C585 Fist like Rain

The elder with a shining bald head approached at a leisurely pace.

"Huff! Huff!"

The cramped space inside the cave felt as though it was being furiously compressed by an immense force, leaving everyone inside gasping for air.

Yu Yuan's face suddenly paled!

He noticed that the sword lights between the caves remained still!

Throughout his journey, as he moved between different caves, anyone with malicious intent was swiftly suppressed by the unyielding sword's will.

A disciple of the Colddeath, attacking in the form of a pool of blood, was repeatedly cut down.

Yu Yuan, with the sword sheath in hand and the sword spirit within him, was naturally protected by the sword's will and sword lights of the Sword Prison.

It was this confidence that allowed him to venture deep into the Sword Prison, navigating through various caves without fear of ambush.

But now, the domineering elder from the Forgeroses Sect approached step by step. The fist intent radiating from him flooded the area like a deluge, yet the protective sword lights and sword's will, including the sword sheath he wielded, showed no reaction!

The sword's will and sword lights left by the Moon Slayer cultivator seemed to have turned blind at this moment.

Despite the onslaught, there was no counterattack!

The bald elder flashed a grin and suddenly launched a punch. "Kid, I've taken great pains and have only good intentions for you. Take it!"

Boom!

The fist intent that filled the space surged in like a breached dam.

This fist intent was fierce and majestic, as if it could warp space and alter the passage of time.

As the fist intent materialized, Yu Yuan was struck with an intense dizziness, as if he were traversing a spatial tunnel, enduring the horrific pressure of space-time with his physical body.

In his vision, a multitude of enormous fists, like giant fans, pummeled towards him from every direction.

The space around him was already crammed with fists, leaving no chance to escape or dodge!

Before he could muster any defense, Chen Qingyan grunted and was the first to be sent flying by the punch.

Their clasped hands were forcibly torn apart.

He glanced back, only to find that Chen Qingyan had vanished, as if she were in a completely different dimension, without a single trace left behind.

In a state of utter shock, "Bang! Bang! Bang!" echoed as a relentless barrage of fists engulfed him!

The very instant the first fist struck Yu Yuan, he couldn't contain his agonized roar.

Ahhh!

It was as though he was being relentlessly pummeled by a multitude of colossal hammers.

Amidst the excruciating pain that made him wish for death, he felt like a piece of glowing red iron under the relentless strike of a blacksmith's hammer.

"The Evil Body Refining technique you practice destroys from within, honing from the inside out," the bald elder chuckled heartily, punching as he spoke. "During your Veil Breaking phase, you've never faced a worthy adversary, never endured a grueling battle, nor felt the pressure exerted by an external force."

"In such a state, it's tough for you to push past your body's limits or advance to Subtlety, let alone unlock the mud pellet acupoint!"

"Let me assist you. I'll solidify your flesh and blood from the outside, ensuring your resilient body has no weaknesses."

His fists rained down like a storm.

The cave was awash with the shadows of his fists, all hurtling towards Yu Yuan.

Yu Yuan's space was smothered by boundless fist imprints, leaving no room for him to move.

Passively enduring the barrage, Yu Yuan unleashed beast-like, thunderous howls, as if teetering on the brink of death.

His expression was twisted with terror, his eyes bleeding light, with flecks of brilliance erupting from within him.

In a corner of the cave, Chen Qingyan, who had been cleaved from the group by a punch, felt the undulations of space and time under the Ancient Echoes of the Void mantra. Time seemed to slow, and her eyes gleamed with astonishment.

She acutely perceived that with each punch from Shen Feiqing's master, space and time contorted.

As space and time were thrown into chaos, the strands of sword light and sword's will scattered along the stone path failed to find their mark on the elder.

The fists that bore down on Yu Yuan, with their ability to warp space and time, were unpredictable, rendering the remnants of sword light and sword's will from the Moon Slayer cultivator ineffective.

Unable to lock on or sense a target, he was left without direction.

The mysterious and formidable Ancient Echoes of the Void mantra was demonstrated to its fullest within the confines of this stone cave.

