C609 Fiancée's Pleasure!

Emerald flames unfurled gently like the petals of a flower, revealing Lin Zhuyun who had been concealed within the "flower bud."

She had not shown her true self for ages, resembling a solitary green bamboo in a tranquil mountain brook—proud, stubborn, and standing apart from the world.

She had grown taller, hovering amidst the surging emerald flames, radiating an indifference that seemed to penetrate the essence of life, affection, mentorship, and all worldly emotions.

Much like the Frozen Flames encircling her, she emanated a frigid, unfeeling chill.

Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

Bursts of golden fire collided with the jade-green Frozen Flames drifting away from her feet, igniting a blinding display of sparks and unleashing a terrifying force that made hearts quiver.

A cold moon hovered seven inches above her head, shining as brilliantly as a resplendent diadem.

The master of this reconstructed flesh donned a snow-white robe, his hollow eyes ablaze with golden flames that roared fiercely.

But these flames were different from the Frozen Flames; they exuded a potent vitality.

He was like an alien beast from the Everlands, an archdemon burning its heart to create a blood frenzy, generating a power so overwhelming it felt suffocating.

Lin Zhuyun gazed upon the crafted flesh and blood, knowing it was not her real body.

She was aware that her master's true body was still in the extraterrestrial realms.

The master must use his real body, along with the Lunar Spirit and Solar Spirit, to merge into one in the extraterrestrial, to have any chance of pulling the Sword Prison to the Godsblight Marsh, deceiving the heavens and vanishing into the mists from under the Sword Sect's and the new guardians' watchful eyes.

But to accomplish this feat, the master would surely have to pay a steep price.

The cost was that his power could not possibly reach its zenith in the near future!

Otherwise, he wouldn't be limited to just a snow-white robe fluttering in the wind.

This was not a deliberate mystique, but a reluctant necessity.

Deprived of the residual power of the Sword Prison, and under the boon of the Evil Statue, he had poured into the snow-white robe, allowing a soul fragment to concoct a body of flesh and blood. Consequently, the master's strength was significantly diminished.

Even when compared to his real body concealed within the extraterrestrial Star River, his current presence here paled in significance.

Otherwise, Lin Zhuyun would have long been subdued by him.

"Please don't stop me."

Lin Zhuyun, who hadn't spoken in a long while, felt her mouth twitch. Speaking felt awkward and unfamiliar to her.

She had gradually become accustomed to being perceived as a puppet controlled by the Star-Spawned Terror.

A puppet shouldn't possess its own thoughts, clear spiritual wisdom, or be given to talk.

Over time, she found it simpler and more satisfying to act rather than speak, to achieve her goals through the most brutal and bloodthirsty means.

After all, in the eyes of others, she was no longer herself, but merely a Sky Fiend.

She spoke up now because the master of this mere new shell, hardly worthy of being called a clone, was thwarting her escape.

She was reluctant to expend an unnecessary amount of her power on this body's master.

Since he had seen through her disguise and knew she was not possessed by the Sky Fiend, and knew her true identity, there was no longer any point in concealment.

"Little girl, I have no choice but to stop you."

President Lyi, clad in a white robe, looked at her apologetically with eyes ablaze with golden flames. "The shock from the Abyssal Leviathan compelled you to absorb Soul Power to strengthen your Sky Fiend, which indeed aided me in the Frozen Hellscape years ago."

"So what?" Lin Zhuyun responded indifferently. "Do you still hold onto past sentiments?"

"She is of use to me. I've made a promise," the body's owner replied with a gentle nod and a sincere tone. "As long as she is alive and retains her spiritual wisdom, I am bound to save her. Saving her is one aspect, but I also need you to be controllable, to be at our beck and call."

With that, he stepped aside.

Behind him, Yu Yuan, controlling the Crucible of Evil, swiftly approached, and in an instant, the Crucible and the snow-white robe were suspended side by side in the air.

"I must ask you both not to let this young lady from Winter's Bite disrupt the space and escape."

The master made this request from afar to the master and disciple still near the Evil Statue.

"President Lyi, you're too kind!"

The fat old man burst into hearty laughter, feeling honored rather than annoyed to be tasked with errands.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The master and his apprentice traversed the void, teleporting while secretly weaving their spells.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

Space contracted like a giant balloon slowly deflating inward.

Lin Zhuyun sensed she was at the center of a shrinking balloon.

