"Ah, I see." Evangeline smiled meaningfully.
She realized that Dyon came to an understanding that she wanted to force feed him an aphrodisiac so he'd commit a crime of sexual passion. At that point, his reputation was be ruined and Soul Rending Peak would have every excuse to take him to Soul Market.
Veins involuntarily popped out on Dyon's forehead. No matter how calm he wanted to remain, this wasn't something he could accept.
"Tsk, tsk." Evangeline shook her head. "That's enough of that."
Evangeline waved her hand and at that moment, an overwhelming pressure pressed down on Dyon, causing his body to freeze.
'What?!' Dyon's eyes widened with shock. Even if he was beaten over the head, he would recognize that this was energy suppression. In fact, this energy suppression was of the highest order!
This Evangeline was a dao formation expert!
At that moment, Dyon couldn't lift a finger. He couldn't even think properly as his organs and bones threatened to shatter under the pressure.
"Do you understand now?" Evangeline said with a smile.
She stood, walking over to Dyon and sliding a long slender finger across his well-defined jawline.
Dyon grit his teeth, trying to move, but no matter what he did, it was impossible to overcome Evangeline's pressure. The most shocking part was that when he tried to use his Presence to move under the suppression, a secondary pressure even more powerful than the first obliterated his attempt, almost making him cough up blood.
'Emperor Level Presence! Who is this woman?!'
Evangeline's lovely giggle seemed to make the moonlight twinkle under the night stars. Maybe if it wasn't for the situation he was in, Dyon would be able to enjoy the deep ravine of soft flesh that was before him when she bent over to stroke his cheek, but at the moment, he was too pissed to think about such things.
The most frustrating part was that Evangeline was too clever for him. She seemed to know all of his plans before he even made them. Dyon even suspected that she had purposefully allowed a trail of clues for him to realize the existence of the Nine Yang Cloud aphrodisiac.
She was so careful that she made sure to not project her Presence toward Dyon. She only deflected the Presence he directed toward her. Which meant his mask wouldn't activate since it didn't feel a threat toward itself!
"Don't be so angry." Evangeline said gently, with an odd light in her eyes. "You're so handsome already, yet you're still an essence gatherer. Don't ruin those rugged looks with frown lines, it would be too much of a pity."
It was only now that Dyon suddenly realized that Evangeline might really be making herself appear less beautiful. A woman who was a dao formation expert would have their bodies cleansed by enigmatic energy, making them even more perfect.
'DAMMIT!' Dyon's mind roared as Evangeline tapped the edge of the teacup he still held, causing the liquid to gently follow her fingers toward his lips.
There was no suspense or final savior. Not a drop was left as the poison seeped into Dyon's tightly closed lips, sliding through the almost non-existent gaps in his teeth, and down his throat.
Dyon's lower belly immediately heated up, reaching inconceivable temperatures in an instant.
Evangeline's eyes were lit up with a pleasant surprise as Dyon's robes lit on fire. However, with her cultivation, such a weak flame could never endanger her.
Dyon raised his head and roared to the skies. It was certain that if it wasn't for the formation Evangeline had laid, the entirety of Soul Rending Peak would be alerted by what was going on.
"What a man!" Evangeline said with a sweet smile on her face.
Her hand ignored the flames, reaching forward and caressing Dyon's broad chest. By now, his robes had turned to complete ash. Without the support of the strong soul cultivators they once had, the quality of robes Soul Rending Peak could provide to their disciples had taken a drastic drop. There was no surprise that it couldn't withstand the burn.
"I'm sure you understand the intricacies of the Nine Yang Cloud plant, right?"
Seeing Dyon's glare, Evangeline giggled.
"It's not all bad," She continued, "In ancient times, some tribes used it to test the manliness of their younger generation men. Often times, a man wouldn't be allowed to become the next leader or heir apparent unless they reached a certain standard.
"It's called the Nine Yang Cloud because there are nine levels of auspicious signs possible. To be able to trigger the first auspicious sign while still being an essence gatherer… You would do a woman good in bed." Evangeline's eyes twinkled with an odd.
At that moment, a cloud of red and gold was being formed over Dyon's head, brightening the night sky. Not only did this represent the first auspicious sign, it also represented the first level of intensity. Unfortunately, 'earning' these auspicious signs didn't just mean that you were a better equipped man, it also meant you'd be gifted with a more severe burn.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Evangeline's eyes widened, "Seven clouds?"
The fire blazing emitting from Dyon's body threatened to break through the sky. Seven clouds of red and gold, each bigger than the one below it hovered in the air, emitting an aura of pure yang.
One had to understand that the number of clouds that appeared had little to do with body cultivation. It may sound odd considering that this was an aphrodisiac, but it was the truth.
The reaction of the Nine Yang Cloud poison was dependant not upon body cultivation, or even energy or soul cultivation, it was dependant on one thing and one thing only: Your Primordial Yang.
The problem was that your Primordial Yang's strength was also dependent on all facets of your cultivation. Dyon should still be too weak to evoke 7 clouds. Even a single one was enough to wholly impress Evangeline.
The only explanation was the only remaining facet of a Primordial Yang: potential. However, for potential to overwhelm everything else to reach this sort of level… It was mindboggling!
BOOM! … BOOM! BOOM! … BOOM!
Dyon's roar grew louder, shattering the chair beneath him. Yet, he somehow floated in the air, trembling fiercer with every passing moment.
Evangeline hadn't even gotten over the shock of seeing seven clouds before the maximum nine appeared. Even the arrays she had so carefully laid were threatening to shatter…
For context, even arrays she built with a casual swipe of her hand could contend with the best comet level formations in existence, let alone this one that she carefully and meticulously laid out while expecting the vicious auspicious signs of the Nine Yang Cloud poison.
Evangeline's smile and pride faded away. It would be impossible for her to do what she wanted to do if Dyon just died first.
Just like every other aphrodisiac, its effects wouldn't cease unless it was either purged by an expert, or the man under its influence vented the excess energy on a female. If not, the victim would simply implode from inside out.
The problem was that the intensity of this particular aphrodisiac depended on the number of clouds a man could evoke. Under normal circumstances, evoking more clouds was great. This was because the Nine Yang Cloud wasn't a poison at all if it was coupled with an appropriately powerful dual cultivation technique. Instead, it became a very valuable, but also very expensive, cultivation resource.
The good news was that Dyon had an appropriately powerful dual cultivation technique. In fact, it was powerful enough by many times over. The bad news was that Dyon had no intention of quote unquote 'venting'.
Despite the pain he was in, his eyes bore holes into Evangeline's skull even as his skinned reddened and his veins bulged. Even his lower regions that should have been at full mast was forcefully held down by his body control, causing it to be, ironically, one of the coolest parts of his body.
"Oh? Despite forcefully contradicting the nature of the poison, you're still clear headed enough to glare at little ol me?" Evangeline pouted. It seemed that she was capable of keeping a serious expression on for long. "The auspicious signs are done, you can run off now, no? Imagine all the unsuspecting, innocent and beautiful little girls running around the sect.
"Don't you want to press them under you? Don't you want to assert your dominance over them? To claim them as your women?
"This is what the elders want, isn't that what you said? At the very least they won't interfere until you're fully satisfied. Wouldn't you like one last hurrah before you're shipped off to Soul Market?"
