C753

The Imperial Envoy emerged from Shadow Mountain to find Luo Yue squinting her eyes with a smile.

"Junior Brother, did you manage to help her dispel the backlash so swiftly?"

Luo Yue ascended leisurely, her form as ethereal as a soul, until she was level with the Crucible of Evil. Her eyes sparkled with a divine light that, upon closer inspection, revealed a seven-colored radiance, both dazzling and bright. "She was brought here by someone named Zhou You."

"The same goes for me," Yu Yuan replied with a grin.

"Zhou You! Are you also Zhou You?"

Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit slipped out of the cave, shooting Yu Yuan a fierce glare before respectfully bowing to Luo Yue. "Thank you."

Confusion filled her as she alternated her gaze between Luo Yue and Yu Yuan, uncertain of their connection.

"Yes, the fat old man skilled in space magic, whom I freed from Sword Prison in Godsblight Marsh," Yu Yuan explained.

"So, the rumors are indeed true," Lee Yuchan said with an odd look.

"What rumors?" Yu Yuan inquired with curiosity.

"The Everlands consider you a traitor, accusing you of conspiring with the Otherkin and the Star-Spawned Terror," Lee Yuchan said, fixing her eyes on him.

Yu Yuan shrugged. "I'm not concerned about it anymore. I've embraced their label for me."

"What brings you out?" Luo Yue asked with a sudden smile.

"The Crucible of Evil has cleansed the backlash, allowing me to continue feasting on the souls and ghosts, furthering my practice of the Shadow Curse," Lee Yuchan stated frankly. "Lord Rahu, I appreciate your care these past days, but I must venture into other ghosts' domains to advance my realm."

Luo Yue's jurisdiction lacked formidable ghosts, and she had not sought any followers.

Both Yu Yuan and Lee Yuchan depended on a multitude of ghosts to enhance their power rapidly.

The Crucible of Evil, too, yearned for the ghosts.

"Master, the Shadow Curse she practices complements my abilities well. In the Land of Terror, if you two join forces, it will be advantageous for both parties," the cauldron spirit interjected, seizing the opportunity to convince Yu Yuan. "You're aware that we've recently suffered great losses, with many Bane destroyed by your senior sister, so..."

Yu Yuan felt a stir of excitement at the cauldron spirit's suggestion. After a moment of contemplation, he cleared his throat and proposed, "General Lee, let's put aside any past grievances from the outside world. Your Shadow Curse and my Crucible of Evil can work in tandem to capture ghosts, benefiting us both. If you're open to it, how about we team up?"

Lee Yuchan's phantom quivered slightly. She had been saved from the Sword Sect and was about to enter the Land of Terror when Zhou You informed her of the kindness Yu Yuan had received from Zu Ann and Chen Liangquan in the Songbird Empire. Zhou You had explained that Zu Ann of Skyreach Peak and Chen Liangquan of the Chen family were allies of her sister, Lee Yupan. It seemed inevitable that Yu Yuan would eventually join their ranks.

Later, after encountering a Lunar Spirit in the Land of Terror and making inquiries, she learned more about Yu Yuan's circumstances. She discovered that Yu Yuan was now regarded as a traitor by the entire sect community in the Everlands, even more so than she or her sister had ever been.

The information she gathered later softened her stance towards Yu Yuan. She came to understand that his actions in the Forgotten Ruins, which had disrupted her sister's plans, were unintentional. Now, she, her sister Lee Yupan, and Yu Yuan were all in the same boat.

"I..." Lee Yuchan hesitated.

"He's right. If you two join forces, the rewards in the Land of Terror could be substantial," Luo Yue encouraged, eager to support Yu Yuan. "With the Crucible of Evil in his possession, you won't have to fear the Shadow Curse's backlash. I'm confident you can achieve Spirit Walk more swiftly in the Land of Terror!"

Lee Yuchan's eyes sparkled, clearly persuaded by the argument.

"I'm already seen as a traitor by all the sects in the Everlands. If that concerns you, then we can drop the idea," Yu Yuan offered, trying another angle to convince her.

"There's nothing to worry about. My situation isn't exactly rosy either!" Lee Yuchan retorted with a cold huff.

