Chapter 441 - 440: Trust
Whether the Netherworld Emperor broke through to the Spirit King Stage or not, he had to go down and kill him. Otherwise, the Emperor would become an endless scourge. What he had said came from the bottom of his heart—he hadn’t painstakingly cultivated the Celestial Cloud Mansion just to send its members to their deaths.
He had to be responsible for everyone. If he failed to kill the Netherworld Emperor this time, the Emperor’s future retaliation could result in countless casualties—something he couldn’t bear to see. He wasn’t saying such things to win people over; he truly had to be responsible for his subordinates.
Their side had suffered relatively few losses during this grand assault, but there were still casualties nonetheless. People always die in battle, but the least he could do was keep those losses to a minimum.
Otherwise, if they waited for the Netherworld Emperor to send his forces to attack, their losses would be anything but small.
"We understand, Mansion Master, but if you go down there and something happens to you, we..."
"That’s right! It’s so dangerous down below, and we have no idea what the situation is. If you go in rashly..."
They all voiced their concerns, not wanting Yi Tianyun to descend, as it was simply too dangerous below.
"Let him go." Shi Xueyun stepped forward at this moment. Her cultivation wasn’t the strongest here, but her gaze toward Yi Tianyun was the most concerned and focused of all. "Once Celestial Cloud makes a decision, he doesn’t change it easily. Besides, I believe he can return safely. If he truly meets with some disaster... I will go into hiding, continuously strengthening myself to avenge Celestial Cloud, until the one responsible is dead."
Her tone was calm, but her words crashed against their hearts like a tidal wave.
"My aunt understands me best, after all." Yi Tianyun gave a faint smile. He and Shi Xueyun didn’t need many words; a single smile was enough for them to understand each other’s hearts completely.
’If there was one irreplaceable person in his heart, it was Shi Xueyun. No one could usurp her place as number one. Even if his parents were to appear, they couldn’t replace her. Besides, he didn’t really have any thoughts about the concept of parents; it wouldn’t matter to him if they appeared or not. Having Shi Xueyun was enough.’
The crowd exchanged glances. Some of them knew that Shi Xueyun’s position in Yi Tianyun’s heart was absolutely unshakeable. If anyone could persuade him otherwise, it would be Shi Xueyun; everyone else would just be wasting their breath.
"Since the Spirit King’s mind is made up, I will say no more. We will break the array immediately and await the Spirit King’s return!" Seeing Yi Tianyun’s resolute tone, the Spirit Race Ancestor stopped trying to persuade him.
"We will all wait for the Spirit King’s return! We will not leave this place until he does!"
The crowd roared, their voices powerful and resounding.
"That’s right, we will all wait for the Mansion Master to come back! If the Mansion Master doesn’t return, we will follow him down to investigate. If we can’t handle it, we will go into hiding with the Palace Master and slowly deal with this Netherworld Empire!"
The disciples of the Merak Sect shouted in unison, echoing Shi Xueyun’s words and showing their unwavering loyalty to Yi Tianyun.
"We feel the same! We will wait for the Mansion Master to come back. No matter how long it takes, we will wait for your return!"
The disciples of the Celestial Extreme Sect hadn’t spent much time with Yi Tianyun, but they were completely won over by his power, and they all expressed their heartfelt respect.
Seeing everyone support him so fervently, Yi Tianyun’s heart warmed. This mutual reciprocation of trust naturally gave him even more motivation.
"Don’t worry. Don’t you trust your Mansion Master? I swear I will return with the Netherworld Emperor’s head!" Yi Tianyun clenched his fist and raised it, displaying his determination.
"We believe in the Mansion Master!"
They let out a great roar, their eyes burning with the desire to follow Yi Tianyun down. But Yi Tianyun would never let them. Going down meant certain death, so what would be the point? He was not in the habit of using his subordinates as cannon fodder.
He immediately headed for the area behind the dragon throne. There was no passage there, but when he pushed the throne, a tunnel leading underground immediately appeared. A blast of cold, sinister power from the Netherworld Fire surged out from the passage, making everyone feel uneasy.
He didn’t hesitate for long, immediately starting down the stairs and rapidly descending into the depths. The farther down he went, the more Netherworld Fire surged toward him. Anyone below the Core Transformation Stage would inevitably be invaded by this Yin Fire, their body Frozen to death.
Even a Core Transformation Stage expert couldn’t stay here for long; one would need to be at least at the Void Spirit Stage to brave this place. The entry requirement alone was terrifyingly high.
This posed no problem for Yi Tianyun. With a wave of his hand, he unleashed the Heaven-Devouring Divine Technique, which began to continuously devour the surrounding Netherworld Fire. The quantity was relatively small, but at least it could be converted into some experience.
"Gained 7,000 experience, 8,000 experience, 7,800 experience..."
He only absorbed a small amount of experience each time, but it was enough to devour the Netherworld Fire seeping from the walls. Although he didn’t have an Experience Card multiplier active, it was still not bad overall.
The farther he descended, the more experience he gained, which meant the Netherworld Fire was growing stronger.
Soon, he reached the end of the passage and was met with a thick stone door. It was densely carved with Divine Runes and was extremely sturdy. He could tell at a glance that many of them were Grandmaster-level Divine Runes. It seemed this place had been reinforced layer by layer; it wouldn’t be so easy to break in.
’This Netherworld Emperor sure hides himself deep. It looks like there’s no getting in without breaking this stone door.’
Yi Tianyun sized it up. Relying on brute force alone would take a considerable amount of time unless one was powerful enough to defy the heavens. However, that didn’t matter. With his Celestial Eye, he could still break these Divine Runes.
’Open!’
A blue light flickered in Yi Tianyun’s eyes. Soon, the core of the Divine Rune Array above was exposed, revealing its weak points.
’Right there!’
He quickly began to break the arrays, and soon, one Divine Rune Array after another was shattered.
"Ding! Successfully dispelled a Grandmaster-level Divine Rune. Gained 800,000 experience, 2,000 Skill Level!"
"Ding! Successfully..."
Breaking the large arrays converted into a flood of experience and Skill Level. He naturally gained experience and Divine Rune Proficiency for breaking arrays; he could earn them from either repairing or breaking them.
Finally, as he broke the last Divine Rune Array, he threw a fierce punch. BOOM! The stone door, as if made of tofu, was smashed open by the single blow. Without the reinforcing Divine Runes, the stone door was no different from tofu.
After the stone door was blasted open, what met his eyes was a sea of Netherworld Fire enveloping the area. In the center of this area was a large hole, from which an endless stream of Netherworld Fire gushed forth, filling the entire space.
The Netherworld Emperor was sitting cross-legged to the side, frantically absorbing this Netherworld Fire, paying no mind to him for having broken through the array.
’So he really is attempting a breakthrough!’
Yi Tianyun’s gaze turned cold. He could feel the Netherworld Emperor repeatedly striking a barrier, striving to advance to a higher level!