C448 Pretending to be Nice

On a desolate island, Xu Zixi found herself amidst a chaotic pile of rocks, utterly bewildered and uncertain of her next move. Above the Embers Sea, a blue crystal was wreaking havoc, slaughtering the elders of various sects. It consumed the three souls, sending the lifeless bodies plummeting into the ocean's abyss.

She commanded seven massive pythons, yet they were powerless to shatter the sealed wall. Fearing she would become the next target, she dared not linger too long in the open skies. Left with no other choice, she sought refuge on a secluded island, silently awaiting an opportunity for change.

That day, her spirit trembled.

"Lord Dusk Raven!" she exclaimed.

Xu Zixi soared into the air and beheld the Skullcairn, a fortress of bones, hurtling through the clouds. It was the same Skullcairn that had once rested on the evilkind's island, the one she and Dusk Raven had occupied.

The sun blazed overhead, casting a radiant light across the sky. The Skullcairn, constructed from bones, suddenly burst forth with a luminous glow akin to exquisite jade. It was brimming with the formidable power of demon energy, and the thunderous roars of an archdemon echoed from within.

Enigmatic demonic scripts emerged from the Skullcairn, absorbing the sunlight and rapidly gaining strength. The enormous, teardrop-shaped blue crystal pursued the Skullcairn relentlessly.

A shimmering blue halo spread through the sky towards the Skullcairn like an expanse of ocean water. Cluster after cluster of white clouds were obliterated by the advancing blue light.

From her vantage point on the island, Xu Zixi watched the Skullcairn's departure, her heart racing with the tumultuous energy waves. Observing the blue crystal's pursuit, her expression turned somber as she lamented, "Lord Dusk Raven, even with the Skullcairn at your disposal, are you still relegated to mere evasion?"

She understood the enigmatic nature of the Skullcairn all too well. The bones that formed the fortress were the remnants of a Dark Deity, shattered just before its transformation. The original owner of the bones had ascended to the tenth level, becoming a Dark Deity, and after reforging a new body, left the old bones behind, which eventually formed the Skullcairn.

These remnants, from before the entity's apotheosis, possessed immense divine might and were as impregnable as a fortress. According to Shadow's Keep, the fortress was never meant to leave the island. Now, with Dusk Raven taking refuge within and fleeing through the skies, it was clear he had been driven to a desperate pass.

Lord Dusk Raven was compelled to resort to the Skullcairn. What of the others?

She had a sudden realization: the leaders of the various sects who had remained in this maritime region were likely all dead.

Out of necessity, Dusk Raven concealed himself within the Skullcairn, evading pursuit just to bide his time.

"I hope those who departed, like Faang Yao, return soon."

Xu Zixi hoped that a powerful cultivator like Faang Yao would detect the trouble early and alert both the Devil Palace and Shadow's Keep to the disturbances in the Embers Sea.

Once the Unbound cultivators from the Devil Palace and the ninth-level archdemons from Shadow's Keep arrived, the predicament in the Embers Sea would undoubtedly be resolved.

...

Beneath the sea.

Yu Yuan, agile as a darting fish, experienced the wonders of the Veil Breaking Realm while sporadically engaging with Hei Xun's Soul Voice through the Crucible of Evil.

He was aware that Hei Xun was neither within the Crucible of Evil nor beneath the sea.

Hei Xun had once studied within the Crucible of Evil, mastering its enigmatic glyphs, and had found a way to link his Soul Voice to the artifact, enabling their communication.

Despite being damaged, the Crucible of Evil remained a Divine Artifact, its infinite mysteries unfathomable and unobscured by the Azure Veil.

Hei Xun revealed only that he was trapped somewhere outside, without disclosing the cause or his exact location.

Yet, he persistently and even abrasively insisted that Yu Yuan keep his distance from the Abyssal Leviathan.

Weary of Hei Xun's condescending orders, Yu Yuan grew increasingly frustrated.

Eventually, unable to extract any clear answers from Hei Xun and unwilling to be commanded by him, Yu Yuan decisively withdrew his focused consciousness from the Crucible of Evil.

He disregarded Hei Xun's subsequent Soul Voice messages.

"Heh!"

After some time, Yu Yuan's mouth curled into a silent smirk. Before him appeared the familiar Fallen Star Eyes.

He saw Liu Ying, the Abyssal Leviathan, Su Yan, and Kong Banbi...

