"You win? You don't deserve to say that!" Cai Liuyang's glacial tone resounded like thunder, and those delicate looking fingers clenched viciously! The sky-splitting saber light twisted, contorted, distorted, and howled as if it was in pain. A single second later, it exploded into bits of light that littered the skies.
The old man's harmless smile grew a little mocking, "Before absolute power, all tricks and schemes are useless." While he was shocked by Wei Wuyin's tactics and strength, finding it incredibly impressive, he was still a mortal. It was best if such a terrifying genius was killed in its cradle, especially since it belonged to those oafs.
So he was happy to see Cai Liuyang invoke her Demi-Mystic State!
The other Demi-Mortal Lords were extremely shocked that a measly Astral Core Realm cultivator could actually cause an Ascended to utilize their Demi-Mystic State. That state was special, and required an immense amount of mystic energy to utilize, and after usage, even an ordinary Demi-Mortal Lord might have to spend decades to recover their expended mystic energies without external support.
If Wu Yu hadn't had a high-tier, ninth-grade product forged by Wei Wuyin, he would've had to spend years recuperating.
Wei Wuyin seemed exhausted, huffing and puffing heavily with a bitter smile. Alongside his closed eyes, it was almost as if he was ready to sleep.
Cai Liuyang soon came into full view after the spluttering show of saber light ended. There were still small bits of saber light lingering in the air, like miniaturized stars. They were the bits that remained due to their permanence, unable to be dissipated until they were destroyed.
Cai Liuyang's current figure was exquisite. She seemed like an animated sculpture of icy jade. Her eyes were like jewels and her skin was utterly flawless. Some might consider this beautiful, but in truth, she came off a little strange as if she wasn't a living being, but a stone creation given the breath of life.
Cai Liuyang seemed to no longer feed her ill-habit. Her movements were insanely swift, like a comet of icy light, she arrived before Wei Wuyin in a mere blink of a mortal eye.
Wei Wuyin kept breathing heavily, looking pale, defeated, and frustrated. He tightly clenched his fist as Element became a ray of light that entered his dantian, storing itself within the empty Astral Core of King. He smacked his lips, his wings flapping weakly.
Lifting his head to 'look' at Cai Liuyang, Wei Wuyin hoarsely said: "I tried." After saying this, he released a sigh of resignation as his head lowered. Directly after, his True Draconic Form receded, leaving only faint outlines of his Infinite Void Wings that kept him afloat. That unearthly handsome visage of his that carried a zenith degree of masculine charm was fully revealed yet also shattered beneath his current image, lacking confidence, charisma, calm, or energy.
Yet Cai Liuyang still couldn't help but subconsciously admire his looks. She reached out, and her slender palm grabbed Wei Wuyin's throat. He gurgled at her strength, feeling his airways constrict. All it took was one squeeze and surge of power, and his fate would become just like Yuan Longshi.
However, Cai Liuyang sealed Wei Wuyin's meridians and dantian. She was somewhat startled after noticing that he had two Astral Souls, finding his outrageous spiritual strength a little more believable. She still couldn't figure out why he felt like a Spiritualist yet wasn't one.
"A human serving the titans for the Battlefield? Pathetic," the Star-pupil Demi-Mortal Lord spat. He was of the belief that Wei Wuyin had knowingly chosen to participate against his own race, a despicable action.
After all, while the races were divided, not all humans, star-pupil race, or titans were under the same Ascended Sovereign. In fact, some of these titans, star-pupil races, and humans were amongst the same sect or force yet fought against each other on the Battlefield in a clear-cut racial divide.
The Ascended Sovereigns stealthily swapped between races to determine their disputes, so no one knew who really won until the full results were out. Without this knowledge, almost everyone was fighting for themselves and their own fortune.
Battalion Commander Borus's expression became slightly unsightly after hearing this. He kind of wished that Cai Liuyang killed Wei Wuyin so that his shameless action would be swept under the radar, but also wished he survived due to his terrifying strength. Since he came from a former titan-ruled region without any news, it wasn't impossible to use this opportunity to bring Wei Wuyin over to his own force.
"Why did you kill him?" With Wei Wuyin sealed and completely under her will, she relaxed. She even cancelled her Demi-Mystic State after ascertaining that Wei Wuyin's powers were exhausted. After all, each second of this state exhausted a tremendous amount of her own energy.
Her gorgeous appearance was revealed, completely unharmed by Wei Wuyin's sky-splitting saber assault.
Cai Liuyang felt that Jing Jiu's death made little sense. Why would Wei Wuyin be present on the battlefield, a human from the titan race, fighting against humans? It was almost as if someone had sent him directly, countering all of Jing Jiu's treasures and protections with precision. Furthermore, they even used highly refined time energies to prevent resurrection. It seemed all too deliberate.
Wei Wuyin's voice was strained as his throat was tightly grabbed. He couldn't speak and his spiritual energy was exhausted, so he couldn't send a spiritual transmission. Realizing this, Cai Liuyang loosened her grip, yet reinforced her restrictive spells two-fold to prevent him from escaping. She was extremely cautious.
Grimacing from the creation of spell formations in his meridians, dantians, and Sea of Consciousness, Wei Wuyin felt completely powerless. If Lin Ming were to learn that Wei Wuyin was subjected to this treatment, he might be laughing with joy. After all, Wei Wuyin had done the same thing to him.
"…Why?" Wei Wuyin asked in a strained manner. Why should he reveal why he killed Jing Jiu? From his perspective, his life was ending soon anyway? Even Cai Liuyang understood the meaning behind his question, and her beautiful eyes glinted with a flash of fury but also suspicion. Was there truly a plot behind all this? An assassin?
