Chapter 769: An Unsettled Score

“Young Master Ye, what are you doing here…? Huh, you… you’ve broken through to Tier Eight Martial Emperor?”

Lin Bo’s voice was filled with shock the moment he landed, his eyes wide as saucers.

When Lin Guangyuan landed, he too was startled by Ye Xuan’s cultivation level. He quickly scanned the area, his eyes lighting up when he saw the Iron Sword Emperor and his two companions. But after sensing their cultivation levels, his expression fell. “Young Master Ye,” he asked urgently, “aren’t you with Patriarch Xiao and the others?”

His tone was panicked, and he seemed completely unsettled.

Ye Xuan replied, “Patriarch Xiao was with me at first, but we parted ways some time ago.”

Lin Guangyuan’s eyes lit up again. “Then do you know where Patriarch Xiao and his group are now?”

“That I don’t know.”

Hearing Ye Xuan’s words, the hopeful look in Lin Guangyuan’s eyes faded once more.

Ye Xuan asked, confused, “What’s going on with you…?”

“There’s no time to explain! We’re being hunted. Young Master Ye, you need to look after yourself. Being with us will only drag you into our mess…”

After rushing out these words, Lin Guangyuan prepared to leave with Lin Bo and the others.

“Lin Guangyuan, Lin Bo, don’t be in such a rush to leave. Perhaps I can help…”

“It’s no use. Our pursuer is incredibly strong. I couldn’t even last ten exchanges against him. You’ve only just broken through to the Martial Emperor realm; staying with us will only get you killed.” Lin Guangyuan finished in a rush, then shot into the sky with Lin Bo and the others.

Suddenly, Lin Guangyuan, who had just taken flight, seemed to remember something. He hastily turned back and thrust a Storage Ring into Ye Xuan’s hand. His eyes were filled with determination. “Young Master Ye, this Storage Ring contains all the treasures the Lin family has acquired in this mysterious land. As per our agreement, thirty percent belongs to you. I’m giving you the ring now. You can take fifty percent of its contents. I only ask that when you return to the Celestial Capital Prefecture, you deliver the remaining half to a disciple of my Lin family. Please.”

Having said his piece in a single breath, Lin Guangyuan and the others were about to leave when their expressions suddenly changed dramatically.

BOOM!

An invisible spatial power emanated from the distance, a terrifying force that pressed down on Ye Xuan and everyone else like a great mountain.

PUFF!

Under this pressure, the faces of the two Martial King disciples beside the Iron Sword Emperor changed drastically. Unable to withstand the binding spatial force, they collapsed to their knees, their faces contorted in pain.

A tyrannical streak of light shot over from the distance, accompanied by a cold, sharp voice. “Run. Why have you stopped running? Hmph. To dare flee from me… you truly have some nerve.”

‘It’s over. We can’t escape now.’ Lin Guangyuan and his two companions’ faces fell, their eyes filled with despair.

“Young Master Ye, take the Storage Ring and leave immediately. The few of us will hold him off. Please, you must bring those things back to the Lin family,” Lin Guangyuan transmitted, his voice resolved.

At the same time, the three of them looked toward the tyrannical figure, their fighting spirit flaring. They were clearly preparing for a desperate, final struggle.

But to their confusion, the brown-haired Martial Emperor who had been chasing them stopped about a mile away after he spoke. His cold gaze was fixed on them, but he made no move.

‘What’s going on?’ Lin Guangyuan and the others couldn’t believe that this man would let them go now, not after chasing them for so long.

Just then, Ye Xuan sneered. “So he’s the one who’s been hunting you.”

He recognized the man hunting Lin Guangyuan. It was the same Third Layer Martial Emperor who had barely escaped from him with his life back in the valley. That Martial Emperor’s treasure was a Stone Bead.

The Stone Bead had left a deep impression on Ye Xuan because when combined with a Martial Emperor’s Domain Realm, it could form a domain similar to that of a Nine Heavens Martial Emperor.

Back then, he had been trapped and constrained by the Stone Bead’s domain. If not for Xiaohai and Erhei’s surprise attack creating a flaw in his opponent’s domain, he feared he would have been seriously injured by this Martial Emperor.

He had later broken through the man’s domain, forcing him to flee in a panic.

“Hmph.” The brown-haired Martial Emperor snorted, his already dark face growing even more somber.

BOOM!

A terrifying aura erupted from him, causing the very air to ripple. PFFT! Under the pressure, the Iron Sword Emperor’s two disciples spat out mouthfuls of blood, their faces turning deathly pale.

Compared to when he had last fought Ye Xuan, the brown-haired Martial Emperor’s strength had increased tremendously. He had clearly gained a great deal in the Ancient Fiend Lands.

Lin Guangyuan couldn’t help but ask in surprise, “Young Master Ye, you know him?”

“We met once before,” Ye Xuan said nonchalantly. “We had a bit of a conflict. His strength wasn’t so great back then. It seems he’s improved quite a bit.”

‘It’s over.’ Lin Guangyuan sighed to himself. He hadn’t expected Ye Xuan to have a history with the brown-haired Martial Emperor. He had hoped Ye Xuan could escape with the treasure, but now that seemed impossible. After killing them, the brown-haired Martial Emperor would never let Ye Xuan go.

