# Chapter 2032: Instant Soul Capture
"Killing you outright would indeed be a bit troublesome." Yun Che showed a hint of hesitation: "After all, your body bears the soul imprint left by your father god. Killing you would invite the pursuit of the Divine Kingdom… tsk, troublesome."
Yun Che's words seemed to hand Meng Jianzhou a lifeline. He lunged forward and rasped, "Yes… yes! You can't kill me, I have my father god's soul imprint… you can't kill me!"
"Let… let me go! I'll do anything you want… I have soul crystals… and Soul Harmony Pills…"
He searched frantically for any hope of survival, his mind nearly deranged. "Oh, right… and this Soul-Wrapping Divine Garment I'm wearing… whatever you want, I'll give… give it all to you!"
"Ha!" Yun Che sneered contemptuously. "If I kill you, don't I get all those things anyway?"
"No… you can't kill me…" Meng Jianzhou shook his head frantically. "My father god… he won't let you off…"
Yun Che suddenly laughed. He walked slowly closer, the slight difficulty on his face from before vanishing without a trace, replaced by the contempt of someone looking at a clown: "Meng Jianzhou, you really are too stupid to be saved."
"If you had only claimed that you bore the soul imprint left by the Dreamless Divine Venerable, it might have actually made someone hesitate and thus preserve your life. But unfortunately, you were stupid enough to reveal the nature of that soul imprint." Looking down at Meng Jianzhou's crack-riddled eyes, Yun Che's voice lowered slowly: "Ten breaths, and it only carries images and sounds, not transmitting thoughts. Such a low-level soul imprint… clearly your father god doesn't think much of you."
"Then again, the Dreamless Divine Venerable has many children and grandchildren. Why would he care about a useless blockhead like you? That younger brother of yours, Meng Jianxi—it would be only natural for the Dreamless Divine Venerable to scatter one percent of his divine soul onto him. But for you? Even one ten-thousandth of a divine soul would make me feel regret and heartache on his behalf."
These words once again stabbed deeply into Meng Jianzhou's most painful spot, causing every muscle on his face to twitch violently.
"With such a low-level soul imprint, dealing with it is almost too easy." Yun Che's smile grew even more sinister. "A Divine Venerable's son as stupid as you… I'm afraid you won't find a second one in the entire Abyss."
Meng Jianzhou no longer cared about Yun Che's insults. He could only beg madly: "Don't kill me… don't kill me! You… you… I'll do anything you want…"
Yun Che lowered his brows and narrowed his eyes: "What? Your way of begging for mercy is just repeating the same dry words that even a three-year-old wouldn't bother saying a second time? Didn't your father god teach you how to survive when facing death?"
Death? As the son of a Divine Venerable, when had he ever faced death?
Even when he came to the Mist Sea for training, Meng Jingzhe was always there to protect him.
"If your own father didn't teach you…" Yun Che crossed his arms over his chest, looking like he wouldn't kill him for now but instead would toy with him to his heart's content: "Come on, beg me. Beg sincerely enough, and I'll teach you. It might come in handy once you're down in the underworld."
Meng Jianzhou shrank back and looked up. This great humiliation had now become a ray of hope for survival: "Please… please… teach me."
"…" The corner of Yun Che's eye twitched slightly. He suddenly felt that Meng Jingzhe, who had just been slapped to death by the Abyss Qilin God, had it pretty tough.
The dignified Dreamless Divine Venerable had raised such a son. If he weren't one of only two legitimate sons, instead of scattering his soul to plant a soul imprint on him, he would have personally strangled him out of fatherly love.
"Hmph!" Yun Che snorted derisively. "If you had been this obedient from the start, how could you have ended up like this?"
"Alright. Since you, a Divine Venerable's son, are groveling on the ground and begging me to teach you, how could I refuse?" As a lone invader, an arch-villain determined to overturn the entire Abyss, he believed his expression at this moment was no less sinister than any villain he had encountered in his life: "For a person facing death, there is only one way to survive—sufficient usefulness and leverage."
