C1506 The Ruler of the Underground

The Seven-Colored Lake, a Blood Altar?

Yu Yuan found himself deep in thought after hearing the Frost Queen's words. He reflected on the striking similarities between the Star-Spawned Terror and the Terra Fiends of the Everlands.

The "Tears of the Azurefiend," wielded by Tian Zang, was the quintessential Blood Altar of the extraterrestrial Star-Spawned Terror. This artifact could bolster the growth of a Star-Spawned Terror, enabling a gravely wounded one to rapidly reconvene its strength.

Rumors suggested that the Blood Altar also possessed the capacity to reassemble the shattered devil souls of the Sky Fiends.

Yu Yuan was well-acquainted with the Blood Altar, which traditionally comprised three components: the Blood Altar, the Soul Altar, and the Spawn of Chaos.

The Blood Altar brimmed with pure vital energy, while the Soul Altar was charged with unadulterated Soul Power. The Spawn of Chaos, on the other hand, was pure filth.

The Seven-Colored Lake, however, was unique.

Yu Yuan felt that the Seven-Colored Lake was an amalgamation of the Blood Altar, the Soul Altar, and the Spawn of Chaos.

It contained not only pure vital energy and rich Soul Power but also an abundance of impurities—distractions, malevolent thoughts, toxins, and various other contaminants.

Essentially, the Seven-Colored Lake was a hodgepodge.

Yet, Huangyin and Xuanying were able to draw power from the Seven-Colored Lake and use it for their recovery.

The intelligence he had indicated that the Seven-Colored Lake could even foster new Terra Fiends, a capability beyond that of the Tears of the Azurefiend.

Consequently, he voiced his perplexity.

"I suspect the Seven-Colored Lake is an extraordinary Blood Altar. It has undergone a novel transformation in the Defiled World beneath us. The Seven-Colored Lake has integrated the Blood Altar, the Soul Altar, and the Spawn of Chaos into a singular entity."

"Huangyin, along with Xuanying, who was whisked away by the Chronowyrm, and the ancient Terra Fiend with its devil soul encased in the wooden tombstone, are incredibly pure! They are virtually indistinguishable from us."

"However, creatures like the gray fox and Shadowfox, as well as the entity known as the coiled snake, which was cleaved by the Rift Cutter, possess devil souls that are no longer pure. It appears they have become more deeply intertwined with the power and essence of the Everlands."

Frost Queen offered further clarification.

She posited that the most ancient Terra Fiends were, in fact, Sky Fiends like herself.

Over time, the later-born Terra Fiends began to diverge from the Sky Fiends. The more recent the Terra Fiend, the greater the deviation from their predecessors.

They seemed to be gradually assimilated, transforming into ghosts and spectres.

The imprint of the devil soul, however, slowly diminished.

The Bloodbrawlers could command ghosts and were adept at refining Voodoo Shades. In the Land of Terror, the various ghost spirits and ghosts were strictly categorized into Earth Specters, ghost spirits, Celestial Shades, Spectres, and Ghost Kings.

This was unlike the classification of Sky Fiends and Terra Fiends, which included ranks such as Demon Gods and Great Demon Gods.

Initially, the Bloodbrawlers originated from the Rainbow Ocean and were staunch allies of the Terra Fiends.

According to Frost Queen, the later generations of Terra Fiends had their devil soul aspect weakened, increasingly resembling ghost spirits...

The Defiled World was considered the dumping ground for the Root of the Lunar Meridian.

The many evil and malevolent thoughts carried by the deceased souls, unable to integrate with the Root of the Lunar Meridian, spilled into the Defiled World along with the residual shadow energy.

The Seven-Colored Lake sat at the very heart of the Defiled World.

If it truly served as a Blood Altar, then most of the psionic power it absorbed was the shadow energy cast off from the Root of the Lunar Meridian.

In essence...

The will of the Root of the Lunar Meridian was, in effect, weakening all Terra Fiends, or perhaps... the extraterrestrial Sky Fiends.

To put it mildly, it was a weakening; more bluntly, it was erosion!

Youyu, favored by the Root of the Lunar Meridian, could traverse freely between both realms, gaining significant boosts to his combat prowess in both the Land of Terror and the Defiled World.

Does this imply that the vast Terra Fiend clans of the Everlands were fated to fall under Youyu's dominion?

Or that they would be effortlessly consumed by the Root of the Lunar Meridian?

Regardless of their birthplace, the new Terra Fiends increasingly resembled ghost spirits, with Youyu, the supreme God of Ghosts, acting as their representative!

