Chapter 479: Ice and Fire Reappear

The Dragon Fault, now broken into two pieces, landed heavily on either side of Yun Che, one to his left and one to his right, and lay motionless. At the sword's tip, the ferocious dragon head slowly lost its vitality, its eyes completely dimming to a lifeless, ashen gray.

Yun Che lay sprawled on the ground, staring blankly ahead, unable to recover for a long time. After a considerable pause, he stretched out his arm, attempting to summon the Dragon Fault as he had before. However, with the sword broken, its nascent spirituality had also vanished, and it remained completely unresponsive to his call.

Yun Che got up, silently picked up the two pieces of the Dragon Fault, and then sat down in a corner, staring blankly at the broken sword.

Four years ago, Yun Che obtained the Dragon Fault in the Dragon God's Trial Grounds. Afterward, it was enhanced by the power of the Primordial Azure Dragon's remnant soul, transforming into a Royal Sword. Throughout this time, it had fought alongside Yun Che, overcoming obstacles and serving as his other arm and most trusted companion. Together, they had forged their reputations.

But now, it was broken, shattered in his own hands, crumbling under his immense power.

"Your current power is incomparable to what it once was," Jasmine stated calmly. "After all, it's just a Royal Sword. Your full strength now is simply more than it can withstand. This stone door is also incredibly hard; almost all the force you exerted just now rebounded. It's only natural that it would break." Jasmine had largely anticipated this outcome when Yun Che activated his Purgatory state.

"Sigh..." Yun Che let out a long sigh. He carefully picked up the Dragon Fault, his palm slowly caressing the cold blade. "Old friend," he murmured softly, "you've fought alongside me for so many years, and I never imagined I'd be the one to destroy you with my own hands... Well, perhaps it's time you had a good rest. Once we leave here, I'll find a way to repair you."

After speaking, Yun Che put away the Dragon Fault, his mind quickly settling. His gaze fell upon the spot where the Dragon Fault had struck.

It was no longer just a white mark, but unmistakably a... small indentation!

Yun Che's spirits lifted, and he quickly moved closer. He hadn't been mistaken; a very small indentation had indeed appeared on the smooth stone door. It was tiny, only about half the size of a pinky fingernail, and its depth was roughly equivalent to the thickness of a piece of paper, but it was undeniably an indentation.

However, Yun Che felt no joy, because this tiny mark had come at the cost of the Dragon Fault's destruction. Without the sword, it would be utterly impossible to create such an indentation with his bare hands.

"Please... find her..."

Yun Che, who had been staring absently at the small indentation, suddenly looked up and gazed forward.

"What's wrong?" Jasmine asked.

"...I heard that voice again, the one I heard on the first day I entered the Primordial Profound Ark," Yun Che said, standing up. After the spatial turbulence began, all his energy had been focused on fighting it, and his ears were filled only with the sounds of tearing and violent spatial distortions. Even if the voice had previously sounded during that time, it would have been completely drowned out by the chaos.

Now, with the spatial turbulence halted, that ethereal and eerie voice, whose origin was unknown, resonated once more.

"What exactly did you hear?" Jasmine asked, her brows furrowed.

Yun Che thought for a moment. "Before, the voice was intermittent, only sounding occasionally, seemingly telling me to find someone... and then save him... It also seemed to mention the Sky Poison Pearl. Just now, the voice rang out again, saying, 'Please find him'... still asking me to find someone."

"The voice mentioned the Sky Poison Pearl?" Jasmine's eyes flickered. After a moment's contemplation, she said, "Don't concern yourself with that voice for now. You're trapped here; you can't even save yourself, let alone others. Focus on figuring out how to leave this place first."

Yun Che nodded and sat cross-legged on the ground. After pondering for half a day, he took out the Heart of the Fire Dragon from the Sky Poison Pearl—something he had been reluctant to eat—roasted it with Phoenix Flame, and then began to devour it. Although his body's functions hadn't been significantly affected by over a year without food, his stomach was already growling with hunger. In both his lives, he had never gone without food for so long.

Soon, Yun Che was thoroughly full. After also drinking a large bowl of dragon blood, he rubbed his stomach, let out a satisfied sigh, and then suddenly asked, "Jasmine, how long have I been in here?"

"Eighteen months."

"Eighteen months... It's really been that long." Yun Che's face showed surprise, then he suddenly turned to Jasmine. "If so much time has passed, then the seal you placed on yourself should have been lifted by now, right?"

Jasmine glanced at him, saying coldly, "What, you wish to use my power to leave this place?"

"If your power has recovered, then of course, that would be the best method," Yun Che said, his face hopeful. "It's been over three years since you sealed your power. According to the timeframe you mentioned back then, your power should definitely have recovered by now."

"If you're hoping to rely on my power to leave here, then you can give up on that idea," Jasmine said, turning her face away without ceremony. "When my power recovers, I'll naturally inform you."

"So, your power still hasn't recovered?" Yun Che's face showed annoyance and disappointment, but these emotions quickly vanished. He looked at Jasmine, then suddenly smiled, walked over, stood in front of her, and gently embraced her amidst her surprised gaze.

Jasmine had not expected such a sudden action from him and instinctively struggled. But with her "powerless" body, how could she escape Yun Che's embrace? Angrily mixed with panic, she exclaimed, "You... what are you doing!?"

