C1969 False Immortality

Cadorath's eyes, resembling polished jade, gradually took on a chill.

The effort she had exerted to preserve her appearance was beyond what most could imagine. If she were to lose her youth simply by shaking hands with Pantley, she would likely lose her mind.

"Don't blame me."

A pair of luminescent silver wings, crafted from dazzling light, materialized behind Cadorath, sending a tremor through the hearts of the many alien race members in attendance.

They recognized that the matriarch of the Bright Clan was provoked and ready to assert her formidable presence.

Whoosh!

Cadorath ascended gracefully, clutching the Scepter of Light.

The once dim starry sky burst into brilliance with her ascent. She became a radiant beacon, like the sun itself, casting light upon all below.

Yu Yuan's gaze took on an astonished hue.

Bathed in Cadorath's glow, Yu Yuan felt his soul and flesh bound and constrained, his powers and lineage partially unusable.

For someone of his stature to experience such a restriction was exceedingly rare, signaling the immense power Cadorath wielded.

"Cadorath!"

The ground-based champions of the alien races cried out, shielding their eyes from the blinding illumination.

Simply gazing upon her was overwhelming.

An irate Cadorath, suspended in the air, aimed the Scepter of Light at Pantley and commanded in a resonant voice imbued with magical authority, "Sacred Light Purification."

From her unfurled silver wings cascaded shafts of pure light, raining down upon Pantley like crystalline spears.

Beneath Pantley's feet, pristine white lotuses bloomed, swiftly enveloping her.

Pantley's gaze drifted skyward, bewildered, as if her soul and consciousness were ensnared by the intense radiance.

Then, one after another, the blinding beams vanished into Pantley's aged form.

The potent light morphed into slender bolts of lightning, carrying a mysterious force that sought to purge the malevolence within her, to excise the taint entrenched in her soul, and to restore her purity.

"There must be some impurity that has tainted your body, corroding your soul."

Cadorath, now a sphere of light, surmised that Pantley of the Sea Clan must have suffered the Beast God's corruption from the Desolate Realm to have degenerated to her current state.

"Awaken!"

Beneath the intense light, Pantley's stooped figure was shrouded in a mist of blood, reeking of decay.

Her twisted soul shadow wailed miserably within the blood mist, as if pleading for Cadorath to cease her assault.

Clutching her chest with her remaining hand, she howled in unison with the tormented soul shadow amidst the crimson haze.

Beneath such sanctified brilliance, she appeared to be in excruciating pain, as if longing for death, her features twisted into a horrifying visage. "Sister, I truly had the best intentions, and yet you would treat me so harshly!"

Cadorath remained unfazed.

"Ferris!"

A flurry of snow-white blades of light materialized on the battlefield, encircling the Demon Spirit Ferris like petals closing around a bud, swiftly enveloping him.

Before Ferris could muster any resistance, he vanished amidst the converging blades of light.

The blades of light closed with a wet sound, piercing into Ferris's flesh, rendering the Tenth Level Demon Spirit immobile amidst his agony.

Cadorath, hovering in the sky, arched an eyebrow and turned her gaze to Harry of the Fire Lizard Tribe.

"And you."

A multitude of delicate, gleaming silver blades impaled his waist. The once-mighty warrior of the Fire Lizard Tribe wailed monstrously as the blades penetrated his flesh.

In the Outer Star River, Cadorath's combat prowess was second only to the Great Demon God Beilstein. With effortless grace, she subdued three Tenth Level warriors.

Ferris and Harry were now captives, while Pantley writhed under the purifying radiance of the Holy Light, their screams echoing in torment.

"I believe you should be able to extract something useful from them."

Cadorath withdrew the blinding light, her immaculate wings of light coming to a serene halt in the air.

She gazed down at Yu Yuan and said, "Since Andrea is absent, you should be able to glean the information you seek from their souls, correct?"

"That shouldn't be a problem."

Yu Yuan nodded slightly, devoid of any sympathy for the shrieking Pantley.

The memories flooding his mind confirmed that Pantley, of the Sea Clan, was once a radiant beauty, but her heart was as venomous as a viper.

His recollections of Pantley were far from fond.

"Tianqi, have everyone keep their distance from those three. You, personally keep watch over Ferris!" Yu Yuan commanded.

Without hesitation, Tianqi launched himself skyward, landing decisively amidst the Banshee Clan.

"They don't seem to be afraid."

Canli, a fellow member of the Bright Clan, stood beside Chen Liangquan and Barol, her eyes wide with surprise as she observed Ferris and the Fire Lizard. "Their screams are from pain, but there's hardly any fear in their eyes. It's quite peculiar."

"The Patriarch hasn't killed them outright, but their fate is sealed nonetheless. And having their souls searched by Yu Yuan is no trivial matter. Why aren't they panicking or showing any signs of despair?"

Barol's voice was grave as he warned, "Everyone, be on guard. Something's off here."

"Your hand..."

Yu Yuan paused in front of the shrieking Pantley, contemplating the hand that resembled a massive worm.

The hand, seemingly with a mind of its own, lunged at his feet as he drew near.

Thwack!

The Dragon Slash Platform drove through the hand, pinning it to the ground, rendering it immobile despite its frantic writhing.

The Dragon Slash Platform, though assaulted by the toxins in the blood and flesh, remained unscathed.

"Life transference. Drawing a portion of vitality from the flesh of the mightiest to sustain one's own lifespan," Yu Yuan murmured, sensing the secrets within the hand—it bore a certain resemblance to the Abyss Gate.

Should Pantley's hand touch the flesh and blood of the mightiest, it could simultaneously infect the victim with its toxins and siphon their life force.

Moreover, it could refine some of the life essence.

The impact would be significant; a formidable being like Cadorath would rapidly age and hasten towards death as their life essence drained away.

Pantley, on the other hand, could gain additional years. With enough lifespan, she might even rejuvenate to her former beauty.

She wasn't wrong; there was a chance she could regain her youthful visage.

But this was not immortality.

Neither Pantley nor Harry had a "Life Keychain" in their hearts. They couldn't use their own vital essence to nurture the tree.

The Life Keychain bestowed by the King of Desolate Realm to the Old Ape was the true rarity, the treasure that could grant eternal life.

Meanwhile, Pantley, Harry, and Ferris were cursed with a bizarre power.

This power compelled them to eternally seek out the mightiest beings, to consume their flesh and steal their lifespans, in pursuit of a false sense of everlasting life.

Yet, the effects were never permanent.

"Is this the so-called eternal life bestowed upon you by the Beast God of the Desolate Realm?"

Yu Yuan shook his head in disbelief as he observed Pantley's soul contracting under the sacred radiance, on the verge of bursting.

"Lord Cadorath, hold on a moment."

At his command, the brilliant light bathing Pantley receded instantly.

Ferris and Harry, who had been wailing in agony, quieted down upon seeing Cadorath pause. Noticing that Pantley's soul remained intact, they grew visibly desperate.

"Pantley is crucial!"

"Our leader, they're intent on killing Pantley! It appears that her death is necessary to trigger something!"

Canli, the prodigy of the Bright Clan, yelled from a short distance, the first to sense the anomaly. "We must not let her die!"

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