C877 Ice Concubine Was like a God

Qi Yunhong's eyes twisted unnaturally, as if another consciousness was forcibly seizing control.

"What do we do?" Qin Yun, garbed as an old scholar, asked, his voice quivering with a hint of nervousness.

Qi Yunhong was in a league of his own, a bona fide Yang God, whose weakest was still far superior to Yang Chuhe at the Soul Wandering Middle Period. Moreover, as a devout practitioner of the Thunder Sect, Qi Yunhong's mastery of both Spiritual Spells and sacred treasures was unmatched.

"He's no longer able to keep a clear mind," Yu Yuan remarked, steadying his emotions while covertly syncing with the cauldron soul. He channeled a thread of Spiritual Energy into his sword sheath, awakening the sword's essence, and added, "Besides, he and I share no bond."

With those words, Yu Yuan steeled his resolve, preparing to strike down Qi Yunhong the moment he drew near.

"Crack! Crack!"

Qi Yunhong's once radiant, crystalline body suddenly shattered, as if sliced by a series of "Blazing Soul Electric Currents." More horrifying still, the currents morphed into crimson serpents that swiftly devoured his fragmented form.

In an instant, Qi Yunhong was consumed.

The "Crimson Soul Electric Currents" transformed into massive, crimson electric serpents, a fusion of lightning, light, and crystal. With blood-red, predatory eyes, they lashed out at the Evil Cauldron.

Snap, crack!

Sparks flew as the Evil Cauldron quaked violently in midair.

Yu Yuan, his expression stoic, watched the writhing crimson serpents. Sensing Qi Yunhong's presence among them, he quickly surmised that Qu Jing must have acquired the Illusion Pearl. Since the pearl was linked to Qi Yunhong's soul, Qu Jing could exploit certain secret arts to warp and possess him.

However, Qu Jing was no Thunder Sect initiate and lacked the expertise in their arcane methods, making it nearly impossible for him to fully harness the enigmatic "Berserker's Lightning."

He gained control over the "Berserker's Lightning" through Qi Yunhong, using the Illusion Pearl to consume Qi Yunhong's Yang God energy body, thereby amplifying its already formidable power.

"This peculiar lightning is the nemesis of evil demons," Yu Yiyi's soulful voice echoed from the microcosm within the cauldron. "Even in my spirit form, I cannot withstand it outside of the cauldron. The only one capable of contending with it is Ice Concubine, thanks to her tangible form and the Ice Soul Crystal bestowed upon her by her master."

"Send Ice Concubine into battle!" commanded Yu Yuan.

With a whoosh, a crystalline, ice-blue figure soared from the cauldron's mouth, seizing a crimson electric snake and tearing it in two amidst a dazzling display of ice and lightning.

Achoo! Qin Yun sneezed violently, feeling as though he stood bare in a frigid, snowy landscape, his body shaking uncontrollably.

Having neglected to purify his body with his fire-based Spiritual Spell, Qin Yun found the extreme cold unleashed by Ice Concubine especially unbearable due to their opposing natures.

In desperation, he engaged the "Cyan Sun Arts" he had painstakingly mastered, channeling the searing Spiritual Qi through his veins to fend off the piercing chill.

"Master!" he intended to warn, but upon closer inspection, he saw that Yu Yuan was unaffected.

Stunned, Qin Yun gazed upward. Towering above was Ice Concubine, her form a majestic ice sculpture, dozens of meters tall. Her upper body was gracefully contoured, with key areas adorned by intricately patterned crystal scales that radiated an aura of aloof, frosty elegance.

Her lower half morphed into a scorpion, its lengthy tail bristling with razor-sharp ice spines.

With a sweep of her sinister tail, she punctured a Crimson Electric Snake, a chaotic mix of lightning, light, and crystal shards.

The very Crimson Electric Snakes that had besieged the Evil Cauldron now turned their assault on Ice Concubine. As she moved her statuesque arms, a ferocious blizzard of soul-freezing, ice-blue flames erupted, screeching and wounding the snakes one by one.

The forehead of the Crimson Electric Snake intermittently revealed the distorted and frenzied soul of Qi Yunhong.

The soul appeared to be ferociously roaring and struggling, yet it was utterly powerless.

