Sheng Yaohun recognized the identities of the three women based on their attire, and he swiftly changed his attitude after realizing Feng Yaoâs true identity. "Are you perhaps Empress Huo Yanling?"
"Donât you always think youâre smart, Sheng Yaohun?" Feng Yao asked sarcastically. "I know what kind of person you are, and Iâm also clear about your Spirit Temple. We didnât invite you, so take your people away."
"Weâ" Sheng Yaohun stopped speaking as a soft hand strangled his neck from behind, and his group was thrown quite far back.
"My master order is absolute; I will never spare anyone who dares to dispute her." Huo Ling coldly spoke as she tightened her grip on his neck. "If you donât take them away immediately, I will burn your bodies to ashes, and your souls will suffer in my eternal flame until the end of time."
Sheng Yaohun swallowed his saliva after hearing that, and he nodded his head a few times before Huo Ling let go of him. He looked at Zhang Fei [5] for a moment before turning to leave, leading his men to leave the area of ââthe Moonlit Passion Temple.
Like many cultivators, their arrogance made it difficult for Sheng Yaohun and his group to accept Feng Yao and Huo Lingâs treatment of them. They were infuriated by their treatment, and they thought of several plans in their minds.
"Are you sure they wonât cause problems in the future, Empress?" Huo Lanyin asked.
"Whether there is an incident today or not, Zhang Fei is bound to have trouble with them." After Feng Yao made that statement, Huo Lanyin and the other two looked at him. "The Spirit Temple is no longer as good as in the past, and its members are no different from the underlings of the Nine Nether Demon Race now. Ma Kuangyu found an artifact belonging to that race, and he hid it somewhere. However, Gongsun Ye found out about it, and they ganged up on him to death."
"Did they manage to find the artifact, Empress?" Huo Yuâer curiously asked.
Instead, Feng Yao turned to Zhang Fei [5] and spoke to him. "You should ask Ma Kuangyu about it, and it might be useful for you, especially in facing the Nine Nether Demon Race."
"Alright, Iâll ask him after this." Zhang Fei [5] remembered something. "Do you know where Yuan Xiajie is hiding? She kidnapped Wang Yin seven months ago, and Iâm worried about her."
Feng Yao shook her head. "I donât know Yuan Xiajieâs hiding place, but I guarantee that she wonât harm Wang Yin, so you donât need to worry about her."
"How can you be sure about that?" Feng Yao just smiled at Zhang Fei [5] and disappeared straight away. "Tch!"
"Hehe." Huo Yuâer giggled. "Our Empress has always been like that, so you donât need to mind her attitude."
Huo Haoâer nodded in agreement. "Moreover, Yuan Xiajie comes from the ancient clan, and your current strength is not enough to face her. Therefore, you should forget about her and focus on the problems in front of you, both those that have already arisen and those that will arise in the future."
"Donât forget you owe me an alchemy competition, and Iâll collect it after we leave the dungeon." Thereafter, the three women disappeared.
Zhang Fei [5] sighed softly. "Not only is Feng Yao like that, but her subordinates are the same!"
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After returning to the sect, Zhang Fei [5] led Ma Kuangyu to another area. "Old Ma, what exactly is that cursed artifact you found in the past? Feng Yao suspects that it had something to do with the Nine Nether Demon Race, especially since the Spirit Temple and those clans have ties with them."
"What do you know about the Nine Nether Demon Race, Kid?" Zhang Fei [5] shook his head at Ma Kuangyu, as he didnât know anything about the demon race. "Actually, there are nine demon races within the Nine Nether Demon Race: corpse demon, wraith demon, blood demon, bone fiend demon, eye demon, wing demon, ghost-flame Demon, soul-eroded demon, and abyssal sovereign demon."
"So many races in one race."
Ma Kuangyu nodded at him. "The cursed artifact I found belonged to the corpse demon, which is the Corpse-Refining Coffin."
"The Corpse-Refining Coffin?"
"Yes." Ma Kuangyu then explained. "The Corpse-Refining Coffin is a sinister artifact built from corpse flesh and rotwood, sealed with talismans made of blood, bone, and sinew. They used it to transform corpses into a corpse demon or to temper existing ones into stronger evolutions. If living creatures were forced into it, they would slowly disintegrate. Their flesh would melt until it rotted, their bones would harden to the hardness of iron, and their blood would turn poisonous."
