Chapter 1420: CKC, Evercrown (24)
"Brother Yao," Shui Fengbao called out as fiery radiance gushed forth from his palms, splashing searing flames and blasting scorching heat toward an incoming Evil Sentinel cackling madly with murderous intent, eyeing two mortals greedily. They were aghast as the inextinguishable flames engulfed them whole. Shrieking and screams were unleashed as they tried to resist, the smell of burning flesh erupting.
An Exalted-level Evil Sentinel met a fiery, painful demise; the culprit, Shui Fengbao, the Child of Fire, hovered beside Yao Huoyi with a slightly impatient frown. They hadn't made a move yet. However, Evil Sentinels from all over kept rushing forward to their deaths, and Yao Huoyi had left them for him to handle.
While none of them were particularly strong in his eyes, this passivity wasn't his forte. Tasked with defense, he could only exert his fiery forces with increasingly blazing ferocity and impatience. Yao Huoyi, on the other hand, was quietly hovering in the air as well, the blindfold over his eyes, and his facial expression, from his lips to his brows, were neutral and unreadable.
"Brother Yao!" Shui Fengbao called out again, this time unleashing a spell to counter the incoming spiritually-infused sound from the marble-skinned Evil Sentinel. She was relentless, unleashing wide-ranged attacks across tens of thousands of miles, often tipping the battle and leading even Ascendants to lose their lives due to a slight distraction.
"That woman…" Shui Fengbao's expression darkened as the corner of his left eye leaked fiery, heated, and sizzling liquid. He wiped off the refined blood that streamed down his left cheek. He had only recently reached the Temporal Eye Phase, the eighth stage of the Astral Core Realm, and he was having difficulty defending despite his Fire Heart Intent, Spiritual Strength, and Law of Fire Aura contesting. Moreover, these attacks were unfocused.
If even he was experiencing such drastic effects, one could imagine how the others were feeling while they were signed by Evil Sentinels. The slaughter was unimaginable.
Just a single Evil Sentinel had disrupted the Ascendants' dominance of the field. Of course, this wasn't a typical Evil Sentinel, but an Earthly Saint at the Mystic Heart Intent that was a Spiritual Cultivator! She also had the insidious means of an Evil Cultivator in evasion and shadowy, shameless tactics.
In truth, if the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel hadn't focused on Yi Xuehan and then was confronted by Xiao Yanyue, the damage he would've inflicted was likely no less than the damage indirectly caused by the marble-skinned Evil Sentinel's tactics.
Suddenly, the spiritual aura of a Highlord descended upon them. A radiant comet of sickening, miasma-filled greenish light rushed towards them with killing intent. They immediately entered their Demi-Mystic State!
"Brother Yao!!" Shui Fengbao immediately shouted after sensing that this unfathomable aura targeted them with an eerie focus.
"..." Yao Huoyi remained silent, his expression unchanged. Shui Fengbao could only erupt in fiery light, resembling a demi-god of flames, embodying its fiercest characteristics, and rushed toward the Demi-Mystic State Highlord! A great flash occurred, fiery and miasmic light splashed everywhere.
Meanwhile—
The group of four beautiful women and a single, sniffing young man were moving through the air. The Evil Sentinels at the Mystic Star Phase and Soul of Mysticism Phase all retreated as they sensed the unfathomable strength from Yi Xuehan. She was a Demi-Mortal Lord, and they refused to fight one without advantageous numbers on their side or someone to hold her down despite how exceptionally scrumptious the others looked. Some heavily gulped and stared, their eyes filled with longing and envy.
Others pitched tents in their pants as they saw the four starfield-toppling beauties, all of four different temperaments and sensual qualities yet of outrageous beauty that could bring forth envy in any ordinary woman. Their daydreams were incredible and indescribable. Unfortunately, it was only a dream.
"What's our move when we find him?" Yi Xuehan didn't like this plan. After all, Xiao Yanyue was captured due to her weakness, and the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel had fled only due to that abnormally powerful white sword that aimed for his life. San Yongli had some pretty impressive tricks, but she had been saved all the same. Furthermore, she was a mortal and this was an Earthly Saint with Mystic Heart Intent and a Martial Cultivator to boot!
