Tantai Jin saw a pair of calm eyes.
He had expected the young girl to be extremely flustered or angry, given that life and death hung by a thread. Li Susu should have been furious with him for helping the Demonic Beast slay an immortal.
Yet Li Susu only cast him a cold glance and, without a word, turned back to deal with the Flame Beast.
Tantai Jin tightened the golden threads.
The girl could only stand there, watching helplessly as she was engulfed by the flames of two Flame Beasts.
Tantai Jin pressed his fingers to his lips. He had expected to see a disheveled Shell, but to his surprise, Li Susu remained unscathed.
Her protective Magic Robe emitted a blue glow, shielding her.
The mermaid gauze on the girl’s face turned to ashes under the flames, and the illusion vanished instantly.
Tantai Jin saw a beautiful face, with a dot of red Cinnabar between her brows. Staring at her, the dim memories of his childhood gradually sharpened, as if he were seeing the statue of the Goddess that had once looked down upon him.
The statue of the Goddess slowly overlapped with the girl before him.
The smile on his lips faded, and he fell abruptly silent.
Su Su clasped her hands together: “Gather Spiritual Energy, ignite the flames—break!”
The golden threads around her wrists snapped inch by inch. She leaped into the air, the Spiritual Energy in her hands transforming into two Emei daggers, wreathed in ghostly blue flames, which she plunged into the two Flame Beasts.
Karmic Fire surged through the daggers, and the two Flame Beasts turned to ashes with a roar.
Su Su stored the Extreme Cold Profound Stone in her Universe Bag, then turned and curved her lips into a smile at Tantai Jin: “Your turn!”
She wasn’t made of clay—how could she not be angry?
Her smile held a touch of youthful charm, yet deep in her eyes, fury blazed as she seized Tantai Jin by the throat.
His dark pupils stared deeply into hers.
Su Su’s hands, imbued with red Karmic Fire, scorched his skin. Yet Tantai Jin seemed oblivious to the pain, his gaze fixed on her eyes, neither evading nor flinching. Instead, he gripped her wrist, his tone tinged with a complexity he himself barely recognized: “Who are you?”
Su Su thought, I’m the one you should never have provoked again, your grandmother—prepare to die.
She channeled Karmic Fire into Tantai Jin’s body.
His pupils trembled, and he raised a hand to touch the Cinnabar on her forehead, but his movement abruptly froze.
Karmic Fire ignited from his chest, instantly reducing him to ashes. That hand never reached Su Su, and his entire form gradually vanished.
Su Su saw a pair of stubborn, unwilling eyes.
The youth’s body dissipated, leaving only jagged, bizarre rocks in its place, and the flames vanished as well.
Su Su picked up the charred wood from the ground.
“So it was just a Puppet.”
No wonder, she thought. Since Tantai Jin had possessed the Divine Marrow for five hundred years, how could she have killed him so easily? He had emotions and desires, unable to enter the stone forest himself, so he had created a Puppet to do his bidding.
Su Su stepped out of the stone forest.
Tantai Jin opened his eyes.
The sky in the Secret Realm had taken on a faint purple hue. He looked at his own hands, gradually clenching them into fists.
How could it be? he wondered. Something so absurd existed in this world.
In the cultivation realm five hundred years in the future, he had seen the statue of the unattainable Goddess from his mortal days.
As a child, he had once swallowed her fragments bit by bit, and since then, he had never thought of her again.
Yet today, as the mermaid gauze burned away, he saw that face from his childhood once more.
And that long-lost feeling.
Countless nights, he had believed she was a true deity, hoping she would step out of that cold glass statue. Yet day after day, the statue of the Goddess remained as distant and unreachable as ever.He was just an ordinary soul among the masses, while her eyes forever gazed at the moonlight outside the window.
Back then, he had no love thread, yet from the statue of the Goddess, he first comprehended a malice beyond love threads—unwillingness.
He stained her with his own blood, and he even wanted to shatter her.
Unfortunately, she was later shattered by Tantai Minglang, but it didn’t matter. Many years later, Tantai Minglang was also torn to pieces, just like her.
Tantai Jin touched his neck, as if scorching flames had spread from the Puppet all the way to his body.
He pursed his lips.
Tantai Jin couldn’t ignore the strange feeling in his heart.
It wasn’t because of the stunning beauty of that unfamiliar girl. After five hundred years of drifting in the River of Wailing Ghosts, he had long seen all the beauties and decaying bones of the world; beauty and ugliness no longer held any distinction in his heart.
The thought of killing her stirred a faint discomfort within him.