The Ice Concubine paid it no heed, standing like a deity of frost meticulously crafted by the creator itself. The magnetic field around her formed a domain unique to gods, with strands of icy light manifesting as extensions of the Ice Dao Law.

This was no mere fiendish demon; she was the very embodiment of the Goddess of Extreme Cold!

Qin Yun watched the Ice Concubine with a puzzled look. He found it impossible to associate her with those sinister demons that incessantly unleashed their malevolent thoughts.

The reason was that the Ice Concubine, locked in combat with the Crimson Electric Snakes, exuded an aura of majesty, sanctity, and inviolability akin to the revered deities of otherworldly races from the legends.

"Demons and gods, at their pinnacle, are interconnected."

The thought of Yu Yiyi's cauldron soul echoed in Yu Yuan's Consciousness Little World, snapping him out of his astonishment, much like Qin Yun, at the sight of the Ice Concubine.

At their zenith, demon gods converge!

The highest echelons of demon gods were known as Demon Gods and Great Demon Gods!

As if a revelation had struck him, Yu Yuan's face lit up with excitement. While observing the Ice Concubine, he engaged in a mental dialogue with Yu Yiyi, "Ice Concubine, is it truly possible for you to ascend to godhood? To become like the White Bone?"

"Highly unlikely," Yu Yiyi sighed softly, "A tenth-level fiendish demon is on par with an Unrestrained Stage cultivator, at most equal to the Demon Gods of the Devaputra Race. All the memories I've regained confirm that the pinnacle for fiendish demons is the tenth level."

"This is beyond my expectations."

With his slender eyes perpetually narrowed as though caught between slumber and wakefulness, Chu Jing emerged, propping open a large black umbrella.

He wore an emerald Universe Ring and a nondescript black robe.

"A fiendish demon whose might rivals that of a Yang God."

Chu Jing observed the clash between the Ice Concubine and the Crimson Electric Snakes with curiosity, while conversing with Yu Yuan, "Liu Xu, the First Prince of the Rainier Empire, has sought aid from the Primordial Yang Sect. By chance, I was in the vicinity, so I laid a trap and drew you into this miniature world."

Having said that, he finally, and with great reluctance, shifted his gaze away from the Ice Concubine.

Then, he turned to Yu Yuan, "The three illusory scenes I meticulously crafted allowed Qi Yunhong to get close to you three times, yet you managed to see through each one. I must admit, I'm surprised. You didn't realize you were no longer in the real world during the first two attempts, did you?"

"That's correct," Yu Yuan acknowledged without denial.

"Why such deep caution?" Qu Jing asked, his interest piqued, "I should have realized—the renegade from the Thunder Sect, operating beyond the heavens, has close ties with the Divine Soul Sect."

"It's an instinctive precaution. Qi Yunhong is a Yang God, and should he enter the Evil Cauldron, he might be able to kill me instantly," Yu Yuan said candidly, sharing his genuine concerns. "I cannot allow even the slightest chance of that happening. Regardless of his affiliations, he hasn't earned my trust."

"No wonder Cao Jiaze described you as exceedingly difficult to handle upon his return from Horror Land," Qu Jing remarked with a sigh.

"Have you not already experienced how tough I can be?" Yu Yuan quipped with a smirk, glancing at the large black umbrella, "What, have you forgotten the pain once the wound healed?"

"Thanks to you, when Qi Yunhong used the Illusion Pearl to extract you from Luan Bird City, my Spectral Umbrella detected it, and that's when we started to watch him," Qu Jing explained, unbothered. "As a result, I managed to refine the Illusion Pearl, not only restoring the Spectral Umbrella to its former glory but also significantly advancing my own realm."

"Congratulations," Yu Yuan offered, his hands cupped in a sarcastic gesture of respect.

"I arrived hastily, so it's just me for now," Qu Jing said with a smile. "But before I tempted you with the Illusion Pearl, I sent out a message. I don't think it will be long before Uncle-Master Chongxiao arrives."

"Until then, you have two choices: kill me or break through the small world formed by the Illusion Pearl and the Spectral Umbrella."

"Otherwise, once Uncle-Master Chongxiao arrives, your only option will be death."

​