C345 A Fool Came in

"I want that skull," Chi Hongyi declared, her gaze not on the white-haired crone or Shen Feiqing, but fixed on Old Cash and the yellow apparition. The trio were well-acquainted and had established a tacit understanding prior to their arrival.

Old Cash coveted the levitating island refined by Yu Zhu, while the yellow-clad phantom aboard the massive gourd sought a formidable soul spirit. Chi Hongyi, on the other hand, set her sights on the platinum skull of the Asura from the Dark Domain.

She was, however, unaware of the skull's provenance or the significance of the brown eyeball.

At that moment, Yu Yuan, with a mere touch of his finger to the brown eyeball, had absorbed the fearsome crimson sword glow and earth-shattering sword intent into the orb's interior. To the outside world, Yu Yuan appeared as nothing more than a minor cultivator at the Yellow Court Stage, his potent sword intent raging unseen within the Asura's eyeball in the Dark Domain.

"No means no," the white-haired old woman with crutches insisted, her mood shifting. The slender white snakes that were her hair hissed and flicked their tongues, poised to strike anew at Chi Hongyi.

The statuesque woman in the crimson dress, cradling a lute, allowed a slight curl to grace her lips. Her fingers, pale and smooth as ivory, danced lightly across the lute, plucking at a string. The lute sang out, its notes like droplets of water.

The sound waves, sharp as a downpour of swords and harmonized with the lute's enchanting melody, infiltrated the white snakes unnoticed.

The old woman's once lustrous white hair turned ashen at the lute's resonance, fading to a lifeless grey. A single hair disintegrated into smoke with a soft 'poof'.

Her expression darkened, and she straightened her stooped figure, gripping her white bone crutch, as sharp as a blade, and wrenching it from the earth.

Xu Zixi, who had just battled her, felt a sudden stillness in her heart upon witnessing the old woman's wrath.

Upon the arrival of Old Cash and his companions, the old crone ceased her assault, prompting Xu Zixi to contemplate an escape rather than honor the pact to fight alongside Yu Yuan and Yan Qiling.

Her sole concern was Zhou Cangmin's wellbeing.

Yet now, the old crone, a snake demon cast out by the Demon Palace, found herself at odds with Chi Hongyi over the platinum skeleton of the Dark Domain's Asura, compelling Xu Zixi to reconsider and observe the unfolding drama.

Chi Hongyi, Old Cash, and the yellow apparition were evidently allies.

As Chi Hongyi and the old woman faced off, the choices for Old Cash, the yellow apparition, Shen Feiqing, and Bai Shang became unclear.

Could Xu Zixi and Yan Qiling seize the opportunity to covertly influence the situation?

"Hold on!"

Atop the jade balustrade within the resplendent palace, Old Cash, clutching his ancient bronze flask, gestured for Chi Hongyi to temper her haste.

Chi Hongyi, her fingers poised over the pipa strings, cast a frosty glance his way and paused her music.

Shen Feiqing, draped in purple silk, bowed her head and counseled the old woman, "Patience, please."

The old woman huffed at Chi Hongyi, "You wretched girl, this isn't over between us!"

"What are you up to, Old Cash?" Chi Hongyi snapped, irritation lacing her voice, "You desire the island, Yellow Old Devil craves the soul spirit, and I seek the skull. Wasn't that the arrangement?"

"The island, the soul spirit, those matter not to me, but the skull you covet, that's a different story," Old Cash chuckled dryly, then leisurely leaped from the palace heights.

He descended directly toward the city pit where the platinum skeleton of Yu Yuan and the Asura lay.

The copper coins adorning him jingled incessantly as they collided in midair.

Shen Feiqing, Yan Qiling, Bai Shang, and the rest looked on, their expressions shifting dramatically.

They watched in shock as the coins emerged from Old Cash's garments, floating and sinking alongside him.

With a resounding "Crack!" the coins yet to touch ground, the pit and the entire crumbling city burst apart.

Boulders fractured, the earth as tough as iron rent asunder.

The old woman, leaning on her White Bone Crutch, her demonic energy seeping into the earth, watched Old Cash with a sharp gaze and demanded, "What do you intend to do?"

Old Cash came to a sudden halt ten meters above Yu Yuan's head.

