Chapter 2329: Chapter 2329 Stygian’s Secret Realm
"Wow, you’re dead!" Lion Slayer roared fiercely as he unleashed a powerful strike towards Xue Rongwu. Xue Rongwu was sent tumbling backwards a few feet when their palms clashed, reverberating with a resounding boom.
Xue Rongtian pounced on his opponent’s vulnerability and dove forward, hoping to inflict a wound before he could regain his balance.
However, Lion Slayer let out another deafening bellow before his figure faded out of view. He then reappeared behind Xue Rongtian, delivering a devastating strike to his back.
Xue Rongtian’s body sagged like a sack of grain as his eyes rolled back in response to the sudden attack.
In a sign of dissatisfaction, Ye Liuyun shook his head. "Too pampered for too long," he pondered. "He failed to notice such an obvious feint."
In the meantime, Lion Slayer’s roar awoke the lion from the trance, which then sprang to life and pounced on Thousand Faces, the nearest target.
With a flick of his fan, Thousand Faces tried to send a gust of wind to blow the beast away. However, the lion skillfully pivoted his direction toward Azriel and launched a strike at Azriel.
Caught off guard, Azriel staggered backwards. Quick on his feet, Azred snatched the paw of the lion and wrenched it away with his whip, narrowly saving his friend.
Xue Rongwu was aided by Thousand Faces while Azriel and Azred, now working together, battled the lion. Xue Rongwu was somewhat better than his brother, but he still lacked actual fighting experience. Thousand Faces had to step in many times to prevent him from making deadly mistakes.
"Leave him. Focus your attack on Lion Slayer!" Thousand Faces heard the murmur of Ye Liuyun by sound transmission.
It was a test by Ye Liuyun on Xue Rongwu. If Xue Rongwu couldn’t hold his own, he wasn’t worth keeping around.
Heeding the command, Thousand Faces abandoned Xue Rongwu and launched a relentless assault on Lion Slayer, leaving the latter to fend for himself under crushing pressure.
Xue Rongwu showed great courage by parrying Lion Slayer’s vicious attack, opening Thousand Faces to sever the beast’s right arm with a single, clean slash. Capitalising on the advantage, the two delivered synchronised palm strikes, sending Lion Slayer crashing to the ground.
Ye Liuyun and his clone immediately launched a Divine Soul assault, quickly devouring Lion Slayer’s Divine Soul.
As for the lion, it was already ensnared in the inky black waters of the Boundless Sea conjured by Azriel. The corrosive liquid ate through its flesh, leaving only bleached bones behind in seconds.
"Done!" Ye Liuyun finished off the Lion Slayer, signalled Azriel to stand down, then launched a Divine soul attack on the lion, devouring its Divine Soul.
A look of confusion passed between the four martial practitioners. If Ye Liuyun could remove these opponents from the beginning, why had he pushed them to act? They even lost one of their own in the process.
Ye Liuyun, sensing their confusion, calmly stated, "I only wanted you to understand one thing. I don’t keep worthless people with me."
Then he ordered Lan Xin and the others to collect the corpses into his Spatial World and retrieve the virtuosos to help the Dragon Lady and the Demons break through their realms.
Without the courage to speak out, Xue Rongwu and the others quickly nodded in accord.
After storing them in his spatial world, Ye Liuyun and Yu Yao proceeded to the Stygian’s entrance.
Upon reaching the edge of the cliff, Yu Yao took out the dagger once more. Under Ye Liuyun’s careful inspection, Stygian’s distinctive emblem on its hilt consists of the image of a raised black spider.
After studying the neighbouring withered tree, Yu Yao delicately positioned the dagger against the cliff wall. He quickly looked for a concealed groove, then pressed the emblem on it with the spider side facing up, inserting the hilt into that groove. A mechanical grinding sound resounded as the stone wall opened forward like a door,
Yu Yao swiftly stowed the dagger away, and Ye Liuyun trailed closely behind as they made their way inside. Behind them, the enormous stone door banged shut.
A lowering stairway lay underfoot in the tiny, pitch-black tunnel.
Yu Yao relied on his Divine sense to navigate, while Ye Liuyun’s Golden Phantom Eyes pierced through the darkness. After several turns, they arrived before a secret realm’s entrance.
Ye Liuyun was handed a black robe by Yu Yao before they entered. "To avoid unwanted attention, the majority of them hide their identities. Many use such kind of robe to cover up their faces. You are free to do the same if you like to maintain your anonymity."
"Keep yours." Ye Liuyun said, "I have my own." He then pulled out a devil cultivator’s robe and draped it over himself.
Yu Yao donned his cloak and then guided Ye Liuyun into the secret realm.
The hidden world wasn’t huge, more like a small city, but it was filled to the brim with martial practitioners, most of whom were stronger than Yu Yao.
Many of them hid their faces under dark cloaks, but Ye Liuyun could see right through them.
Like a crowded marketplace, the road was lined with martial practitioners selling their products, yet something about the vibe seemed stifling. Even when negotiating rates, everyone kept quiet, as if they were scared someone could overhear them.
When Ye Liuyun and his companion stepped inside, all eyes were on them. However, the spectators promptly lost interest and averted their gaze upon noticing the black cloaks, which served as a strong indication that they were not outsiders.
As Ye Liuyun followed Yu Yao farther into the vicinity, he stole a quick glimpse at the merchandise being traded.
While elixirs, charmed objects, and weapons were also on sale, the majority of the things on display were rare and precious, such as spiritual herbs and magical artefacts.
Yu Yao whispered a caution, "The prices here are lower than in the merchant guilds outside, but quality varies wildly. Even if you later discover you were scammed, there will be no refund once the trade took place."
"And remember, fighting is forbidden here. Break that rule, and the guards will sort you out."
All of a sudden, Ye Liuyun’s eyes widened as chills ran down his spine. Human bones, golden cores, and hearts were on display at a vendor’s stand.
Underneath the seller’s dark robe, Ye Liuyun could see his features. It was an elderly guy with silver hair, a hideous face, and sharp, menacing eyes. The type of man who exuded malice
"Are those... human hearts?" To quench his curiosity, Ye Liuyun whispered to Yu Yao.
"Yes," Yu Yao affirmed. "Anything is possible to be found here. The dark arts of some demonic cultivators include the use of blood essence in a human heart."
To avoid being detected, they communicated through sound transmission.
At that moment, a scarred-faced devil cultivator shrouded in Devil Qi drew near the elderly man’s stall. As he bought hearts and bones, he detected Ye Liuyun’s gaze and shot him a menacing glare.
Ye Liuyun quickly averted his gaze. As a newcomer here, he had no reason to cause a fuss.
Yu Yao led him into a large, dark Grand Hall with many booths. Choosing one at random, they stepped inside.
A tea table was provided in the booth for guests to rest. On the wall facing the door were several portraits with their individual details and a string of numbers written alongside.
Please take a seat. Someone will be here to assist us soon," Yu Yao assured Ye Liuyun.
"What’s the deal with these people on the wall?" Ye Liuyun questioned.
His eyes narrowed as he recognised the images of the Lion Slayer, the silver-haired elder and the scar-faced man.
"The portraits are a bounty notice from the Stygian," Yu Yao said. "They must have irritated the wrong people, and someone is paying to have them eliminated."
"So, these are the targets for the assassination mission you mentioned?" Ye Liuyun mused. In that case, the mission seemed much simpler than he thought.
