Chapter 48: The Icy Realm of Absolute Desolation
Godslayer Spear.
First-tier magical treasure.
A dazzling, blinding, and incomparably sharp dark-gold spear light shot straight for Pang Yue’s brow!
Utterly pure, focused, and unwavering at its core.
There was not a trace of flourish in this thrust.
It elevated both speed and strength to the very pinnacle of the Foundation Establishment realm!
Its destructive power, too, could be called the peak of what Foundation Establishment cultivators could achieve!
“Good!”
Pang Yue shouted, raising a finger. A crimson-gold talisman sword shot forth like a streak of light, intercepting the dark-gold spear light and slashing at it hundreds or even thousands of times in an instant!
The Godslayer Spear quivered slightly, its force subtly redirected and dispersed by the mysterious sword light.
By the time the spear point reached Pang Yue, its power had waned to less than a tenth of its original might.
Even so, the terrifying destructive force of a first-tier magical treasure was still enough to send chills down one’s spine.
Pang Yue drew back his right fist and suddenly punched.
Boom!
Boundless strength gathered at his fist’s edge, a cold and silent flame bursting forth, erupting with a fearsome might.
One of the Seven Great Divine Arts of the Flame Demon Hall—the Mighty Flame Demon Fist!
Jin Yuege instantly felt her entire magical power ignited by a strange flame, draining rapidly.
The tight, refined force she’d poured into the Godslayer Spear began to unravel, and Pang Yue, empty-handed, struck the spear aside.
Gritting her teeth, she forced her magical power to surge, spinning the spear and sweeping up hundreds of spear shadows, lashing out at Pang Yue.
Pang Yue smiled faintly. At his feet appeared a bridge of white bones. In a blink, his figure faded, merging with the void.
In the next instant—
The white bone bridge extended a hundred yards away.
Pang Yue stood at the bridge’s head, forming a sword seal. Eighteen crimson-gold talisman swords flew out, slashing toward Jin Yuege.
Each of these eighteen swords was wreathed in a cool, ethereal flame, their sword intent icy and sharp, each forming a thirty-foot-long arc of light, their might no less than supreme magical weapons.
The crimson-gold talisman swords streaked across the sky, faster than thunder, and in a fraction of a heartbeat, they first entwined Jin Yuege’s Godslayer Spear, then shattered the protective spiritual light around her.
One blade even swept gently across her slender, snow-white neck!
“What speed!” Jin Yuege’s heart chilled, her body freezing as if plunged into an icy abyss.
The crimson-gold talisman sword wound around her neck suddenly dissolved into countless runes and scattered.
Yet the sensation of its deadly sharpness lingered, leaving Jin Yuege deeply shaken.
“To think he could defeat me so easily without even using a magical treasure…”
Jin Yuege thought in a daze.
Had this not been a friendly spar, her proud head—crowned with six suns—might have already fallen into Ming Lake by now.
Pang Yue’s voice called from afar, rousing her from her reverie.
“You have great power, but you’re too slow to adapt. You haven’t used a tenth of your abilities—it’s truly a shame.”
How am I slow to adapt? Clearly, you’re just too fast…
Jin Yuege wanted to protest, but recalling how thoroughly she’d been defeated, she swallowed her words.
“Again!”
She snorted softly, twisted her waist, hefted her spear, and charged at Pang Yue once more.
Pang Yue shook his head. This time, he didn’t use the talisman swords. Instead, he extended his thumb, slowly pressing toward her!
Jin Yuege’s soul quivered. Suddenly, a strange, unfathomable, and irresistibly domineering power invaded her sea of consciousness!
Within her mind—
A colossal thumb, vast as a mountain and wreathed in chill, silent flame, pressed down hard upon her inner world.
Heaven-Scorching Finger!
One of the Seven Great Divine Arts of the Flame Demon Hall—the Heaven-Scorching Finger.
A splitting pain burst in Jin Yuege’s head. In a daze, a palm imprint struck squarely on her full, rounded chest.
Defeated again…
She looked at Pang Yue with a mixture of shame and frustration. “Again!” she demanded, refusing to yield.
...
Zhuoguang Mountain.
Nine streaks of fire shot out from the Flame Demon Hall, dispersing in all directions.