Zhang Fei [5] frowned at that. "How did the artifact get there if itâs so important to the corpse demon?"
"I donât know how the artifact got there," Ma Kuangyu replied with a shake of his head. "As I said back then, I found it by accident, and it was sealed inside a room filled with talismans. I didnât know the artifact was inside, and the formation was destroyed after I smashed the wall from the outside. I immediately realized it was dangerous, so I didnât tell anyone about it. Unfortunately, Gongsun Ye found out that I obtained it, and you already know the rest of the story."
"Yeah." Zhang Fei [5] then asked him again. "So, where did you hide the Corpse-Refining Coffin?"
"Are you thinking about taking and using that cursed item?" Ma Kuangyu asked with a deep frown.
"Feng Yao asked me to ask you about that item, and she said that it might be useful for us to fight against the Nine Nether Race." Zhang Fei [5]âs answer surprised Ma Kuangyu, but he remembered that she was the reincarnation of Huo Yanling, and she was also the reincarnation of a primordial being named Shen Yuanzhi. "Itâs okay, you donât have to think too much about it, Old Ma. Thatâ"
"I hid the Corpse-Refining Coffin in the Slaughter Blood Domain."
Zhang Fei [5] was shocked by that. "Did you really hide it in that domain? How did you infiltrate there?"
"When I was alive, I possessed an artifact that could change my aura to resemble that of any race. The asura demons did not recognize my identity when I used a transformation technique to disguise myself as one of them, allowing me to hide that thing in their domain." Ma Kuangyu sighed heavily and looked outside. "Unfortunately, all my old artifacts fell into the hands of Gongsun Ye and the others after my death, so I canât infiltrate the domain anymore, let alone retrieve that thing."
"Have you forgotten about my abilities, Old Ma? Iâm sure I can infiltrate the Slaughter Blood Domain using them, and those asura demons wonât be aware of my identity." Zhang Fei [5] then pointed to the two people walking towards us. "Moreover, we have an asura demon on our side, and he should be able to lead us there. But where is the exact location you hid the artifact?"
"I hid it around the Blood Sea, and Iâve marked it with a special mark."
"I see." Zhang Fei [5] then spoke to Tian Shuixiang and Ye Zhiye, who had just arrived. "Some people are waiting for you two, and you donât need to hide anymore from today onward."
Tian Shuixiang and Ye Zhiye exchanged confused glances. "Who are the people you are referring to, Zhang Fei?"
"Iâll take them to meet those people first, Old Ma." Zhang Fei [5] enveloped Tian Shuixiang and Ye Zhiye with his aura before taking the two away.
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Ye Zhiye froze in her spot as soon as they arrived behind the mountain, squeezing Tian Shuixiangâs hand tightly while her body trembled in fear.
Tian Shuixiang was no less shocked than his wife when he saw Ye Mingran and Ye Futian there. He wanted to take Ye Zhiye to escape from that place, but Feng Yao immediately restricted their movements.
Ye Mingran said nothing as she looked at them, but Ye Futian reacted differently. He was excited and guilty at the same time because Ye Zhiye was his daughter, but he forced her to run away because of her relationship with Tian Shuixiang.
Zhang Fei [5] immediately spoke to calm them down. "You two donât need to worry anymore because my great-grandmaster wonât do anything to you guys."
"Your great-grandmaster?" Tian Shuixiang and Ye Zhiye asked without taking their eyes off Ye Mingran and Ye Zhiye.
"Yes." Zhang Fei [5] summoned the demon extermination sword and used the first technique from the Forgotten Sword Technique. "Silent Edge."
Ye Zhiye was stunned when she saw that, as she surely recognized her fatherâs sword technique.
Ye Futian moved in front of them and hugged them both, surprising Tian Shuixiang and Ye Zhiye. "Zhiye and Xiuluo, please forgive this old manâs stubbornness. Iâve long been aware that you two love each other, but I was too stubborn, and my personal grudge against the asura demon race has caused you both to suffer for so long."
Ye Zhiye didnât know what to do to respond to Ye Futian. She missed her father, but she also hated him because he ordered their race members to hunt her and Tian Shuixiang, and he wanted to kill the man she loved the most.
Tian Shuixiang was also perplexed by their current situation, particularly given that it happened without prior warning. âWhat should I do now?â
- To Be Continued -