As Hu Liena removed her outer robe, revealing a form-fitting pale-gold bodysuit and tight white shorts that accentuated her alluring curves and graceful figure, Ye Yu was momentarily stunned, a flicker of admiration flashing in his eyes.
He had to admit—even though her legs weren't longer than Zhu Zhuqing's, the balance of Hu Liena's figure, especially her well-proportioned assets, made her legs appear even more shapely.
They looked like they could crush a man to death.
But Ye Yu quickly calmed his thoughts. After all, he had already held the likes of Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong in his arms.
"Na na, watch out."
"There's a swarm of blood-colored bat-type spirit beasts headed our way."
Ye Yu's voice was low and serious as he warned her, his gaze shifting away from her to the distant darkness where the incoming creatures were approaching.
With a wave of his hand, a flash of violet light appeared, and the Thunderous Hell Prison Spear manifested in his grasp.
Due to the Road to Hell prohibiting the use of Spirit Abilities, Ye Yu did not release his Spirit Rings, which wasn't unusual.
When she noticed Ye Yu only spared her a glance before turning away, Hu Liena bit her lip, a hint of disappointment flashing in her eyes.
She thought her figure and allure would make Ye Yu lose his composure on the spot.
But quickly, her heart surged with admiration instead.
"An Lan... he really is the man I've fallen for!"
Not only was he dashing and powerful—his willpower was also extraordinary!
Such a rare and exceptional man was the only one worthy of Hu Liena's affection.
Unlike that annoying Yan!
Now alerted by Ye Yu's warning, Hu Liena stood up and summoned her Charming Fox Martial Soul.
Her form elongated, becoming even more voluptuous. Her hands turned into fluffy, razor-sharp fox claws, golden fox ears sprouted atop her head, and her eyes morphed into golden vertical pupils.
Behind her, a club-like External Spirit Bone – Fox Tail grew out and stood upright in a vigilant stance as she stared into the darkness ahead.
Soon enough, the swarm of blood-colored bats arrived.
Compared to Ye Yu, Hu Liena could only see countless red pinpoints of light—the glowing eyes of the bats—accompanied by shrill, grating screeches.
The sound made one's scalp tingle and head throb.
As the swarm neared, Ye Yu activated his Self-Created Spirit Ability – Thunderburst Step.
Silver-blue lightning flared from his body as an invisible electromagnetic field expanded outward, covering a radius of a thousand meters.
He extended his left hand, palm open.
Within it were dozens of small golden orbs.
These weren't anything else—they were Hair Gold Filaments.
As Ye Yu infused compressed Spirit Power into them, the golden orbs swiftly extended into hair-thin filaments.
Then, under the influence of the electromagnetic field, countless Hair Gold Threads launched into the air.
Rotating wildly in the magnetic field, they streaked around in dazzling golden arcs.
The oncoming blood-colored bat swarm hadn't realized what was happening. Their screeches still echoed as they charged down like a tidal wave toward Ye Yu and Hu Liena.
But the moment they entered the thousand-meter zone around Ye Yu...
Shriek! Shriek!!
A cacophony of horrific cries erupted.
Thousands of blood-colored bats were instantly shredded into minced meat by the razor-sharp golden threads.
Their blood rained down, turning the area into a scene of crimson carnage.
Hu Liena had expected a hard fight—yet under Ye Yu's methods, the vicious swarm was annihilated.
Their remains fell into the unfathomable abyss below, disappearing into the raging Blood River.
Hu Liena was utterly stunned.
But that shock quickly turned into uncontainable admiration and love.
"An Lan... he's too incredible!"
In just a few breaths, nearly half the swarm had been reduced to chunks of meat and blood mist.
The surviving bats panicked and tried to retreat.
Though they lacked intelligence, they could still sense danger. This was basic survival instinct.
But just then, Ye Yu had already noticed something.
In the darkness behind the swarm, a beast over four meters long with a wingspan of ten meters—the Dark Dold Three-Headed Bat King—was flying in, wings slicing through the air.
