Mahayana 140
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Chapter 140: The Beauty Trap, A Lifetime of Schemes Reduced to Ash
TL : Cnine
ED/PF :
Part 1
The strange man was not yet dead, though his lower half had already turned to ash, and his upper body was gradually dissipating.
He looked at Luo Yun unwillingly and said viciously, “Why? Aren’t you afraid I’ll destroy your jade pendant?”
Unexpectedly, Luo Yun merely gave a cold smile. “Did you really think the jade pendant I gave you was mine?”
She took out another Jade Pendant from her robes and smiled. “The one I gave you was merely that fellow Liu Yue’s pendant.”
Silence cracked. The Strange Man’s pupils shrank. Disbelief tore across his face. He had calculated every step. Planned every contingency. And still he had been fooled. A grotesque grin tore across his mouth like a wound.
Without warning, he spat out a tiny Nascent Soul. The half-formed spirit was already unraveling, flickering as it shot forward like a bolt of lightning.
It pierced straight through the Jade Pendant in Luo Yun’s grasp. The grin on his face twisted deeper. “You can stay in this Immortal Palace forever. Stay here. Stay with me.”
He was then cut into ashes by the enraged Luo Yun. Luo Yun had never imagined that after enduring so much hardship, she would still be one move too late. The Jade Pendant in her hand was shattered by the attack.
After tearing The Strange Man to pieces and grinding his bones to ash, she stood there, utterly desolate.
Standing to one side, Xiao Yifeng had not truly intended to let The Strange Man go. Just now, he had used the ultimate art of the Boundless Horizon Palace, Raging Sword Wildflower.
This was a technique that condensed all the spiritual power and soul power within the body into a single strike. It was executed with extreme speed and possessed tremendous destructive force. It was practically the ultimate art of killing.
Its only drawback was that, after using it, one’s body would be completely emptied, not a trace of spiritual power remaining.
Among those present, only Su Miaoqing perceived his true condition. She swiftly flew to his side and watched the others with vigilance.
Now that The Strange Man was dead and Luo Yun had lost the Jade Pendant, she had not only lost the qualification to contend for the Book of Destiny, but also the qualification to leave the Immortal Palace.
The group could not help but sigh. They had not expected that after all Luo Yun’s painstaking schemes, everything would ultimately come to nothing.
With the strongest foe dead, the fragile alliance dissolved at once. The air shifted. Eyes sharpened. Each returned to their natural position as rivals.
“I truly do not wish to become enemies with the two of you,” Mo Shuiyao said with a smile. “After all, we fought side by side just now. It is a pity that there is only one Book of Destiny.”
“I feel the same,” Lin Xiao sighed. “Working together with you both felt harmonious. I regarded you as kindred spirits. If I could choose, I would not wish to oppose you.”
This was the cultivation world. Alliances were as fleeting as mist. A friend in one breath, a mortal foe in the next, all for the sake of gain.
Had the prize not been something as extraordinary as the Book of Destiny, Lin Yue would never have died at Luo Yun’s hands.
Su Miaoqing watched the two of them warily. She keenly sensed Xiao Yifeng’s weakness.
At this moment, Xiao Yifeng’s aura had already fallen to the Foundation Establishment realm, yet he was astonished to discover that the Golden Core within his body had not completely shattered.
(What kind of cursed Golden Core was this? How could it be so stubborn?) Because what he had formed was the lowest-grade Nine-Turn Golden Core, he had gained no talent whatsoever from it. Naturally, he did not want it.
His original intention had been to form a core as soon as possible, use the Core-Shattering Art to obtain immense power, and later find a way to form a first-grade Golden Core anew.
He had not expected this wretched core to be so solid. Even after shattering it, half of it still remained.
A faint smile curved across Xiao Yifeng’s lips as he looked at Lin Xiao and the other. “Since you both wish to claim the Book of Destiny, then let us see whose ability prevails.” After speaking, he formed another seal and shouted, “Shatter the Core!”
Lin Xiao and the other watched as Xiao Yifeng’s aura suddenly surged again, and they were dumbfounded. Could this secret art of core-shattering truly reusable?
Mate, how many Golden Cores do you possess? This is beyond absurd!
Before their disbelief faded, Xiao Yifeng’s aura surged again, stabilising at the mid-stage of the Golden Core Realm. He threw back his head and laughed. “If you want it,” he declared, “Come and get it.”
He then instructed Su Miaoqing to retrieve the Book of Destiny, while he himself blocked the two of them.
Without hesitation, Su Miaoqing flew towards the Book of Destiny. Xiao Yifeng gave a loud shout and unleashed the Myriad Sword Art. Countless sword phantoms surrounded him and shot towards the two opponents.
This time, he unexpectedly triggered a quadruple resonance. Tens of thousands of flying swords filled the sky above the plaza like a swarm of locusts.
With his own strength alone, he held the two of them at bay. Su Miaoqing reached the location of the Book of Destiny and reached inside to seize it. Because she carried the Immortal Talisman Jade Pendant, the barrier did not hinder her at all.
