C9 Demonic Spine

Xing Yun didn't halt his stride but retorted, "If one can't show complete loyalty even to their devoted followers, what claim do they have to compete for supremacy? Do you think I staged that display for your benefit? Such theatrics have never interested me!"

Ling Ji couldn't help but curl her lip in response. "Perhaps I was just being overly sentimental. Still, the Order of the Celestial Veil prides itself on being a paragon of virtue. If you make an enemy of Gu Yu, you may well face the collective wrath of the Shadowlands' righteous factions."

Laughter echoed from Xing Yun within the Voidlands, "Is that your definition of righteousness? If so, I have no qualms about being labeled the villain. Good and evil are merely human constructs, shaped by interests and perspectives."

"Interests and perspectives, huh? That does seem to have some truth to it," Ling Ji conceded with a wry smile.

Indeed, her family might appear unfortunate, yet they hadn't shied away from oppressing the weak. In the Infinite Cosmos, power is the ultimate arbiter, with truth residing firmly in the grasp of the mighty.

Did Xing Yun have a deeper understanding of the world than she did?

With this thought, Ling Ji gathered her courage and ventured, "With your capabilities and insight, along with a realm at your command, you hardly seem like a fifteen-year-old boy... Moreover, you're nothing like the rumors suggest. My guess is that you—Xing Yun—are now the vessel for a formidable being's spirit?"

"You could say that," Xing Yun answered immediately, openly acknowledging the truth.

A wave of anxiety washed over Ling Ji. "Then... why haven't you silenced me?"

Xing Yun's demeanor remained serene. "The moment you decided to stay, the option to leave me was no longer yours to make."

At a loss for words, Ling Ji turned away, her emotions in turmoil. She remained silent for a long while. She truly wanted to understand what kind of person Xing Yun was, but the pride of the God-Emperor Realm made it hard for her to mask her disdain.

After a brief silence, with Xing Yun seemingly ignoring her, Ling Ji felt compelled to speak up. "Considering your lifetime exemption from taxes, I feel obliged to tell you that Gu Yan is actually the illegitimate son of Elder Gu Yun, the leader of the Order of the Celestial Veil. Once Gu Yan learned of his heritage, he planned to one day return to the Order to challenge Gu Tian and take back what was rightfully his. Gu Tian, who is a half-sibling to both Gu Yan and Gu Yu, also has his eyes on the saintess."

"Oh?" Xing Yun's lips curled into an enigmatic smile. "The upper echelons are well aware that Elder Xing has been my secret protector. The fact that Gu Yu allowed Gu Yan to come after me suggests they might have learned of Elder Xing's absence."

Elder Xing was the respectful title Xing Yun used for Xing Chen.

Without Xing Yun's interference, Gu Yan, favored by destiny, could have been hailed as the son of the Plane. An illegitimate child cast into the mortal realm to endure untold suffering, he would have fought his way back to the Order of the Celestial Veil, overcoming his haughty siblings of shared paternity but different maternity. He would have avenged his mother and reclaimed everything, culminating in a fateful encounter with the saintess and winning her heart—a truly bittersweet triumph.

Regrettably, Gu Yan made the grave mistake of crossing paths with Xing Yun, a harbinger of doom.

"Don't assume that by killing Gu Yan, Gu Yu will be pleased... Gu Yu has always intended to groom Gu Yan to eventually diminish Gu Tian's influence. You must realize the implications; you've already entangled yourself in serious trouble," Ling Ji cautioned.

Xing Yun responded with solemnity, "I appreciate the warning. But let it be known that anyone who dares to oppose me will inevitably face irrevocable destruction."

Ling Ji offered no reply. The Order of the Celestial Veil was among the mightiest powers in all of the Shadowlands, with the Gu family being a dominant faction within. How could Xing Yun, a mysterious figure with but a Profound Vein, hope to contend with such formidable adversaries?

Ling Ji sighed, "It was merely an act of mercy on your part, as well as compensation for my misunderstanding of you. But you killed Gu Yan. This feud cannot be settled, and I refuse to pledge my loyalty to you."

"The future is long," Xing Yun said with a confident smile. He then disregarded Ling Ji and made his way toward the Demonic Spine.

