C2217 The Panicked Dark Phoenix
"It would be best if she were dead. With no ruler over the Wasteland, you, Yu Yuan, would become the new king."
Mother Earth, who had been eyeing Zhiya with discontent, seized the opportunity to stir up trouble.
She drifted on a floating meteorite, casually manipulating her hands, and thousands of massive rocks, shimmering with light, filled the Star River around her.
In an instant, a smaller version of the 'Peak of Creation' materialized.
This scaled-down 'Peak of Creation', resembling a fortress built from giant boulders, obstructed the essential route between the two divine halls and the sea of demon energy, drawing even more meteorites to it.
"Yu Yuan, regardless of your relationship with that young woman, I advise you to stay out of it."
"With her mortal body, once she steps into the Wellspring of Creation, her fate will be no different from the Dark Phoenix's."
"Her fate could be even more tragic."
Mother Earth's voice was melodious, yet her words dripped with spite, "She lacks mastery over the profound Secrets of Life. Once inside, she probably won't even have a chance to struggle."
Unaware of the depth of the bond between Yu Yuan and Yu Zhu in the Everlands, Mother Earth went on, "The Wasteland is barren now, but that may not always be the case. Once you've refined the Primal Blood and fully united the Wasteland, transforming the Beast God Temple, your power will surge."
"With such strength, you'll be capable of battling him. Should he dare to enter the Wasteland, I'll be on your side!"
With these words, Mother Earth, once devastated by Yu Yuan, clearly declared her position.
To confront a common foe, she was willing to ally with Yu Yuan in the Wasteland.
For Yu Yuan's sake, she believed the deaths of the Dark Phoenix and Yu Zhu would be to his sole advantage.
"The affairs between her and me are not open to interference by anyone."
Yu Yuan's expression grew stern as he turned to Mother Earth and commanded, "Ensure the Wellspring of Creation is well-guarded. Spare me your concern for anything else!"
"I am not one of your underlings!"
Mother Earth retorted furiously.
"If you wish to ally with me, you must acknowledge my leadership!"
Yu Yuan spoke without a hint of emotion, "Always remember, I will be stronger than you at any time. This body you inhabit was a gift from me, and you have no grounds to negotiate with me."
His eyes narrowed slightly, and a fine, blood-red light flickered within them, weaving into a rune that held the Secrets of Life.
Mother Earth, poised to argue, felt the vital energy and life within her body threaten to scatter as Yu Yuan's eyes revealed the ominous rune.
A chill ran through her heart as she realized that Yu Yuan, having harnessed the Primal Blood, possessed the power to erase the life force from her body.
It appeared that if Yu Yuan harbored a malevolent thought, she would be stripped of her body.
This body was perfectly attuned to her spiritual sense, allowing her to wield her power without depending on the clumsy Direbear.
She could not bear the thought of losing this unique vessel.
Thus, she hesitated, holding back her rebuttal, and chose to remain silent.
"Your Highness, stop!" the Astral Tiger bellowed.
With a whoosh, Yu Zhu and the Phoenix Shrine spanned the Star River in an instant, bypassing Yu Yuan and his arm, as well as soaring over Mother Earth's recently crafted Peak of Creation, to settle firmly in the skies above.
The Phoenix Shrine, brimming with potent space magic, possessed the ability to traverse the void.
Above Yu Zhu's head, the Phoenix Shrine began to shrink, as if she intended to grasp it in her palm before stepping into the Wellspring of Creation.
Yu Yuan's face turned grave, taken aback by her arrival through the shrine's spatial breach. He commanded in a stern tone, "Wait, don't go yet!"
Within the Wellspring of Creation, the Dark Phoenix Zhiya sensed their approach, and her vast phoenix form, concealed by the seals, shrank in a flurry of distress.
Zhiya transformed into her human shape in an instant and fiercely yelled toward the Phoenix Shrine, "You are not allowed in!"
Her pale hands, riddled with sword punctures, bled not a drop, yet the corners of her eyes bore fine cracks, as if a soul-deep injury had seeped through.
Her cry was stifled, unheard.
Yet anyone witnessing her in that moment could discern her plea through the shape of her lips and the terror in her eyes: "Do not enter!"
"Could she actually panic?"
Mother Earth was somewhat astonished.
The Moonfang Tiger, the golden deer, and the Beast Gods and Dark Deities who had long pledged their loyalty to Shadow's Keep had never witnessed such a Dark Phoenix before!
They had never imagined that their seemingly invincible leader would show signs of panic at the prospect of Yu Zhu and the Phoenix Shrine entering the Wellspring of Creation.
Even when her wings were pierced, the Dark Phoenix's eyes only betrayed a sense of gravity, devoid of any hint of panic.
