C796 Give It to Me!
The Ice Stone Tombstone, crafted from millennia-old Ice Soul Crystals, was riddled with countless holes. Pure, unblemished flames seeped through finger-sized openings, burning with a ferocity that seemed to carry the power to destroy the heavens and earth. These flames, hauntingly beautiful yet devastatingly potent, felt like the breath of the Death God upon the souls of any spirit that drew near—be they human Yin Gods or ghostly cultivators.
The once palpable aura of the Cold Abyss Ghost King's frigid soul had vanished from the perception of both the mighty and the spectral, as if it had never existed. Had a Ghost King truly been obliterated, reduced to mere ash and dust?
Countless eyes and spiritual thoughts converged upon the skeletal remains. The majestic silver-white Dark Mountain, bathed in shimmering divine light, began to contract incrementally. Still spinning in the void, each rotation neutralized the icy power of the Cold Abyss Ghost King's chilling tempest.
With a tearing sound, millions of radiant white divine lights, like chains forged by deities, wove around the Dark Mountain, slowly constricting and melting it down. In the blink of an eye, the Dark Mountain—once besieged by hosts of specters and containing the essence of the Yin Sunflower—transformed into a sharp, gleaming silver awl.
The skeletal figure raised a hand, gripping the awl with bony fingers. Instantly, an infinite brilliance burst forth from his skeletal grasp and the silver awl, a light so intense that neither mortal nor ghost could bear to gaze upon it directly.
Any highly cultivated Yin God or ghost could detect an unusual, piercing chill emanating from the awl, a chill transformed from the silver-white Dark Mountain. With a whoosh, clusters of bone-white flames burst forth from the Ice Stone Tombstone's holes, each flame burning more fiercely than before. Upon closer examination, entities like Black Staff, Qianjie, and the Ghost King Luohou could discern the essence of the Cold Abyss Ghost King's soul within those flames.
It appeared that the Cold Abyss Ghost King had indeed met his end at the hands of the skeletal figure. Moreover, his soul had been refined by the Ghost King within the Ice Stone Tombstone, its essence seized to fortify the skeletal figure's own form.
Luohou sensed that the transformation of the silver-white Dark Mountain into the gleaming silver awl was a direct consequence of the Cold Abyss's demise.
"Cold Abyss has fallen, giving rise to the White Bone King, who then forged the Dark Mountain into a formidable weapon!"
Luohou's soul shadow flickered across the clouds like a burst of iridescent light.
Clutching her flower basket, she gazed down upon the newly risen Ghost King, inhaling deeply to steady her trembling soul and tumultuous emotions.
Even she couldn't help but be inwardly moved by the sheer power of the White Bone King, her heart filled with a profound reverence.
"Fortunately, I made the right choice, without any hesitation..." she whispered to herself.
"Cold Abyss is dead?"
In the grand palace floating midair, the cultivators from the Heavenly Source Continent were struck dumb.
"Weren't the Ghost Kings of Horror Land supposed to be evenly matched in battle? Wasn't it said that Cold Abyss and Black Staff had fought for years without a clear victor?"
"How could the Cold Abyss have been slain by the White Bone King in such a short time?"
"If Cold Abyss and Black Staff were of equal strength, and now Cold Abyss has perished, what chance does Black Staff stand against the White Bone King?"
They weren't the only ones in disbelief.
The legions of ghosts and spirits that had converged from across the territories of Horror Land were equally stunned by the spectacle before them.
The Cold Abyss was dead!
A Ghost King, whose reign of terror had lasted centuries in Horror Land, had been vanquished by the White Bone King, a newcomer who had just emerged and ascended to power!
Had they not witnessed it with their own eyes, they would never have believed it, even if their most loyal followers had reported it.
Both were Ghost Kings; how could Cold Abyss fall so easily, so swiftly?
This was the Ghost King!
What was most astonishing was that after defeating Cold Abyss, the White Bone King's aura didn't diminish; instead, it surged dramatically! He even transformed the intimately connected Dark Mountain into a chillingly sharp blade.
Swirls of bone-white flames were absorbed into the White Bone King's form, with the Ice Stone Tombstone standing erect behind him.
The Ice Stone Tombstone, composed of the ten-thousand-year-old Ice Soul Crystal, was a coveted treasure among all practitioners of the coldest arts, despite being shattered.
Yet, in that moment, no one dared to lay claim to the Ice Soul Crystal.
Atop the majestic palace, several members of the Cold Yin Sect gazed at the tombstone, now devoid of the Cold Abyss Ghost King, with covetous eyes. They seemed ready to leap at it and gnaw off a piece of the ice crystal.
