The Imperial Palace

After gathering the five-metal raw materials, Lin Yun did not hurry to leave Yue Capital. When he heard Hua Yun describe the disappearances, something had stirred within him.

So there is still a karmic tie here left unresolved. Looking toward the Imperial Palace of Yue Kingdom, Lin Yun understood.

Back then, the Black Fiend Sect had sent men to the Lin Family's valley to capture Lin Yun for a Blood Sacrifice. Although he had turned the two cultists' inner demons against them and killed them, a karmic tie with the Black Fiend Sect had nevertheless formed.

For over a decade, Lin Yun had been busy cultivating and searching for the Ancient Teleportation Formation, forgetting all about this karmic tie. Now, just as he was about to leave Heavenly South, chance had brought him to Yue Kingdom's capital, where he happened to hear that the Black Fiend Sect was capturing unaffiliated cultivators for Blood Sacrifices.

Lin Yun knew it was time to settle this karmic debt. The Black Fiend Sect Master's hour of reckoning had come.

However, he was in no hurry to storm the Imperial Palace right away. It was still daytime, and charging into the inner palace now would inevitably stir up towering waves of commotion. Thus, Lin Yun decided to sever the karmic tie there late at night.

Watching the faint demonic aura rising from the direction of the Imperial Palace, Lin Yun suddenly thought of Han Li.

I wonder when Han Li plans to run this Instance Dungeon? He always drags his feet, so we probably won't run into each other, right?

Before long, it was late at night.

Having found a spot outside the city to refine five metals essence, Lin Yun put away the pieces of gold essence he had finished refining and prepared to head to the Imperial Palace to sever his karmic tie.

Yet the moment he entered Yue Capital, he detected chaotic fluctuations of spiritual energy within the Imperial Palace.

"Surely it couldn't be that much of a coincidence?" Seeing the spiritual energy fluctuations that clearly indicated a battle between cultivators, Lin Yun could not help muttering, "Who storms a palace as soon as it gets dark? Shouldn't they wait until the dead of night, when everything is quiet?"

He immediately rode his invisible sword light into the Imperial Palace.

Inside the Imperial Palace.

Seven Yellow Maple Valley disciples were locked in battle with the Black Fiend Sect's Four Great Blood Attendants. Seeing that they were no match for Han Li and the others, the Four Great Blood Attendants each transformed into a Blood Cocoon.

Han Li and the others hurriedly unleashed their signature methods, raining all manner of magical artifacts and Daoist spells down on the four cocoons as though they cost nothing.

Unfortunately, after a dazzling barrage of attacks, the four Blood Cocoons remained completely unscathed, standing safely before them.

After a moment of astonishment, they had no choice but to bring out their trump cards.

They launched a furious bombardment against the Blood Cocoons with precious high-grade talismans, Talisman Treasures, and magical artifacts.

When Lin Yun arrived, they had just broken through one of the cocoons.

A white monster halfway through its demonic transformation burst out of the shattered blood cocoon. With a roar, it released a cloud of freezing mist from its body, then vanished into it.

Han Li hurriedly took out various protective magical treasures to shield himself, warning the others, "Careful, he's concealed himself!"

Possessing an Invisible Sword Talisman Treasure himself, he had seen through the Ice Demon's plan at a glance.

Just as Han Li finished speaking, a great mass of Five-Colored Rosy Clouds suddenly appeared around a Yellow Maple Valley female disciple, enveloping her.

Before they could consider what these suddenly appearing Five-Colored Rosy Clouds were, or whether they were some trick of the Black Fiend Sect cultists, a sharp white claw struck them viciously. Light flashed across the Five-Colored Rosy Clouds, dissolving the claw's attack into nothing.

Only then did Lin Yun reveal himself. Startled by the figure that had suddenly appeared, Han Li and the others instinctively prepared to attack. But after taking a closer look, Han Li exclaimed in delight, "Senior Brother Lin!"

At his words, the others all stopped what they were doing.

Lin Yun pressed his hand down, and a five-colored finger of light over ten feet long appeared over the Ice Demon, bearing down hard. It then transformed into a Five-Element Restriction, pinning the Ice Demon so firmly that he could not move. With another beckoning gesture, Lin Yun recalled the Taiyi Five-Smoke Gauze protecting the Yellow Maple Valley female disciple.

Only then did he look at Han Li and say, "Junior Brother Han, we meet again."

Seeing that the Ice Demon had been subdued, Han Li finally asked the smiling Lin Yun, "Senior Brother Lin, what are you doing here?"