The Astral Tiger recalled witnessing the great divide between humans and evilkind during the era of the Everlands, when Lin Daoke and Tan Xiaotian fought alongside her in the extraterrestrial Star River. Even then, she did not succumb to panic.
"It's because of Yu Zhu. She's worried that Yu Zhu might die."
The Astral Tiger grasped the Dark Phoenix's inner turmoil.
Thus, the Moonfang Tiger, whose reputation for ferocity echoed throughout the Origin Realm, opened its maw and released a straight spear.
This spear, wreathed in boundless killing intent, broke through the void's seal.
The Astral Tiger's complexion turned deathly pale as innumerable skeletons surfaced within the depths of his white Demonic Eyes.
The suppressed killing force within him transformed into ghostly white arcs of lightning, erupting from his Demonic Eyes and resonating with a corner of the Phoenix Shrine's eaves.
With a swift motion, the Astral Tiger and the spear defied Yu Yuan's blood constraints and shattered through the newly forged Peak of Creation by Mother Earth, landing abruptly on the eave of the Phoenix Shrine.
As Yu Zhu's spirit and body began to separate, the Astral Tiger called out, "Hall Master, stay calm!"
A white cloud burst forth from the Astral Tiger's chest, enveloping Yu Zhu and restricting her from unleashing her full power.
The air hummed as a verdant soul sea and a majestic, blood-yellow river materialized within Yu Zhu's gaze.
Within the depths of that luminous soul sea, flickers of soul light shimmered, as if concealing the most profound memories.
Yu Yuan experienced a sudden revelation.
Peering into those memory sparkles, he felt an intimate connection, as though his own soul mark lay hidden in their deepest recesses.
His entire being vibrated as he tapped into the power of the eight-tiered Soul Altar within his real body.
A green divine eye emerged on his forehead, casting forth a dazzling divine radiance.
He utilized only the might of the emerald table.
A beam of azure light, composed of pure Soul Power, illuminated the verdant soul sea within Yu Zhu's pupils, pinpointing a single memory sparkle.
Profound and enigmatic knowledge flooded into his soul.
Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit Body, including his real body located far away in the Creitecesh, both quivered simultaneously.
His face was etched with astonishment and incredulity, as though he had witnessed something exceedingly bizarre.
The knowledge emerging from that pinpoint of memory was astonishingly related to the Chaos Titan!
Yu Yuan was profoundly shaken to discover that the knowledge within the memory sparkle, along with other memories Yu Zhu might not have unraveled, seemed to originate from him.
It was a part of himself that he had forgotten!
The Chaos Titan!
Involuntarily, his gaze returned to the deep purple sea of demon energy, trying to sense the elusive young Chaos Titan that was intentionally avoiding him.
It appeared that the Dark Phoenix's understanding of the formidable Chaos Titan stemmed from the memories in Yu Zhu's mind!
And those memories, imprinted within Yu Zhu's soul, traced back to him!
Suddenly, he recalled Kaiya's words.
The Demon God Bertain had severed a fragment of his own soul to create his daughter, Kaiya, enabling her to be born with an innate mastery of various arcane Spirit Magic.
Following her metamorphosis, Yu Zhu could take on the form of a purple phoenix, identical to Zhiya.
Having purified her soul at the Root of the Lunar Meridian in the Everlands, Yu Zhu had grasped the true essence of Primal Vitality, which manifested as strands of the Levi River in her consciousness.
But whence came that emerald soul sea?
At this realization, Yu Yuan's countenance grew increasingly somber, aware that he was in need of an answer.
And that answer might only come from the Dark Phoenix Zhiya.
"Stay outside. I'm going in to bring her back."
Yu Yuan inhaled deeply and gestured to Yu Zhu, signaling the Astral Tiger to escort her and the Phoenix Shrine away.
The Astral Tiger paused, bewildered, and asked, "You're going in? You're going to get involved and retrieve the Hall Master?"
Yu Zhu, who had been glaring at the Astral Tiger, miraculously settled down upon hearing his words.
With lips pressed together, she looked at him, her eyes filled with unspoken words.
"Go back!"
Yu Yuan commanded sternly.
"Oh."
The slender girl let out a quiet sigh of relief and obediently descended to the top of the Phoenix Shrine, taking her place alongside the Astral Tiger on either side of the hall's apex.
"He will bring Mother Earth out."
Yu Zhu spoke to the Astral Tiger with a serious expression but a light tone, "Don't worry, Mother Earth will be fine. He's sure to succeed."
"Do you really trust him that much?" The Astral Tiger frowned.
Yu Zhu nodded and murmured, "I trust him! I will always trust him, even more than I trust Mother Earth!"