C674 The Thief Shouted the Thief

The blanket woven from Glacial Storm Silk was pulled back, revealing Ann Ziqing, who was weak and frail. Her face was ashen, and her normally bright eyes were now dull and lifeless. At the center of her forehead, a drop of scarlet blood revealed her Lunar Spirit trembling and shrinking back in terror, clearly petrified by the Soulsear Bolt that had infiltrated her bloodstream.

Remarkably, the fine wounds that had marred her exposed skin were now mostly healed. The shattered fragments of her purple divine armor, once scattered, seemed to have been reassembled by the thick blood coating her body, and were continuing to solidify. The broken amethyst pieces, like scales, once again adorned her form.

Upon opening her eyes and catching sight of Yu Yuan, she couldn't contain her joy, exclaiming, "Young Master, I knew you would come for me. You wouldn't stand by and let that villain Qi Yunhong take my life."

Standing aloft above Dedsend Lake, Qi Yunhong's icy demeanor took on a hint of astonishment. "The current Goddess of the Divine Cult is truly remarkable, awakening so swiftly," he scoffed, closing in. "Xie Bin, and you, boy, leave the girl and you're free to go."

Whoosh! The air was pierced by the sound of four figures emerging one after another from Dedsend Lake, causing Xie Bin's face to register alarm.

Yu Yuan looked up to see the once tranquil Dedsend Lake now blanketed by a multitude of crimson lightning bolts as the figures made their appearance. The Soulsear Bolt had, in moments, engulfed the entire lake.

"There are four more..." Xie Bin began, but his words trailed off as he quickly corrected himself, "No, these aren't human cultivators. Their aura is suffused with the mantra of thunder magic; they're Otherkin from the extraterrestrial realms!"

The four figures hovered over Dedsend Lake, their silhouettes blurred. Beneath them, torrents of red lightning surged forth.

"Mr. Xie, you're outmatched," Qi Yunhong declared.

As the four enigmatic Otherkin surfaced from the depths of Dedsend Lake, Xie Bin realized that even with the Glacial Storm Seal in his possession, he was no match for Qi Yunhong, let alone the newly arrived quartet.

"Young Master, you must save me."

Ann Ziqing clutched at Yu Yuan's pant leg with a look of desperation, gazing up at him. "I've served as your maid for so many years. You wouldn't just stand by and watch me die, would you?"

"Qi Yunhong! What exactly do you want?"

She whirled around, her eyes turning a fierce shade of red as she shouted in fury.

Qi Yunhong, pursued by the Thunder Sect as a traitor and a name even Xie Bin had heard of, was momentarily taken aback by her outburst.

After a brief silence, Qi Yunhong spoke, "It was you who provoked me first. You killed my men outside the city and took the treasures I had released. Had you not appeared out of nowhere and attacked me unprovoked, why would I have any reason to trouble you?"

Xie Bin was taken aback by this revelation. "She was the one who attacked first?"

"Yes," Qi Yunhong confirmed with a nod. "I was just outside Afnetalos, intending to take the young men of the Qi family away to practice the Soulsear Bolt. As I was bestowing the items upon them, this Colddeath girl burst forth, killing my Qi family boys while I was casting the spell."

"My retaliation was purely self-defense; she brought it upon herself by seeking trouble."

Yu Yuan was taken aback.

He, like Xie Bin, had assumed that Ann Ziqing was ambushed by Qi Yunhong en route to Afnetalos, with Qi Yunhong using the Soulsear Bolt to infiltrate her bloodstream in an attempt to destroy her soul. It was entirely unexpected that Ann Ziqing had initiated the confrontation, killing and robbing, only to end up gravely wounded.

"Qi Yunhong practices the Soulsear Bolt; he's an enemy of the Thunder Sect and the Everlands!" Ann Ziqing declared to Yu Yuan with conviction. "Monsters like him deserve to be vanquished by all! What's wrong with seizing the chance to strike at him when I encountered him?"

Xie Bin shook his head, his expression unreadable, withholding judgment.

Yu Yuan uttered an "uh," recalling how this same girl had once schemed against him on Acora Island. It was only by virtue of his strong will that he had managed to make a hasty retreat.

Whether it was within the Yu family in Asvetaesi or later in the Embers Sea, she appeared to be supportive on the surface, but her intentions were always suspect.

With his head bowed, he gazed at the purple-clad girl clutching his pant leg, her demeanor the very picture of distress.

