Chapter 1348: Ye Qiudao

The Demon-Binding Chains were black iron links.

Jade Bone's entire body was wrapped and bound by the Demon-Binding Chains. The chains tightened relentlessly. The seemingly tiny bolts of lightning could penetrate the purple light surrounding Jade Bone, effectively suppressing him. Qin Sang watched Jade Bone calmly, sparing no true essence.

However, the next turn of events vastly exceeded his expectations. It was unclear if the formation diagram they had independently deciphered couldn't unleash the chains' full power, or if the ancient records were exaggerated, but Jade Bone did not, as anticipated, lose all ability to resist once trapped by the Demon-Binding Chains.

"Hmph!"

After a moment of discomfiture, Jade Bone clenched his fists, and a vibrant purple light erupted from his entire body. An armor of purple light formed between him and the Demon-Binding Chains. The chains, impacted by the purple light, reached a point where they could no longer shrink further.

*Clank!*

The Demon-Binding Chains emitted a grating sound. Every iron link strained and shook violently, making one fear they would snap at any moment. Jade Bone suddenly raised his head, his expression savage. He stared coldly at Qin Sang, a bloodthirsty grin spreading across his lips. He opened his maw and let out a sky-shattering roar.

The sound was piercing, like a demonic symphony. All who heard it felt their heads swim. Qin Sang felt a tightness in his chest, and his true essence within him began to stagnate, secretly alarming him. Amidst the demonic roar, dense, almost tangible purple light burst from Jade Bone's body, instantly flowing through every corner of his being, glowing with an unusual brilliance.

This was the Jade Bone Brocade Skin. It was like a work of art! This purple light was different from before. Qin Sang and Qing Jun could clearly sense that Jade Bone's resistance had greatly increased; it seemed he had unleashed some extraordinary secret art, making his strength more terrifying than ever. At the same time, the restrictions of the spiritual array set up with the Star Essence Stones also weakened.

*Snap!*

The next moment, Jade Bone shot out his hands with lightning speed, grabbing the main body of the Demon-Binding Chains. His movements were so fast that Qin Sang and Qing Jun had no time to react.

Above, Bai positioned himself between Old Demon Ye and Jade Bone. Although Old Demon Ye currently showed no intention of attacking, caution was still necessary. Qin Sang and Qing Jun, working together, using the spiritual array and the Demon-Binding Chains, still couldn't suppress Jade Bone. A trace of surprise flickered deep in Bai's eyes, but his expression remained calm. Old Demon Ye's gaze was profound, his face serene. He watched like an outsider, detached and cold.

After Qin Sang appeared, Old Demon Ye's attention was drawn to the Demon-Binding Chains. When he saw that even the chains were about to be broken by Jade Bone, Old Demon Ye's eyes flickered slightly, and he gave Bai a deep look. Bai's heart tightened; corpse qi condensed in his palm, ready to strike at any moment.

*Crack... crack...*

Jade Bone gripped the Demon-Binding Chains tightly, pulling them forcefully to both sides, attempting to tear them apart. The main body of the Demon-Binding Chains was engulfed by purple light, turning into a glowing purple chain. As the controller, Qin Sang could clearly perceive how terrifying Jade Bone's strength was; the Demon-Binding Chains truly might be destroyed in his hands! His expression changed drastically as he exerted all his strength to prevent Jade Bone from destroying the chains.

Suddenly, a cold snort exploded in Qin Sang's ear, and an immensely powerful impact came from the Demon-Binding Chains. Qin Sang groaned, staggering backward, his face flushed.

At this moment, Qing Jun suddenly detached from the Star Essence Stone great array and flew high into the sky. She cast off her disguise, revealing her exquisite figure and beautiful face.

At this instant, figures began to flash around the blood-colored altar. Because Jade Bone was in peril, Old Demon Ye had eased up, and the evil array, now without a controller, significantly weakened. The cultivators trapped in the ghostly mist finally broke through the blockade and rushed over.

Daoist Zhen Yi and Master Cang Hong were a step slower than Qin Sang. Cultivator Guan and others lagged further behind, their speeds varying. Figures also appeared from other directions. There were two largest groups. Marquis Dongyang and Demonic Lord Tongyou led one group of Nascent Soul cultivators. On the other side, Jing Yu and the Snake King were together, primarily surrounded by demon cultivators, along with human cultivators such as Bing Han and the Yinshan Pass City Lord.

By now, almost all Nascent Soul cultivators who had entered the ghostly mist were present. They looked up, staring blankly at Qing Jun. Her red dress was eternally vibrant. Her sleeves fluttered, brilliant like fire. Her form was like a vermilion phoenix, soaring high! The breathtaking scene was deeply imprinted in everyone's hearts, impossible to erase for a long time.

