This spirit treasure is named the Baye Talisman Stone. It is a rare spiritual treasure unique to the Celestial Firmament Cultivation World, possessing exceptional healing properties—capable of regenerating flesh from mere bones. This Emperor originally intended to use this treasure to repair my own physical body, but since I must now occupy your vessel, it shall be given to you instead."

After the Golden Armored Guard handed the talisman stone to Ye Qin, it continued rummaging through the Sumeru Ring, making preparations for the soul-snatching process. Noticing Ye Qin standing motionless, clutching the talisman stone, it turned its gaze upon him and stated in an icy voice, "In my presence, you have no opportunity to flee or destroy your own body. If you cooperate, this Emperor can ensure you die comfortably. If you refuse to see reason, I shall let you taste the agony of the Yin Fire refining the nascent soul, making you regret ever drawing breath in this world. Heal yourself; must I apply the balm for you?"

Ye Qin hesitated for a moment, then pressed the Baye Talisman Stone against the wound at his waist, channeling his magic power to activate it.

He was unwilling to be possessed by the Holy Emperor just like this, his mind racing furiously, seeking a way to escape this calamity and avoid the soul-snatching. Healing his injuries was paramount; without strength, escape was impossible.

The Golden Armored Guard’s power was too overwhelming; he stood no chance against it directly.

However, he was not entirely without a chance for counterattack.

If the Holy Emperor were to attempt possession, his nascent soul would have to emerge, enter Ye Qin’s body, devour Ye Qin’s own nascent soul, and only then could he seize control of the physical vessel. But before that, the Holy Emperor must pass through the Mud Pill Acupoint on his brow, entering the boundless void and the Floating Island within.

This was because Ye Qin's nascent soul resided precisely in the center of the Wood Purple Mansion Floating Island, within the protective halo of the Natal Nascent Soul Stele. As long as his soul remained inside that halo, the Holy Emperor's soul could not devour it.

Therefore, this Purple Mansion could become the battlefield for a duel between him and the Holy Emperor, allowing him to fight back using the advantage of familiarity with the terrain.

The only uncertainty was whether a Nascent Soul stage cultivator possessed the strength to shatter the halo of the Natal Nascent Soul Stele. The Holy Emperor's power was leagues beyond trivial figures like Nan Tianba of the Martial Kingdom.

While Ye Qin anxiously devised countermeasures, his injuries were recovering at an accelerated pace.

This Baye Talisman Stone was indeed miraculous. It emitted wisps of azure light that wrapped around his waist, causing the bone and flesh of the wound to heal at a visible rate, accompanied by a tingling sensation throughout his body. What astonished Ye Qin most was that even the minute, subtle injuries to the meridians in his lower abdomen were mended completely, as if new, suffering no impairment to the normal flow of magic power. Even the supreme healing elixirs refined by the Green Pill Sect did not possess such wondrous efficacy.

In less than half an hour, the wound on Ye Qin's abdomen was completely healed, leaving no trace of prior injury. Simultaneously, the azure light emanating from the Baye Talisman Stone dimmed by a third.

It seemed this specialized healing talisman stone could only be used three or five times at most before becoming completely inert, a useless scrap. Ye Qin inwardly lamented the pity; such a treasure that defied the creation of heaven and earth, restoring life to the dead, had such limited use.

Seeing Ye Qin’s injuries mend, the Golden Armored Guard nodded in satisfaction. It then swiftly seized Ye Qin’s wrist, dragging him before the altar in the main hall, positioning him a mere ten feet from the ice coffin. It then bound Ye Qin to the ground with an Immortal Binding Rope magical tool, sealing all the magic power within his body.

Before initiating the Great Possession Technique, the Golden Armored Guard conducted a final probe, intending to ascertain the exact location of Ye Qin’s nascent soul within the body. It swept its senses over Ye Qin’s entire form but found no trace of the soul, causing it surprise.

"Boy, where have you hidden your nascent soul?"

The Golden Armored Guard’s tone was strange.

When possessing the shell of the deceased, one could simply seize the physical body. But when possessing the living, the target's nascent soul must be consumed before the body can be claimed. If the soul of the object to be possessed was nowhere to be found, how was possession to occur?....

It had never encountered such a bizarre situation.

"Where my soul is located, does Your Holy Emperor Majesty not have the means to find it himself? You, a mighty Nascent Soul cultivator—surely you aren't unable to locate the soul of a Foundation Establishment cultivator like me? If this were to spread, I fear all cultivators across the Four Great Cultivation Worlds would mock you mercilessly."

Ye Qin sneered coldly.

"Very well, even facing death, you dare employ petty tricks against this Emperor. Once I ferret out your nascent soul, I will make you beg for life and wish for death! This Emperor shall see what skill you possess to hide your soul."

The Golden Armored Guard fixed its icy gaze upon Ye Qin, looking at him as if he were already dead, and snorted in anger.

It sat down cross-legged, and the red glow in its eyes dimmed, finally becoming completely still.

Next, a faint wisp of golden light detached itself from the top of the Golden Armored Guard’s head and floated out. This wisp of light circled in the air once, seemingly satisfied with its condition.

Freed from the control of the Holy Emperor’s divine sense, the Golden Armored Guard puppet ceased all activity.

Ye Qin’s eyes widened, staring intently at the dim wisp of light.

This was only a strand of divine sense, not the Holy Emperor's actual nascent soul.

