Moonlight Mystique

Chapter Sixty-One

Beneath the stone hall of the Yiren King's palace, the blood pool churned violently, shrouded in a sinister black aura.

Countless streams of Spiritual Qi flowed from the foreheads of the Fairy and Demon Disciples into Hua Yong, who lay dormant in the blood pool. His entire body slowly expanded, growing three times its original size. The surging spiritual power within him was palpable—his cultivation had already reached the Peak of the Upper Realm.

The Yiren King could barely contain his excitement. Only one final step remained. If Yong Er could devour the spiritual essences of Bei Chen and the other three, he would ascend to godhood in an instant.

Outside the Yiren City, the golden dragon formation suddenly blazed with radiant light. A shadowy dragon figure slowly took shape, its tail whipping up a vortex of fierce gales that swept across the land. Wherever the gales passed, all things turned to dust—Jin Yao and the others bore the brunt of the assault.

"Disaster looms—the God-Slaying Formation is nearing its Major Achievement!"

Jin Yao and the Sect Leaders of the fairies and demons swiftly conjured a barrier to block the gales. But the dragon shadow grew ever stronger, its forming power crashing against the barrier again and again.

"We must not let the God-Slaying Dragon Soul break through the barrier! Otherwise, millions of lives in the Barren Lands will be annihilated!"

"Immortal Lord, how can we possibly withstand the dragon soul of His Majesty Mu Guang?" the Head of Yunxiao shouted.

Mu Guang was an ancient Dragon God who had once ruled the Three Realms for sixty thousand years. His dragon soul was several times more powerful than that of an ordinary deity.

"If this is a God-Slaying Formation, then there must be a god within Yiren City! As long as he can stop the formation from completing, there's still a sliver of hope!"

Jin Yao roared as the dragon soul surged toward them with a deafening bellow. The faces of the assembled cultivators turned grave as they poured all their spiritual power into the barrier.

Behind them, Zhen Yu also spared no effort, seemingly exhausting his demonic power to the fullest.

Unnoticed by the immortals focused on the God-Slaying Formation, the Lord of Cold Spring Palace stood with hollow eyes, like an empty shell.

On the other side of the barrier, a hundred meters above, Zhen Yu stood atop the clouds. Fu Ling frowned slightly as she watched Jin Yao erect the barrier.

"Palace Master, if Jin Yao disrupts the God-Slaying Formation..."

"Why panic? Even if these immortals—or even Jin Yao himself, ascending to godhood with his half-deity body—were to intervene, they couldn't withstand the full force of Mu Guang's dragon soul," Zhen Yu sneered, his eyes mocking. "Once the dragon soul truly awakens and the God-Slaying Formation is complete, Fan Yue will perish without a doubt."

Fu Ling fell silent, her gaze lowering slightly. As she looked down at Yiren City beneath her feet, her pupils constricted.

Chong Zhao was still in the city. If the God-Slaying Formation succeeded, he wouldn't survive either.

"Across the Three Realms, only Fan Yue is worthy of being this Venerable One's opponent. Today, as he meets his end here, I shall personally send him off."

Zhen Yu waved his hand, summoning a water mirror before them, reflecting the scene within the stone hall.

Inside the hall, the Yiren King raised his stone sword. He poured nearly all his spiritual power into it, and in an instant, his once-vigorous appearance withered—his hair turned white, his face aged.

The Yiren Sword split into four, each blade pointing directly at one of the four figures bound to the stone pillars.

Bei Chen and Chong Zhao's expressions shifted, while Mu Jiu shouted in fury, "Yiren King, how dare you! The Fox Clan will never let you get away with this!"

"For the sake of my people, this king would slay the heavens and destroy the earth—why should I fear a mere Fox Clan?"

The Yiren King spoke coldly, flicking his wrist. The four flying swords shot toward the foreheads of the four captives.

No one noticed that Nan Wan, who had been unconscious on the pillar, suddenly opened his eyes. A wisp of black energy gathered in his bound palm, and a cold glint flickered behind the Yiren King—just as—

"Stop!" A furious shout rang out from the entrance of the stone hall. A staff flew through the air, intercepting all four flying swords mid-flight.

In a flash of spiritual light, Hua Hong shielded the four prisoners.

Nan Wan's eyes flickered. The black energy in his palm vanished as he lowered his head once more.Hua Hong stared at the aged King of the Yiren, "How did you become like this?"