As for Ye Xuan’s claim of having a “bit of a conflict,” Lin Guangyuan assumed it must have happened when Ye Xuan was with Xiao Wuji’s group. The Xiao family was much stronger than the Lin family, and with two Third Layer Martial Emperors, fighting the brown-haired man to a standstill wouldn’t have been out of the question.

But the Xiao family wasn’t here now. ‘It seems even the heavens want the Lin family to be destroyed.’

At that moment, the Iron Sword Emperor hastily cupped his fists at both Ye Xuan and the brown-haired Martial Emperor. “Everyone, my disciples and I are merely passing by. We’ll be on our way now.”

He clearly wanted no part in this affair. He could afford to provoke neither Ye Xuan nor the brown-haired Martial Artist.

With that said, he hurriedly tried to lead his two disciples away.

“Hmph. Did I say you could leave?”

The brown-haired Martial Emperor snorted and suddenly tossed out a Stone Bead. A monstrous killing intent instantly erupted from the bead, engulfing the Iron Sword Emperor and his two disciples.

With a sickening SQUELCH, the Iron Sword Emperor’s eyes widened in shocked fury. He and his two disciples were caught in the terrifying killing intent and instantly obliterated into a mist of blood, leaving nothing behind.

Lin Guangyuan and his companions’ eyelids all twitched involuntarily.

“You’re certainly bloodthirsty,” Ye Xuan said coldly.

“This has nothing to do with you. Leave now, and I might spare your life,” the brown-haired Martial Emperor said, his face grim and his voice cold.

Ye Xuan sneered. “Spare my life? You’ve got a lot of nerve. I’d like to see just how you plan to do that.”

Lin Guangyuan and the others were stunned. They never imagined the brown-haired Martial Emperor would actually let Ye Xuan leave. What they expected even less was Ye Xuan’s response.

‘Why isn’t he taking this chance to leave? Why is he insisting on fighting this guy? Isn’t that just suicide?’

The brown-haired Martial Emperor’s eyes narrowed, a cold glint flashing within them. “So you insist on opposing me?”

“Opposing you? You’re giving yourself too much credit. I still haven’t settled the score for you trying to capture my Spirit Pet last time. Now you’re hunting my friends. If I don’t kill you, how can I maintain my reputation?” Ye Xuan said coolly, drawing the Sword of Judgment.

“Such arrogance! Very well, I’d like to see how you plan to kill me today.” The brown-haired Martial Emperor was furious. Profound energy surged from his body, forming an invisible storm. “I failed to kill you last time. Today, I will finish the job right here.”

As soon as his words fell, the brown-haired Martial Emperor attacked.

BOOM!

The ancient Stone Bead rose into the air. The mysterious and abstruse patterns on its surface suddenly began to shimmer, glowing like a blazing sun and releasing an unparalleled radiance. Countless strands of light rippled outward, causing the void itself to tremble as they enveloped Ye Xuan.

“Oh no!”

Lin Guangyuan and his companions turned pale with fright. “Young Master Ye, get out of there! That’s his unique treasure! It can create a terrifying spatial confinement! We only managed to break free last time because we had a Red Light Bead. Don’t let that light trap you!”

As Lin Guangyuan shouted his warning, he drew his own weapon, preparing to intervene.

“Don’t move. Let me handle this.”

Ye Xuan stopped them. To everyone’s astonishment, he made no attempt to dodge the light rippling from the Stone Bead. Instead, he stepped directly into it.

WENG!

Ye Xuan felt the space around him solidify, as if he had been plunged into another dimension. It felt impossible to move even an inch.

‘It really is a domain-type ability.’

Ye Xuan was both shocked and overjoyed.

The last time he fought the brown-haired Martial Emperor, he had sensed that the man’s unusual Stone Bead could create a domain similar to that of a Nine Heavens Martial Emperor.

But back then, Ye Xuan’s cultivation was only at the Peak of Tier Seven Second Layer. Since he hadn’t yet broken through to the Martial Emperor realm, his grasp of spatial principles was limited. He could only defend passively, and his understanding of this so-called “domain” was merely a guess.

Now that he had broken through to Tier Eight Martial Emperor, his mastery of spatial principles was even greater than in his previous life. He could tell at once that what was binding him was, without a doubt, a domain.

This Stone Bead could actually simulate the domain of a Nine Heavens Martial Emperor. The thought made Ye Xuan ecstatic.

Why were the Nine Heavens Martial Emperors so terrifying? Why was it that not even a Triple Peak Martial Emperor could withstand a single blow from them? It was because they could release their own personal domains in battle—the equivalent of an independent world. Inside this domain, a Martial Emperor’s power would be severely restricted, rendering them powerless to resist.

‘If I can get my hands on this unique Stone Bead,’ Ye Xuan thought, ‘I’ll no longer be completely helpless when I face a Nine Heavens Martial Emperor in the future.’

But joy was one thing; under the domain’s restraint, Ye Xuan dared not be careless. He immediately released his own Domain Realm.

KRA-KA-KA-KA!

The invisible space immediately filled with a series of cracking, tearing sounds. Ripples spread out from the center, as if two unseen panes of glass were grinding against each other.

Although Ye Xuan was only a First Layer Martial Emperor, his comprehension of spatial principles was undoubtedly the most heaven-defying among all Martial Emperors.

Under the pressure of his Domain Realm, the feeling of confinement around his body immediately eased. It was like moving from solid ice into water; though the restraint was still there, its power had been diminished several times over.