Chapter 1739: Ice Shadow (Part 1)
Eastern Divine Region, Yin Xue Realm.
When Yun Che had just chased after Xia Qingyue into the Tai Chu Divine Realm, Yin Xue Realm finally welcomed... a calamity that was not entirely unexpected.
As the star realm where the Demon Lord Yun Che had "originated" in the Divine Realm, while countless surrounding star realms were plunged into the Dark Calamity, its continued peace was, in itself, a sin.
When it was confirmed that Yin Xue Realm would not be attacked by the demonic forces, countless fleeing profound practitioners from the surrounding star realms rushed in, eager for refuge. Throughout the peripheral regions of Yin Xue Realm, almost every human city was overcrowded, with all kinds of major and minor disturbances erupting.
But perhaps out of fear of the Bing Huang God Sect, not many foreign profound practitioners tried to approach the central Bing Huang Realm. This fear was not entirely due to the strength of the Bing Huang God Sect, but rather because it was the sect where the Demon Lord Yun Che had once studied.
When his face was projected across the Eastern Divine Region through the Zhou Tian projection, it had left an incredibly terrifying shadow on all profound practitioners of the Eastern Domain. This shadow caused the Bing Huang God Sect to unconsciously gain an additional layer of dark deterrence in the minds of all profound practitioners.
But besides deterrence, it could also bring...
Crack!!
The snowy white sky suddenly filled with purple lightning. With a loud explosion, a hundred bolts of lightning descended abruptly, striking the barrier of the Bing Huang Realm.
Under the thunderous roar, the Bing Huang barrier instantly cracked countless times, emitting a prolonged shriek as it trembled, violently shattering the tranquility of this snowy region.
In the distant sky above, the demoness Chan Yi cast her gaze downward and gave a light glance.
What was bound to come had indeed arrived.
The Bing Huang Realm shook as countless ice shadows quickly rose into the air. Mu Bingyun and Mu Huanzhi were the first to fly out of the Bing Huang Realm, their eyes fixed toward the uninvited guests descending from afar.
To be able to impact the Bing Huang barrier to such an extent with a single flash of lightning—that was clearly the power of the Divine Lord Realm!
The swirling mist of ice gradually dispersed, revealing the figures of eight men in the sunken snowy region. They were all dressed in deep purple outer garments engraved with lightning runes, most of their clothes stained with blood. Their faces and hands were covered in wounds, and their expressions were dark with a hint of ferocity.
"Roaring Divine Thunder," Mu Huanzhi muttered softly at a low pitch. He recognized at a glance that the thunder that had just struck the Bing Huang barrier was the unique profound thunder of the Jing Lei Realm. But when he saw the man leading them, his old eyes sharply contracted, and his last shred of hope vanished.
The Jing Lei Realm King... Li Daodan!
"So it's the Jing Lei Realm King who graces us with his presence." Mu Bingyun's icy brows and cold eyes spoke: "My Yin Xue Realm seems to have never had a particularly deep relationship with your Jing Lei Realm. If the Jing Lei Realm King has come here to take refuge, you may do as you please. There is no need for such a grand gesture!"
"Heh..." Li Daodan let out a cold laugh, but his smile was somewhat twisted and ugly.
His body bore numerous wounds from dark profound energy corrosion, clearly indicating that not long ago, he had engaged a Divine Lord-level demonic cultivator of superior strength, with rather embarrassing results.
"Yin Xue Realm King," Li Daodan spoke without any pretense, his voice deep and dark: "Now that all realms of the Eastern Domain are being invaded by demonic forces, only your Yin Xue Realm remains unscathed! It seems Yun Che... that Dark Demon Lord, really does cherish old ties!"
There were only eight people opposite them, but they included one second-stage Divine Lord and seven Divine Sovereigns! Even if the Bing Huang God Sect mustered its full strength, the hope of resisting them was virtually nonexistent.
Mu Huanzhi stepped forward, using the most conciliatory tone possible: "Jing Lei Realm King, Yun Che was indeed a disciple of the Bing Huang God Sect back then. But he was expelled from the sect very early on and has long since had no connection with our Bing Huang God Sect."
"Furthermore," Mu Huanzhi lowered his voice slightly, "my Yin Xue Realm is under the protection of the Yue Shen Realm. This is known throughout the Eastern Domain. If the Jing Lei Realm King comes as a guest, our sect will naturally welcome you. But if it is for other reasons, the Jing Lei Realm King should think thrice."