"White Bone, may I have that Ice Stone Tombstone?" came a weary voice from the gaping hole.
"Yu Yuan!" Ann Ziqing, Mo Yan, and Cao Jiaze instantly turned their attention to the opening that led underground.
"Yu Yuan?" The name buzzed among the gathered outsiders, who quickly pieced together the identity of the speaker—the human who had recently triggered a thunderous uproar and left all the Ghost Kings in awe.
Could he actually be speaking?
This thought took root in everyone's minds, intensifying their shock. To speak now, after being restrained by the Great Dao and bombarded by lightning—what could it mean?
It signified that he had survived the lightning tribulation!
With a whoosh, the Evil Cauldron reappeared, affirming the crowd's suspicions.
This time, within the cauldron's dark energy light shield, an exhausted and nearly spent Yu Yuan was openly displayed. Clad in a fresh black robe, he was using a black cloth to dab at the sweat on his neck and arms.
The cloth, a remnant of his former garment, was now soaking up the residue of his breakthrough—a viscous, impure sweat akin to the waste within blood and flesh. The skin he had wiped clean shone with a purity and fairness that outshone even the most exquisite of beauties.
His features, now somewhat gaunt, softened his appearance, shedding the roughness for a refined, more striking elegance.
"Take it," White Bone said, turning to press a hand, pale as white jade, against the Ice Stone Tombstone. With a gentle lift, the tombstone soared, whistling through the air towards the Evil Cauldron.
"Ice Soul Crystal!" The exclamation erupted from the high palace, from both Cold Yin Sect practitioners and others who practiced the cold Spiritual Spells. They cried out, unable to contain their astonishment.
White Bone looked up at the palace, and just like that, the clamor ceased abruptly.
At that moment, the Ice Stone Tombstone passed through the magical light shield and settled into the Evil Cauldron, where Yu Yuan swiftly secured it within the Mustard Seed Bracelet.
"Young Master, I..." Ann Ziqing, clutching the tiny Ice Thunder Mark, wore a smile tinged with bitterness and helplessness.
She brandished the Ice Thunder Mark, hastily clarifying, "Those thunderbolts weren't my doing. I never intended to kick you while you were down."
Yu Yuan, freshly in possession of a substantial Ice Soul Crystal, was in high spirits. He offered her a reassuring nod, simply stating, "I know it wasn't intentional."
A smile of relief spread across Ann Ziqing's face as her furrowed brows smoothed out. "I was sure you wouldn't hold it against me," she said, her confidence restored.
Having covertly communicated with the Initial Spirit Ghost King, she was slowly piecing together her plan.
The formidable presence of the white bone reminded her that now was the time for composure, not haste.
"Take a moment to rest; I'm off to dispatch the Black Staff," White Bone said to Yu Yuan, as if discussing the weather, before gripping his gleaming awl and soaring into the sky once more, heading straight for the vast black cloud.
Within the cloud, the Black Staff Ghost King remained silent, manipulating the dark mass to close in on Qianjie.
Dozens of miles away, the nondescript Dark Mountain where Qianjie lay hidden crumbled, sending countless stones tumbling across the land. The voice of the Kalpa Ghost King echoed from each rock, "White Bone, Cold Abyss is the weakest among us, as you well know."
"I'm aware," White Bone replied, his ascent to the heavens marked by an impassive demeanor and a cold distance. To him, Cold Abyss, Black Staff, Qianjie—it made no difference.
"Mo Yan," Yu Yuan called out with a sly grin, turning his attention to the Kyara Demon Blade hovering midair. "Down below, you seemed quite intrigued by my Evil Cauldron and the devils emerging from it."
Retreating into the Devil Blade, Mo Yan huffed, "The Evil Cauldron is rightfully mine!"
In a surprising turn, the Roam Ship from the Babel Chamber of Commerce made its leisurely approach just then.
The Roam Ship glided through the throng of ghostly entities.
"Representatives from the Babel Chamber of Commerce have arrived!"
In the lofty palace above, numerous cultivators from the Heavenly Source Continent furrowed their brows, their faces etched with discontent.
Yu Yuan paused, taken aback, then turned to look more closely.
To his surprise, aboard the Roam Ship he recognized, in addition to the Yellow Old Devil, Ma Jianjiang, and Jin Xiaolie whom he had met before, there was another familiar figure—a woman.
The Yin God herself had arrived!
"Sword Sect's very own, Chen Qingyan!"