"Hong Er?!" The King's expression changed upon seeing Hua Hong, his face darkening with anger. "You would stand against our own people for these outsiders?"

"Hua Lin, you've been deceived! This isn't a Divine Creation Array!" Hua Hong roared.

"Divine Creation? Create what god?"

The three sacrificial victims bound to the stone pillars reacted differently. Mu Jiu screamed in terror, "Blacksmith! What the hell is your crazy father trying to do? Hurry! Destroy this evil array now!"

"Quiet! If you want to live, shut up!" Hua Hong's sharp command instantly silenced Mu Jiu's noisy mouth.

The King of the Yiren gazed calmly at Hua Hong, unable to hide his disappointment. "Since you know what I intend, you should understand that Yong Er's ascension is our clan's only hope. Lose this chance, and our people will never see daylight again. Hong Er, all the mistakes were mine—Yong Er is innocent. Your resentment shouldn't fall on him."

Hua Lin actually believed she was stopping Hua Yong's ascension out of personal spite. Furious, Hua Hong couldn't be bothered to explain further.

"Who told you to slaughter immortals and demons as sacrifices for the Forbidden Spirit Array?!"

The King's expression shifted, but he didn't answer. "Leave! Get out of Yiren City. You were banished long ago. Whatever happens here today—success or failure—has nothing to do with you."

"Fool! Don't you realize the entire clan's spiritual essence has been stolen by that evil force? Someone is using you to twist the array's consciousness, turning the Soul Transformation Array into a killing formation! Once the dragon soul awakens, everyone here will die!"

"Impossible!" The King's hands controlling the four stone swords faltered as he shook his head slowly. "No one could steal an entire clan's spiritual essence overnight!"

"You—!" Seeing his disbelief, Hua Hong seethed. Just then, Hua Yong in the blood pool lost his spiritual energy supply, letting out an agonized wail as blood streamed from his orifices. The sinister energy surrounding him began to dissipate.

"Yong Er!" The King's face paled. Without hesitation, he bellowed, "Wu Zhao, stop her!"

From the shadows, Wu Zhao leaped into the air, his sword slashing apart Hua Hong's stone staff.

While Hua Hong was entangled with Wu Zhao, the King waved his hand, sending the four stone swords hurtling toward Bei Chen and the others on the pillars.

"Hua Lin!" Hua Hong's furious shout came too late to stop it.

As the flying swords were about to pierce the four victims' foreheads, a silver flash cut through the air—a silver chain intercepted and deflected all four swords in one sweep. Fan Yue hovered mid-air, his cold gaze fixed on the King.

Recognizing the silver chain in Fan Yue's hand, the King's face twisted in shock. "You... you're...?!"

"Holy shit! That was awesome!"

Nearby, Mu Jiu gaped. If his hands weren't tied, he'd have clapped.

The King was a Peak Upper Realm cultivator, yet Fan Yue had blocked his strike!

"King of the Yiren, Hua Hong isn't lying!" Bai Shuo appeared at the stone hall's entrance, rushing forward. "Your entire clan's spiritual essence has been stolen! They're inside this hall right now!"

"Absurd!" The King frowned.

"Damn girl, you're finally back! Hurry, save me!" Mu Jiu yelled excitedly.

"Shut up! Enough nonsense!" Bai Shuo nearly spat in the noisy fox's face. Chastised twice, Mu Jiu pouted and fell silent.

"A-Shuo!" Chong Zhao's usually calm eyes finally showed emotion—urgency.

But Bai Shuo had no time to comfort him. She urgently called to Fan Yue, "Mu Mu, break the sinister energy in the blood pool!"Fan Yue didn’t hesitate, his silver chains whirling as they slashed toward the blood pool.

“How dare you!” The King of the Yiren’s expression darkened, and the Yiren King’s Sword flew from his hand to intercept.

“King of the Yiren, can’t you sense that Senior Rong Xian’s Golden Core has already sublimated? I used it to save Aunt Xiao Qiugua’s son!”

Bai Shuo suddenly shouted. The King of the Yiren faltered, and in that moment of distraction, the silver chains finally severed the black Qi swirling over the blood pool.

Suddenly, countless agonized wails erupted from the blood pool, echoing throughout the stone hall.

The people in the hall were startled, their eyes fixed on the blood pool. They saw tens of thousands of Yiren spirits churning within, the pool continuously devouring them and transforming them into streams of sinister black Qi.

