C269 Capture Alive

The Evil Body Refining Technique was renowned for strengthening the physique, and reaching the Veil Breaking realm with it was hardly surprising.

The Moonfall Sanctuary's harsh and unique environment was particularly conducive to the refinement process of the Evil Body Refining Technique.

Moreover, his compatibility with the Soulforge Matrix meant that the Soulforge Pool and its walls had repeatedly tempered his flesh and bones, endowing him with a body as tough as steel by the time he reached the Soul Awakening Realm.

Upon advancing to the Golden Sanctum, the little world within his lower elixir field opened, allowing him to absorb spiritual energy and further enhance his combat prowess.

His confidence surged when he discovered that the poison left in his flesh by Wei Feng's dagger could be ground away using the Evil Body Refining Technique.

Soldiers of the Blackfang Legion, despite their severed arms, endured the excruciating pain and extended their Subtlety spiritual sense.

Their spiritual sense, like a delicate net, managed to detect Yu Zhu, who was concealed in the shadows.

In that moment, terror struck him to the core.

His spiritual sense, upon encountering Yu Zhu, registered an overwhelming vitality, vast as the sea.

The essence within Yu Zhu's vitality was so potent that it caused his spiritual sense great discomfort.

He didn't need to ponder long to realize that the hidden adversary who had forced him to sever his own arm was not an opponent their small squad could contend with.

He immediately shouted, "Wei Feng!"

Wei Feng, who had been psychologically undermined by Yu Yuan, turned to him upon hearing his call.

"Prepare to retreat!" he commanded with a grave look in his eyes.

Wei Feng, who had been eager to engage Yu Yuan, recognized the urgency in his expression and tone, having battled alongside him for many years. She knew something was amiss; he wasn't one to concede without a fighting chance.

She nodded subtly, signaling her understanding and readiness to seek an escape.

"Everyone, prepare to pull back."

He cast a brief look at the other three, disregarding Bai Shenshen, and without further attention to Ning Ji, who had stealthily approached on Yu Yuan's orders, he prepared to make his exit.

Following his command, another member of the Blackfang Legion, even quicker on his feet, darted out ahead of him.

This general, clad in Blackfang Armor and possessing Veil Breaking cultivation, seemed to synchronize with his spell. His armor erupted with a sudden burst of dark radiance.

An eerie sense of weightlessness emanated from the figure before me. His heavy armor, once inert, was now enlivened by a special arcane spell, triggering the concealed magic diagram of lightness within it. His pace quickened.

"Puchi!"

A ghastly white bone spike, like lightning tearing through the sky, pierced his heart and lungs in an instant. The spike passed clean through and vanished into the earth without a trace.

The Blackfang Legion general, who had so desperately sought to flee, was silently slain by Yu Zhu. This abrupt turn of events left the Subtlety General, who had been ready to withdraw, utterly deflated, like a frostbitten persimmon.

Wei Feng stood frozen in shock.

It was at this moment that Yu Yuan's smile shone brilliantly as he launched his full assault. The air whooshed as clusters of chaotic, bursting spiritual energy, drawn by the Evil Body Refining Technique, surged towards Wei Feng.

Left with no choice, Wei Feng swung her dagger in defense. The dark gleam of her blade flickered through the air in front of her with each movement of her hand.

The 'evil qi,' an unnatural formation brought together by the Evil Body Refining Technique, burst apart one by one. Yet, the insidious 'evil' that seeped out, laden with a myriad of negative emotions, crept silently towards Wei Feng.

Wei Feng, a practitioner of only the Soul Awakening Realm, had not mastered the Soul Forging through Enlightenment like Yu Yuan. She lacked the heightened perception and insight that would have allowed her to sense the impending danger.

She was oblivious as the 'evil qi' enveloped her.

Only when the 'evil' was triggered by Yu Yuan's intent did Wei Feng sense the peril. She was caught off guard, her mind assaulted by visions of malevolent spirits and ghosts encircling her, of severed limbs and corpses draped over her, of blood pouring down like a waterfall, drenching her from head to toe.

In her emotional turmoil, she lost her clarity and spiritual wisdom, letting out a piercing scream.

She flailed with her black dagger at phantoms that didn't exist, frantically wiping at her forehead and cheeks as if to cleanse herself of the imagined filth.

"I'm well-versed in the spells of the Poison Cult. You thought to use their techniques against me? How naive," Yu Yuan remarked, as he watched Wei Feng, her mind now lost to the corruption of the 'evil,' and he clenched his fist in preparation.

Under the influence of the Nine Glories Wheel, the vast spiritual energy hidden within the little world of the Golden Sanctum surged out wildly. It traveled along special meridians, converging into his clenched fist.

His raised fist shone with a brilliant light, reminiscent of the sun's first break of dawn.

Boom!

The punch struck down, piercing through the dark blade light to hit Wei Feng squarely on the back.

Wei Feng let out a pained groan as her backbones seemed to snap one by one.

Yu Yuan flashed a grin and shook his head, remarking, "We're both at the Soul Awakening level, yet the crafting of the corporeal body is far too weak and uncommon. It can't withstand even a single hit."

The followers of the Poison Cult didn't emphasize the strengthening of the corporeal body, preferring instead to focus on rapidly advancing through the realms.

Many cultivation sects across Euwrea adopted similar practices, aiming to quickly reach the Lunar Spirit, refine the Solar Spirit, and then chase after the Way of Heaven.

However, the elite cultivators from the likes of Ebon Star, Sunlit Order, Sword Sect, and even the practitioners from the seven lower sects, took a more measured approach in their training, ensuring a firm foundation at every level.

