With a swish, swish, swish!
Three sounds of air being torn apart echoed through the battle, as three daggers, slipping through the gaps between the guards, shot towards Ye Cangtian.
Ye Cangtian's heart tightened, and he swiftly swapped the dagger in his hand for the Dragon Soul Blade.
With three crisp ringing sounds, three sharp daggers struck the blade and fell to the ground.
"You came, but you brought gifts, which makes me quite embarrassed."
Xuan Si stared at the Dragon Soul Blade, his eyes immediately recognizing its extraordinary nature, filled with greed and mockery.
"The blade is here. Whether you can obtain it depends on your skill."
Ye Cangtian snorted coldly, his great saber suddenly whirling, forming a fan shape in front of him.
It was the "Sweeping Across a Thousand Armies" from the Yin Yang Sky-Breaking Saber technique, amplified by the sharpness of the Dragon Soul Blade, pushing his attack to its limits.
The guards before him could not withstand it; blood erupted, and they were sent flying backward.
Immediately after, Ye Cangtian spun his saber, and the guards behind him, despite their shock and preparedness, were still heavily wounded.
The great saber's attack range was vast, and coupled with the spiritual energy attached to the blade, they had no time to dodge, falling to the ground with cries of agony.
"Die for me!"
After two consecutive powerful attacks, Ye Cangtian entered a brief pause. It was then that Xuan Si's roar came.
A long sword had appeared in Xuan Si's hand, transforming into endless sword flowers that thrust towards Ye Cangtian's back.
"Hmph! All flash, no substance. You still want my life?"
Ye Cangtian let out a cold snort and, without looking back, raised his great saber behind him to act as a shield, blocking the incoming attack.
With a clang, Ye Cangtian suddenly turned, his left hand revealing the Skeleton Dagger, which he thrust towards Xuan Si with lightning speed.
Puff, puff, puff...
The sound echoed as blood spurted from Xuan Si's chest.
Facing Xuan Si, Ye Cangtian showed no mercy, pushing his speed to its absolute limit, far surpassing what Xuan Si could match.
"You... you... you've reached the Earthly realm?"
Lying in a pool of blood, Xuan Si's eyes widened in disbelief.
He himself was at the peak of the Profound level, and with his strength, he couldn't even discern Ye Cangtian's movements.
This phenomenon had only ever occurred when facing an Earthly realm expert.
But he couldn't believe it. He recalled the intelligence that Ye Cangtian had been gravely injured and almost crippled, sent back to the Hidden Group.
How could he reappear with such terrifying power?
"I'm still far from the Earthly realm!"
Ye Cangtian glanced at Xuan Si and said indifferently, then paid him no further attention, heading straight for the pavilion.
The opponent's life force had been severed; he was a dying man, and Ye Cangtian saw no need to strike again.
Boom!
As Ye Cangtian pushed open the pavilion door, a burst of fire shot into the sky.
Xuan Si, his life force extinguished, used his last breath to launch a signal flare into the sky.
Seeing the fiery signal in the air, Ye Cangtian's brows furrowed. He knew reinforcements would arrive soon, and he had to leave quickly.
With that thought, Ye Cangtian didn't hesitate and began his search, finally finding Shangguan Yanran in the central room on the second floor of the pavilion.
However, when he saw Shangguan Yanran, his body involuntarily trembled.
Shangguan Yanran was neatly dressed, showing no signs of violation or mistreatment.
But her current state was abnormal.
Logically, her first reaction upon seeing him should have been extreme excitement. Yet, Shangguan Yanran's eyes held only a profound calmness, like a pool of stagnant water.
"Miss Shangguan! I am Ye Cangtian, I've come to save you..."
Ye Cangtian hurried forward, calling out and extending his hand, attempting to awaken her.
But just as he was about to touch Shangguan Yanran, her eyes suddenly turned blood-red, fierce and filled with murderous intent.
The next moment, a dagger shot towards Ye Cangtian.
Hiss!
Ye Cangtian had not expected Shangguan Yanran to attack, and his heart was instantly startled. Fortunately, Shangguan Yanran's own strength was very weak; otherwise, he would have been caught.
