C1376 The Unwillingness of the Abyssal Leviathan!
The Banner of Duality belonged to Han Miaoyuan.
Yu Yuan and the snow bear's expressions shifted subtly upon hearing the Ghoul King's name. They promptly lapsed into silence.
Turning his attention to Zhou You and the others, Yu Yuan steadied his emotions, striving for calm. He didn't want to dwell on Han Miaoyuan and risk being influenced by him.
He was well aware of what Han Miaoyuan represented.
As the current sect master of Ebon Star and a cultivator of the primordial spirit, he stood at the zenith of power and combat prowess within the Everlands. His Banner of Duality had stood for ten thousand years.
A primordial spirit was eternal!
Merely mentioning such a person's name or discussing him could potentially alert his awareness!
How could the Ghoul King be so bold?
Looking up, Yu Yuan noticed the blazing sun and the cold crescent moon within the depths of the Heaven-Opening Sword Array, shining intensely as if illuminating the space below.
These celestial bodies were the eyes of the Abyssal Leviathan—he was watching!
It was he who had instructed the Ghoul King to relay the message!
Without realizing it, Yu Yuan had grown accustomed to the Heaven-Opening Sword Array. Though he couldn't escape and was still under the assault of the Nine Celestial Slashes, his spiritual wisdom had evidently returned to clarity.
"You're not worthy of speaking to me."
With a snort of contempt, Yu Yuan dismissively gestured for the Ghoul King to withdraw into the rare stone and stop being an eyesore.
The Ghoul King, visibly angered and about to utter threats, suddenly showed a look of terror on his face appearing on the rare stone, and then he vanished abruptly.
"What's the matter? Can't come out yourself, so you send the Ghoul King to talk? That's hardly a sincere gesture for peace."
Yu Yuan, standing on the Dragon Slaying Stage, let out a mocking laugh as he gradually elevated his stature.
The Dire Bear became frantic, growling softly as if trying to reason with or deter Yu Yuan.
"Don't worry. The sword formation's might has weakened a bit, allowing him to regain consciousness, but he won't be able to emerge just yet." Yu Yuan reassured the Dire Bear with a wave of his hand. Then, under the watchful eyes of Alonso, Ji Ningshuang, and others, he advanced toward the Heaven-Opening Sword Array.
Sizzle!
The dense weave of sword light parted on its own, creating a gap as Yu Yuan approached the Dragon Slaying Stage.
"Yu Yuan!"
Tian Zang, the Ghost King, and others called out anxiously.
"It's fine."
With those words, he maneuvered the Dragon Slaying Stage, now reduced a millionfold, through the slender gaps in the sword light and arrived instantly at the heart of the Heaven-Opening Sword Array.
Segments of meteorites, emitting crimson sword light, slashed at the silver scales of the Abyssal Leviathan, scattering brilliant starbursts and innumerable twinkling droplets of light.
Yet, the savage cosmic giant beast no longer bled from its wounds.
The many ghastly gashes, with muscles writhing within, had begun their own process of regeneration.
The might of the Heaven-Opening Sword Array had waned significantly due to the River of Swords' energy being severely drained, unable to unleash thousands of sword lights in a mere moment.
The Abyssal Leviathan's rate of self-repair astonishingly outpaced the speed of its assault by the sword light!
This realization jolted him awake.
One eye blazed a fierce crimson, the other a calm, intelligent silver-white. The interplay of madness and reason lent him an exceptionally fearsome air.
Yu Yuan's mind stirred.
The multitude of prism-shaped meteorites, transformed into hovering crimson Immortal Swords, paused, refraining from striking anew.
Yet, those millions of Immortal Swords still targeted the vital areas around the Abyssal Leviathan's midsection, poised at the deep wounds that revealed its innards.
With a shift in Yu Yuan's thoughts, in the next instant, the Immortal Swords would resume their assault with the Nine Celestial Slashes sword spell, continuing to inflict damage.
The Heaven-Opening Sword Array maintained its operation, forming a sea of sword lights that ensnared him like a prison.
At his forehead, a massive dark red meteorite exuded a supreme sword's will, capable of rending the heavens and piercing through time itself!
The Titanblade resided within.
"Yu Yuan..."
As the Abyssal Leviathan spoke, it abruptly morphed back into the sinister old man with eerie eyes and a gaunt frame.
Drenched in blood, his mostly bare body riddled with wounds, he presented a chilling sight.
"You, you can actually wield the Heaven-Opening Sword Array!"
He was so agitated that his throat whistled like a leaky wind, huffing loudly. "Also, I..."
His eyes, one a fiery red and the other a frosty silver, brimmed with intense hatred and resentment.