Normally, a cultivator's divine sense is imperceptible (obscured, unseen), but the Holy Emperor’s divine sense was so potent that it could condense into a tangible form (obscured, unseen). One could imagine how powerful the Holy Emperor's full nascent soul must be. (It is indeed quite powerful, so strong that it obscures my vision...., ^_^ )

The wisp of divine sense shot into Ye Qin’s body with a swoosh, searching the meridians for the nascent soul’s location. It was certain Ye Qin’s soul had to be inside. Upon passing the Mud Pill Acupoint, it was drawn into the boundless void by a massive, attractive force.

It paused in confusion.

This location seemed vaguely familiar. Gray mist shrouded the vast sky, and a Floating Island drifted beneath it. Was this not the very scene it had witnessed when executing the Ziwei Spirit Art?

At that moment, it failed to notice that on the Floating Island, Ye Qin’s nascent soul was staring intently at it.

And beside Ye Qin’s nascent soul floated a purple miniature sword, a few inches long—a nascent soul artifact, the Southern Bright Immortal Fire Sword.

Ye Qin’s nascent soul expelled a breath of vital essence, spitting it onto the purple sword, then pointed towards the empty space mid-air.

Whoosh!

The purple sword transformed into a startling streak of rainbow light, shooting out from the Floating Island. Accompanied by boundless scorching flames, it whistled forward, completely enveloping the dazed wisp of light. The wisp of light had no time to escape the encirclement, thrashing left and right, and in an instant, it was reduced to ash by the fierce flames of the Southern Bright Immortal Fire Sword.

Ye Qin felt an urge to laugh so hard he nearly collapsed.

He never dreamed that the Golden Armored Guard would recklessly release a wisp of divine sense that would blunder directly into his Purple Mansion, handing him a perfect opportunity for an ambush.

While he could not harm the tough and thick-skinned Golden Armored Guard, destroying that stray divine sense with his nascent soul artifact was achievable. He was willing to expend the vital essence of his nascent soul, even risking a drop in his cultivation level, to eradicate this sense.

"Insolent! How dare you destroy this Emperor's divine sense!"

In the Imperial Tomb Palace, atop the high altar, the ice coffin suddenly vibrated violently.

The Holy Emperor's physical body within the coffin seemed to writhe with abnormal rage and agony.

The ten-foot-high altar shook, the four golden Soul Suppressing Pillars trembled fiercely, and the entire underground palace groaned under the strain. A tiny, grimacing golden figure drilled out from the Holy Emperor's physical body, attempting to burst free of the ice coffin.

"Nascent Soul! The Holy Emperor's Nascent Soul!"

Ye Qin was instantly horrified by the sight.

The moment the small golden figure appeared, Ye Qin felt a colossal pressure, like an immense mountain, bearing down on him, utterly suppressing him. Not a single trace of magic power could be circulated within his body. Even his nascent soul, hidden away in the Purple Mansion, trembled in fear, unable to move an inch.

When the Holy Emperor’s Nascent Soul manifested, Ye Qin suddenly realized that even if he succeeded in destroying that strand of divine sense, everything would still be futile. If the mere aura of a Golden Core cultivator could oppress him so completely, how much more so the terrifying might of a Nascent Soul cultivator? Under the incomparably immense power of the Holy Emperor, he lacked even the capacity to resist.

But at that precise moment, the four Soul Suppressing Pillar artifacts surrounding the altar suddenly erupted with a golden light amplified a thousandfold, casting every corner of the great hall in an intensely dazzling radiance.

The Nascent Soul, rushing out of the ice coffin, was immediately struck by the ten-thousand-zhang golden light from the four Soul Suppressing Pillars. Lacking the protection of the physical body, it felt as if tens of thousands of spiritual needles were piercing it, and the Nascent Soul let out a scream of agony.

The power emanating from the four Soul Suppressing Pillars was so immense that even the Holy Emperor's Nascent Soul struggled to resist its might. Movement became excruciatingly difficult and cumbersome; its speed was reduced to mere inches per moment, entirely lacking the expected agility of a divine soul.

The distance between the ice coffin and Ye Qin was only ten feet, yet it still felt frustratingly far, requiring considerable effort.

The small golden figure’s size was rapidly diminishing. Every fleeting second it was exposed to the piercing golden light caused a massive erosion of vital energy, drastically reducing its cultivation level.

It felt annoyed, regretting not simply placing Ye Qin directly onto the ice coffin to avoid this unnecessary exposure, saving itself the trouble of moving so far.

But the small golden figure endured the agonizing sting of the proximity light and pressed on fiercely toward Ye Qin.

As long as it could enter Ye Qin’s body, it would no longer have to suffer the torment of exposure to the golden light. For this goal, it was willing to accept the cost of weakening its own cultivation, dropping an entire level from the ninth stage of the Nascent Soul realm.

The countless golden rays emitted by the four Soul Suppressing Pillars powerfully suppressed the aura of the Holy Emperor's Nascent Soul, greatly alleviating the pressure on Ye Qin.

At this juncture, Ye Qin finally managed to shake off his shock enough to react. He suddenly opened his mouth and spat out his strongest attacking artifact—the Southern Bright Immortal Fire Sword. This fire-element artifact burst forth with roaring flames, slashing directly toward the Holy Emperor’s Nascent Soul.

The Nascent Soul uttered a surprised "Yi?" (How foolish; on the verge of annihilation, yet it utters 'Yi'? It should be 'Ah!' wouldn't it?)

The Golden Armored Guard had already bound Ye Qin with the Immortal Binding Rope, sealing away all his internal magic power, ensuring Ye Qin could not mobilize any power to use artifacts to resist the possession.

This was the result the Guard had meticulously planned. However, the appearance of this flying sword was entirely beyond its expectation.