Faced with such a bizarre scene, Ye Jingyu, though surprised, quickly composed himself. His left hand, free of the blade, swung upwards, launching a pitch-black iron seal that shot through the air, instantly expanding to the size of a small hill as it hammered forward…
"Hmm…" Seemingly sensing the terrifying pressure of the Heaven-Shaking Seal, a soft hum came from ahead. The spearhead that had appeared vanished once more, replaced instead by a series of clanging sounds echoing through the void…
Ye Jingyu knew that the opponent was using pure martial power to fend off the attack of the Heaven-Shaking Seal…
"Pfft…" A sound like someone spitting blood was heard. Ye Jingyu’s figure flashed forward, the Heaven-Shaking Seal already back in his hand. Yet, there was no sign of any person, only the scent of blood lingering in the air. Looking down, he could see a pool of hot blood spilled on the ground, wisps of vapor still rising from it…
"I thought it was some demon or monster. Turns out it’s someone who bleeds too…" Seeing this, Ye Jingyu gave a cold snort, though inwardly he was secretly astonished. His Heaven-Shaking Seal was capable of instantly killing a Xiantian master. For the opponent to withstand it, even just by coughing up blood, their strength must be at least at the Grandmaster realm…
He himself had no fear, but what about his subordinates…?
The thought sent a knot of worry tightening in Ye Jingyu’s chest. He knew the Heaven-Shaking Seal was a Profound-grade Soul Artifact, capable of slaying a Martial Saint. However, his current Soul Power was only at the Soul Condensation realm, making it impossible to unleash its maximum potential. Even using all his strength, he could at most achieve the power to kill a Great Grandmaster, but the price would be the complete depletion of his soul power, leaving him utterly defenseless…
That was not a choice he would make. Moreover, his current physical strength was already enough to contend with a Grandmaster, so he wasn't overly concerned about his own safety. His worry lay entirely with his weaker subordinates. In this sunless place, who knew what variables might arise…
His voice still echoed in the canyon, but there was no response, not even the sound of wind. It seemed the other party was also heavily injured and had fled far away…
However, Ye Jingyu knew the opponent had not left; they were still nearby, waiting for him to let his guard down to deliver a fatal blow…
Ye Jingyu did not extend his divine sense, knowing that the origin point his Samsara Eye couldn't pierce would also interfere with his divine sense, offering no real advantage…
Clutching the Tianzun blade tightly, he advanced step by step, his mind constantly wrestling with how Hei Ming Shixuan and the others had become separated from him. The others were perhaps understandable, but why had Hei Ming Shixuan, whom he had been holding hands with, also vanished without a trace?
Was all of this an illusion? Or something else?
The canyon fell into silence once more, broken only by the crunching sound as Ye Jingyu stepped upon piles of white bones…
Just then, Ye Jingyu’s eyes suddenly lit up. The Samsara Eye on his brow flickered, shooting out a silver beam. Vaguely, he saw a child, perhaps ten years old, standing not far away…
"Little Shixuan?" Joy surged through Ye Jingyu, and his figure shot forward rapidly, reaching out to firmly grasp the little girl’s shoulder…
The girl seemed startled by the sudden contact and spun around sharply…
A face utterly devoid of eyes, nose, or mouth appeared before Ye Jingyu’s eyes. The hairs on the back of his neck instantly stood on end…
But before Ye Jingyu could react, a slit suddenly opened in the featureless face, and a black beam of light shot toward him…
Ye Jingyu was startled, tilting his head to avoid the dark beam. But when he looked again, the little girl was holding a dagger, fiercely stabbing toward him…
The speed was so fast that even Ye Jingyu couldn't react in time…
"Chh…" came the sound of the dagger sinking into Ye Jingyu’s body. A sharp pain erupted from his lower abdomen. Ye Jingyu grunted coldly, his Tianzun blade flashing out to slice across the little girl’s head. The head, split wide open, flew off. But instead of blood, countless thumb-sized white worms poured out from the headless neck…
Only then did Ye Jingyu realize this body was composed entirely of insects…
Staring at the dense mass of white worms, Ye Jingyu’s face instantly turned deathly pale. Heart-Eating Grubs…
These were Heart-Eating Grubs, insects that specialized in consuming internal organs…
These worms had no wings, but their bodies moved like springs, launching themselves toward Ye Jingyu…
"Explode…" Although Ye Jingyu had no aversion to germs, he certainly didn't want such repulsive things touching his body. With a mighty shout, the Overlord Battle Mark instantly burst forth, its violent power smashing the white insects into powder…
At this moment, the long spear that had disappeared into the darkness reappeared, aimed directly at Ye Jingyu’s brow. It gave him no time to consider and stabbed straight in…
Ye Jingyu had just been wounded and had expended energy using the Overlord Battle Mark. Facing this situation, even a Spirit Manifestation realm Soul Master or a Grandmaster would struggle to resist…
But he was neither a Spirit Manifestation Soul Master nor a Grandmaster; he was a Fifth-Tier Warrior, a super anomaly who had reached the fifth level through sheer power…
Without needing to mobilize the true qi within him, the sheer toughness of his body allowed him to rapidly retreat backward in this extremely dangerous moment. Each step covered several meters, narrowly dodging the fatal strike…
But just as Ye Jingyu prepared to endure the pain and counterattack, a faint, ghostly light descended from above his head, slashing viciously toward his skull…
"…" Faced with this tense situation, Ye Jingyu couldn't help but curse out loud. He abruptly extended two fingers, and a golden light shot out between them, aiming straight up—it was the Spirit Rhinoceros Sword Finger…
"Clang…" A sound rang out. As if recognizing the power of this finger strike, the black light overhead instantly shifted direction, blocking the violent thrust…
Ye Jingyu seized this opportunity to retreat dozens of steps consecutively. His back was already drenched in cold sweat. In that split second, he had been terrifyingly close to death…
"Sir…" Just then, a voice suddenly sounded from the darkness. Ye Jingyu’s expression brightened. He held back no longer, channeling the vast soul power to his brow. Golden ripples continuously lit up from his forehead, violently sweeping outward in all directions…
Using the illumination from these golden ripples, Ye Jingyu clearly saw the two figures who had attacked him nearby: one was the disheveled woman who looked like a female ghost, holding a pitch-black dagger; the other was a handsome man dressed entirely in white, gripping a completely transparent long spear.