Qing Jun looked at Jade Bone, her expression as serene as ever, just as it had been when she once told Qin Sang that everyone was a passerby in her life. Meeting Qing Jun's bright eyes, Jade Bone paused, and inexplicably, an unprecedented sense of crisis arose in his heart. Qing Jun flew directly in front of Jade Bone, her fair wrist slightly raised, her jade fingers dancing lightly, with a unique rhythm and beauty.

Qin Sang, standing by, was also stunned. He couldn't fathom Qing Jun's intention. To better control Nascent Soul talisman puppets, Qin Sang had consulted Qing Jun on the path of puppetry. Qing Jun had not held back, even taking out the ancient text on puppet seals and personally guiding him. He could guess that Qing Jun was likely performing a secret puppet seal art, but he couldn't identify which one. Each puppet seal in the ancient text had different effects, but none matched Qing Jun's current actions, nor could they be used in this situation.

"Could it be a new type of puppet seal, even more complex than those recorded in the ancient texts? Wait! This is..." Deep shock flashed in Qin Sang's eyes.

Just as Qing Jun completed the puppet seal, a wisp of faint gray qi suddenly surged from one toe of Jade Bone's left foot, deep within his bone marrow. The gray qi appeared extremely weak within the purple light, but it was unusually stubborn, growing inside Jade Bone's bones, and spreading through his entire body at an astonishing speed.

Old Demon Ye's pupils suddenly contracted. Jade Bone looked down, his face changing drastically, as the purple light on his body frantically rushed towards the gray qi. Unexpectedly, the gray qi was like a bone-deep ulcer, deeply hidden in his bone marrow, already integrated with the skeleton, indistinguishable. Even if the purple light was powerful, it couldn't expel the gray qi.

Ignoring his shock, Qin Sang activated the Demon-Binding Chains at all costs, suppressing Jade Bone. Qing Jun's eyelids trembled slightly. She met Qin Sang's gaze and nodded almost imperceptibly.

Soon, all of Jade Bone's bones were covered in gray qi. The gray qi transformed, gradually revealing the outline of a puppet seal. Thoughts raced in Qin Sang's mind; he vaguely guessed some of the truth, and his surprise grew stronger. Without a doubt, the gray qi was the manifestation of a puppet seal, and it had been deeply planted in Jade Bone early on, refining him into a puppet!

With Qing Jun's current cultivation, no matter how profound the secret art, it would have been impossible to plant a puppet seal inside the demonic being Jade Bone without his awareness. This would be impossible even for an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator. Unless Qing Jun had acted very early! Thinking it over, Qing Jun's only chance to come into contact with Jade Bone was during the Blood Pool battle, her final struggle with Old Demon Ye. Qingluan had already grabbed Jade Bone; she was seemingly knocked away by Old Demon Ye, but in reality, she had executed a clever ruse, secretly transferring the puppet seal into Jade Bone's body!

Qin Sang suddenly understood. No wonder, after leaving the Blood Lake, he always felt something was missing from Qing Jun, but couldn't articulate why. She didn't seem seriously injured, but it took a long time for her to recover, and during that time, even the Qingluan puppet couldn't be used in combat. So, Qing Jun had, at that time, transferred the puppet seal from Qingluan's body into Jade Bone, unknowingly transforming him into her puppet!

This was indeed the case. At that time, Qing Jun was not without the strength to fight Old Demon Ye. But firstly, it would have required a fight to the death, and secondly, she might not have been able to snatch the prize from under his nose. Jade Bone's consciousness had already perished; even obtaining a skeleton would be of little use. Qing Jun assessed the situation and decided to turn the tables, using the puppet seal to control Jade Bone. She feigned weakness, allowing Old Demon Ye to take him. This way, if Old Demon Ye did anything to Jade Bone, she could use it to peer into the true secrets of Sin Abyss, and even catch Sin Abyss off guard.

However, the situation didn't entirely unfold as she had planned. Old Demon Ye, having manipulated everyone, betrayed Sin Abyss and escaped into the Sin God Palace. After Qing Jun received the news, she left Yucheng overnight, circled the entrance of the Sin God Palace a few times, but couldn't sense the fluctuations of the Jade Bone Puppet Seal and had to return empty-handed. Earlier in the Sin God Palace, she had volunteered to cover their retreat, actually using a secret art to sense the puppet seal. She was also the first to discover Old Demon Ye's traces. All his previous questions about Senior Sister now clicked into place.

