familiar with Asvetaesi and its mayor, Yuan Lianyao, but no one else."

The Zhao, Huang, and Yu families held no significance in his eyes.

"Yu Yuan, I greet the sect master of Midnightshields."

Yu Yuan offered a slight bow, a smile gracing his features as he approached Qin Yun with a keen squint. "What realm have you attained?"

"The peak of the Lunar Spirit," Lee Yuchan interjected on his behalf.

"Could you elaborate on your encounter with the bronze monument?" inquired Yu Yuan.

Qin Yun raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "Why do you wish to know?"

"The alien souls and goasts that broke free from the forbidden area have taken refuge in the bronze monument. I'm at a loss to understand them, and thus unable to restrain them at present," Yu Yuan explained with a helpless gesture. "Senior, you must possess considerable skill to have battled him and lived to tell the tale."

"Young man, you're quite audacious," chided an elder from Midnightshields, now standing protectively behind Qin Yun, stooping in the guise of an old servant. "When addressing our sect master, you ought to maintain the proper respect."

Yu Yuan stepped forward, his demeanor neither subservient nor arrogant, eschewing a bow and forgoing honorifics in his speech.

This was met with disapproval.

"Senior, does this bother you?"

Yu Yuan paid him no mind, focusing instead on Qin Yun. "Between intricate formalities and solving the issue at hand, which do you deem more important?"

Qin Yun offered a smile. "Young man, you're merely in the Soul Awakening Realm. Are you not aware that with a mere thought, I could end your life?"

At the pinnacle of the Lunar Spirit Realm, a single thought from Qin Yun's remnant soul could pierce through Yu Yuan's Mindscape.

Typically, for a cultivator of his stature, dispatching a junior in the Soul Awakening Realm would be no more challenging than squashing an ant.

Yu Yuan's audacity to engage in such direct conversation intrigued him.

What was the source of his boldness and confidence?

"Senior, if we weren't in the Moonfall Sanctuary, indeed, it would be easy for you to take my life," Yu Yuan said with a sly grin, stepping even closer to Qin Yun. "But here, the tables might just turn."

As he spoke, he lifted his left arm toward Qin Yun. The sword light branded on his arm bone ignited with a sudden heat. The aura of the sword spirit emerged silently. The sky roiled with clouds, and lightning crackled like a cascading waterfall, ready to strike. Deep within the earth's fissures, sword wills capable of annihilating heaven and earth seemed poised to burst forth, threatening to reduce all living beings he knew to dust. Qin Yun and the elder behind him felt a sudden chill in their hearts. With their vitality and spiritual energy nearly depleted, they had only their Soul Power to rely on. At that moment, the forces emanating from the heavens and the earth's crevices were targeting their souls. They sensed that if Yu Yuan wished it, their souls could be extinguished in an instant. It was unfathomable how Yu Yuan, a mere practitioner of the Soul Awakening Realm, had acquired such a formidable power that could threaten them and obliterate their souls.

"Now, shall we have a proper discussion?" Yu Yuan lowered his arm, smiling at the Midnightshields elder standing behind Qin Yun. The elder's face was overcast, and he remained silent. Qin Yun, however, nodded and said, "Yu Yuan of the Yu family from Asvetaesi, I'll remember you." Whether it was Lee Yuchan or Lee Yu, they could tell by Qin Yun's demeanor that Yu Yuan had compelled his recognition through the sword spirit. Often, the right to engage in dialogue and the ability to maintain composure depended on one's strength. Outside, Yu Yuan had no standing to speak with someone like Qin Yun, but here, he did.

"Very well, let's discuss your encounter with the bronze monument," Yu Yuan said, not pressing too hard. He glanced at Lee Yuchan and continued, "Provide the Senior with more soulstones of a higher grade. In the Moonfall Sanctuary, we'll be allies. And once we reach the Crimson Sun Empire, we'll need the Senior's protection." Lee Yuchan huffed and, somewhat reluctantly, placed several soulstones before Qin Yun. Qin Yun's robe fluttered as strands of crystalline light flew from his sleeves, piercing the soulstones before him. While drawing in the refined spiritual energy from the soulstones, he added, "One more thing—we haven't deceived you. The gateway to the Crimson Sun Empire is sealed by an unknown barrier, one that even I cannot bypass."

"Don't worry, I'll figure out a solution," Yu Yuan said with a reassuring smile. "In your view, what level would you classify the alien soul within the bronze monument? And when you encountered it, did you come across a silver robe with a cluster of green, ethereal souls inside?"

"I didn't see the silver robe you're talking about, nor is the alien soul from the bronze monument a human soul as we understand it," Qin Yun reflected thoughtfully. "It's not one of the three souls of heaven, earth, and man, nor is it akin to the Lunar Spirit or the Solar Spirit. It feels distinct from our own soul spirits."

He gazed up at the dome, through the murky clouds, and declared, "It must be an extraterrestrial entity."

"An extraterrestrial entity?" Lee Yuchan exclaimed, startled.

"Yes, the so-called Star-Spawned Terror from beyond the Everlands," Qin Yun confirmed.

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