Liu Ying was sobbing with a dejected look on her face, but upon seeing him, her spirits lifted, and she began to wave her hands excitedly.

Su Yan and Kong Banbi were visibly overjoyed.

"Abyssal Leviathan..."

He whispered to himself, subtly picking up the pace as he drew closer to the Fallen Star Eyes.

The Abyssal Leviathan's crimson and ivory eyes suddenly brightened.

Before reaching the Fallen Star Eyes, its remnant soul consciousness had already made contact. "Kid, didn't you bring the Crucible of Evil with you?"

Yu Yuan paused, shook his head in the water, and felt a slight stir in his Heart Lake. "I only practiced there for a short time; I didn't have the means to take that Divine Artifact with me."

"The dark arts you practice are directly connected to that artifact. You should have been the most likely to succeed," the Abyssal Leviathan expressed with a hint of regret. "It's a real shame you couldn't bring out the Crucible of Evil. I revealed that place to you because I had high hopes for you."

"I was concerned about making you wait too long, and I feared that the Blood Altar might come searching, using the residual power within the cauldron to break through to a new realm, so I exited," Yu Yuan responded carefully, weighing his words. "To my surprise, when I emerged, none of you were there. Wasn't there an agreement to wait for me?"

"We thought you might not make it out," the Abyssal Leviathan admitted.

Its two wise little eyes scrutinized Yu Yuan intently, as if trying to see right through him.

Yu Yuan, initially filled with doubts and convinced he couldn't deceive the Abyssal Leviathan, discovered that no matter how it looked at him, the Crucible of Evil, now refined and integrated into his Profound Gate's vitality, didn't give off the slightest trace of its presence.

Except for Hei Xun, who had penetrated a strand of the glyph inside and left a contingency, no one else could detect any sign of the Crucible of Evil.

He suddenly felt a wave of relief wash over him, and a serene smile graced his lips as he made his way toward the Fallen Star Eyes.

"Whoosh!"

A surge of cosmic energy unfurled, ushering him in and positioning him between Liu Ying and the Abyssal Leviathan.

Once he was firmly in place, the sword sheath subtly angled itself towards the Abyssal Leviathan.

The Abyssal Leviathan was clearly uncomfortable under the aim of the sword sheath, its body floating motionless yet subtly twisting as if to dodge an unseen threat.

"Don't point that at me. It makes me uneasy," the Abyssal Leviathan implored.

"There's no need to be nervous. It's just a habit; I'm not singling you out," Yu Yuan reassured, no longer relying on telepathy to communicate. He laughed heartily, as if to lighten the mood with the Abyssal Leviathan, "So, have you not yet devised a plan to find someone to help you break free from your bonds?"

"Yu Yuan! Where on earth did you find this evilkind elder?" Liu Ying burst out in anger, pointing accusingly at the Abyssal Leviathan. "We were waiting for you outside the cauldron. It warned us that the Blood Altar might approach and urged us to leave. I wanted to keep waiting, but it forcibly seized the Fallen Star Eyes and used them to whisk us all away."

"We really did want to wait for you," Du Huang added.

Su Yan gave a slow, confirming nod.

Yu Yuan, with a clear understanding in his heart, nodded slightly before gesturing dismissively, "No worries, it's fine."

His attention was abruptly drawn to a ferocious battle unfolding nearby. Under the leadership of Mo Yan, a youth from the Devil Palace, the combined forces of the Devil Palace, Ruby Hand, Skyblight Cult, Taintborn, and Colddeath were brutally massacring Lu Baichan and her group.

He saw the fallen bodies from the Cloudwater Sect, Ebon Star, and Winter's Bite.

"How did it come to this?" he exclaimed, taken aback.

"The Bone-Devouring Shuttle of the Skyblight Cult needs vital energy and souls to exert its full power. That's the only way it can work with the Ethereal Vial to penetrate the Azure Veil," Kong Banbi explained once more. "The Devil Palace's youth orchestrated the killing of Lu Baichan and the others to break through the barrier."

With this explanation, Yu Yuan's understanding crystallized.

A figure, crystalline as ice, shot out from beneath the sea like a shard of ice.

Opening her mouth, she pleaded to the Fallen Star Eyes, "Save us."

"That would be your betrothed," Du Huang remarked with a peculiar inflection.

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