Chapter 791 - 132: Old Grievances Resurface

In the golden light curtain-shrouded desert, six puppets were linked together with blood-red chains, forming an array, the knife light fierce, killing intent soaring to the heavens.

When the outlines of those Tier Three Puppets came into view, the Saintess of Cang Yue trembled violently, her pupils constricted abruptly, and the icy aura around her went berserk to the extreme.

The scene of humiliation from ten years ago exploded in her mind like a festering sore.

In the dense forest outside the Yuan State City, she was bound by that thief with strange chains, all protective magical treasures destroyed, even the last life-saving card bestowed by her master turned to ashes.

What pierced her heart the most was her bare body exposed before the enemy, her life-bound spirit pet, the Seven-Colored Luan Bird, was brutally slain, and its True Spirit Essence Blood was taken.

Such was the humiliation she had never suffered as the Saintess of Cangyuan Holy Land.

Afterwards, Cangyuan Holy Land issued a global manhunt, setting a net across heaven and earth, yet they could never find a trace of that thief.

She had been awakened by nightmares countless times in the dead of night, vowing to tear that thief to pieces to wash away her shame.

This had almost become her Heart Demon, and if she could not kill him with her own hands, she might never survive the Nascent Soul Heart Demon Tribulation.

Yet she never imagined that her enemy would transform into an Honored Guest Elder of Qinglan Sect, dare to compete with her for spiritual materials in Celestial Essence Immortal City, and now even appear right in front of her.

In a moment where ecstasy and overwhelming hatred intertwined, the Saintess of Cang Yue suddenly awoke.

No room for carelessness!

Ten years ago, he was only mid-stage Golden Core, yet could restrain her with uncanny means; now, he is late-stage Golden Core, his cultivation must have greatly improved, and without the aid of the Seven-Colored Luan Bird, her strength has somewhat declined.

What’s more unsettling to her is that to this day, she still doesn’t understand what method the opponent used in the last sneak attack that managed to instantly break through her protective spiritual light, severely injuring her.

"Murong Yan! Beware of his puppets! This Puppet Master is the thief who attacked and killed my spirit pet ten years ago!" The voice of the Saintess of Cang Yue was filled with ultimate coldness and urgency, her divine soul’s transmission piercing Murong Yan’s ears like an ice awl.

But by now, Murong Yan was already having a hard time taking care of himself.

The barrage formed by six puppets was like an iron wall, the blood-red chains crisscrossing, sealing all his escape routes.

The knife light of the Tier Three High-Level Puppet was sharp enough to tear the air apart, while four Tier Three Middle-Level Puppets were harassing from the flanks constantly. In the midst of countless knife shadows, he could only barely fend off with a golden shield, without even the space to respond.

The beast head pattern on the golden shield had long since lost its luster; his magic robe was full of knife marks, his aura already chaotic.

Seeing Murong Yan unable to break through, the Saintess of Cang Yue’s killing intent deepened in her eyes.

Without hesitation, she formed a seal with her jade hand, and a faint blue soul light suddenly burst from between her brows.

A decade ago, it was by relying on this "Soul Lock Severing Thought" secret technique that she temporarily cut off the opponent’s divine soul connection with the puppets, barely managing to break free from bondage.

This secret technique originated from the core inheritance of Cangyuan Holy Land, capable of severing the divine soul ties between a cultivator and external objects, and was said to be practically unsolvable for cultivators of the same level.

"Thief! Ten years ago, I could sever your puppet ties, and so can I today!" The Saintess of Cang Yue shouted coldly, the soul light between her brows surging, turning into a faint blue soul thread that enveloped the six puppets like a venomous snake.

Li Ji’an sneered, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

After suffering that loss ten years ago, he had thoroughly inspected the puppets, fully understanding their nature—merely leveraging divine soul power to forcibly sever the spiritual contract link between a cultivator and a puppet, effective only against cultivators with equivalent or lower divine soul strength.

Now, his divine sense had transformed into a Primordial Spirit of the Nascent Soul level, several times more powerful than the late-stage Golden Core divine soul of the Saintess of Cang Yue. This kind of secret technique to him was like a mantis trying to stop a cart.

Sure enough, after the faint blue water curtain enveloped the puppets anew, they did not lose their mobility as they did ten years ago.

The assault of the six puppets did not pause at all, the blood-red chains remained rampant, the knife light increasingly sharp.

The muffled groans of Murong Yan came faintly, his aura disordered, with cracks appearing on the golden shield.

"Impossible!" The Saintess of Cang Yue’s pupils contracted sharply, her face full of disbelief.

In a state of shocked fury, the Saintess of Cang Yue abandoned the thought of assisting Murong Yan completely.

Her aura surged, the ice-blue magical power pouring out like a tide, and behind her appeared a phantom of a frozen snowfield. The fierce cold caused the temperature within the area enshrouded by the Celestial Sealing Order to drop sharply, even the yellow sand beginning to condense into ice particles.

"Thief, today I shall make you pay in blood!" The Saintess of Cang Yue shouted with icy clarity, her figure transforming into an ice-blue stream of light, carrying overwhelming cold as she rushed towards Li Ji’an.

The ice-blue longsword in her hand hummed, with intricate ice crystal runes appearing on its blade, a manifestation of the core Immortal Scripture "Eternal Ice Seal Art" of Cangyuan Holy Land.

"Freeze Three Thousand Miles!"

As she slashed out with her sword, the ice-blue sword momentum spread instantly, freezing the air into an ice wall, the yellow sand turning into ice sculptures, even the very space seeming to freeze.

Numerous ice spikes burst forth from the ground, like blades piercing towards Li Ji’an, transforming the entire battlefield into a frozen purgatory.

Li Ji’an’s gaze sharpened, not daring to be careless.

With a twist of his wrist, the Fleeting Shadows Fan unfolded abruptly, the light and shadow patterns on its fan surface gleaming brightly.

"Flowing Light Revolving, Space Barrier!"

An invisible space barrier spread before him, shattering the ice spikes into fragments upon impact.

But the Saintess of Cang Yue’s offensive did not halt; with a wave of her left hand, the ice crystal bead chain at her waist flew up abruptly, linking into a chain of twelve ice crystals in mid-air, transforming into an ice-blue star river, sweeping towards Li Ji’an.