Having understood all this, Qin Sang had even greater doubts. He stared at the gray qi inside Jade Bone, utterly perplexed. "What kind of puppet seal is this? Hiding from Old Demon Ye's perception is one thing, but the demonic being occupying Jade Bone's body for rebirth, before that, didn't even notice!"

Little did he know, this was the Inner Demon Puppet Seal! Qing Jun had cultivated the *Lifeless Demonic Seal* and had been troubled by inner demons for many years. With her astonishing talent, not long after killing Leng Yuntian and advancing to the Nascent Soul stage, she devised a way to sever the inner demons and eliminate hidden dangers. But she felt that the inner demons that had troubled her for so long would be too wasteful to simply cut off. Was there no secret method to utilize inner demons? Known for her audacious spirit, she allowed inner demons to coexist with her, focusing on puppet seal arts. After a century of arduous pondering, she actually created a secret art, transforming the dreaded inner demons into the unique Inner Demon Puppet Seal!

The Inner Demon Puppet Seal. Astounding and terrifying! If word got out, who in the cultivation world wouldn't be stunned? This puppet seal inherited the intangible and elusive nature of inner demons. Hidden within Jade Bone's body, not only was Old Demon Ye unaware, but even after the demonic being occupied Jade Bone, he didn't detect the slightest abnormality.

Of course, this was also because the demonic being had only recently broken free and his strength had not fully recovered. If the demonic being had been at his peak, or if Old Demon Ye hadn't been so wary of the demonic being and had released him twenty years ago, the Inner Demon Puppet Seal would probably have been discovered long ago. By a twist of fate, who would have thought that Qing Jun's sudden inspired move would play such a crucial role at this moment!

With the Inner Demon Puppet Seal now manifest, the demonic being Jade Bone sensed something was wrong and frantically urged the purple light to suppress it. Unfortunately, before the demonic being took possession, the Inner Demon Puppet Seal had already merged into the Jade Bone Brocade Skin. The demonic being could be said to have walked straight into a trap; how could the puppet seal be so easily expelled? Furthermore, without the Demon-Binding Chains, even if Qing Jun activated the Inner Demon Puppet Seal, it would probably have been difficult to control the demonic being. With the combination of the two, panic finally appeared on Jade Bone's face!

Through the brocade skin, it was clearly visible that the gray qi was becoming denser, transforming into a mysterious puppet seal, its fluctuations imperceptible, branded onto every bone. No matter how the purple light impacted, it couldn't erase the puppet seal. To make matters worse, Jade Bone couldn't afford to be distracted by resisting the Demon-Binding Chains. The Demon-Binding Chains and the formation diagram completed their fusion; each iron link was dark and gleaming, tightly wrapped around Jade Bone. Black lightning deeply pierced his body, suppressing the purple light, working in tandem with the Inner Demon Puppet Seal. Even so, Jade Bone hadn't lost his power to resist, struggling madly.

The Inner Demon Puppet Seal, purple light, and Demon-Binding Chains—three forces clashed within him, emitting unnerving fluctuations.

"Aren't you going to attack! Kill her!" Jade Bone roared at Old Demon Ye, calling for help for the first time.

Old Demon Ye was rapt in watching the spectacle. What attracted his gaze most was not his ally Jade Bone, but Qing Jun. Although he didn't know the origin of the Inner Demon Puppet Seal, he could guess that Qing Jun had acted in the Blood Pool, and a chilling realization dawned upon him, leaving him with lingering fear. He prided himself on being cunning and unrivaled in intelligence, yet he had fallen into this girl's scheme without knowing it. During that time, the Jade Bone Brocade Skin had always been with him, equivalent to burying a landmine for himself. Fortunately, his schemes didn't conflict with Qing Jun's, and he had hidden in the Sin God Palace for twenty years, otherwise, he would have truly suffered a devastating defeat.

Hearing Jade Bone's questioning, Old Demon Ye looked at Bai, who was on high alert, chuckled, and calmly said: "Think carefully about the oath we made. If our situations were reversed right now, would you stand by and watch, or would you come to my rescue? You should know what lies beyond the Reception Platform. By being deliberately vague about the terms and leaving loopholes in the oath, you actually never intended to let me live, did you? At that time, did you ever consider that one day you would be hoist with your own petard?" Old Demon Ye looked at Jade Bone, a sarcastic smile on his face.

"You!" Jade Bone's face was full of shock. He roared sharply, "You're crazy! Without my protection, you'll never survive crossing the spatial turbulence!"

