Heavenly Sound

Mo Yan Yu abruptly halted.

Four warriors of the Mo clan emerged from the forest, gasping for breath, and stood beside her with grave expressions.

Karu's headless corpse, its blood not yet dry, appeared shriveled, as if drained of all moisture, devoid of any vital energy.

The four warriors gathered around Mo Yanyu, their eyes filled with terror. One of them hesitated, then stepped forward and said, "Miss..."

Mo Yanyu's brows furrowed deeply, her delicate body trembled slightly. After a moment, she decisively commanded, "Do not pursue."

"But, Miss..." The warrior seemed intent on saying more.

"Karu was in the Second Heaven of the Xiantian realm, equal to me in cultivation level, and far more experienced in battle. No matter what means he used to kill Karu, it signifies he possesses the ability to kill any one of us. If we continue the pursuit, none of us may make it back to the Merchant Alliance."

"Then... shall we let him go just like that? Miss, we invested heavily to bring Master Karu back." The warrior stammered.

"Besides giving up, Li Tian, do you have any other solution to deal with him?"

The warrior fell silent.

Mo Yanyu knelt beside Karu's body, searching through his belongings. Gritting her teeth, she cursed softly, "Damn it, all of Karu's potions and alchemical texts have been taken by him. This trip was a complete waste."

The four warriors remained silent.

"Return to Johnson's side. From now on, no one is to separate!" Mo Yanyu took a deep breath, stood up, and turned back the way they came, her hatred for Shi Yan deepening to the bone.

...

Shi Yan stumbled through the dark forest in a panic.

The violent bloodlust within him, like a ferocious beast, gradually consumed his sanity. Savage, murderous, and frenzied emotions galloped wildly through his mind like untamed horses. His vision blurred, and he felt as though he was losing control over the dark power within him.

Yet his body was utterly exhausted, his limbs devoid of strength. Engaging in combat at this moment would be a death sentence.

He had no idea how much longer he could hold on and was completely unprepared for the abnormal changes happening in his body.

"Boom!"

The bloodthirsty impulse in his heart finally exploded. Shi Yan gasped for air, his eyes seeing nothing, and a voice in his mind repeated incessantly, "Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!"

Shi Yan knew that he was on the brink of losing all sanity, about to become a bloodthirsty beast driven solely by the desire to kill.

...

A melodious and graceful tune suddenly wafted through the air from afar. The music was like pearls dropping onto a jade plate, like ringing jade pendants, flowing gently, reminiscent of birds flapping their wings lightly, or like a serene stream trickling through a quiet forest. It was so beautiful and enchanting that it captivated the listener, the playing skill having reached a transcendent level.

The elegant and delicate melody seemed like a soft, boneless hand gently soothing his heart, calming the violent bloodlust within him, allowing his nearly shattered sanity to gradually return.

Under the influence of the music, the nearly insane Shi Yan slowly regained his composure, walking dreamily toward the source of the sound, his entire being enveloped in the ethereal world of the melody. The bloodthirsty urge within him gradually dissipated into nothingness...

In a small valley filled with rare flowers and exotic herbs, a graceful figure sat amidst the blossoms, playing a guqin with her head slightly bowed, lost in her music, completely unaware that Shi Yan was slowly approaching.

Shi Yan stopped a hundred meters away, gazing at the beautiful figure with her back to him, closing his eyes as he let his spirit immerse in the exquisite melody.

After a long time, the music gradually faded, eventually coming to a stop.

Shi Yan suddenly awoke from his trance, feeling that the violent bloodthirsty urge within him had completely vanished, as if it had never existed!

However, his body still felt heavy, and his chest ached terribly. The blow from Karu had clearly inflicted significant damage on him. As he carefully assessed his condition, he noticed that the vortex within his acupoints was still spinning relentlessly, continuing to digest the essence energy he had absorbed from Karu.

The distant figure holding the guqin slowly turned around, her brows slightly furrowed as she met Shi Yan's gaze.

Shi Yan's body trembled slightly, his gaze intense and unyielding as he blurted out, "Beautiful!"

The beauty before him wore a white dress, appearing to be in her late teens, with bright eyes and pearly teeth, skin as white as snow, exuding a perfect blend of ethereal elegance and youthful charm. She was on par with Mo Yanyu in terms of beauty.

