Directly Blown to Bits

Watching the skull hurtle toward him, Ye Yun's lips curled slightly. He abruptly stopped forming hand seals, drew a breath, and shouted, "Go!"

After Ye Yun's "Go!" rang out, the sound didn't fade. Instead, it grew louder, echoing through the sky. At the same time, the thunderclouds overhead instantly turned violent. Bolts of lightning twisted and plunged down, and then thick, barrel-sized streaks of lightning rained down on Blood Grudge Ancestor and his skull as if they cost nothing.

The moment Ye Yun stopped forming hand seals, Blood Grudge Ancestor sensed something was wrong. But before he could react, lightning came crashing down from above. His magical treasure, the Blood Skull, lasted only three seconds before being smashed to pieces. Though he summoned his formidable magical power to withstand the relentless thunderbolts, lightning was the natural bane of all evil. Blood Grudge Ancestor was stronger than Ye Yun, but the lightning had him thoroughly suppressed. Forget counterattacking—he was lucky just to hold off the furious barrage.

By rights, Blood Grudge Ancestor was stronger than Ye Yun, and Ye Yun didn't even have a magical treasure. Ye Yun should have been the one at a disadvantage. But Blood Grudge Ancestor was the one getting battered. It shouldn't have happened, yet it was happening all the same. The reason was simple: Ye Yun was attacking with lightning, and Blood Grudge Ancestor was covered in resentment. As the saying went, like attracts like: all the lightning was drawn to the resentment clinging to Blood Grudge Ancestor. That turned Ye Yun's move, which should have been an area attack, into a single-target attack. Still, defeating Blood Grudge Ancestor with this move would be difficult. Ye Yun's magical power was nowhere near as abundant as that of an old monster like Blood Grudge Ancestor. If the fight dragged on, Ye Yun would definitely lose.

Ye Yun understood that, too. So, after using the lightning to pin Blood Grudge Ancestor down, he frantically poured lightning energy into the silver crystal in his hand. It was one of the things he had found during the past three months: a Lightning Crystal.

A Lightning Crystal was a mineral similar to a spirit stone, formed after being bathed in lightning. Because it was constantly exposed to lightning, it contained an abundance of lightning energy and could store it as well. But everything had its limits, and this Lightning Crystal was no exception. Ye Yun was trying to push it as close to its limit as possible, then give it to Blood Grudge Ancestor. Once the Lightning Crystal reached its limit, it would explode with a "boom." Its power was no less than that of a smaller missile, and it also had paralyzing and scorching effects.

Just as Ye Yun was about to convert all the magical power in his body into lightning energy and pour it into the Lightning Crystal, the silver crystal finally began to change. It flickered with a faint silver light. Ye Yun knew it had reached its limit, so he immediately summoned all his strength and hurled it away. As the Lightning Crystal neared Blood Grudge Ancestor, Ye Yun changed his hand seals and forced the lightning in the sky to strike the crystal. Then he immediately turned and fled at full speed.

"Boom!"

Ye Yun had flown only a hundred meters when a tremendous roar sounded behind him. The powerful shock wave that followed sent him staggering through the air. He tumbled several times before he managed to steady himself. The powerful electric field created by the Lightning Crystal's explosion made every hair on his body stand on end, like a hedgehog's quills, and raised goosebumps all over him.

Once he'd steadied himself, Ye Yun hurriedly turned to look behind him. The dark clouds had dispersed from the spot where they'd just been. Blood Grudge Ancestor, who had been so arrogant and invincible moments before, was nowhere to be seen. Every house within fifty meters of where he'd stood had collapsed, and most of the ones farther away had fallen as well. The Lightning Crystal's power was plain to see. Blood Grudge Ancestor had been standing about twenty meters up in the air, after all. Had they been on level ground, no house within a hundred meters would have escaped destruction. Fortunately, the area was remote and uninhabited; otherwise, the casualties would have been severe. As for the men Blood Grudge Ancestor had brought with him, there were probably only a few left.

Ye Yun didn't think Blood Grudge Ancestor could have survived an attack like that, but he still forced himself to inspect the battlefield despite his exhaustion. In the end, all he found among the collapsed buildings were a few charred bones.

After confirming Blood Grudge Ancestor was dead, Ye Yun left without hesitation. His magical power was nearly depleted, and if the cult had other demonic experts—just one with the Jade Pure Fifth Layer would be enough to wear him down—he'd be in trouble. He wasn't about to take that risk. He could search the battlefield once his magical power had recovered.

He couldn't return to the inn, since someone might be waiting there. The other inns in the city weren't safe either, so Ye Yun flew straight out of town and disappeared into the woods beyond. He found a clean, secluded hollow in a tree, set up a few precautions, and began meditating to recover his magical power.

Time passed. When the sun rose above the horizon again, Ye Yun emerged from the tree hollow and stretched comfortably. His magical power had fully recovered, and he'd even made some progress. He was sure he'd break through to the Jade Purity Ninth Layer within a few days.

Ye Yun felt the pure magical power coursing through his body, then rubbed his growling stomach and smiled. "I've been sitting here for ages. I'm getting hungry. I'd better find something to eat first."

Worried someone might find him, Ye Yun had fled quite a distance. There was no shortage of game in the woods, and he always carried a variety of seasonings. Before long, a fragrant roast chicken was ready. He tore off a golden drumstick and took a bite.

Ye Yun was still growing and had a big appetite, so one plump chicken only just filled him up. But there might be a fight later, and it was best not to eat too much. This was enough. He put out the fire and flew back to the city.

The first thing Ye Yun did after returning to the city was go back to the inn he'd stayed at before. To his relief, all his belongings were still there. But he didn't dare leave them at the inn again. If he lost the lightning-struck wood, he'd lose his mind.

After settling his bill, Ye Yun left the inn. As he walked along the crowded street, he could clearly sense a tense atmosphere. He followed a group of demonic cultivators and listened in for a while before he learned what had happened.

It turned out that Blood Grudge Ancestor, whom he'd killed the night before, was the leader of the Blood Grudge Cult. With their leader dead, they needed to appoint a new one. But they were all unruly and refused to yield to one another, so they'd started fighting. They had no time to worry about anything else, which was why Ye Yun's belongings had been left untouched.

"They're fighting among themselves? That's great. Now I can pick out whatever I like from their treasury without worrying." After learning what was going on, Ye Yun grabbed a member of the Blood Grudge Cult, found out where their headquarters was, and headed straight there.

When Ye Yun slipped into the Blood Grudge Cult's main hall, he found its leaders arguing in the meeting hall over who should become the new leader. Their subordinates were gathered outside, leaving Ye Yun free to reach the treasury. To his dismay, there wasn't even anyone guarding it.

Thanks to "WeChat User 11***629" for the tip! This is the first tip this book has received—I'm so touched! The only downside is that I don't know if it's a problem with the website, but no matter how hard I look, I can't find this reader's name. I can only copy what's displayed. I'm really sorry about that.