This extraordinary spell, which nearly elevated the Forgeroses to the top tier in Euwrea, on par with the three upper sects, was nothing short of miraculous in the hands of this bald elder.

The elder's combat strength might not even be a tenth of what it was at his peak, yet he still managed to leave Yu Yuan without recourse.

Yu Yuan could only passively endure the hits, doing his best to adjust and withstand the relentless barrage of punches.

"In the Sword Prison, amidst the many evil magnates, this one is the first of his kind!"

Chen Qingyan observed him intently, taking in the experience with a sense of awe.

Hand in hand, she and Yu Yuan traversed the caves, encountering many ancient cultivators whose vitality, spiritual energy, and Soul Power were nearly depleted, barely clinging to life.

Yet this elder from the Forgeroses was able to keep throwing punches, relentlessly hammering away at Yu Yuan!

What was even more surprising was that the bald elder truly had no intention of killing Yu Yuan.

Indeed, as he had claimed, he was aiding Yu Yuan in fortifying his body so that he could smoothly transition from Veil Breaking to Subtlety.

"Why would he help Yu Yuan?"

No sooner had this thought surfaced in her mind than the bald elder paused his assault.

The flurry of punches vanished into thin air.

Yu Yuan lay curled up on the ground, his body quivering.

Flecks of light, along with impurities from his corporeal body, splattered from within him.

As Yu Yuan spat blood, specks of differently colored substances could be seen amidst the crimson—seemingly the waste from his body.

Once towering and robust, Yu Yuan now appeared more refined and even an inch or two shorter after the pummeling.

"Why help him?"

The elder chuckled as if he had heard Chen Qingyan's inner query. With renewed vigor, he explained, "He entered with that sword sheath and carries the residual sword spirit of the Divine Sword, marking him as the hand-chosen disciple. The sword's will and sword light left behind require this young man to assimilate them if we are to have any hope of freeing ourselves."

"Don't be fooled by my appearance; I may seem to have some strength left, but I'm confined to this cave. If I try to leave, I'll have to contend with those sword lights, which would pierce through my corporeal body."

"Thanks to my practice of the 'Ancient Echoes of the Void,' I have some unique abilities. Inside this cave, I can slow down time, allowing me to conserve a bit of my strength. Still, I'm unable to escape, trapped here indefinitely, with no hope of seeing the light of day."

"I long to be free, to see those sword lights and the sword's will vanish or be withdrawn by him. Yet, without a refined spiritual sense, I can't fully grasp the essence of the sword's will, making it impossible for him to shatter the confines of the Sword Prison."

The bald elder paused his actions, leaned forward, and gave Yu Yuan a warm, smiling glance.

Yu Yuan, spitting blood, pushed himself to sit up straighter and met the old man's gaze. "Senior, were you the first to discover the Forgotten Ruins and surmise that it concealed a Mysterious Realm?"

The elder's eyes twinkled as he gazed at the sword sheath, his smile radiant. "Indeed, it was me."

"Shen Feiqing and the Silvermoon Queen, within the Forgotten Ruins, are attempting to awaken the Shura from the Dark Realm." Clutching the sword sheath, Yu Yuan sensed subtle shifts within his corporeal body. "What exactly do they hope to achieve by joining forces?"

"Haha, once I escape the Sword Prison, I'll fill you in," the bald elder said, his expression turning to one of astonishment as he fixed his gaze on Yu Yuan. "Young man, your rate of recovery is astoundingly quick! Even demons at the Lunar Spirit or Spirit Walk stages, who focus on body refinement, can't match such progress at your level!"

He looked at Yu Yuan as if he were a creature of legend. "No, this isn't the condition someone of your current realm should possess!"

A fleeting thread of vitality burst forth from the Profound Gate acupoint in his chest.

That thread of vitality reached Yu Yuan's personal realm in the blink of an eye.

And there, he beheld the Blood Altar, crafted from Sunsorrow.

"My heavens! What have I just witnessed?"

...