Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 449 – The Soul Summoning Bell Exposed

The seven black-robed cultivators on the back stone tiles began to simultaneously chant strange and ancient syllables. It was like the beating of a drum, short and intense, each one ringing in the air. Within the void, the cold yin chill began to grow and multiply. They were like snakes in the dark and dire water, each one emanating a frightening atmosphere.

Atop the killing curse altar, these faint traces of black aura crept up like living creatures, swaying from side to side as they crept up Qin Yu’s soul phantom. Like chains, they finally twined around him.

At this time, the face of Qin Yu’s soul phantom finally twisted. His pupils widened to reveal inexhaustible fear. He bitterly struggled but he couldn’t extricate himself from the black aura. The tendrils grew increasingly tight. In the end, they finally started to intrude into Qin Yu’s soul phantom, as if they wanted to tear him to pieces.

Four Seasons City, Dao Arena training room.

“Ahhh!” Qin Yu roared in pain, his face flushing red with blood. Blue veins stuck up on his neck like snakes that began to twist and distort.

The agony that spread from his soul nearly crushed his consciousness to nothing. This pain was like his soul had been placed into the bottom of a vat of boiling oil, and flames were blazing at the bottom.

Qin Yu believed he possessed a formidable will, but now he felt as if he could collapse at any time. And the most terrifying thing was that an extreme yin chill aura was gushing out from his soul, freezing its core so that he couldn’t summon any strength to fight back.

On the outside he was being boiled in oil and on the inside he was being frozen into a block of ice. The extreme hot and extreme cold feelings were both mind-bogglingly painful, but when superimposed upon each other, this pain reached the pinnacle of agony!

At this time, in the skies above Qin Yu’s soul, the purple crescent moon that was peacefully shining suddenly burst out with a dazzling radiance. The purple light fell down like rain on the surface of Qin Yu’s soul, immediately extinguishing most of the burning feeling.

The moonlight was like a tranquilly flowing mountain stream. Placed in this cool and calming stream, it barely managed to pull Qin Yu’s consciousness back from the edge of collapse.

But the purple moon could only counterbalance half the pain in Qin Yu’s soul. It couldn’t do anything to the ice cold strength freezing him from inside.

The most this would accomplish was extending Qin Yu’s survival time. In the end, he wouldn’t be able to escape the fate of his soul dissipating into nothingness.

Suddenly, a black aura drilled out from Qin Yu’s soul, reaching out to the purple moon above his head.

The purple moon trembled and cried out loud, as if it were summoning something. In Qin Yu’s dantian sea, the quietly slumbering great blue sun suddenly burst out with endless light.

Hum –

The phantom of a blue sun appeared in Qin Yu’s soul space. Its momentum was immense and mighty; it represented all the light in this world, the utter nemesis of all darkness.

The black aura that drilled out from Qin Yu’s soul screeched in pain as it was immediately purified.

The rays of light from the blue sun shined down on Qin Yu’s soul. It pierced through the surface, falling straight to the depths.

A flow of heat suddenly formed within Qin Yu, instantly sweeping away all of the yin chill strength that occupied the core of his soul.

Shua –

Qin Yu opened his eyes. He slumped forward, gasping for breath in great heaving gulps. His black robes were drenched in sweat and there wasn’t the smallest trace of red on his face.

Immortal Sect! This was absolutely the doing of the Immortal Sect!

Besides them, there was no one else that would go to such great lengths and use such a horrifying curse killing technique to place him in a death trap. Luckily, this time he had the purple moon and blue sun which were able to automatically resist the killing curse. If it weren’t for them, Qin Yu was certain his soul would have perished.

Immortal Sect, hidden temple.

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign looked at Qin Yu’s soul phantom that was wrapped around by the strength of the curse. Half of the soul phantom had turned black already; this was a sign that serious curse corrosion of the soul had occurred. He lightly said, “He will die soon.”

Just as his voice fell, Qin Yu’s soul phantom violently trembled and despair and fear filled his face. It was like he had already realized his own ending.

