Celestial Dragon Sword Venerable

SPLAT—

Ye Tianling’s gaze focused. A surge of his killing intent materialized and struck out once more, channeled through his Eye of Destruction.

The woman, still in mid-air, shuddered. She froze for an instant before her body exploded, disintegrating into a fine mist of blood and gore.

Even Ye Tianling’s Soul Talent couldn’t determine the woman’s origins. Her Battle Power was not particularly high, but her killing intent was immense—something his Soul Talent had picked up on.

Wasting no words, Ye Tianling delivered the killing blow without a shred of hesitation!

After the woman’s death, Ye Tianling waved a hand, drawing both of their Qiankun Rings to him.

Unfortunately, a search of their Qiankun Rings yielded nothing of relevance, nor any significant Cultivation Resources.

The scene fell so silent you could hear a pin drop.

The once-dreaded dark green mist no longer seemed so terrifying.

Instead, it was the presence of Ye Tianling that had become the true nightmare for every Cultivator on the scene.

"Alright. Anyone who wants to keep following me can do so. Anyone who doesn’t is free to leave. This world is vast, and opportunities are endless. Do as you please. But let me make one thing clear: if I sense the slightest hint of killing intent from any Cultivator who chooses to follow me, I will show no mercy!"

"Consider Fan Yukun and that woman in white from before your examples!"

Ye Tianling’s tone was ice-cold, his killing intent palpable.

A heavy silence fell in the wake of his chilling words.

Soon, a Cultivator stepped forward. He bowed in salute, thanked Ye Tianling for his previous help, and then began to head in a different direction.

Ye Tianling did not stop him.

Seeing this, the other Cultivators finally breathed a collective sigh of relief and all went their separate ways.

In the end, only a group of seven—the Saint Sons and Saintesses from the Immortal Sacred Land and the Celestial Blood Ancient Clan—remained behind.

The others, including Die Qingchen of the Heavenly Butterfly Soul Clan, couldn’t withstand the pressure and took their leave.

Three Saint Sons and one Saintess from the Immortal Sacred Land remained: Qin Xingchen, Qin Xingzhao, Qin Xingfan, and Qin Xingyi.

The three from the Celestial Blood Ancient Clan consisted of two Saint Sons and one Unparalleled Divine Lady: Xiao Huang, Xiao Xing, and Xiao Wan.

"Celestial Secret Divine Son, thank you for everything."

Saintess Qin Xingyi of the Immortal Sacred Land was the first to speak her thanks.

As soon as she spoke, Qin Xingchen and the other two naturally echoed her thanks.

Seeing this, Xiao Huang and the other two from the Celestial Blood Ancient Clan no longer hesitated to offer their thanks as well.

After expressing their gratitude, the three of them made no move to leave, evidently planning to follow Ye Tianling through the trials ahead.

"The seven of you certainly have courage. Aren’t you afraid you’ll miss out on opportunities by sticking with me?"

Ye Tianling accepted their thanks with composure.

"The Celestial Secret Divine Son is known to be a man of great integrity. Our own Star Universe Divine Son holds you in the highest regard. Why would we worry about such things?"

Qin Xingchen, for his part, was quite nonchalant.

"Things like fortuitous encounters are often a matter of fate. You can strive for them, but you can’t force them. If an opportunity is meant for you, it won’t get away. We are already grateful that the Celestial Secret Divine Son doesn’t mind our presence," Qin Xingyi spoke up again.

Her voice was melodious, and her light blue gauze dress fluttered in the breeze, giving her an especially ethereal and Spiritual air.

Ye Tianling gave her a second glance. "You all seem to see things clearly. Very well. Since you’ve decided to follow me, let’s travel together."

"Celestial Secret Divine Son, our clan’s Xiao Hu Divine Son also holds you in extremely high regard. He came on this expedition as well, but we’ve been separated. If Xiao Hu Divine Son knew we were traveling with you, he would certainly be relieved."

Divine Lady Xiao Wan of the Celestial Blood Ancient Clan spoke up as well.

