Paragon of Sin

The sudden battlefield that was the Main Hall was torn, blasted, and covered in vibrant colors as the fusion of light, mana, energies, essence, and gravity created an extreme field of haze that, without a powerful Spiritual Sense, made perceiving through an utter nightmare. Without the grey radiance enveloping the attendants, the casualties would have totaled all those who were here except a select few under the guard of Mystic Overlords or Sages.

Wei Wuyin quietly observed Sage Painted Star and Sage Avenging Heart, these two Sages of the Knightly Dao Pavilion, and his eyes shone with a contemplative light, suspicion, and interest overflowed.

Shang Wanqing had explosively become the center focus as the shift was immediate. If the assassins had used Shang Wanqing to bait Sui Yuan into action earlier, then this was a genuine attempt at kidnapping that was roughly 90% successful, leaving just the need to escape by avoiding capture and defeat. This mountain-slinging assassin was ruthlessly efficient, dealing with Skytouch and Zai Yingwen in a few blows.

WHOOSH!

He glided across the void with his hooded cloak like a four-colored shadow, executing a top-tier movement-type Ascension Art assisted by that Heavenly Treasure, the energy of the heavens and the Laws of the world flourished intensely.

Sage Painted Star didn't have a Heavenly Treasure; with his paintbrush, a bona fide high-level Mystic-World armament, within his hands, he erupted with a colorfully vibrant Mystic Aura that tainted the air and light once more, using concise strokes to paint a serpent. With a burst of mystic power, the serpent transformed into an earthly brown, exuding pure earthen power, and then rushed toward the mountain-slinging Sage with a soundless roar.

The mountain-slinging Sage made an almost inaudible sneer, and using their hands, stroked with two decisive palms. Each palm blasted the serpent apart by half, needing only two to demolish it into crumbled dirt. He rushed through the crumbled dirt, intent on giving Yuchi Yisang a vicious beating not inferior to his fellow student.

However, Yuchi Yisang wasn't just a painter, but adept in tactics and creative infusion of elemental powers. With a spin of his brush, the earthen power abruptly transformed into droplets of scalding water, hot and boiling. With a swing, the scalding water enveloped the mountain-slinging Sage in a cubical cage of liquid.

The process was almost instant, catching the mountain-slinging Sage by surprise. They didn't panic. The cage was met by an immediate stomp of ferocious strength, yet the water absorbed it all. Then, the captured Sage erupted with Mystic Power and expanded their ward thousands of times. Or tried to.

The ward melted as it formed from the intense heat, serving to expand the scalding water, not breaking through in a single area.

"?!" It was at that moment that the mountain-slinging Sage felt genuine shock and surprise. The Ascension Art that Yuchi Yiseng used contained absorption through consumption, melting through contact, and malleable properties, an intermix of the Law of Fire and Water.

Does he have a Heavenly Treasure?

However, there wasn't the slightest sign of a Heavenly Treasure.

Wei Wuyin's Celestial Eyes glowed as he watched the execution of the originally simple yet complex Ascension Art. When cultivators entered the Heavenly Saint Phase, they gained access to the Heavenly Gate, enabling them to absorb and refine Heavenly Radiance to bolster their strength, and this served as the required foundation to build a connection to the True Soul and get access to the peak of the Ways of Mysticism, becoming a true Ascended being as an Ascendant Saint, otherwise referred to as a Mystic Overlord!

Somehow, without a Seed of Law, without a Heavenly Treasure, with only a high-grade Mystic-World armament, Yuchi Yiseng was accessing the genuine power of Law!

This was not abnormal, simply archaic, and proven somewhat inefficient by the modern evolution of cultivation, similar to how Sages often relied on Seeds of Law to ascend despite being an unneeded requirement to traverse further into the Mystic Ascendant Realm.

And this inefficiency could be cleanly observed by the absurdly rapid exhaustion of Yuchi Yiseng's Mystic Power and refined Heavenly Radiance; he was tapping into the quintessence of his foundation! All to access heavenly power he had no authority to do so!

