Paragon of Sin

Wei Wuyin furrowed his brows, his silver eyes gleamed with sharp confusion and uncertainty. The Spirit Oath had been uttered, and the exchange had taken place. With a mere thought, he extracted lifeforce until it amounted to roughly a thousand years. He couldn't be exact, perhaps even a few years off, but he was certain that the margin for error was merely a decade or two. This was a loss he had to suffer due to his unfamiliarity with lifeforce measurements. Regardless of his loss, this confusion he'd experienced was not brought about by that, but by the process.

While he had used the lifeforce in mild testing before, he had this faint feeling that losing this amount of lifeforce, even if it originated from the Mark of Eden, should have some consequence such as a deep sensation of weakness or something along those lines. Yet, he stood without a hint of exhaustion or damage. It was that simple and easy.

As for Anu, the lifeforce was siphoned into his spiritual avatar and entered into his scales. It fused with his unfathomably large body in a perfect merger, seamless and sudden. The process wasn't as epic as he assumed.

Before all this, he had received the methods, arts, and essence blood drops that were stipulated in their agreement. The essence blood was shiny translucent blood like glass, lacking that crimson-red and sleek texture of normal blood. It was incredibly odd to look at, as if it was a liquid drop of glass rather than blood. Furthermore, it lacked any hint of the smell typical blood possessed.

They were encased in diamond-shaped crystals that radiated a dense and compressed spiritual strength. It seemed to be a spiritual spell that could contain essence blood.

This was his first time witnessing essence blood visually with his own eyes. Typically, when he inspected Bai Lin, her essence blood was golden and burning, a sharp contrast to her other blood. But that was by spiritual sense. His spiritual sense lacked the depth of actual color. What he saw with his spiritual sense was usually an "aura" which took on colors. After all, his spiritual sense wasn't his eyes, ears, nose, or skin. While it could send feedback to those physical senses, they weren't perfect representations.

In the exchange, he obtained a Method and a Spiritual Spell. The Cultivation Method was named True Dragon Transmutation Method. Within this method was a variety of dragon-based martial arts, including a unique art called the True Dragon Armor. According to its description, it could essentially erect empowered scales around the body, supplementing defensive and offensive strengths of the physical body.

It was then that his horizons expanded, learning about the intricacies and existence of Martial Arts. The method detailed an extensive list, including the principle around their executions and power. Unlike Spiritual Spells that relied on spiritual energies, spiritual strength, and spiritual aura, or Qi Arts that relied on Qi of a large variety, Martial Arts relied on the fleshy body, physical energies, and bloodline power within one's heart. This meant that every move that Bai Lin used that galvanized her bloodline power was a Martial Art. He was fascinated by this discovery and new means of cultivation.

The Spiritual Spell was called the Fixed Soul Spell. It was what Anu used to suppress his sea of consciousness, body, and spirit. It seemed to attack the root of their existence and hub of control: The Soul. When Wei Wuyin learned of its details, and how it affected the soul and had very little ways to defend against it, he nearly drooled. This spell was insidious yet absolutely godly! Unfortunately, it required a cultivation that far, far exceeded the Qi Condensation Realm.

According to Anu, he'd have to reach a particular stage of human cultivation, the realm after the Qi Condensation Realm, that focused on enhancing one's spiritual strength. Furthermore, it had to be strong enough to pierce through the spirit and affect the soul.

While bummed by this harsh requirement, he still felt excited nonetheless.

"I can't wait to examine all this in detail, but I've delayed enough." Wei Wuyin's eyes became sharp, focused, and flashed vicious intent as he gazed at the hole within the ceiling of this spacious chamber. He hadn't forgotten about Bai Lin; nor would he ever. While he was still conflicted on how to approach this matter, he prioritized saving Bai Lin first. His qi started to invigorate his body, lending it boundless strength as he bent his knees and eyed the hole. With a single thought, he was ready to propel himself through the hole and return to the entrance.

Rumble!!!

Abruptly, a vast, deep rumbling sound emanated from inside the spacious chamber. He nearly lost his footing, having to use his recently gathered qi to hastily stabilize his figure. Despite being in an awkward position body-wise, his attention was drawn to the source of this rumble. It was caused by a single, powerful, impacting beat. A heartbeat. It was as if it had been revitalized, strong and explosive that caused the entire world to experience a trembling.

