Chapter 1605: Demon Girl Hua Jin
"What are you trying to do?" Qianye Ying'er said in a low voice.
They had used the Primordial Mystic Ark to escape the pursuit of the two Divine Lords, but the location they had teleported to turned out to be the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult, and Yun Che's first action was not to conceal his aura and flee, but to raise his demonic sword to the sky, effectively forcing himself back into danger.
Yun Che did not answer. The Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor Sword's black light shrouded the sky. The people of the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult also discovered Yun Che's location at that moment and began to hurriedly surround him... Just then, from all over the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult, hundreds of pitch-black light pillars shot up into the sky.
Beneath the light pillars, a dark profound array that enveloped the entire Thousand Wilds Divine Cult suddenly emerged, releasing a gloomy dark profound light.
The moment the dark profound array appeared, the already chaotic Thousand Wilds Divine Cult erupted into a sky-full of terrified shouts.
"This is... the sect-protecting grand array?" Qianye Ying'er's gaze flickered sharply.
"No, now it's a sect-destroying grand array," Yun Che said in a low, sinister voice.
"...This is also a power of Dark Eternal Calamity!?" Qianye Ying'er lifted her eyes to look at the black light on Yun Che's sword, her golden pupils completely dyed black by the radiance.
Dark Eternal Calamity, a creation divine power belonging to Jie Tian Mo Di, a power of such a level that was originally exclusive to Jie Tian Mo Di Jie Yuan. Not to mention mortals, even true gods and other creation gods could never hope to control it.
But on Yun Che, it displayed an increasingly terrifying demonic might, and its progress was extremely rapid.
The sect-protecting grand array was a sect's final trump card, and could only be activated under true desperate circumstances. Its power source was generally linked simultaneously to the souls of the most important figures in the sect. For anyone else to forcibly activate it was sheer fantasy.
And now, she was witnessing with her own eyes as Yun Che forcibly activated it... and moreover, he activated the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult's sect-protecting grand array with extreme ease!
Boom!
All the dark power was fully released, erupting violently. The sect-protecting grand array instantly transformed into a horrifying sect-destroying grand array. The entire Thousand Wilds Divine Cult was completely swallowed by darkness, as if suddenly plunged into a dark abyss of death. Endless screams merged into a funeral dirge that made the heavens and earth tremble.
"You're becoming more and more like a proper villain," Qianye Ying'er said, looking down... Using Dark Eternal Calamity to forcibly activate a dark profound array controlled by others—this heaven-defying ability would become the nightmare of who knows how many people in the future.
Yun Che sheathed his sword but did not leave immediately. His gaze turned toward the direction of the treasure vault he had entered earlier. A flash of black light passed through his pupils, and he pressed a finger to his brow. In an instant, as his finger left his brow, a faint black light flickered and coiled around his fingertip.
Then, as he pointed his finger, the black light drifted lightly down below.
"What is that?" This was yet another ability Qianye Ying'er had never seen in Yun Che.
"Dark Projection," Yun Che said. "It counts as one of the lowest abilities within Dark Eternal Calamity."
"Since it involved the Primordial World Pill, they would definitely go to check. Perhaps they would even reveal its origin because of it."
"Low?" Qianye Ying'er let out a faint snort. "A Demon Emperor's ability, no matter how low, is an undeniable heaven-defying power to the mortal world."
Projection abilities were not uncommon. Back in the Yan Shen Realm, Yun Che had witnessed the Vermilion Bird Sect Master Yan Wancang use the power of the Burial God Fire Prison to perform an extremely long-distance Vermilion Bird projection.
During the Mystic God Convention, the Zhou Tian Realm even projected it to every corner of the Eastern Divine Region.
The Dark Projection Yun Che performed was indeed derived from the power of Dark Eternal Calamity, and it was indeed just a perfectly normal projection ability... but its special feature was that, given the extremely high level of Dark Eternal Calamity, its existence could not be detected by anyone in the mortal world!
"Change our auras, let's go!"
Yun Che didn't look below again. He swept Qianye Ying'er up and sped southward.
Qianye Ying'er could use the Inverse Abyss Stone on her person to change her aura at any time. And Yun Che, with Dark Eternal Calamity within him, could freely alter the dark aura he emanated. Now that they had escaped the spiritual sense of the two Divine Lords, finding them again would be extremely difficult... because even if those two Divine Lords swept their spiritual sense over them, they would directly skip over their "completely unfamiliar" auras.
After leaving the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult and fleeing a great distance, Yun Che and Qianye Ying'er began to slow down.
Yun Che dispelled the Phantom Lightning Extreme and suddenly glanced at Qianye Ying'er. "Put your mask on!"
"That thing—when you told me to take it off, I casually threw it away," Qianye Ying'er said, casting a cold sidelong glance. "What, you didn't notice?"