Rather than answering Han Li's question, Lin Yun looked at the other three Blood Cocoons, whose occupants were still undergoing demonic transformations. "Let me deal with those other things first."

The Four Great Blood Attendants were all hosts for Blood-Congealing Five-Element Pills, and each happened to cultivate a different type of five-element demon fiend energy. With their bodies full of five-element demon fiend qi, they would have taken considerable effort for other Foundation Establishment cultivators to defeat. In Lin Yun, however, they had met their nemesis.

Moreover, the three Blood Cocoons stood motionless, making truly excellent targets.

With a sharp cry, Lin Yun formed a hand seal and pointed, draining the surrounding spiritual energy to condense a mass of Great Five-Element Extinction Divine Light above his head. It flashed four times in succession, shining upon the three Blood Cocoons and the Ice Demon already sealed by the Five-Element Restriction.

Under the astonished gazes of Han Li and the others, the Four Great Blood Attendants instantly became four piles of powder.

Yet a flicker of surprise suddenly crossed Lin Yun's face. With a wave and a beckoning gesture, he drew four differently colored beads out of the four piles of powder.

"These beads are the Blood-Congealing Five-Element Pills? To think they could escape the effect of the Great Five-Element Extinction Divine Light reversing the five elements."

Lin Yun summoned the four beads into his hand and examined them closely. A moment later, understanding dawned on him. "The Blood-Congealing Five-Element Pills actually contain five-elements yin fiend qi. No wonder they escaped my Great Five-Element Extinction Divine Light."

Like astral qi, yin fiend qi was a form of worldly primordial qi with extreme properties. It was difficult to refine in the same way as ordinary worldly primordial qi, so naturally, the incomplete Great Five-Element Extinction Divine Light could not dissolve it so easily.

"However, these four strands of five elements yin fiend energy contain demonic qi, making them five-element demon fiend energy. They'll need further refining before I can use them."

After putting away the four beads of fiendish qi, Lin Yun noticed Han Li watching him nervously, looking as though he wanted to say something but was holding back.

"What is it, Junior Brother Han?"

Han Li naturally understood that the four beads Lin Yun had obtained were Blood-Congealing Five-Element Pills. They supposedly aided Core Formation, which was precisely why he had waded into these muddy waters.

Seeing that Lin Yun had already put away the Blood-Congealing Five-Element Pills, Han Li thought of his attainments in the alchemy dao and comforted himself. Senior Brother Lin should be able to work out how to use the Blood-Congealing Five-Element Pills. When the time comes, I should be able to find out from him.

Only then did Han Li's fellow disciples approach. Song Meng laughed as he thanked Lin Yun, then introduced him to Third Senior Brother and Seventh Junior Sister. "Many thanks, Junior Brother Lin. Third Senior Brother, Seventh Junior Sister, this is Junior Brother Lin Yun."

With lingering fear, he added to Lin Yun, "If you hadn't suddenly appeared, Junior Brother Lin, we might have suffered heavy casualties."

Lin Yun had already met Song Meng at Golden Drum Plain Camp, but he had never met Liu Jing or the others before.

The woman called Xue Hong, whom Lin Yun had saved with the Taiyi Five-Smoke Gauze, and another man thanked him repeatedly for saving their lives.

"We're all Yellow Maple Valley disciples. There's no need to stand on ceremony with each other," Lin

Yun said with a smile.

Han Li rubbed his arm and said, "Senior Brother Lin, I never expected to run into you here."

In his experience, Lin Yun always appeared and disappeared like a ghost. He had even encountered him in an underground mine, so seeing him in Yue Kingdom's Imperial Palace was hardly strange.

At the same time, he secretly transmitted his voice to Lin Yun. "Senior Brother Lin, you're all right, aren't you? That Senior Nangong from the Covering Moon Sect didn't do anything to you, did she?"

Lin Yun was about to speak when he heard Han Li's voice transmission. His expression abruptly froze, and he hurriedly transmitted back, "Who did you say?"

Han Li promptly told Lin Yun how Nangong Wan had approached him to ask about Lin Yun. "That's what happened. Sigh... Master suddenly sent me to the capital then, so I didn't have time to notify you, Senior Brother. Now that I see you're safe and sound, I can rest easy."

After hearing Han Li's account, Lin Yun could not help wondering whether Nangong Wan really intended to take revenge on him.

But looking for me through Han Li? Why does that seem so strange?