"What an interesting fellow," Wei Wuyin lightly commented as the mountain-slinging Sage was cornered with a single complex move. Desperation was slowly seeping in as the mountain-slinging Sage began to launch aggressive and broad counterattacks to escape, losing their calm as thunderous surges of explosive booms erupted repeatedly. The cage of scalding couldn't be broken so easily!

"My Ascension Art draws power from the heavens, it's not something you can escape easily. Surrender Miss Wanqing and I'll leave you a path to life," Yuchi Yiseng coldly offered as his expression grew paler by the second. By this point, Shang Liu and Azure Rain finally caught up with the slowing down of the battle. The latter rushed to the blackened and decaying Sui Yuan.

Concern overwhelmed Azure Rain's heart as she hurriedly applied all sorts of alchemical products to her, forcing her to consume a few pills, and then use her own mystic power to aid in the refinement and digestion of each product. Sui Yuan's vitality already showed signs of recovery. Without the arrow in her chest, permeating its toxic and decaying might throughout her body, she simply needed a little boost from external aid to assist her condition and prevent further deterioration.

"You're okay. I got you," Azure Rain embraced Sui Yuan with a tender touch as she placed them inside her defenses. With her skills, Sui Yuan should leave to see another day. But her foundation might have suffered an inestimable amount of damage, and the road to recovery should be extremely long, costly, and painful.

At the same time, Shang Liu looked to Wei Wuyin, who was casually sipping his drink amidst the chaos while observing everything like a spectator. Seeing the nonchalant and unphased demeanor of Wei Wuyin, all Shang Liu had was a heart of self-mockery.

Wei Wuyin sent via transmission, "As a guest, I won't allow your other guests to die. My Songli would certainly dislike that."

"..." Shang Liu was unsure whether he should be breathing a sigh of relief or feel a sense of conflict. It was clear that Wei Wuyin was at a level where all this could have been solved with a few actions, yet he understood how unreasonable it was for him to request Wei Wuyin to take action without a personal. He was entirely unaware that Wei Wuyin had strolled across the Main Hall and solved countless deaths and issues.

Only after heaving a sigh, turning to observe the situation of the crowd, and witnessing the shine of grey glow enveloping bodies, did Shang Liu understand that Wei Wuyin had acted. Fortunately, the situation had been resolved by his students. He didn't have to ask for further assistance.

BOOM!!!

The cage exploded! Yuchi Yiseng was blasted back as he used his paintbrush to shield himself, causing it to snap in two, and his body was sent into the wall, forming a human-shaped hole, and back out into the Dark Void yet again.

The mountain-slinging Sage was holding a cyan talisman that emitted a soulful radiance. The marks on it were divinely complex and intricate, genuinely the first time that Wei Wuyin had witnessed such an object. There were runes that he understood despite never seeing them before, a trait of his he had always found mysterious until realizing it originated from his Magi lineage and knew it was a Resonance Qi Talisman!

It was a very basic talisman that was forged containing the strength of a Resonant Soul Realm, a true Supreme Sage! It only contained their refined power without any focus or direction, yet the strength of a Supreme Sage in its unmolested form carried was godly might. It likely contained 0.00000001% of a Supreme Sage's power but that was enough. More than enough!

The Heavenly Gate access that Yuchi Yiseng possessed suffered raw feedback, causing a backlash that almost severed his connection to the heavenly realms! He wasn't just sent out. He was unconscious! His soul suffered great damage and his chances to ascend to the True Soul Phase were catastrophically ruined.

"Junior Brother Yiseng!" From below, Zai Yingwen finally recovered a little to breach back into the palace's Main Hall, yet he couldn't approach as the soulful radiance was scorching to his skin and senses. He had only seen Yuchi Yiseng blasted away from being effectively blinded.

Before he could even speak, the mountain-slinging Sage directed a trace of the talisman's power toward Zai Yingwen. Instinctively, Sage Avenging Heart used his incomplete Heavenly Treasure and all his mystical might to form a multi-layered defense. Within a blink of an Enlightened Sage's eye, the spear collapsed and his body was enveloped.

When the flash of power ended, Zai Yingwen's body was nearly unrecognizable as his face was partially missing and his eyes had lost all signs of life. His soul similarly suffered great and incomprehensible harm. He wasn't blasted away, simply focused on standing with only half a leg and a leaky stomp.

