âThen, Fellow Daoist, do you have a way to drive the parasite from her body?â Ning Sihua asked expectantly.
âGo out for now. Come back in an hour,â said Su Yi casually.
Ning Sihuaâs eyes lit up, and she straightforwardly agreed, turning to leave without a second thought.
Su Yi then took out his sword and gently pierced his fingertip. Red blood gushed from the cut as he placed his finger on the soft skin of Lan Suoâs belly.
He outlined one blood-red glyph and cloud mark after another, the lines flowing like water and forming a subtle and inscrutable diagram.
The Spirit-Guiding Edict!
It used fresh blood as a guide, and it could suppress the soul, guide the spirit, and gather baleful energies. It was extremely subtle and miraculous.
The freshly-outlined edict then fused into Lan Suoâs skin. A series of faint moans suddenly escaped her lips, and her entire body trembled.
Her soft, slender abdomen shook visibly, and the clustered dark markings reminiscent of a vicious bird suddenly gathered, like sharks on the brink of starvation after catching a whiff of blood. The markings surged toward the Spirit-Guiding Edict in a mad frenzy.
As for the edict written in blood, it appeared and disappeared, almost as if it were breathing, producing inscrutable energy fluctuations.
As time slipped by, Lan Suoâs trembling intensified. Her entire body was searing hot, like a coal fire. Her moans were sometimes hurried, other times low. Some were high-pitched, while others were drawn-outâŚ
Even Su Yi was speechless. Anyone who heard this and didnât know better would definitely overthink it.
Before long, the markings covering the rest of Lan Suoâs body surged toward her abdomen, as if they were alive. All of them gathered around the Spirit-Guiding Edict.
Once all of them gathered together, Su Yi suddenly pressed his hand against the Edict, pressing his palm directly against Lan Suoâs skin. He started from her stomach, but his hand slowly moved up, inching toward her chestâŚ.
As his palm shifted, the black markings clustered around the Edict shifted with it.
Before long, her bodice burst open, and Su Yiâs hand traversed two towering peaks, arriving at Lan Suoâs snow-white neck.
When his hand reached her throat, he suddenly pressed down.
The unconscious Lan Suo opened her mouth and coughed. A dark streak burst from her mouth, only for Su Yi to grab it and hold it fast.
Upon closer inspection, it resembled a silkworm. It was about the size of a goose egg, and it was pitch-black throughout, with distorted grain imprinted on its surface.
It seemed alive, and it struggled like mad to escape Su Yiâs grasp. It was strong, too.
This was the Spirit Parasite Devilworm. They were manufactured through a secret method, and they functioned like a protective shell; they could house pure soul essence inside.
And inside this particular devilworm was a wisp of soul originating from a Netherflame Demon Sparrow!
This was a rare and vicious bird. They only existed in the Netherworld, and they were proud and violent by nature. They had an innate ability to manipulate âSoul Burning Demonic Flameâ, earning them a place among the eight savage beasts of the netherworld.
A Netherflame Demon Sparrow that proved its strength and entered the Profound Dao could, with a single beat of its wings, incinerate mountains and boil oceans. It could refine entire landscapes; they were terrifying beyond limit.
Even Imperial Experts found it extremely difficult to force such a fierce and violent bird into submission.
Of course, the devilworm in front of him merely housed the barest wisp of a Netherflame Demon Sparrowâs soul, and it was far from achieving metamorphosis and becoming a true living thing.
So long as Su Yi willed it, he could have easily obliterated it, even at his current cultivation.
However, he naturally wouldnât do something so wasteful.
Oh? My sword was missing the power of a soul essence. I could actually raise the little sparrow inside.
That way, whenever someone dies beneath my sword, their soul and blood essence will be absorbed and become this little sparrowâs food, while the Abstruse God Sword will be continuously tempered in Soul-Burning Demonic Flame, bringing it closer to metamorphosis, one step at a timeâŚ.
When the little sparrow undergoes metamorphosis and emerges, it can become my mount. This is how you put all available resources to use.
Su Yi was very pleased with his harvest.
It was for this reason that he took the initiative to help Lan Suo with her injuries.
Without any further delays, Su Yi took out the Abstruse God Sword and exerted strength through his fingers.
Clang!
The complex image of an Edict instantly appeared on the ink-dark blade, then revolved like a vortex formed of rippling starlight. It was deep and serene as it formed layer after layer after layer.
Search tinyurl.com/2p9emv8w for the original.
The Spirit-Devouring Edict.
This was one of the Edicts recorded on the Demonsâ Elysiumâs Stele of Self-Severing. By its very nature, it had the ability to absorb and nourish spirituality.
It couldnât have been any better suited to sealing the wisp of a Netherflame Demon Sparrowâs soul.
Su Yiâs fingertips gently tapped the goose-egg-sized Devilworm, and he said softly, âI know you can sense your predicament, and I know you can hear me. Donât make me use force; go in obediently and accompany me as I slay my foes. For you, this is another path to realizing your metamorphosis.â
The Devilworm didnât react in the slightest.
Su Yi furrowed his brow and was just about to say something when the incomparably weak voice of a soul emerged from the Devilworm. âArenât you afraid this lofty one will one day kill you?â
The corners of Su Yiâs lips arched upward, and he said calmly, âFor me to take interest in you is your lucky break; you could accumulate karmic merit for eight lifetimes and not be so lucky. If you dare call yourself âthis lofty oneâ in front of me ever again, Iâll kill you here and now!â
His cold, indifferent words obviously intimidated the wisp of soul. A long time passed before its enraged voice emerged once more. âJust you wait!â
Whoosh!
A streak of dim light streaked out of the Devilworm and entered the Abstruse God Wood Swordâs Spirit-Devouring Edict.