Yi Xuehan didn't want to be rushing to her death.
"Save Xiao Yanyue," San Yongli and Lin Ziyan said simultaneously, both with almost equally indifferent tones as if the question was self-explanatory. The two girls glanced at each other. One had eyes like treasured rubies while the other had eyes that resembled the boundless, unfathomable ocean. They didn't speak to each other, only looking forward after their brief exchange.
Yi Xuehan's brows furrowed intensely, gloom in her eyes. "I know that. I mean, how? What are we going to do? I'm injured, and even in my strongest state, I'm no match for him. Yi Yun might be able to track him down, but what are we supposed to do with just an injured Ascended and three mortals? Offer our bodies to him?" She couldn't help but get a little annoyed at the end.
"Would he dare accept?" Lin Ziyan arrogantly smirked, finding her last words incredibly amusing. If she declared herself Wei Wuyin's woman, who in these vast lands would dare have any perverted thoughts about her? She didn't think the Aeternal Sky Divine Emperor would dare lay a finger on a strand of her hair even if she was standing before him naked.
When she thought about how her mentioning Long Chen had caused her to suffer unimaginable torture and crippling, yet the mere mention of Wei Wuyin would have sent those vile, ill-minded roaches scattering even in the Myriad Monarch Sect, her heart felt incomparably at peace.
"What?" Yi Xuehan was stupefied. Was this woman stupid? She was a beautiful woman and this was an Evil Sentinel that devoured women and men alike. Why wouldn't he accept? What in the heavens was this mortal woman on?
Yi Yun sniffed the air lightly. "He's nearby!" He quietly exclaimed to San Yongli.
San Yongli ignored Lin Ziyan. Mostly because she didn't like how those words were potentially true, especially given that Wei Wuyin was already exerting a notable degree of control over the Evil Sentinels' movements and objectives. If he could release them in waves to fight against his Ascendants, then this meant they were fully under his thumb already.
San Yongli gestured for them to halt. She brought out a crystalline vial that was no larger than one inch. Within which was a drop of inky black blood. Despite being contained, when it was brought out, Yi Xuehan felt her mystic energies tremble as if out of fright. "What is that?"
"What tantalizing blood!" A voice suddenly erupted from nearby, seemingly coming from every direction. "How did you know today's my birthday? Bringing me a half-dozen gifts. Oh! You shouldn't have."
The expressions of the group instantly became solemn as the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel's figure began to appear, no more than a mile before them. While it was a mile of distance, this distance was as little as a quarter-step for the most ordinary Ascended being, let alone an Earthly Saint. They were no different than standing directly in front of him!
The charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel flashed a toothy smile as greed rampantly ravaged his eyes. "You really shouldn't have." His grin tugged heavily at his lips, maniacal greed and desire swarmed his expression, almost as if he had turned insane with want. His teeth seemed to be dripping with flesh blood as if he had been engorging himself on a bloody meal.
He licked his lips.
Yi Xuehan's spine felt the strongest shiver she had ever felt. Did this monster already consume that woman whole? Did they just send themselves to the mouth of the beast foolishly? Her heart was pounding so hard she could barely hear herself think.
Yi Yun was frozen stiff. Just the ravenously vile aura from this monstrous evil of a being was enough to render him unable to move, speak, or think. His eyes were abnormally foggy, and he was barely any different than being unconscious. The only difference was that he was standing on his own two feet.
Wen Mingna frowned slightly. She had already subtly positioned herself slightly behind and between Lin Ziyan and San Yongli.
Lin Ziyan was like the Aeternal Sky Star, surrounded by a belt of Mystic Power, within which was shimmering, brilliantly refined Mystic Runes. There wasn't just one belt—there were three! They cycled around her body, releasing faint droning sounds as they repelled some invisible force from reaching her body.
