C986 Hand It over

Hu! Hu!

Xi Quan and Van Heqing settled once more beside Ji Ningshuang, their faces etched with grave concern.

In stark contrast to her earlier stance, Ji Ningshuang, wielding the Starfrost Sword once again with her fleshless, blood-veined fingers, caused the aura of the Little World and the Yellow Court Acupoint to emit a cataclysmic sound.

Her Aspect had been shattered.

Her Aspect, along with the Starfrost Sword, had formed a dazzling stellar river, now disrupted by the Great Demon God Greco, using his Great Demons to do so.

These so-called Great Demons were merely his puppets, their souls stripped of intelligence, their demon blood corrupted and defiled by him.

Thus, it was Greco's fearsome blood energy that had truly wounded Ji Ningshuang.

"I dared to enter this forbidden realm because I had reliable intelligence that the Primordial Spirit powerhouses of the Boundless Land, those three Demon Gods, are too preoccupied to pay me any mind."

Greco's smile radiated as he halted a mere seven steps from Yu Yuan.

A series of temporal ripples undulated between them.

The Space-time Extraordinary Talent emanating from the Dragon Slash Platform in Yu Yuan's grasp continued to exert its force, preventing Greco from easily traversing the seemingly negligible distance.

The piercing cold light released from the Dragon Slash Platform beneath him coursed through his flesh and bones, keeping his mind clear and free from Greco's dominion over the heart and soul.

Listening to Greco's heart and his words, Yu Yuan turned to gaze upon the grievously injured Ji Ningshuang, feeling an intense urge to protect her welling up within him.

Yet...

The connection between him and the Soul Transformation Pool overhead, which he had always felt was in harmony with him, was now frustratingly sporadic.

Confronted by the overwhelming might of the Great Demon God Greco, Yu Yuan was forced to acknowledge a harsh truth for the first time.

The Soul Transformation Pool and the Heaven Sealing Soul Transformation Formation were not, in fact, perfectly fused with his own soul.

Previously, he had managed to wield the Heaven Sealing Soul Transformation Formation because the sword marks etched into the Soul Transformation Pool resonated with the sword soul within his arm bone. It was this divine peculiarity of his sword soul that had enabled him to manipulate the formation.

When the sword scars vanished and the Soul Transformation Pool regained its original state, he was still able to harness its power and elicit responses from the souls within. Yet, these responses differed from those given to Yu Yiyi, the cauldron soul, and the sword soul. The souls of the Soul Transformation Pool were beholden to another master, one to whom they were truly loyal and subservient—and this master was still among the living.

The souls, bound by the Heaven Sealing Soul Transformation Formation, cooperated with him only by the command and counsel of their true master. They did not fully integrate with him or become an extension of his being.

As this realization dawned on him, Yu Yiyi's soulful message came through: "The pool and this grand formation were initially under the control of the entity within the bronze coffin."

This insight brought clarity to Yu Yuan, unveiling the causes and effects at play.

"The Wisdom Divine King guards the Realm gateway leading to the Delude Devil Abyss. My master has charged me with overseeing the dragon corpses at the Dragon Slash Platform and maintaining the mightiest dragon vein. Each Divine King has their own role, their own domain to oversee..."

Crack!

In an instant, the Ghost King Luo Yue's soul form was encased in blocks of ice crystals. The head and tail linked, forming an immense silver ring—the Frost Dragon—with a frigid soul storm at its core, swirling with a mix of blood energy and extraordinary powers.

This chilling force was potent enough to corrupt and freeze even the soul form of Luo Yue.

Yu Yuan, jolted by the disturbance, narrowed his eyes and observed Luo Yue's various soul aspects, each sealed within the ice, as if her soul had been dismembered.

Beru, Mia, Sansom, Sidla, and the other three Great Demon Gods remained utterly still. No one dared to cross Grayer at such a juncture.

Even the Golden Elephant Ancient God, the Peacock King, and Yao Huangqi from the Devil Palace, who had been intent on avenging Raven, found themselves subdued upon hearing Grayer's declaration that the vast Primordial Spirits and Demon Gods were momentarily preoccupied.

As the pinnacle of combat might in the Outland Star River, Grayer stood unchallenged without a peer among the Demon Gods and Primordial Spirits.

Only if all the beings at the Unrestrained Stage and the Ninth Level Demon Gods joined forces could there be a chance—at great cost—to thwart Grayer's intentions.