âCoward. If youâre truly unafraid of death, why would you submit? Yet you dare threaten me? Youâre truly in need of a good beatingâŚâ Su Yi found it rather funny.
Crunch!
The Spirit Parasite Devilworm in his palm shattered into powder, pieces falling from the gaps between his fingers.
Taking another look at the Abstruse God Sword, Su Yi saw the nigh-illusory, barely discernible image of a vicious bird on its ink-dark blade, adding an additional layer of mystery and ferocity.
âAhâ!â A sudden shriek ran out as the almost-naked Lan Suo woke up.
Her bright, beautiful eyes were wide, and her features so exquisite, they looked as if theyâd been carved by a master artisan flushed red with fury.
She tried to set up, only to discover that her entire body felt soft and weak; she couldnât even raise her hands and feet. This left her frantic, vexed, and furious, and she shouted, âWho the hell are you? How dare you violate me? Iâll cut your head off, and youâd better believe it!â
Su Yi couldnât help but shake his head. It was obvious that sheâd lost her rationality and was acting on pure impulse. She hadnât realized just how awkward her predicament was.
Bang!
The door swung open, and Ning Sihua walked inside. When she saw that Lan Suo was awake, she lit up with delight.
However, when she realized that her friend was mad with rage and that her body was almost entirely uncovered, she instantly realized what had happened and hurriedly explained.
âLan Suo, donât misunderstand. Fellow Daoist Su saved your life!â As she said this, she walked up and used the blanket to obscure Lan Suoâs body.
âReally?â When she saw Ning Sihua, Lan Suo was instantly much calmer. However, the look on her beautiful face was still uncertain, and when she looked at Su Yi, her eyes brimmed with enmity.
âYou explain.â Su Yi couldnât be bothered to deal with this, so he turned and left.
When he got outside, he saw Wen Lingxue, Cha Jin, and Zheng Muyao. All three of them were looking at him, their expressions somewhat strange.
Earlier, all three heard a series of moans emanating from the second floor of the pavilion. Some were hurried, others high-pitched, while others were drawn out, like the obscene music of ecstasy.
Just listening, they felt their faces flush red.
And just before Su Yi emerged from the pavilion, they heard Lan Suoâs furious, frantic shout. Then she said something about having been violated, and that she wanted to cut Su Yiâs head clean offâŚ
As a result, when they saw Su Yi now, all three of them felt rather conflicted, and their expressions were strange.
âI knew youâd misunderstand.â When Su Yi saw this, he couldnât help but laugh dryly, but he couldnât be bothered to explain.
What need was there to explain something that had never happened?
It was true that he had touched Lan Suo, and that the sensation was rather pleasant, but that was to save her life. He hadnât âviolatedâ her in any way.
When a cultivated gentleman carried himself properly, he had no need to fear rumors and slander.
As expected, when she saw that Su Yi couldnât even be bothered to explain, Wen Lingxue instantly relaxed, then laughed, âI Just knew Big Brother Su Yi wasnât the licentious type!â
âI understand how the young lord conducts his affairs better than anyone. He naturally has no need for force when it comes to such matters.â Cha Jinâs beautiful eyes shone, and she smiled charmingly.
But in her heart, she added another sentence: Even if something really did happen, this guy would undoubtedly just admit it. He wouldnât hide itâŚ. He would disdain to hide itâŚ
Zheng Muyao then seemed to react, and she nodded forcefully. âThatâs right! Even if something happened, it was surely that woman trying to seduce Uncle Su!â
Wen Lingxue and Cha Jin couldnât help but laugh in response.
Had any other man witnessed this, he likely would have felt as if he were gazing upon a vast and lofty mountain. See? This was a role model among men. Even after such an ambiguously inappropriate situation, he didnât even need to explain himself!
Before long, Ning Sihua emerged from the pavilion, carrying the now fully-dressed Lan Suo.
Lan Suoâs eyes were closed, and it seemed she was unconscious, or perhaps, she just didnât know how to face Su Yi, so she shut her eyes to pretend she couldnât see himâŚ.
But Ning Sihua walked right up to him and said, âFellow Daoist, about what happened just now⌠Lan Suo already knows that she misunderstood you, and we humbly request your understanding and forgiveness.â
Su Yi only said casually, âI naturally donât care about all that. Are you taking her with you?â
âThatâs right,â said Ning Sihua. âHer body is overly weak, and she needs time to recover. Iâm taking her back to Heavenâs Origin Academy for now. Weâll come back to thank you later.â
Su Yi nodded, and before long, both Ning Sihua and Lan Suo took to the skies on the back of a Bluescale Eagle.
Meanwhile, in the second floor of a restaurant not far from the House of Waveswept Rocks, a man in long robes stood by the window lattice and said softly, âNing Sihua left.â
The image of a Bluescale Eagle soaring through the heavens was reflected in his eyes. Before long, the bird disappeared over the horizon.
A cold but beautiful woman in Daoist robes, with inky black hair and a longsword strapped to her back, sat at the table off to the side. She asked, âShould we attack now?â
âJunior Apprentice Sister Liao, you must not be impatient. Su Yi used his first-level Grandmaster cultivation to kill even Xiantian Martial Ancestors like the Firedome and White-Eyebrowed Kings. Heâs naturally an extremely dangerous character,â said a graceful-looking, silver-haired elder with a laugh. He sat on the other end of the table.
âBut then, no matter how dangerous it may be, prey cannot escape its fate of being hunted down and killed. With the power at our disposal, so long as we stay calm and wait for the opportunity, weâll have our chance to take him down.â As he spoke, he sipped a cup of wine and patted his lips in contentment, looking leisurely and at ease.