C1503 There Was Another Secret

"Bloodbrawlers, Youyu..."

Ann Wen, clad in a long red robe with skin so pale that even the veins beneath were visible, muttered under his breath.

His robe was embellished with blood-red jade, and on his hand, he wore a Cosmos Ring crafted from chicken blood stone. Blood Snake earrings dangled from his ears.

He was a vision in sinister red.

Perched atop a fractured cliff, he overlooked a landscape dotted with palaces, where scarlet banners fluttered in the breeze. Around him, disciples poured buckets of blood into numerous Blood Pools.

In the misty, blood-red haze of the pools, numerous men and women practiced their Bloodforging techniques in the nude.

This was the stronghold of the Colddeath Sect.

"Keeping this hidden has been such a struggle."

Ann Wen faced the Land of Terror, letting out a strange chuckle.

"What's so funny?"

Ann Ziqing had been equally stunned upon hearing the news from the Skyreach Consortium and had hurried over.

"Yuan Qingxi, that old fool, has been deceiving me for years," Ann Wen huffed.

"Yuan Qingxi?" Ann Ziqing was taken aback.

"Yes, the very same Yuan Qingxi from the Skyreach Consortium. I've had dealings with him before; we've conducted business in secret. He's privy to a multitude of secrets and possesses a collection of ancient artifacts—all of them treasures," Ann Wen remarked offhandedly. "Do you know why I rescued Razses, the Ghost King, back then?"

"It wasn't just a coincidence?" Ann Ziqing asked, astonished.

She recalled her visit to the Land of Terror to purify her Lunar Spirit, where Razses himself had hosted her. Before White Bone had ascended to the rank of Ghost King, Razses had recognized his potential and had even flaunted her presence there for a time.

Razses's generous hospitality was undoubtedly a result of Ann Wen's prior assistance.

The word was that Razses had ventured away from the Land of Terror in his early years, only to be targeted by the mighty of the Thunder Sect and the Ethereal Void Sect. He nearly met his end at their hands, but Ann Wen's timely intervention spared him.

Subsequently, Razzes spent some time with the Colddeath Sect. Thanks to Ann Wen's aid, upon his return to the Land of Terror, he smoothly ascended to become one of the Ghost Kings.

Razses was the youngest Ghost King of his time.

"Yuan Qing, or rather, Yuan Qingxi, that old coot, struck a deal with me to rescue Razses. That old coot has reincarnated multiple times, and before Razses became a ghost, he was likely the old coot's great-grandson. The Soul Locking Diagram that Razses wielded was also obtained through the old coot's arrangements."

"The Soul Locking Diagram is an artifact of the Bloodbrawlers, and the old coot is the patriarch of the Bloodbrawlers, with Razses being his great-grandson."

Ann Wen squinted his eyes and let out a cold laugh.

"Razses is a descendant of Yuan Qingxi?" Ann Ziqing was taken aback.

"Alas, since Yu Xi is actually Youyu, and the old coot is Youyu's lackey, I'm afraid there's little I can do about him." Ann Wen gazed toward the Land of Terror, "The Skyblight Cult, Bloodbrawlers, and Poison Cult might not be intimidating on their own, but if the three sects unite, along with Youyu and that old coot..."

"Tsk tsk, Zhu Zhenlin will certainly have his hands full!"

Ann Wen reveled in schadenfreude, baring a wicked grin, "Zhu Zhenlin was planning to confront me at Colddeath, and I was all set for him. Now that he's aware my old pal is Youyu, I bet he's losing sleep over it."

...

Within the Land of Terror, nestled in the majestic Shadow Mountain, gleaming like silver.

Yuan Qingxi, his body enshrouded by the scroll, stooped and bowed his head as he reported to Youyu the status of the Bloodbrawlers and the number of survivors.

Whoosh!

The woman from the Bloodbrawlers, previously encountered by Yu Yuan and Loong Jie beneath the sea, stepped inside after receiving permission.

Upon entering, she immediately knelt down before Youyu, "Lianjing pays her respects to Lord Youyu. Congratulations on your awakening, my lord."

