Chapter 664 548: Pei Yuhang's Sharpest Sword—Ji Shenyun

"You've been looking for me?"

Blood River True Monarch stared at Pei Yuhang's calm face, his own expression contorted with rage.

Behind them, the wails of Ten Thousand Dragons True Monarch could be heard.

He had already been forced into a desperate situation.

"Pei Yuhang, die!!"

Knowing he couldn't escape, Blood River True Monarch lunged at Pei Yuhang like a hound that had slipped its leash.

Even if he was going to die, he would drag someone down with him!

To his surprise, however, Pei Yuhang simply stood there, looking completely unconcerned, showing no intention of defending himself or dodging.

Not far away, Ji Shenyun, who had been standing with her arms crossed and a spectator's amusement, saw the instant Pei Yuhang was about to be struck by Blood River True Monarch. The playful look in her eyes instantly froze over.

Her expression darkened, and a flicker of panic—one she herself didn't even notice—flashed through her eyes.

In the next instant, her figure appeared before Blood River True Monarch like a phantom.

She lifted a slender finger and, with a seemingly casual tap—

"BANG!"

Blood River True Monarch's head exploded on cue, showering the air in a mist of blood!

Her expression unchanging, Ji Shenyun made a grasping motion with her hand, pulling a struggling, screaming Nascent Soul straight from the bloody mist. Without a second glance, she swallowed it to recover some of her Primordial Qi.

After steadying her breath, Ji Shenyun turned around. Her phoenix eyes, tinged with a faint anger, glared at Pei Yuhang as she complained in exasperation:

"Why didn't you dodge just now? Are you that unafraid of death?!"

But Pei Yuhang just chuckled, his gaze open and frank as he looked at her.

"Of course, it's because I believed you would come and save me. Since that's the case, why would I waste my energy making a move?"

Below, Lin Qianyan, Shang Miaoyan, and the others, who had been incredibly tense, heard this exchange—so full of complaint yet unable to conceal its concern—and froze in place.

Lin Qianyan's mouth hung slightly open, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Shang Miaoyan and Nangong Jin, however, furrowed their fine brows, their gazes darting back and forth between Pei Yuhang and Ji Shenyun.

'This... What on earth is going on?'

'How could the high and mighty, temperamental Ji Shenyun be speaking to Pei Yuhang in a tone like a... like a pouting newlywed?'

'Could it be that Pei Yuhang really... managed to conquer her?'

They, of course, had no idea that Pei Yuhang and Ji Shenyun's fates were now inextricably linked, their lives bound together.

When Ji Shenyun saw Pei Yuhang being so careless with his own life, it was as if he were abusing her own body. Naturally, she was both anxious and angry, and wouldn't dare let him act so recklessly again!

"Qianqian, you've all worked hard."

After Ji Shenyun had slain the three old fiends of the Demon Dao, Pei Yuhang immediately dropped down beside Lin Qianyan and the others, transferring his Pure Yang True Qi to them.

Their injuries healed quickly, and they recovered most of their stamina.

He saw the questioning looks Lin Qianyan and the others were giving Ji Shenyun, and he pursed his lips, just about to explain.

But just then, Ji Shenyun's voice, full of resentment and tinged with a hard-to-detect hint of embarrassed anger, suddenly echoed in Pei Yuhang's mind:

'Pei Yuhang, do not speak of the matter between us to these outsiders! I may have agreed to help you, but the fact that you can command me is too... too shameful! I don't want to lose face!'

Pei Yuhang fell silent for a moment, a helpless look on his face. He had no choice but to turn to Lin Qianyan and the others and give a simple explanation:

"It's a complicated matter, but for now, Ji Shenyun is completely on our side. You don't need to be wary of her anymore."

Hearing Pei Yuhang's words, the three of them, though still harboring doubts, no longer hesitated.

Lin Qianyan and Shang Miaoyan exchanged a look, then took the initiative to step forward and give Ji Shenyun a slight nod of acknowledgment.

"Thank you for your help, Fellow Daoist Shenyun."

However, Ji Shenyun just snorted arrogantly and turned her face away, not even giving them a proper glance, completely dismissing the two of them.

Lin Qianyan didn't take it to heart. As long as it helped Pei Yuhang, she was willing to be as tolerant as possible.

Shang Miaoyan, however, felt her pretty face fall. Her heart clenched, especially when she caught a faint but very familiar scent from Ji Shenyun's aura—the scent of Pei Yuhang.