Her face was etched with sorrow, and her eyes mirrored that desolation.

Yet, for some reason, Yu Yuan sensed a chilling indifference lurking beneath Ann Ziqing's seemingly pitiful gaze.

It was as though she was scrutinizing him with an indifferent eye, tinged with a hint of mockery.

Yu Yuan trusted his intuition and perception, for the sharpness and acuity of his heaven soul were the fruits of his dedication to the Soul Forging through Enlightenment technique.

"Mr. Xie, we should be on our way."

Yu Yuan opened his hands, showing an expression of regret, sighed deeply, and shook his head. "My abilities are limited; I can't help you. I don't want to risk my own life needlessly, so I must bow out gracefully."

With these words, he forcefully withdrew his foot from Ann Ziqing's grasp.

He quickly stepped back and gave Qi Yunhong a respectful bow. "I leave her in your care."

Xie Bin looked on in astonishment.

"Let's get going. If we know we can't extricate ourselves from this situation, why throw our lives away for nothing?" Yu Yuan said with a pained expression to Ann Ziqing, who was now slowly rising from the ground. "I haven't forgotten your kindness towards me. When I am strong enough in the future, I will seek vengeance for you if possible."

"Young man, what is your name?" Qi Yunhong inquired abruptly.

"My name is Chen Xi, from Asvetaesi," Yu Yuan declared.

"My lord, your heart is truly cold."

Ann Ziqing rose slowly from where she sat, moved aside, and stepped out from the blanket made of Glacial Storm Silk. "After all I've done for you, you would leave me to die."

"It's not that I won't save you; I simply can't!" Yu Yuan protested.

Meanwhile, he had released the Crucible of Evil. In a swift motion, he disappeared into the massive cauldron. "Elder Qi, I must depart now. No need for farewells."

"Asvetaesi! Yu Yuan!"

Upon the emergence of the Crucible of Evil, Qi Yunhong paused to think and quickly deduced Yu Yuan's identity. "Youngster, I have questions for you. There's no need to rush off!"

"No, no! If fate wills it, we shall meet again!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Yu Yuan directed the Crucible of Evil with his mind, promptly retracing his path. The sword sheath, called forth from the Bracelet of Holding, pointed towards the dark blue canopy ahead of the Crucible of Evil. "Senior Qi, it would be wise to stow your Illusion Orb. Should it shatter, the sight would be less than pleasant. You're aware, after all, that Qu Jing, who also held a Shifting Shadows' rare treasure, had his Spectral Umbrella punctured by me!"

"Wait! Just wait!" Qi Yunhong exclaimed in shock.

Suddenly, without warning, a change occurred. A streak of blood-red light materialized out of thin air above Dedsend Lake, piercing through each of the four mysterious Otherkin one by one. These four Otherkin, whose true appearances Yu Yuan had not even glimpsed, turned into bloodless husks after the light swept through them, tumbling into the waters of Dedsend Lake. Their bodies sank to the bottom, passing through the lake's surface, which was covered in crimson lightning.

Qi Yunhong's face twisted in anger as he turned to Ann Ziqing, "Girl, are you trying to play me?"

With a hiss, the Soulsear Bolt remnants within the droplet of blood on Ann Ziqing's forehead were crushed into fragments by the ferocious vitality within. In a flash, the droplet was devoid of any trace of scarlet lightning.

With a deep breath, Ann Ziqing's Lunar Spirit settled back into place, and she flicked the blood into her mouth with her tongue, swallowing it. Her expression remained one of woeful innocence as she disregarded Qi Yunhong's glare, her eyes lingering on Yu Yuan with a look of sorrowful reproach. "Young Master, I've offered you nothing but genuine kindness. Why do you not reciprocate my care?"

With a loud crash, the Crucible of Evil collided with another barrier of blood-red light, halting abruptly in the void.

Yu Yuan, feeling cornered, turned around. "Since we've known each other, I've never seen you at a disadvantage. Your schemes and ruthless tactics are all too familiar to me. It's far too convenient that you've awoken just now, and not by Senior Qi's doing."

"This suggests that you could wake up whenever you wished."

"You feigned grave injury to seek me out at the Obsidian Thunder Sect's training hall, staging this whole farce. What is it you're after? Are you trying to see whether I would come to your rescue, or is this yet another one of your traps?"

Yu Yuan took a momentary pause, gazing out at Dedsend Lake where a motionless streak of blood-red light lingered. He spoke, "The Honorable Ann Ziqing, we meet again."

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