But his expression turned cold. Ye Xi Wu must return, so she must die.
A miniature tiger lazily poked its head out from his collar and spoke in human tongue: "Huh? How did you get injured? Who could possibly hurt you?"
Tantai Jin was already irritated, and seeing such a foolish creature only annoyed him further. He spread his fingers, gripped its head, and said coldly, "Shut up."
The tiger demon immediately flattered Tantai Jin: "I spoke wrongly. You are invincible under the heavens."
It felt utterly wronged. It had thought that all Cultivators were even-tempered, but this was the only one it had ever met who was so moody.
It was unbearable for a tiger.
Tantai Jin tossed it into the Universe Bag. "I’ll let you out when you detect something that nourishes the soul."
The purple sky grew increasingly dense. He looked up at the heavens. "The Demonic Descent is coming."
Tantai Jin chose a direction. Whether to kill Li Susu or to figure out who she was, he had to follow her.
Not long after Su Su left the stone forest, she also noticed the eerie sky.
Purple spread across the heavens. On the way, she encountered a few disciples. When they saw Su Su, a flash of admiration crossed their eyes, and they kindly advised, "Fairy, the sky looks rather strange. If you’re not in a hurry, don’t search for treasures just yet. Find a place to take shelter."
Su Su said uncertainly, "This seems like a Demonic Descent."
As soon as she spoke, the group exchanged glances. They were all young disciples, but some had heard elder Immortals speak of what a Demonic Descent was, and their faces immediately paled.
Su Su had heard about it from the curved jade when she was young.
The curved jade had said—
"A Demonic Descent is a rare event that occurs once in ten thousand years. Sometimes it happens in the real world, sometimes in a Secret Realm. For Demonic Beasts, the Demonic Descent is a boon. When the demonic rain falls, if powerful Demonic Beasts absorb it, their Cultivation might advance by a whole realm. But for Cultivators, the Demonic Descent is more terrifying than corrosion. Not only does it taint the immortal body with Demonic Energy, but it also creates inner demons."
Remembering this, Su Su said, "Fellow Immortals, be careful. If it truly is a Demonic Descent, do not let the Demonic Energy touch you. Be sure to set up a Barrier."
"Thank you, Fairy." The disciples' expressions turned grave. They cupped their hands in salute and hurried past Su Su.
Su Su hadn’t expected something like a Demonic Descent to appear in the Cangyuan Secret Realm.
She grew worried about Fu Ya and the disciples of the Hengyang Sect.
After all, not everyone knew about the existence of the Demonic Descent. Everything she knew now was thanks to the Nine Heavens Jade that had once been by her side, possessing knowledge of strange tales and events since ancient times.
Only after leaving the stone forest did Su Su realize that half a month had already passed outside. She had no idea where Fu Ya was.Seeing the purple demonic energy about to engulf half the sky, she had no choice but to temporarily abandon searching for Fuyai and find a place to create a barrier to evade the demonic descent. Su Su finally settled beneath a pear blossom tree, sitting cross-legged as she formed hand seals to erect a barrier.
Just as the barrier was set, the jade bell at her waist suddenly chimed.
"Fuyai?" Su Su opened her eyes.
The jade bell rang with increasing intensity, and Su Su's heart sank—Fuyai was in danger.
Before leaving, fearing something might happen to her junior brother, she had secretly placed a protective feather on him that could shield him from one strike.
Now that the feather was gone, the bell had begun to ring.
But the demonic descent was imminent—where was Fuyai?
Su Su withdrew her hands from maintaining the barrier and used a tracking spell to locate him.
She hadn't gone far when strands of purple demonic energy began falling from the sky like a curtain. Having recently slain the Flame Beast, Su Su's spiritual power hadn't fully recovered. Now, while using the tracking spell to find Yue Fuyai and simultaneously maintaining her barrier, she found it increasingly strenuous.
She had been cultivating the Path of Ruthlessness for less than a month. Had she practiced longer, she would have possessed unparalleled strength, but time was too short—she hadn't had the chance to fully develop.
Worried about Fuyai, Su Su disregarded her limitations and flew forward using Sword Control.
Her Immortal Sword, tainted by the demonic energy of the descent, was gradually transforming into a demonic sword.
Su Su had no choice but to abandon the sword and press forward on foot, growing more exhausted with each step.
Along the way, she saw many disciples who couldn't evade the demonic descent suffering severe injuries.
Finally, beside a stream, she spotted a wounded figure in white.
"Fuyai!"
Yue Fuyai lay face down on the ground, unconscious, with a terrified Cen Mixuan crouched beside him.