San Yongli's left hand's fingertips ignited with milky white flames, each nail contained an esoteric rune imbued with heightened mystic properties. They contested the invisible aura that descended upon her, leaving her unaffected. She also spared some attention to defend Yi Yun, Wen Mingna, and Yi Xuehan, putting most of that divided focus on the first two.
The charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel glanced at Lin Ziyan's belt that hugged her slender waist. It exuded a powerful aura of the Mystic Dao. Then, he moved his gaze to San Yongli. Her milky white flames seemed to be her astral force, and they were activating the strange runes placed on her fingertips.
He was always the cautious sort, so he was ready to escape at a moment's notice, diverting and reserving a portion of his attention and strength to be on the lookout for that white sword from earlier or any spiritual assaults.
"Where's Xiao Yanyue?" Lin Ziyan asked, stepping forward. Her momentum was aggressively forceful, her confidence present in every syllable she spoke, and she showed no sign of the slightest fear in her eyes.
The charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel was suspicious, but his heart yearned heavily for that vial. He was at an impasse between acting on his greed or running away.
At this moment, San Yongli said: "I'm willing to offer this vial for Xiao Yanyue." Despite her calm, she was a little tense. Unlike Lin Ziyan, she was aware that her trump cards were enough to claim victory, but the situation had changed heavily. There was now a Spiritual Cultivator around, and there was no telling that a fierce fight would not attract her attention. If they teamed up, she felt she could defeat them, but defeating and killing were two very different things.
"Oh? How generous," the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel was briefly stunned as he smiled. He then said, "Sure. Give me the vial and I'll give you the little girl. Haha." His words reeked of a villainous tone, untrustworthy to an extreme.
Lin Ziyan frowned as she rubbed her bracelet.
San Yongli, however, said: "Okay." And she tossed the vial over without any hesitation.
The charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel's expression instantly changed. He didn't hesitate to retreat, flashing back a hundred miles with a single step! The vial reached his previous location and hovered there by a milky white-colored astral force.
Yi Xuehan and Lin Ziyan were taken aback.
San Yongli's eyes flashed as she looked at the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel. "Why make the offer and not take it?" She mocked with a faint smile.
The charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel was no fool. The value of that vial was enough to tempt Worldly Saints, let alone an Earthly Saint like himself, and she was simply handing it over? There was something wrong there. Even an idiot could see that!
San Yongli pushed the vial further out. With each inch it moved, the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel moved three! His Mystic Aura was seething vigorously, on the verge of erupting at the slightest change of situation.
"Don't want it?" San Yongli teased.
"Found her." The soul in San Yongli's Sea of Consciousness said. After hearing this, confirming that Xiao Yanyue was alive, San Yongli no longer hesitated. She tapped into the Spatial-type Heavenly Rune on her fingertips and engulfed her hand in silvery light. Then, she pushed the vial forward at blitzing speed toward the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel. He retreated once again.
But when he did, his expression changed as his Mystic Aura erupted explosively!
Unfortunately, the target was not him! It was as if an invisible hand dug into the three dimensions of space, located a single exuberant life force within, and began to violently pull. Spatial fluctuations surged like chaotic waves.
The World Prison that the charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel had hidden in fixed space was breached within half a blink of his eye!
WHOOSH!!!
San Yongli yanked her hand.
A slender, bloodied body was pulled out as she used her left hand to wrap around that body's soft waist, feeling the body limply lay in her arms. There was the faintest sign of breathing, but a severe depletion of blood and bone-type physical energies within her.
Xiao Yanyue!
Wen Mingna was astonished. San Yongli's control over that Heavenly Rune was impeccable. But how did she sense its location? She didn't think San Yongli had that capability since she was relying on an external power, not interconnected with her spiritual sense.
"You!" The charcoal-skinned Evil Sentinel was stunned.
—Meanwhile, at the same time:
Yao Huoyi finally moved as the violent fluctuations of fire and miasma erupted beside him. Within his left hand, a bow blinked into existence as if it had always been there since the beginning, never having left his hands in his lifetime. With his right hand, he gently pulled at the left side of his blindfold, exposing a single, left eye!!