This cosmic giant beast, whose violent and insane emotions had roamed the Star River for years, had created a terrifying blood-red sea. When his Soul Power collided with the sword light from the Heaven-Opening Sword Array, numerous sword lights shattered explosively.
"I've already..."
He clenched his teeth, angrily and unwillingly growling, "I can no longer possess you!"
Suddenly, he looked up, his eyes bursting with a fearsome glow, glaring at Yu Yuan's chest.
His gaze seemed to pierce through the flesh and acupoints' seals, delving deep into Yu Yuan's little world of vitality.
He saw Yu Yuan's semi-transparent body, with its intricate network of bloodline chains. "The soul marks I left behind, the traces within my bloodline, all my contingencies—I could have used them to possess you, the groundwork laid by your very existence, it's all gone!"
"Erased completely!"
The Abyssal Leviathan roared desperately, its cry echoing to the heavens, as if in unbearable pain.
It was as though the new path of life it had schemed for eons, hoping to be reborn like the secular bird in human form to adapt to the new era, had been abruptly severed.
One eye was blood-red, the other ghostly white, a sight of extreme horror.
His roars of defiance sent the sword circle into chaos, shattering many weaker sword wills into bursts of light.
The chasm-like wounds on his body widened from the shock.
His organs, larger than the span of an empire, ruptured again, releasing thick clouds of blood mist.
Atop the Dragon Slaying Stage, Yu Yuan, gripping his sword sheath, summoned the Baneblade Bloodhell, ready to enter the stage at a moment's notice.
Watching the Abyssal Leviathan on the brink of madness, Yu Yuan's eyes showed a hint of confusion.
He didn't grasp the meaning behind the Abyssal Leviathan's words...
All he knew was that the moment he stepped into the Heaven-Opening Sword Array, this ferocious cosmic giant beast seemed to detect something amiss deep within his vitality's little world.
Then it began to howl and rage, overcome with frustration and helplessness.
Against such a state, Yu Yuan didn't need to unleash the Nine Celestial Slashes in succession; the enraged Abyssal Leviathan was already too distracted by its own wounds to fight back.
His rage compounded his injuries, making them far more agonizing than any sword slash could inflict.
Yu Yuan couldn't fathom the cause of his erratic behavior.
Choosing silence, Yu Yuan waited for him to cool off. He planned to engage in conversation only after he had finished venting.
In the meantime, he dialed back the sword force of the Heaven-Opening Sword Array, allowing the sword light to restrict the Abyssal Leviathan less and conserve energy.
After all, the Abyssal Leviathan showed no desire to struggle or break free from the array.
Erased?
The bloodline chains, which he had meticulously refined over a long time, linked to the vital energy of various races, were gone.
He could sense that his Solar Spirit was distinctly different from those of other humans.
Like the great Archdemon of the Everlands...
Chen Qinghuang!
A flicker of recognition crossed his mind; he had seen a unique Solar Spirit like this only once before, on the empress herself, a being of refined and powerful vital energy and Soul Power.
"Who are you?"
Much later, the Abyssal Leviathan gazed at him atop the Dragon Slaying Stage, looking utterly defeated and drained of nearly all its vitality. "You've erased it. You've erased all the hope of my rebirth! There's no trace of me in your Solar Spirit, and my core bloodline has been negated."
He was consumed by regret. "I should have been by your side sooner, monitoring your every move!"
"It must have been the Divine Bird aiding you! She must have foreseen my plan to be reborn through you and helped erase my mark!"
The Abyssal Leviathan's gaze shot towards the Darkpinion, its murderous intent seeming to pierce through the Infinite Galaxy.
"I am Yu Yuan, and I am also Hong Qi."
Yu Yuan, ever serene, allowed himself a moment of relaxation. His expression was one of tranquil calm, a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "What's the matter? Are you disappointed because you've realized you can't possess me as you intended?"
"Yu Yuan, Hong Qi..."
The Abyssal Leviathan's eyes shimmered with uncertainty, its mind awash with confusion as it scrutinized him.
Sadly, it could discern nothing, could not begin to guess the truth.
"With your own power, your level of cultivation, and your intellect, you couldn't possibly erase my unique mark! I allowed you to grow, to act as you pleased across the cosmos, because I believed that when the time came, I could simply take everything from you! But now..."
He shook his head, his voice tinged with deep disappointment. "It seems I was mistaken."
"Hmm, perhaps... I should peer into your soul!"
The gaze of the Abyssal Leviathan shifted from Yu Yuan's chest, away from his little world pulsing with vitality, away from the sea of his spiritual energy.
It settled on the center of Yu Yuan's forehead!
The Abyssal Leviathan's eyes—one crimson, one pearly white—suddenly dimmed, as if vanishing in an instant.
Deep within Yu Yuan's mind, a crimson sun and a crescent moon began to swell from the size of a grain of rice.
