Ye Liuyun and his clone had just taken down three vicious beasts in rapid succession, leaving the origin spirit fiend dumbfounded

Once he snapped out of it, he immediately ordered the other beasts rushing over to stop throwing their lives away. He could see clearly now: Ye Liuyun’s soul power and spatial strength were formidable, and the white beam fired by the clone was something none of the beasts could withstand

He made his decision at once—no more blocking Ye Liuyun

As for whatever resources the man might find, the spirit fiend didn’t much care. The secret realm was vast; the He family took a share every year and he never batted an eye. One lone cultivator couldn’t possibly carry off enough to matter

Yet regret hit him almost immediately. Every time Ye Liuyun located a stash, he seized it effortlessly, lightning-fast. In ten days he had gathered more treasure than everyone else combined, unearthing two or three troves daily. The wraiths had already told him exactly where each prize lay, what it was, and what dangers guarded it, so his search was ruthlessly efficient

Both Ye Liuyun and his clone knew the spirit fiend could no longer stop them; the realm’s riches were theirs for the taking. Anything that needed long refining was simply stowed away—no time to waste on the spot when more loot waited

They still had twenty days left. If Ye Liuyun kept sweeping through at this pace, little would remain

What galled the spirit fiend most was that some resources were outright dismissed as “not top-tier.”

To Ye Liuyun, everything here felt like watered-down thunder tribulation—too weak to be truly useful. Only if every effect were several notches stronger would they qualify as “high-end” in his eyes 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

The spirit fiend stamped in fury, insulted beyond belief. Only when he recalled that Ye Liuyun’s route led straight toward the Realm-Intent Stone Forest did he calm slightly

Inside that forest stood guardian seals even he could not control. If Ye Liuyun didn’t trigger them, he would do it himself—maybe the seals could kill the intruder

The Stone Forest was indeed Ye Liuyun’s next goal. He had no idea what insights it held, but saber intent was certain. He wanted to see whether his own saber intent could still rise further. Yet because the realm’s resources disappointed him, he held little hope for the insights either

Upon arrival, Ye Liuyun’s spiritual sense detected only an open glade within dense woods; the actual scene remained hidden. The He family disciple, however, saw a forest of stone pillars

He’d heard from previous visitors that this place honed martial intent, and excitement flared. Ye Liuyun might hoard every treasure, but insights here were open to all—at last, something to bring home

He led Ye Liuyun straight to the site

Only when they drew close did Ye Liuyun and his clone see the truth: upright stone statues filled the area, much like those he’d faced during the Cangyun tournament, each faintly animated by a wisp of consciousness

At the entrance, two pillars bore fiendish statues—demonic visages carved in snarling rage. Their soul force was strongest, radiating savage might that cowed any onlooker

“These two are the guardians?” Ye Liuyun had heard the wraiths’ briefing: the statues’ power far surpassed peak Ninth Heaven. As long as no one acted rashly or raised a racket, the statues would remain inert

Even as the thought crossed his mind, a white ape burst from the undergrowth, shrieking a sonic blast straight at the statues

The statues erupted with overwhelming aura; soul force flared like a tidal wave, instantly knocking the He disciple and his guards unconscious

The white ape, having delivered its cry, vanished back into the woods in a blink

“Damn—this spirit fiend is setting me up!”

Ye Liuyun realized the trap, but two demonic soul projections had already emerged from the statues, locking onto him and his clone. Escape was impossible

“Seniors, that sonic attack wasn’t ours!” he called out

“I don’t care who it was—you’ll both die anyway!” one demonic soul replied indifferently. Together they intensified their soul pressure and released their cultivation aura, forcing Ye Liuyun and his clone to their knees

“Cursed spirit fiend—just you wait!”

Ye Liuyun cursed inwardly, then he and his clone launched a mantra assault. Golden light engulfed the two demonic souls

Buddha-light against demonic spirits—there was no better counter. Startled, the souls eased their pressure to resist the radiant onslaught.

Ye Liuyun and his doppelgänger took a few steps back, putting more distance between themselves and the two soul shadows.

“Impudent humans—how dare you strike at us!” one of the demon souls roared. He thrust a palm straight at the doppelgänger. The doppelgänger’s golden pupils flashed; a beam of black light shot out and lanced toward the demon soul’s forearm.

The demon’s palm dissolved at once, then the entire lower arm vanished under the black light.

“Ahh!”

The demon soul cried out in alarm and yanked his arm back, staring at them in terror. Black light also glimmered in Ye Liuyun’s golden eyes—he was ready to strike at any moment.

“Don’t move!”

The other demon soul, seeing the same black light dancing in Ye Liuyun’s pupils, hurriedly called out to stop him, afraid Ye Liuyun would attack next.

“This must be a misunderstanding. That howl just now was clearly an ape’s roar—it couldn’t have come from you.” The demon soul rushed to explain.

In truth, they had been provoked by the white ape and wanted to vent their anger. But the ape had fled too quickly; they couldn’t chase it far, so they turned their rage on Ye Liuyun and his companion.

Yet Ye Liuyun’s black light could erase them outright, and the Buddhist radiance still gnawed at their souls. They were completely countered; if the fight continued, Ye Liuyun and his doppelgänger would wipe them out right here.

“So you realize your mistake and won’t attack us again? We can enter?” Ye Liuyun asked, seeing the demon soul understood the situation and having no wish to destroy them.

“Yes, we were wrong! Of course you may enter!” The demon soul shot urgent glances at his injured comrade.

That soul’s arm was slowly regenerating, but his overall form was noticeably smaller. Ye Liuyun and the doppelgänger had not withdrawn their Buddhist light, so both demon souls continued to erode.

“Fine...” The wounded soul could only nod helplessly, acknowledging he was no match for Ye Liuyun.