Yes.
When Yu Lian finally saw that faint but unmistakable beam of light, his hearing suddenly returned as well. He could indeed hear the clang of metal on metal. A moment ago, it had seemed to come from the distant horizon, barely audible—but in the blink of an eye, it rang right beside him.
If it wasn't a trap, then this was a chance to break through!
Yu Lian perked up at once. Even if it was a trap, he had to spring it. If Emperor Ilesel had been hacked down to nothing but a spirit, was being besieged by the girls, and was about to have his home ransacked by the swarm, yet still had enough attention to control a steel puppet of a Void Lord, banish Yu Lian, and lay a trap on top of all that, then he'd have lost fair and square. He'd just have to accept it.
He had only just thought that when the sound vanished.
But Yu Lian was certain it hadn't been his imagination.
The indescribable spatial currents kept tearing at the "etheric aggregation" that formed the essence of his existence. Violent ripples of energy dissipated amid the chaotic tugging, like boiling water poured into a flowing sea of molten lava.
Space was still rejecting him, but at least it was no longer trying to erase him completely. This was merely a struggle between "annihilation" and "reformation."
So although he could still be reduced to nothing at any moment, the most dangerous part was over.
Yu Lian "gazed" proudly at that sliver of light. It now seemed to have turned red, as though it had shifted from a path of hope to a glimpse into the abyss. But it could not shake his resolve.
*My will is sturdier than the needle that