"Still not coming out to meet your death? The two artifacts you relied on have both been destroyed by me. What tricks could you possibly have left now?"
Master Byron Whitecloud held up the compass in one hand and gripped the Scarlet Flame Command in the other. The ghost-binding fire threads from the compass quickly stripped away the baleful yin energy from the Three Maiden Spirits.
With every passing second, the Three Maiden Spirits looked more defeated and frail.
Inhale...
Change 'Master Baiyun' to 'Master Byron Whitecloud' for consistency with glossary. Otherwise, translation is fluent and matches the dramatic tone.
No one at the bunker entrance answered Master Byron Whitecloud. The wind currents just grew faster and faster, the whole entrance like a giant whale gulping water, constantly breathing in and out.
The Three Maiden Spirits stared longingly at the entrance, their faces full of reverence and yearning.
"Did he die in there?"
Master Byron Whitecloud frowned, took a few steps forward, and was about to enter the bunker alone to force Evan Lin out.
But as soon as he stepped forward, he suddenly noticed something at his feet and froze.
He saw that the grass, scorched yellow by the Blue-Flame Blood Python's fire, now showed signs of life again with every gust of wind from the tunnel entrance.
At the tips of the grass, the withered yellow slowly turned pale green, as if coming back to life.
"No matter who you are, you die today!"
Master Byron Whitecloud didn’t hesitate any longer and shot forward at full speed.
When he reached the entrance and was about to head in, his gaze sharpened, locking onto the darkness at the tunnel’s depths.
"The Grand Dao Foundation Art—compared to ordinary Foundation methods, it truly is far more profound. Rare, truly rare."
A faint sigh sounded from within.
Evan Lin sat cross-legged in the same spot, eyes half-closed. His skin was smooth and renewed, long black hair loose over his shoulders.
Over the past month, Evan Lin had consumed all his Nourishing Spirit Pills, relying on their spiritual qi and the little he had left in his Spirit Platform to fully internalize the Grand Dao Foundation Art.
Foundation arts cultivate the power to sense the Dao itself.
But the Grand Dao Foundation Art carried an incredibly strong life force, as if it unified the Dao of the whole world into one.
With every word he spoke, Master Byron Whitecloud—standing at the entrance—suddenly changed expression, sensing an ancient, boundless aura. It was faint, but gave the feeling of something thousands of years old.
"The Dao, the Dao... What is the Dao? The immortal road is endless. If you fail to ascend, you're just a mortal ant, driven by others, fodder for Heaven and Earth, doomed to die in sorrow."
Evan Lin murmured to himself, voice calm and flat.
With every word he spoke, Master Baiyun—standing at the entrance—suddenly changed expression, sensing an ancient, boundless aura. It was faint, but gave the feeling of something thousands of years old.
"Who are you, really? Why not come out and fight!"
Master Byron Whitecloud shouted furiously. The compass spun in his hand, spawning more ghost-binding fire threads that shot into the cave.
Wherever the fire threads passed, they lit up the darkness inside the bunker.
On the stone walls, countless blades of grass burned to ash by the flames slowly lifted their heads again, stubbornly starting new life.
Master Byron Whitecloud's face grew serious as the fire threads ripped through the air, instantly reaching the depths of the tunnel.
"Is it you?"
In Master Byron Whitecloud's view, a youth sat at the very center.
The youth looked young but carried an imposing air. Even with eyes still closed, he radiated a cold majesty—like a deity or Buddha seated for ages, beyond joy or sorrow, never glancing at anyone, yet all beings would instinctively bow before him.
"Die!"
Seeing the youth, Master Byron Whitecloud felt a surge of inexplicable panic. Without delay, he drove the fire threads straight toward the youth's brow.
If those fire threads pierced his skull, not even immortals could save him.
"Disturbing my cultivation—reckless beyond belief."
Just as the fire threads were about to pierce the youth's brow, he finally opened his eyes.
As the youth's eyes opened, his black hair suddenly lifted and flew up, and at that moment, Master Byron Whitecloud saw the youth's eyes clearly for the first time.
Those eyes were pure black, like the eternal cosmos—seeing through all the world's cold and warm.
The youth didn’t move at all, but the fire threads suddenly froze in front of him, unnaturally suspended in midair.
Pop...
A soft sound.
Like raindrops falling into a pond.
A faint blue halo slowly condensed in front of the youth, shimmering like rippling water—a transparent wall of water!
"Break."
The youth spoke softly. With that word, the fire threads shattered in midair, vanishing without a trace as if they’d never existed.
The bunker, lit up by the fire threads, plunged back into darkness.
"What the hell?!"
Master Byron Whitecloud was startled. He tried to activate another spell with his compass, but before he could, the youth—who’d been some distance away—suddenly appeared right in front of him after just a few breaths!
"Get lost!"
Shocked, Master Byron Whitecloud grabbed at the air with one hand, instantly conjuring a giant invisible hand that slammed toward the youth.
That palm strike was savage, its force vast—like it could crush everything in its path.
"Just an overgrown ant, jumping in front of me—are you looking to die?"
Evan Lin clasped one hand behind his back and strode forward. When he reached Master Baiyun, he looked up at the giant transparent hand, then calmly extended his own hand to meet it head-on.
Evan Lin clasped one hand behind his back and strode forward. When he reached Master Byron Whitecloud, he looked up at the giant transparent hand, then calmly extended his own hand to meet it head-on.
The two hands collided—the giant transparent hand instantly exploded, scattering force everywhere. The blast whipped Evan’s black hair around his ears, but his face stayed indifferent, free of any trace of mundane humanity.
Seeing this, Master Baiyun darted out of the bunker, eyes full of shock and doubt.
Seeing this, Master Byron Whitecloud darted out of the bunker, eyes full of shock and doubt.
But the youth showed no sign of pain at all, as if it was nothing to him.
"Just who are you? I am Master Baiyun of the Profound Clarity Sect—we have no grudge or feud! Why did you kill my two disciples?"
"Just who are you? I am Master Byron Whitecloud of the Profound Clarity Sect—we have no grudge or feud! Why did you kill my two disciples?"
Master Byron Whitecloud leapt out, landing atop a treetop outside the bunker. His eyes were cold, fixed on the entrance, his heart heavy.
The youth stepped out of the bunker, shaking his head slightly, his face showing only indifference and chill.
Nearby, the Three Maiden Spirits—still bound—were stunned when they saw the youth walk out from inside.
The youth’s appearance hadn’t changed, but his aura was entirely different from before.
That aura, beyond its usual indifference, now carried a hint of cruelty.
The youth looked up, his cold gaze fixed on Master Byron Whitecloud standing atop the tree.
"I killed them. That's all there is to it."
"If you want a reason—it's simply because I wanted to kill."