"Stand," Youyu commanded dispassionately.

The Bloodbrawlers' matriarch, Lianjing, stood up with a smile.

In that moment, Youyu had learned from Yuan Qingxi that the Ghost King serving under him was indeed a descendant of Yuan Qingxi.

Lianjing was well aware that Razses' Soul Locking Diagram could be remotely constrained by her, but her intention was merely to sow chaos.

Yuan Qingxi, having invested considerable effort to elevate Razses to the status of Ghost King and bestowing upon him the Soul Locking Diagram, certainly had no intention of causing him harm.

Indeed, the arcane techniques that Razses had mastered were also deliberately made accessible to him by Yuan Qingxi through various means.

Razses' rise to become the youngest Ghost King in the Land of Terror, his knack for turning danger into opportunity at pivotal moments, was in no small part due to Yuan Qingxi's clandestine support.

Unbeknownst to him, Razses was a member of the Bloodbrawlers.

Similarly, Luo Yue, the former leader of the Poison Cult, owed her miraculous survival and her transformation into Rahu to Yuan Qingxi's machinations.

Luo Yue was the one Yuan Qingxi had chosen to be a future member of the Bloodbrawlers.

Both individuals had, as he had hoped, become close associates of Youyu, proving to be valuable lieutenants under his command.

"My master's essence lingers within the Spectre Binding Scroll. I implore Lord Youyu to assist us in locating him. Tens of thousands of years have passed, and I am certain he still exists. Despite my exhaustive search, his current identity eludes me," Lianjing said as she respectfully offered up the Spectre Binding Scroll.

Her visit to the Land of Terror as a soul meant she could navigate the realm unharmed without the Scroll's protection, unlike Yuan Qingxi, who, being corporeal, required the protective embrace of the Bloodbrawlers' painting.

"Master, we've been without word of Xuanli. Given your ability to commune with the Root of the Lunar Meridian and your ascension to God of Ghosts, perhaps you could use the Spectre Binding Scroll to uncover his whereabouts," Yuan Qingxi said with a hopeful expression. "The Everlands owes Xuanli a seat among the gods!"

With Youyu's return, should Xuanli also manifest in his primordial spirit, the Bloodbrawlers would have their two leaders. The unification of the Poison Cult, Binders of Shadows, and Skyblight Cult could herald a return to former glory, a vision Yuan Qingxi could almost see before him.

"I can find him."

The instant Youyu grasped the Spectre Binding Scroll, he sensed Xuanli's lingering presence and was certain of it.

Yuan Qingxi and Lianjing were immediately thrilled.

...

In the Rainbow Ocean.

Yu Yuan and Liu Ying, long separated, were catching up on their extraterrestrial adventures under the night sky.

Tan Junshan had departed, as had Chen Liangquan. Even the old dragon was eager to return to Dragon Island to inform the elder Nagas that Zhong Chichen, their forebear, had awakened.

The old dragon was also planning to reestablish his formation.

Du Yazi and the others were dumbfounded to learn that Zhong Chichen was the reborn Chronowyrm. Yu Yuan then banished them, instructing them to return to the Order of Healing and await further news.

Lacking leadership, they had no choice but to comply and depart.

No longer needing the Shadowflame Blight Array's protection, Yu Yuan's humble abode became a sanctuary within the forbidden Rainbow Ocean, causing all manner of fiends and aberrations to steer clear.

This gave Yu Yuan and Liu Ying ample time for leisurely conversation.

"Oops, I hope I'm not interrupting this romantic moonlit rendezvous," said Ann Ziqing, arriving in a flowing purple gown under the chilly moonlight.

Her eyes twinkled with teasing and sarcasm. "My dear young master, I've been pining for your visit at Colddeath. After such a long wait without a sign of you, I see you've been enraptured by lovely company, lost in blissful distraction."

"Ann Ziqing, what brings you here?" Liu Ying asked with a furrowed brow.

"I've come to fetch my young master."

Yu Yuan was about to respond when he felt a sudden disturbance and caught sight of something skulking along the fringes of the Rainbow Ocean.

...