The shift in circumstances was dizzying!

Shang Liu's eyes widened uncontrollably! Who was this Sage? What Supreme Sage gave them a Resonant Qi Talisman?! Before any of these questions could be answered, the talisman dimmed and collapsed. It took down two Sages with definitive and irrefutable results and then turned into crumbled ash. Then, the mountain-slinging Sage sneered before rushing out of the palace through a hole.

Panicked at the sight of his daughter leaving his life forever, Shang Liu decided to throw away his pride for his daughter. "World-Saint Neo-Dawn, I ask that you quell this chaos immediately. The Knightly Dao Pavilion will owe you a debt of endless gratitude!"

"..."

Wei Wuyin was taken aback by the Resonant Qi Talisman. He had only learned about that talisman through the memories of Zhan Jiangwen, Enlightened Sage Springfield, and World Prophetess Bai. He knew this was the lowest type of talisman that only contained a wisp of a wisp of a Resonant Soul Realm's power, lacking direction or further refinement with the Laws. It was as basic as an Essence Pill.

But as cultivation rose, the preciousness of each iota and wisp of energy for an expert was increasing in value. It might take a Supreme Sage decades to a century to extract and create a talisman-like this, losing that time in cultivation and forcing themselves to spend further time to recover that expended energy for it and who knows how many failed attempts.

"Hm," Wei Wuyin hummed slightly as he placed his cup down. Initially, Wei Wuyin was waiting for this moment of Shang Liu to ask for assistance, granting him leverage to buy the Continent of the First Knight and receive personal guidance from Sage Painted Star to assist Yue Songli as an instructor on her artistic journey, but the situation had developed so frighteningly fast.

Well, he still reached half his goal, but Sage Painted Star was half-dead if not entirely ruined. He could only sigh internally. He slowly rose from his seat, wondering why that person hadn't taken any action yet. Was his guess wrong?

Just as he was about to take action again, his eyes moved to the destroyed ceiling and saw another asteroid coming. "So the Blessed has finally decided to show!"

A sword cry shook the heavens!

A sharp rain of sword power descended upon the mountain-slinging Sage!

1765 Chapter 1758: Like A Sword Immortal

The world that had been twisted by great galactic-suppressing might of multiple cultivators, turned into a battlefield of incomplete Heavenly Treasures, heavenly powers, and superior Mystic Power was split and severed as sword light rained into the Main Hall. Their target? The mountain-slinging Sage!

While they were on the verge of leaving the scene, having completed their goal of capturing Shang Wanqing, they were hindered once again by another party, and their body was besieged by an array of sword lights. They panicked with a soft exclamation, hurriedly waving their hands before them before the shower of sword light overwhelmed them.

Each flash of sword light was sharp, serene, and supreme. The mountain Sage was pushed into the ground by the incessant descent. Gently and slowly, the rain let up as if the coming of dawn after a rainstorm, granting the mountain-slinging Sage some reprieve. Amidst the chaos of their last action of using the Resonance Qi Talisman, effectively harming the souls of two Sages, the only sounds that could be heard were the agonized pants of the mountain-slinging Sage and the faint reverberation of a sword cry in the air, hanging with lingering intent like an executioner's blade.

From an opening above, a single figure descended. The gazes of all those who could react turned to this figure with shock and awe or other curious emotions. Many were baffled by this sudden development. Another? Again?! Just as the situation seemed to take a turn for the worse, with all three of the Knightly Dao Pavilion's taught and trained Sages suffering inexplicably horrific fates, another person with great strength dared to arrive!

They didn't know if this person was a friend or foe either, so their hearts were pounding ferociously in their chests!

The figure floated down slowly. It was a young man wearing a pristinely white swordsman. His handsome visage was dashing to the utmost, borderline unrivaled, with a demeanor of flawless heroism exuding from every breath, from every step, and from every movement of his dark pair of eyes that contained a peaceful sharpness that highlighted his eternal gracefulness.

His long, loose grey hair with the front tied into a ponytail accentuated his looks, granting him a type of unrestrained, free-spirited, and unrivaled aura of a fallen immortal visiting the mortal realms. He seemed unreal despite being tangible to the physical and spiritual senses, like a dreamy haze extracted from an ancient yet timeless story.

