Encountering Pei Yanji Again

Outside the Yanyang Spiritual Realm, every five days, a few people whose time on their Yanyang Tokens had expired were ejected from the realm. Everyone who came out was crestfallen, repeating the exact same story as the first group.

Affected by the flame storm, they hadn't even caught a glimpse of the spiritual fire before being forced out...

There were even a few who failed to emerge when their time was up. It wasn't hard to guess that they had been unable to escape in time and perished in the flame storm.

What was supposed to be an extraordinarily rare opportunity had not only yielded nothing, but had even posed a threat to their lives. Naturally, everyone's expressions were grim.

After all, those who entered were the finest alchemists selected through fierce competition from each prefecture. Losing even one was a heavy blow to their home prefecture.

The two Golden Core powerhouses, Yin Shixiu and Qin Yu, looked terrifyingly dark.

Yin Wenzhou and Qin Qingmu were their chosen successors. If something happened to them inside the secret realm...

Unfortunately, once the spiritual realm opened, there was only a brief window to enter. Furthermore, the realm restricted cultivation levels, allowing only those at the Foundation Establishment Realm or below to enter. No matter how anxious Yin Shixiu, Qin Yu, and the others were, they could not intervene now and could only wait.

As word spread, President Song and the others could no longer sit still. They all hurried over to wait outside the spiritual realm.

Master Ji paced back and forth in agitation. “Nothing has ever gone wrong in the past. Why did something have to happen this time?”

President Song frowned deeply. “The spiritual realm shows signs of fading. It's only normal that the interior is unstable and full of turmoil.”

“I know all that—” Master Ji trailed off, his voice dropping as he let out a low sigh. “I just hope Little Yu is safe and sound.”

If anyone was the most anxious, it was them. As the champion, Shi Yu was slated to stay inside the longest. Until the final day arrived, they wouldn't be able to rest easy.

...

After advancing to the ninth layer of the Qi Refining Realm, Shi Yu regulated her breathing briefly, bringing her state back to its peak.

The wisp of fire spiritual Qi that the Void Fissure Spiritual Flame had snatched was incomparably pure. Though it was only a single wisp, it was so condensed as to be almost solid, containing a trace of primordial, ancient fire intent. Absorbing it had brought Shi Yu immense benefits.

Even though she had just broken through, the spiritual Qi in her body showed not the slightest hint of instability, her foundation rock-solid.

Not wanting to delay, she set off again to search for the spiritual fire while in top condition.

However, it was a small world. After walking for only half an hour, she ran straight into an old acquaintance.

Shi Yu wasn't surprised to see Pei Yanji appear before her. The commotion created by the Fire Spirit Giant's passing earlier had been far too grand; it was only natural for Pei Yanji to follow the commotion to this spot.

Noticing Shi Yu's vibrant blood and active spiritual Qi—and that she had already advanced to the ninth layer of the Qi Refining Realm—he narrowed his eyes. Guessing she must have come across some fortunate encounter, he said coldly, “You certainly have good luck.”

“You flatter me.” Shi Yu's hand twitched slightly as the Hidden Hatred Flute slid into her palm.

Pei Yanji saw her wariness and readiness to strike, but paid it no mind. He gave a contemptuous laugh. “With no one to help you now, you still think you can put up a futile resistance? You'd better obey and die!”

“Once I deal with you, I'll take care of those with the surnames Yin and Qin one by one!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, a bright bead appeared in his palm, emitting a dark red glow. Chanting an incantation, Pei Yanji thrust it forward. Waves of crimson mist surged from the flat ground. Unlike the fire crimson of the spiritual realm, this crimson was a sticky, blood-red color that wrapped around Shi Yu like a heavy blood fog.

“How generous of you to put me first on your list,” Shi Yu sneered. Sliding backward at high speed, she turned her hand to bring the Hidden Hatred Flute to her lips and began playing 《No Thought of Return》.

Enveloped in divine sense, a mournful flute melody echoed, intertwining in the ears like the desolate cry of a solitary wild goose in the dead of winter. Shi Yu had already cultivated 《No Thought of Return》 to Grand Mastery. A single tune could stir deep melancholy, luring the listener into drowning in fear and regret laced with hidden killing intent.

Thud! The blood-colored bead under his control dropped to the ground. Pei Yanji's body instantly froze as an invisible force surged into his mind, causing him to suddenly remember the woman he had once deeply loved—and personally turned into a human puppet.

Her face, her smile, and her gentleness rose before his eyes. A sharp pang of agony shot through Pei Yanji's heart, followed by a surge of unhinged pleasure, as if something within him were being ripped apart.