"You... you, Li Susu."
Su Su ignored her and hurriedly lifted her junior brother. The demonic descent had been ongoing for a while—Cen Mixuan's clothes were torn and tattered, her expression dazed, but her protective robe had temporarily shielded her.
Fuyai wasn't nearly as fortunate. Demonic energy had already begun seeping into his body.
With a grave expression, Su Su didn't have time to investigate what had happened. She quickly embraced Fuyai and erected a barrier around them.
The pale youth in her arms seemed to sense something and struggled to open his eyes.
"Senior Sister..."
"Shh, don't speak. I'm here—you'll be fine."
Fuyai coughed weakly twice, gazing dazedly at Su Su's profile.
Cen Mixuan crouched nearby in panic. Though naive, she wasn't foolish—she knew the phenomenon in the sky was nothing good and hastily erected a barrier around herself as well.
As demonic energy corroded Fuyai's features, Su Su hesitated for a moment before raising her hand to cover his face.
Yue Fuyai grasped her wrist, shaking his head. "Senior Sister, don't."
Much wiser than Cen Mixuan, he understood he was likely contaminated by demonic energy—how could he transfer such a thing to Su Su?
Su Su said, "It's fine. The demonic energy won't affect me."
Yue Fuyai continued shaking his head, holding Su Su's hand to prevent her from transferring the demonic energy. He knew perfectly well that no matter who it was—even a spiritual body—expelling demonic energy from one's system would be excruciating.
Su Su seemed to sense something. She looked up and saw a young man in black robes in the distance, his gaze fixed on Yue Fuyai's hand holding hers.
Tantai Jin stood within the demonic descent without erecting a barrier, allowing the demonic energy to ravage his body. It was unclear whether he didn't care or couldn't feel the pain, indifferent to becoming a demon.
Su Su cursed under her breath. Damn it—trouble had to show up at a time like this.
She wasn't sure if she could protect both herself and Yue Fuyai under the demonic descent.Su Su watched Tantai Jin warily, afraid he would cause trouble at such a moment.
In the tense atmosphere, just as Tantai Jin raised his hand, a chubby hand landed on his shoulder.
"Oh dear, junior brother, I finally found you. What are you standing there dumbfounded for, silly child? This thing is a demonic descent. Quickly set up a barrier for yourself—don't let it taint your Dao Heart."
Tantai Jin turned his head and saw Cang Hai's worried face.
While muttering incessantly, Cang Hai helped his "young" junior brother set up a barrier. Though Cang Hai's cultivation wasn't high, he had broad experience. The moment the demonic descent appeared, he feared the worst, terrified that his exceptionally talented junior brother might perish in the Cangyuan Secret Realm. Not only would he have no face to meet their master, but he would also be consumed by guilt.
Tantai Jin frowned and said, "Let go."
"Come closer, junior brother. Your senior brother will protect you. Quickly sit down and expel the demonic energy." Cang Hai paid no attention to the violence in Tantai Jin's tone, simply assuming his junior brother had been contaminated by demonic energy and wasn't acting like himself.
Cang Hai forcibly restrained the grim-faced Tantai Jin. Seeing this, Su Su stifled a laugh—this disciple from the Carefree Sect had arrived at just the right time.
As a disciple of the Carefree Sect, Tantai Jin surely wouldn't want to kill anyone in front of Cang Hai.
After settling his "demonic energy-corrupted" junior brother, Cang Hai sighed as he looked at the impossibly beautiful face.
This level of handsomeness really didn't match their Carefree Sect's chubby recluses! While inwardly marveling, Cang Hai turned and saw Su Su, his eyes going wide. It was his first time seeing such a stunning beauty in the cultivation world!
Noticing his gaze, the beauty even nodded at him kindly.
Cang Hai leaned over and whispered excitedly in Tantai Jin's ear, "Junior brother, junior brother! She smiled at me, she smiled at me! Did you see?"
Tantai Jin cast a cold glance at Su Su but remained silent.
Cang Hai's timing was unfortunate. That person hoped he would follow the Immortal Path—he couldn't very well kill Cang Hai too.
Otherwise, when she woke up later and discovered he remained as cruel and violent as ever, making himself an outcast in the cultivation world, she would despise him even more.
Completely unaware he had just brushed with death, the cultivation world's hopeless romantic tugged at Tantai Jin and asked, "That Fairy is truly beautiful, isn't she? Junior brother."
Tantai Jin said nothing.
Pressed by Cang Hai, he couldn't bring himself to lie through his teeth. His thin lips moved slightly as he replied expressionlessly, "Yes."
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