The Roar of Nine Nether Blood

“You all… do you know your transgression?”

Jiang Jinyue’s tone was flat, as if she were merely commenting on the fine rain outside the eaves, understated and light.

However, the moment her voice fell, a mighty, irresistible, formless, and intangible Golden Core pressure descended with a roar!

Lin Xiaoxiao and Ye Jinghuang, two grand cultivators whose cultivation had reached the peak of Foundation Establishment and who were powerful enough to wield the authority of an Inspector in the Immortal Alliance, were instantly and utterly confined, like flies trapped in amber, unable to move a muscle.

When Jiang Jinyue no longer concealed her cultivation, her prestige resembled the Nine Heavens’ star river pouring down, boundless and vast.

Before this absolute power, even figures such as themselves suddenly felt the illusion of being as insignificant as dust, utterly negligible.

Not only were their muscles and bones locked solid, but even their thoughts seemed frozen like a cold pond, unable to conjure a single notion of resistance or plea for mercy, leaving only bone-chilling coldness and reverence.

This was a Golden Core Dao Lord.

Ascending to the heavens in a single step, separating mortals from immortals from that moment on.

Their power defied reason, almost akin to the legendary Heavenly Emperors who commanded the cosmos and ruled over all creation.

Lin Xiaoxiao tightly clutched her Natal Artifact, Tianya, gripping it so hard that her knuckles turned white and faint blue veins emerged.

Yet, that divine weapon, which usually responded to her will as if an extension of her arm, now felt as though separated by a thick, untouchable, imperceptible barrier, silent and cold, offering no response to her call.

Ye Jinghuang was in an even worse state.

Having not even drawn Qi into her body just days prior, her temperament remained unrefined, and her mind almost instantly succumbed under this overwhelming might.

Her pupils dilated, and her consciousness went blank.

However, even in such a desperate situation, the two women’s figures remained stubbornly upright, not bending a single knee.

Before the bamboo pavilion, Jiang Jinyue’s eyes narrowed slightly, her gaze falling upon the two figures pinned in place by an unseen force.

The depths of her eyes were profound, like an ancient well unperturbed, yet also like hidden currents surging beneath the surface, allowing no one to glimpse her true emotions.

Silence flowed, like a stream winding over bluestone.

After a long while, as if she had finally made a decision, she subtly raised her fair hand, and the ancient lantern that had once sealed the Immortal Alliance group silently appeared.

“You shall be confined for two or three days, to quietly reflect upon your transgressions.”

Before her words fully faded, the lantern flame abruptly surged, transforming into two icy-blue streams of fire, carrying an aura capable of incinerating all, and fiercely lunged towards Lin Xiaoxiao and Ye Jinghuang.

Especially within the stream of flame assailing Lin Xiaoxiao, there was an indescribable, almost sacred, chilling essence intertwined.

Jiang Jinyue withdrew her gaze, as indifferent as if brushing two specks of dust from a table.

Her pristine white figure moved slightly, about to vanish into the tranquil bamboo pavilion behind her, returning to the side of the only being that truly held her heart.

****

A tremor, originating from the deepest depths of the soul, erupted violently!

This was not power, but pure “filth” and “madness,” as if a ferocious beast, slumbering for eons, had its inverse scale (TL Note: ‘Nilin’ or ‘dragon’s inverse scale’ refers to a dragon’s most vulnerable spot, touching which provokes its wrath. It symbolizes a person’s ultimate taboo or sensitive point.) touched, suddenly awakening within Lin Xiaoxiao’s body!

Nine Nether Blood!

Under the absolute pressure of a Dao Master (TL Note: A master of the Dao, usually referring to a powerful cultivator who has grasped the fundamental laws of the universe) intending to completely “erase” its existence, this dormant forbidden bloodline finally ceased its evasion, letting out a hysterical roar!

The blood of filth and madness, originally hidden in various corners deep within her body, suddenly gathered, condensed, and boiled!

An invisible, distorted force field instantly spread, making space groan under the strain, and light itself bent eerily!

The level of “filth” emanating from the deepest essence of life surprisingly contended with Jiang Jinyue’s newly attained Golden Core Dao韵 (TL Note: Dao Yun refers to the profound aura, rhythm, or essence of the Great Dao perceived or wielded by a cultivator. It’s the manifestation of their understanding and mastery of universal laws.)!