"..." Yun Che reached out and grabbed a piece of dark profound crystal. A flash of light in his hand, and the dark profound light transformed into a plain, unadorned mask shape. He handed it to Qianye Ying'er. "Put it on!"
But Qianye Ying'er did not reach out to take it. She even turned her face away. "Can't you figure out why I threw it away? This ugly, black thing—keep it for yourself!"
Yun Che frowned. He flipped his palm, and the dark aura in the crystal was quickly dispelled. After thinking for a moment, the profound light in his hand changed slightly. He infused some Ice Phoenix divine power into the crystal, turning it into a pure, crystalline ice blue. Then, after another thought, he reshaped it into a somewhat delicate phoenix wing form.
"That's more like it." Qianye Ying'er finally turned her gaze back. Her jade hand snatched it straight from Yun Che's grasp, put it on her face, and once again concealed most of her exquisite features.
"They did go there," Yun Che suddenly said at that moment. In his eyes, a strange black light flickered.
"Manifest it for me to see," Qianye Ying'er said. Since it concerned a divine object like the Primordial World Pill, which would shake the world upon discovery, she couldn't help but be interested.
Yun Che did not refuse. With a flash of his eyes, black mist swirled before him, and within the mist, an image gradually enlarged. In the image were the two who had been pursuing them—the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader and the middle-aged man who was likely from the Burning Moon King Realm!
The target they were pursuing had suddenly and inexplicably vanished without a trace. The two were still in shock and confusion, and the commotion from Thousand Wilds Mountain gave them even greater alarm. They hurried back, and what they saw was undoubtedly horrifying to the extreme.
"What happened!? What's going on!?"
The Thousand Wilds Cult Leader felt his limbs go cold, his scalp numb, and he was on the verge of collapse. Suddenly, he thought of something, his pupils contracted, he murmured "Dian'er," and frantically rushed down.
But his arm was grabbed. He turned back and saw that the other's expression was even more terrifying than his own. "Forget about Dian'er! The Dustless Barrier... go check the Dustless Barrier now!"
The Thousand Wilds Cult Leader shuddered, his mind clearing somewhat. He quickly said, "Ninth Uncle, rest assured... rest assured. The treasure vault is impenetrable, and a being like the Dustless Barrier simply cannot be found by anyone."
"Stop talking nonsense, go... go!" To him, the thing inside the Dustless Barrier was far more important than the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult... than a hundred Thousand Wilds Divine Cults!
The two no longer cared about anything else and dashed down.
The forcibly activated sect-protecting grand array had destroyed nearly thirty percent of the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult. Although the treasure vault had received the utmost protection, it was located exactly at the center of the grand array. When the protective power was reversed into destructive force, it had suffered the greatest impact, and was mostly destroyed.
Seeing the treasure vault exposed to the sun and clearly largely emptied, both their faces changed drastically. They rushed at top speed to the corner where the Dustless Barrier was hidden. The scene they saw made both their souls flee in terror.
"Dustless... Barrier..." The middle-aged man stepped back, his whole body cold. Suddenly, he grabbed the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader, his eyes bulging, and roared like a madman: "Where's the Dustless Barrier!? Where did it go!? Where did it go!!"
"I... I don't know..." The Thousand Wilds Cult Leader had completely lost his wits. "Six hours ago, I specifically checked... This is impossible, this is impossible..."
"You... you..." The middle-aged man trembled all over, his face as black as a demon's. His curled fingers almost drew blood. "Do you know how much His Majesty values the thing in the Dustless Barrier!? I tell you, for this great crime, even a thousand lives... cannot atone for it!"
"His Majesty?" Qianye Ying'er's expression shifted slightly. She glanced at the middle-aged man's attire and snorted lightly. "This person is indeed a divine envoy of the Burning Moon King Realm. That is to say, that Primordial World Pill is indeed a possession of the Burning Moon King Realm!"
"But why didn't the Burning Moon King Realm use it, instead hiding it in a place like this?" Qianye Ying'er murmured.
"It's those two people!" The Thousand Wilds Cult Leader desperately clung to his last straw. "They must have taken it! As long as we catch them, we can get the Dustless Barrier back. They... they can't have gotten far."
"Heh," the Burning Moon Divine Envoy sneered. "Why don't you use your brain and think carefully? Why would they come here specifically and find the location of the Dustless Barrier so precisely?"
The Thousand Wilds Cult Leader was stunned, his face changing again. "Could it be that they are..."
"Soul Plunder Realm," the Burning Moon Divine Envoy said in a low, deep voice. "They must be people from Soul Plunder Realm! The Dustless Barrier has no aura and no form. Only Soul Plunder Realm could possibly sense the location of this Dustless Barrier."
"..." Yun Che and Qianye Ying'er were both stunned.
"Soul Plunder Realm? What does this Primordial World Pill have to do with Soul Plunder Realm?" Qianye Ying'er muttered to herself.
