C523 The First Fiend Demon!
The dark cauldron hung suspended in midair.
Inside the cauldron's own little world, Yu Yuan could no longer detect any disturbances within the Yellow Court Little World.
The eight clusters of Sun Essence Fire had become remarkably tame, not having been summoned by the Chaos Roc.
The cauldron's walls were etched with numerous Demonic Marks, each one a testament to the Evil Sect's intricate Devil Spells, imbued with the extraordinary power to seize the essence of the world and transform evil spirits into formidable demons.
Whoosh!
An ethereal ice-blue silhouette materialized, unmistakably in the likeness of Luo Yiyi from the Water Moon Sect.
With a single glance, Yu Yuan recognized that this Luo Yiyi was the peculiar evil spirit, manifested through the transformative magic of the Heavenly Demon.
The ice-blue figure of Luo Yiyi stood in silence, motionless.
A torrent of disparate soul forces, drawn from the Muddy Devil Embryo within the cauldron's small world, surged into her, cleansing her indomitable spirit in an attempt to usurp the cauldron soul and become the new Artifact Soul of the cauldron.
Memories of the Chaos Roc's words suddenly flooded Yu Yuan's thoughts.
As the Chaos Roc had explained, this evil spirit, birthed from the Heavenly Demon's Divine Change, was not a natural occurrence. It was forcibly created by the Devil Palace's Great Cultivator, who had slain a Heavenly Demon beside the Evil Cauldron.
The Heavenly Demon's condensation into an evil spirit was unprecedented!
The evil spirit before him was the result of an Outland Devaputra, butchered by the Devil Palace's Great Cultivator, with the intention of integrating it into the Evil Cauldron to forge a new Artifact Soul.
Unbeknownst to the Great Cultivator, the Artifact Soul had not been utterly extinguished but lay hidden in profound depths.
The demotion of the Evil Cauldron from a Divine Artifact to a Heaven Level Artifact was attributed by the Great Cultivator to the death of the cauldron soul.
His aim was to solidify the Heavenly Demon into an evil spirit, enabling it to assume the role of the new cauldron soul, to preside over the Evil Cauldron, and to restore the notorious weapon to its past splendor.
Swoosh!
A wisp of cold soul light burst forth in the area of Luo Yiyi's consciousness within the cauldron.
The cauldron soul, previously uncertain of its location, suddenly stirred with excitement. "Success!"
As Yu Yuan looked on in astonishment, Luo Yiyi's form dissolved into a pool of ice-blue liquid, floating midair inside the cauldron, resembling a river of ice-blue in the void.
A chilling, ghostly aura emanated from it.
The ice-blue river morphed once more, taking on a new shape that was far colder and more bizarre than Luo Yiyi's.
This eerie figure towered tall, seemingly sculpted from ice itself.
Distinctly feminine in form, a closer inspection revealed a human upper body with a scorpion's lower half.
It was as though this was the true, primal form of the Outland Devaputra that had transformed into an evil spirit.
The cold, detached woman with human upper and scorpion lower body had ice-blue eyes devoid of any human emotion, exuding a sense of deep cold, deathly stillness, and millennia of solitude.
Now under the complete control of the Artifact Soul, she became the first 'evil demon' within the cauldron following Yu Yuan's integration.
The demon's ice-blue gaze suddenly fixed on the sword sheath in Yu Yuan's hand.
The cauldron soul's excitement surged, "The chill within the sword sheath—please bestow it upon her!"
Yu Yuan paused, perplexed, "What?"
"The sealed chill at the base of the sword sheath will aid in her empowerment!" The cauldron soul's excitement grew, "New master, I've come to understand! After refining her into a demon, it all makes sense now!"
"What exactly do you understand?" Yu Yuan inquired.
"First, lift the seal and release the chill from the bottom of the sword sheath into this miniature world!" The cauldron soul pressed.
Having fully refined the cauldron and learned that the cauldron soul originated from the Divine Soul Sect, the subsequent events had proven its loyalty.
Despite his reservations, Yu Yuan followed the cauldron soul's instructions.
He attempted to connect with the fragmented sword intent still residing within the sword sheath.
Crack!
A sharp sound echoed as the sword light, a remnant of the Great Sword Immortal, shattered within the sheath.
The sword intent vanished into thin air.
Whoosh!
A chilling stream of energy erupted from the base of the sword sheath, drawn to the fiendish demon as if by magnetism, and swiftly integrated into her being, becoming part of her essence.
"Ah!"
Yu Yuan was taken aback, his mind racing with confusion: "How could this happen?"
He was well aware of the origins of the icy energy sealed within the sword sheath's depths. The sword sheath had once pierced through the platinum skull of an Asura from the Dark Domain.