Purple Moon’s eyes brightened. Ever since becoming the Great Elder of Nineheaven Mirrormoon Palace, she rarely had such fluctuations in her emotions as she did at this moment. But Qin Yu was different…Ning Ling’s memories had already been sealed away. She was now Shen Yuanyin, the unsurpassed proud elite of heaven that had been secretly trained by Nineheaven Mirrormoon Palace, and also the future successor of the Palace Master title. As her cultivation in the Sublime Lost Emotion Code grew increasingly deep, the traces from her past life left behind in her body would slowly fade away until they thoroughly vanished.

Qin Yu was the only flaw. Or to describe it in another term, an inevitable loophole that was created. Although this loophole might not necessarily be able to break the seal, Purple Moon couldn’t take the risk. She had poured too much effort into Ning Ling’s body, and the future of Nineheaven Mirrormoon Palace rested on her shoulders. Only by killing Qin Yu and eliminating all the hidden dangers would all of her troubles disappear and everything she had planned return to the way it should have been.

Suddenly, Purple Moon frowned. She discovered that the darkness contaminating Qin Yu’s soul phantom had begun to fade away a little, and the soul phantom’s eyes were filled with wild joy.

“Nation Sovereign, is there a problem?”

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign had a light look. “I didn’t think that this junior would possess a hidden card capable of resisting the killing curse. But, this doesn’t change anything. It merely means he will suffer more pain before his eventual death.”

As expected, the seven black-robed figures all simultaneously formed hand seals. A black energy drilled out from the killing curse altar and submerged into Qin Yu’s soul phantom. It was like a spear, capable of piercing through and destroying all hindrances.

Purple Moon nodded. But for some unknown reason, a bit of restlessness formed in her heart; this sensation left her feeling anxious.

“Ahh!”

Sad and miserable screams suddenly filled the underground temple. The seven black-robed cultivators standing on the black stone tiles suddenly had black flames ignite on the surface of their bodies. These flames had no temperature and only emitted an endless yin chill aura. Still, these flames could easily burn all they touched into nothingness.

This was because they were the backlash flames caused after the killing curse was defeated. It was a punishment lowered down by the killing curse altar. Even a powerhouse would be unable to extinguish these flames. And even if they did, they would have to pay a great price to do so.

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign’s eyes turned ice cold. He slightly frowned and calmly watched on as the seven black-robed cultivators were reduced to ashes by the black flames. Their bodies and souls were all incinerated.

Purple Moon’s face darkened. There was a cold chill in the air as if space itself would freeze.

The Nether Domain Master slowly said, “It looks like we have all underestimated Qin Yu. For him to grow so much in such a short period of time and even to rank ninth on the Ancient Perishment Decree, it seems the good fortune he obtained is greater than what any of us could have imagined.” action

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign had a serene tone. “I will send people to investigate this matter. Since I must kill Qin Yu, he cannot be allowed to live. Purple Moon, we will delay this to another day and another time. I will certainly be able to complete this task.”

Purple Moon was angered but she knew that the Buddhist Nation Sovereign was even more enraged than she was. The seven people who died today were all expert subordinates of his.

“Good, then I will wait for the news.”

At this moment, Purple Moon frowned as if she were listening to something. She lifted a hand and tapped the void. Space rippled, and a jade slip suddenly flew out. She brought it close and probed it with her divine sense. After several breaths of time, her pupils shrank and she quietly said, “Two great lords, I think I finally understand why Qin Yu was able to resist the Great Curse Art.”

She handed over the jade slip.

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign and Nether Domain Master both examined it. What was recorded within was the newest alchemy missions that Qin Yu had issued from Four Seasons City.

There wasn’t much to say about these missions. What they truly paid attention to were the 27 different kinds of rewards that Qin Yu was asking for.

“This is…” The Nether Domain Master’s eyes brightened. A vast aura rose from his body, like a great mountain capable of supporting the heavens.

To force a top powerhouse to lose his composure and release his aura to the outside world, it could be imagined how great a shock he experienced.

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign’s eyes flashed. He took a deep breath and calmed himself. “Soul Summoning Bell!”

Although Purple Moon had already guessed this, after hearing a confirmation, she couldn’t help but feel thoroughly shocked.

It had to be known that this was considered a supreme soul treasure that had been lost in the endless years of time. In the rumors, it was said to have the power to allow a soul to repeat samsara and become undying. In a sense, obtaining the Soul Summoning Bell was the same as being like an extreme powerhouse and seizing their life from the heavens, becoming undying.

