66: Chapter 66 Deeply Rooted Inner Demons, A Pearl Covered in Dust

You Lan was enjoying the pleasure of watching tigers fight from the mountaintop and reaping the benefits as a bystander, when a sudden rush of footsteps came from outside the hall.

A Demon Shadow Guard knelt on one knee and reported respectfully.

"Reporting to the Demon Lord, we have unexpectedly captured a lone female cultivator in the Black Mist Forest on the border of the Southern Region."

"Oh?" You Lan raised an eyebrow, feeling somewhat uninterested.

A single lone female cultivator was worth reporting to her?

The Demon Shadow Guard seemed to sense her impatience and hurriedly added.

"Demon Lord, this woman's identity is extraordinary. Her cultivation has reached the Middle Stage of Soul Transformation, and... her appearance is peerless, with a temperament that is one in ten thousand. I have checked her identity token, and she... she seems to be from the Heavenly Sovereign Alliance!"

"Heavenly Sovereign Alliance?"

Upon hearing these three words, a glimmer of interest finally flashed in You Lan's seductive eyes.

"Bring her up and let this seat have a look."

Soon, two Demon Shadow Guards entered the hall, escorting a woman in white who was tightly bound by Devilish Qi chains and had fallen into a coma.

The woman wore a white dress, untainted by a speck of dust. Even in this environment thick with Devilish Qi, her holy and noble temperament was hard to conceal.

Her features were as exquisite as heaven's most perfect masterpiece, her skin whiter than snow, and her black hair like a waterfall.

Even while unconscious, her furrowed brows carried a heartbreaking mix of fragility and stubbornness.

You Lan's gaze fell upon the woman, and even though she was accustomed to great beauty, she couldn't help but praise her in her heart.

What a girl of spiritual grace. This level of beauty was not at all inferior to that of the cold Sect Master of the Mysterious Maiden Sect, Leng Hanshuang.

She then waved her slender hand, sending a bolt of Devilish Qi into the woman's body.

The woman let out a muffled groan and slowly woke up.

When she saw the gloomy and eerie surroundings...

...as well as the enchanting woman on the throne who exuded a terrifying Devilish Qi, the color instantly drained from her beautiful face.

"A... demon den?"

Nangong Xue was deeply shaken, but the composure she had developed from years of holding high positions allowed her to forcibly suppress her inner panic.

Looking warily at You Lan on the throne, she asked coldly, "Who are you people? Why have you captured me?"

At the same time, Nangong Xue secretly tried to circulate her spiritual energy, only to find that her Dantian felt as if it were being pressed down by a great mountain, unable to muster even a shred of power.

"Giggle, giggle..."

You Lan laughed so hard her body trembled as she watched her forced composure.

"Little beauty, you've become this seat's prisoner, yet you still dare to speak to me in such a tone?"

Nangong Xue bit her lip and brought up her greatest backing.

"I am Nangong Xue, the Vice Alliance Leader of the Heavenly Sovereign Alliance. My Revered Master is the strongest person in the Southern Region, the Alliance Leader of the Heavenly Sovereign Alliance, Fairy Ziyun! If you dare to harm me in the slightest, my Revered Master and the entire Heavenly Sovereign Alliance will never let you go!"

She thought that by mentioning her Revered Master's name, she could at least make the other party feel some apprehension.

To her surprise, You Lan let out a burst of silver-bell-like laughter, which was filled with disdain and mockery.

"Giggle, giggle..."

"Fairy Ziyun? What a grand title."

You Lan slowly stood up from the throne, moved with lotus steps to Nangong Xue, and reached out her cold fingertips to gently tilt her chin up.

"Little beauty, have you misunderstood something?"

She leaned down and exhaled like an orchid into Nangong Xue's ear, but her voice was as cold as ice.

"If I hadn't been ambushed by that hypocrite Lin Aotian back then and suffered a dao injury that has yet to heal, never mind a mere Zi Yun, when have I ever cared about the entire Southern Region?"

