Watching Xia Zhen flee in a panic, a fierce, cold smile spread across Ye Wushuang's face.
BOOM!
He shot forward, kicking the railing aside and closing the distance to Xia Zhen in just a few steps.
Die!
The single, cold word, like a reaper's call, exploded by Xia Zhen's ear. Before Xia Zhen could even react, Ye Wushuang's fist slammed into his back.
CRACK!
The sound of splintering bone was perfectly clear. Ye Wushuang's fist was like a chunk of Refined Iron smashing into Xia Zhen's body.
"Weren't you going to let me go?"
Xia Zhen's body trembled violently. He whipped his head around, fresh blood spilling from the corners of his mouth as he stared at Ye Wushuang in disbelief.
He had thought Ye Wushuang would let him go. He was all set—the moment he was out of the courtyard, he would report back to the Sect and have Ye Wushuang killed.
But he never expected Ye Wushuang to be even more ruthless, giving him not a shred of a chance.
"For those who want to kill me, I'll always be the one to strike first," Ye Wushuang said coldly. He immediately activated the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique and consumed Xia Zhen, leaving only a corpse behind as a vast surge of power flooded into his own body.
Ye Wushuang finally let out a heavy breath. With his Dantian destroyed, he had thought he was finished.
He never expected that this life-or-death crisis, far from killing him, would be his salvation. It had stimulated the strange object in his Dantian, allowing him to obtain the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique.
'I really have to thank that bastard Xia Zhen for this!'
Ye Wushuang smirked. If those men hadn't tried to destroy his Dantian, they never would have touched that mysterious "Big Glutton," and he never would have obtained this Heaven-Defying Technique.
Gazing at the shriveled corpses in the courtyard, he felt not a shred of pity. These people had wanted to kill him. If he hadn't killed them, he would be the one lying dead.
Still, this Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique was far too tyrannical. It completely devoured everything from a person, converting it into his own power. 'Is this a blessing or a curse?'
Ye Wushuang felt a faint sense of dread. Once anyone learned of his tyrannical, Heaven-Defying Cultivation Technique, they would brand him as an Evil Demon. They would stop at nothing to kill him and seize the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique for themselves.
'Forget it. I'll stop thinking about it. There's a proper way even to killing. If others don't provoke me, I won't kill them.'
Ye Wushuang thought to himself that he wasn't a bloodthirsty person. He wouldn't slaughter the innocent just for the sake of his Cultivation of the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique.
But, if someone wanted to kill him, then his response would be a single word: Annihilation!
To kill those who deserve death—that is a man's nature!
Having sorted through his thoughts, Ye Wushuang felt a sense of relief.
VMMMM!
But just then, something deep within his Dantian suddenly trembled. Ye Wushuang felt a wave of vertigo, and his mind went blank.
When he came to, he found himself in a strange, mysterious world.
This world was boundless. In the sky floated a mass of Chaos Light, which was being circled by a majestic True Dragon covered in black Scale Armor.
Waves of terrifying, peerless pressure bore down on Ye Wushuang, making it difficult for him to breathe.
Under Ye Wushuang's gaze, the mass of Chaos Light suddenly contracted, forming a single drop of Chaos Blood.
ROAR!
Suddenly, a strange transformation occurred. The drop of Chaos Blood morphed into a supreme Divine Dragon that shot toward him and swallowed him whole.
"AH!"
Ye Wushuang's expression contorted as he let out a startled cry. He snapped back to reality as if waking from a dream, finding himself still standing in the same spot.
'What just happened?'
Drenched in sweat, Ye Wushuang silently let out a breath. He scanned his surroundings but found nothing out of the ordinary.
"Chaos Dragon Tomb, Ninefold Space, opening the First Layer: True Dragon Space!"
"Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique!"
"Dragon Blood Killing Sword!"
Suddenly, streams of information flooded into Ye Wushuang's mind. Almost subconsciously, with a mere flicker of thought, he found himself back in that mysterious space.