Before long, Ling Ji noticed that Xing Yun was unstoppable, speeding away like an arrow shot from a bow.

She was even more astonished. Xing Yun not only possessed remarkable abilities, but he could also harness the full power of the Voidlands, sustaining the immense expenditure of spiritual energy.

In under a quarter of an hour, Xing Yun had reached the outskirts of the Demonic Spine.

From her vantage point in the Voidlands, Ling Ji gazed at the Demonic Spine with a sudden, unexplainable sense of impending danger.

The Demonic Spine was a landscape of mountains and forests, lush with greenery, shrouded in mist, and filled with the continuous roars and cries of Hellbeasts.

Even from the periphery, it felt like being on the edge of an emerald sea of trees, ready to engulf anyone at any moment.

The Shadowlands were expansive, home to hundreds of millions, yet the Demonic Spine occupied a tenth of its territory.

Xing Yun surveyed the Demonic Spine with a glance and burst into triumphant laughter, while Ling Ji was left puzzled.

In fact, Xing Yun's origins lay in the Shadowlands of his previous life, where he had climbed to the pinnacle of the Infinite Cosmos.

Despite the passage of ten thousand years and the transformation of the world, the Demonic Spine still stood resolute in the Shadowlands.

Regrettably, Xing Yun remembered that there was no great Xing Family in the Shadowlands, signifying that the Xing clan he and his brothers had established had fallen into obscurity.

Even in the Upper Realm, the current Xing Family made no mention of the once-dominant Xing Yun of the Infinite Cosmos.

With a stern expression and unwavering resolve, Xing Yun affirmed, "In this lifetime, I, Xing Yun, will lead an even more extraordinary life!"

With unwavering resolve, Xing Yun plunged into the heart of the Demonic Spine without a moment's hesitation.

"Madman..." Ling Ji, unable to do anything, shook her head and sighed deeply.

The Demonic Spine was teeming with Hellbeasts. She was certain that even with Xing Yun's endless supply of spiritual energy fueling his combat, he wouldn't be able to withstand the onslaught of the Beast Tide!

And that's not even considering the Hellbeasts within the tide that matched the power of the Awakened Soul, Azure Paragon, and even the True Spirit Realms!

Outside Grimgarth's Keep, a swift figure donned a mask and blended into the moonlit shadows, vigilantly observing the Keep's movements—it was Lee Xiao'er.

"Xing Yun has been holed up in the Keep this whole time. If I'm not careful with my approach, I might spook him... It seems I have no choice but to resort to that strategy!"

As Lee Xiao'er was strategizing, she noticed the Keep's main gate swing open, and more guards poured out, following Liang Zun in all directions.

"We must intensify our patrols within the city and leave no room for negligence!"

Liang Zun's command echoed, and the crowd responded, each diving into their tasks.

"Could it be that Xing Yun isn't in the Keep?"

Lee Xiao'er was filled with doubt. She stealthily infiltrated the Keep to conduct a thorough search but found no trace of Xing Yun.

"Could the black-robed individual who left the Keep earlier be Xing Yun? His audacity makes it a possibility! I must catch up to him and end this!"

Suddenly, Lee Xiao'er remembered seeing someone heading west from the Keep's western gate and immediately set off in pursuit.

"Assassin!"

By the time the alert rang out within the Keep, Lee Xiao'er had already vanished.

On the outskirts of the Demonic Spine, as soon as Xing Yun stepped into the forest, he realized the environment was starkly different from the outside world.

Beyond the lush greenery, he spotted sparse blood-colored herbs—these were Rank One Blood Condensation Grass.

"Hardly enough!"

Xing Yun sighed in disappointment and ventured deeper into the woods, only to be caught off guard by a wolf's howl in the distance.

He turned to see a massive earthen-yellow wolf, seven feet in length and four feet tall, fixated on him with a pair of unsettling green eyes.

This was a first-tier Rock Wolf, a creature of the earth element known for its incredible speed and defense, far surpassing that of a typical first-tier Hellbeast. To any ordinary person, it spelled certain death, and even warriors at the Profound realm might not escape its hunt unscathed.