It's no surprise that Youyu sought to protect the Terra Fiend, forbidding the supreme beings of the Everlands from carrying out a massacre.

"Regardless of the origins of the initial Terra Fiend, or whether the Seven-Colored Lake is indeed the Blood Altar, it seems to make no waves."

Yu Yuan speculated that the Defiled World, plagued by the presence of the Terra Fiend, remained under the sway of the Root of the Lunar Meridian. Could the Root of the Lunar Meridian be unaware that a remnant like Yuan Qingxi had the ability to survive and undergo successive reincarnations? The cycle of reincarnation and rebirth in the Everlands was, after all, orchestrated by it.

His own unnoticed rebirth in his first life was due to the Chronowyrm's bizarre power, which had twisted space-time and scrambled its detection.

It now appeared that the remnants of the Bloodbrawlers, the Terra Fiends, and the dormant beings in the Defiled World were all under the watchful eye of the Root of the Lunar Meridian. Perhaps even the five dominant supreme forces refrained from a thorough purge below, possibly privy to the situation.

"Take your time to heal."

Having come to this realization, he lost interest in delving further into the origins of the Terra Fiend. The mysteries surrounding Qiyan, the Seven-Colored Lake, and the Rainbow Ocean seemed inconsequential to him. In his mind, all existing Terra Fiends, the venerable Huangyin, the graceful specter within the wooden tombstone, and those of the newer generations, would inevitably bow before Youyu's Divine Throne.

At that moment, Yu Yuan's eyebrows lifted.

Whoosh!

His real body, ethereal as smoke, glided into the adjacent room.

There, Ann Ziqing, clad in a purple gown, was seated cross-legged on a cushion, her body exuding a dark red mist from every pore. Glistening beads of sweat adorned her cheeks and neck, each containing minute impurities, like specks of dirt.

She was employing the mystique of the Colddeath to purify the seven amethyst Blood Pools within her vitality's little world, as well as to expel the dross from the crystalline Solar Spirit. It was reminiscent of Yu Yuan's own purification when he first attained his Solar Spirit.

What truly astounded Yu Yuan was the intensity of the life force within the seven Blood Pools inside Ann Ziqing's body, far exceeding his expectations.

The seven amethyst Blood Pools brimmed with blood of varying hues. Yu Yuan, after a brief moment of attunement, detected the distinct presence of the Otherkin.

Ann Ziqing, who had previously bestowed upon herself the Otherkin's lifeblood, had refined and merged it, seemingly invigorating the life power within her Solar Spirit considerably.

Her Solar Spirit, as lustrous and purple as a divine crystal, began to sprout dense bloodline chains.

Yu Yuan could even discern the scent of the formidable Demon God, Grec.

"Hmm? Young Master, have you come specifically to see me?" Ann Ziqing asked, her eyes opening to a warm smile.

Yu Yuan nodded, about to respond, when he caught the fervor and longing in Ann Ziqing's eyes.

Before he could process her intent, Ann Ziqing embraced him suddenly, coiling around him like a serpent.

A dark red mist escaped from Ann Ziqing, enveloping Yu Yuan.

He stood motionless, allowing Ann Ziqing's embrace, his brow furrowed as he observed the wild surge of primal desire in her eyes. She had already invoked the art of Bloodforging.

Ann Ziqing's pale hand pressed against his chest, beginning to siphon his vital energy.

Previously, his unique Solar Spirit not only drew Ann Ziqing's interest but also had the power to subdue and enslave her.

If he chose, he could transform Ann Ziqing into his blood bound slave...

Back then, if he had assisted Ann Ziqing in purifying her body, the seven amethyst Blood Pools, and the Solar Spirit's impurities...

Whether Ann Ziqing consented or not, she would have become his blood bound slave, utterly at his mercy.

Much like how the Great Demon God Grec turned Cao Yi into a blood bound slave, capable of stripping Cao Yi of all his lifeblood in perilous times to benefit himself, sending Cao Yi to the front lines or to gather intelligence.

Yu Yuan had refrained from such actions, instead allowing Ann Ziqing to cleanse her Solar Spirit and the Blood Pools with her own strength.

Yet, upon reuniting with Ann Ziqing, he discovered that the impurities and filth within her Solar Spirit and Blood Pools had not diminished but had, in fact, multiplied.

Moreover, he had escaped his own constraints.

Now, Ann Ziqing was attempting to consume his lifeblood and dissolve his Solar Spirit in return.

"Snap out of it!"

Yu Yuan, with a single hand, pressed against her forehead, bombarding her mind with the Soul Voice.

...