Chapter 2030: Dependence

Wuxia Xianxia

Although the Third Elder's spiritual sense was not as keen as that of the two Void Refinement cultivators, seeing their expressions and the Sin Young Master's terrifyingly calm eyes, he immediately realized something was terribly wrong.

"Snap!"

A long whip flew out from the Third Elder's sleeve, its crimson shadow striking viciously at the Sin Young Master with no mercy.

The Sin Young Master's eyes didn't even blink as the whip shadow approached, but the Third Elder suddenly felt his entire body seize up, letting out a muffled groan as he was kicked out of the Meditating Spirit's body.

The whip shadow was incredibly powerful, but it couldn't stand against the Meditating Spirit's power. It was flung away with its master, unable to harm the Sin Young Master in the slightest.

At this point, both Daoist Zhong Liang and Enshriner Pei gave up their fight against each other.

The Sin Young Master's figure gradually faded, as if an invisible door in the void was about to open, and she was about to pass through it to leave. If the Sin Young Master had merely been trying to escape, their reaction wouldn't have been so intense.

However, the Sin Young Master had been plotting for a long time, using herself as bait and exploiting the Third Elder to lure them all here. Clearly, her ambition was immense. If she wasn't concerned about her Sin family facing retaliation in the future, she wouldn't dare let them leave alive!

A mere Deity Transformation cultivator daring to plot against two Void Refinement cultivators simultaneously sounded like a fantasy, yet it was genuinely happening to them.

They didn't understand how the Sin Young Master achieved this, but the ominous feeling grew stronger and stronger. The two Void Refinement cultivators felt an unprecedented, immense crisis approaching them!

"You're courting death!"

Enshriner Pei was furious and ashamed. Just moments ago, he had looked completely in control, but unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, he had been slapped in the face by the Sin Young Master.

Daoist Zhong Liang retracted his golden sword, allowing Enshriner Pei to fully control the Abyssal Sun Boundless Array. He gave up on capturing the Meditating Spirit alive. Nine suns hung in the sky, erupting with blazing light, and the entire array's power surged wildly towards the nine great suns.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Streams of fire erupted from the great suns, rushing towards the Meditating Spirit and the Sin Young Master. The terrifying high temperature seemed capable of igniting even the void.

Before the fire streams even arrived, flames had already ignited on the Meditating Spirit's surface.

The Third Elder was caught in the crossfire. Without the Meditating Spirit's protection, he truly experienced the power of the Abyssal Sun Boundless Array. Even though the fire streams weren't aimed at him, he felt as if he was about to be roasted into a dried corpse.

At the same time, Daoist Zhong Liang also made his move. The nine-story pagoda trembled gently, and each layer emitted a circle of dark gold light waves, turning the entire pagoda dark gold.

To the naked eye, the pagoda seemed to have become countless times heavier, smashing down ferociously.

Even if there was a mountain below, the pagoda could shatter it. If the Meditating Spirit were struck, serious injury would be inevitable, and the Sin Young Master, hiding within the Meditating Spirit's body, would likely face a grim fate.

The pagoda, the fire streams—any single attack could easily obliterate any Deity Transformation cultivator. Their first cooperation was to deal with a mere Deity Transformation cultivator, which was undeniably a huge irony.

As the breath of death approached, there was no panic on the Sin Young Master's face, only cold and resolute eyes.

"Don't you two seniors always want the Meditating Spirit? Today, I shall give it to you!"

The Meditating Spirit roared, pure darkness flowing through its body, instantly filling its limbs and bones. Its body melted into a pool of black water, from which countless arms emerged, reaching out powerfully, grabbing at the enemies, seemingly wanting to drag them into a dark abyss.

Black figures surged out along the arms. The Meditating Spirit instantly transformed into tens of thousands, rushing wildly towards the enemies. This scene was like a dance of ten thousand devils. These demonic shadows shattered and exploded before the fire streams and the pagoda, but the black water surged endlessly, making the void feel sticky.

At this moment, the Meditating Spirit unleashed unimaginable power. The cost, of course, was immense. Everyone present could feel that the Meditating Spirit was consuming its origin at an alarming rate; this action was tantamount to self-destruction.

To deal with them, the Sin Young Master would even let the Meditating Spirit, a legacy of the Sin family, be destroyed here, perishing together!

The Meditating Spirit protected its master, but ultimately, they failed to keep the Sin Young Master.

The Sin Young Master's figure completely faded and disappeared, vanishing without a trace. Only a black stone remained, its surface inscribed with strange, unfamiliar runes.

Enshriner Pei and Daoist Zhong Liang simultaneously looked at the black stone, an extreme sense of danger surging in their hearts.

Neither side had time to bother with the Third Elder, which allowed him to save his life. The Third Elder was fleeing desperately. His strength was far inferior to that of the two Void Refinement cultivators; if the Sin Young Master's scheme succeeded, the two Void Refinement cultivators might have a chance to survive, but he would surely die!

Aftershocks washed over him in waves. The Third Elder, like a rootless duckweed, gritted his teeth. He was about to escape the battlefield when—

"Boom!"