Old Demon Ye, unfazed by the threat, calmly said: "I recall you once said that when leaving this realm, the most terrifying spatial storm would be largely blocked by the Ziwei Palace. By leveraging the Ziwei Palace's opportunity to depart this realm, a late-Nascent Soul cultivator also has a slim chance of survival in the spatial turbulence. Compared to constantly guarding against an ancient demon of unknown origin, I believe facing the spatial turbulence alone offers a better chance of survival. Your only use is merely to activate the Reception Platform's restrictions. Someone is willing to help me eliminate a major hidden danger, and I naturally welcome it..."

As he spoke, Old Demon Ye raised his head, his gaze seemingly piercing the sky, looking towards the unknown. His eyes were incredibly fervent. For countless years, the dream coveted by countless exceptionally talented cultivators was now just one step away for him. He was about to step out of Beichen Realm, break free from his cage, and go to a wider world!

As soon as these words were spoken, all the Nascent Souls were in an uproar. This passage revealed too much information, each piece like a bolt from the blue, shocking the world.

"The Ziwei Palace isn't appearing, but breaking through the void and flying away?"

"What does 'leaving this realm' mean?"

"What is the Reception Platform?"

"Is it ascension? No, that's not right! Legend says only Mahayana stage mighty cultivators can undergo tribulation and ascend. The gap between Nascent Soul and Mahayana is like heaven and earth; where could one ascend to?"

Everyone fell into confusion. They suspected their ears were faulty, or Old Demon Ye had gone mad. How many more secrets in this world were unknown to them? However, these doubts didn't affect their judgment. Having rushed here, they naturally wouldn't just watch, and joined the battlefield one after another. Some rushed to help Qin Sang and Qing Jun. Others charged towards Old Demon Ye. New grudges and old hatreds would be settled together! The news Old Demon Ye had just revealed shocked everyone even more; they absolutely couldn't let Old Demon Ye leave and had to clarify all the details.

Old Demon Ye, however, seemed to have no fear, ignoring everything. He stood with his hands behind his back, gazing up at the sky. The sky completely collapsed, as if a large hole had opened. Terrible spatial storms surged out from within, and deep in the void, a faint shadow was visible, which was the inner hall of Ziwei Palace reflecting into it.

Below the blood-colored altar, a figure silently appeared; it was the tall, thin cultivator who had recently chanted the Rebirth Mantra for the Blood Infant. He had also taken the Dried Essence Pill, and was now severely tormented by its hidden dangers, knowing his future was bleak. Witnessing firsthand the tragic fate of Yuzhen being refined into a Blood Infant made him hate Old Demon Ye even more deeply. A determined look flashed in the tall, thin cultivator's eyes. He opened his mouth and spat out a spiritual blade. The spiritual blade was shorter than a finger, transparent throughout, as if cast from profound ice. His daoist robe quietly fluttered, and as he activated the spiritual blade, wrinkles gradually appeared at the corners of his eyes, growing deeper and deeper; the spiritual blade was actually drawing away his vital essence. Finally, he closed his eyes tightly, man and blade became one!

*Whoosh!*

The blade light shocked the heavens! Like a startling rainbow, faster than other magical artifacts, it swiftly struck Old Demon Ye! In the blink of an eye, the spiritual blade disappeared into the storm, mere inches from Old Demon Ye, aiming directly for his back. Old Demon Ye floated in place, seemingly deeply captivated by the anomaly in the sky, completely unaware of the approaching danger. Seeing that Old Demon Ye was about to die by the blade, a trace of hesitation flashed in Bai's eyes, deliberating whether to make a move.

Just then, a faint layer of blood mist suddenly appeared on Old Demon Ye's body, and then a blood shadow stepped out from him. Remarkably, it was a Blood Demon Avatar. What was shocking was that this Blood Demon Avatar's aura was comparable to Old Demon Ye's main body, even faintly showing a tendency to surpass it!

"Another Blood Demon Avatar at the peak of the Mid-Nascent Soul stage!" someone cried out in surprise. Old Demon Ye had lost a Blood Demon Avatar in the Blood Lake, but had refined another one in just twenty years. However, Qin Sang and Master Cang Hong could see that things might not be so simple. Especially Qin Sang, upon seeing this scene, immediately realized something. In the Battle of Abyss Ruins, he and the Snake King were chased by Old Demon Ye, completely powerless to retaliate. At that time, he vaguely felt that it wasn't Old Demon Ye's main body, but a Blood Demon Avatar. At that time, the Blood Demon Avatar's oppressive power was extremely strong, leaving a lasting impression on him to this day. By the time of the Blood Pool Battle, he had the Eighteen Demonic Banners, and the Blood Demon Avatar no longer seemed so powerful; he even forced the Blood Demon Avatar to self-detonate. Thinking back now, his opponent in these two battles was likely not the same one. Old Demon Ye had two Blood Demon Avatars from the beginning! What was his intention in hiding this Blood Demon Avatar?