The evil Qi that had trapped everyone in the stone hall was actually formed from the spirits of these Yiren people.

Even Wu Zhao and Hua Hong, who had been fighting nearby, stopped and stared blankly at the blood pool.

“King of the Yiren, you actually used your entire race to refine your son’s spirit—you’re insane!” Even Mu Jiu, who was usually quick with words, couldn’t bear to look at the horrific scene in the blood pool.

Beside the blood pool, the King of the Yiren stood rigid, his eyes filled with disbelief.

“Impossible… How could this be…” The King of the Yiren stared at the Yiren King’s Sword in his hand, his entire body trembling before the sword clattered to the ground.

“My King! He deceived you! This isn’t the Divine Creation Array…” Wu Zhao’s face was pale as he murmured.

“Who? Who was it that made you reverse the Forbidden Spirit Array’s core?” Hua Hong roared in fury.

“It was—” Just as Wu Zhao was about to speak, a surge of black spiritual power struck his chest. He spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed to the ground.

“Uncle Wu Zhao!” Hua Hong rushed toward him.

At that moment, a sudden change occurred—a strand of black evil Qi transformed into a dagger and shot straight toward the King of the Yiren’s back.

On the stone pillar, Nan Wan, who had been hanging her head low, curled her lips into a smirk.

Fools. How could a few Fairy and Demon Disciples become sacrifices for the God-Slaying Array? The true sacrifices are the entire Yiren race and the King of the Yiren, fused with the Forbidden Spirit Array’s core!

Once the God-Slaying Array is complete and the Dragon Soul awakens, killing that person will be an extraordinary feat—he will surely become the foremost under our master’s command!

The sound of the dagger piercing flesh rang out. But just as Nan Wan’s smirk reached its peak, it froze abruptly.

She stared in disbelief at the iron staff that had impaled her chest. Blood gushed from her mouth as she was struck down from the pillar by the staff, crashing heavily to the ground.

The bloodied “Nan Wan” lifted her head, revealing a grotesque face.

“So it was you.” Bai Shuo blurted out, her expression surprised but not shocked.

Not far away, Fan Yue had appeared behind the King of the Yiren at some point, holding the dagger formed from evil Qi. With a light flick of his fingers, the dagger crumbled into dust.

Bai Shuo threw out her Qiankun Bag and shouted, “Mu Mu, Big Iron!”

In an instant, hundreds of talismans flew out of the bag. Fan Yue and Hua Hong unleashed streams of spiritual Qi, guiding the talismans toward the unconscious Fairy and Demon Disciples in the hall.

As the talismans landed on them, the spiritual Qi at their foreheads was cut off, no longer feeding into the blood pool. The wailing Yiren spirits in the pool fell silent, and Hua Yong, suspended above the pool, dropped like a kite with its strings cut.

The King of the Yiren leaped up and caught Hua Yong, landing safely.

Bai Shuo immediately pulled out a pill and shoved it into Hua Yong’s mouth. The monstrous form of Hua Yong instantly reverted to a human body, the evil Qi within him vanishing completely, leaving him as weak as a mortal.

“Yong Er!”"Your Majesty, don't worry. What I fed Prince Yong was a Clear Heart Pill. The evil Qi in his body was just a decoy. He turned like this because he was poisoned by demon toxins. The true sacrifice for this God-Slaying Array is you."

The King of Yiren froze, then coldly looked at the bloody mass on the ground.

Outside Yiren City, the dragon shadow that was about to take form in the grand array suddenly let out a mournful howl, and the power of the fierce winds within the barrier weakened.

Everyone looked up in shock, astonished to see the black dragon shadow slowly dissipating.

Their faces lit up with joy as the Head of Yunxiao couldn't help but ask, "Immortal Seat, what's happening?"

"Someone has stopped the dragon soul from awakening!"

In the stone hall, Hua Hong unleashed a surge of spiritual power, shattering the evil Qi on the stone pillar. Bei Chen and the other two fell to the ground. Mu Jiu jumped up and down excitedly, his face full of relief after surviving a disaster.

"Senior Brother Zhesang?" Chong Zhao staggered, supported by Bai Shuo. His face pale, he stared at the figure on the ground in shock.

The evil spirit that had disguised itself as "Nan Wan" and infiltrated Yiren City was actually Zhesang, a disciple of Piaomiao.

"Senior Brother?" Mu Jiu's eyes widened. "He's a Piaomiao disciple? I knew none of you immortals were any good!"