The void shook continuously.

The Third Elder's heart pounded violently, and then he saw a terrifying sight.

The sky, it collapsed!

The islands ahead emitted cracking sounds. Instantly, the mountains were covered in cracks, and countless boulders rolled down.

As the islands shattered, the void seemed to collapse, and the dense black clouds in the sky lost their support.

The center of the collapse was behind him. Black clouds from all directions surged wildly. The Third Elder clearly saw streams of black cloud descending from the sky. This wasn't just black clouds; it meant the entire island mountain array was heading towards destruction, and the violent energy formed by this destruction was surging towards this location.

At the center of the great array, black clouds collapsed, and cloud waterfalls surged. This was the center of the cloud waterfalls, the center of destruction!

It was too late for the Third Elder to escape. He was engulfed by the cloud currents, his protective qi shattered on the spot, and he coughed up blood, instantly gravely injured.

The power of the array's destruction was too terrifying; it could destroy everything.

At this moment, the Third Elder vaguely saw two figures: Enshriner Pei and Daoist Zhong Liang were also frantically rushing outwards, but they were repeatedly forced back by the cloud waterfalls, instantly falling into despair.

Deep within the array.

Qin Sang's gaze was drawn behind him. He saw island mountains shattering and toppling, and black clouds surging towards the same direction.

That place seemed to have a deep pit, the lowest point, where black clouds continuously flowed. Qin Sang saw the black clouds forming a torrent, vast and mighty, pouring down from the sky. The storm of destruction continued to spread, incredibly spectacular.

At this moment, Qin Sang understood: the array was not being destroyed from the periphery inward. The periphery was the origin of the destruction; the array was collapsing towards that point, and the energy of destruction was converging there.

That place was the most dangerous. His current position was actually safe, and perhaps he wouldn't need to hide in the Qianjun Ring.

However, why was the array being destroyed? The origin of the destruction wasn't where he was, so the Qianjun Ring was probably irrelevant.

Just then, Qin Sang's eyes narrowed. He suddenly caught sight of a figure.

This person appeared out of nowhere, standing on the peak of an island mountain on the verge of collapse. It was the Sin Young Master!

The Sin Young Master stared at the cloud pit, her expression a little tense. When she felt the increasingly violent energy there, exactly as she had predicted, she let out a sigh of relief.

The Sin Young Master's expression relaxed slightly, then suddenly stiffened, because she also saw Qin Sang in the distance.

She widened her eyes, seemingly unable to believe she was seeing Qin Sang here.

This was deep within the array. Qin Sang should have been refining the ferry boat in that canyon, and even if he detected danger early, he should have escaped towards the outside of the array.

Now, the array's destruction was in full swing. Barring any accidents, Enshriner Pei and Daoist Zhong Liang would certainly perish. The storm of destruction would continue for a long time before subsiding, forming a natural barrier that would isolate inside from outside.

By all conventional logic, Qin Sang should never have been able to enter.

Qin Sang saw the Sin Young Master's demeanor and instantly had a thought: could it be that the Sin Young Master detonated the array?

The Sin Young Master's subsequent behavior surprised Qin Sang somewhat.

He saw the Sin Young Master quickly compose herself, and she actually flew towards him, her expression normal, bowing in salute, "Greetings, Elder Qin! This junior is relieved that Elder Qin is unharmed."

Qin Sang chuckled meaningfully, "Young Master Sin didn't expect to see this old man here, did she?"

The Sin Young Master paused.

"Young Master Sin has quite the grand plan!"

Qin Sang gave the Sin Young Master a deep look, then turned his head to gaze at the cloud pit, sighing, "This time, Enshriner Pei is likely to meet a grim fate."

His sigh was from the heart.

Even if the Sin Young Master acted calm, her previous change in demeanor was enough for Qin Sang to discern some clues.

He had long noticed the subtle relationship between Enshriner Pei and the Sin family, but he hadn't expected the Sin Young Master to dare to trap and kill Enshriner Pei.

If he had known that Daoist Zhong Liang, a mid-Void Refinement cultivator, was also trapped and killed, he would have been even more astonished.

The Sin Young Master was silent for a moment, then nodded, "Barring any unexpected circumstances, Enshriner Pei should perish here."

"Oh?"

Qin Sang looked at the Sin Young Master with some surprise.

It was evident that the Sin Young Master looked somewhat listless, and the Meditating Spirit behind her was also gone. Even without knowing the full details, Qin Sang could guess that a Deity Transformation cultivator controlling such a powerful entity as the Meditating Spirit must pay some kind of price.

For this woman to still present herself like this before him was truly exceptional.

"Young Master Sin, are you not a little disappointed that you couldn't trap this old man and kill him there too?" Qin Sang's tone was calm, yet it concealed murderous intent.

"Elder Qin is insightful!"