Though her words held a hint of flattery, they were also heartfelt.

The dangers of this place were beyond imagination. Given their Abilities, they had already faced a near-death ordeal even before reaching the East Mountain Ice Cave. If they didn’t band together now, their journey into the Ten Thousand Beasts Demon Cave would be fraught with peril.

’Xiao Hu? He’s here too? Looks like this is turning into a major event.’

Ye Tianling’s heart stirred. He raised his gaze to look at Divine Lady Xiao Wan.

Above Xiao Wan’s head, the Power of her Life Grid was impure. The strands of intangible aura that represented her Destiny Energy were scattered, yet unbroken.

’Her destiny will be a bitter one.’ Ye Tianling couldn’t discern the specific details, but he could tell her path of Cultivation would not be a smooth one.

Although the evolution of her Life Chart wasn’t broken, this scattered state was actually more severe.

’Is she going to be captured and used as a Tripod Cauldron, refined into a Puppet? Or will she suffer Possession or Absorption? She’s a Goddess, yet her Life Chart is so bleak.’

Ye Tianling’s gaze lingered on Xiao Wan for the space of two breaths.

Two breaths was a bit long. For a Cultivator, staring like that was actually quite rude.

Yet no one thought anything of it, much less assumed that Ye Tianling had suddenly taken a fancy to Xiao Wan.

"Celestial Secret Divine Son... w-what is it?"

Xiao Wan’s heart fluttered, and a sense of dread and unease washed over her.

In that instant, as if by some premonition, she asked in a trembling voice.

"When you mentioned Xiao Hu Divine Son, it reminded me that I’ve met him before. I even received his protection once, so you could say we’re acquainted. As you know, I am skilled in the Celestial Secret Technique. I took the liberty of taking a look for you just now... and your journey ahead will not be a smooth one."

"Is... is it a deadly tribulation? If so, then so be it. We all knew coming to the Ten Thousand Beasts Demon Cave meant facing such a possibility. A Cultivator’s journey is a fight for opportunities. We can’t just let a heaven-defying, fate-changing opportunity like the one in this Demon Cave slip through our fingers."

A hint of color drained from Xiao Wan’s beautiful face, and her lovely eyes dimmed, but she still spoke with defiance.

"It’s more terrifying than a deadly tribulation. I can’t determine the specifics... Be on your guard against the Cultivators around you. Strengthen the defenses of your Battle Soul to guard against Possession or Absorption."

Ye Tianling used his Celestial Secret Technique to send a voice transmission to Xiao Wan.

Upon hearing his words, a look of horror flashed in Xiao Wan’s eyes. She gave Ye Tianling a strange, startled look, as if shocked that he had seen through to some hidden truth.

She bit her lip, bowed deeply, and then sent a trembling reply via voice transmission, "I... I understand. Thank you for your guidance, Celestial Secret Divine Son. I, Xiao Wan, will never forget this kindness."

Her tone was exceptionally sincere, but her spirits had clearly fallen, her mood turning somber.

’Ye Tianling grew pensive. He didn’t know the cause and effect, nor what was to come. But Xiao Wan obviously did; she knew what was going to happen, yet she chose to keep it to herself.’

Ye Tianling said no more. He turned and glanced at Xia Xinyan and the other two women, as well as the Tianqing Goddess. "This dark green toxic mist is similar to Life Soul Poison," he explained. "It’s extremely corrosive. However, you can disperse it by using your Soul Qi to create vibrations that draw in the surrounding Spiritual Qi from Heaven and Earth. Use that method to defend yourselves."

Ye Tianling shared the solution.

He considered everyone present to be an ally, so Ye Tianling didn’t hesitate to lend them a hand.

As soon as Ye Tianling explained the method, everyone immediately put it into practice, vibrating the dark green toxic mist away.

Just as he’d said, the deadly threat was instantly neutralized.

At that moment, however, Ye Tianling’s gaze shifted to the far distance—there, he was Sensing the aura of a powerful Venerable Soul Curse!