It was commonly believed that only by mastering each realm thoroughly and building an extremely solid foundation could one possibly reach the far shore and grasp the ultimate Way of the Primordial Spirit.

Clearly, the Poison Cult did not subscribe to this philosophy.

Wei Feng's weak constitution surprised Yu Yuan after his strike. He could sense that the spiritual energy within Wei Feng's Golden Sanctum acupoint was actually quite robust, perhaps even more so than his own. However, it was evident that Wei Feng's physical conditioning at the Soul Awakening level had been sorely lacking.

This led to Wei Feng losing her spiritual wisdom and suffering broken bones in an instant when his punch landed, as she failed to use her spiritual energy for protection.

"You..."

After the harsh blow, Wei Feng managed to abruptly escape the Bane's illusion, snapping back to reality. When she looked at Yu Yuan again, her gaze was icy, though her complexion had turned somewhat pale.

"The Blackfang Legion will not let you off," she stated in an eerily calm voice, leaving those words hanging as she brandished her black dagger.

Yu Yuan's face changed dramatically as he exclaimed, "Stop!"

Realizing escape was futile and having been gravely wounded by Yu Yuan, Wei Feng didn't hesitate for a moment before attempting to slit her own throat.

She was acutely aware that the figure lurking in the shadows, feared by even those in the Subtlety Realm, was far superior to any of them.

With such a presence, they stood no chance of survival, so suicide seemed the only decisive option.

"Clang!"

A white bone thorn, previously concealed within the earth, sprang forth as if by magic, striking the black dagger from her grasp.

The dagger clattered to the ground, and Wei Feng's hand, poised to slash her throat, was now frozen just below her neck.

She stared blankly at the bone thorn. Upon realizing her suicide attempt had failed, her gaze hardened, and she prepared to bite her own tongue to end her life.

"The Blackfang Legion is full of madmen."

Yu Yuan, observing her determination to die, felt somewhat helpless and resigned to let her be.

The white bone thorn moved once more.

"Thud!"

It struck down from above, hitting Wei Feng squarely on the head and knocking her unconscious.

Yu Yuan's eyes brightened. He quickly stepped forward, tore off a large piece of Wei Feng's black clothing, balled it up, and stuffed it into her mouth to prevent any further suicide attempts upon her awakening.

As he was about to look for something to bind Wei Feng with, he suddenly perceived an ominous feeling from Yu Zhu.

His expression darkened, "Who could be arriving at this hour?"

Yu Zhu's conveyed message indicated that another group, more formidable than Wei Feng's Blackfang Legion, was rapidly converging on their location.

"Could it be that the Blackfang Legion isn't just Wei Feng and her six companions? Perhaps they have a way to signal their nearby allies," Yu Yuan mused.

He soon realized his mistake.

The newcomers weren't from the Blackfang Legion but were Liu Wei from Winter's Bite and Lei Xiao from the Thunder Sect, accompanied by seven others dressed in the regalia of their respective sects.

In total, there were nine individuals, with Liu Wei and Lei Xiao being the most powerful.

The other seven were all in the Veil Breaking Stage, identical to the rank and file of the Blackfang Legion.

Not one among them had reached the Subtlety Stage.

The seven individuals appeared extremely youthful. Upon observing them, Yu Yuan sensed their naivety, reminiscent of sect disciples venturing far from home for the first time to explore the continent of Aetherius.

"Yu Yuan, did you kill the fallen Blackfang Legion soldiers?"

Liu Wei emerged, his face a mix of shock and curiosity, as he examined the two bodies on the ground and the Blackfang Legion soldier with a severed arm. He marveled, "Remarkable, truly remarkable! The Blackfang Legion's soldiers are formidable. We've pursued them for so long without managing to capture any alive. But you've succeeded."

Lei Xiao from the Thunder Sect had a reputation for being overbearing in Thylethlume. He looked at Yu Yuan with dissatisfaction and showed no respect for Yu Cen.

Yet, in this moment, even Lei Xiao seemed to regard Yu Yuan with a newfound seriousness, as if reassessing him. "How did you manage it?" he wondered silently.

As the group of nine made their appearance, the maimed Blackfang Legion soldiers, whether injured or intact, all displayed intense animosity.

The Blackfang Legion seemed to share a deep, irreconcilable enmity with Liu Wei, the hatred in their eyes so intense that Yu Yuan felt they were ready to tear Liu Wei and Lei Xiao apart with their bare hands.

"What is the connection between the Blackfang Legion, Lei Xiao, and Winter's Bite?" Yu Yuan pondered, his mind awash with questions.

"I am Bai Shenshen from Sacred Hands. And you are?" Bai Shenshen inquired, raising her voice.

"Sacred Hands?" Liu Wei stroked his chin, nodding in recognition. He asked in a gentle tone, "Are you okay? These remnants of the Blackfang Legion, they didn't harm you, did they?"

Bai Shenshen offered a slight smile, about to clarify, when she caught Yu Yuan's gaze.

The expression in Yu Yuan's eyes sent a chill through her heart.

Suddenly enlightened, Bai Shenshen responded, "Thank you for your concern. I'm unharmed."

"That's a relief," Liu Wei said, nodding with a smile. He then turned his attention to Yu Yuan, "Youngster from the Yu family, I owe you thanks for capturing Wei Feng alive. She was our primary target. We've been after them for quite some time, wanting to take her alive, which tied our hands. I never imagined you'd pull it off."

"There's no need for thanks; she belongs to me," Yu Yuan responded with a smile.

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