Chapter 51: Let it go? Take it! (Please vote for monthly tickets! Please subscribe!)

“Moon-Yin Vine Demon?”

Lu Yao murmured under her breath, her expression darkening significantly.

Shao Heng saw through her and immediately lifted her chin, a mocking sneer playing on her lips. She scoffed, “Oh, are you afraid?”

“I have a treasure bestowed upon me by my Master; I do not fear this vine demon. What about you? If you're scared, get lost.”

Using Jiang Yunjiang's tranquil and dignified face, she spat out venomous words.

When traveling abroad, identity is something one creates for oneself.

A first-stage disciple without a backing naturally lacked the utility of an identity backed by a Nascent Soul True Monarch; announcing a prestigious name could always make others hesitate.

Furthermore, since Jiang Yunjiang had caused her so much trouble during her mortal period using the [Heart-Confusing Pupils], Shao Heng showed no mercy in using disguise arts to ruin her reputation now.

“You sharp-tongued brat.”

Lu Yao let out a cold snort. Standing atop her longsword, she formed hand seals, and instantly, a massive palm of concentrated mana condensed, pressing downward!

Only first-stage cultivators were permitted into the secret realm due to the restrictions of the small world's laws; the strength of the creatures within was also capped at the first stage.

This vine demon had also reached the perfection of the first stage and possessed an intelligence no weaker than a human's. Because it feared the death energy carried by Shao Heng, and because she had not taken the initiative to attack, they had maintained a temporary peace, but it remained extremely frustrated.

Now, Lu Yao was attacking with such ferocity, and that mana palm was clearly going to strike it. Did the vine demon have no temper?

Eighteen dark green vines shot out like spears, slamming into the mana palm and instantly shattering it.

Lu Yao's brows furrowed. She inwardly cursed herself for being provoked by that girl Jiang Yunjiang and making a reckless move.

The longsword beneath her feet shrank slightly before returning to her palm. As she slashed downward, her mana transformed into the phantom image of a giant sword, clashing against the dark green vines.

At the same time, she attempted to flee, only to see the female disciple standing up, drawing a bow and releasing an arrow. The speed was so immense that in the blink of an eye, a volley of ten thousand arrows seemed to be unleashed.

Shao Heng’s gaze was icy, using the arrows to lock down every possible escape route for Lu Yao.

It wasn't that Lu Yao couldn't deal with the mana arrows, but with the vine demon acting as a frontal threat, she simply couldn't free her hands. For a moment, she fell into an awkward predicament.

The vine demon produced layers upon layers of dark green silk threads, persistently contending with Lu Yao, refusing to let the matter rest.

Shao Heng pulled the Thousand-Strike Bow into a full moon shape. Her eyes were like those of a hawk. The silver-white arrow, condensed from pure mana, sat upon the string, growing increasingly solid as black energy crawled over it, weaving intricate patterns as it continuously accumulated power.

Trapped within a large cocoon woven from vine threads, Lu Yao’s mana surged around her, transforming into various colored, brilliant stars.

Once thirty-six stars had condensed and merged into the longsword in her hand, etching star patterns onto the blade, her mana reached its peak.

“By my command!”

She flicked her fingers and swung her sword, instantly slicing the vine cocoon in half. Starlight erupted brilliantly, and the vine demon, struck heavily, hurriedly retreated.

Shao Heng decided that if she wasn't going to fan the flames, she might as well just call herself Jiang Yunjiang from now on.

She released her fingers, and the long arrow pierced through the air.

With her current cultivation, she could wield the Thousand-Strike Bow with ease. Although the power of this single shot could not yet be multiplied a thousandfold, it was at least eight hundred times stronger.

While scavenging in the markets, she had learned a technique called [Locking Entrapment], which allowed her to use her spiritual sense to firmly lock onto Lu Yao's body, making her impossible to evade.

Lu Yao had just finished accumulating her mana; she was in that awkward state where her old strength had dissipated but her new strength had not yet risen. The arrow pierced through her right chest, splashing blood everywhere!

“You seek death!”

A ferocious light flashed in Lu Yao's eyes. As the mana within her body condensed, she stepped upon the Seven Stars and, in a flash, appeared before Shao Heng, striking out with a palm toward her heart.

Her Crimson Jade Armor was pushed to its limit. After taking the blow, Shao Heng was sent flying backward. The soft armor was covered in cracks, but it had absorbed eighty percent of the impact.

“Explode!”

The arrow lodged in Lu Yao's right chest was wrapped in a layer of purple light magic, even sealing her blood. Consequently, it had failed to exert its full power and cause significant injury.

Lu Yao was about to mock her, but she saw the black patterns on the arrow suddenly turn into living things, burrowing into her flesh and consuming all life force in their path. Then, her Amethyst Technique was broken, and the arrow instantly detonated.

