Heaven-Dominating Martial Emperor

Yu Xiaoran respectfully placed the medicinal herbs before Ye Chen.

Earlier that day, during the morning banquet, he had learned from Ye Chen that there was a way to remove the Bone-Gnawing Soul Curse from Ji Yuanshan.

The only condition was that they had to prepare the medicinal herbs themselves.

Yu Xiaoran was naturally overjoyed at this. As long as Ji Yuanshan could be restored to normal, they were willing to pay any price!

After all, Ji Yuanshan was the only person from their Songyin Sword Mansion eligible to participate in the martial arts tournament.

A spot in the Peach Blossom Banquet was at stake, so they had no choice but to take this matter seriously.

Ye Chen sized up Ji Yuanshan. The power of the soul curse on his body hadn't weakened in the slightest; it still clung to him like a maggot on a rotting bone.

"When does the martial arts tournament begin?" Ye Chen asked.

"The tournament is tomorrow," Yu Xiaoran replied.

"That's enough time. It should be possible."

Without further delay, Ye Chen began.

For him, refining a pill to remove the Bone-Gnawing Soul Curse was hardly a difficult task.

And so, right in front of them, Ye Chen demonstrated his miraculous Alchemy Skill. Yu Xiaoran was deeply moved, and Ji Yuanshan was left utterly dumbfounded.

"It's ready."

Ye Chen handed the medicinal pill to Ji Yuanshan.

"Just crush the pill, place it in fresh water, and after a quarter of an hour, bathe in the water while meditating. The power of the pill will be enough to cleanse you of the Bone-Gnawing Soul Curse."

"Of course, your current condition is not ideal. It would be best to repeat this process for three or four days for a complete cure."

"If you rush to compete in the tournament tomorrow, I'm afraid you won't be able to recover to your Peak state so quickly."

Hearing Ye Chen's warning, Yu Xiaoran's brows furrowed tightly.

This martial arts tournament was incredibly important.

A spot in the Peach Blossom Banquet was on the line, and no one was willing to miss out on it easily.

And the only suitable participant from the Songyin Sword Mansion was Ji Yuanshan.

If Ji Yuanshan didn't compete, sending anyone else would be a mere formality.

Of course, Yu Xiaoran wasn't foolish enough to ask Ye Chen to represent the Songyin Sword Mansion in the tournament.

After all, for a prodigy who had even slain a Divinity Transformation Realm expert, asking him to participate in such a minor skirmish would be far too presumptuous.

Besides, Ye Chen had already helped them immensely. Just getting Ji Yuanshan on the road to recovery was already fantastic news.

He really couldn't bring himself to ask Ye Chen for anything else.

And Ye Chen, for his part, did seem uninterested in this martial arts tournament.

Ji Yuanshan glanced at the hesitant Yu Xiaoran. How could he not guess what was on the Elder's mind?

But he still gritted his teeth and said, "Elder Yu, let's go back. I will give it my all in tomorrow's competition."

"Alright." Yu Xiaoran nodded in relief. The two of them thanked Ye Chen once more before taking their leave.

Ye Chen stood quietly by the window, gazing out at the ink-black night.

He wasn't cultivating. Since he couldn't break through to the Primordial Mansion yet, further cultivation was of little significance.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, Ye Chen looked toward a specific spot.

There, under the eaves of the opposite roof, stood a slender figure. It was completely shrouded in a black robe, revealing only a pair of sinister eyes that were staring eerily at him.

"Hm?"

The moment Ye Chen's gaze met those eyes, he felt his Divine Soul get struck by a sledgehammer. His brow furrowed as his entire mind seemed to roil.

'A Divine Soul attack?'

After a moment, Ye Chen came to his senses, a wave of vigilance rising in his heart.

When he looked into the distance again, he discovered that the figure had vanished without a trace.

'Where did he go?'

Ye Chen's gaze subconsciously swept the area.

The next moment, an intense sense of crisis washed over him!

He jerked to the side to dodge. A streak of red light suddenly shot out from the darkness, nearly causing the void itself to collapse in its wake, surging with deadly, destructive power.

Ye Chen's expression turned grave and his heart raced. He realized this mysterious person in black was a formidable opponent!

He had rarely encountered an enemy who could force him into such a frantic state.

"Kid, you're pretty good at dodging!"

Another streak of red light flew toward him. The candlelight in the room was extinguished by a gust of night wind from an unknown source. In the darkness, Ye Chen focused his full attention on countering the mysterious man's assault.

Just as the red light was about to strike him, Ye Chen timely executed his Wandering Dragon Step. In that instant, countless phantoms seemed to erupt around him, a dazzling display that made it impossible to tell which was real.

The red light pierced through, shattering the numerous phantoms, but Ye Chen's true body had already escaped into the distance, successfully avoiding the blow.

"Oh?"

"What an exquisite Body Technique!"

The black-robed man's eyes lit up as he exclaimed, "It seems you really are full of secrets, kid."

"However, this is where it ends."

"The gap in our strength is a chasm. The fact that you've lasted this long is already admirable."

The black-robed man tore through the air. In a single flash, he was about to dart into Ye Chen's room.

But at that exact moment, the candle in the room suddenly relit!

The cold and exquisitely beautiful World Spirit had reignited the flame. Its faint glow illuminated her slender, alluring figure, making her look like a celestial fairy descended to the mortal realm—a breathtaking sight.

However, it was this very scene of otherworldly beauty that made the approaching black-robed man's expression change drastically.

He came to an abrupt halt, letting out a cry of disbelief, "Luoxia?!"

The next moment, his figure fled into the distance, his speed even faster than when he had arrived.

Upon seeing that gorgeous figure, he reacted as if he had seen some peerless, ferocious beast, scared out of his wits as he fled far away.

The intense sense of crisis suddenly receded like a tide, and Ye Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

Only then did he realize that, at some point, his back had become soaked with cold sweat.

One could only imagine how astonishing the pressure from that black-robed man had been!

"Who was that guy?!"

The World Spirit took a graceful lotus step to Ye Chen's side. She looked him up and down, and upon seeing he was unharmed, she sighed in relief.

"...He must be the Celestial Slaughter Nether Venerable."

Ye Chen said suddenly after a moment of deep thought, his gaze heavy.

"He seemed very afraid of me?" the World Spirit said.

"Yes. Seven or eight years ago, when the Dragon Prison Cave opened, he was most likely among the crowd that ventured inside."

"And he suffered quite a bit at the hands of Fairy Luoxia."

Ye Chen smiled. As he spoke, he took out the Soul-Catching Lamp.

In the night, the Soul-Catching Lamp pulsed with a faint, eerie red glow, looking both strange and sinister.