Chong Zhao's expression turned cold. "Zhesang colluded with evil spirits and was expelled from the sect after Junior Martial Uncle shattered his spiritual platform." He glared at Zhesang. "How did you escape the Ice Cave?"

"A-Zhao, if he could cause such chaos, a mere Ice Cave wouldn't be enough to hold him," Bai Shuo's calm voice interjected.

Hua Hong walked over and stepped on Zhesang's back. The sound of bones cracking echoed as Zhesang let out a howl, his breathing becoming ragged.

Mu Jiu jumped far away, avoiding Hua Hong as if she were a demon.

"Damn, this Yiren princess is terrifyingly brutal."

"You guessed right. He was indeed the hidden piece planted in Yiren City," Hua Hong said to Bai Shuo, her eyes showing genuine admiration for the first time.

Half an incense stick's time earlier, just as Hua Hong was about to step into the stone hall's passage, Fan Yue arrived with Bai Shuo.

"Wait!" Bai Shuo stopped Hua Hong.

Hua Hong's face was full of murderous intent. "What are you doing here? I told you to stay on the city wall!"

"If that person has deceived the King of Yiren all this time, don't you think he would have considered what would happen if the king discovered the Yiren spirits were being stolen and turned against him? Who else could help him activate the God-Slaying Array?"

Hua Hong regained some rationality. "You mean..."

"I don't know what that evil spirit behind this really is, but there must be his people in this stone hall. I think I know who his hidden piece is!"

"Who?"

Bai Shuo whispered a name, and Hua Hong froze.

"Also, I once read in Piaomiao's records that to reverse the divine array's consciousness, the array's eye must first be destroyed. I suspect helping Hua Yong ascend to godhood was just a ruse to deceive the King of Yiren. Didn't you enter the Spirit-Sealing Array before? Where exactly is this array's eye? If we can protect it, we can stop the Spirit-Sealing Array from turning into the God-Slaying Array."

Hua Hong's expression changed drastically as she looked at Bai Shuo. "Every generation's King of Yiren is the eye of the divine array."

In the stone hall, Bai Shuo raised an eyebrow at Zhesang. "The King of Yiren is at the Peak of the Upper Realm. How many in the Three Realms can kill him? Certainly not you. So your only chance was to use the Yiren prince as bait. Only when the king was helping his son ascend to godhood would he be at his weakest."Mu Jiu stood dumbfounded, finally catching on. His eyes widened. "You mean after all this fuss, we were just bait? And the King of the Yiren was the sacrifice to break this damned array?"

"To be precise, besides the King of the Yiren, there were also the Yiren themselves. Killing the King only destroys the array's core and awakens the Dragon's soul. These Yiren spirits tainted with evil Qi are the divine power that drives the Dragon's soul."

The Yiren were weak, but when the spiritual power of an entire race was gathered, it could rival that of a demigod.

This was the demigod power Jin Yao had puzzled over but failed to comprehend.

Above the Yiren City, Zhen Yu gazed at the dying Zhesang in the water mirror and snorted softly. "Useless."

His eyes lingered on Bai Shuo, and the corner of his mouth curled up.

"Who would have thought the Immortal Clan had such a clever girl who could see through my plans? She suits my tastes far more than that Chong Zhao you mentioned."

Seeing the final sacrifice of the God-Slaying Array destroyed and Chong Zhao's life spared, Fu Ling felt a surge of joy but feigned anger. "Palace Master, this Zhesang truly is worthless, ruining your grand scheme."

"A mere discarded pawn has no right to ruin my plans." Zhen Yu glanced indifferently at Fu Ling. "You didn’t really think I was counting on such trash to kill Fan Yue, did you?"

Fu Ling's expression changed, and she quickly turned to look into the water mirror.

Zhen Yu seemed oblivious to her concern, his eyes gleaming with a sinister depth.

Destroying an entire race just to activate this evil array?

After Bai Shuo finished speaking, a chill ran through everyone in the hall. Mu Jiu swallowed hard and pointed at the shattered remains of Zhesang on the ground.

"That thing caused all this trouble?"

The silent Zhesang suddenly glared darkly at Bai Shuo. "When did you realize I wasn’t the real Nan Wan?"

With the God-Slaying Array's Major Achievement destroyed, Bai Shuo also relaxed. She looked at Bei Chen. "I have Lord Bei Chen to thank for that."

