Chapter 2324: How Miserable, How You Scream

Novel:

Wuyue held the bottle-shaped artifact and slowly shook her head. "They also used artifacts to protect themselves. It will take some time to refine them."

"That's fine. Just proceed as you wish."

Dealing with Su Yan, even at the cost of an artifact, was ultimately worth it. He had surveyed the entire field, and Su Yan posed the greatest threat to him. If he hadn't been close enough earlier, he truly wouldn't have been confident in getting close to her.

This woman, with her strange abilities, would be almost invincible if she kept a sufficient distance from her enemies.

Time passed, but no one came to bother Riyan and Wuyue anymore.

Previously, the Dao Harmonizers could drive them out of the Dao Pool because they had a numerical advantage. Furthermore, the conflict had just begun then, and people hadn't gotten truly angry, so they could still somewhat cooperate.

But now it was different. Everyone was fighting with real intensity. Who would still be willing to cooperate with others? Moreover, as more Dao Harmonizers continued to fall in battle, the number of surviving cultivators was far less than at the beginning.

Without enough people, who would dare to challenge Riyan and Wuyue?

So, their side remained peaceful, just like Lu Ye and Su Yan's had been earlier.

Inside the Bottle World.

The power of the confinement array slowly faded. Almost simultaneously with the disappearance of the four-sided light barrier, a clattering sound suddenly intensified.

In the pitch-black darkness, Lu Ye shifted his body. He could feel what seemed like chains pursuing him, trying to shackle him.

This was undoubtedly the power of the bottle artifact.

Lu Ye didn't know what would happen if he were shackled, but he absolutely had to avoid it.

All he needed to do now was to stall, waiting for the bottle artifact's power to wear off.

He was very agile. Employing his Swift Movement technique, he moved unpredictably within a small area. With his Crag Blade in hand, even when he couldn't dodge, he could cut through the whipping chains.

However, Su Yan didn't possess his agility. Everyone had their strengths; Su Yan's spatial escape technique was indeed profound and unparalleled, but it was suitable for long-distance evasion and couldn't be used effectively in this cramped space. Her archery was even less useful; without Lu Ye providing her with Dao Power support, she couldn't even shoot a few arrows.

Thus, in just a short while, Su Yan found herself struggling.

Lu Ye had been watching her. Seeing this, he quickly flashed to her side, put his arm around her waist, and moved with her.

Su Yan knew she couldn't perform well in such an environment, so she simply wrapped her arms around Lu Ye.

"Jumping around like monkeys!" Inside the Dao Pool, Wuyue held the bottle artifact. As its owner, she could naturally inspect the situation within it. She had expected Lu Ye and Su Yan to become trapped like turtles in a jar once the confinement array disappeared, but she hadn't anticipated Lu Ye's incredible agility.

"I'll let you jump! I'll burn you to death!" Wuyue, infuriated, simply stopped activating the artifact's binding restrictions and instead activated its destructive ones.

Instantly, fire erupted within the bottle world, and fierce flames began to burn.

This was no ordinary flame; it was certainly a peculiar fire, appearing emerald green, like spectral fire. It didn't possess high temperatures; instead, it was abnormally cold.

The moment the fire appeared, the bottle world glowed eerily green.

Lu Ye and Su Yan felt as though they had suddenly fallen into the underworld.

"Hm?" Lu Ye was taken aback.

In his arms, Su Yan's expression also turned strange.

They paused, and the emerald flames swept over them, enveloping Lu Ye and Su Yan.

Lu Ye remained unperturbed, looking at Su Yan with surprise. He realized that, like him, Su Yan wasn't afraid of these flames at all. She allowed the fire to engulf her body without feeling any pain.

However, unlike him, Su Yan could only ignore the damage from these flames, while he could activate the power of his Talent Tree to refine and absorb them, turning them into fuel reserves for the tree.

This...

If he had known earlier that the restrictions in the bottle would manifest this way, why would he have bothered dodging?

"Scream," Lu Ye suddenly said.

"Huh?" Su Yan froze, looking at Lu Ye in confusion.

"The artifact's owner should be able to generally perceive the situation inside!"

Su Yan understood, but quickly found herself in a dilemma: "How... how do I scream?"

"Scream as miserably as possible!" Lu Ye said, then demonstrated.

Su Yan was shocked!

It had to be said, Lu Ye's screams were truly pathetic, as if he were undergoing torture, making those who heard them feel sorrow and shed tears.

She opened her mouth and also let out a miserable cry.

Lu Ye shivered. "Don't make your screams so short and abrupt. Make them continuous and prolonged. You need to sound like you're in great pain, understand?"

Su Yan pondered, "I'll try!"

A moment later, Lu Ye wore a speechless expression. Despite Su Yan's best efforts, why did it sound so strange? Yet Su Yan herself was completely unaware.

Then again, Su Yan's inherent demeanor was noble and saintly. Her strange cries at this moment made Lu Ye feel entirely uncomfortable.

In the Dao Pool, Wuyue held the bottle artifact and lightly snorted, "Now you know how powerful I am, don't you!"

With a triumphant look, she boasted to Riyan: "Brother Riyan, they'll be dead soon!"