The Rock Wolf had clearly marked Xing Yun as its quarry, yet Xing Yun greeted it with delight rather than fear, exclaiming, "At last, it has arrived!"

"Awoo!" The Rock Wolf, detecting that Xing Yun's aura was merely at the Profound realm level, felt challenged by his advance and lunged at him with bared fangs and claws, unleashing a torrent of earthen-yellow breath.

This was the Rock Wolf's lethal technique, the Broken Rock Stream, which could immobilize its target with the slightest misstep, turning them into the Rock Wolf's next meal.

Xing Yun shifted his stance, conjuring a deceptive speed that produced an illusory afterimage, effortlessly sidestepping the Broken Rock Stream!

The Phantom Step was a unique movement technique Xing Yun had developed by harnessing Astral Power. It synthesized the essence of all movement techniques, allowing for unpredictable and versatile maneuvers. In the past, it was unrivaled across the Infinite Cosmos.

Having nimbly evaded the Broken Rock Stream, Xing Yun faced the gaping maw of the Rock Wolf and delivered a powerful punch to its abdomen.

The Rock Wolf howled in agony as its strength was rapidly sapped, leaving it collapsed and powerless on the ground.

Without a moment's delay, Xing Yun focused his sword on channeling the Astral Power, reciting an incantation: "By my power, I command all beasts! Join me in conquest, for creation is boundless!"

With those words, Xing Yun pressed his sword tip to the center of the Rock Wolf's forehead, which was now defenseless, and began an unceasing infusion of Astral Power.

Simultaneously, the first door of the Spire of the Infinite swung open. Ling Ji turned in astonishment, catching a glimpse of a shadowy figure emerging on the stone wall within.

"Just a mere Moonfang Direwolf, return to your essence!" Xing Yun declared.

Ling Ji was taken aback by his words, "Just a mere?"

The Moonfang Direwolf was a creature of legend in the Infinite Cosmos, a ninth-tier Spiritual Beast and the sovereign of the Wolf Clan, whose mightiest could rival that of an Exalted and even assume human form.

The descendants of the Moonfang Direwolf had experienced multiple generations of diluted bloodlines, with the lowest being the first-rank creatures like the Rock Wolf and Stormblade Wolf among their kin.

At that moment, the emblem of the Spire of the Infinite surfaced on the Rock Wolf's brow, soon to be enveloped by Xing Yun's Astral Power.

Shortly thereafter, the Rock Wolf transformed into a terra-cotta beam of light that shot into Xing Yun's forehead, transporting it into the Voidlands.

"What kind of technique is this?" Ling Ji, witnessing the Rock Wolf on the ground being mended by the Astral Power, was utterly astonished.

To subdue a Hellbeast, one either had to nurture it from birth or overpower it with formidable strength.

For the latter, one would need to exceed the Hellbeast by two realms and comprehend the language of beasts to have a chance at subjugation and contract formation—such individuals were known as beast tamers.

Yet, Xing Yun's approach was starkly different from that of a typical beast tamer.

In an instant, Xing Yun materialized before the Rock Wolf, which promptly prostrated and hummed in submission, its eyes brimming with awe.

"You're fortunate," Xing Yun said with a smile. "As the first Hellbeast I've tamed, if you can withstand three tribulations, you'll evolve into a Moonfang Direwolf!"

The Rock Wolf, seemingly understanding, joyfully nodded in agreement.

"Freak of nature!" Ling Ji exclaimed, unable to contain her surprise.

Even among the Empyrean's Exalted beast tamers, none possessed such bizarre and effective methods of taming a Hellbeast!

In a mere moment, Xing Yun, at the Martial Pulse Stage, had tamed a Rock Wolf on par with a peak Martial Pulse warrior, and it appeared he had expended little effort!

Xing Yun simply offered a serene smile: "Get used to it. By my side, you'll witness more wonders that defy your knowledge!"

With those words, Xing Yun and the Rock Wolf vanished, only to reappear where they had initially stood.

Xing Yun, still smiling, commanded, "Henceforth, you shall be known as Greedy Wolf and embark on your path of growth."

He intended for the Rock Wolf to face off against a myriad of Hellbeasts and adversaries!