Throughout the Bing Huang God Sect, everyone knew that the word "Yue Shen Realm" must never be mentioned in front of Mu Bingyun. But faced with the Jing Lei Realm King, who came with murderous intent, he had no choice but to use the Yue Shen Realm as a shield.
"Yue Shen Realm?" Hearing Mu Huanzhi's words, Li Daodan showed not the slightest fear, but rather a mocking expression: "Hehehe... Where is the Yue Shen Realm now? The Yue Shen Realm has already been blown to smithereens by the demonic forces! What? You don't know yet?"
"Wh... what!?" Mu Huanzhi was greatly shocked, unable to believe his ears.
Mu Bingyun's eyes also shot up sharply, her gaze filled with astonishment.
After all, Yin Xue Realm is located at the very edge of the Eastern Divine Region and had long since closed its boundaries, so it had not received this horrifying, soul-shaking news.
Li Daodan waved his arm, and violent lightning immediately coiled around his entire body. A overwhelming oppressive force enveloped almost the entire Bing Huang Realm. His gaze was cold and gloomy as he spoke sinisterly: "Back then, my son Jianming died at the hands of demonic cultivators! My Jing Lei Realm... will forever be at odds with demonic cultivators!"
"Now, my Jing Lei Sect has been invaded by demonic forces, suffering heavy losses! It's time for us to collect our debts."
Crack!
As his five fingers spread open, lightning clashed and rampaged, and an even more terrifying pressure descended.
Li Daodan's voice trembled slightly. Facing the fearless demonic forces, the devastation of his Jing Lei Sect was far more than "heavy," but he naturally had no face to admit that he had abandoned his sect and fled. His heart was full of resentment and frustration, and he only wanted to vent it all on the Bing Huang God Sect.
"If I slaughter your Bing Huang Sect, that Northern Domain Demon Lord..." He grinned, his smile gradually turning ferocious: "He must be feeling quite pleased!"
"Wait! There must be some misunderstanding!" Mu Huanzhi said urgently: "The first rule of our Bing Huang God Sect's regulations is that when encountering demonic cultivators, we must do our utmost to exter—"
"There's no need to say more to them!"
Before Mu Huanzhi could finish, Mu Bingyun spoke coldly. A flash of cold light appeared in her hand, and the Snow Princess Sword gleamed brilliantly: "Li Daodan, if the Jing Lei Realm has encountered a demonic calamity, yet you appear here, it seems you have chosen to be a cowardly dog who flees in fear of death!"
"Bingyun!" Mu Huanzhi was greatly alarmed... in his panic, he even called her by her given name.
"Now you come scurrying to my Yin Xue Realm, preaching righteousness and flaunting your power!? You are worthy of being an upper Realm King? You are utterly disgraceful!"
She saw at a glance that this Jing Lei Realm King had come to vent his anger after being defeated by the demonic cultivators. Bending and scraping to him would only bring humiliation upon themselves.
"Hehehe," Li Daodan's face turned ugly: "What a fine... Yin Xue Realm King!"
Watching the lightning aura about to explode from Li Daodan's body, the demoness Chan Yi raised her finger... Suddenly, her expression changed slightly. She quickly withdrew the dark profound energy she was about to release, and her figure concealed itself even deeper behind the snowy clouds.
"Hahaha, well said. A piece of trash like this is worthy of being an upper Realm King?"
A calm laugh sounded without warning. Accompanying the laughter was an invisible pressure that was not particularly strong, but instantly silenced the cold wind across ten thousand miles of snowy region.
Even the thunderclouds that Li Daodan had just condensed in the sky vanished without a trace in an instant.
Under the pressure, Li Daodan's expression changed drastically. He twisted his head sharply... In the boundless white snow, a figure stood quietly. No one knew when he had appeared there, or perhaps he had been there all along.
His face was fair and clean, his expression calm and smiling, and he wore a light golden robe. The moment he appeared, even the endless snowy radiance dimmed.
When the divine pattern on his golden robe reflected in Li Daodan's eyes, his entire body trembled, and the words that came out of his mouth carried a deep terror: "Fan... Fan King!"
Exclaiming in shock, he immediately recovered his senses and hastily bowed in obeisance: "Jing Lei Realm King Li Daodan pays respects to Lord Fan King."
Upon hearing the words "Fan King," the seven Divine Sovereigns behind Li Daodan were so startled that their faces lost all color, and they hurriedly bowed as well.
