Chapter 2004: Scarred Man

Zhai Liancheng's body was shattered, covered in grievous injuries. Heavenly tribulation lightning coursed through his body, binding his limbs and strength, yet simultaneously protecting him, ensuring it would not take his life. The worst part was that he remained conscious, though his eyes were dull and lifeless, and his spirit felt like dead ashes.

He couldn't utter a sound; even screaming the humiliating words "I surrender" was a distant hope. All he wished for was to pass out quickly to end this disgrace, dreaming that he would awaken to find it had all been a nightmare.

"Zhai Liancheng," Yun Che's voice, a thousand times more terrifying than a demon's whisper, echoed in his soul. "Be very careful what you say in the future. It's a good thing I have a good temper and don't hold grudges. If you'd encountered someone with a worse temper, your head might have already been smashed in. How could they have been so benevolent as to grant you such a show of might?"

The heavenly tribulation lightning on Zhai Liancheng's body rapidly dissipated. Excruciating pain overwhelmed his senses, yet it was only a fraction of the humiliation and hatred in his heart. His lips could finally move, but they only trembled open and closed. Without emitting a single sound, he completely fainted.

Yun Che kicked out, sending Zhai Liancheng flying towards Zhai Kexie, whose face was covered in blood. Zhai Kexie frantically reached out, catching Zhai Liancheng. Before he could even check the injuries, Yun Che's leisurely voice reached his ears: "Sect Master Panxuan, you should announce the results of this battle now."

Zhai Kexie looked up, his sinister gaze fixed on Yun Che. His proudest son was finished, utterly finished. Today's humiliation would forever be a brand of shame on him. No matter how brilliant his future achievements, he would never escape it. In fact, anyone who saw or mentioned him would instantly recall this day. What ruthlessness and viciousness this was.

As extreme rage swelled in Zhai Kexie's heart, an even more profound chill followed. Such insidious methods left absolutely no room for maneuver. This meant that Yun Che… simply did not hold the Panxuan Sect in any regard. He didn't even fear the Abyss Knights.

A Divine Sovereign cultivation level, yet strength terrifyingly beyond comprehension… What terrifying background lay behind the name "Yun Che," which was surely a pseudonym?

Lie Qianhong of the Liesha Sect stepped forward and said, "If Sect Master Panxuan is indisposed, I, Lie, shall announce it on his behalf."

"In the first battle of the Qilin God Assembly, the Myriad Edge Sect was the first to fall, ranking last. The Panxuan Sect… second. The Helian Imperial Family achieved a complete victory, ranking first!"

With this result, the Helian Imperial Family was firmly assured entry into the Qilin God Realm. Yet, no one among the Helian ranks cheered; they were either stunned or bewildered, as if still caught in a false dream. Compared to before the battle, everyone's gaze towards Yun Che had undergone a drastic change, and their hearts convulsed incessantly from repeated violent tremors. And Yun Che, in their eyes… his expression showed no significant change from beginning to end, as if he wasn't torturing the strongest disciples of the Panxuan and Myriad Edge Sects, but merely casually crushing a grasshopper bouncing by the roadside.

Ximen Boyun did not speak, having nothing to say. His attention was now almost entirely on Yun Che. Those seemingly calm and cold eyes… their peripheral vision remained fixed on Yun Che's location.

Yun Che turned around nonchalantly and patted Mo Cangying's shoulder. "Brother Mo, for mere Panxuan Sect and Myriad Edge Sect, the two of us were indeed enough."

"..." Mo Cangying stared blankly at him, his throat twitching, unable to utter a word.

Leaving the battlefield and returning to the Helian Imperial Family's location, Helian Lingzhu immediately rushed over. She stopped in front of Yun Che, her eyes misty with tears, like dew-kissed crystals. "Young Master Yun Che… you… I…"

"Princess Royal, I have not failed in my mission," Yun Che responded with a smile. "It seems the Helian family will need to prepare more candidates to enter the Qilin God Realm this time."

Helian Lingzhu nodded vigorously; the look in her eyes as she gazed at Yun Che now was as if she were looking up at a deity sent by the heavens for her.

"Yun Che," Ku Xuan spoke, his old eyes filled with unresolvable astonishment. "Just who… are you?"

Yun Che shook his head. "I am just someone who has temporarily lost his past."

"Heh." Ku Xuan smiled faintly, not pursuing the matter further.

Yun Che suddenly turned his gaze at this moment, looking at Helian Linglang and the Helian profound practitioners surrounding him. Under his gaze, Helian Linglang's whole body trembled violently, and he stumbled a step backward, almost falling to the ground. His constantly shrinking pupils were filled with terror.

