Chapter 263: You Really Think You Can Tempt Me With Beauty?
Chapter 263: You Really Think You Can Tempt Me With Beauty?
Half a watch later.
Miao Yin, the True Immortal, finally exhausted her spiritual energy. Even attempting to fight with her Spiritual Body, she was overwhelmed by a group of Han soldiers who tackled her, stripping her of resistance.
"I–"
Puchi! Puchi! Puchi!
Without mercy, long blades pierced her ravishing body, draining her blood and strength until she could no longer struggle.
Then, several soldiers stepped forward, binding her wrists and ankles with thick ropes. The cords doubled back from her neck, threading through her collarbone and armpits, looping between her legs in a hogtied knot that sealed her limbs like a tortoiseshell, rendering her completely helpless.
"Mmph–" Miao Yin let out a pained groan.
Once secured, the remaining troops hoisted her up and dragged her to the cliffside where Lv Yang waited, then unceremoniously dropped her at his feet.
"Cultivator", the soldiers called out. "The Celestial Demon is subdued!"
These survivors, blessed with Aetherophagous Beetle eggs that defied fate, stared reverently at Lv Yang.
Stepping from his tea pavilion, Lv Yang surveyed Miao Yin.
"Yuan Tu (the Slaughterer)", she rasped with a forced smile, though her disheveled hair and bloodstained face twisted her beauty into a grotesque mask. "Could there be a misunderstanding here?"
Lv Yang's expression remained calm as he approached. "Madam, when you seek my life, surely you expect retaliation?"
"When did I ever plot against you?" she denied instantly, shaking her head. "There must be a mistake. You could even perform a soul extraction to verify."
"Extract me", she whispered seductively. "And you'll know the truth." She welcomed the violation–her secret art could subvert the process, turning predator into prey.
Lv Yang rose to his feet.
But as Miao Yin expected him to seize her, he suddenly drew his sword and severed her head in one stroke.
"You really thought beauty could tempt me?"
He never intended to extract her soul. His frugal nature would've organized a queue had he wanted her power. But Miao Yin offered nothing worth craving. Better to end her swiftly than risk complications.
'Funny,' he mused. 'I suppose I'm still a decent person at heart.'
Glancing skyward, his expression darkened. His "Villager" Fate Star remained unchanged.
'Of course it wouldn't be so simple. Even Heaven wouldn't hand me the Ming Son of Heaven's throne just for killing Miao Yin. Have I been used? Is the cosmos reneging on its debt?'
As he pondered, a thunderous crack split the air.
Beside him, General Chen Anmin froze, then erupted in solar radiance.
His Fate Star transformed–a fireball swelling into a blazing sun!
The Ming Son of Heaven!
The celestial throne of the era!
Lv Yang felt it most acutely–his Foundation Building Mid-Stage cultivation dissolved like mist. Like Miao Yin before him, his cultivation became rootless water, utterly suppressed by this new Sovereign's presence. Only a Late-Stage Foundation Builder might retain power before such divinity.
"Cultivator...?" Chen Anmin gaped at Lv Yang, now appearing as fragile as any mortal.
'How predictable,' Lv Yang thought, lips curling. 'Deny me and elevate my subordinate instead?'
'Are you turning against me?'
His sneer deepened. But Chen suddenly snapped his head skyward, bellowing, "Who dares? Reveal yourself!"
Ordinary words, yet amplified by Ming Son of Heaven's power into thunderous proclamations that forced soldiers to their knees. The invisible veil of spiritual power tore away, exposing a figure lurking in the heavens.
"Esteemed friend, your reputation precedes you", Lv Yang murmured, narrowing his eyes on the refined young man with an insincere smile.
More alarming was his cultivation.
Foundation Building Late-Stage!
Lv Yang shivered. Few could defy the Ming Son of Heaven's suppression and still fly. 'Good I prepared thoroughly, bringing every capable soldier. A Late-Stage expert might have slaughtered thousands without Fate Star-linked formations to suppress him.'
"Greetings, Yuan Tu (Slaughterer) Daoist", Suo Huan bowed calmly. "Your artifice of a clone with independent fate defies nature itself."
The Earth Vein Qi bribery...
The Myriad Martial Realm alliance...
The military campaign against Miao Yin–such maneuvers wouldn't surprise Heaven's Holy Sect. Many had considered them.
But why had no one acted?
The cost outweighed the gain. Returning alone with Terrestrial Sha impurities would invoke Heavenly Punishment. Only balancing it with greater Jie Tian essence could appease Heaven's ledger.
Yet Lv Yang differed.
His Immortal Embryo Clone's independent fate shielded his true body. Even if punished, he'd compensate by reclaiming more Jie Tian essence.
'Profit redeems all sins.'
Glancing at Chen Anmin's radiant Ming Son of Heaven throne, Lv Yang narrowed his eyes.
(End of Chapter)
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