With a sheathed sword in his left hand, his right hand free of anything but air and a dull grey ring, his eyes swept the scene as the surrounding chaotic space was quelled as if it was a distorted rebellion, becoming clear and normalized. Then, his gaze lingered on the floor that was littered with sword scars and a hunched-over body that was quivering slightly.

"Ugh!" A grunt of pain resounded softly as the body lifted itself, the four-colored hooded cloak was almost torn into tatters, barely concealing the identity of the figure, the connection it had with the heavens was undeniably severed.

A single strike severed the heavens!

"Where is Wanqing?" Three words left his lips as a newcomer, and his voice was downright strong, not too deep yet not too light, and pleasant to listen to, pleasant to follow, and unpleasant to ignore.

Boom!

The mountain-slinging Sage unleashed a tempest of mystic power as they exerted their full strength, releasing their Mystic Aura, shifting the fundamentals of the world with it, no longer hiding behind cloaks or concealments.

It was clear that Sage was a powerful Sage that built their foundation on a unique breath of fourth-tier True Breath of a Sage during their ascent. Moreover, they had a strong, sturdy foundation, and given their Resonant Qi Talisman usage, they were not lacking in wealth and backing.

"You!" Finally, they spoke, exposing the voice of a cold feminine rage.

"A woman?!" Shang Liu was not expecting that. For women, the Catalyst Body of a female was not very useful without some very peculiar methods with specific requirements. They would do well to find the male equivalent, the yang to the Catalyst Body's yin. Why was such a powerful Sage trying to grab Shang Wanqing?! Was it for someone else?

The young man who resembled a fallen sword immortal calmly looked over at the mountain-slinging Sage's tempestuous rage with indifference. Unbothered by her overwhelming strength.

Wei Wuyin's eyes glowed with interest. When this young man arrived, he felt a few mysterious auras pin him down from seemingly nowhere, fleeting and elusive, yet at the ready with clear intent to involve themselves. This didn't bother him, but the young man's cultivation made him curious.

This young man's cultivation base was not superior to Skytouch's! He was only an Original Magistrate! A Heavenly Saint at the sixth stage of the Mystic Ascendant Realm! While there was no false Sage power enveloping him, his strength far, far, far exceeded his cultivation base. A single move rendered a fourth-tier Sage gasping for breath, their Heavenly Treasure destroyed!

"Eh?" It seemed the mountain-slinging Sage finally adjusted her senses, discovering the fact of the young man's cultivation as well. A moment of feeling ridiculous lingered in the air before she spat out a dark laugh of self-ridicule. "A measly Original Magistrate? Who are you even?" Her rage cooled and her aura turned frighteningly indifferent.

She lightly touched her cloak, sending a burst of energy to repair it within an instant, and then she pressed her foot on the scarred and cracked floor. The entire Main Hall trembled, sending waves of air down to the continent, shaking the very sky and dispersing clouds!

"Die!"

She executed an Ascension Art, conjuring the nine ways of Mysticism all together, summoning forth solid mana to form hundreds of earthly brown anchor chains with sharp, flesh-ripping serrated blades hungering for blood and life. They roared toward the young man with murderous intent.

"Me?" The young man straightened the palm of his free hand, manifesting a burst of firelight, before lightly swinging it diagonally. A swathe of sword light erupted into existence, slicing onward with unstoppable momentum.

The mountain-slinging Sage's entire body shook with surprise as she watched her Ascension Art sliced into harmless bits numbering tens of thousands by Heavenly Saint-level of mystic power.

Wei Wuyin's eyes brightened considerably. He sensed it immediately—a Nascent Sword Soul! Moreover, not just a Nascent Sword Soul, but the Profound Energy that it created at higher levels! It was, by his estimation, not at the third level like his Element, nor was it merged with an external object, but genuinely fused into his cultivation base.

A fourth-level Nascent Soul!

The Profound Saber Energy came from his Profound Saber Meridian acquired at the third level of the Nascent Saber Soul, and this allowed his Saber Energies generated to be a level above, similar to how alchemical energies from an Alchemic Soul were a tier higher than self-cultivated, method-made alchemical energies!