"Speaking of which," Yun Che's gaze lightly swept over them, as if looking down on ants, "when the Qilin God Realm opens, will you actually have the gall to enter? I'm looking forward to it."

With just one sentence, those Helian disciples swayed and turned red-faced. If before the battle, Yun Che had dared to speak like that, they would surely have exploded in rage on the spot. But now… their heads were bowed deeper than the last; let alone making a sound, not a single person dared to meet Yun Che's gaze. The dignified young master of Panxuan was rendered into a state of shameful helplessness in his hands; what did they amount to?

On the other side, at the Qilin Worship Alliance's location.

Ximen Qi's legs were trembling, and his hands, not yet fully healed from their injuries, shook so much they almost fell apart again. His face was even paler than the day Yun Che severely injured and humiliated him.

"Did you see that?" Ximen Borong said in a deep voice. "You only had one hand crippled that day; consider yourself lucky!"

Ximen Qi's throat made a heavy gulp. Putting himself in Zhai Liancheng's shoes, he suddenly felt that Yun Che that day had been as benevolent as a Heavenly Palace Saint Father.

"Divine Sovereign realm, such strength… not even a hint of fear towards Abyss Knights." Ximen Borong inhaled deeply. "His background, I fear, is far more terrifying than we previously imagined. Perhaps… he's the son of a Divine Venerable who came down from some God Realm to visit the mortal world!"

Ximen Qi's pupils suddenly dilated, rendering him speechless for a long time. Such a thought was by no means Ximen Borong's alone.

In Chi Wuyao's life experience, there was a saying: What is most to be feared is often not an overly powerful enemy, but an unknown enemy. The unknown is the greatest fear; this applies to any field. The three great sects were true behemoths in the Qilin Abyss Realm, but they deeply knew how terrifyingly powerful existences lay in the outside world. Once provoked, an opponent could, with a mere flick of a finger, turn their dozens of generations of accumulation into dust.

Unable to ascertain any details of Yun Che's background or origins, the stronger he acted, the more suspicious and wary the three great sects became. But if they knew Yun Che was merely a rootless piece of floating duckweed, their retaliation wouldn't wait even a second hour.

As all Southern Sea Divine Sources were annihilated in the battle with Mo Beichen, Yun Che could no longer sustain the Divine Ash state. Even with his ultimate power, he could only barely contend with a half-step Divine Extinction, and absolutely could not directly oppose any of the three great sects. But now, Yun Che's extremely ruthless methods and extremely arrogant, blustering posture had utterly terrified the three great sects, making them imagine a myriad of possibilities. Before completely clarifying Yun Che's identity and origin, they would likely not dare to touch him in the slightest.

The second battle of the Qilin God Assembly: Liesha Sect versus Qilin Worship Alliance.

The Liesha Sect disciples entered the battlefield first: six low-level Divine Masters and four Divine Sovereigns, with no external aid. In contrast, the Qilin Worship Alliance disciples appeared much more dismal. Among the nine disciples who entered, only two were first-level Divine Masters; the other seven were all Divine Sovereigns.

However, Liesha Sect Master Lie Qianhong wore a solemn expression. The Qilin Worship Alliance had found a powerful external aid… This was known to all three great sects. However, none of the three sects knew who this external aid actually was.

Until… a gray-white figure slowly descended from the sky, standing behind the nine Qilin Worship disciples. This person wore an exceptionally wide and seemingly thick gray-white robe that enveloped their entire body down to the ankles, making it difficult to discern their figure. The gray-white robe seemed to be made of the coarsest common cloth, with no profound power runes inscribed on it, nor even any decorative patterns. Even stranger was that their head and neck were completely covered by a gray-white hood of the same material, with not a single strand of skin or hair exposed. Clearly, this person did not want to reveal any part of their appearance in the Qilin Abyss Realm. Before this, their presence had been extremely low. Until their appearance just now, few had even noticed their existence.

All eyes in the audience focused on this gray-robed figure who clearly stood out from the other Qilin Worship disciples, with discussions buzzing. Zhai Kexie and Wan Wei also noticed this gray-robed figure for the first time, their expressions remarkably similar: initially frowning, then puzzled, and finally turning to deep shock.

At the Helian Imperial Family's location, Ku Xuan also showed a startled expression, his aura momentarily disordered. Mo Cangying sensed something, turned his gaze, and asked, "Master, is there anything unusual?"

Ku Xuan exhaled softly and whispered, "This is an… Eighth-level Divine Master."

"…What!?" Mo Cangying exclaimed in shock.

