Chapter Sixty-One: Begging for Mercy

At this moment, Bai Shengyun’s concealment talisman had completely failed, reduced to a pile of torn paper. The runes drawn with spiritual power scattered, reverting to flickering sparks of energy. With each step he took, the unruly yellow sand became even more turbulent and wild, rampaging through the area; each grain was like a jagged stone, striking many ghosts and causing them to wail in sharp cries.

The two hurriedly raised a shield of spiritual power to block the sand, but the grains battered the shield so fiercely that cracks began to appear. The woman narrowed her beautiful eyes, observing the black fissures spreading across her shield. Unable to discern the extent of Bai Shengyun’s power, she decided it best to inquire about his identity first. With a conciliatory expression, she asked, “Your strength is astonishing, may I ask who you are?”

Before Bai Shengyun could reply, Shen Ruru’s subordinates spotted him and immediately shouted in excitement, “Young Emperor, Young Emperor! Please save us!”

Bai Shengyun merely responded with a cold, ambiguous laugh, neither promising rescue nor denying it.

“Young Emperor?” The words circled the woman’s lips. She looked up in astonishment at the figure in white before her, disbelief written across her face. “Bai Shengyun? The Young Emperor of the Celestial Fox Clan—Bai Shengyun?”

“So what if I am?” Bai Shengyun replied coolly, his gaze never once reflecting the figures of the two. From beginning to end, his eyes remained fixed on Shen Ruru’s subordinates.

Though his eyes betrayed no emotion, their hearts sounded alarms. After a hurried bow, they tried to flee. But Bai Shengyun saw through them instantly; as they took their first step toward escape, his figure vanished and reappeared before their eyes. When they looked up, the murderous intent in his expression was unmistakable—so fierce that even the woman and man, both seasoned killers, and the ghosts who had witnessed countless deaths, were startled.

“Your master has grown bolder,” Bai Shengyun said, hands clasped behind his back, gazing down upon them as if regarding ants he could crush beneath his heel.

“We… we know our mistake!” The leader, who had long heard of Bai Shengyun’s ruthless cruelty, knelt hurriedly.

The others followed suit, legs buckling as they knelt and pleaded in disjointed voices:

“Young Emperor, please spare us!”

“We admit our faults, truly we do. Please, for the sake of our years of service to our master, let us go…”

“Young Emperor, if I return safely today, I swear loyalty to you! Spare us, I beg!”

Several among them even broke down in tears as they spoke.

Bai Shengyun watched their tears with a cold smile. “Your reaction to death is less than that of beasts. What use have I for you by my side?”

The woman and man, seeing he had no intention of harming them, decided to leave and drew out their communication talismans to send a message. However, after only a few steps, they were blocked by a barrier.

The woman pressed her hand to the barrier, turned sharply in disbelief, and angrily demanded of Bai Shengyun, “What’s the meaning of this? Isn’t teaching them a lesson enough? Why block us too?!”

Bai Shengyun didn’t spare them a glance, replying indifferently, “The immortal and demonic realms have always been opposed. Now that I’ve entered the Demonic Sect alone, if you return and spread word of my presence, what then? So, I certainly won’t forget about you.”

Hearing this, the woman and man were deeply alarmed, realizing Bai Shengyun would never let them leave so easily. They drew their life-bound artifacts, preparing to fight him to the death.

Bai Shengyun, meanwhile, grew irritated by the endless pleas of Shen Ruru’s subordinates. With a flick of his hand, a fierce blaze erupted, sweeping toward them.

His cultivation was formidable. Though they tried to escape, they could not get far before the fire’s tongues engulfed their heads.

In an instant, the screams were heartrendingly tragic. Bai Shengyun watched silently, his heart unmoved.

The woman and man broke out in a cold sweat, while the ghosts who had been enjoying the spectacle fled in terror, vanishing from sight.

The two had hoped to persuade the ghosts to relay news to the Demonic Sect, but Bai Shengyun turned his gaze upon them, and with another wave, the flames surged forth.

Terrified, they fled to the barrier’s edge, exhausting every means to escape. The fire grew ever fiercer, driving them into a small corner, then devoured them whole.

Their screams echoed, but the formation not only masked their presence and spiritual sense—it even silenced their voices. Not a single sound escaped.

A thick scent of roasted flesh lingered in the air, yet not a single greedy ghost dared approach; all who could run, ran as far as they could.

The two flaming figures darted about, only to be rebounded by the barrier, forcing them back into the seemingly endless sea of fire.

Before long, all vitality was extinguished, and they collapsed into the flames.

Only then did Bai Shengyun turn and leave. He had orchestrated and witnessed the entire harrowing drama up close, but his expression and gaze remained unchanged.

Somewhere, a ghost whispered to a companion, “Truly a fox who cultivates the Path of Ruthlessness!”

Bai Shengyun’s figure gradually faded at the end of the road, and no one knew where he was heading.

The ghosts, trembling, floated forward and found several charred corpses, with patches of body oil on the ground.

A sudden breeze arose, and Bai Shengyun’s voice echoed from nowhere, clear in their ears: “Eat well, and keep your mouths shut.”

They exchanged glances, and each broke into a grin that stretched to the back of their ears.

Within the Demonic Sect, in a cave in Xie Yingying’s bedchamber.

Though she had yet to find a way to change her cultivation method, she had at least discovered means of increasing her power other than the arts of pleasure.

Xie Yingying was quite philosophical about it. Her top priority was to raise her cultivation quickly, to guard against Bai Shengyun suddenly changing his mind and coming after her.

She sat cross-legged upon a meditation cushion in the cave, slowly closing her eyes and attempting to circulate the spiritual power in her dantian.

It was her first time trying to use the energy within her dantian, but it worked well; soon, Xie Yingying felt a warm current flow through her limbs and spirit.

After silently reciting the mantra of clarity, she moved to the next step—absorbing spiritual energy and converting it into her own.

This step was difficult. She practiced for hours, as some energy slipped away as soon as it entered her body, let alone the challenge of “conversion.”

Now wholly focused on cultivation, Xie Yingying’s dedication surpassed even her devotion to her work.

Meanwhile, Bai Shengyun crossed the river of blood. Xie Yingying, absorbed in her cultivation, failed to notice the flash of light from the purple-gold bell on her ankle.