This had subtly improved Wei Wuyin's saber in significant ways, contributing to his peak 'Mortal Vs Mystic' victory against Enlightened Sage Springfield.

Even the mountain-slinging Sage was unable to believe it as she pressed both hands together and was blown back a few feet, screeching to a harsh stop with lacerations on their arms. The sword light was not only sharp but impossibly fast! It was truly fast!

"You can call me Su Yi," the young man announced his name directly, and yet his name invoked an unimaginably unexpected emotion!

"You! Su Yi?! Supreme Sages can not act here!" Bitingly spat the mountain-slinging Sage. There was panic overwhelming her voice, and the intent to flee was born immediately.

Supreme Sage?!

Shang Liu was stunned; the young man before them was only an Original Magistrate, far from a Supreme Sage. Moreover, what did this young man want Shang Wanqing for?! He felt a dreaded sensation in his heart. Instinctively, he turned to Wei Wuyin who he had just beseeched to act. The starry-eyed foreigner's gaze stayed fixed on the young man.

Wei Wuyin had no idea how to reach the fourth level of the Nascent Saber Soul, not even the Heavenly War Spirit or any of the Sages he had claimed was aware of its cultivation method, and he was slowly making steps in the dark, the progress being horrendously slow, yet there was a clue before him right now!

Moreover, it was from a Blessed! What other opportunities did he have?

A Blessed that can fight against a fourth-tier Sage as a Heavenly Saint! This was unprecedented! Excluding himself and the future Prime Ascendants, of course. But several dozen factors contributed to his their strength. What constituted this Blessed's heaven-defying strength?! Not even Shang Liu could intervene in a fight between Sages as a Mystic Overlord of 200,000 years!

The differences between cultivation realms become immensely chasm-like as realms and stages rise, so just leaping past to fight a single stage of cultivation in the Mystic Ascendant Realm on equal terms was already unbelievable, but two stages and showing a clear dominance?!

Su Yi didn't respond to the mountain-slinging Sage's accusation, only calmly asking yet again: "Where is Wanqing?" The tip of his fingers ignited with firelight, sword light danced majestically through his joints, and his eyes grew piercing as Sword Intent leaked out of his eyes as a smoky light.

"Tch! Screw you!" The mountain-slinging Sage pressed both hands outwards before unleashing a tsunami of raw mystic aura, flooding the Main Hall in a fraction of a second before kicking off and executing a movement-type Ascension Art that split through the restrictions established like butter, spatially shifting across the void in a blink of an eye.

"You think you can get away?" Asked with an indifferent voice, Su Yi's figure flickered into shadowy lines before vanishing, similarly spatially shifting!

Wei Wuyin silently thought at this moment.

"Don't let them escape!" Shang Liu pleaded in panic. "Shang Wanqing expressed interest in becoming your concubine! It's why she refused to come earlier—I refused to allow her to marry someone not of her age or even dare to propose it!" Shang Liu said something that Wei Wuyin hadn't expected at all!

"What?" Not in a million years did Wei Wuyin expect himself to be involved here with a legitimate interest. Shang Wanqing was a Catalyst Body, just like Xi Ning! She was a cultivator's fortuitous encounter!

Shang Liu clenched his fists tightly as the concern and desperation his eyes nearly exploded, "She would rather be a concubine of yours than a wife of a young talented genius…"

"..." Wei Wuyin.

"..." Shang Liu.

They exchanged a stare.

There was no need to explain why. As men, they both knew why. When hadn't Wei Wuyin encountered this before?!

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Wei Wuyin shook his head with a heavy breath. He wasn't in the habit of forcing marriage on anyone, nor was he so ridiculous to offer a price for her body, treating her as a commodity, but a Catalyst Body wanting to be a concubine of her own free will? Not an official wife? That was a no-brainer on that offer! Especially given how beautiful she was!

For any male cultivator!

For any emperor!

"I'll be right back then," Wei Wuyin heartily laughed as his aura slowly changed, his left arm releasing an impossible-to-perceive sinful light of lust, no longer restrained! Just as he moved, so did those auras that had locked onto him!

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