Chapter 1438: Yellow Sparrow Behind the Scenes

This finally triggered an even greater shock! The entire valley collapsed on the spot. A terrifying earthquake caused the earth to violently churn, as if countless colossal beasts were rolling beneath the surface. Even the spatial barrier of the interlayer world vibrated intensely at this moment! Space was twisted into layers of folds, just like during the previous battles of the Sages. For a moment, the interlayer world experienced cataclysmic changes.

A chill ran down Jiang Fan's spine, realizing he had to leave quickly! The vibrations in the interlayer world showed no signs of weakening; in fact, they were growing stronger. If the spatial barrier shattered and connected to the Void World, it would be catastrophic. All living beings in this world would be exiled to the Void World, just like the Nascent Soul cave mansion at the bottom of the snowy mountain cliff in Taicang Great State.

At this moment, the Transformation God Venerable from God-Weapon State pulled out the Black Lotus of Tribulation. A quick glance revealed a large, long, gray, swollen mass beneath its root: a lotus root as tall as a person! Its presence was precisely why the Black Lotus of Tribulation had been impossible to pull out. The Transformation God Venerable had no time to examine it further; he casually tossed it into his spatial storage device before looking towards Jiang Fan and the other person.

His eyes narrowed slightly, a ruthless glint appearing within them. Jiang Fan's expression shifted dramatically; *not good*, this guy was planning to kill them to silence them. Possessing such a heaven-defying divine object, if news were to leak, it could very likely lead to a fatal disaster. For safety's sake, it was naturally best to eliminate any witnesses. Although he couldn't see Jiang Fan and Yue Mingzhu, their accidental sinking into the ground earlier had already revealed their general location. A single strike at that spot would be enough to kill both of them.

Jiang Fan's heart pounded. He decisively reached out, grabbed Yue Mingzhu's arm, and teleported them away. They barely escaped. The ground where they had been lying suddenly turned into a quagmire. From beneath the mire, a fist filled with destructive power violently punched out. Then, the mud condensed, forming the likeness of the Transformation God Venerable. Looking back at the Transformation God Venerable by the black pool, he had instantly dispersed into mud. This individual's domain, apart from softening everything, could also soften his own body and merge with anything.

Jiang Fan was greatly startled. Transformation God Venerables who primarily focused on alchemy and artifact refining typically gave the impression of possessing strong auxiliary abilities but being weaker in direct combat. However, this Transformation God Venerable from God-Weapon State, like Vice Palace Master You, completely subverted Jiang Fan's perception. Their true strength was no weaker than that of Transformation God Venerables who cultivated through martial arts!

"You hide quite fast," the Transformation God Venerable from God-Weapon State remarked, his face grim as he watched them. Yue Mingzhu's heart skipped a beat. Subconsciously, she was about to mobilize her Nascent Soul power to activate her magic treasure and counterattack. But before her spiritual energy could surge forth, it was suppressed by the Nascent Soul power transferred from Jiang Fan's palm. He subtly shook his head at Yue Mingzhu, signaling her not to act rashly. This person was trying to trick them into revealing their position. Yue Mingzhu then calmed down, remembering they were protected by the sage's carvings; as long as they didn't reveal a unique aura, the Venerable wouldn't be able to detect their exact location.

As expected, seeing no unusual aura flowing around, the Transformation God Venerable grew anxious and angry. He had no more time to waste! He had to finish this quickly! He activated his divine ring once more, and his domain, which softened all things, rapidly enveloped the surroundings. Then, he intently watched for any abnormalities.

How could Jiang Fan and Yue Mingzhu withstand a domain unleashed by a Venerable directly in front of them? Their bodies rapidly softened, and the ground beneath their feet began to melt. Just as they were about to sink in again, exposing their location, Jiang Fan gritted his teeth. He secretly mobilized three top-grade flying swords. Things were different now. Previously, his three top-grade spirit swords were the Snow-Listening Sword, the Serrated Sword, and the Purple Sword, of which only the Snow-Listening Sword possessed a spirit. Now, he was mobilizing the Snow-Listening Sword, Purple Lightning, and Green Frost, all of which contained spirits. The power of his sword formation was undoubtedly on a whole new level compared to before. It posed a fatal threat to a Heaven-Human Stage First Decline cultivator. Moreover, given their close proximity, a sudden lethal strike, catching the opponent off guard, offered a chance to assassinate him!

