C15 Finally Defeated the Enemy

The fall of Sunsetwood Grove was like a fleeting wave in the vast river of history, appearing briefly before vanishing just as quickly.

The death of Qiu Changfeng, the head of Sunsetwood Grove, would linger as a memory only in the hearts of a few, including Yu Bai.

Yu Bai watched Chen Yuan with terror as he emerged unscathed from a swirling blood mist, his clothes torn to shreds by the Mystic Rain, yet his body was miraculously intact. It was as if he had been restored to life!

Could there truly be a technique that granted one the power to be reborn, to defy death itself?

Yu Bai was frightened. Despite deploying his most formidable defenses, he was powerless to halt Chen Yuan's steady advance. How does one stop an enemy who cannot be defeated?

Muttering to himself as though under a spell, Yu Bai's complexion grew even more ghostly. Even he, after countless battles, was straining to sustain such a powerful technique.

Yet Chen Yuan continued his approach with an unhurried gait, as steady as before.

At last, Chen Yuan stepped through the final curtain of rain to confront Yu Bai, who by then had lost all sense of what to do next. He was out of options.

Yu Bai's knees buckled, and he collapsed to the ground in defeat.

Looking up, the first thing he saw was not Chen Yuan, but the stark Sunsetwood tree. When they had first entered Sunsetwood Grove, it stood as a grand, golden canopy. When had it shed its leaves? Had the tree, as the emblem of Sunsetwood Grove, chosen to follow the fate of the Grove to its end?

These thoughts surfaced unbidden in Yu Bai's mind, but he had no time to ponder them.

Chen Yuan, without a hint of mercy, raised his hand and clenched his fist.

"This punch is for Sunsetwood Grove. Your schemes led to its downfall, nearly wiping out all its disciples. You bear a heavy burden of sin."

The punch struck Yu Bai's face, and his vision exploded into a kaleidoscope of colors.

Chen Yuan's fist was unyielding and forceful. As a Body Cultivator, delivering such a blow came all too easily to him.

"The second punch is for the Vast Sea Nation. Even though I'm unclear on how you discovered my identity, your disdain for the Vast Sea Nation demands a steep price."

The second punch struck Yu Bai's face again, obliterating any trace of his original features in a blur of blood and flesh.

Yu Bai collapsed to the ground, motionless and silent, as if life had left him.

"This third punch is for myself," Chen Yuan declared, delivering another blow to Yu Bai's face, kicking up a cloud of dust. "You hit me plenty, and now I'm returning the favor. That's pretty generous of me, don't you think?"

After three punches to Yu Bai's face, the last one extinguished any remaining breath in him.

A Shadowmancer, esteemed by the outside world, had met his end at the hands of what he deemed the lowest of Body Cultivators.

Chen Yuan rose to his feet, feeling as if the world had brightened before his eyes. The pent-up pressure and resentment that had been festering in his heart were now fully purged.

Without a second glance at the unrecognizable, bloodied form of Yu Bai on the ground, Chen Yuan turned and approached Liu Xiaoxiao, who was nearby.

"Ah!" Liu Xiaoxiao let out a piercing scream. "Don't come any closer!"

Her scream took Chen Yuan by surprise, but he quickly regained his composure.

The speed of a Body Cultivator is astonishing; in the blink of an eye, he had found his clothes and dressed with practiced ease.

The mood suddenly turned awkward.

Chen Yuan's attention then shifted to the now barren Sunsetwood tree behind him. "Wasn't this Sunsetwood just fine a moment ago?"

He distinctly remembered the massive, golden Sunsetwood in its prime.

What had caused such a transformation?

"When you were advancing through the rain curtain, it started shedding leaves," Liu Xiaoxiao explained somberly, gazing at the denuded Sunsetwood. "I suspect the source of that green light was this very tree."

Despite her disability preventing her from cultivating or aiding Chen Yuan in combat, Liu Xiaoxiao's insight and analytical skills had been honed to a formidable level under the guidance of the Celestial Archives.

Upon witnessing the green light emanating from Chen Yuan and the Sunsetwood's incessant leaf-fall, she tentatively linked the two phenomena.

"I recall reading that when a plant lives beyond a century, it gains its own consciousness, akin to the common notion of a spirit achieving cultivation. Even more remarkable, some can transform and walk the earth after a millennium. This Sunsetwood, I believe, must have also endured the long years alongside Qiu Changfeng."

"So, the reason I've been able to heal continuously is because of this green light, which comes from the Sunsetwood Tree?"

Chen Yuan gazed at the shattered Sunsetwood Tree and the thick carpet of Sunsetwood Leaves at their feet with a mix of emotions.

"This must be another safeguard left by Qiu Changfeng. He certainly wouldn't want to see Sunsetwood Grove breached or destroyed by those people. At the very least, you've avenged Qiu Changfeng."

"Yu Bai is merely a pawn; he's far from adequate for exacting true revenge," Chen Yuan said, shaking his head. "You're aware of my identity as a citizen of the Vast Sea Nation. Since its fall, four or five other nations have mysteriously collapsed, and countless sects have been overrun and vanished. This enigmatic power has yet to reveal itself."

"It must be a formidable entity to compel a proud and haughty Shadowmancer to carry out its bidding!"

"Yet, given our current level of cultivation, we had to depend on the Sunsetwood and Qiu Changfeng's strategies to defeat Yu Bai. If we try to delve deeper, I fear we won't uncover much."

Chen Yuan nodded, concurring with Liu Xiaoxiao's assessment.

With their present capabilities, they would be walking into certain doom.

Nonetheless, Chen Yuan's outlook had shifted following the conflict. He was no longer in hiding; he resolved to live openly as a citizen of the Vast Sea Nation.

"We should get moving," Liu Xiaoxiao said after a brief pause.

"The enforcers from the Celestial Archives will certainly return, and now that your identity is revealed, they won't give up easily. We need to make our way to the next safe location."

To her surprise, Chen Yuan shook his head.

"Is a safe place truly secure? Who can predict everything in this world with certainty? Even Liu Fufeng couldn't have foreseen our current predicament."

"What are you suggesting we do?" Liu Xiaoxiao asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

Chen Yuan had two immediate priorities.

First, he wanted to heal Liu Xiaoxiao's ailment, enabling her to walk independently again, and then escort her to the second safe location, fulfilling his promise to the Pavilion Master of the Celestial Archives, Liu Fufeng.

Never before had he felt such an intense desire to grow stronger!

"I'll take you to a second safe haven, but I'm afraid I won't linger there. I'll keep moving, living as a citizen of the Vast Sea Nation, drawing out all the hidden demons and spirits lurking in the shadows."

Just then, the Sunsetwood tree behind him emitted a sharp crack.

The naked trunk was riddled with spreading fissures.