Yun Che raised his hand and said slowly: "Sufficient usefulness will make the other party reluctant to kill you. Sufficient leverage will ensure the other party has no worries afterward. Understand?"
"I understand, I understand!" Having it explained so plainly, how could Meng Jianzhou not understand? There was no shame or reluctance on his face, only a suddenly magnified hope: "I have usefulness. I… I am the son of a Divine Venerable. Killing me would only cost one life and leave future troubles. Let me go… whatever you want from the Weaving Dream Divine Kingdom… I can give it to you… I am my father god's legitimate son… I can get anything… believe me!"
Under the dual pressure of despair and hope, his mind seemed to clear up a lot, and his speech became smoother.
Yun Che let out a cold laugh: "Usefulness is indeed tempting, but the most important thing is leverage—leverage that ensures you won't betray me and eliminates all worries."
"So," he stared at that fawning face, "what leverage do you have?"
Just as Meng Jianzhou was about to speak, Yun Che suddenly extended his hand, his palm aimed straight at his head, and his voice turned grim: "You only have one chance. If the leverage you offer isn't solid enough, then I'll just have to test how hard your head is!"
Although his aura was only at the Divine Lord realm, Meng Jianzhou had personally experienced the terror of Yun Che's power and dared not doubt that he could blow his head apart in an instant… not to mention behind him was that terrifying abyss beast that had flattened Meng Jingzhe into a meat patty.
His throat made a loud "gulp," and the "leverage" that was about to come out was swallowed back down. Finally, he steeled himself and said with a trembling voice: "Meng Jianyuan… was killed by me!"
"…" Yun Che's gaze turned cold, a look of disappointment and killing intent on his face: "Meng Jianyuan? What kind of thing is that? Is that the leverage you're talking about? Looks like you want to test how hard your own head is!"
"No, no, no, no!" Meng Jianzhou collapsed to the ground in fear, shaking his head frantically. He hadn't expected that this person wouldn't even know the name "Meng Jianyuan."
"Me… Meng Jianyuan isn't a thing. He was a Divine Son… the Weaving Dream Divine Son before Meng Jianxi. Everyone thought he was assassinated by another Divine Kingdom, but actually… actually it was me who killed him!"
"This really is my greatest leverage. If my father god finds out… not just my father god, but the entire Weaving Dream Divine Kingdom won't tolerate me."
Meng Jianzhou spoke hurriedly in a trembling voice, terrified that Yun Che would strike at any moment.
"…" Judging by his appearance, he didn't seem to be lying. Yun Che narrowed his eyes slightly: Killing his own blood brother, and the Divine Son of his own Divine Kingdom at that? Could it be that this guy was once a ruthless and vicious character?
At the same time, it showed that the Meng Jianzhou of those days had barely qualified to compete with that former Weaving Dream Divine Son.
And now he's in this state?
It seemed that the current Weaving Dream Divine Son, Meng Jianxi, was definitely not someone easy to deal with. Most likely, it was he who had kicked Meng Jianzhou, once full of dark ambition, step by step into the mud, never daring to lift his head again.
However, the drama of blood brothers scheming against each other for status was all too common. Even in mortal imperial families it was like this, let alone in the supreme Divine Kingdoms.
This was not at all the Divine Kingdom information Yun Che wanted to extract. He had absolutely no interest.
But he put on a very interested expression: "You? Kill the former Weaving Dream Divine Son? A coward like you deserves that? Before you make up lies in your next life, first piss on yourself and look at your own reflection!"
Slash!
Thunderlight suddenly appeared between Yun Che's palms, releasing a savage aura of destruction and killing intent as it crackled.
Meng Jianzhou let out a terrified shriek. He backed away on his arms and legs, stammering pleas: "I'm not making up lies… everything I said is true… if you don't believe me… you can probe my memories!"
As soon as he said that, his eyes widened, as if he had grabbed onto a lifeline again: "Yes! Look at my memories! If there's a single word of falsehood, may heaven and earth destroy me!"
Yun Che raised an eyebrow and suddenly felt a bit bored.
