Yan Jiuyou was staggering towards the bronze gate.
With each step he took, his bones creaked under the terrifying pressure, and his long, gray hair, soaked with sweat, clung messily to his grotesque and distorted face.
"Bai Ying... that little bitch..." He gritted his teeth, a mouthful of black blood mixed with fragments of internal organs spilling from the corner of his mouth, a low roar rolling in his throat. His ten fingers had already been bent out of shape while climbing the stone steps, and now he was using his bare white bones to dig at the Taotie pattern on the bronze door, the friction between his finger bones and the metal producing a chilling scraping sound.
"How dare you...devour this opportunity for yourself..."
The bronze door creaked heavily and hoarsely, and a ray of brilliant golden light shone through the slowly opening crack, illuminating his bloodshot, cloudy pupils.
Yan Jiuyou's breathing suddenly froze.
He saw Bai Ying's plain white dress swaying in the halo of light, and beside her stood a goddess whose body was as clear as glass.
The goddess had exquisite features, a blood-red dot of cinnabar on her forehead, and an aura of otherworldly purity surrounding her.
Her wide sleeves hung down, with silver patterns like a galaxy flowing between them, each ray of light containing the power to suppress heaven and earth.
"Looks like I've come at the perfect time!" Yan Jiuyou roared with wild joy, his blood-stained fangs not yet fully exposed, his mouth already contorted with excitement.
He originally thought that Bai Ying had only gotten some minor luck, but he never expected that it would attract such an existence!
If he could obtain the inheritance of this goddess, why would Yan Jiuyou be unable to break through the Netherworld and reach the pinnacle?
However, just as his greedy thought surfaced, the goddess suddenly turned her head.
Her gaze was as cold as frost, devoid of any emotion. She simply raised her slender finger and pointed in his direction.
"boom!"
The entire underground palace suddenly trembled, and a magnificent and overwhelming pressure poured down like a celestial river, instantly crushing the Netherworld aura surrounding Yan Jiuyou.
His pupils contracted sharply, and before he could react, the seemingly casual finger strike pierced through his protective aura and landed heavily on his right shoulder.
"Snap!"
A sickening sound of bones shattering rang out, and Yan Jiuyou's right shoulder collapsed eerily, as if struck by an invisible giant hammer, his flesh and bones disintegrating inch by inch.
He looked down in astonishment, watching helplessly as his Netherworld Bone Armor, which he had cultivated for a thousand years, peeled away like sand, black sand pouring down from between his cracked skin and dissipating into the void.
"No...impossible!" he hissed, fear finally appearing in his eyes. This physical body was forged from countless rare and precious materials, and even a full-force attack from a Nascent Soul stage expert would find it difficult to break through. Yet, this goddess had rendered his millennia of cultivation as fragile as paper with just a single finger!
Yan Jiuyou staggered backward, black blood meandering like a river beneath his feet. He had never felt such a terrifying sense of oppression.
The goddess merely stood there, yet it seemed as if the entire world was rejecting his existence. He gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with a mixture of madness and fear, and roared hoarsely:
"Who exactly are you? I have cultivated for thousands of years, how could I possibly be defeated by you?"
He slapped his chest and spat out a mouthful of blood essence. The blood mist condensed in the air into a hideous ghost face, which roared and tore at the goddess!
This is his trump card, the "Netherworld Soul Devouring Curse," which uses his own blood essence as a catalyst to devour the life force of all things!
Since this goddess was hostile to him and unwilling to pass on her legacy to him, he devoured this so-called goddess!
He wants all of her power!
However, the goddess merely raised her eyes slightly and made a light stroke with her fingertip.
"laugh!"
Before the ghostly face even got close, it melted away instantly, like ice and snow meeting the blazing sun.
Yan Jiuyou trembled violently, black blood spilled from his seven orifices, and the backlash almost made him kneel on the ground.
He looked up in disbelief, only to see the goddess slowly raising her hand, a ray of pure light gathering in her palm.
The light seemed gentle, yet it made Yan Jiuyou's soul tremble!
"No...no!" He finally panicked completely, shouting in a hoarse voice, "I submit! I serve you as my master! I beg you..."
The goddess's expression was indifferent, her fingertips twitching slightly.
"Destroy."
As the word was uttered, the light suddenly shone brightly!
Yan Jiuyou's roar abruptly stopped, and his body began to disintegrate inch by inch from his fingertips. His flesh, bones, and soul all turned to ashes under that light.
He stared in horror, trying to struggle, but he couldn't move a single finger and could only watch helplessly as he slowly dissipated.
"No... I am not reconciled..."
Before he could finish his final whisper, his body vanished completely, leaving not a trace.
Inside the underground palace, all was silent.
Only the goddess withdrew her hand, her gaze sweeping lightly over the spot where Yan Jiuyou had vanished, as if merely brushing away a speck of dust. She turned to look at Bai Ying, her voice ethereal and otherworldly, seemingly coming from beyond the heavens:
"Remember what I told you..."
Bai Ying stood there, stunned, her pupils trembling slightly, still immersed in the shocking scene that had just unfolded...
Yan Jiuyou, a powerful cultivator at the Void Refinement stage, was as fragile as an ant in front of this goddess. With just a flick of his finger, he was reduced to ashes!
If only... if only I could possess such power...
Her fingers, hanging by her sides, clenched unconsciously, her nails digging deep into her palms, yet she felt no pain. The long-dormant fire of hatred in her heart was ignited at this moment, burning fiercely.
Those bloody memories, those unforgettable pains, all transformed into the most fervent desire—to become stronger! Strong enough to slay my enemies! Strong enough to overturn the injustices of this world!
She suddenly looked up, her eyes burning with intense light. Just as she was about to ask for guidance, she saw the goddess's figure begin to fade away, drifting away like smoke and mist.
"Cultivate diligently." The goddess's voice faded into the distance, yet every word reached Bai Ying's ears clearly. "I'll be waiting for you in the Upper Realm."
As the last word fell, the goddess's figure vanished completely from the world, leaving only a wisp of cool, ethereal fragrance lingering in the air. Bai Ying subconsciously reached out, but only grasped at nothingness.
She slowly withdrew her hand, took a deep breath, and gazed firmly in the direction where the goddess had disappeared.
"The Upper Realm..." she murmured softly, as if trying to etch those two words into her soul, "I will definitely go."
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