C760 Collapse

Whoosh!

In a flash, Yu Yuan reappeared inside the cauldron. He immediately noticed the Empire's female general practicing the Shadow Curse in dire straits.

Lee Yuchan's spirited body, her Lunar Spirit, was shaking uncontrollably.

With each tremor, a wave of emotions—cruelty, bloodlust, despair, and resentment—permeated deep into her Lunar Spirit's mind like a virus.

Upon closer inspection, Yu Yuan observed clusters of black, dark purple, and grayish-brown Soul Power swirling around the brain area of Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit.

It resembled the dark side of a person's soul.

These evil thoughts, a byproduct of the Shadow Curse's quick-fix approach, were gradually seeping into the core of her Lunar Spirit.

"She's become too reliant on us."

Yu Yiyi's voice echoed in Yu Yuan's mind. "She's aware that we can handle the Shadow Curse's backlash, which is why she's been recklessly absorbing any suitable souls. She should've sought your help sooner, but for some reason, she's had a change of heart."

Yu Yiyi was still within the cauldron, yet she was keenly aware of every subtle change in the outside world.

"Master, the evil thoughts filling her mind and the impurities of the souls she's consumed must be addressed promptly, or she'll become mentally unstable," Yu Yiyi warned. "The Stormcrowned Emperor often fell into madness at the end of his life. She's likely facing the same fate."

Standing at the heart of the cauldron, Yu Yuan gazed at Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit and softly inquired, "General Lee?"

"Leave me alone!"

Lee Yuchan's phantom quivered violently, her body shaking with uncontrolled emotion. Her eyes were wide with a fierce, cold ferocity. "Don't act all high and mighty, offering me your pity! Remember, at the entrance to Moonfall Sanctuary, you were nothing!"

Yu Yuan was taken aback. "General Lee, you're under the control of the backlash. You need to retreat into the little world within the cauldron."

"Do you think I'd prefer to be dead?" Lee Yuchan's voice was charged with emotion. "Your so-called help in cleansing my evil thoughts on Celestial Isle and within Shadow Mountain—was it out of pity? I don't need your pity! If it weren't for you, the Lee family wouldn't be in this predicament!"

"I once thought you were so honorable, believing you acted for the greater good of the Everlands!"

"And aren't you just like my sister? How are you any better? Yu Yuan, by what right do you look at me with such disdain?" A flash of bitter resentment glimmered deep within her furrowed brows.

"The Lee family owes you nothing! Lee Yu has held you in high regard from the very start at Moonfall Sanctuary! When you were delayed in leaving the Moonfall Sanctuary, it was Lee Yu, and I, who secretly protected the Yu family! Without me, without Lee Yu, the Lin family would have devoured your Yu family long ago!"

"If anyone is owed, it's you who owes me, Yu Yuan!"

"Don't assume that just because you've grown stronger and more powerful, you can adopt such an attitude!"

"…"

The once celebrated female general of the empire, renowned alongside Yuan Lianyao as one of the Silvermoon Empire's two most beautiful flowers, now unleashed her innermost feelings of resentment, rage, and spite, directing a tirade of accusations at Yu Yuan.

Yu Yuan stood there, utterly perplexed by the outburst.

"Master, let this thankless woman meet her own demise," Yu Yiyi's voice resonated with a chilling indifference. "You've saved her time and again, Master. It's one thing for her not to recognize your kindness, but to reproach and criticize you is beyond the pale."

"Master, she's a prime candidate to become a Bane. With your approval, I'll take her down."

Yu Yiyi, upon first forming her spirited body, recognized that Lee Yuchan, who practiced the Shadow Curse, was filled with extreme fanaticism. With just a bit of refinement, she could be transformed into a powerful Bane.

Moreover, her rank wouldn't be insignificant.

Recently, when Lee Yuchan was about to depart, Yu Yiyi had sensed her potential as a Bane and had considered steering her in that direction.

Sensing the looming threat, Lee Yuchan had instinctively kept her distance.