Grayer had crossed into the vast expanse of the Boundless Land, arriving at the Fallen Moon Forbidden Area with a singular goal in mind: to obtain something from Yu Yuan.

But was the heavy toll of lives lost truly worth that one item?

"Hong Qi! How many more must die by your hand?" In a sudden outburst, Yun Hao of the Fiend Sect bellowed, "Why not simply surrender what he seeks and give it to him? Wouldn't that resolve the matter?"

Aware that Shi Yuxuan stood before them as the Patriarch of the Blood Devil Clan, the formidable Great Demon God of the Fifth Star River, and witnessing the ongoing carnage, a wave of unease swept over many.

Yun Hao of the Fiend Sect was among the troubled.

Zhongli, Ann Wen, the Golden Elephant Ancient God, the Peacock King, and their peers were overwhelmed by Grayer's fearsome ability to perceive and manipulate the life force of all beings. The various race leaders and Demon Gods dared not move hastily, while Tianzang had already chosen to withdraw.

Who could possibly check Grayer's power?

How many more would perish if Grayer were to unleash his full wrath upon the forbidden lands?

At present, Eighth Level warriors and formidable demons, tainted by Grayer's corrupting influence, clashed with our forces, with lives being lost at every turn.

Wasn't this entire ordeal a consequence of Yu Yuan's refusal to relinquish what Grayer coveted?

He who had long harbored animosity towards Yu Yuan and wished for the extinction of the Yu family was the first to openly condemn him.

"Fiend Sect!"

Zhou You, Ann Wen, and others, including the Golden Elephant Ancient God and Cao Jiaz, cast chilling glances at Yun Hao from a distance.

Visitors like Beirut, Mia, and Quero from the outer realms had arrived with intentions of friendly trade.

Yet the Great Demon God Grayer...

All the mighty of the Boundless Land were well aware of his relentless ambition to annihilate their world and its inhabitants!

Grayer, alongside the Asura King and certain radical clan chiefs, had made it their mission to slaughter those they could and to storm the realms beyond with their forces.

Even if they were not his equal, even if they relished the thought of Yu Yuan's downfall, they should not stoop to Yun Hao's level, pressuring Yu Yuan to meekly capitulate.

Boom!

The icy prison encasing Luo Yue shattered, and the Ghost King from Horror Land suffered a severe blow to her soul.

Weak, flickering soul shadows looked towards Yu Yuan with eyes filled with helplessness and sorrow, murmuring an apology before, like Tianzang, they summoned their unique ghostly escape technique to return to the Yin Meridian source that was their counterpart.

For the foreseeable future, she would be confined to Horror Land to heal, unable to leave.

"Hand it over," Grec demanded, extending his hand once more, his voice cool and detached. "Give me the item, and I'll leave at once. No more lives will be lost here."

"I couldn't care less if everyone here perished."

Yu Yuan's grip on the Dragon Slash Platform tightened, his smile baring teeth. He seemed to revert to the Medicine God Hong Qi from three hundred years ago, facing death's door, "It's not just them. Even if the Boundless Land were to shatter and all living creatures perish, it would be of no consequence to me."

"You're after the Life Altar, aren't you? You want me to willingly surrender it, to detach myself because it will suffer once I'm dead?"

"Otherwise, you wouldn't be so hesitant, so insistent on me giving it up willingly!"

Grec could have easily killed him first and then seized the Life Altar, which had already fused seamlessly with his soul and flesh.

If he were to die, the Life Altar would inevitably be compromised, its mystical power greatly diminished.

Yu Yuan's realization was instantaneous.

"Leave the Dragon Slash Platform that suppresses the dragon veins alone. Take the two pieces in your hands and beneath you to the Realm gateway."

Out of nowhere, the voice of the former President of the Babel Chamber of Commerce echoed through the air.

As President Lyi's figure flickered into view, orbs of golden light struck the blood moon hovering behind Yu Yuan's head.

Boom!

The blood moon was blasted away, distancing itself from Yu Yuan under the assault of the golden light.

Startled, Yu Yuan spun around to confront President Lyi, who had just touched down, "You!"

Before he could voice his challenge, a sudden pain seared through his soul.

The spiritual tether between him and the blood moon, refined by the Evil Cauldron, had been casually severed by someone.

"Master."

The blood moon regained its composure and knelt on one knee.

But the one it knelt to was not him.

It was none other than the Great Demon God, Grec!

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