The woman instantly lost half her body, and the vine demon emerged once more.

“Good, so fragrant! The blood of a cultivator... I haven't tasted it in sixty years.”

“I want to drink it!”

The vine demon had reached the perfection of the first stage and could naturally speak human language. Hearing that hideous voice, Shao Heng used a blood contract to transmit her voice to Ao Chuan.

“Haven't you found it yet?”

“Soon, soon! I am almost able to use the Dragon Pupil Technique to find the location of this vine demon's core.”

For demon cultivators, once they step into the perfection of the first stage, their mana and essence of blood begin to condense, forming something similar to the "Yellow Sprout" of human cultivators: the "Demon Core." This is an indispensable requirement for a demon to ascend to the second stage.

Shao Heng could only rely on the Frost Sky to make the vine demon wary of her; if the demon truly devoured Lu Yao and obtained the essence of her cultivation to advance further, it would create a dangerous variable.

When Lu Yao came chasing them, Shao Heng had no intention of letting either her or the vine demon go.

Shao Heng immediately activated the Moonlight Escape Technique, leaping behind Lu Yao in an instant.

Taking advantage of her weakness to strike a killing blow, thirty-six Jade Bee Needles were shot toward the woman's chest.

“Wait! Junior Sister Jiang, we have only had some minor disputes upon our first meeting; it is not as if we have deep-seated hatred. I am a core disciple of the Wenxing Sect; why must we dwell on grievances?”

Lu Yao still had life-saving methods. She sacrificed a bronze treasure mirror, which, when struck by moonlight, emitted a clear, brilliant light that blocked the incoming Jade Bee Needles.

“See? Neither of us can do anything to the other. Rather than harboring resentment and fighting endlessly, why not just let it go?”

Let it go?

Shao Heng only knew how to take it down!

“Soul-chasing, spirit-seizing. Suppressing the Anfire essence. Ruler of the Sun Palace, Venerable of the Star Mansion.”

Shao Heng formed hand seals and chanted an incantation, circulating her remaining mana to manifest fire magic.

A black-feathered, three-legged crow flew out from three feet above her head. As it spread its wings, it rolled up a torrent of golden flames and charged toward Lu Yao.

[Golden Crow Embracing the Sun Visualization] Variant: Fire Hell Spirit Transformation.

If she hadn't exchanged for this low-grade immortal technique specializing in slaughter before entering the secret realm, Shao Heng truly wouldn't have been confident in killing this woman on the spot.

In fact, without luring the vine demon into the fray, Shao Heng wouldn't even have had the chance to wound Lu Yao given the massive gap in mana.

But no matter how dishonorable the method, she was the one holding the advantage now!

Having learned from this woman that killing in the secret realm would not lead to being discovered via divination, her killing intent had long since surged.

The golden-fire black crow pierced through the bronze mirror and finally killed Lu Yao on the spot.

Simultaneously, the vine demon, which had exhausted most of its mana fighting Lu Yao, felt its mental guard drop for a split second upon seeing Lu Yao killed by Shao Heng.

Ao Chuan, who had located the demon core using the Dragon Pupil Technique, was already poised to strike. He immediately exerted bloodline pressure to intimidate the creature, then used True Dragon techniques to forcibly seize the demon core.

The demon lacked sufficient mana; if it had fought head-on, it would surely have been drawn into a struggle and defeated by the vine demon. But it didn't matter—under Shao Heng's training, Ao Chuan, a two-month-old dragonling, had already learned how to perform sneak attacks, and quite effectively at that.

The True Dragon Demon Technique inherited in his bloodline was remarkably powerful, sufficient to win in a single strike.

The little white dragon held a pale green, quail-egg-sized round core in one claw, looking at Shao Heng with triumphant vertical pupils.

Shao Heng's previously recovered mana was once again exhausted. She felt powerless, but she gritted her teeth and persisted, searching through the female cultivator's belongings.

After checking both storage bags, Shao Heng's face lit up with immense joy as she spread out the fine silk map in her hands.

“No wonder she told me to scout the way; there actually is a map!”

She had heard rumors that the terrain of the Profound Moon Secret Realm changed constantly, but this map clearly marked the concentrated locations of the "Shattered Moons."

“The Wenxing Sect is skilled in divination and geomancy; perhaps one of their elders used a technique to obtain this?”

Shao Heng speculated, though she had no conclusion.

But she didn't care.

“I didn't expect such a pleasant surprise. With this map, collecting the Shattered Moons will be much easier. According to Elder Zhao Tang, the Shattered Moons contain not only the power of the Great Yin but also the power of the stars.”

“Now that I have absorbed the moonlight and the sunlight, if I can add the power of the stars, perhaps I can truly explore the mysteries of my own aptitude!”