For millennia, the sword sheath had been locked in a relentless struggle with the lingering will of the Asura. Yu Yuan had witnessed a myriad of cold crystals within the world of the Asura's eye, all forged from the gathered remnants of the Asura's soul, seemingly originating from the eternally dark and frigid Dark Domain.
The self-awareness of the Dark Domain's Asura had been obliterated, its lifetime of insights now possessed by Yu Zhu.
Despite the prolonged battle between the Asura and the sheath, the icy current that had infiltrated the sheath was firmly suppressed at its base, restrained by the interwoven sword light, never once spilling forth.
Recently, Lim Zhuyun had shown a voracious longing for this icy flow, yet her attempts had been thwarted.
But now...
The once vague and ethereal 'Devil' was suddenly infused with this icy current and solidified into a tangible form!
The 'Devil' took shape as an exotic and strikingly beautiful being, emanating an aura of distant coldness. Its form remained that of a human from the waist up, with the lower half of a scorpion, but it was no longer a watery visage. Instead, it was composed of ice-blue, crystalline transparency, exuding an intense chill.
With a sudden burst, it burst into flames, the ice-blue fire raging fiercely.
For reasons unknown, this 'Devil's' presence and sensation, as perceived by Yu Yuan, bore a subtle resemblance to Lim Zhuyun.
"The Outland Devaputra that possessed Lim Zhuyun and the one before me are of the same lineage," he realized.
The cauldron soul was visibly thrilled. "Both Devaputra must have arrived in the Boundless Land simultaneously. One was seized by the mighty cultivator of the Devil Palace, slain beside the cauldron, and transformed into an 'evil spirit,' intent on usurping my place and seizing control of this cauldron."
"The other one must have narrowly escaped and is now concealed deep within the Nether Abyss, having mastered the Ice Flame."
"The Devaputra that has taken over the girl is likely persuaded by Heixun to venture into the Ember Waters, undoubtedly influenced by this particular evil spirit."
"The girl's relentless slaughter in her quest to find you is partly due to the cold current in her sword sheath. Yet, the primary factor is surely her."
"With the cold current and her in possession, the girl's power will surge, propelling her even further. She must have learned all this from the Chaos Roc, the ancient Starry Behemoth of the Ember Waters seabed, long suppressed by the old Demon Clan, secretly observing everything."
"He holds secrets beyond what I, Heixun, or even the Aura Altar know."
The cauldron soul unraveled the truth.
Yu Yuan was stunned into silence.
Two Devaputras had descended upon the Boundless Land, pursued by native cultivators—one perished, the other fled.
The deceased became the current evil spirit, while the escapee might now be trapped within Lim Zhuyun's body.
"Can you truly control her?" Yu Yuan inquired.
"Once she's transformed into an evil spirit, she'll have no say," the cauldron soul assured confidently. "She's the premier evil spirit within the cauldron. After a thorough cleansing and subjugation, she'll be battle-ready! Master, this evil spirit is extraordinary, with boundless potential, rivaling even the most formidable ones under the former owner's command."
The peculiarity of the Evil Cauldron lies in its strength growing with each addition of evil spirits, empowering the cauldron soul in turn.
The cauldron soul evolves by refining, dominating, and amassing evil spirits, potentially restoring this long-dormant artifact to its pinnacle.
Artifacts possess the capacity for progressive advancement. In Yu Yuan's hands, with a multitude of high-quality evil spirits in the cauldron, its tier could be elevated even further.
As the artifact's tier ascends, so too does the might of the cauldron soul.
"How long until she can battle on my behalf?"
"In half a month! She'll be battle-ready using her abilities in just half a month!"
"What about her combat power?"
"It depends on how well she integrates with the cold current. If the fusion is successful and harmonious, her combat power could rival that of a Middle Period Yin God."
Yu Yuan's eyes sparkled with anticipation. "Is there potential for the Evil Devil to grow even stronger?"
"Indeed, there is."
"How can we achieve that?"
"Should she merge with more of the cold current, her strength will increase further. Alternatively, slaying additional Heavenly Devils and nourishing her with their souls could also boost her power. Or, if you eliminate that girl, you could infuse her Ice Flame and the Heavenly Devil she subdued into our Evil Devil."
"That sounds challenging."
"No need to hurry; we can proceed gradually." The cauldron soul exuded confidence. "Master, in half a month, this formidable Evil Devil will be under my command, ready to enter your Yellow Court Little World."
"And what will she do there?"
"The ice-blue flame she carries may just be able to locate and eradicate the mark left by the Chaos Roc. Only then will the Sun Essence Fire truly be yours, completely under your control!"