“Hahaha, you asked for this!”

“Die! Die!”

Shi Yu practiced all four secondary arts—artifact refining, alchemy, array formations, or talismans—and her divine sense had been repeatedly tempered by the 《Soul Tempering Art》. Even if her divine sense wasn't quite equal to that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Pei Yanji, it wasn't far off. Now that she had reached the ninth layer of the Qi Refining Realm, the gap was practically nonexistent. Thus, this sonic attack proved remarkably effective, plunging Pei Yanji into a vortex of chaotic emotions and driving him near madness.

This man had deep reserves and endless tricks, and his cultivation exceeded hers; after all, the ninth layer of the Qi Refining Realm and the Foundation Establishment Realm were separated by a whole major realm. Shi Yu did not dare be careless. Light gathered on the Yinhuang Bow once more, coalescing into an arrow that shot off the bowstring at lightning speed.

Whoosh— Carrying a scorching aura, the golden arrow ripped through the air with a whistle, flying straight for Pei Yanji's chest.

Though trapped by 《No Thought of Return》, Pei Yanji possessed a deeper cultivation base after all. Sensing the incoming danger, he forcefully suppressed the thoughts in his mind and swung his Three-Split Curved Fang Hook to block Shi Yu's arrow.

The two collided in midair with a loud boom, sending sparks scattering in all directions.

Using the loud impact to snap back to his senses, Pei Yanji broke free from the influence of 《No Thought of Return》.

What followed immediately were countless meteoric iron needles flashing with a brilliant, cold sheen. Holding nothing back, Shi Yu took out her entire stock and flung them at Pei Yanji handful by handful.

Having already experienced the needles' power before, Pei Yanji didn't dare lower his guard. He hurriedly recalled the Three-Split Curved Fang Hook to guard his vital spots while spurring his spiritual power to form a barrier against the barrage.

The meteoric iron needles struck the barrier like raindrops, producing a continuous clatter of clashing metal. The barrier trembled violently, and the series of impacts rattled Pei Yanji, making it difficult for him to hold his ground.

Seeing that his barrier could no longer hold and was on the verge of cracking, he grunted and slapped a defensive spirit talisman onto himself, a pained look flashing across his face.

The instant the talisman activated, it transformed into a sphere of golden light that enveloped Pei Yanji completely, warding off every single meteoric iron needle.

With her sharp eyes, Shi Yu immediately recognized it as a Tier-5 defensive spirit talisman—the Vajra Body Protection Talisman.

However, Shi Yu reasoned that no matter how rich he was, he couldn't possibly pull out high-tier talismans like that repeatedly. Thus, she continued hurling handful after handful of meteoric iron needles at him.

The tips of the meteoric iron needles held traces of Slaughter Spring water. Though each needle contained only a tiny drop, Slaughter Spring water was a substance of supreme, ferocious killing energy born of heaven and earth. Its power was formidable, and its lethal potential was not to be underestimated.

Even a Tier-5 talisman like the Vajra Body Protection Talisman began to dim under the relentless assault of handfuls of meteoric iron needles.

Uncertain how many needles Shi Yu had left, Pei Yanji grew slightly anxious. Looking at her, he already viewed her as a corpse, naturally regarding all her possessions as his own. Seeing her squander those precious needles on him as if they cost nothing, he felt both shock and anguish.

“Those needles are valuable items...”

Before long, the number of meteoric iron needles Shi Yu threw began to dwindle. Pei Yanji sneered, convinced that this was her only trick against him, and that once the needles ran out, she would be out of options.

“What, all out?” Seeing no more needles coming his way, Pei Yanji gave a grim chuckle, a faint flash of disgust in his eyes. “Ungrateful fool!”

In his eyes, if Shi Yu had surrendered submissively, he might have granted her a quick death. But now, she had not only wasted one of his Tier-5 spirit talismans, but also squandered spoils of war that should have belonged to him. It was truly unforgivable.

Determined to torture Shi Yu mercilessly until she begged for death, Pei Yanji brandished his Three-Split Curved Fang Hook, his eyes dark. “Let's see what else you have up your sleeve!”

Instead, Shi Yu tilted her head and looked at him with a beaming smile. “Oh?”

Pei Yanji froze, a bad feeling rising in his heart. Before he could retreat, beams of spiritual array light flared up around him.

The Seven Emotions Array gifted by President Cui had finally come in handy.

Shi Yu's overwhelming volley of meteoric iron needles earlier had merely been smoke and mirrors to cover her setup of the formation. Now that the needles were exhausted, the array was finally complete.