Chapter 591: Killing the Fox Demon

Wind Rises in Kyushu

Lu Ye took a deep breath and looked up at the fox demon. Since Yi Yi couldn't be relied upon, he knew he had to depend on himself.

He was secretly glad he had learned the Mind's Eye secret art from Xia Liang and had the perfect training ground of the Mirage Realm. This had allowed him to achieve minor mastery in the Mind's Eye art in a very short time; otherwise, this battle would have been truly challenging.

But the threat of the fox fire still could not be underestimated.

His divine soul was powerful, making his mental fortitude exceptionally resilient. Even so, the fox fire's impact momentarily shook his mind. An ordinary Cloud River Realm cultivator, if struck by the fox fire, would likely be rendered completely helpless.

This fox demon had terrorized Fox Immortal Valley for nearly twenty years. Clearly, she didn't rely solely on her peculiar soul secret art; the fox fire was likely a power she had never revealed to anyone before.

Looking at the wary fox demon ahead, Lu Ye slowly closed his eyes.

"!" The fox demon's emerald eyes narrowed slightly.

Cloud River Realm cultivators possessed some level of perception, but as their cultivation hadn't yet reached the divine soul level, this perception was extremely weak. It was barely adequate for sensing things in daily life, but in a true life-or-death struggle, Cloud River Realm perception was utterly unreliable. Yet, the enemy before her had actually closed his eyes.

For a moment, the fox demon was unsure of Lu Ye's intentions.

However, she had no time to dwell on it. Only she knew the true severity of her injuries, and her current strength was extremely limited. She had to kill this traitor in front of her as quickly as possible to have any hope of survival.

Thus, after only a moment's hesitation, several more balls of fox fire flew towards Lu Ye, closely followed by the fox demon's fierce killing intent.

The fox fire drifted within a foot of Lu Ye, then burst open with a roar, scattering sparks that landed on his body. At that moment, Lu Ye's brow furrowed slightly; he was clearly once again subjected to a strange impact force, and his mind was shaken and uneasy.

It was at this very moment that the charging fox demon extended her sharp claws.

The long blade arced up, striking from an incredible angle. The fox demon's pupils involuntarily constricted, and she hastily retreated.

She gazed at Lu Ye, who still had his eyes closed, with a mix of shock and bewilderment.

She quickly launched another attack, with the fox fire leading the way and her true form following closely behind.

However, the exact same encounter unfolded once more.

The fox demon retreated, her heart overwhelmed with shock. If the first time was a coincidence, then the second time definitely wasn't.

This man… he could actually block her attacks with his eyes closed?

How was this possible?

She had only just managed to avenge her great grudge, and now she had but one wish: to return to Fox Immortal Valley and pay respects to her master's spirit before their grave. But this final wish was slipping further and further away!

How was this possible? Heaven was so unfair!

A mournful, sorrowful fox howl rang out. The sound, entering his ears, also carried a mind-shaking power, causing Lu Ye to frown deeply.

Along with the fox's wail, an overwhelming deluge of fox fire rained down ceaselessly. The fox demon's true form was hidden within this blaze, launching a frantic, murderous assault on Lu Ye.

Lu Ye stood his ground, defending himself rigorously. The damage caused by the fox fire was negligible; its inherent destructive power was limited. However, the fox fire's impact on his mind was unavoidable. Moreover, the fox demon's enraged attacks could not be underestimated. Though severely wounded and unable to exert her full strength, she was, after all, a demon beast comparable to a ninth-layer Cloud River Realm cultivator. Had Lu Ye not possessed a foundation far surpassing cultivators of his level, her desperate, enraged attacks would have been impossible to block.

Bloody wounds continuously appeared on his body.

The Mind's Eye secret art certainly allowed him to react correctly to dangers within a foot of him, but the fox fire's impact on his mind was unavoidable, often leaving him with no time to react.

This couldn't go on!

Even though Lu Ye knew the fox demon was at the end of her rope and couldn't maintain such an offensive for much longer, if this continued, it was truly hard to say who would fall first.

He had to find a way to neutralize the fox fire's effect on him!

But what method could possibly counteract such peculiar fox fire?

Lu Ye's mind raced, and he suddenly realized something.

Regardless of why this fox fire could shake one's mind, its external manifestation was, after all, a ball of fire…

If it was fire, there was no reason for him to fear it.

He recalled the time he had ventured deep into the Blazing Fire Lands on the Spirit Stream Battlefield.

The Blazing Fire Lands and the Myriad Poison Forest were both perilous areas of the Spirit Stream Battlefield, difficult for cultivators to penetrate. Some Spirit Stream Realm cultivators with profound foundations might be able to step into the outer reaches of these two dangerous areas, but no one had ever entered their deepest parts.

Especially the Blazing Fire Lands; even the Overlord-level female demon beast found it difficult to approach, and she herself was a fire-attributed demon beast.

Yet Lu Ye had entered. Not only did he enter, but at the time, he was only at Heavenly Seven cultivation. From within, he had even obtained the Phoenix True Flame, subsequently activating the Fire Phoenix spiritual pattern on his Talent Tree.