Su Miaoqing successfully grasped the Book of Fate, though she had not yet withdrawn it when several sharp blades suddenly slashed towards her from the side.
Left with no choice, she had to pull her hand back. It was Luo Yun, her expression twisted, flying towards her with the 瑶琴 in hand, its strings lashing wildly.
“If I cannot have it, then neither shall you! Stay here with me!”
Seeing Luo Yun in such a state, Su Miaoqing could not decide whether to say she deserved her fate or to pity her.
They collided once more, robes flashing, spiritual energy roaring. Luo Yun fought like someone with nothing left to lose, every strike precise and lethal, aimed to cripple or kill.
Su Miaoqing could only dodge in disarray. It was evident she had indeed been holding back earlier.
Luo Yun slashed out several zither strings, dragging the Book of Destiny towards herself, and flew outward while hauling it along.
How could Xiao Yifeng allow her to succeed? Obsidian Snow in his hand transformed into a streak of white light and shot towards her.
By reflex, Luo Yun raised the spherical orb formed by the Book of Destiny in front of her, blocking Obsidian Snow.
A crisp crack split the air. The Book of Destiny shattered. Five fragments burst apart, streaking across the chamber in five blazing arcs.
The few of them stared blankly for a moment, then rushed forward as one, each chasing after a streak of light.
Xiao Yifeng only managed to seize one fragment, about one-sixth in size. Su Miaoqing also flew towards one and snatched it into her hand, likewise about one-sixth.
Lin Xiao and Mo Shuiyao naturally each seized one fragment as well. The largest piece, about one-third in size, was taken by Luo Yun, who was the closest.
The Book of Destiny in their hands unexpectedly transformed into liquid and instantly merged into their bodies. All of them felt as though something had been added to their minds.
Before they could examine it, another sudden change occurred.
BOOM!
It was as if shattering the Book of Destiny had angered the Immortal Palace. A massive vortex appeared in the sky.
“The Reincarnation Immortal Palace is about to close! You may leave the palace with your Jade Pendant!” A grand voice resounded.
The few of them exchanged glances and all looked towards Xiao Yifeng.
Xiao Yifeng looked embarrassed. Who would have known that this thing could actually be broke apart? It was far too unrealistic.
They all looked at Luo Yun. After all, Luo Yun could not leave, and she still held the largest fragment of the Book of Destiny.
Luo Yun tried for a moment but was unable to access the Book of Destiny within her. She shot them a resentful glance and said, “Since I can’t have it, I won’t give it to you even if I die!”
She turned into a streak of light and shot into the great hall. Behind her, Su Miaoqing spread a pair of flaming wings and pursued closely.
Xiao Yifeng and the other two also gave chase. However, Luo Yun used the Blood Ignition secret art and vanished instantly within the winding great hall. For a moment, they had no idea where she had flown.
Xiao Yifeng gave a cold snort and suddenly stopped. Then he turned around and flew towards the direction of the Stone Stele that controlled the formation.
On the way, he tried dripping blood to claim ownership of the Strange Man’s Stone Stele. Unexpectedly, he was indeed able to make it to recognise him as its master again.
Before long, he arrived within the control hall. Placing his hand upon the Stone Stele that governed the Immortal Palace, he summoned all the scenes within the Divine Hall.
He discovered that Su Miaoqing had also lost track of Luo Yun and was currently searching for her within one of the palace halls.
As for Luo Yun, she was hiding in a side hall in a corner, concealing her figure. Looking at the unreachable Book of Destiny in her hand, her expression was complicated.
Xiao Yifeng did not have time to think further. With a light adjustment of the Stone Stele, he disrupted the layout within the great hall, preventing Lin Xiao and the other from catching up to Luo Yun.
Afterwards, using the Stone Stele, he instantly arrived within the side hall where Luo Yun was located and said coldly, “Come out.”
Xiao Yifeng’s sudden appearance startled Luo Yun greatly. This was the second time she had seen him appear out of nowhere; the first time had been when he saved Mo Shuiyao.
Knowing she could not hide from Xiao Yifeng, Luo Yun slowly revealed herself, staring at him thoughtfully.
“Fairy Luo, you should hand over the Book of Destiny and the Samsara Stone Stele in your possession. I do not wish to make a move against you,” Xiao Yifeng said in a deep voice.
“Since Fellow Daoist Wu Chen can come and go freely within this Immortal Palace, you must already control it. Luo Yun can hand over the Book of Destiny and the Samsara Stone Stele to you, but you must take me out of the Immortal Palace!” Luo Yun said.
In her hands she held the Book of Destiny and two Samsara Stone Steles, one of which belonged to Liu Yue.
“If I wished to take the Book of Destiny by force, what could you possibly do to stop me?” Xiao Yifeng said with a faint smile.
Luo Yun’s face cooled like frost settling over still water. She understood perfectly well that she was no match for Xiao Yifeng, and the Book of Destiny in her hands was indestructible.
Her thoughts raced, her expression shifting several times before she finally spoke, “So long as Fellow Daoist Wuchen is willing to take me out of this Immortal Palace, Luo Yun will present the Book of Destiny to you with both hands. And I am willing to become your cultivation furnace.”