This person was none other than one of the Fan Kings of the Fan Di God Realm!
The imperial majesty of the Fan Di Realm and the unique golden divine pattern on his outer garment clearly proved his identity. Without casting a glance at Li Daodan, he walked forward slowly. Under the startled gazes of the Bing Huang crowd, he actually gave a slight bow and said: "I am Qianye Zixiao, the Tenth Fan King of the Fan Di God Realm. I have been ordered by His Highness to come and invite the Ice Cloud Realm King, Mu Bingyun, to be a guest in our Fan Di Realm."
As his words fell, before the Bing Huang God Sect people could respond, he suddenly swung his arm backward, and a golden handprint flew out into the air.
Smack!!!
This was absolutely the loudest slap everyone present had ever heard in their lives.
When the golden handprint struck Li Daodan's face, the earth trembled violently, and ten thousand miles of snow were shaken into the air, followed by a blizzard that blotted out the sky and covered the sun.
Li Daodan was sent flying dozens of miles by that single slap. All his teeth were broken, and the bones on the right side of his forehead and cheek were completely shattered. When he staggered to his feet, his entire left face was a bloody mess, half human, half ghost.
"Hmph! You suffer defeat at the hands of demonic cultivators, yet come here to bully an innocent mid-level star realm?" Qianye Zixiao did not turn his head, letting out a light laugh: "How utterly shameful and disgraceful."
Li Daodan's vision was blurred with blood, his whole body trembling. As soon as he opened his mouth, crimson blood mixed with teeth gushed wildly from his numb mouth.
"The Ice Cloud Realm King is a distinguished guest that His Highness wishes to invite. How dare you be so rude? This was merely a minor punishment. If there is a next time..." He glanced slightly to the side: "Hmph, get lost!"
Li Daodan covered his left face, then suddenly turned and fled in a panic, not daring to say a single word. The seven Divine Sovereigns who had come with him also quickly followed, utterly embarrassed.
Turning his gaze back, Qianye Zixiao's face had already returned to a smile: "Ice Cloud Realm King, I have clearly stated my intention in coming. I hope the Ice Cloud Realm King will do me the honor and accompany me to the Fan Di God Realm."
High above in the distant sky, Chan Yi withdrew her aura and immediately transmitted a message to Chi Wuyue: "Master, the situation has changed. The Tenth Fan King has appeared in Yin Xue Realm."
"He wants to take Mu Bingyun away. However, he has not shown any aggression; on the contrary, he is very polite."
In another space, Chi Wuyue frowned deeply.
A Fan King of the Fan Di God Realm? How could he appear in Yin Xue Realm at this time?
The Fan Di God Realm is in the southern part of the Eastern Region, while Yin Xue Realm is at the extreme north of the Eastern Region. Under the circumstances where important dimensional formations in the Eastern Divine Region were destroyed as soon as the attack began, for a Fan King to be able to evade the eyes and ears of all demonic cultivators and appear in Yin Xue Realm at this moment...
There was only one possibility:
Before the all-out descent of the demonic forces erupted, when they were merely making a show of attacking the northern border, the Fan Di God Realm had already dispatched a Fan King to quietly approach Yin Xue Realm!
At that time, even the Zhou Tian God Realm had not taken it seriously, let alone sensed the imminent catastrophic doom. Yet the Fan Di God Realm had already taken action.
Qianye Fantian... this number one Divine Emperor of the Northern Domain, his instincts were truly astonishing!
At that time, he certainly could not have foreseen today's situation. Yet he had made such preparations with extreme caution.
"Do not make a move," Chi Wuyue said with a heavy brow.
"Chan Yi understands," the demoness Chan Yi said, her expression quite grave as she looked down below.
If it came to a direct confrontation, she was not afraid of this Tenth Fan King in the slightest.
But the Bing Huang God Sect could absolutely not withstand the shockwaves of their clash.
"After he takes Mu Bingyun far away, I will find an opportunity in the starry domain to rescue her," she said in a low voice.
"No," Chi Wuyue countered: "You stay in Yin Xue Realm and prevent any other accidents. I will handle this matter myself!"
Ending the transmission, Chi Wuyue's charming eyes turned cold with frost. She suddenly felt grateful that she had remained in the northern border of the Eastern Domain.
Mu Bingyun was the only living relative Mu Xuanyin had in this world.
Whether for Yun Che's sake or out of personal selfishness, she could not allow her to come to harm!