She suddenly felt a slight sense of unease.
The Burning Moon Divine Envoy stopped speaking. He released the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader, rose into the air, and extended his hands forward. Before him, a full-moon-shaped dark profound array blazed up. As the array rotated, a blurry image slowly reflected.
Although it was an image where one could barely see the features and only roughly capture the silhouette, it silently exuded a majesty that matched the heavens.
Facing this blurry image, the Burning Moon Divine Envoy bowed in the air. "Greetings, Your Majesty. Disturbing Your Majesty's cultivation is a crime punishable by death."
Hearing this, the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader's whole body shook violently. A chilling stiffness seeped into his very marrow. His knees instantly gave way, and he collapsed to the ground. Both his body and voice trembled in extreme fear. "Y-y-your... little... little king... Thousand Wilds... pays homage... pays homage to the Burning Moon God Emperor..."
"How splendid," Qianye Ying'er murmured with narrowed eyes. "So it did alarm the Burning Moon God Emperor. Too bad I can't see his face. I would really like to see what the God Emperors of the Northern Divine Region look like."
"What major matter?" The Burning Moon God Emperor's voice came from the array, every word carrying demonic might that shook the soul.
If it were not a major matter, how would a Burning Moon Divine Envoy dare to activate this array? The Burning Moon Divine Envoy's throat bobbed as he forced out the words. "Reporting to Your Majesty... the Dustless Barrier hidden in the Thousand Wilds Realm has been... been..."
The Burning Moon Divine Envoy's voice stopped, unable to continue. Because he clearly felt a terrifying gaze that, in that instant, almost pierced his trembling soul.
An extremely dreadful silence followed. Then the Burning Moon God Emperor's voice sounded again, only two words: "Who... is it?"
The Burning Moon Divine Envoy's gaze turned to the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader. In his fear, the Cult Leader had a sudden flash of inspiration and shouted, "I... I remember now! Those two people... one of them... his name is... is Yun Che!"
The Burning Moon Divine Envoy whirled his head. "What did you say? Are you sure of that name? I've never heard of such a figure in Soul Plunder Realm!"
"No, he should not be from Soul Plunder Realm," the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader said hurriedly. "Just a few days ago, my sect's Great Guardian, the Divine Void Daoist, went to the Tiangang Cloud Clan on business and was killed by a person named 'Yun Che'! According to reports, the woman traveling with him had extremely rare golden hair."
"And those two just now... that woman also had golden hair! In all my years in the Thousand Wilds Realm, I've never seen a woman with golden hair. This cannot be a coincidence."
"..." A thousand miles away, Yun Che glanced sideways at Qianye Ying'er and said coldly, "Your hair is really troublesome. Why don't you conceal it!"
Though she had lost her Fan God power and hated Qianye Fantian even more bitterly, Qianye Ying'er had always refused to give up her hair color.
Qianye Ying'er said, "The profound arts of the Brahma Emperor Divine Realm can release golden profound light and can also turn hair a radiant gold. But my hair color does not originate from the Brahma God power I once used—it comes from my mother."
Yun Che: "..."
"So this is the thing I can least bear to give up." There was no coldness in Qianye Ying'er's words, only a plain, steadfast resolve.
"No one is asking you to give it up," Yun Che ordered. "Conceal it! You should hate flaws the most, shouldn't you? Especially such an obvious flaw!"
Qianye Ying'er gave a cold snort. A black light flashed in her pupils, and in an instant, her golden hair, under the swirling black light, turned into a pitch-black color like the dark night.
"Yun Che... is he a member of the Sin Yun Clan?" the Burning Moon Divine Envoy said in a deep voice.
"No," said the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader. "In the past few days, I have been preparing a major event and have not personally gone to the Sin Yun Clan, but I have also investigated Yun Che's origins. He is not a member of the Sin Yun Clan; he came from the Dark Ruin Five Realms and arrived in the Thousand Wilds Realm only a month ago."
"It seems there are spies of the Thousand Wilds Divine Cult within the Tiangang Cloud Clan," Qianye Ying'er said.
"Isn't that only natural?" Yun Che said coldly.
The Thousand Wilds Cult Leader's voice became eager and urgent. "Now that his identity is known, with the heaven-reaching power of the Burning Moon King Realm, he can't possibly escape. The Dustless Barrier will surely return to the God Emperor's hands immediately."
Within the profound array, the Burning Moon God Emperor remained silent.
At that moment, a woman's voice rang out. "Are you sure that person is called 'Yun Che'?"
The voice was faint and soft, yet it seemed to come from right beside them. The hair on both the Burning Moon Divine Envoy and the Thousand Wilds Cult Leader stood on end. They whirled around...
A woman stood quietly in the air, surrounded by sparkling, colorful light, less than twenty zhang away from them.
And yet, so close, these two Divine Lords had been completely unaware of her presence.