Her words revealed endless resentment and a sky-high hatred for the humiliation she had endured by Lin Aotian's side in the past.

Lin Aotian!

Nangong Xue was horrified. This female devil actually had a history with Senior Lin Aotian?

And from her tone, it seemed she had suffered a great loss.

This was bad!

Seeing Nangong Xue's face turn pale with fear, a sharp glint flashed in You Lan's eyes.

A plan, far more perfect than simply killing Nangong Xue, surfaced in her mind.

Killing her would certainly vent her anger for a moment, but at most, it would only annoy that old woman Zi Yun.

But now, there seemed to be a better choice.

You Lan's gaze, like a venomous snake, slowly wandered over Nangong Xue's curvaceous body, making Nangong Xue's skin crawl and her whole body feel cold.

"Tsk tsk, such a perfect skin bag, excellent root bones, and even the one-in-ten-thousand Profound Yin Charm Body... If used as a Cauldron, this seat's injuries would heal within ten years."

Nangong Xue's face turned as white as paper upon hearing this.

"However..."

You Lan changed her tone, softly and charmingly stroking Nangong Xue's cheek with a beaming smile.

"It would be a pity to just consume you directly."

"Little beauty, this seat has heard that your Revered Master, Fairy Ziyun, has an ancient saint pill called the 'nine aperture exquisite elixir' that can heal all dao injuries in the world. I wonder if that's true?"

Nangong Xue's heart tightened, not knowing why she would suddenly ask this.

"Tell me, if this seat 'becomes' you and then personally 'takes' that saint pill from your most beloved Revered Master's hands, what an interesting sight would that be?"

"Don't even think about it!"

Nangong Xue finally understood her intention and screamed in terror.

"You devil! You want to take Possession of me! Revered Master... she will definitely discover you! Your Devilish Qi cannot be hidden at all!"

"Possession? Why would I use such a low-level method?"

You Lan wagged her finger, her smile becoming increasingly eerie.

"I said, I want to 'become' you. She won't see through it. Because you will still be you."

As soon as she finished speaking, a purple light intensified in her eyes, and she began chanting.

"Ancient Forbidden Technique: Heavenly Demon Reincarnation Art!"

This method was not a common Soul-swallowing Possession, but one of the most vicious and eerie forbidden techniques of the Demon Race.

It could transform the caster's Origin Soul-thought into an invisible "Demon Seed," implanted deep within the target's spiritual platform, parasitizing the host's Soul.

This Demon Seed would not directly wipe out the host's consciousness.

Instead, it would act like a malignant tumor, subtly altering the host's perception, twisting her desires, and amplifying the darkness within her heart.

Ultimately, it would make the host willingly serve the caster while maintaining their own self-awareness!

However, this forbidden technique had a limitation: it could only be used once in a lifetime.

"Ah—!"

You Lan's body transformed into a thick, dark purple mist.

Ignoring Nangong Xue's struggle, it forcibly drilled into her brow!

Nangong Xue let out a piercing cry of grief, feeling as if her head were being torn apart.

She could clearly feel a cold, evil, and greed-filled stranger's memory...

...crazily taking root and sprouting in her mind.

And her own will, her own memories, were retreating step by step under the impact of this power, becoming increasingly blurred...

In the ultimate pain, Nangong Xue's vision went black, and she completely lost consciousness.

...

An unknown amount of time passed.

When Nangong Xue woke up again, she found herself lying on a desolate hillside.

She was in a strange environment, and her white dress was covered in dirt and dew.

She struggled to sit up, only to feel a splitting headache and a complete blank in her mind.

"I... where am I?"

Nangong Xue remembered that she had come to the Southern Region border alone to investigate a case of Sect Disciples mysteriously disappearing.

She couldn't remember anything that happened after that.

She felt as if she had forgotten something extremely important.

"Strange..."

She subconsciously raised her hand and rubbed her aching temples.