"Bei Chen?" Mu Jiu muttered. "No way. He’s originally from the Immortal Clan. Even I couldn’t detect the evil Qi on him. I don’t believe Bei Chen’s eyes are sharper than mine. Besides, Nan Wan always acts like this! There were no flaws!"

The Kunlun Sword Cultivator looked at Zhesang on the ground and suddenly realized something. "The Space-Breaking Stone?"

"Exactly, the Space-Breaking Stone." Bai Shuo nodded. "It’s the only artifact in the Three Realms capable of breaking time and space. In terms of rarity, it’s no less precious than the Phoenix Heart Flame. Such an important, one-time-use lifesaving treasure must be a supreme treasure of Yunxiao. As the top disciple of Yunxiao, how could he waste a day in Nanhai City for some obscure fortune-telling half-immortal, depleting that Space-Breaking Stone?"

Bai Shuo glanced at her little disciple beside her. "Unless you came to Nanhai City to exchange that stone for something even more important."

"If you suspected me from the start, why did you follow me to Yiren City?"

Zhesang roared, and everyone turned to Bai Shuo.

Even Zhesang was curious—let alone the others.

Who in their right mind would knowingly jump into a trap?

Bai Shuo looked genuinely innocent, spreading her hands. "A-Zhao entered Yiren City for the Phoenix Martial Banquet. If I didn’t follow you, how could I get in to help him?"

She said it as if it were the most natural thing, and Zhesang nearly spat blood.

He thought he was the mantis stalking the cicada, but this wretched half-immortal had been the oriole behind him all along!"A-Shuo..." Chong Zhao's expression softened, but the young man behind Bai Shuo lowered his gaze, his eyes dimming.

"You!"

"What about me? At first, I only knew you had ulterior motives. If I'd guessed what you were planning earlier, I would never have brought..." Bai Shuo's voice faltered, guilt flashing in her eyes.

"You know what I intended to do?" On the ground, Zhe Sang, who had been keeping his head down, suddenly spoke. His eyes, hidden beneath grime and blood, had turned an eerie black as he stared at Bai Shuo with curiosity and scrutiny.

Fan Yue seemed to sense something amiss and frowned in Zhe Sang's direction.

"I know," Bai Shuo replied, unaware of Zhe Sang's strange transformation. "This is the God-Slaying Array. Even the King of Otherworlders barely reaches the Peak of the Upper Lord realm. Since you aim to slay a god, I naturally guessed who your true target is."

Bai Shuo's usually carefree face turned cold. "It wasn't until I learned about an awakening God-Slaying Array in this city that I understood why you came to Nanhai City, and why you'd willingly sacrifice the Hua Jian Stone for a mere half-immortal. Because your most crucial mission in this entire game was to bring the person your master wants dead... into this city!"

As Bai Shuo finished speaking, everyone turned to look in his direction.

Mu Jiu looked as if struck by lightning, blurting out to Bai Shuo: "No way, he wants to kill you? You're a god? Damn, am I seeing things?"

The stone hall fell silent. Bai Shuo was speechless—whoever said the Fox Clan's Young Lord was peerlessly intelligent? Rumors truly couldn't be trusted.

Only after shouting did Mu Jiu realize everyone wasn't looking at Bai Shuo, but at the youth standing behind him.

Mu Jiu blinked rapidly, his mouth agape. "Fortune-teller, you don't mean... your disciple, do you?"

"It's been ages since I've met someone so clever. No wonder the illustrious Hall Master of Haoyue Palace, a demi-god of the Yao Realm, would follow a mere half-immortal around."

A deep chuckle suddenly came from behind. Everyone whirled around to see that Zhe Sang—who should have been dead with a shattered spirit platform and broken limbs—was now floating midair, his pitch-black eyes fixed eerily on Bai Shuo.

"You're so intelligent it almost makes me reluctant to kill you," "Zhe Sang" said with a twisted smile, his mouth curving unnaturally.

"Why don't you guess again—who is the true hidden piece in my plan to kill the Hall Master of Haoyue Palace?"

As soon as he finished speaking, "Zhe Sang's" head abruptly snapped sideways and rolled to the ground, his eyes wide open in eternal grievance.

Bai Shuo's expression changed drastically. At that moment, chaos erupted—Hua Hong was sent flying like a kite with severed strings, while her ever-present iron staff was seized and brutally plunged into the chest of the King of Freaks.