Ye Yu’s acting in this xuanhuan world truly deserved a Best Actor award.
All of those schemes—even if somewhat slapdash—were still commendable, given how hastily they’d been devised. Yet Yang Keqiang had one glaring flaw: he knew nothing about true power.
Although his three sworn brothers had retreated just in time when Ye Yu arrived, in Ye Yu’s dictionary there was no such thing as an enemy escaping. Their only fate was annihilation. So in the brief moment when Yang Keqiang lay injured and unconscious, Ye Yu had already hunted down the three and begun slaughtering them.
No matter how you looked at it, during their travels Yang Keqiang had been conscientious—always the one to ask directions. Ye Yu could not simply stand by and let someone harm his companion and walk away. But as he cut down their foes, he sensed something was off. With the strength of those three, how could they have inflicted such grievous wounds on Yang Keqiang? It made no sense.
Therefore Ye Yu spared one of them—a Ghost King Stage cultivator—and used the Divine Mind-Control Technique. From this survivor’s memories, Ye Yu learned the whole truth. Yet he did not kill Yang Keqiang on the spot. “Since you coveted the opportunity to fuse, I’ll grant it,” Ye Yu said. “Go willingly be my test subject.”
After hearing this, ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) Yang Keqiang forced a bitter smile. “So you knew everything all along. No wonder you didn’t make me the strongest—you were deliberately holding back, right?”
Ye Yu stepped forward and shook his head. “I wasn’t holding back—you simply weren’t capable enough. I experimented with immortal fusion long ago, but each subject’s soul broke after a few fusions, capping at the Immortal Emperor Stage. You have the strongest soul I’ve ever seen in a ghost creature, so I wanted to see how far you could go. Frankly, I even intended to send you to the Divine Realm. If it had succeeded, I could mass-produce gods. But your ceiling was exactly here. No matter how hard you tried, you could not break through. As a test subject, you’ve served your purpose.”
With a flick of his sleeve, Ye Yu unleashed the Heart-Rending Grief immortal art. Yang Keqiang’s whole body trembled, overcome by sorrow, his aura completely gone. Externally, he bore no wounds—but his soul had shattered utterly.
Ye Yu sighed and turned away. Perhaps the path of fusing ghost creatures truly violated heaven’s harmony. He had come this far and still created no gods. Sigh.
Xiao Bai followed. “Big brother, where to now?”
“Back to the Celestial Realm, of course. That stranger has vanished. Next, I plan to go to the Divine Realm. Don’t look at me like that—I’ll try to bring you along too, so you’d better work harder these days.”
With that, Ye Yu and Xiao Bai walked on until they disappeared from sight. Yang Keqiang’s corpse stood silently. Half an hour later, many ghost creatures gathered, curious about this strange form—but none dared approach. Even in death, a tiger’s ferocity remains.
At forty-one, Ye Yu and Xiao Bai successfully entered the Divine Realm. Remarkably, Xiao Bai made the ascent solely through its own efforts, not by being carried. Its form reverted to a fist-sized white lamb—adorable, yet capable of sudden ferocity when angered, restoring its true terrifying visage with glinting fangs. Stepping once more into the Divine Realm left it a bit nostalgic.
Yet Ye Yu did not immediately explore. Instead, he retrieved that massive box from his Storage Ring and tried to open it. He had obtained it in the mortal world; now that he had risen to the New God Realm, it ought to yield to him. But to his dismay, it remained firmly sealed. At first, his full power forced only a sliver of a gap—but soon, not even that. The reason was clear: the seal inscriptions were strengthening. Though it sounded absurd, it was true. He felt divine power gathering into the inscriptions, which glowed ever brighter.
He could not let this continue. Retrieving the box once more, he pondered deeply. If it absorbed divine power, it must originate from the Divine Realm. Yet how had it appeared in the mortal world? Ye Yu was baffled.
Just then Xiao Bai asked, “Big brother, what are you agonizing over? That box? If you can’t open it normally, just smash it open.”
Those words gave Ye Yu an idea. Instead of trying himself, he handed the box to Xiao Bai. “If you can open it by force, go ahead.”
Xiao Bai set to work. Half an hour later, it had broken the box’s defenses—but not opened it. Instead, the inscriptions gleamed with renewed intensity, making it impossible to look at directly. Now it truly would not yield.
Ye Yu could only return the box to his ring and soothe the agitated Xiao Bai. “When facing problems, don’t rush or panic. Stay calm. Come, big brother will take you to taste some Divine Realm fruits—fragrant, crisp, sweet, and they boost divine power!”
Xiao Bai still ground its teeth in frustration.
Meanwhile, at the far southern edge of the Celestial Realm, a pure lotus slowly bloomed. Specks of starlight drifted into its petals, coalescing into an exquisitely beautiful figure. Her features were as though painted, breathtakingly perfect. With one step she reached the celestial summit, and with bright eyes she gazed down upon the entire realm.
“Damn,” she muttered, “if I could find my body, I wouldn’t be stuck at this level. Fine, once I finish this matter, I’ll hunt down the bastard who stole my body!”
