C932 Victory!
Yu Yuan sprang from the crater shaped like a man.
The Demon General, who had seized control of the eighth-level Shadowbeast, and the enchantress with a pained expression were not far from him.
Yet neither the Demon General nor the enchantress, with her seventh-level bloodline, could launch a follow-up attack as he landed.
Their sinister Spirit Magic, aimed at his Mindscape, had been thwarted by him.
Within his Mindscape.
His Lunar Spirit morphed into a shadowy Abyssal vortex. In silence, he practiced Wraithbinding, and the Demon General's specters, along with the enchantress's piercing shrieks, became soul blades, all swallowed by the transforming vortex.
The specters were broken down and assimilated into his Lunar Spirit.
Except for the unique Blood Fiend, the other extraterrestrial races lacked lifeblood, for they were born as mere clusters of phantoms, devoid of flesh.
Thus, neither the lifeblood treasures held by Ann Wen nor those procured by Ann Ziqing were of the Star-Spawned Terror.
In Afnetalos, Yu Yuan had only absorbed and refined lesser demons, none possessing a demonform, through Wraithbinding.
When the Wraithbinding dissolved the assault of the seventh-level Demon General's specter, Yu Yuan felt a jolt of excitement in his soul.
This indicated that the Soul Power of the seventh-level Demon General was indeed beneficial to his soul!
Conversely, the Soul Voice of the enchantress, also at the seventh level, stirred nothing within him.
He realized that his soul had already transformed, having refined several vials of the enchantress's lifeblood with the Altar of Rebirth not long before. The gains this time were negligible.
"In the forbidden area, my Lunar Spirit, refined through Wraithbinding, seems to have been enhanced. Using Wraithbinding here feels far more effortless than in Afnetalos or the Land of Terror."
With eyes alight with excitement, he lunged at the Demon General and the enchantress.
The seventh-level enchantress dared not let him approach and swiftly retreated.
The Demon General, in possession of the eighth-level Shadowbeast, found his devil soul subtly overpowered and couldn't respond in time before Yu Yuan closed in on him.
The Shadowbeast, under the control of the Demon General, found itself besieged by five ancient dire beasts, conjured from the potent vitality that Yu Yuan wielded.
Shortly thereafter, the Demon God, hovering above, called out, "Enough!" Startled, Yu Yuan quickly withdrew his vitality, causing the five ancient dire beasts to vanish into thin air.
"Your soul," the Demon God observed, his true form concealed, "appears to be in harmony with the Moonfall Sanctuary, akin to this enigmatic rune circle."
The Demon God, a cultivator of the Unbound realm, had a profound grasp of such powers. He had a faint sense that the Soulforge Matrix, which sealed the Moonfall Sanctuary, was somehow echoing Yu Yuan's command, naturally suppressing the Demon General under his influence.
The rune circle was formidable; only a modicum of balancing force was needed to make it challenging for the Demon General to gain the upper hand. Yet, Yu Yuan seemed blissfully unaware of this effect.
Sansom, the enchantress leader, glanced towards the distant Soulforge Pool and remarked, "Indeed, your soul has evidently grown stronger within the forbidden area. And your corporeal body rivals that of a seventh-level Shura warrior. From what I can tell, not one of our seventh-level warriors could match you in combat."
She paused before adding, "Should you achieve another breakthrough, your combat prowess is sure to surge anew."
Her words prompted a wave of contemplation among the assembled Otherkin powerhouses.
"When I reach the Spirit Walk state, I have a favor to ask!" Yu Yuan called out boldly.
"Let's hear it," Beru prompted.
"To all the esteemed ones within the forbidden area, those of you with ninth-level bloodlines, I humbly request a drop of your lifeblood!" Yu Yuan declared earnestly. "A single drop of your lifeblood could empower my ascent into the Spirit Walk realm, dramatically boosting my strength. In exchange, I vow to do everything within my power to aid your return to your ancestral lands."
"A drop of ninth-level lifeblood!" came the incredulous response. "Young man, even we would feel weakened by parting with just one drop!"
"Are you sure you can handle our lifeblood?"
"And what gives you the right to ask for it?"
The ninth-level bloodline experts and their kin were visibly astonished.
Canli of the Dawnbringers paused, her expression one of sudden realization. Yu Yuan had already integrated with the lifeblood from the Altar of Rebirth, receiving contributions from the Colddeath and Ann Ziqing, though most were from eighth and seventh-level Otherkin.