Moreover, the most terrifying aspect of the Soul Summoning Bell was that it could allow its master to constantly pass through samsara and be reincarnated. After experiencing these countless samsara, a cultivator’s background would become incomparably terrifying. Moreover, this accumulated background would only increase with time. In the end, there would finally be a terrifying transformation that allowed its master to achieve an inconceivable realm.

Also, the Soul Summoning Bell had numerous other wondrous uses. If a pinnacle powerhouse were able to obtain the Soul Summoning Bell and displays its might, their strength would rise drastically!

Qin Yu, this brat was just an ant that came from the trivial land of exiles. How could he obtain such a supreme treasure!?

Purple Moon couldn’t help but acknowledge that she felt a bit of envy at this moment, as well as a bit of restlessness.

The envy could be easily explained. As for that restlessness, this was because Qin Yu kept doing things that completely surpassed her expectations – cultivating the Primordial Singular Energy Art without dying was one thing, ranking on the Ancient Perish Decree was one thing, and possessing the Soul Summoning Bell was also another thing!

Anxiousness formed in Purple Moon’s heart. She faintly felt that her initial decision to kill Qin Yu had been the greatest mistake of her life. But in the blink of an eye, this thought was suppressed into her heart and her expression turned firm and ice cold. With things having come this far, there was no longer any way to turn back. Qin Yu could only die, and the dead were of no threat.

“I want it!” The Buddhist Nation Sovereign said. An unprecedented burning heat was in his voice.

The Nether Domain Master hesitated for a moment and nodded. “Within the Immortal Sect, the Buddhist Nation Sovereign is the strongest powerhouse when it comes to the soul. After obtaining the Soul Summoning Bell he will become an existence that can suppress this era. Regarding this…I have no opinion.”

Purple Moon lowered her head and kept silent. Although she was one of the three leaders of the Immortal Sect in name, there was a great disparity between her strength and that of the other two. Because of this, she was doomed to have no qualifications to meddle with the choice of who the Soul Summoning Bell would go to.

There was a trace of regret in her heart, but this regret soon turned to joy. The Buddhist Nation Sovereign was known as being the source of mercy. But, this mercy was different from what the common people understood it as.

Qin Yu had the Soul Summoning Bell – that made him someone the Buddhist Nation Sovereign must kill. Moreover, he had to do this before the master recognizing process was finished. Otherwise, even if he killed Qin Yu, the Soul Summoning Bell would vanish in between the world. It would be countless years before it condensed once more.

And once Qin Yu died, her worries would be gone!

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign’s eyes flashed. “In this world, only my Immortal Sect knows the secret of the Soul Summoning Bell. So when it comes to killing Qin Yu, we cannot cause any great movements. Otherwise, if others become aware of this, it will certainly cause great waves.”

“I agree. We need to proceed in secret and make sure not to draw the attention of anyone.” The Nether Domain Master was well aware that if news of the Soul Summoning Bell was revealed to the world, it would be enough to cause the Immortal Sect, Demonic Path, and all the other great influences and top powerhouses to compete for it. In particular, Qin Yu was in the Dao Arena – that was the territory of Solitary Westgate.

The two glanced at each other and they could see the dread in their eyes. Solitary Westgate was indeed one of the most terrifying individuals beneath the heavens. Even up until now, there had yet to be anyone capable of forcing him to use his full strength. He was like a vast sea of stars, boundless and limitless!

Even other pinnacle powerhouses didn’t have full confidence against him. To reduce any possibility of chaos was naturally the best choice.

The Buddhist Nation Sovereign lightly said, “Purple Moon, it looks like in the end you’ll have to be the one to make a move.”

The Nether Domain Master nodded. “That is the best way to proceed.”

Purple Moon’s eyes were ice cold. “Rest assured, I will definitely kill him!”

After surviving a brush with death, the rejoicing Qin Yu didn’t know that because of the reward list he issued out, one of his great secrets had been exposed.

This wasn’t because he was being careless, but because the method to make the Soul Summoning Bell recognize a master was recorded in the Monster Raising Mystic Art, and he was the only one who had the real version.

Deep undercurrents appeared without warning, rushing through the shadows straight at Qin Yu!