'Damn it! We were out here fighting for our lives, so Xiaohan must have had *something* happen with this Asura Empress inside the tower!'

A sour mix of jealousy and vexation welled up in her heart, and she couldn't help but press her lips together tightly.

'If only I could beat her...'

Just as everyone was lost in their own thoughts, taking a short rest before preparing to continue on—

RUMBLE!!!

The entire Inner Palace Tower suddenly began to shake violently again. This time, it wasn't caused by Ji Shenyun's attack on the cauldron; the epicenter was clearly from much higher up... the ninety-ninth floor!

Ji Shenyun's eyes sharpened. She was the first to rise, her voice urgent:

"This is bad! Yuan Tianming is making a move on the Divine King's body! We have to get up there immediately!"

She glanced back hurriedly at Pei Yuhang's group. "My speed is the fastest, so I'll go on ahead. You all follow as quickly as you can."

Before her voice had even faded, she seemed to remember something. She suddenly turned to Pei Yuhang, her gaze more serious than ever, even carrying a hint of worry that was difficult for her to admit. She lowered her voice and said:

"You are absolutely not allowed to die! Right now... you are my greatest weakness."

Pei Yuhang met her gaze and nodded solemnly, his voice deep as he replied, "Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to me before our contract is fulfilled."

Only after hearing Pei Yuhang's promise did Ji Shenyun take a deep breath. She bent her knees, leaned forward, and let her arms hang naturally, assuming a standard sprinter's starting stance.

As gushing power gathered at her ankles...

BOOM—

The air rippled from the force of her takeoff. Pushing off the air with sheer physical strength alone, Ji Shenyun launched herself from where she stood and vanished from Pei Yuhang's sight.

WHOOSH—

A gust of wind lifted strands of Lin Qianyan's dark hair. She stared at the lingering shockwaves in the air and murmured:

"So this is the Asura Race... Such a powerful Physique. Even the strongest Body Cultivator in the world probably couldn't compare... Will Yueqiu be able to do that in the future?"

Lin Qianyan had not participated in the defense of the Dao Sect. Now, seeing Ji Shenyun in action for the first time, she was finally and truly stunned by her power.

"What's so great about the Asura Race... Didn't they just disappear into the dust of history anyway?"

Shang Miaoyan only dared to mutter this insult under her breath after she was sure Ji Shenyun was completely gone.

Pei Yuhang gave her a helpless look and said softly, "You should rein in that temper of yours. If that woman heard you, even I might not be able to protect you."

Shang Miaoyan pouted but didn't argue back.

But then, a glint of inspiration flashed in her eyes, and her face broke into a grin. "Does that mean, Xiaohan, that you'll try your best to protect me?~"

"It seems you're finally willing to accept me, little by little!"

Pei Yuhang couldn't be bothered to look at her. He turned directly to Lin Qianyan and Nangong Jin.

"Qianqian, Jin'er, let's go."

"Mm."

...

...

Riding their Spirit Swords, Pei Yuhang's group swiftly ascended through the final ten floors of the tower.

The higher they went, the more bizarre the scenery became.

Countless thick pipes made of dusky Spirit Iron clung to the tower walls as densely as the gnarled roots of a giant tree, stretching all the way up until they vanished into the darkness above.

The surfaces of the pipes were inscribed with countless complex and sinister Array Runes, which now pulsed slowly with an ominous red light, as if they were alive.

Nangong Jin suddenly furrowed her brow, a flicker of alarm in her beautiful eyes.

She keenly sensed the thick, nauseating aura constantly seeping from the cracks in the pipes—

It was Blood Evil Power, formed from the mixed resentment of countless dead souls and their Essence Blood, so dense it had almost solidified, viscous enough to suffocate.

Nangong Jin said to Pei Yuhang beside her in a low, serious voice:

"Brother Pei, these pipes... I'm afraid they all extend from the floor where Ji Shenyun was suppressed, ultimately leading to the ninety-ninth floor where Mas... where that man is."

"What's being transported inside is likely the refined essence of Spirit Blood, condensed after the Blood Mist Grand Array devoured the flesh and blood of countless Cultivators.

Perhaps his purpose in refining this evil Spirit Blood isn't just to reinforce the Array suppressing Ji Shenyun, but also to gather this immense life force."

Hearing this, Pei Yuhang's gaze turned razor-sharp.

He stared at the pipes, which writhed like blood vessels, and it was as if he could hear the thick, viscous sound of blood rushing within them. A chill rose from the bottom of his heart.

'Master, what is your true purpose?'