When he plunged into the Spirit Walk realm, he knew that to significantly boost his strength in a short span, he would need to seek the lifeblood of higher beings.
Ninth-level Otherkin were renowned figures across the extraterrestrial Star River, their lifeblood exceedingly rare and valuable.
Not even the Colddeath had managed to acquire such potent lifeblood.
Yet now, ninth-level Mighty like Beru were present in the Moonfall Sanctuary, right before Yu Yuan.
Trapped there for the time being, they were surrounded by the gathering forces of the upper sect, Devil Palace, and Shadow's Keep, all intent on shattering the protective formation to storm in and slay them.
The occupant of the bronze coffin had made it clear: Yu Yuan was the linchpin.
Initially, Canli herself had her doubts about Yu Yuan's significance in this predicament.
However, he had just effortlessly bested two seventh-level warriors from the Nightscale Tribe and the Silverscale Tribe.
Following that, a Demon General and a seventh-level enchantress also succumbed to defeat.
The Demon God and the enchantress leader noted that Yu Yuan's soul had been fortified and amplified within the Moonfall Sanctuary, as if he had become one with the very essence of this place.
Should Yu Yuan successfully advance to the Spirit Walk and harness the lifeblood of the ninth level...
He had already taken full command of the Soulforge Matrix and the Soulforge Pool. Could he possibly evolve this grand formation into the Everlands' most formidable seventh-level array?
A seventh-level array was nearly invincible without the concerted efforts of numerous primordial spirits.
The Boulderdawn Sect and the five highest powers had an unspoken agreement: primordial spirits were not to engage directly in the conflicts of the Everlands.
Canli of the Dawnbringers, her eyes suddenly alight with realization, turned her gaze sharply towards Yu Yuan.
Yu Yuan offered her a reassuring smile and a subtle nod, affirming her speculation.
"Proceed to your breakthrough with haste, and I will persuade them. Once you've successfully crossed into the Spirit Walk, every ninth-level expert in the Moonfall Sanctuary will yield a drop of their lifeblood to you."
Canli's intent shone through her radiant eyes, reaching the depths of Yu Yuan's heart.
Understanding her, Yu Yuan replied, "Discuss this among yourselves; I'm off to break through!"
With that, he shifted his position once more, unleashing the power of the Crucible of Evil, and soared toward the region bordering the Silvermoon Empire.
With a whoosh, the cauldron spirit, Yu Yiyi, silently drifted out of the cauldron's little world. She stood beside Yu Yuan, her feet barely touching the ground. "Master, do you recall a certain conversation we had?" she asked.
"Which one?" Yu Yuan responded with curiosity.
"I mentioned that before I was refined and became an artifact soul, I too was part of this world," Yu Yiyi said, her beautiful face adorned with a mysterious smile. "As time passed, with the increasing number of Bane and the emergence of more powerful entities, some memories resurfaced."
At that moment, as Yu Yuan was summoned by her and made his way toward the Silvermoon Empire, he vividly remembered Yu Yiyi's words during their devil hunting expedition outside Afnetalos using Wraithbinding.
Wraithbinding was a technique from Boulderdawn, and she originated from Moonfall Sanctuary. She had been discovered by the mighty of the Terror Claws within the sanctuary and taken out. Following her integration with the Crucible of Evil, she underwent a transformation into an artifact soul.
"I've got it! Have you sensed anything?" Yu Yuan exclaimed.
"Mhm," Yu Yiyi murmured, her expression a mix of bewilderment and curiosity as she looked around, her dormant memories seemingly awakening.
Yu Yuan was inwardly astonished, pondering what role Yu Yiyi might have played here before the Terror Claws' experts took her from the forbidden area. Was she an expert from Boulderdawn who met her end here, or perhaps an evil spirit from beyond this world?
It was puzzling that Wraithbinding, a mystique of Boulderdawn, was now a hidden part of the Crucible of Evil. The evidence suggested a covert connection between the fall of the Terror Claws and Boulderdawn.
Could it be that the upper sects—the Devil Palace and Shadow's Keep—had tacitly condoned the eradication of the Terror Claws, using the strife between the two continents to erase their name from history? And was the presence of the cauldron spirit, Yu Yiyi, also a contributing factor?
