Translator: CinderTL
Zhu Zhizhen moved with lightning speed, soaring into the sky.
Her entire focus was locked on the spear below, allowing no room for complacency.
Her flying sword orbited her, poised to intercept any attack from the spear.
Yet the spear didn't target her. Instead, it shot straight toward Zhu Tianlei, who was ahead of her.
A flicker of relief washed over Zhu Zhizhen's tense heart.
Though she deeply respected Zhu Tianlei, in the face of life and death, her survival instinct far outweighed reason and sentiment.
Just then, Zhu Zhizhen suddenly sensed a surge of overwhelming spiritual power erupting from above. She was instantly alarmed.
The spiritual power had come too abruptly, and she had never imagined that Ancestor Zhu Tianlei would turn against her. Caught completely off guard, she was easily ensnared by the force.
Then, enveloped by the spiritual power, she was hurled toward the rapidly ascending spear.
As the sharp spearhead loomed closer, Zhu Zhizhen's soul trembled in terror. She frantically mobilized her internal spiritual power to break free from the binding force while simultaneously urging her flying sword to intercept the spear.
Clang!
The metallic clash sent the flying sword hurtling away.
Undeterred, the spear continued its trajectory toward Zhu Zhizhen.
"Zhu Tianlei, you'll die a miserable death!" Realizing she couldn't escape her fate, Zhu Zhizhen let out a desperate roar that echoed through the canyon.
Before she could finish her words, the spear pierced through her abdomen, leaving a dazzling spray of blood.
The spear not only pierced her dantian, tearing apart her nascent soul, but also unleashed a surge of Golden Sharp Qi within her body. The destructive energy ravaged her internal organs, turning them into a bloody pulp.
Zhu Zhizhen instantly lost all signs of life, leaving behind only an empty husk of a body that plummeted into the depths of the canyon.
However, the spear's momentum and speed were significantly diminished after killing Zhu Zhizhen.
Seizing the opportunity, Zhu Tianlei fled the canyon without hesitation, fleeing toward the distant horizon.
As for Zhu Yi, a flicker of pity flashed in his eyes as he witnessed Zhu Zhizhen's brutal death, but he dared not linger. He followed closely behind Zhu Tianlei.
The Cosmic Transformation Incarnation watched them go without pursuit. Instead, it unleashed a wave of corpse qi to seal Zhu Zhizhen's soul within her corpse. Then, with a flick of its hand, it retrieved an array disk and began reconfiguring the Nine Heavens Return to Origin Formation.
Meanwhile, deep within the cultivation cave, Song Wen continued to absorb Spiritual Qi with all his might.
The invisible barrier that had been blocking the growth of his spiritual power finally shattered under the relentless assault of his surging spiritual power.
Within Song Wen's dantian, his nascent soul, like a vast sea absorbing all rivers, began to frantically devour the spiritual power surging through his dantian and meridians.
Song Wen's aura instantly surged to new heights.
Yet the spiritual power within his body seemed insufficient to satisfy his nascent soul's hunger. A more violent suction erupted from Song Wen, drawing in surrounding Spiritual Qi like a vortex and channeling it into his body.
Outside the cultivation cave, Wu Yue suddenly sensed the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth converging toward "Yang Yu's" cave at an astonishing rate. The speed was so great that the surrounding Spiritual Qi was completely drained, as if it had been utterly sucked dry.
A trace of barely concealed joy flickered across Wu Yue's face.
"Yang Yu" had successfully advanced. Surely he wouldn't forget his loyal servant who had contributed so much to this achievement.
Filled with anticipation, Wu Yue waited quietly at the bottom of the valley.
A month later, the stone gate of the cultivation cave finally creaked open, and Song Wen slowly emerged.
He had successfully advanced to the Void Refinement stage, though he still needed time to refine his surging spiritual power.
However, the commotion caused by his breakthrough had been too great. To avoid further complications, he decided to relocate his seclusion.
But before retreating again, he had one matter to resolve:
To settle his feud with the Zhu Clan.
As long as Zhu Tianlei and Zhu Yi remained alive, he couldn't peacefully seclude himself.
Song Wen glanced at the Cosmic Transformation Incarnation guarding the entrance to his cultivation cave.
At the incarnation's feet lay Zhu Zhizhen's corpse.
A torrent of blood erupted from Song Wen's body.
The blood sea surged forward, engulfing both the Cosmic Transformation Incarnation and Zhu Zhizhen's corpse.
When the blood sea receded, neither the incarnation nor the corpse remained.
At that moment, Wu Yue flew over and landed on the platform outside the cave, bowing respectfully with clasped hands.
"Congratulations, Senior, on successfully advancing to Void Refinement! Your brilliance shines like the blazing sun, illuminating all directions with boundless radiance and awe-inspiring might. Even beyond this remote region with its meager Spiritual Qi, your cultivation stands unmatched throughout the entire Qicang Domain. This junior is thrice blessed to have met you and witnessed your breakthrough firsthand..."
"Enough," Song Wen interrupted, cutting off Wu Yue's flattery.
This corpse cultivator, who usually lorded over the Corpse Soul Ravine, must have learned his sycophantic skills from some unknown source, rivaling even Song Wen's own.
"Wu Yue, you guarded my cultivation, and I appreciate your efforts. I intend to travel to Westwind City. Are you willing to accompany me?"
"This junior swears to follow you to the death!" Wu Yue replied immediately.
Westwind City was the Zhu Clan's stronghold. Yang Yu's journey there clearly signaled a reckoning.
A clan as vast as the Zhu Clan must possess countless treasures. Even a small fraction of what Yang Yu might let slip would be enough to make Wu Yue rich beyond measure.
"Then prepare the Giant Flying Ship for departure," Song Wen said calmly.
Wu Yue immediately summoned a thirty-meter-long Giant Flying Ship and respectfully invited, "Please board, Senior."
With a flicker, Song Wen vanished from his spot, already inside the ship's cabin.
Wu Yue hastily boarded as well, taking his place at the helm. He steered the ship skyward, accelerating southwestward at full speed.
To Song Wen, the ship's speed was hardly impressive, but the downtime allowed him to acclimate to his rapidly surging spiritual power.
Moreover, Zhu Tianlei and Zhu Yi had been gone for over a month. Whether they had abandoned their clan to flee elsewhere or were pursuing some other scheme, their trail had long grown cold.
Even if Song Wen rushed onward, it would make little difference now.
Thirteen days later, after relentless travel day and night, the silhouette of a city finally appeared on the horizon ahead.
Wu Yue strode to the exterior of the ship tower and respectfully addressed the figure within.
"Senior Yang Yu, we're approaching Westwind City. Do you have any instructions?"
The ship tower's massive doors swung open abruptly, and a dark shadow flashed past. Wu Yue suddenly realized that 'Yang Yu' was already hovering above him, gazing toward Westwind City.
"Westwind City... it's gone," Song Wen said flatly.
"Gone?" Wu Yue's face twisted in confusion, unable to grasp the meaning of Song Wen's words.
"You'll understand when we arrive," Song Wen replied.
Hearing this, Wu Yue urged the Giant Flying Ship onward with all his might, and they soon arrived above Westwind City.
Wu Yue was stunned to discover that the once bustling and prosperous Westwind City had been reduced to a desolate wasteland, devoid of life.
The once orderly streets were now nothing but crumbling ruins.
Even the earth veins deep beneath the city had been severed, causing the Spiritual Qi to gradually dissipate, leaving the land utterly barren.
The Zhu Clan's stronghold lay in ruins, its grounds littered with corpses.
These corpses had been drained of all blood essence, resembling mummified corpses centuries old.
(End of the Chapter)