Like a Dull Knife Cutting Flesh, a Slow Fire Torturing the Heart

The Great Luo and Taiyi cultivators departed first, leaving behind 998 Golden Immortals from the Five Ancient Clans as the rearguard.

At this moment, the Golden Immortals were gripped by fear. The elusive pressure from the guardian spirits was overwhelming, forcing them to huddle back-to-back in a tight formation, too terrified to continue mining.

"Can we just quit? I’m done—those rocks over there are moving!!"

"There’s only an entrance, no exit. We have no way back. Our only chance of survival is to fight to the death!"

"Brothers, I suggest we form a single-file line, creating a human wall. No matter how strong the guardian spirits are, they won’t be able to kill all of us within a limited time!"

"Let’s do it! Better to die fighting than wait helplessly for death!"

"Life and death are fated, wealth is decided by heaven. With our ancestors’ blessings, we’ll surely survive!"

Three people together spawn one idea-generator, but 900 people spawn over 300 of them!

Through collective brainstorming, these idea-generators devised the most effective method to counter the guardian spirits—a gamble with their lives. The single-file "Long Dragon Formation" would distribute the guardian spirits’ pressure evenly, betting on luck to decide who would fall victim and buy time for the others. It was a brutal strategy: paving the path forward with the flesh and blood of comrades.

Chen Yi: "..."

Admittedly, this method had some merit—but not much.

Because he never intended to start harvesting them halfway up the mountain!

He would wait—wait for the Great Luo and Taiyi to advance to the next stage, wait for Wuji’s influence to wane, wait for the ambush in the third stage to force the hidden Wuji into the open, wait for these "premium fuel" to climb to the summit and begin forging their Five Elements Lifebound Coins, wait for their focus to scatter...

Only then would it be the perfect time to feast!

A slow knife cuts the meat, a gentle fire simmers the heart. Good dishes aren’t rushed; haste ruins the meal.

A little more patience, let the meat tenderize further—so it slides down smoothly, soft on the tongue, effortless down the throat...

But before the feast, the tough bones must be picked out first.

Buzz—!

Hidden within the second stage, forty-nine Chaos Colored Pearls began to vibrate, launching toward the Great Luo and Taiyi cultivators of the Immortal Realm. They pressed against their backs, relentlessly nudging them forward, applying pressure to herd them faster toward the summit.

"Heh, getting impatient, are we?" sneered the Great Luo Ancestor of the Green Lotus Ancient Clan, the Yin-Yang Daoist. "Trying to slow us down? That just proves the Path to Transcendence lies ahead!"

Convinced he had seen through the guardian spirits’ scheme, he quickened his pace, attempting to shake off the shimmering pearls trailing behind him.

Yet Wuji, observing from the shadows, shook his head.

Those embroiled in the game were blind, but an outsider saw clearly.

He instantly recognized that the pearls weren’t chasing—they were herding, deliberately forcing the group toward the summit.

"It seems Chen Yi must have struck some underhanded deal with Feng Jinhuang. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have risked disrupting the rhythm with her clan. She should have negotiated with the other Five Ancient Clans to protect her remaining eight Taiyi clansmen."

"Heh, how amusing. Little variable, do you intend to monopolize all six clans and seize the Path to Heaven for yourself?"

"Or perhaps... you’re that desperate for this Chaos Supreme Treasure? But don’t you already possess one? Unless... that treasure shrouded in karmic mist doesn’t actually belong to you?"

"It seems I have no choice but to intervene."

With profound eyes, Wuji extended his hands and began tracing patterns across the smooth surface of the Heavenly Observation Mirror.

Within the Five Elements Mountain Range.

Chen Yi was also closely monitoring the movements of the five Great Luo cultivators from the Immortal Realm.

He knew the blindness of those embroiled in the game—these five were mired in the mire, shackled by the Spirit-Sealing Sigil, their judgment clouded by greed for the Chaos Supreme Treasure. Aside from the most perceptive among them—the Great Luo of the Primordial Heart-Soul Clan—the others were oblivious to the subtle strangeness of the situation.

But Wuji was different.

He was an Immortal Emperor, an observer, a man of fastidious habits (who loved wearing safety gear). Nothing could distort his judgment.