It forcefully tore a subtle, fleeting, almost imperceptible ripple in the Golden Core domain, which was absolute, like a celestial canopy!

This Nine Nether Blood within Lin Xiaoxiao had, for a brief instant, re-manifested the authority of the Nine Nether Lord!

Though it was only for a flash.

“Ugh, ah—!”

An inhuman wail tore through the silence.

Lin Xiaoxiao’s eyes abruptly transformed into abysses that devoured all light, while dark purple demonic patterns wildly spread and twisted across her pale skin like living things!

The chilling, soul-shaking aura of the Nine Nethers surged forth like ink dripping into clear water, rapidly permeating the area!

A sudden, utterly bizarre change had occurred!

Even Jiang Jinyue, powerful as she was, saw her icy-blue pupils contract instantly!

Her Golden Core domain, previously as serene as a deep pool and flawless as a towering peak, had now been forcibly torn open by the profound, defiling power from the deepest Nine Nethers, leaving a minute crack!

Though it vanished in an instant, like a momentary ripple on water stirred by the wind, the twisted, blasphemous essence of that power, so bizarre in its level, could briefly contend with her recently attained, heaven-like Golden Core Dao韵 (TL Note: Dao Yun refers to the profound aura, rhythm, or essence of the Great Dao perceived or wielded by a cultivator. It’s the manifestation of their understanding and mastery of universal laws.)!

This was no ordinary demonic energy!

Its “evil,” its “filth,” pointed directly to the origin of life itself, as if it were the primordial chaos and sludge that existed since the dawn of creation, capable of polluting and eroding even the purest spiritual energy of heaven and earth!

In that moment, Mo Tingbei and Lin Xiaoxiao’s overly intimate actions, which she had previously found perplexing, suddenly made sense.

Especially the fact that Lin Xiaoxiao had stayed in Mo Tingbei’s cave abode until she had fully drawn Qi into her body after joining the sect.

‘Was it to conceal the Nine Nether aura on her? Senior Brother, did you even hide this from me? Were you afraid I’d cleave your beloved disciple with a sword?’

“Ugh, ah—!”

Lin Xiaoxiao’s pained howl was no longer human; it sounded more like the roar of a dying beast, or the resonance of myriad resentful souls from the depths of the Nine Nether Yellow Springs.

Her formerly delicate features twisted and deformed under the frantic spread of dark purple demonic patterns.

In the depths of her abyss-like eyes, a chilling, faint purple glow, seemingly capable of devouring souls, abruptly ignited!

Her long hair wildly danced without wind, strands of it even taking on an ominous dark hue, like burning shadows.

The Nine Nether aura emanating from her body surged like a breached River Styx, powerfully assailing Jiang Jinyue’s Golden Core pressure.

The invisible force field twisted even more violently, and the air emitted “hissing” wails, as if being corroded by unseen venom.

The spiritual herbs and trees meticulously arranged before the bamboo pavilion visibly lost their luster at a rapid pace, their leaves curling and withering, their vitality instantly stripped away!

She did not immediately move to suppress it, but instead simply manipulated the pure white lantern flame, tentatively striking various parts of Lin Xiaoxiao’s body.

She was like the most cunning hunter, capturing every essence and flaw revealed by this forbidden power.

This brief standoff, however, was like purgatory for Ye Jinghuang.

Her mind was already on the verge of collapse under the Golden Core pressure, and now, being assaulted at close range by that violent, defiling Nine Nether aura, she felt as if struck by a heavy hammer!

Before her consciousness completely sank, she felt as if her soul was being entangled and dragged by countless cold, slimy tentacles, pulling her down into a bottomless abyss.

She couldn’t even scream, her pupils completely lost focus, and her body softly fell backward like a delicate glazed doll.

Lin Xiaoxiao’s condition was even more bizarre.

Demonic patterns had already crawled up her neck, spreading towards her heart.

Her body trembled violently, not from fear, but because two utterly opposite yet equally domineering forces were furiously clashing and tearing within her!

