Above the azure sky, a streak of light suddenly flashed by, chasing the stars and the moon. Glancing around for a moment, then looking back, the figure slowed slightly, muttering, “Even Hong Tianxiao would be hard-pressed to match my speed when I fully exert my bone wings. And Shen Yun is injured by me and the demonic puppet, so he won’t be chasing us for a while. There’s no need to fear; as long as that old man dares to come alone, he will taste the power of the demonic puppet!”
With this thought, Xiao Yan slowed his pace again, turning to look in the direction of the distant Heavenly Northern City. After a while, no figure appeared. He shook his head; the old man was cautious indeed, maintaining his composure even in a rage.
“If he isn’t chasing now, he must be waiting for Shen Yun to recover. That old guy is from the Wind and Lightning Pavilion, so he likely has plenty of healing pills. Given his injuries, he should recover soon. The only solution now is to first neutralize the Blood Thunder Mark that old man placed in my body. Otherwise, if the Wind and Lightning Pavilion’s experts catch up, my situation will be dire.”
Deciding quickly, Xiao Yan glanced around and then flapped his bone wings, transforming into a beam of light heading towards a distant mountain range.
He found a secluded spot in the mountains and forced a cave open, blocking the entrance with boulders. When the soft glow of the moonlight illuminated the cave, the tense Xiao Yan finally relaxed and exhaled a breath.
“A miscalculation. I didn’t expect the Wind and Lightning Pavilion to care so much about the Three Thousand Lightning Movement. Although it’s profound, it’s just a low-rank earth-tier technique. There’s no reason for the Wind and Lightning Pavilion to regard it as a precious treasure beyond others’ reach.”
Sitting cross-legged, Xiao Yan rubbed his forehead and smiled bitterly. “Today, I’ve completely offended the Wind and Lightning Pavilion. But I’m not afraid. The Central Plains are vast, and there are many places to go. I doubt the Wind and Lightning Pavilion can cover the entire Central Plains.”
Xiao Yan’s face showed a thoughtful expression, and he then opened his palm, revealing a silver-white storage ring stained with traces of blood—plucked straight from Shen Yun’s finger by the demonic puppet.
His soul force spread out, but as soon as it touched the silver storage ring, the latter emitted a resistant force, pushing back Xiao Yan’s soul force. “A soul mark, huh?”
Feeling the resistance, Xiao Yan laughed coldly. Soul force was his forte, and despite his considerable difference in rank from Shen Yun, his soul force was not weaker. Breaking the soul mark left behind by Shen Yun was not impossible.
Taking a deep breath, he manipulated the silver storage ring to float before him. His eyes snapped open, and a torrent of soul force surged from his forehead, transforming into an invisible spike, slamming fiercely into the ring.
“Ding!”
The collision caused a tangible ripple to burst from the ring, slamming into the cave wall. The cave shook, and cracks spider-webbed along the walls.
Ignoring the cave’s tremors, Xiao Yan fixed his gaze on the trembling ring. His soul force continued to surge, relentlessly battering the soul mark within the ring. The soul mark set by a Battle Sect was indeed formidable, but without its master, it could not be controlled remotely. Shen Yun was busy healing, leaving no time to notice the changes in the mark.
After several minutes of continuous assault, a faint crack sounded within the cave. Hearing this, Xiao Yan’s eyes lit up with joy. He had finally erased the old man’s soul mark.
At the moment the soul mark shattered, Shen Yun, sitting cross-legged on the celestial stone platform in Heavenly Northern City, opened his eyes, his gaze fierce. “Xiao Yan, I swear I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Most people had already left the celestial stone platform, sensing the danger from the enraged Shen Yun and Hong Tianxiao. No one wanted to be caught in their rage.
“Stop shouting and focus on healing,” said Hong Tianxiao, frowning.
“My soul mark in the storage ring has been broken by that little bastard!” Shen Yun growled.
Startled, Hong Tianxiao’s expression changed. “That boy is just a Battle Emperor. How could he break your soul mark? That puppet may be strong, but it lacks soul force.”
“I don’t know,” Shen Yun said grimly, shaking his head. “When I finish healing, we’ll go after him. He cannot escape with the Blood Thunder Mark I placed in his body.”
“Don’t worry. He killed so many of my clan members. I won’t let him get away easily,” Hong Tianxiao said with a sinister smile.
“I’ve sent a message to the Wind and Lightning North Pavilion. Strong reinforcements will arrive soon. By then, he won’t be able to escape,” Shen Yun added, venom in his voice, eyeing his mutilated hand.
In the softly lit cave, Xiao Yan closed his eyes as the silver storage ring emitted a faint glow. The glow gradually faded, and Xiao Yan opened his eyes, finding a silver scroll in his hand.
The silver scroll was slightly larger than a normal scroll, glowing brightly with intricate red patterns like veins covering its surface. Staring at it, Xiao Yan’s heart raced. This was the only peculiar item in Shen Yun’s storage ring.
“What is this?” Xiao Yan muttered, intrigued. He summoned the demonic puppet and tossed the scroll to it. “Open it.”
The demonic puppet took the scroll and, without hesitation, began to unroll it.
“Boom!”
As the scroll unfurled, a blast of silver light erupted, followed by a rumble. A lightning bolt as thick as a thigh shot out, slamming into the puppet’s chest, sending it flying. It crashed into the cave wall, causing the boulders behind it to crack and explode.
“It’s indeed a trick,” Xiao Yan sneered. If he had been hit, he would have been severely injured. Fortunately, the puppet’s body was tough enough to withstand the attack.
The silver scroll, having released its lightning, floated in mid-air. Xiao Yan glanced at it, summoning it with a hand wave. As it descended, his Dou Qi surged, and the Lotus Heart Flame transformed into a protective layer.
Despite his full guard, the scroll remained calm, lying quietly in his hand. Flashing with lightning, it looked extraordinary.
Seeing no further changes, Xiao Yan sighed in relief and gazed at the large characters on the scroll. “Three Thousand Lightning Illusion Body, the ultimate treasure of the Wind and Lightning Pavilion. This ancient Dou Technique is of high earth-tier. Once mastered, it can create a lightning illusion body with strength similar to the original body, existing as long as the original body does not die. This effect is described in four words: comparable to a heaven-tier technique!”
The short line of characters stirred Xiao Yan’s heart. A clone of equal strength that wouldn’t disappear unless the original dies? If true, this Three Thousand Lightning Illusion Body was terrifying, and the description of it being like a heaven-tier technique was not exaggerated.
“I didn’t expect the Wind and Lightning Pavilion to have such a treasure. With it, a Dou Zun is effectively two Dou Zuns. In battle, who can defeat them in the same tier?”
Xiao Yan’s eyes glowed with excitement. Behind the line of characters, he saw some dim notes:
“Though the Three Thousand Lightning Illusion Body is fearsome, it is extremely difficult to master. One condition is mastering the Three Thousand Lightning Movement to its highest level. Over the years, very few in the Wind and Lightning Pavilion have succeeded. I’ve studied for decades, gained little, and it seems I won’t achieve it in this lifetime.”
“Three Thousand Lightning Movement?” Xiao Yan drew a sharp breath. He understood why Shen Yun was so moved upon seeing his mastery of the technique—it was related to the Wind and Lightning Pavilion’s ultimate treasure.
“Heh, I owe it to that old man. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known this secret. With the Three Thousand Lightning Illusion Body in my hands, I will see how difficult it is to master!”
Xiao Yan chuckled, closed his eyes, and his soul force delved into the lightning-covered silver scroll.
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