The chains clanked as Cang Ming tore open his robe, revealing the decayed Xing Wen within his chest. "Years ago, I taught her the Burning Star Technique, but she used it to drain my star core... Little Beast, you’re here to seize the star core too, aren’t you?"
Yun Che raised his hand, the Dark Silver Star Pattern coalescing into the runes of the Burning Star Technique. "Is this what you're talking about?"
Cang Ming's Soul Fire surged violently. "How could you... No, wait! This technique has been altered!"
Cang Ming's bony claws plunged into his own chest, extracting a half-blackened star core. "This is the true Burning Star Technique! What White Girl gave you was the reversed Devouring Star Evil Technique!"
Fragments of memories floated within the star core:
—Bai Ruoyou knelt in the torrential rain as Cang Ming pierced a star core into her nape;
—"Burning One's Own Star Pattern can forge God-Slaying Power."
—The scene shifted abruptly; Bai Ruoyou turned and inserted the star core into Cang Ming's heart. "Master, Heavenly Emperor promised me... that as long as I sacrifice my Entire Clan, he would spare Che'er..."
Suddenly, Yun Che's Dark Silver Star Pattern erupted, drawing the star core into his body. Cang Ming's withered bones turned to dust, his final words echoing in the Underground Palace: "She left something for you at the Observatory..."
Xiao Qingli suddenly coughed up icy blood, a crack forming on her chest's Star Fragment. "Yun Che, I think... I saw your past..."
The roar of crashing waves echoed from above; the flying vessel of Lingxiao Pavilion was bombarding the isolated island. The New Elder's furious shout pierced through the rock walls: "We will dig three feet into the ground to find the spawn of Xing Yun!"
The vessel of Lingxiao Pavilion loomed like a dark cloud over the city, its cannon's spiritual light tearing through the night into a ghastly white. The rocky outcrops of the isolated island shattered under the bombardment as Yun Che grabbed Xiao Qingli and leaped into a fissure of the Underground Palace, flames consuming Cang Ming's skeletal altar behind them.
"They're using the Meteor Cannon!" Xiao Qingli coughed out ice shards, her chest's Star Fragment cracking to its limits. "They plan to turn both island and people into dust!"
Yun Che's Dark Silver Star Pattern swirled in his palm as the Star Map on the Underground Palace mural suddenly came to life. The traces of Xing Gui flickered on the rock wall, eventually converging into a line pointing downward: "Go to the Observatory core—what Bai Ruoyou left is there!"
The rock layers collapsed under bombardment, and they fell into an abyss. Below them was a floating Xing Yun stone platform with a faceless statue at its center, holding half a Mechanical Star. The moment Xiao Qingli touched the statue, her pupils constricted sharply. "This is... my face?"
The statue’s features began to writhe and gradually morphed into Xiao Qingli’s likeness!
The Mechanical Star erupted with blinding light, dragging them both into an illusion.
Yun Che stood atop a sea of blood and mountains of corpses, beneath him lay hundreds of thousands of Skeletons from the Starfall Clan. Bai Ruoyou’s Demon Eye manifested in the clouds, her voice booming: "With every moment you live, thousands die because of you!"
The Dark Silver Star Pattern suddenly exploded with power, transforming into blades that lunged at the illusion. As the blade touched Bai Ruoyou, reality shifted—
Xiao Qingli hung suspended by chains at the Observatory while the New Elder drove a Star Fragment into her heart. "The fate of a Human Pillar is to become a sacrificial offering for sealing!"
"Break!" Yun Che tore through the illusion but found reality where Xiao Qingli was thrusting a dagger toward his heart.
Her pupils glowed with cold light from the Mechanical Star: "You are the source of calamity... kill you, and chaos will cease!"
The Xing Yun stone platform began to spin as twelve statues rose from below, each bearing Yun Che’s face. They whispered in unison: "You are just like Bai Ruoyou... destined to fall into darkness."
Yun Che's Dark Silver Star Pattern suddenly went out of control, forming demonic wings behind him. He grasped Xiao Qingli's wrist with one hand, while Xing Wen coiled around her Star Fragment like a venomous snake. "Look closely, who is the Puppet!"
Comment 0 Comment Count