CHAPTER 823: ESCAPE

Translator: CinderTL

Gou Jun channeled his soul power through his arm, which was pressed against Song Wen’s head, and surged into Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness.

Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness lay wide open, completely unguarded. Gou Jun’s soul power entered without any resistance.

Gou Jun could clearly sense Song Wen’s soul standing motionless deep within the Sea of Consciousness.

"You’re quite sensible," Gou Jun’s voice echoed in Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness.

Song Wen’s soul replied, "My life is in Fellow Daoist’s hands. How could I dare deceive you?"

"Though you cooperate, some precautions are necessary," Gou Jun said.

As he spoke, his soul power surged into Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness like a tidal wave.

The soul power transformed into a tentacle, tightly wrapping around Song Wen’s soul, rendering it immobile.

This scene convinced Gou Jun that Song Wen was now a fish on the chopping block, at his mercy.

Without hesitation, Gou Jun summoned his own soul and invaded Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness.

"Your Sea of Consciousness is quite stable, but it will soon be mine," Gou Jun declared triumphantly.

"Not necessarily," Song Wen retorted, his voice laced with mockery as he watched Gou Jun’s soul enter his Sea of Consciousness.

Gou Jun was stunned, but he didn’t dwell on it. He assumed Song Wen had deliberately lured him into his Sea of Consciousness to exploit the home-field advantage for a final gamble.

He sneered, "Your soul is already under my control. What more can you possibly do? I had intended to spare your soul, but since you’re courting death, I’ll have no choice but to devour it."

With that, he prepared to activate his soul power tentacles to crush Song Wen’s soul.

Just then, a pitch-black hole appeared in Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness.

The hole rapidly expanded, soon spanning the entire Sea of Consciousness.

Gou Jun’s expression immediately changed, his eyes filled with terror.

From the depths of the Black Hole, he sensed an immense, yet concealed, swallowing force—a power that seemed capable of devouring heaven and earth.

Before this swallowing force, Gou Jun felt as insignificant as an ant.

"What... what is this?" Gou Jun’s voice trembled.

Song Wen wasn’t in a hurry to devour Gou Jun’s soul. He controlled the Black Hole to suppress Gou Jun, then had it devour the tentacles wrapped around his soul.

"Gou Jun, you dared to attempt Body Seizing on me? You’ve truly dug your own soul grave. Heh heh heh..."

"Fellow Daoist Yin Shuo, please spare my life! From this day forward, I swear I’ll never again be your enemy."

The roles between the two men had reversed. Gou Jun, who had once held victory in his grasp, was now the lamb awaiting slaughter. Song Wen, who had been on the chopping block, had become the triumphant controller.

"Yin Shuo?" Song Wen sneered, shaking his head. "Didn’t Xue Mei tell you? I’m not Yin Shuo. My name is Ji Yin, and I was originally a disciple of the Corpse Demon Sect. In a way, I should thank you. If it weren’t for your Corpse Demon Sect, I might never have embarked on the path of cultivation."

"A disciple of the Corpse Demon Sect... That’s impossible! Why have I never seen you?" Gou Jun demanded.

"Of course you wouldn’t have seen me. When I first joined the Corpse Demon Sect over 180 years ago, you were already the revered Corpse Demon Sect Patriarch, the number one cultivator in the Immortal Cultivation World. Why would you have paid attention to an insignificant junior like me? After I achieved Foundation Establishment, I defected from the Corpse Demon Sect. We never crossed paths." Song Wen replied.

"180 years ago?" Gou Jun’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Then you must be barely 200 years old now!"

"I am currently 195 years old." Song Wen’s expression softened with nostalgia. "I achieved Foundation Establishment at 20, Core Formation at 83, and Nascent Soul Transformation at 149."

"How could you possibly cultivate so quickly?" Gou Jun asked. "Even with a once-in-a-thousand-years ninth-grade spiritual root, it’s impossible to reach Core Formation before the age of one hundred and five."

"It seems there’s much Xue Mei hasn’t told you," Song Wen replied. "This is all thanks to the Corpse King’s Rebirth Art, which allows me to absorb the Spiritual Power of those who practice the Corpse King Blood Refinement Art."

After a brief pause, Song Wen continued, "Furthermore, I’ll reveal a secret known to no one else. The Blood of Fallen Immortal you and Yang Yu have been desperately searching for all this time is actually right here within the Beastmaster Sect. It’s the sect’s Divine Beast—Blood Sui."

"What! Blood Sui is the Blood of Fallen Immortal!"

Gou Jun stood frozen in shock. This revelation stunned him even more than when he first saw the black hole in Song Wen’s Sea of Consciousness.

After centuries of relentless pursuit, even risking a full-scale war between good and evil, he had found not a single clue about the Blood of Fallen Immortal. Yet here it was, a well-known entity all along.

"Are you telling the truth? Is Blood Sui truly the Blood of Fallen Immortal?" Gou Jun demanded, his voice rising in disbelief, completely forgetting his current predicament.

"Very well, Gou Jun. Now you know everything you need to. At least you’ll die with your eyes open."

As Song Wen finished speaking, a terrifying suction force erupted from the black hole above.

"No..."

Before Gou Jun could finish his sentence, he was dragged into the abyss.

With Gou Jun’s death, the twelve black Corpse Coffins immediately lost their imposing aura. The black chains extending from them shattered instantly.

Song Wen broke free.

He glanced at Gou Jun’s corpse, a hint of regret in his eyes.

Gou Jun’s Cultivation Technique wasn’t the Corpse King Blood Refinement Art. If it had been, devouring the Spiritual Power within Gou Jun’s body would have sent Song Wen’s cultivation soaring.

Song Wen raised his hand and reached into Gou Jun’s chest, retrieving two tiny Gu.

The two Shadow Gu hadn’t died; they had merely been stunned.

Song Wen guessed that Xue Mei must have told Gou Jun about the Gu’s existence. Back in the Divine Blood Hall, Song Wen had used the Shadow Gu to lead Xue Mei, so she knew he kept Gu.

After a deliberate search, Gou Jun had found the two Gu hidden in the shadows.

At the time, Song Wen was in closed-door cultivation, attempting a breakthrough. Fearing that the Gu’s death would alert Song Wen, Gou Jun hadn’t killed them, only stunned them.

Song Wen shot out several streams of Spiritual Power, rolling up the twelve Corpse Coffins and storing them in his Storage Ring. He then used a Corpse Coffin to contain the Fourth-Tier Peak Corpse Puppet and another to store Gou Jun’s corpse. Only then did he look up at the sky.

Outside the Formation.

"Something feels wrong," Gongsun Cailu said, her gaze fixed on Song Wen, her brow furrowed. "Why can’t I sense Master’s aura anymore? Fellow Daoist Xue Mei, do you know why?"

She turned to where Xue Mei had been standing, but the woman was gone.

Gongsun Cailu looked around and realized that Xue Mei had quietly slipped away, fleeing a hundred miles away.

A sense of foreboding washed over her.

"Could it be... Master’s Body Seizing failed?"

"But how is that possible? Master is at the Peak Nascent Soul realm and prepared meticulously. How could Body Seizing fail?"

Just then, she noticed Song Wen below, looking up at her with eyes as cold and sharp as swords.

Gongsun Cailu suddenly realized that Gou Jun had truly failed his Body Seizing and his soul had been utterly destroyed.

Her body trembled slightly, and a chill ran through her.

She wasn’t mourning Gou Jun’s death, but rather fearing for her own safety.

Gou Jun was dead, and Xue Mei had fled.

With her recent Core Formation cultivation, she stood no chance against Song Wen.

(End of the Chapter)

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