Spiritual Lotus Secret Realm.
Clear Water Lotus Pond, the lotuses bloom with a distinct crimson.
The woman in white retracted the water curtain that had displayed a disintegrating vision, and within her empty, pupil-less eyes, a touch of mist appeared.
Long after, she sighed softly, and a pair of pure white lights suddenly emerged within her deep and hollow eyes.
These two rays of light, following the broken void, suddenly appeared in the Carefree Main City’s void of Sword Burial Ancestor Star.
However, these two lights did nothing, and within moments, they returned fruitlessly.
"He... actually didn’t meet with an accident, this..."
The woman couldn’t help but show a hint of surprise in her heart, adding an unusual emotion to her calm face.
It seemed that someone there had unexpectedly survived, contrary to her expectations.
"Ni Chang, do you truly wish for him to be dead?"
An old yet authoritative voice suddenly echoed within the heart of the woman in white.
The woman in white had always been peaceful as a lake, indifferent to everything. Hearing this, she could not help but tremble, then replied in her heart, "I do not know which senior has graced the Spiritual Lotus Secret Realm, Ni Chang has been negligent."
After speaking, the woman in white bowed respectfully, bending her body in a salute.
"There’s no need for that, you are but a remnant body. I came here only to take a piece of your soul and one essence lotus seed."
"My remnant body, which ’he’ has left, cannot..."
The woman hesitated, her face revealing a troubled look.
The old voice was cold and ruthless, commanding with overwhelming authority, "I didn’t ask for your opinion. You’ll give it either way—if not, I’ll kill you and extract your soul to find the method to unlock it. You can’t protect any of it."
The figure of the woman trembled, and her hollow gaze suddenly shifted toward the end of the void, then thoughtfully said, "Senior, are you from the Heavenly Emperor Universe?"
"You are not entitled to know. Continue being a puppet, and you may live on. Then, when the day comes for your opportunity, it shall be yours."
The old voice, still cold yet thunderous, resonated within the woman’s heart.
Struck as if by lightning, her heart was greatly shocked.
Her pupil-less eyes stared into a certain point in the void as if she had uncovered something terrifyingly shocking.
"I know what’s in your heart, hand it over!"
The old voice continued to transmit.
The woman in white pondered for a moment, then with a flourish of her sleeves, all the enchanting lotuses within the Spiritual Lotus Secret Realm withered away.
Subsequently, they all condensed into Spiritual Lotus Seeds. These lotus seeds, amidst a void of flames, burned, fused, and transformed into a genuine Purple Flame Lotus Seed.
The entire Lotus Pond derived a Clear Spring, eventually becoming a soul-like teardrop.
At that moment, the void suddenly twisted, and those two items disappeared.
"Your king, that old thing, has had his soul severely wounded by me; he won’t be able to emerge for a short time. You might try to recover yourself—this is my recompense to you after taking the items."
The old voice once again resounded within the heart of the woman in white, who showed a moved expression on her beautiful face.
Just as she was about to ask something, the void suddenly returned to calm.
A world like chaos, indistinguishable between reality and illusion.
Zhou Yan remembered he had died, but in this darkness, he suddenly regained his sense of self.
Yet, the feeling of heartache remained excruciating.
Not caring meant no heartache. Upon caring and losing, the pain ensued.
Affectionate Sword Dao ultimately perishes. The Three Thousand Great Paths, though different, converge to the same end. Could it be that Affectionate Sword Dao could no longer be pursued?
Zhou Yan’s heart was filled with confusion. But these were not enough to shake his resolve. Drifting aimlessly in this void, he no longer thought of betrayal or solitude, neither Affectionate Sword Dao nor Heartless Sword Dao, Sword Spirit nor Sword Soul, but Yanyan.
He could distinctly feel that Yanyan’s presence had disappeared, and this was his greatest panic.
His heart felt as if crushed under a great mountain, utterly breathless. Such soul-deep pain nearly suffocated him.
In this nameless void, amidst chaos, nothing else existed.
But like a ghost, Zhou Yan’s ethereal body drifted across this expanse, calling out repeatedly.
His voice echoed everywhere in the space.
A sigh, weary with age, seemed to break through all the woes of the world, filled with helplessness.
A figure suddenly appeared before Zhou Yan.
It was the image of an old man, riddled with countless wounds, tattered and frayed.
His body, like a broken skeleton, seemed as if a gust of wind could scatter him to the winds.
His sparse hair was a whirl of silver strands. His face was lined with endless wrinkles, as if carved with cruel, merciless hands, telling untold stories of countless years.
Upon seeing the old man, Zhou Yan’s heart, despite not recognizing him, suddenly began to pound violently.
In that moment, tears poured from his eyes, and he knelt before the old man.
His voice was choked, like a helpless child that had finally found his most steadfast support and most trusted person.
"Alas... I thought I could help you, but I did not expect to make you bear the continuation of my archenemy’s hatred and vengeance. Now, even leading you to such a state of exhaustion..."
The old man’s body wavered, his words laden with regret.
"Master, it’s all insignificant. I’ve come to terms with it, but Yanyan..."