The Sin Young Master hurriedly explained, "This junior's invitation to Elder Qin for artifact refining was not false. Furthermore, this junior did indeed want to use Elder Qin, but only to leverage Elder Qin to attract Enshriner Pei's attention, causing him to be distracted and thus neglect this junior, thereby luring him into the trap. This junior has no grudge against Elder Qin and never intended to harm him. Otherwise, this junior would not have deliberately left Elder Qin in the canyon."

As she spoke, she raised her hand and pointed to the cloud pit, "Senior must realize that only by being at the very center of the destruction would there be a chance to keep you. This junior exhausted all efforts, even using herself as bait, to trap and kill Enshriner Pei, and the canyon is still some distance from there. With senior's spiritual sense and strength, once you detected an anomaly, you would certainly be able to escape, perhaps a little disheveled, but certainly not in mortal danger!"

Qin Sang's eyes narrowed slightly, feeling the fluctuations from afar. He knew there was some credibility to the Sin Young Master's words. If he had stayed put in the canyon and reacted quickly, escaping outside the array, there was a high probability he would have gotten away.

However, these explanations alone were not enough.

"Young Master Sin is indeed a heroine. This old man wouldn't even be certain of victory against Enshriner Pei, yet he died by Young Master Sin's hand. However, the cost must not have been small, I presume?"

He neither confirmed nor denied, his gaze sweeping past the Sin Young Master, probing.

The Sin Young Master understood Qin Sang's implied meaning. After a long silence, she suddenly took a deep breath and nodded heavily.

"Elder Qin's eyes are like torches! Indeed, this junior paid a great price for this, leaving the Meditating Spirit there to perish with them."

Qin Sang's eyes flashed. He had thought the Meditating Spirit was gravely injured, or that the Sin Young Master was in poor condition and temporarily unable to control it. He hadn't expected it to perish with Enshriner Pei.

Was the Sin Young Master revealing this directly as a desperate move? However, even if she wanted to hide it, it would be futile; as soon as he made a move, she would be exposed.

By actively revealing the Meditating Spirit's self-destruction, she was indicating that she and the Sin family posed no threat to him, meaning he didn't need to rush to act against her and could patiently listen to her continue. Perhaps there was room for negotiation. She was indeed a clever person.

Qin Sang did not act immediately, and it wasn't entirely due to her words. He had noticed that as the array headed towards destruction, strange lights frequently flashed in the deepest part of the array, revealing unusual sights.

Clearly, there was a secret hidden here.

The Sin Young Master's action was likely a two-birds-with-one-stone scheme; coming in alone certainly had a purpose.

She could control the array's self-destruction, indicating she knew this place very well, and she was still useful to him.

Just as Qin Sang expected, the Sin Young Master then solemnly stated, "Having lost the Meditating Spirit, the Sin family has no reliance. This junior is willing to lead the Sin family to henceforth pledge allegiance to Elder Qin and be at his disposal!"

"Pledge allegiance?"

Qin Sang sneered, "This old man doesn't want to follow in Enshriner Pei's footsteps."

The Sin Young Master sighed lightly, saying wistfully, "To be frank with Elder Qin, not only Enshriner Pei but also Daoist Zhong Liang were trapped and killed by this junior."

Qin Sang was startled upon hearing this. It sounded like this Daoist Zhong Liang was also a Void Refinement cultivator?

To trap and kill two Void Refinement cultivators at once—even he couldn't do that. Qin Sang truly had to look at this Sin Young Master in a new light.

"This action staked the fate of the Sin family. If not for extreme necessity, this junior would not have taken such a risk. After my father's death, the Sin family faced internal and external difficulties and was on the brink of collapse. Daoist Zhong Liang even attempted to devour the Sin family's foundation, forcing this junior to seek refuge with Enshriner Pei.

"However, although Enshriner Pei had some acquaintance with my father, he also harbored ulterior motives and coveted both the Sin family and this junior.

"He cultivates a Dao art that he has been unable to master. Coincidentally, a family secret technique that this junior cultivates subtly resonates with his Dao art. This person intended to force this junior into becoming his cauldron once I mastered the secret technique. In the future, becoming his concubine would likely be the best outcome for this junior, but it's more probable that I would be harmed by him.

"Most importantly... the Meditating Spirit had a flaw since its birth. It has guarded the Sin family for many years and is reaching its limit; its time in this world is running out, and we have tried everything but cannot extend its life!"

The Sin Young Master sighed deeply, "Without the Meditating Spirit, this junior and the Sin family would be at the mercy of others. Enshriner Pei would only become more unrestrained. For all these years, we have poured everything from our entire clan to satisfy Enshriner Pei's desires. If Enshriner Pei had treated me with sincerity, why would this junior have resorted to such a desperate measure, risking mutual destruction!"

Facing the Sin Young Master's accusations, Qin Sang remained unmoved, "How do you know this old man isn't a second Enshriner Pei?"

"Does Elder Qin believe this junior has any other choice?"

The Sin Young Master countered.

"The Sin family cannot help Elder Qin much, but we can do small things for Elder Qin. Enshriner Pei and Daoist Zhong Liang perished, and although their treasures were destroyed with them, their Daoist residences remain. They are now masterless, and Elder Qin will surely need help managing them..."