The beauty merely glanced at Shi Yan before silently turning away, holding her guqin as she gracefully walked towards a small river a hundred meters away.

Shi Yan sighed inwardly at the world's impeccable beauty. In this place, he had only encountered two women, yet both were breathtakingly captivating, each more exceptional than the last.

"Miss, thank you for your music just now. May I..." Shi Yan called out as he watched the beauty walk away.

"Boy, you should know your limits."

A burly figure suddenly leaped down from an ancient tree in front of Shi Yan. It was a yellow-faced middle-aged man with a full beard, wearing a grey-brown warrior's uniform, broad-shouldered and muscular, lazily carrying a broad sword on his shoulder. He blocked Shi Yan's path, looking at him with a smirk.

Shi Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he tensed up. From this yellow-faced man's presence, he sensed an overwhelming and terrifying aura.

Without needing to think, Shi Yan immediately realized that this yellow-faced man was undoubtedly a warrior far more powerful than himself. Even though the man was not deliberately exerting pressure on him, Shi Yan felt as though he was facing an unshakable mountain.

Taking a step back, Shi Yan indicated that he meant no harm. With a dry laugh, he said, "The music from that beautiful young lady was truly unforgettable. I merely wished to hear it again, and had no other intentions."

The enchanting girl, with her divine skill on the guqin, had a melody that could suppress the bloodlust within him. He wasn't sure if the bloodlust would resurface, so he sought her out as a means to control it.

"I know you're simply infatuated, without any other intentions; otherwise, you wouldn't still be alive." The yellow-faced man chuckled, saying casually, "However, this is not the right place for your infatuation. I suggest you stay far away from us to avoid bringing unnecessary trouble upon yourself."

"Alright." Shi Yan raised his hand, not insisting further. He took one last deep look at the elegant figure in the distance, then turned and walked away.

...

"Uncle Luo, this man carries a strong aura of malevolence. Just now, he was brimming with killing intent and nearly lost his sanity. But after regaining his composure, he still dared to show himself, and his gaze was... so unabashed. He likely isn't from the 'Dark Abyss' sect." Mu Yudie felt uneasy recalling Shi Yan's brazen gaze.

That man seemed to never hide his inner desires.

Others, although they harbored similar intentions towards her, would at least mask them, sneaking glances without daring to reveal their true thoughts. But that man's blatant gaze held no concealment, as if he wished to devour her whole—a pure, unadulterated desire for possession.

"He's certainly not from 'Dark Abyss.' If 'Dark Abyss' had sent someone, they would at least be in the Xiantian realm. That boy is still wandering in the Houtian realm." Luo Hao laughed, saying, "Still, that boy is interesting. Not even in the Xiantian realm, yet he dares to covet our little fairy, who's in the Three Heavens of the Ren position. His courage is truly astounding, ha ha."

"Sigh, I don't know when I'll recover. Right now, I can't use any of my strength." Mu Yudie sighed softly, her heart filled with worry. "Uncle Luo, if we really can't hold out, don't worry about me. I've... already made my preparations."

"What nonsense!" Luo Hao's face darkened as he scolded, "We're not far from the Merchant Alliance. If we can just hold out for ten more days, we'll surely make it through the Dark Forest. Once we reach the Merchant Alliance, 'Dark Abyss' won't be able to reach us."

"Co-co! Co-co!"

A strange whistle sounded from afar. Soon, two men and a woman, looking like mercenaries, emerged from the forest. The leader, with a grave expression, approached and said immediately, "Uncle Luo, we couldn't catch up with the 'Dark Abyss' trackers."

Luo Hao nodded, frowning. "Let's move out immediately. We need to find a new place to stay, or the 'Dark Abyss' will soon surround this area."

The five of them quickly gathered their things and hurried away without lingering.

...

Not long after leaving those people, the bloodlust within Shi Yan began to rise again.

This bloodlust was connected to the essence energy he had absorbed from Karu. Karu, who had reached the Xiantian realm, had essence energy filled with negative emotions. As Shi Yan's acupoints purified that energy, some of the negative emotions would occasionally overflow, triggering the bloodlust

 within him.

He was uncertain if the suppressed bloodlust would flare up again, so he had hoped to stay close to that group. The melodious music could ease his madness and allow him to recover in peace.

Unfortunately, due to the presence of that terrifying yellow-faced man, Shi Yan had no choice but to leave, and now he had to struggle alone.