"Hugging you, of course," Yun Che said with a smile. "After sending Xue'er away, I thought I was certainly going to die, but unexpectedly, I survived... This feeling of not losing my life, not losing hope, and not losing you is truly wonderful, so I suddenly really wanted to hold you."

"...I am your master! Did I give you permission to hug me?!" Jasmine said, weakly struggling while trying to sound as angry as possible.

Yun Che replied with an innocent expression, "What's wrong with a hug? Back then, I even kissed you, and you weren't that angry then."

The "kiss" he referred to was when they encountered the Fire Dragon. Jasmine had used her power to kill it, causing her own poison to flare up, almost destroying her soul. To save her, Yun Che had given her a large amount of his blood mouth-to-mouth. Jasmine, of course, hadn't forgotten that incident. Yun Che's sudden mention made her body stiffen, and embarrassment quickly turned to fury. Her anger and killing intent burst forth, and she stopped struggling, her voice becoming exceptionally cold. "Let go!" she commanded. However, despite her best efforts to make her aura terrifying, she ultimately held no true murderous intent towards Yun Che, and her anger was primarily embarrassment. Thus, it was completely insufficient to intimidate Yun Che in the slightest. Yun Che's lips twitched, and he muttered a slightly annoyed, "Alright," before loosening his embrace.

Jasmine quickly stepped back, glaring at Yun Che with an annoyed expression. "If you ever dare to touch me again without my permission, believe me, once my power recovers, I'll break your hands!"

Yun Che rubbed the tip of his nose and slowly nodded. "Oh... you just reminded me. Once you regain your power, I won't be able to hug you anymore, so... shouldn't I take advantage of the moment and hug you a little longer?"

With that, Yun Che narrowed his eyes, took a step forward, and made a gesture as if to embrace Jasmine again. "You!" Jasmine bit her lip, clenching her small fists, and let out a frustrated "Hmph!" She then transformed into a red light and vanished from Yun Che's sight, returning to the Sky Poison Pearl. "You despicable pervert, always deceiving and bullying girls, the most detestable lecher in my brother's eyes! How dare you lay your wicked hands on this princess now! If it weren't for... if it weren't for... I would surely kill you! Hmph!" Jasmine fumed once more, then fell silent, refusing to acknowledge Yun Che no matter what he said.

Yun Che sat before the stone door, his gaze fixed on the small indentation. He closed his eyes, concentrating deeply on finding a way to escape. After several hours of motionless contemplation, he suddenly opened his eyes, a strange light flickering within them.

He simultaneously raised both hands, palms facing upwards, resting them on his knees. In the same instant, blazing Phoenix Flame ignited in his right hand, while a delicate Ice Phoenix tree grew in his left.

Yun Che closed his eyes again, his chest heaved violently once, and then he began to breathe slowly, his breathing noticeably heavier than usual. In the silence, the intense heat from the Phoenix Flame and the biting cold from the Ice Phoenix began to stir in a chaotic palpitation. Initially, the heat and cold counteracted each other, which is one of nature's well-known fundamental rules. However, as time passed, the heat and cold, which should have canceled each other out, began to separate and exist independently.

Two hours later, this narrow space was gradually divided into two distinct worlds: one half as scorching as lava, the other as chilling as an icy hell.

Two worlds that should have canceled each other out were instead clearly delineated within a single, unseparated space, completely without interference from one another!

At this point, Yun Che finally made his move. Slowly, he brought his right hand, burning with Phoenix Flame, and his left hand, sustaining the Ice Phoenix, closer together, inch by painstaking inch. His movements were extremely careful and deliberate, and from his expression, it seemed that every fraction of movement cost him immense mental and physical effort. The distance of one foot took a full thirty breaths before his left and right hands finally touched. The Phoenix Flame and Ice Phoenix also met at this moment. There was no melting of the Ice Phoenix, no suppression of the Phoenix Flame; instead, the crimson Phoenix Flame and the crystalline blue Ice Phoenix merged into each other. The Ice Phoenix submerged into the Phoenix Flame, and the Phoenix Flame into the Ice Phoenix, then completely and utterly fused, transforming into an eerie, gently swaying, ice-blue flame. Simultaneously, the distinct worlds of ice and heat within the space suddenly merged. Yet, this fusion was not the mutual suppression and cancellation of cold and heat, ice and fire; rather, extreme cold and intense heat coexisted, chaotically intertwined.

"It's a success..." Yun Che opened his eyes, gazing at the ice flame flickering in his palm. Back then, in the Ice Cloud Immortal Palace, his first successful fusion of this heaven-defying ice flame had taken him a full two days.

This was his second successful attempt. With his skyrocketing power and spiritual strength, coupled with a higher understanding of the forces of heaven and earth, this time, it had only taken him a mere two hours!

Furthermore, because the power of the Phoenix Flame and the Ice Phoenix Divine Art had surged with his increase in strength, this ice flame was undoubtedly far more powerful than the one he had fused in the Ice Cloud Immortal Palace.

Yun Che's hands trembled as he held the ice flame, almost losing control of the flickering cluster. This fusion, which defied the rules of heaven and earth, produced a power that likewise defied those rules. Though it was just a small cluster of flame, it had consumed nearly seventy percent of Yun Che's profound energy and fifty percent of his spiritual power.

"Please... don't disappoint me." Yun Che murmured, then his eyes widened, and he pushed his palm forward with all his might, unleashing the ice flame onto the stone door before him.