The Nine Nether Blood’s instinct roared, demanding to break free from all shackles and destroy everything; while Lin Xiaoxia’s own resilient, almost stubborn will, desperately resisted this insane erosion from the depths of her bloodline.

Her fingertips still clutched the Tianya sword hilt, her finger bones emitting creaking sounds under the excessive force, as if it were her last anchor connecting her to ‘self.’

The ancient lantern suspended mid-air, its flame flickering intensely.

The stream of lantern flame imbued with a sacred aura, which had lunged towards Lin Xiaoxiao, actually emitted a “sizzling” sound upon contact with the surging Nine Nether filth!

The sacred white light and the defiling purple-black demonic energy fiercely clashed, annihilating each other, erupting in dazzling halos and grating, unpleasant noises.

That trace of sacred aura seemed to possess a natural restraint over this filth, like boiling water poured on snow, temporarily curbing the further outward spread of the demonic energy, but only enveloping Lin Xiaoxiao within an even more chaotic and painful vortex of energy.

Jiang Jinyue’s gaze was fixed intently on Lin Xiaoxiao, especially on her abyss-like demonic eyes and the demonic patterns spreading across her chest.

Her fair hand, at some unknown moment, had quietly risen, her five fingers splayed, tips swirling with terrifying spiritual energy imperceptible to the naked eye, yet subtly twisting the surrounding space.

This was not overwhelming pressure, but highly condensed, extremely compressed Dao韵 (TL Note: Dao Yun refers to the profound aura, rhythm, or essence of the Great Dao perceived or wielded by a cultivator. It’s the manifestation of their understanding and mastery of universal laws.) of killing, like an unsheathed, peerless sharp edge, capable of severing karma and annihilating souls with but a thought!

‘It seems, Senior Brother, your worries have come true. I will indeed kill your beloved disciple directly.’

Looking at Lin Xiaoxiao properly for the first time, Jiang Jinyue, for some reason, suddenly had some strange thoughts.

‘What a pity. Senior Brother must have poured a lot of effort into you, right?’

‘He once told me that his greatest dream was to become a righteous hero, but unfortunately, he buried that dream with his own hands. You are probably the continuation of his dream, aren’t you?’

‘You’ve done quite well. Even with the restrictions Senior Brother personally set to help, to resist the bloodline’s erosion for so many years, you haven’t disgraced the title of a Senior Brother’s disciple!’

‘It’s just a pity…’

“An uncontrolled bloodline… cannot be allowed to remain.”

Her voice was colder than ten thousand years of profound ice, sharper than the frigid winds of the Nine Nethers.

The resolve in her words had already sealed Lin Xiaoxiao’s fate.

Before such a forbidden power completely lost control and defiled a region of heaven and earth, eradicating it along with its host was the most righteous and cleanest choice, in accordance with the Heavenly Dao.

However, just at the critical juncture, the split-second before the annihilating Dao韵 (TL Note: Dao Yun refers to the profound aura, rhythm, or essence of the Great Dao perceived or wielded by a cultivator. It’s the manifestation of their understanding and mastery of universal laws.) from her fingertip was about to strike—

In Lin Xiaoxiao’s abyss-like eyes, filled with demonic energy, a faint, almost negligible gleam of clarity, belonging to “Lin Xiaoxiao” herself, flickered with extreme difficulty and stubbornness, like the last candle flame swaying in a tempest!

Immediately after, a mournful cry, filled with endless pain, struggle, and a hint of sorrow from the deepest part of her soul that even she hadn’t detected, intermittently squeezed out from her twisted throat:

“Kill me… don’t let Master… see… me like this.”

This voice, as weak as a dying candle in the wind, struck Jiang Jinyue’s unperturbed heart lake like an invisible thunderbolt!

This plea for death, as if possessing incredible magic, caused the annihilating Dao Charm (TL Note: Dao Yun refers to the profound aura, rhythm, or essence of the Great Dao perceived or wielded by a cultivator. It’s the manifestation of their understanding and mastery of universal laws.), condensed to its absolute peak at Jiang Jinyue’s fingertip, to pause for an extremely subtle, almost imperceptible moment!

In the depths of her icy-blue pupils, the ten-thousand-year-old unmelting ice, for the very first time, clearly reflected a ripple named “shock”!