"Haha! In that case, please join me at the cauldron, General Lee!"

"Let's do it!"

...

Several days later, within the domain of Wangchuan, the fifth-ranked specter in the Land of Terror.

The Crucible of Evil was suspended midair as the Second Bane and the Frost Queen made their grand entrance. A formation of Ghosts encircled over a hundred ghost spirits.

Among these ghost spirits were several ghosts and a Celestial Shade that took the form of a white bear.

Yu Yuan stood within the cauldron, hands clasped behind his back, his expression icy.

He remained motionless, observing the Second Bane and Frost Queen as they joined forces to besiege the wildly roaring Celestial Shade.

The Celestial Shade, having evolved from a demon soul, engaged in a frenzied close-quarters battle with the Frost Queen, beating its chest and stamping its feet in fury.

Nearby, the ghosts rallied to his side, coordinating their efforts to entangle the Second Bane.

Transforming into a streak of crimson light, the Second Bane darted among the ghosts, occasionally claiming a victim.

In the Land of Terror, the Second Bane and Frost Queen's combat prowess was on par with that of the Celestial Shade.

Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit suddenly morphed into a vast, engulfing vortex that devoured all life within its grasp.

Dozens of lower-tier ghost spirits trapped inside the vortex struggled in vain against their inevitable demise, crushed into fragmented souls.

"Shadow Curse."

Yu Yuan, observing from above, marveled at the intricacy of the Spirit Magic. He compared it to his own understanding of Wraithbinding and discovered that the Shadow Curse, crafted by the Stormcrowned Emperor, shared many similarities with the Boulderdawn's Wraithbinding.

Although Lee Yuchan was merely at the Lunar Spirit level, equivalent to an Earth Specter in terms of soul hierarchy, her use of the Shadow Curse was formidable. The Earth Specters drawn into her soul vortex stood no chance against her, their consciousnesses blurring and spinning in disarray until she refined them effortlessly.

Even the ghosts, ostensibly stronger than her, found themselves powerless within the soul vortex conjured by the Shadow Curse.

Once unleashed, the Shadow Curse functioned like a massive soul-grinding millstone, slowly revolving to obliterate all souls and ghosts.

The souls, once processed, were consumed by Lee Yuchan, who feasted on their essence of Soul Power.

Yet, throughout this process, the ghosts' resentment, violent cravings, and thoughts of despair and fear could not be purged by the Shadow Curse, instead integrating into Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit.

Yu Yuan could see that after a cycle of the Shadow Curse, Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit appeared somewhat swollen.

Using his Third Eye, he could see more clearly that after absorbing the ghost with the Shadow Curse, her Lunar Spirit had developed tiny fissures.

This indicated that Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit had been slightly damaged by the hasty absorption.

Whoosh!

After expanding and then returning to the Crucible of Evil, Lee Yuchan immediately slipped into the miniature cosmos within the cauldron.

Yu Yuan shrank his form a thousandfold and entered the space inside the cauldron, where he observed Lee Yuchan shrouded in a mysterious Soul Nexus released by the cauldron spirit.

Threads of soul smoke in shades of gray, purple, and dark brown spiraled out from Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit.

The smoke was voraciously devoured by the Bane.

The Banes, nourished by the malevolent thoughts extracted from Lee Yuchan, grew increasingly powerful, as if they had feasted to their hearts' content and contentedly ascended their respective hierarchical ladders.

"The domain of Wangchuan, the Nether Ghost, has already seen three thousand ghost spirits consumed!"

The cauldron spirit's voice buzzed with excitement in Yu Yuan's mind, "Wangchuan knows you're hunting ghosts in his territory alongside her, yet he dares not confront you. The Wangchuan Nether Ghost must have heard something that makes him fear your power, as well as that of White Bone and Rahu."

"Wangchuan ranks fifth among the Spectres, and his strength is considerable," Yu Yuan said with a smile. "His reluctance to face us surely stems from fear. As for whom he fears, that remains unknown."

"There's someone else!" the cauldron spirit suddenly cried out. "A Lunar Spirit is approaching rapidly!"

"A Lunar Spirit? An outsider?"

Yu Yuan hesitated briefly before shifting back to the external space.

​