So he would undoubtedly realize Chen Yi’s ploy to lure the tiger from the mountain. He might even deduce, from Feng Jinhuang’s unusual behavior, that she had struck a deal with Chen Yi.

Which raised the question—would Wuji let him have his way?

Would he continue biding his time, waiting for the critical moment to unleash his divine possession technique and deliver a fatal strike through a Great Luo puppet?

Or would he expose himself early to disrupt Chen Yi’s plans, forcing a direct confrontation?

Buzz—!

The Yin-Yang Daoist, leading the charge, suddenly shuddered. His steps halted as he turned, his eyes gleaming with an eerie light that reflected upon the other four Great Luo.

Simultaneously, the forty-nine Chaos Colored Pearls, poised for action, sprang to life.

In an instant, they sent Feng Jinhuang—the Great Luo of the Primordial Heart-Soul Clan—flying out of range of that sinister glow.

Then, the pearls encircled the possessed Yin-Yang Daoist and the other four Great Luo, forming an impenetrable barrier.

Under the suppression of the Spirit-Sealing Sigil, it was a battle of "having techniques" against "having none."

Though Chen Yi lacked high-tier mechanisms, even the most basic ones were enough to overwhelm these Great Luo, who were stripped of their advanced abilities.

Yet the Yin-Yang Daoist, now under Wuji’s control, smirked. "Chen Yi, oh Chen Yi... you’ve planned this for a while, haven’t you? Quick reflexes, I’ll give you that."

"But are you underestimating me? These mere clones of yours won’t be enough to handle me."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the Yin-Yang Daoist’s body began to melt, his flesh and blood sacrificed to forcibly manifest a divine soul avatar.

This was something a Great Luo shouldn’t be capable of—the Spirit-Sealing Sigil could suppress a Great Luo, but not Wuji, even if only a wisp of his will resided here.

Thus, the avatar that emerged was not the Yin-Yang Daoist’s true soul, but a towering golden figure—blurred yet majestic.

Though indistinct, Chen Yi recognized it at once: this was the Wuji Avatar.

Buzz—!

An invisible shockwave rippled outward, forcibly expanding the containment field of the forty-nine pearls.

"Using a Great Luo’s essence as sacrifice to bypass the rules? Interesting. But even so, under the Spirit-Sealing Sigil’s maximum suppression, how long can you last?"

One of the pearls condensed into Chen Yi’s form as he coldly met the Yin-Yang Daoist’s gaze. "Sooner or later, you’ll run out of steam. And when you do, let’s see how I deal with them."

It was well-known that Chen Yi only fought battles he was certain to win. If he dared to single out five Great Luo—potential vessels for Wuji—it meant he had prepared for every contingency.

The Wuji-possessed Yin-Yang Daoist returned his gaze with equal calm. "Oh? You’re quite confident. But with your current strength, you won’t drain even one Great Luo dry, let alone five."

"Don’t say I didn’t give you a chance. Show me your trump cards now, or these forty-nine clones of yours will be lost forever."

Chen Yi's face remained expressionless: "Stop your nonsense—if you’ve got the guts, come at me! All this blabbering just to buy time, huh? If you can’t handle it, just say so. Quit pretending like you’re hot stuff!"

Pure verbal filth, absolute satisfaction.

Breaking someone’s composure isn’t limited to physical attacks alone!

Of course, if a few choice words could shake Wuji’s mental state, that’d be a massive win. Even if Wuji played deaf and ignored it, there’d be no loss—after all, cursing out a Celestial Emperor to his face? An experience that never gets old.

"You’re utterly disrespectful. Utterly disrespectful!"

The Yin-Yang Daoist’s lips twitched before he abruptly seized the Time-Reversal Dragon Clan’s Great Luo beside him, refining them in an instant.

At the same time, Chen Yi didn’t hesitate either. He ignited the essence of forty-nine Chaos-Colored Pearls, simultaneously suppressing Wuji’s movements while relentlessly hammering at the sturdy spatial barriers of the secret realm, intent on shifting the battlefield outside.

This secret realm was too cramped—no room to fight properly. Once they reached the Void Expanse, there’d be no holds barred. With two five-star avatars and one intact plus one heavily damaged Chaos Supreme Treasure on standby, he could just nap when he got tired!

......

PS: The old affliction flared up again—dazed, barely coherent, hardly any lucid moments. Can’t maintain regular updates... Damn it!