'Could this be the True Dragon Space?'
Ye Wushuang sized up the space. It was much clearer than before, spanning several hundred meters.
At the center of the space was a blood-red Dragon Blood Ancient Sword, which emanated a terrifying, murderous Sword Qi that would chill anyone to the bone.
"True Dragon Space: Initial size, ninety-nine meters across. It will expand as the host's mastery of the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique increases!"
"Dragon Blood Killing Sword: A peerless killing artifact refined from the vital essence and blood of beings consumed by the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique!"
After absorbing this sudden influx of information, Ye Wushuang finally understood. The mysterious tomb he had seen before was the so-called Chaos Dragon Tomb.
Ye Wushuang had no idea what the Chaos Dragon Tomb was.
But he did know that the Chaos Dragon Tomb contained a Ninefold Space, and that by a stroke of fortune, he had unlocked the First Layer and obtained the heaven-defying Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique.
This Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique had many wondrous abilities, with three known uses so far.
First, devouring: It could consume power and transform it into True Qi, helping Ye Wushuang raise his Cultivation.
Second, forging the Chaos Heaven-Devouring Dragon Body. Upon reaching Great Success, it could create a body so terrifying it defied the heavens. With such a horrifying physique, Ye Wushuang's Combat Power would be greatly enhanced, making him truly peerless in battle.
And third, condensing the Dragon Blood Killing Sword!
The Dragon Blood Killing Sword was a single-use killing artifact, created from the slow accumulation of power from living beings consumed by the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique.
Once activated, it was powerful enough to kill enemies far stronger than himself. Of course, being a single-use item, it could not be used again. Once unleashed, it would have to be re-condensed from scratch.
'The Dragon Blood Killing Sword is a Great Killing Artifact. Even though it's single-use, it could absolutely save my life in a critical moment. I can't underestimate it!'
Reading these descriptions, Ye Wushuang's heart surged with joy once more. With this Heaven-Defying Cultivation Technique alone, he had everything he needed to rise again.
And that was without even mentioning the aid of these frightening treasures.
What's more, the Chaos Dragon Tomb had a Ninefold Space. If the First Layer alone contained such a heaven-defying technique, what other marvels did the remaining eight layers hold?
A powerful sense of curiosity and a desire to explore welled up within Ye Wushuang.
At the same time, for reasons he couldn't explain, he also felt a sense of impending crisis.
'This mysterious Dragon Tomb must be related to that heaven-piercing tomb from three years ago. But why would this Dragon Tomb choose to enter my body?'
'A coincidence?'
'No, it couldn't possibly be a coincidence.'
Of this, Ye Wushuang was certain.
After all, in the Grand Emperor Domain alone—just one part of the vast Nine Heavens World—the population numbered in the trillions. For it to fall on him and no one else... how could that possibly be a coincidence?
'I'll stop thinking about it. Blessing or curse, what's coming will come. As long as I become strong enough before the crisis arrives, I'll have nothing to fear.'
'And Chen Kun... you just wait. I, Ye Wushuang, will make you pay!'
The thought of Chen Kun, a mere Steward, and the humiliation he had inflicted on him caused a demonic, vicious aura to erupt from Ye Wushuang.
He quickly suppressed it. Glancing again at the corpses on the ground, Ye Wushuang was faced with a problem.
If the Sect found out that he had killed these men, they would surely investigate thoroughly. If that happened, all of his secrets could be exposed.
Bringing a fatal disaster upon himself was the least of his worries; he might even end up implicating his distant father, Ye Xuan!
That was the last thing he wanted.
'How do I deal with these?'
Ye Wushuang pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered the True Dragon Space.
With a flicker of his thoughts, Xia Zhen's corpse vanished, having been taken into the True Dragon Space.
It worked!
Overjoyed, Ye Wushuang immediately went back into the courtyard and made the other four corpses disappear as well. He was completely unaware that just outside, a figure was heading toward his courtyard.