Hundreds of copper coins, shimmering in hues of gold, yellow, and bronze, floated around him like leaves, each one enveloped in a halo of light.

The ancient script etched onto the coins emanated a profound national fortune, imbuing the coins with its power.

"Chi Hongyi, your eyes are as piercing as ever," Old Cash remarked.

He took another sip of his blood-red wine, smacking his lips in appreciation. "That enormous skull down there is certainly not just an inanimate object."

At his words, a ripple of unease spread through the crowd.

Old Cash had not even touched down yet, but he was already aware of the subtle soul presence within the Asura's skull from the Dark Domain.

He may have been ignorant of the skull's origins, yet he recognized that it was not devoid of life.

"A living thing?"

The figure known as Yellow Old Devil, perched atop a massive gourd, cracked a grin. "Does it harbor a soul within?"

Old Cash gave a nod. "That's your specialty."

Yellow Old Devil's laughter grew more exuberant. "Well, it looks like my fortunes are looking up! Chi Hongyi, the skull is yours, but the soul within it is mine!"

Before Chi Hongyi could respond, the towering yellow apparition abruptly contracted.

The billowing yellow robe continued to flutter in the breeze, resting on the gourd as if nothing had changed.

But the entity known as Yellow Old Devil had vanished without a trace.

In the next instant, a streak of light, akin to a gust of yellow sand, materialized within the cavern and shot directly toward the dark brown eyeball of the Asura, still under Yu Yuan's pointed touch.

Yellow Old Devil had swiftly slipped inside.

Yu Yuan, at the Yellow Court Stage, showed no interest in engaging with him, not even bothering to probe Yu Yuan's three souls or sift through his memories.

"My apologies, truly," Old Cash said with a bow, addressing Shen Feiqing and the white-haired crone with a respectful gesture. "My friend can be a bit hot-headed and impulsive. Please accept my apologies on his behalf. I trust you're all too gracious to take offense at his behavior."

Shen Feiqing responded coolly, "No harm done."

Bai Shang and the white-haired old woman remained unmoved as they watched Yellow Old Devil employ his secret technique, transforming into a stream of yellow sand that entered the brown eyeball. They showed no inclination to intervene.

In fact, there seemed to be a hint of schadenfreude in their demeanor.

As Old Cash offered his apologies and noticed the peculiar looks on the faces around him, he began to sense that something was off.

He suppressed his smile and furrowed his brow as he gazed at the massive platinum skull. Stroking his chin, he turned to Chi Hongyi and said, "Are we being too hasty? Why do I get the feeling that the Yellow Old Devil is heading for disaster?"

Chi Hongyi, cradling her lute, agreed, "I'm getting the same vibe."

...

Within the brown iris lay a bizarre microcosm.

Countless crimson sword beams, like rivers and streams, surged toward a shadowy expanse.

There, the fragmented souls and consciousness of the Asura from the Dark Domain were coalescing amidst innumerable glints of cold crystal light.

Yu Yuan's fragment of thought was attuned to the sword soul's intent, urging him to grasp the profound, ancient, and vast truth of the sword spell, to perceive it with utter clarity.

Suddenly, a reckless yellow streak of light blundered in.

As soon as it entered, it morphed into the ephemeral silhouette of the Yellow Old Devil.

Once the spectral form materialized, the Yellow Old Devil beheld the myriad crimson sword beams. They flowed like broad rivers, embodying the essence of the sword path and exuding a world-shattering presence as they plunged into the far-off gloom.

No sooner had the Yellow Old Devil coalesced his spirit than three of the crimson sword beams bore down on him.

"Chi!"

The trio of crimson beams skewered the newly formed spirit of the Yellow Old Devil, eliciting a wail as his essence scattered to the winds.

After the beams traversed his form, they continued their relentless journey into the distant darkness.

The Yellow Old Devil, now a shattered spirit, shrieked as he attempted to coalesce once more.

On his second attempt, the spirit form shrank, but just as it began to take shape, another three crimson sword beams impaled it.

The Yellow Old Devil's spirit dispersed again, his cries echoing as he struggled to reform.

Yu Yuan's thought observed the hapless Yellow Old Devil who had stumbled in and mused, 'Did a fool just enter?'

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