An Eighth-level Divine Master under six hundred years old… What concept was this? In the history of the Qilin Abyss Realm, the most outstanding genius to appear under six hundred years old was the seventeenth Helian National Lord… Helian Kunlun. He obtained a heaven-bestowed divine object, the Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid, from the Qilin God Realm, and was reborn, becoming a Sixth-level Divine Master at the age of six hundred. He then completed breakthroughs within the Divine Master realm, achieving demigod status. The Helian Imperial Dynasty of that generation was a prosperous era that no force could shake. While the Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid allowed him to be reborn, his lifespan also greatly increased. He, who should have long since passed away, forcibly survived until today through a breath-sealing method, becoming the last guardian of the Helian Imperial Family.

The three great sects also knew of Helian Kunlun's existence, and this was their greatest… or rather, their only apprehension towards the Helian Imperial Family. From then on, the Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid became the most coveted divine object for Qilin Abyss profound practitioners. Every person who entered the Qilin God Realm wished most to find a Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid. But unfortunately, the Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid appeared only that one time. In subsequent eras, the Qilin God Realm was explored by generation after generation, yet no trace of the Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid was ever found again. Only its records and legends eternally stirred the deepest desires of every Qilin Abyss profound practitioner.

And this gray-robed figure was actually an Eighth-level Divine Master… far surpassing Helian Kunlun, who was nurtured by the Qilin Bone Spirit Orchid and became a Qilin Abyss legend back then. Such a figure must originate from an extremely high-level plane. What method did the Qilin Worship Alliance use to invite such a person to serve them?

"..." Ku Xuan stared fixedly, silent for a long time. What surprised him most was that he had not detected the presence of an Eighth-level Divine Master at all until now.

Yun Che's gaze briefly lingered on the gray-robed figure, his brows slightly furrowed. Such a figure, who was also so wary of their identity being known to others, why would they come to this Qilin Abyss Realm to fight for a small Qilin Worship Alliance? Ximen Boyun's reputation? A favor owed? Judging from their secretive demeanor, it was certainly neither. Then there was only one possibility. This person, like himself, wanted to enter the Qilin God Realm. He had a reason to enter the Qilin God Realm, but why them…? There wasn't a single trace of earth power aura on their body.

Wait… This seemed… to be a woman!? When his gaze fell on the person's hood again, his keen vision, unaffected by abyssal dust, faintly saw two… deep black marks crossing the face. A scarred face? Was she covered so completely just to hide the black marks on her face?

Watching the gray-robed figure enter, Ximen Boyun remained calm, while Ximen Borong's mouth curved into a confident smile. As for Lie Qianhong, after his initial shock, his face immediately turned extremely ugly. He had long known that the Qilin Worship Alliance had external aid, but he had never imagined this aid would be so terrifying.

In the previous battle, the Helian Imperial Family not only avoided a crushing defeat but brutally crushed the Panxuan Sect and Myriad Edge Sect. Their final ranking would be at least second. Among the three great sects, his Liesha Sect was the weakest. And if they were to lose to the Qilin Worship Alliance again… Then, it wouldn't be the Helian Imperial Family losing the qualification to enter the Qilin God Realm, but his Liesha Sect!

Liesha Sect's Young Sect Master Lie Zhuoyang was burning with battle intent when suddenly an inexplicable sense of suffocation came over him, and the surrounding atmosphere also became particularly strange. He turned his head to look at his sect's location, only to find his father's face was a terrifying ashen green. Noticing Lie Zhuoyang's gaze, Lie Qianhong let out a long breath and transmitted his voice: "Opposite… is an Eighth-level Divine Master."

"Wh—" Lie Zhuoyang's expression changed drastically, and he blurted out, losing his voice.

"Give up," Lie Qianhong's voice was weak. "That gray-robed figure can crush all of you alone; there's no chance of victory. Directly admitting defeat is shameful. But by retaining all your strength and condition, taking advantage of the Panxuan Sect and Myriad Edge Sect being severely wounded by Yun Che… perhaps there's still a chance."

"..." Lie Zhuoyang gritted his teeth, the battle intent that had just ignited in his heart completely extinguished by the four words "Eighth-level Divine Master." However, he did not immediately admit defeat. Instead, he pointed at the gray-robed figure and asked in a deep voice, "Since you have already entered the battlefield, why hide yourself? At least… you should let us know your name."

The gray-robed figure's body and aura remained motionless, like a dead person. Just when everyone thought she didn't want to bother with the Liesha Young Sect Master, they heard her slowly utter a sound:

"Chi Dragon Clan, Long Jiang." The voice was cold and hoarse, but still discernible as a woman's.