One of these flames sped straight for Ming Lake Island, striking the restrictive barrier above the isle.
Ripples spread through the air and the firelight flashed, conspicuous against the sky.
Inside the Desolate Dao Pagoda, where Pang Yue was cultivating, a strange spiritual sense suddenly roused him. He looked up toward the heavens, then beckoned, allowing the flame to descend.
The flame darted nimbly through the air, landing directly in Pang Yue’s hand.
With a whoosh—
The fire danced, forming the image of a female cultivator.
It was none other than Luo Qingyuan, direct disciple of the Flame Demon Hall, whom Pang Yue had once encountered in the outer void.
She smiled radiantly at Pang Yue. “Junior brother, you have been summoned to accompany me to the Primeval Secret Realm. Please come to the Flame Demon Hall in three days’ time to join the group.”
With that, the fire twisted, condensing into a mission talisman, which floated gently into Pang Yue’s hand.
“The Primeval Secret Realm?”
Pang Yue frowned. He had never heard of it.
He flicked his finger, sending out a sword light through the window—a flying sword message.
Before long, Qin Shuyi arrived at the pagoda.
“Have you ever heard of the Primeval Secret Realm?” Pang Yue asked.
Qin Shuyi had grown up following a direct disciple, exposed to much knowledge, and was well-versed in many secrets of the Demon Talisman Sect.
After a moment’s thought, she replied solemnly, “There are many primeval secret realms in the world, but there is only one related to our Demon Talisman Sect—the Absolute Ice Domain.”
“What kind of place is that?” Pang Yue felt a stir of caution.
The mission talisman could not be refused, but he dearly hoped he would not encounter dangers like the Samsara Heaven Demon again—trapped in illusions with no escape.
Qin Shuyi explained patiently:
The primeval secret realms are relics from ancient cultivation sects.
Their origins lie in blessed lands and celestial grottos, but over a long history, for various reasons, these realms shattered and became fragments scattered through the void.
Only at certain times and places can these fragments be anchored and entered.
The particular primeval secret realm controlled by the Demon Talisman Sect is called: the Absolute Ice Domain.
Within it lie many treasures and ancient cultivators’ abodes. Each time sect disciples explore it, they return greatly rewarded.
However—
This secret realm is not the exclusive domain of the Demon Talisman Sect.
Besides the Demon Talisman Sect, there are four other major powers in the Eastern Sea who have also mastered the secret of anchoring this celestial fragment.
These four powers are: the Sect of Ecstasy, the Heavenly Sea Sect, the True Yang Sect, and the Free Cultivators’ Alliance of Mystery Island.
The strength of these four is not below that of the Demon Talisman Sect; in fact, the Heavenly Sea Sect and the True Yang Sect are even slightly superior.
Mystery Island, the alliance of free cultivators, has more than twenty formidable Golden Core elders in residence. Normally, they keep a low profile, but in several events that have shaped the fate of cultivation in the Eastern Sea, they have revealed a heritage and might on par with the great sects of the current age, attracting much attention.
The opening time of the Primeval Secret Realm is never fixed. Each time, it is first discovered by the sect’s stationed cultivators, who promptly notify the main sect.
The Absolute Ice Domain is a unique environment. Golden Core cultivators cannot enter; even Foundation Establishment cultivators must pay a great price to do so.
Over the years, an unwritten rule has formed within the Demon Talisman Sect:
Each time the Absolute Ice Domain opens, each of the five halls selects a direct disciple to lead a team inside.
Each direct disciple may choose nine inner disciples, making five teams of fifty, forming the Demon Talisman Sect’s expedition force to scour the Absolute Ice Domain for treasures.
Of the five halls, the Ice Demon Hall is the most invested.
This is not only because the environment of the Absolute Ice Domain is exceptionally beneficial for cultivating the “Ice Demon True Scripture,” but, more importantly, rumor has it that within the domain is hidden a renowned ancient transmission of ice-element Daoist arts!
If this Daoist art could be obtained, the Ice Demon Hall would gain a Nascent Soul-level inheritance…
Thus, the Ice Demon Hall’s team has always been the strongest among the Demon Talisman Sect’s expedition forces.