Riyan patted her little head: "Well done."

Wuyue squinted, seemingly enjoying the moment.

The time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the time for an incense stick to burn, half an hour...

Wuyue gradually felt something was amiss. The miserable screams of that pair in the bottle remained wretched yet full of vigor, while her own bottle artifact was nearly unable to sustain its power.

Just as she was about to carefully inspect the situation inside the bottle, she suddenly noticed something strange. Looking down, she saw a crack appearing on the bottle.

The next instant, more cracks appeared.

She was stunned.

Before she could react, Riyan snatched the bottle, tossed it lightly, then unleashed a powerful punch, his vast Dao Power surging.

Almost at the moment he punched, the bottle shattered, and two figures, tightly embracing each other, appeared out of thin air at the spot.

As a flash of blade light swept forth, it met Riyan's fist.

Lu Ye had long known that when he and Su Yan escaped, they would surely draw attacks from Riyan and Wuyue, so he had been on guard.

The moment the blade and fist met, Lu Ye's expression turned grim.

Because the Dao Power emanating from Riyan's fist was the strongest and most formidable he had ever felt.

The Dao Power on the Crag Blade instantly dispersed. Riyan's fist heavily slammed into Lu Ye's shoulder. Under the outpouring of brutal force, Lu Ye was sent flying, and Su Yan, who was with him, also lost her balance.

Riyan, with a murderous look, pressed his advantage and pursued. However, just as he took a few steps, Lu Ye and Su Yan vanished from their spot and reappeared in the distance!

Riyan reluctantly halted his steps, sighing slightly. A missed opportunity!

That very moment had been his best chance to eliminate Lu Ye and Su Yan, but Lu Ye's vigilance was simply too high. He had been prepared just before escaping, so Riyan's sneak attack hadn't had much effect.

Two hundred and forty Dao marks! He instantly assessed Lu Ye's strength.

Such strength was still subtly short of that of an average peak Dao Harmonizer, and he didn't even consider it a threat. The one he truly wanted to kill was Su Yan!

But this woman's escape technique was unparalleled. Just now, he hadn't had time to stop Su Yan from taking Lu Ye and escaping.

Since he had missed the opportunity, he wouldn't force it.

In the distance, Lu Ye shook his aching shoulder. If not for his perfected Dao bones, which were entirely unified, Riyan's blow just now would have certainly shattered his shoulder!

"At least two hundred and seventy Dao marks!" Lu Ye exclaimed, surprised. "And I don't know if that's his limit!"

Su Yan also felt a deep concern. She had noticed earlier that Riyan's strength wasn't normal. Now it seemed his Dao weapon was indeed an associated artifact.

Only an associated artifact could boost a Dao Harmonizer's strength to such an extent. Under normal circumstances, the limit for a peak Dao Harmonizer was two hundred and forty-nine Dao marks.

Such strength was thirty Dao marks stronger than Lu Ye's, and nearly fifty Dao marks stronger than Su Yan's. No wonder Su Yan's three arrows fired simultaneously couldn't break through his protective Dao Power; the gap was truly significant.

"I can fire up to seven arrows consecutively; I should have a chance to kill him!" Su Yan said slowly.

This was her trump card, something she wouldn't normally use. Once used, it meant fighting with her life, because after that single strike, she would have no power left to continue fighting.

Such a formidable enemy felt incredibly tricky to both her and Lu Ye.

Of course, with the profound subtlety of Su Yan's escape technique, and without an artifact like the bottle used earlier, it wouldn't be easy for Riyan to eliminate them.

The star fragments were no longer dissolving. Within a million-li radius, there was still plenty of space for maneuver.

"Fellow Daoists, how about we eliminate the other opponents first, and then determine the victor?"

As Lu Ye pondered, Riyan's voice suddenly reached his ears.

He had previously wanted to eliminate Lu Ye and Su Yan because Su Yan posed a significant threat to him. To achieve his goal, he had even used an artifact without hesitation.

But he hadn't succeeded.

Since he couldn't force it now, temporary cooperation was the only option. This wasn't a true alliance nor a reconciliation; both he and Lu Ye knew that a final battle between them was inevitable!

A head-on confrontation wouldn't benefit anyone and might even give others a chance to profit from their struggle.

Given this, it would be better to eliminate the other opponents first, and then decide their fate when only their two groups remained.

Su Yan turned to look at Lu Ye, clearly letting him decide. How much of her strength she could exert now depended entirely on Lu Ye's support, so naturally, Lu Ye would take the lead.

Riyan's proposal, in some ways, benefited him more, as his strength was significantly greater than Lu Ye and Su Yan's, undoubtedly giving him a higher chance of victory in the final battle.

Lu Ye was well aware of this.

But after a brief moment of thought, he nodded and said, "Agreed!"

While his and Su Yan's overall strength was indeed inferior to their opponents', life-or-death struggles weren't solely about power levels. With the outcome undecided, it was still very uncertain who would emerge victorious.

What harm was there in a temporary cooperation?

"Excellent!" Riyan smiled. "Then I won't hold back!"

Saying this, he boldly led Wuyue towards the nearest Dao Pool.

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