He had only applied half the pressure, and this guy had volunteered it himself.
The Demon Empress's usual tactic… it seemed to work well in any world.
No, he should say that Meng Jianzhou's backbone was soft far beyond his already low expectations.
The thunderlight in his hand softened a bit. Yun Che narrowed his eyes and looked him over. After a brief consideration, he said: "Fine. After I probe and confirm that you're not lying… if you truly have this kind of leverage and ability, I might indeed consider letting you go."
"After all, who would refuse a friend from a Divine Kingdom who can't betray them?"
Meng Jianzhou was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly: "You… go ahead and probe! My life is in your hands. How could I dare to lie?"
He took the initiative to move closer. When Yun Che's hand pressed against his head, he opened his soul sea wide, his face full of fawning smiles: "With this leverage in your hands, I'll have no choice but to obey you from now on… heh… hehe."
He felt no shame. He even felt that his choice had never been more correct.
Dignity? Honor? Leverage? Nothing was more important than preserving his life at this moment.
And the other party… was an utter monster!
A monster who could make the terrifying abyss beast obey his commands!
The image of the Abyss Qilin God obediently prostrating when Yun Che raised his hand was infinitely more terrifying to him than Yun Che personally killing Meng Jingzhe.
Since even Meng Jingzhe had died miserably at his hands, if he could preserve his life here… how remarkable would that be!
"Shut up," Yun Che snorted coldly. His soul force surged rather roughly, directly invading Meng Jianzhou's soul sea.
His soul force surged in without any obstruction or resistance, and without any sign of a counterattack.
Sensing his soul force invasion, Meng Jianzhou hurriedly took the initiative to direct the memory of how he assassinated Meng Jianyuan toward Yun Che's soul.
A strange light flashed in Yun Che's eyes. His Arcane Firmament shot out instantly, piercing through Meng Jianzhou's soul sea along with his soul force.
It was the technique he hadn't used for a long time… Arcane Firmament Soul-Seizing!
To obtain as much and as deep information about the Divine Kingdoms as possible, plundering the memories of an important figure from a Divine Kingdom was undoubtedly the best and fastest method. Ever since his Arcane Firmament had transformed, this thought had lingered in his soul sea. But he was well aware that this idea was far too idealistic. How easy was it to encounter an important figure from a Divine Kingdom? And even if he did, could the current him really handle them?
Even if, by a million-to-one chance, he could handle them, the will and soul of an important figure from a Divine Kingdom were incredibly tough. How could they be so easily plundered?
This overly idealistic thought had basically been completely abandoned…
Until he encountered Meng Jianzhou again at the outer edges of the Mist Sea.
At the moment their eyes met, Meng Jianzhou was excited at finding a toy… little did he know that the Yun Che opposite him was thousands of times more excited than he was.
It was like finding a Wu Guike from the Abyss!
Back in the lower realm, because souls were fragile, there existed a "soul-searching" technique that forcibly probed memories. Although it was a forbidden art strictly prohibited by righteous paths, just like the "slave mark," it was actually quite common in dark corners. Arcane Firmament Soul-Seizing was essentially a form of soul-searching that didn't damage a person's soul, thus escaping the category of "forbidden arts."
But once one cultivated to the Divine Soul Realm, the soul underwent a qualitative change, making it almost impossible to forcibly search souls.
Thus, in the God Realm, the word "soul-searching" was basically unheard of, and Arcane Firmament Soul-Seizing was also almost impossible to perform on practitioners of the divine path.
The only one who could forcibly plunder the consciousness of a strong practitioner was Chi Wuyue, who possessed the Nirvana Wheel Demon Soul… but even Chi Wuyue, when facing strong practitioners like Long Bai and Mo Beichen, could only plunder when their souls were on the verge of dissipating.
Because it involved the divine soul, the chance of failure was high. And once it failed, the backlash was too terrifying.