At this moment, Qin Sang noticed Bai tensing up, as if facing a formidable enemy, and suddenly realized a possibility, showing a look of shock—perhaps, Beichen Realm was not without grand cultivators!

The Blood Demon Avatar stood side-by-side with Old Demon Ye. The main body and the avatar exchanged a glance and nodded at each other. The avatar suddenly transformed into a streak of blood light, flashing and merging into Old Demon Ye's glabella. Old Demon Ye's eyes immediately turned blood-red, his brow furrowed, a look of pain appearing on his face, and he let out a long howl, the sound piercing the heavens! At this moment, his aura burst forth with a roar. He spread his hands, as if to embrace the sky, his long hair wildly dancing, his demonic might shaking the heavens. Under everyone's shocked and admiring gazes, his cultivation steadily climbed, instantly breaking through the late-Nascent Soul bottleneck, firmly stepping into the Grand Cultivator stage!

*Whoosh!*

The spiritual blade arrived. The Yin-Yang Twin Halberds silently appeared, shimmering with Yin-Yang light, blocking the spiritual blade. With a single clash, the blade shattered, and then they pierced towards the tall, thin cultivator at an astonishing speed.

*Pfft!*

The Yin-Yang Halberd pierced through his chest. Blood splattered. The tall, thin cultivator flew backward, his body stiff, a bloody hole in his chest. Other parts seemed unharmed, but in reality, his Nascent Soul and spirit were already shattered by the Yin-Yang Halberd. The light in his eyes rapidly faded, and he took a final, longing look at the mortal world. In his eyes there was no resentment, no anger, only a faint regret. Old Demon Ye had endured for hundreds of years to reach this point, earning the title of a powerful and ambitious figure. Even as enemies, the tall, thin cultivator had to admit that Old Demon Ye was a peerless individual of his time. Inferior in skill, dying without regret!

*Thud!*

The tall, thin cultivator permanently closed his eyes, was torn apart by the storm, and vanished from the world.

The attacks from Master Cang Hong and others followed closely. The Yin-Yang Halberds displayed great might, their Yin-Yang qi transforming into a Yin-Yang twin fish pattern, centered around the halberds, protecting Old Demon Ye. Before long, Old Demon Ye's cultivation stabilized, and he had indeed joined the ranks of Grand Cultivators! The only Grand Cultivator in the current Beichen Realm! The undisputed grandmaster of Beichen Realm, a well-deserved title!

Everyone present was stunned! Qing Jun, who was focused on activating the Inner Demon Puppet Seal, couldn't help but cast her gaze towards him. Jade Bone was also stunned; he had still underestimated him, and underestimated the cultivators of this era. Qin Sang sighed inwardly. Outsiders said he would replace Old Demon Ye as the top person in Beichen Realm, but he knew he was still far from being a top master. The world was never short of extraordinary individuals: Senior Sister, Old Demon Ye... If Senior Qingzhu hadn't fallen, his achievements wouldn't have been inferior to theirs. Their mind, will, methods, and talent were all top-tier.

Old Demon Ye had long ago broken through the late-Nascent Soul bottleneck. He learned there was an opportunity to leave this realm and agreed to cooperate with Jade Bone, but his vigilance against the demonic being never diminished. He knew that neither inner demon oaths nor karma oaths were reliable; only having a personal life-saving contingency plan would put him at ease. For this, he didn't hesitate to use a secret art to seal part of his cultivation. Self-detonating another Blood Demon Avatar in the Blood Pool was not only to block Senior Tianzheng's escape route, but also had another purpose: to show weakness when facing Jade Bone. If he had announced his breakthrough to late-Nascent Soul early on, everything he did would have been much easier. But he preferred to have a little more trouble, calculating against all beings, including Jade Bone!

"Ye Qiudao, how dare you!" Jade Bone felt his life was in danger, screaming madly, looking utterly deranged.

Old Demon Ye stood proudly in the void, never once looking down. He shifted his gaze, looking down at Bai with a scrutinizing stare, "I won't ask about your origins. Kill him, and I'll leave a spot for you on the Reception Platform. However, whether you can pass through the spatial turbulence will depend on your own abilities."

Bai chuckled drily, "No need for Fellow Daoist Ye to worry, we have our own methods." Bai secretly felt fortunate for not having actively moved against Old Demon Ye. If Old Demon Ye had only been at the peak of Mid-Nascent Soul cultivation, he would have had the strength to fight. Who could have imagined Old Demon Ye had hidden himself so deeply!