Unlike the regular blood-colored bats, this mutant beast had a higher level of intelligence.
It saw the slaughter of its kin and dared not charge directly.
Instead, its three savage heads opened wide, baring fangs, and unleashed a soul-piercing ultrasonic scream.
But Ye Yu only sneered.
With a flick of his hand, he hurled the Thunderous Hell Prison Spear straight at it.
A streak of deep violet lightning tore through the darkness—
—and in the next instant, the spear pierced the Darkgold Bat King's body, unleashing a violent surge of thunder energy.
The mutated beast screamed in agony before collapsing, lifeless.
With the electromagnetic field from Thunderburst Step, and the Controlling Crane, Capturing Dragon, Ye Yu pulled the spear and the corpse back to himself.
He stored the beast into the Blue Silver Space.
To Hu Liena, it seemed like he had stored it into a Storage-type Soul Tool.
The fact that Ye Yu could one-shot kill such a massive and formidable spirit beast left her even more in awe.
"Such a genius... only someone like this is worthy of me, Hu Liena."
Now that their leader was slain, the blood-colored bat swarm broke and fled in terror.
"We move on."
After clearing the first trial of the Hell Road, Ye Yu put away his spear and looked at Hu Liena calmly.
They continued forward.
About an hour later, Ye Yu spotted a crimson serpent coiled across the path ahead.
Its body stretched over ten meters long, with nine fiery red bulges on its head and back—like flaming mushrooms filled with molten golden-red liquid.
Its underside was huge and bloated.
Two golden-red vertical pupils glowed like lanterns.
This was the second trial's beast—and one of Ye Yu's key targets: the Ten Headed Fierce Yang Serpent.
When they approached, the serpent let out sharp croaking hisses and raised its body.
The bulges on its back emitted dazzling golden-red light before it spat a blazing jet of fire at Ye Yu.
The flaming beam carried a pungent stench and scorched the rocky ground.
Red mist hissed out with it—highly toxic!
Ye Yu immediately summoned the Thunderous Hell Prison Spear, forming a roaring violet lightning dragon that collided with the fire.
The resulting explosion created a powerful shockwave.
Then, Ye Yu activated Thunderburst Step again.
His body became light as a feather, turning into a lightning flash that dashed straight toward the serpent.
In a blink, Ye Yu reached it and thrust his spear at the ugly serpent's head.
Enraged, the Ten Headed Fierce Yang Serpent fired a toxic red mist—
—but the poisonous cloud hit an invisible barrier and dispersed harmlessly.
Back at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Ye Yu had picked petals from the Aromatic Silk Beauty Immortal Herb and kept them in a sachet.
Even in petal form, they still retained a strong detoxification aura.
Though the serpent was a formidable species, its cultivation was only around 40,000 to 50,000 years—easily manageable.
Just in case, Ye Yu also activated his fully mastered Mystic Jade Body.
His skin gleamed like jade as he held his breath.
Of course, even if he inhaled the toxins, his body—hardened by Ice and Fire Tempering—was already immune to most poisons.
Still, better safe than sorry.
Now confident, Ye Yu reversed his spear and pinned the serpent's neck—not its head—to the ground.
The serpent screamed in agony but didn't die immediately. Its fire breath couldn't be used in that position.
Left with no choice, it used its ultimate move.
The nine bulges on its back burst open, releasing golden-red liquid into the air—
—which condensed into a golden core.
The serpent launched the orb at Ye Yu!
But he only smiled calmly.
His right hand turned into Mystic Jade Hand and snatched the Ten Headed Fierce Yang Serpent Inner Core mid-air.
Lightning surged from his palm, cleansing the inner core instantly.
The serpent howled in anguish, its body writhing wildly.
But now that Ye Yu had secured the inner core, there was no need to hold back.
He withdrew his spear, then struck again—this time, directly through its skull.
The serpent went limp.
Its corpse was stored away in the Blue Silver Space.