"Look at you, young master, still unable to change your ways, always flirting and causing trouble," teased Ann Ziqing, adorned in her purple divine armor, with the white fox still trailing behind her. She glided over with a beaming smile and halted a dozen meters away. Her captivating eyes briefly scanned Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit. "It's been a while, young master, and I see you've added yet another lady to your company."

Yu Yuan, already in a foul mood, furrowed his brow and asked, "What brings you here again?"

After his last unpleasant parting with Ann Ziqing, he thought it highly unlikely they'd cross paths again in the Land of Terror.

Yet, not much time had passed before the priestess of the Colddeath Cult reappeared, behaving as if their previous encounter had never happened. This struck Yu Yuan as odd.

"What is she scheming now?" he wondered.

The thought naturally surfaced in Yu Yuan's mind. Their past encounters had left him with too many doubts about Ann Ziqing, and he remained on high alert, wary of falling into another one of her traps.

"Just passing through," Ann Ziqing replied with an unruffled demeanor. Her stunning face betrayed no sign of disturbance, and even in her spirited body, her eyes remained captivating. She slightly pursed her lips and offered a faint smile. "I only came to say hello after spotting the Crucible of Evil from a distance."

"Fine, hello it is. Let's leave it at that," Yu Yuan dismissed her with a wave of his hand, signaling her to leave.

A shadow passed over Ann Ziqing's eyes as she looked down, her voice tinged with a hint of tears, "Do you really dislike me that much, Young Master?"

"It's not dislike; I just don't want any trouble," Yu Yuan replied, uninterested in elaborating. "I'm busy with other matters. Go about your business and stop hovering around me."

"I enjoy hovering around you," Ann Ziqing retorted with a cold huff.

"Suit yourself," Yu Yuan responded, his face a mask of indifference.

"She's different from that one from the Ruby Hand. That one realized his feelings for you quite some time ago," Ann Ziqing shifted the subject, gesturing towards Lee Yuchan's Lunar Spirit. "She's a bit slow, still unaware of her own heart. Despite being older than me, she's so clueless."

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Yu Yuan snapped.

"Whether it's nonsense or not, you'll know once you test it," Ann Ziqing said with a sly grin. "Young Master, you needn't thank me. As your maidservant, it's only natural that I look out for your best interests."

Her words hung in the air as a flash of blood-red light gleamed in her eyes.

A peculiar mark emerged from the depths of her blood-red pupils, suddenly coming into view.

With the appearance of the mark, a blood-red aura enveloped the area for miles, casting a mysterious energy that could twist souls and alter wills over Yu Yuan and Lee Yuchan.

In the imperial female general's brain, a cluster of dark red, symbolizing deep, sinister desires, flared to life and amplified boundlessly.

Yu Yuan abruptly noticed that Yuchan's Lunar Spirit and spirited body were shrouded in a dark red, enchanting glow.

Before he could comprehend what was happening, the general, notorious for her icy demeanor and ruthless tactics, seemed to transform into someone else, driven by overwhelming desires in her mind, and launched an attack at his forehead.

"Master, watch out!" Yu Yiyi cried out in alarm.

The blood-red mark on Ann Ziqing's forehead appeared to detect Yu Yiyi's presence in a flash, showing a hint of surprise. "In such a short time, the cauldron spirit has taken on a form and consciousness of its own!"

She gestured towards the Crucible of Evil, and a blood-red halo, akin to a membrane, clung to the cauldron's surface.

Hiss, hiss!

The dark, demonic light interwove with the blood-red aura, thwarting Yu Yiyi's ability to exert her power.

Furthermore, Ann Ziqing summoned the Glacial Storm Seal, icy and filled with lightning that scattered like stars across the Star River.

"Little one, don't mess with my plans," Ann Ziqing said with a light laugh. "You've just come into being. If you don't want to revert, then behave."

Inside the Glacial Storm Seal, innumerable ice crystals harbored wild thunder, the perfect nemesis to the Bane.

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