Just then, she froze.

Nangong Xue discovered that on her jade-like right index finger, there was now an ancient ring carved with eerie purple patterns.

"My storage ring... when did it become like this?"

Nangong Xue was filled with doubt. She clearly remembered that her storage ring was a plain white jade ring given to her by her Revered Master personally.

But now...

Before she could figure out what was going on, an incredibly strong thought surged wildly from the deepest part of her heart without warning!

"I must obtain the saint pill from Revered Master's hands! Only then can I heal my dao 'injury'!"

This thought came so suddenly and so violently, as if it were an innate instinct!

"Hiss..."

Accompanying this thought was a piercing pain that radiated from her entire body, as if her dao foundation had truly suffered an extremely serious injury.

But... when did I get injured?

Why don't I have any recollection of it?

A trace of confusion flashed in Nangong Xue's eyes.

She had no memory of being injured, nor did she understand why she so urgently wanted to obtain her Revered Master's saint pill.

Yet, this feeling felt so natural.

As if this was exactly how things should be.

"But... the saint pill is a treasure Revered Master uses to break through to a higher Realm. How... how could she easily give it to me?"

Nangong Xue's brows furrowed as she began to rack her brains.

How could she "persuade" her Revered Master to hand over the saint pill?

Just then, a flash of inspiration hit her, and another unfamiliar "memory" surfaced.

She had once obtained a secret medicine called "Soul-Losing Incense" in an ancient Secret Realm.

This medicine was colorless and odorless. Just a tiny bit could make a person lose their mind for a short time and follow instructions.

Yes! Use the Soul-Losing Incense!

Nangong Xue subconsciously sent out her Divine Sense and entered that eerie purple ring.

The space inside the ring was more than ten times larger than her original storage ring, and it was filled with various Demonic Path Magic Treasures and Heaven And Earth Treasures she had never seen before.

Seeing these things, she instinctively felt a trace of resistance and unease.

But this thought was quickly drowned out by the strong obsession to "find the Soul-Losing Incense."

In a corner, she found a black jade bottle.

The bottle didn't contain any Medicinal Pills, but a mass of dark purple liquid that emitted a heart-palpitating aura.

"This is it!"

As long as she could make Revered Master listen to her for a short time and hand over the saint medicine, it would be fine!

As soon as this thought appeared, even she was startled.

How could I... how could I use such a low-handed method against my Revered Master, who has been as kind as a mountain to me!

Deep within Nangong Xue, her own conscience was struggling wildly, condemning herself.

But another voice was even more powerful.

"You're about to die! If the injury to your Divine Soul isn't healed, your dao foundation will collapse, and you'll become a useless person! At that time, who will care if you live or die? Every man for himself, or the heavens will destroy him!"

"Just a little bit, as long as you get the saint medicine and heal the injury, you can make it up to Revered Master later, right?"

"Yes... yes! I just... just want to heal my injury! I'm sure Revered Master will understand."

Under the desire to "survive" and the obsession to "heal the dao injury," all reason and morality were eventually overwhelmed.

The struggle and guilt in Nangong Xue's eyes were gradually replaced by a cold and burning madness.

She carefully put away the jade bottle containing the dark purple liquid, then raised her head and looked firmly toward the Heavenly Sovereign Alliance.

"Revered Master... I'm sorry..."

Nangong Xue murmured to herself, and with a flash of her figure, she turned into a streak of light and flew toward the Heavenly Sovereign Alliance.

Only she didn't notice that at the moment she turned around, the purple ring on her finger flashed with an almost imperceptible, demonic light.

Just as Nangong Xue set off to return to the Heavenly Sovereign Alliance...

...above the Mysterious Maiden Sect.

"Boom!"

The space seemed to be torn open by an invisible giant hand, creating a huge rift.

A terrifying aura, carrying the unique majesty and endless arrogance of the Upper Realm, descended from the rift with a bang!

Liu Qingyan had arrived, treading through the Void Realm!