Feng Yifei's eyes turned completely black from their previous scarlet, with wisps of demonic qi curling from his irises. He was now on the cusp of demonic corruption.
"Now, it's your death sentence!" Feng Yifei cackled, raising Blooddrinker. Demonic qi surged from his palm, coiling around the blade until the scarlet longsword became a pitch-black demonic weapon.
Before his words faded, he stepped forward, moving at极致的 (extreme) speed with demonic mist underfoot. In an instant, he appeared before Lin Yu and swung his sword. The demonic qi converging on Blooddrinker erupted with power rivaling Lin Yu's earlier fire intent.
Lin Yu's gaze remained calm as he unleashed another surge of fire intent. Blazing flames clashed with the descending demonic qi.
Boom! Scarlet flames and demonic energy exploded in the forest, pulverizing trees within a dozen zhang. Demonic qi streaked across the ground, carving deep furrows.
Feng Yifei staggered back, staring at Lin Yu in disbelief. "Impossible! You're only Myriad Manifestations Grade Seven—how did you block that strike?" His eyes swirled with demonic qi, shocked by Lin Yu's resilience.
Su Miaozhen was equally astonished. The National Protector, at Grade Seven, matched a Grade Eight Immortal Gate elder without flinching. Were Buddhist experts truly this formidable?
Lin Yu smiled wryly. "You have many treasures—perfect for testing my finishing move."
"Finishing move?" Feng Yifei froze, a sense of dread rising. Su Miaozhen also looked at Lin Yu in surprise—what trump card could he have left?
Lin Yu willed the Wind Controlling Sword from his sea of consciousness. As he flicked his wrist, raging flames ignited along the blade, like a sun rising from the edge.
"Die!" Lin Yu冷哼 (snorted), wielding the sword to strike with the newly mastered Great Sun Demon-Slaying Sword. A brilliant sunburst bloomed in the forest, shooting toward Feng Yifei. The scarlet qi melted trees, rocks, and soil into a charred trench, arriving before Feng Yifei in an instant.
Only then did Feng Yifei sense the technique's terror. The qi was like a blazing sun, overwhelming enough to incinerate him. He roared, raising Blooddrinker to form a demonic qi barrier.
Boom! The Great Sun Demon-Slaying Sword fell, annihilating the black barrier like spring snow. A scarlet light flashed, piercing Feng Yifei's heart meridian and carving a hundred-zhang trench behind him, setting trees ablaze.
Feng Yifei gazed at Lin Yu in disbelief as his demonic qi dissipated and sanity returned. His cultivation rapidly regressed to Purple Mansion Grade Nine before he collapsed, dead.
"Senior, you saved me again. If you ever need aid, I, Su Miaozhen, will go through fire and water for you," she said, eyes shining with admiration.
"It was merely a favor. Don't dwell on it," Lin Yu replied calmly.
"Senior, you killed an Immortal Gate elder. They won't let this go. Their treasures can trace time—I can't escape their investigation. But rest assured: this started with me. If they pursue it, I'll give my life to atone," Su Miaozhen worried. The Immortal Gate's soul lamps and Smoke Light Mirror were too profound.
"Cauldron Lord, is there a way to block the Immortal Gate from tracing time?" Lin Yu asked inwardly.
"That fellow carried a time-tracing treasure, but it's ineffective against Myriad Manifestations experts. Even if they have similar items, they can't see your face. As for the girl—easy. After I devour that treasure, I'll erase her from this timeline," the Cauldron Lord chuckled.
"Good, then I'll leave it to you." Lin Yu nodded, surprised by the Immortal Gate's resources. He turned to Su Miaozhen. "I can obscure the heavenly secrets. The Immortal Gate won't trace this to you."
"Thank you, Senior, for saving me again!" Su Miaozhen was overjoyed, trusting him utterly.
"Go. I need to use a secret technique to erase your presence here," Lin Yu waved her off.
Su Miaozhen memorized his form deeply before departing.
"Cauldron Lord, it's your turn," Lin Yu summoned the God-Eating Cauldron.
"Pity—his cultivation regressed to Purple Mansion Grade Nine before death. Only his treasures make this worth it," the cauldron said, devouring Feng Yifei, the Smoke Light Mirror, and Blooddrinker with starlight ripples. First refining the mirror, it released ripples that engulfed the battlefield, projecting vivid illusions of Lin Yu, Feng Yifei, and Su Miaozhen.
"Watch closely," the Cauldron Lord chuckled. Starlight beneath the illusions surged, crumbling Lin Yu and Su Miaozhen's figures into the light until they vanished. Only Feng Yifei remained, fighting an invisible enemy—their traces erased from time. Even with time-tracing treasures, the Immortal Gate would find no clues.