Hua An's pupils constricted sharply the moment he heard the name "Hua Yin." The doubts that had been lingering in his mind were suddenly torn open by those two words.
Over the past two years, the Hua Lineage has suffered heavy losses of the Suppression Annihilation Realm disciples throughout the Skeleton Star Sea. Those deaths were extremely clean; some bodies were found incomplete, and some didn't even leave behind a complete trace of their Fate Soul.
The locations of the attacks were also completely random, occurring outside the city, along ancient roads, in the Star Skeleton Wasteland, and even on the fringes of Lineage territories. The only common thread that could be barely identified was that the victims' cultivation levels were mostly insufficient to truly threaten cultivators at the Eternal Silence Realm.
The person who made the move was extremely cautious, never appearing in the same place repeatedly, and leaving no trace that could be used to identify them. The Hua Lineage investigated, pursued, and even set traps several times, but the person was never caught.
But now, a stranger at the Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage, after attacking and killing him, actually mentioned Hua Yin's name.
Hua An's breathing suddenly became heavier. It was him! The one who had been secretly hunting down Hua Lineage disciples for the past two years!
The thought had barely crossed Hua An's mind when he suddenly realized that the surrounding scenery had changed. Chen Jinrong no longer used the same direct attack method as before. He knew very well that the first strike had proven that Hua An possessed a life-saving item bestowed upon him by Hua Yin.
While continuing to rely solely on brute force would still grant the opponent an absolute advantage in cultivation level, it might give them a second chance to retrieve the treasure or send a message. Therefore, as Hua An spoke, he had already stepped into the narrowest part between the two surrounding skeletal peaks, and his Eternal Silence Realm Dao Foundation silently merged with this skeletal terrain.
Beneath his feet lay layers of pale bone accumulated over millions of years. On either side stood ancient skeletal peaks that stretched across the long street. The cracks left by the two collisions had shaken out a large amount of dilapidated Dao traces deposited deep within the bone layers. Chen Jinrong slowly spread his five fingers, and the scattered bone fragments around him suddenly froze.
The next moment—whoosh—!!! All the shattered bones on the entire secluded street simultaneously rose into the air! Tens of thousands of pale bone fragments spiraled upwards along the two skeletal peaks on either side, while dark remnants continuously poured out from the cracks created by the first blow, quickly entangling with the sky full of shattered bones.
Chen Jinrong did not create another battlefield out of thin air; he directly borrowed the massive wreckage that already existed in the Skeleton Star Sea, incorporating everything around him capable of bearing the weight of destruction into this attack.
Hua An's expression changed drastically. The scattered bone fragments had lost their original chaotic shape, and crisscrossing killing marks closed in from all sides, sealing off all his possible escape routes inch by inch. Furthermore, a large patch of dark, gray residue pressed down from above.
Each individual force, taken alone, was not enough to drive him to despair, but when they were simultaneously drawn by Chen Jinrong, Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage, the entire narrow area transformed into a killing field that was constantly converging towards the center. At the very center was Hua An.
"Damn it!" Hua An looked up abruptly, no longer having time to guess. His right hand suddenly reached into his sleeve, and a black-gold light shot out! Buzz--! An ancient shuttle, less than the length of a palm, swelled in the wind.
The ancient shuttle was a heavy black-gold color, with sharp ends and layers of ancient patterns covering the middle section. As soon as it appeared, it began to spin rapidly around Hua An, and the black-gold radiance quickly formed a complete defensive barrier. The previous Primordial Supreme Treasure was already covered with cracks and could not withstand another collision. At this moment, this black-gold ancient shuttle became a protective item that Hua An could use immediately.
Just as the Black Gold Ancient Shuttle was fully unfolded, Hua An finally raised his head and stared intently at Chen Jinrong's extremely ordinary face. A name that had been suppressed on the Hua Lineage's investigation list for two whole years was squeezed out from between his teeth.
"You're that golden-robed disciple of the Primordial Dao Clan— " A look of surprise flashed across Hua An's eyes. "Chen Jinrong?! It's you?!" The last bit of warmth vanished from Chen Jinrong's face.
"You only realize it now." His fingers clenched suddenly, and the killing intent surging from all directions erupted. "Too late!!!"
Fragments of bone rained down on the center with a deafening roar. Chen Jinrong stared at Hua An, his eyes chillingly gloomy.
"Hua Yin's lackey." The words were slowly uttered from his mouth, his cold tone like a viper's hiss, each word carrying the hatred suppressed for two years, penetrating to the bone.
The next moment—the killing intent descended!
Boom! The first wave of bone energy crashed head-on into the Black Gold Ancient Shuttle. Clang! A piercing metallic clang suddenly pierced through the two skeletal peaks. Hua An's arms sank sharply, and the ground beneath his feet caved in.
The black and gold shuttle spun rapidly, countless black and gold patterns intersecting in front of him, forcefully deflecting the first wave of killing intent to both sides. A large number of bone fragments grazed the defensive wall and blasted into the surrounding skeletal peaks, causing large areas of bone rock to explode, with gray and white debris flying everywhere.
It's blocked! A glimmer of hope had just risen in Hua An's eyes, but Chen Jinrong didn't even flinch. His right hand continued to press down.
"Give it to me—" His five fingers clenched suddenly, "Shatter!"
Boom! The second wave of killing intent followed immediately. This time, it wasn't just a sky full of shattered bones; the entire area of gray remnants, stirred up by the attack, pressed down on the Black Gold Ancient Shuttle.