He flashed out his hand, reaching for Shangguan Yanran's wrist, but was then repelled by a faint glow.
"Mo Yu, what are you doing!"
"Don't you know I'm Yanran's friend? I'm here to save her!"
Ye Cangtian roared in anger. With Shangguan Yanran's strength, she couldn't possibly have repelled him.
The only one who could do this was Mo Yu, the Heart of the Ruins that Shangguan Yanran had obtained.
Shangguan Yanran had been transformed by some method, but as the spirit of the Heart of the Ruins, what method could Mo Yu use to control her?
Yet, Mo Yu was now obstructing him, which truly infuriated him.
As Ye Cangtian's voice fell, a black, graceful figure appeared before him – Mo Yu.
She looked at Ye Cangtian with a face full of helplessness and said, "It's not me, it's Yanran..."
Mo Yu's explanation was simple. She had already recognized Shangguan Yanran as her master and had to follow Shangguan Yanran's will.
When Ye Cangtian attacked just now, Shangguan Yanran instinctively controlled her to defend, which was why Ye Cangtian's hand was repelled.
Ye Cangtian had nothing to say to this explanation.
His gaze swept over Shangguan Yanran. The Shangguan Yanran, previously filled with killing intent, had now calmed down, returning to her previous state.
"Don't touch her, or she'll attack you again!"
Just as Ye Cangtian was about to continue trying to awaken Shangguan Yanran, Mo Yu suddenly spoke, stopping him.
Hearing this, Ye Cangtian withdrew his hand, turned his gaze to Mo Yu, and said gravely, "What exactly happened?"
Mo Yu's eyes flashed with deep apprehension, saying, "It was that powerful expert named Xing Yuan. He possesses an extremely special method, which seems to strike directly at the soul, controlling it..."
Mo Yu was not entirely clear about Xing Yuan's abilities.
But she knew that while this ability was overbearing, it was not easy to implement.
It required a gradual process and reaching certain conditions before Shangguan Yanran could be fully controlled.
And Shangguan Yanran, at this moment, was showing less resistance, deeply influenced by this technique.
If this continued, it was believed that it wouldn't be long before she completely became a killing machine for the Dark Association.
Fortunately, Xing Yuan had not appeared recently, giving Shangguan Yanran a chance to breathe.
Damn Xing Yuan!
Thinking this, Ye Cangtian's gaze turned icy, and he asked, "Mo Yu, is there any way to awaken her?"
Now, he needed to save Shangguan Yanran and naturally required her cooperation. Otherwise, it would be impossible to bring her out of the ruins.
Mo Yu remained silent for a moment and said, "I can use the master-servant contract to awaken her from her mind, but it will only last for a few hours before she reverts to this state."
"That's enough!"
Ye Cangtian glanced at Mo Yu and slowly nodded. A few hours would be enough to escape the dangerous "Ghost City."
Once they left Ghost City, as long as he minimized contact with Shangguan Yanran, and with Mo Yu's cooperation, they should be able to save her.
Hearing this, Mo Yu nodded, disappeared from Ye Cangtian's sight, and then Shangguan Yanran's eyes became bright and filled with growing excitement.
"Brother Ye, it was so terrifying, so incredibly terrifying..."
Having regained her senses, Shangguan Yanran suddenly lunged into Ye Cangtian's embrace, trembling and weeping.
She was filled with fear of Xing Yuan.
From the moment he first appeared before her, she felt that her entire world had changed.
Initially, it was just nightmares, where she was constantly chased and only had to run desperately.
But as time passed, the dreams were no longer simple. Scenes of slaughter appeared in her mind, like a living hell.
Just witnessing them was terrifying enough, but later, the executioners wielding butcher knives also began to target her.
To survive, she had to pick up a butcher knife and fight back.
She had a feeling that if she died there, or collapsed, she would completely lose herself.
Thus, the nightmares continued, her waking hours became fewer and fewer, and even she felt that her body was filled with violence and a desire to kill...
"It's okay, it's all over now. Those were just dreams."
Listening to her sobbing, Ye Cangtian patted her back, offering comfort.