His ability to delve deep into the center of the Blazing Fire Lands relied not on his own cultivation, but on his Talent Tree. At a point when he could no longer sustain himself, he had a sudden inspiration and activated the power of his Talent Tree, allowing its invisible roots to spread throughout his body, thus isolating him from the harsh environment of the Blazing Fire Lands.

If the Talent Tree's power could isolate him from an environment like the Blazing Fire Lands, could it also isolate him from the fox fire's effects?

If it could, then he would no longer be impacted by the fox fire shaking his mind. He could then fully unleash himself and slay the demon fox.

With this thought, Lu Ye immediately activated his Talent Tree. As his mind submerged, he saw the Talent Tree, nestled at his Origin Spirit Aperture, suddenly sprout roots that then spread out, seemingly reaching into an unknown space before disappearing.

If Lu Ye were to activate his Insight spiritual pattern to examine himself at this moment, he would see his entire body covered with root-like structures, gently swaying with the flow of his spiritual power.

His mind felt as if a heavy burden had been placed upon it, and his mental power rapidly depleted.

Activating the Talent Tree didn't consume his spiritual power; it consumed mental power!

Normally, when Lu Ye allowed the Talent Tree to devour earth core fire, the consumption was very small. But the current consumption, compared to usual, had increased more than a hundredfold. After all, his entire being was now enveloped by the Talent Tree's roots, whereas when devouring earth core fire, only a few roots would extend from his body.

He suddenly opened his eyes and saw the fox demon's frantic, persistent emerald eyes, leaping and moving close in front of him, attempting to interfere with his judgment.

With Wind Walk augmented, his figure shot out, directly meeting the incoming fox fire.

A swift end!

The fox demon didn't know what change had occurred in Lu Ye. Seeing him actively charge into her fox fire, she was both startled and enraged. Her agile and beautiful figure leaped, moving to meet Lu Ye.

However, the next moment, a chill enveloped the fox demon.

This was because Lu Ye's figure charged out from within the fox fire. He allowed the flames to burst against him, his determined gaze unwavering.

"Impossible!" In her terror, the fox demon actually spoke in human tongue.

However, for a demon beast like her, capable of transforming into human form, speaking human words was not difficult, even in her true form.

She knew the power of her fox fire. If an ordinary Cloud River Realm cultivator touched even a bit, they would likely immediately fall into an inescapable illusion, for as short as three to five breaths or as long as ten to fifteen breaths.

But this traitor, who had betrayed both her and Fox Immortal Valley, had previously shown immense resistance to the fox fire. Its impact on him had lasted for only a mere instant!

This could be explained by his mind being strong enough, but how could he be completely unaffected now? Could his mental power truly rival that of a Divine Sea Realm cultivator?

But judging from the unwavering calm in his eyes, he was indeed not affected in the slightest.

As the fox demon reeled in shock, the distance between the man and the fox closed to its limit. A brilliant blade light flashed in the fox demon's vision. She felt a sharp pain in front of her as a massive impact sent her flying backward, blood splashing across the sky before she landed awkwardly.

*Boom…*

She looked up, and a figure, enveloped in fierce killing intent, had already landed before her. A storm of blade strikes engulfed her, each one aimed at taking her life.

Fox fire reappeared, but this time it could not cause Lu Ye the slightest interference. Without the fox fire to rely on, and being at the end of her rope, the fox demon had no power left to resist such an onslaught.

Blood splattered, and the sound of the blade cutting through flesh echoed. Her snowy white fur was stained crimson with blood, the shocking colors painting a scene of boundless desolation.

As Lu Ye swung another blade, the fox demon fell heavily. This time, she could not get up again. She lay there, gasping heavily, the light in her eyes becoming extremely dim.

Lu Ye, holding his Pan Mountain Saber, stepped forward and looked down at the fox demon before him.

The fox demon moved her eyes, but her vision was blurry. She could no longer clearly see Lu Ye's face, only vaguely distinguishing a blurred outline.

"So… Heaven's Will… had already delivered its punishment!"

In her last moments of life, she seemed to understand something, muttering aloud.

Over the years, she had continuously used her soul secret art to enslave cultivators on the Cloud River Battlefield. Those who dared to venture deep into Mount Taimang were all elites among the Cloud River Realm. In eighteen years, no fewer than eight hundred, if not a thousand, cultivators had died because of her. As the number of enslaved cultivators grew, that inexplicable sense of impending crisis also intensified.

She knew that one day, Heaven's Will would deliver punishment for her deeds.

She had originally thought it would be a punishment similar to the Soul-Destroying Divine Thunder on the Spirit Stream Battlefield.

But she had never expected that this punishment would arrive in such a manner, and without her realizing it.

Only at the last moment of her life did she, by a stroke of intuitive insight, perceive the truth.

Lu Ye stood before the fox demon, sensing her current state, but the words that escaped her lips utterly bewildered him.

However, he didn't delve deeper, simply taking it as the fox demon's dying delirium. He raised the Pan Mountain Saber high.

"Well then…" A flash of blade light descended in her vision, and the fox demon's heart felt relieved. No matter what, she had finally avenged her master. Perhaps this was Heaven's Will's final grace.

Master, Xian'er is coming to join you… (To be continued)