Meng Jianzhou's cultivation was as high as the Half-step Divine Annihilation Realm, and as the son of the Weaving Dream Divine Kingdom's Divine Venerable, he specialized in soul power. Forcibly plundering his memories with Arcane Firmament Soul-Seizing was basically impossible.
But…
A passive invasion of the soul sea and an active invitation were two completely different concepts.
When he, in his desperate grasp for a lifeline, actively invited Yun Che's soul force into his soul sea… everything was out of his control.
The invading Arcane Firmament was like a storm, rolling through Meng Jianzhou's soul sea at great speed.
"What… what are you doing!"
No matter how cowardly and afraid of death Meng Jianzhou was, he would never dare to remain passive in such a situation. His soul sea contracted violently, and tens of thousands of soul threads rapidly condensed.
But before his soul force attack could take shape, Yun Che's Arcane Firmament had already withdrawn along with his soul.
He was now extremely cautious in everything, especially wary of greed. He didn't risk forcibly plundering all of Meng Jianzhou's memories, but only seized the most superficial ones… that is, the most important and most recent memories of his life.
His hand moved away from Meng Jianzhou's head, and Yun Che's gaze flickered.
There was no abnormality deep in his soul, but Meng Jianzhou was absolutely certain that Yun Che had done something to him. He shrank back, trembling, and said, "You… what did you do to me?"
"Nothing." Yun Che wore a gentle, kind smile. "Just making your death more valuable."
With harmless eyes and a warm tone, he spoke the most venomous words: "Now, you can die in peace."
"You—"
Meng Jianzhou only had time to spit out a single word before his throat was firmly locked by Yun Che's hand. The suddenly released dark profound light instantly devoured his windpipe.
He could no longer make any human sounds, only hoarse, desperate, strange cries.
With a flick of his arm, Meng Jianzhou was accurately thrown under the claw of the Abyss Qilin God, which had conveniently raised its paw.
Boom!!
The Qilin claw smashed down, mercilessly stamping onto Meng Jianzhou's body.
Most of his bones shattered instantly, and his internal organs were riddled with cracks. He didn't die on the spot, but under the Abyss Qilin God's Divine Extreme pressure, moving even a finger was a luxury, let alone escaping or struggling.
The only proof of his existence was the pitiful, miserable groaning like sandpaper rubbing together.
Yun Che's figure was covered by abyss dust, slowly disappearing into the mist.
Ten…
Nine…
Eight…
…
…
Two…
One!
Yun Che's pinky finger pressed down gently.
Boom!!
The roar of calamity sounded behind him. The Mist Sea ground was torn up, mixed with countless fragments of Meng Jianzhou's bones and blood foam.
The son of the Weaving Dream Divine Kingdom's Divine Venerable, Meng Jianzhou, had died a miserable death.
And the ten-second image his father god—the Dreamless Divine Venerable Meng Kongchan—would see was him being trampled by the Abyss Qilin God, then reduced to residue by a single claw.
According to what the Qilin God in the Qilin Divine Realm had said, the existence of this Abyss Qilin God was widely known throughout the Abyss. Meng Kongchan might be able to recognize it.
Meng Jianzhou had Meng Jingzhe to protect him, but both dying under the claw of such a terrifying abyss beast was very reasonable.
As for why they had ventured so deep into the Mist Sea… that was Meng Kongchan's problem.
The one who killed Meng Jianzhou was the Abyss Qilin God. What did that have to do with Yun Che?
But Yun Che was even more confident that, given Meng Jianzhou's level of uselessness, Meng Kongchan probably wouldn't even bother sending people deep into the Mist Sea for his death. At most, he would put on a show as a father god… because it simply wasn't worth it.
When the destructive force subsided, Yun Che revealed his form, unhurriedly walked into the teleportation profound formation, and returned to the outer edge of the Mist Sea.
Clang!
The teleportation profound formation glowing with crimson divine light was retracted by him. He casually checked the consumption of the Space Profound Stone, then calmly put it away.
He was exceedingly satisfied with the harvest from Meng Jianzhou.
No, it should be said that it was a pleasant surprise! It made his next goal suddenly become extremely clear.