Her available space was diminishing, and soon she would be enveloped by the constricting space, making movement a struggle.

Yet, she didn't rush to fight back or lash out in desperation. Suspended in midair, she fixed Yu Yuan with an eerily intense gaze.

A mocking, icy smile played at the corners of her mouth. "So, your day has come as well."

"What do you mean?" Yu Yuan inquired.

"I'm not speaking to you, but to the one attempting to possess you," Lin Zhuyun replied, a surge of exhilaration tempting her to shout in triumph.

Yu Yuan, weren't you formidable?

Could you not change the course of events in the Moonfall Sanctuary, the Forgotten Ruins, and Asvetaesi with your modest level of power?

Were you not the one who commanded the allegiance of the Ruby Hand, Colddeath, Taintborn, and even Kong Banbi of the Sword Sect?

Did you not watch me get captured without a care for my well-being?

Have you not dismissed me, your betrothed, as a disgrace, and insulted me alongside other women in countless ways?

Were you not the one who repeatedly escaped from the Sundering Isles and entered the Celestial Isle alive?

Yu Yuan, with all your strength, intelligence, and fortune, how did you end up in such dire straits? How were you overcome by the malevolent spirit of the Evil Statue?

How could I, with my wit and fortune, persuade the cosmic giant beast to aid me in altering everything, and yet you lost?

Yu Yuan, this is what you deserve!

These thoughts raced through Lin Zhuyun's mind, seemingly oblivious to the steadily contracting space and her dwindling chances of escape.

She felt nothing but elation!

Her elation stemmed from Yu Yuan's downfall, as his soul had been overtaken by the Evil Statue's spirit, smothering his sense of self!

What delighted her was that she, Lin Zhuyun, had escaped and managed to preserve her own identity and core values.

Yu Yuan, however, had been defeated!

She attributed all the misfortune in her life to Yu Yuan. Without his presence, without this man who was her fiancé in name only, she, once revered as the Empire's cold moon, would never have fallen so low.

She even believed that Yu Yuan had never been foolish at all!

In her eyes, Yu Yuan had feigned madness and stupidity just to spite her and the Lin family. He had convinced the entire Empire that Lin Zhuyun's betrothed was a talentless cultivator, a fool oblivious to the world!

Otherwise, why did he suddenly awaken when Yin Jue killed him, rising unstoppably into the heavens?

Was it not because he could no longer maintain his act in the face of death?

She was convinced that her tragic life, the downfall and ruin of her family, all originated from Yu Yuan's charade. He was the one who had destroyed her and her family!

And time after time, he had struck at her in various ways, disregarding her completely.

She was certain that Yu Yuan was the root of her becoming so hysterical and heartlessly fierce.

"I am him, and he is me. Speaking to you is no different than speaking to him."

Yu Yuan, within the Crucible of Evil, had eyes that held the profound mystery of the Maw of Oblivion in the Star River, brimming with infinite enigmas that seemed to ensnare the heart. "You've been possessed by the Sky Fiend before; you ought to understand that sometimes the two cannot be entirely separated."

"No, I am aware of that condition," Lin Zhuyun countered, shaking her head. "I've experienced that kind of despair and helplessness, being stripped of my memories and soul bit by bit by the Sky Fiend in utter darkness, my every belonging taken from me. I was aware it was an endless nightmare, yet I could not awaken."

"I've had a similar experience. I'm glad that he is now just like me, if not even more miserable."

"Good, that's good too. Even without obtaining the Sword Prison, I am content with this outcome."

She had ventured here for the Sword Prison, crafted from the Moon Soul. Her intent was to harness the cold moon she wielded, to refine the Moon Soul and assimilate it into her being, thereby swiftly enhancing her strength to expedite her departure from the Everlands.

She was acutely aware that once the upper sects—the Devil Palace and Shadow's Keep—could divert their attention from external affairs, they would certainly consolidate their power internally. When that time came, it wouldn't just be her at a disadvantage; even the Abyssal Leviathan, the source of all she had, would face tremendous challenges.

"I don't care who you are. If I had the audacity to come here, then no one can stop me from leaving when I choose to," she declared, her gaze shifting from Yu Yuan's face back to the room's master. "My warning to not hinder me was meant for you, as well as for everyone else here," she said, addressing the room at large.

Turning her attention to Yan Qiling, who approached at a leisurely pace, she added with a note of finality, "You'd do well to heed my words."

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