Of course, this was assuming the opponent wasn't vigilant enough and didn't take sufficient precautions against two Nascent Soul cultivators. If he had been cautious, he would have simply teleported away. Just as Jiang Fan was preparing to make his move, a vague, ethereal, and chilling voice suddenly resonated overhead without any warning. "You took the item, and you're not running?" it scoffed. "How foolish."

Jiang Fan's entire body trembled. The oppressive power contained within that voice felt like mountains pressing down on him, causing him to shake uncontrollably. The Transformation God Venerable from God-Weapon State also watched, his expression changing dramatically as he looked up at the empty sky, as if realizing what it was. Terrified beyond measure, he disregarded Jiang Fan and Yue Mingzhu and instantly teleported away. But just as he vanished, a horrific shriek echoed from the ends of the earth. The Transformation God Venerable from God-Weapon State had been crushed by an invisible, terrifying force, his body exploding into a blood mist that stained a portion of the sky red.

Cold sweat streamed down Jiang Fan's back. To instantly kill a Heaven-Human Stage First Decline Venerable, who offered no resistance whatsoever, indicated the realm of existence of this entity: a Grand Venerable of the Heaven-Human Stage Five Declines! Among Grand Venerable Bingxin, the Young Emperor, and Grand Venerable Jinlin, one of them had been drawn into this place! With the power of a Heaven-Human Stage Five Declines Grand Venerable, it was impossible for them to be swept into this place by simple spatial fluctuations. It could only mean they had entered voluntarily. Moreover, judging from the mysterious voice's tone, this entity had been by the Black Lotus of Tribulation for a while. The reason they hadn't personally retrieved it was likely because, like Jiang Fan and the others, they had perceived the danger associated with the Black Lotus of Tribulation. So, they waited for someone else to collect it before making their move. But this implied that the entity had known about the Black Lotus of Tribulation in the interlayer world all along and had come specifically for it. Which Grand Venerable was this?

As Jiang Fan was pondering, another anomaly occurred ahead. From within the exploding blood mist, a fist-sized soul, clutching the spatial storage ring containing the Black Lotus of Tribulation, escaped into the void. A long, massive tail, like the Grim Reaper's scythe, swept across that stretch of the world. The Transformation God Venerable's soul let out a miserable groan and fell out of the void. He fled in utter terror. What made Jiang Fan's expression turn cold was that this individual was actually heading in their direction. Clearly, he was attempting to shift the danger onto them, hoping they would distract the mysterious Grand Venerable so he could successfully escape. Only a soul was left, yet he was still so malicious?

In an instant, the Transformation God Venerable's soul darted near Jiang Fan, then looked around with a mix of panic and anticipation. He was quietly waiting for the Heaven-Human Stage Five Declines Grand Venerable to act. Even the slightest leak of aura from the Grand Venerable would expose the two hidden individuals. Jiang Fan's expression turned cold, a soul-piercing spike rotating at his brow. Sensing the soul fluctuations, the Transformation God Venerable's soul, instead of growing angry, became delighted and sneered in Jiang Fan's direction. *They were indeed here.* Just then, the terrifying massive tail also swept over. Jiang Fan's heart pounded wildly. With a swift change of thought, he put away the Soul-Startling Thorn and instead prepared the Soul-Imprisoning Lock! The Black Lotus of Tribulation was inside this individual's spatial storage device. The Heaven-Human Stage Five Declines Grand Venerable must have intended to keep him alive to find the incantation for the storage device. If Jiang Fan and Yue Mingzhu had any chance of survival, there was only one path: capture this person's soul!