However, she didn't sense any indication of a Mystical Oath of Heavenly Oath.
Then, she revealed a faint smile that sent shivers down one's spine. It was extremely sinister, carrying a sadistic quality that relayed its brutal intentions. "If you don't tell me, death wouldn't just be a luxury for you, it'll be your greatest wish in your entire life."
Wei Wuyin's expression violently paled as he 'looked' at her, his eyes still closed. He gulped slightly. However, a trace of shaking yet unwilling to yield air reflected in that pale expression.
Cai Liuyang knew that Wei Wuyin was only grasping at his pride, but it was on the cusp of falling apart. She leaned into his right ear, lifting him like he was weightless, and spoke with a softest of voices: "If you don't tell me, I'll feed it to you. Then Time Revert it, then feed it to you again and again."
Feed it?
Wei Wuyin was confused until he felt a surge of energy erupt in his groin. His expression didn't just turn pale, it went outright horrified.
She added with a faint chuckle, "Have you ever tried to see how it feels inside you?"
This seemed to be the last straw that broke the camel's back, and Wei Wuyin folded without a single remaining trace of unwillingness.
"I was sent not to ki-kill! I wasn't!" He shouted out, causing the Demi-Mortal Lords to be startled by his panic and fear. They were amused with what Cai Liuyang said, and despite their still raging battle, they kept a bare minimum of focus on these events.
Cai Liuyang was fiercely startled by Wei Wuyin's statement. Her eyes were confused for a brief moment, and then outraged. "You weren't sent to kill?!" As if to disprove him, she brought over Jing Jiu's corpse. "Do you think I won't! Before everyone fucking here!" A wisp of mystic power was sent to Wei Wuyin's groin again, and this time Cai Liuyang got a clear feeling of its size, weight, and shape.
She was startled for a brief moment, but regained herself.
Wei Wuyin shouted in horror, "I'm serious! I wasn't! I don't know who, but I was paid to capture his soul and bring it to the-"
"What?!" Not only was Cai Liuyang shocked, but every Ascended too. There was such a thing? The battles noticeably slowed down, and more individuals were intrigued by this development.
Cai Liuyang's eyes looked at Jing Jiu, her senses swept him, and she realized there was a trace of alchemical force within his body! Did this man use an alchemic tool to extract Jing Jiu's soul?!
"Where is it? WHERE IS IT?! WHERE?!?!" Cai Liuyang lost herself. She clenched tighter against Wei Wuyin's throat as if threatening to crush it. But it only caused him to wail fiercely, his voice unable to come out.
Wei Wuyin quiveringly touched his spatial ring. "The…the orb…" He pushed out with his greatest strength.
Cai Liuyang hastily inspected the ring with intense urgency, sweeping her senses throughout the ring and immediately found Jing Jiu's Soul Aura in a strange marble seemingly constructed in crystallized marble of void energy. Her hopes were alit.
If Jing Jiu's soul was intact, then this meant he could be fully resurrected! Her heart was brilliant with joy.
She brought out the sphere generated by Void Crystallization, sensing Jing Jiu's Soul Aura permeating the entire thing. However, she was afraid to inspect it closely or forcibly send her energy into it. What if that destroyed the soul inside?
Caution.
Yes.
Must be cautious.
She looked at Wei Wuyin with a cold gaze. "How do I extract the soul in this?"
After she asked that, she sent another burst of energy into Wei Wuyin's groin, reminding him of her original threat. Wei Wuyin didn't hesitate to tell her how to dispel as if he couldn't hope to do so sooner. A few Ascended couldn't help but shake their heads, despite his looks, he was so cowardly. There were soldiers that suffered far more and would never fold.
Cai Liuyang verified that this a void-type object and the method of infusion of spatial energies was consistent. After doing so, she looked at Wei Wuyin and her eyes grew brutal. Her fair and soft hands clasped his throat and then pressed down.
Wei Wuyin's limbs started to flail as he struggled to breathe. He tried his best to pull Cai Liuyang's fingers from his throat but to no avail. Eventually, the horrific sound finally occurred.
CRACK!
Wei Wuyin's neck twisted in an unnatural manner, and a burst of mystic power obliterated Wei Wuyin's Sea of Consciousness. He couldn't be anymore dead. As for his Astral Souls, they weren't irrelevant. It was customary to allow Starlords to become stars for the betterment of the Galactic Zone, so it was common practice to leave them untouched until they underwent Stellar Condensation.
Cai Liuyang was waiting for Wei Wuyin's body to lose its life force so she could store it in her spatial ring for further investigation, but she couldn't help herself to panic when the Void Crystallized orb Soul Aura of Jing Jiu started to flicker. She questioned if Wei Wuyin had tethered himself somehow, so she urgently used the method to dispel the Void Crystal and was going to use her own mystic power to secure his soul.
If it was temporary, Ascended could easily replicate what Wu Yu did for Hong Ru. She hurriedly dispelled the Void Crystal.
When she did, at that exact moment, Wei Wuyin's supposed corpse opened its eyes. One of its eyes was flickering with saber light, somewhat dim, while the other was suffused with elemental light. The first eye was harsh yet the second eye was playful.
"Tch."
"Hehehe!"
Two voices sounded from Wei Wuyin's 'corpse' at this moment that shook Cai Liuyang.
"We win!"
Yet before she could react, the Void Crystallization Orb was released, and alongside it, tens of millions of spherical objects effusing fiery energies! They were all pellets!
There wasn't even a single moment, a single instant, before they all…
EXPLODED!