Rumble!!!

He felt it again. This time it was far clearer than before.

"What's happening?" He asked, his qi surging through his body. At a moment's notice, he was ready to react to any unexpected events. However, he didn't have any fear in his heart. This creature that may be a dragon of legends had formed a Spirit Oath to not bring any harm to him, even by proxy. If it was before he saw the vast spiritual strength that indicated that it had an existence similar, if not the same, as his Spirit of Qi, he would've been a little vigilant. After all, it was a creature of unknown, unfathomable cultivation level.

The Fixed Soul Spell betrayed this.

"I'm cleaning up a few insignificant, detestable little worms," the words of Anu echoed in his mind once more. It was enlivened, no longer seeming on the verge of death or ancient as the beginning of creation. In fact, it felt vigorous and youthful. Wei Wuyin's expression changed as he seemingly came to a realization. Before he could question Anu, a vigorous without limit aura started to radiate from every fiber of monstrously large scale, flesh, and bone of this dragon.

Shroom!

It was as if a sun was birthed within the spacious chamber as azure light erupted endlessly and without restraint. Wei Wuyin was immediately blind. His eyes stung as if bees had pierced them with their stringer. With clenched teeth, he conjured an Elemental and Saber Qi ward in hopes of isolating the azure light, but it easily seeped through it. Even through closed eyes, all he could register was azure light and a bright intensity unlike anything he'd ever encountered before.

The boundless aura washed over his entire body and seemed to cause his blood to boil. An uncomfortable feeling emerged in his heart, and while it didn't hurt, it felt as if his heart was being pervaded by this azure light. This lasted for a total of twenty-seven seconds. A mere twenty-seven seconds.

When the azure light started to recede, dissipate, and disperse in all manner of speaking. Wei Wuyin opened his eyes to realize that everything was tinted with an azure color. This wasn't the objects, walls, or shadows being painted azure, but the lingering effect of being blinded by such intense light. While he felt that it was temporary, it truly felt as if he lived in a world of azure.

"What did you do?" Wei Wuyin directly asked. He felt incomparably shocked that the lifeforce that he'd given was refined so swiftly, enough to allow its power to return to this level. He didn't know what this azure-scaled, one-horned dragon-like creature did, but he felt that it had likely shaken the world.

"I've killed some despicable insects, nothing more." An unfeeling voice resounded. It was filled with a casual air that contained a hint of disgust, as if speaking about throwing out garbage, or stomping on a cockroach in your home. A feeling of foreboding emerged in Wei Wuyin's heart as he looked up, the hole still present. He didn't hesitate, shooting upwards like a rocket.

His elemental wind qi surged, giving him lift, and furthering his propelling speed. When he entered the hole, he stomped his foot to the wall, and sped up his ascending speed by another notch. He was like a speeding sparrow as he exited the hole, returning to the entrance pathway of the Beast-Taming Sect.

His spiritual sense didn't hold back as it widely investigated the entrance and beyond. His eyes bulged.

Boom!

「Elemental Art: Thunder Step」

He flashed through the entrance in the matter of seconds, coming to the end which was a gate that was in the process of being closed, yet halted mid-way. His eyes narrowed as he caught a glimpse of what laid inside. He gingerly walked forward until he entered the opening. Those silver eyes of his swept the area.

Just as he thought, this Beast-Taming Sect had an underground city. But none of that was important.

His gaze fell onto a body, fully-clothed, belonging to a young woman who couldn't be more than twenty years old. She laid there, peacefully and without a hint of life exuding from her. She was now a corpse. When he touched her neck to find a pulse, a faint wave of azure light flashed beneath her skin. His heart tensed. Why did he even need to find a pulse? His spiritual sense had already concluded her status: deceased.

Perhaps it was his unwillingness to accept it.

Those same silver eyes lifted and witnessed what seemed like a peaceful underworld. A graveyard without graves; a battlefield without blood; a sect without life.

Bark!

Sssssss!

Meow!

Kree!!

Caaaawww!!!

The sounds of various animals, lively and free from all restraints erupted from all over. He saw canine beasts, feline beasts, serpents, and more of all types of species and races emerge from buildings or simply walking about in the middle of the corpse-littered streets.

Anu had killed all humans.

"Haaaa…" He understood, but a deep sigh still left his lips.