The black-gold radiance on the surface of the ancient shuttle was immediately forced inward, its rotation speed slowed down, and the shuttle began to emit a low hum. Hua An gritted his teeth and pushed forward with both hands at the same time, desperately trying to maintain the black-gold ancient shuttle. However, the gap between the True Annihilation Realm · Advanced Stage and the Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage was gradually becoming apparent.
Chen Jinrong also felt the resistance. This black-gold ancient shuttle was far more resilient than he had expected. He couldn't tear it open in the first round, and he was still holding on in the second round. The fierce look in Chen Jinrong's eyes intensified, and he completely suppressed the Dao Foundation of the Eternal Silence Realm within his body. The surrounding floating bone fragments paused for a moment.
The next instant—all of them burst towards the center! Break!
Boom!!! The black-gold ancient shuttle trembled violently. Crack! A crack appeared. Hua An's face turned deathly pale instantly. "What?!" Crack! A second one! Crack crack crack—the cracks spread wildly along the middle of the ancient shuttle.
Hua An desperately urged it on, but the black-gold light curtain had already begun to crack on a large scale. Chen Jinrong continued to exert killing intent, one layer after another, until finally all the power converged on the deepest crack in the center of the ancient shuttle.
Boom!!! The Black Gold Shuttle—completely shattered!
Countless fragments of black gold shot out in all directions. Hua An was the first to be hit. "Pfft--!" Blood gushed out. His entire body was struck head-on by the remaining killing force, and a dull sound of bones cracking came from his chest. His figure flew backward for dozens of feet, smashing through several protruding ancient bones before crashing heavily to the ground. Bang!!! Dust billowed up.
Hua An lay prone on the ground of shattered bones, his arms trembling as he tried to prop himself up, but he only managed to lift himself half an inch before his chest contracted violently again. "Pfft!" Another mouthful of blood spurted out. Before he could catch his breath again—the person in front of him had vanished.
Hua An felt a chill run down his spine. The next instant, Chen Jinrong appeared before him. It was too fast. The oppressive aura of the Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage completely enveloped him. Chen Jinrong looked down at Hua An lying at his feet, his eyes devoid of any pity. In the past two years, he had done this too many times: confirm identity, find an opportunity, strike, kill, and then leave immediately. This time should be the same.
Chen Jinrong raised his hand, his killing intent rapidly gathering in his palm. One strike and Hua An would be dead. However, just as Chen Jinrong was about to completely crush Hua An's Fate Soul with this attack, his movement abruptly stopped, his brows furrowing sharply.
"Wrong..."
Just as the power approached Hua An's Fate Soul, he clearly sensed something else within it—an extremely deep restriction. It neither actively protected Hua An nor retaliated; it was simply deeply embedded in the root of Hua An's Fate Soul, entangled with Fate Soul intensely. Chen Jinrong's pupils constricted slightly.
"Soul Thrall?"
The moment the two words left his lips, the killing intent in his eyes froze for a moment. Then, his five fingers moved rapidly, forming several ancient hand seals between them. A wisp of extremely fine Daoist rhyme of eternal Stillness Dao probed into the outer edge of Hua An's tattered Fate Soul, without forcibly breaking through the restriction, but quickly identifying it by following the trace of its original aura.
A moment later— Chen Jinrong's face turned completely grim. Deep within that restriction lay a source he could never mistake: Hua Yin. Chen Jinrong abruptly lowered his head. "You are the Soul Thrall of that old thief Hua Yin?!"
Hua An's chest heaved violently. Upon hearing this, he paused for a moment, then managed a smile through his mouth full of blood. "Pfft—!" Just as he was about to speak, he spat out another mouthful of blood onto the ground.
But Hua An's smile didn't disappear. He struggled to raise his head, his pale face stained with blood. The fear that had been forced out of his eyes by the Eternal Silence Realm was forcibly suppressed, replaced by an almost mocking expression.
"Chen Jinrong..." Her voice was weak, yet her tone was barbed, "If you dare to kill me..." Hua An gasped for breath, blood streaming down her lips, "Master will know immediately."
Chen Jinrong's gaze gradually turned cold. Hua An saw his expression, and the corners of her mouth stretched even wider.
"At that time... the master will naturally arrive." He stared at Chen Jinrong, a hint of contempt surfacing in his eyes, which were already somewhat unfocused due to his severe injuries. "He will avenge me."
As soon as he finished speaking, Hua An even let out a soft chuckle. The sound was low, but it pierced Chen Jinrong's ears. His expression clearly told him—do you dare? You've been hiding for two years, afraid of being found, haven't you? Now that you finally know you've captured Hua Yin Soul Thrall, do you still dare to treat him like you did with ordinary Hua Lineage disciples?
Chen Jinrong stood there, his face ashen, a dark shadow slowly creeping over his eyes. A moment later—the corners of his mouth slowly lifted. The smile was faint, almost imperceptible, but in Hua An's eyes, it inexplicably chilled the little bit of confidence that had just risen in his heart.
"Oh?" Chen Jinrong leaned down slightly. "Is that so?"
Hua An's eyelids twitched slightly. Chen Jinrong stared at him, the smile on his lips growing increasingly sinister.
"You really think—" his voice suddenly turned cold, "That I wouldn't dare to kill you!!"
The sneer on Hua An's face finally froze. In that instant, he saw something clearly in Chen Jinrong's eyes for the first time. This person—truly wanted to kill him.
Hua An's pupils began to tremble. The fear that had been forcibly suppressed finally resurfaced in his eyes. His fingers, which were bracing against the ground, subconsciously moved back an inch, and his lips moved.
"You..."