Chapter 1414: Heavenly Emperor

"Yes, that's definitely the constellation of Wei," the women, being intelligent, quickly realized. The Yayu had just roared out two names: Erfu and Wei.

Zu'an said in a deep voice, "It seems those two in the temple are his enemies. And since the Weak Water hasn't been able to breach the temple, it's clear the Yayu is somehow restrained by it; perhaps it's never even been inside, and knows nothing of what's within. What if I move the statues of Wei and Erfu out? It might have an unexpected effect."

Yan Xuehen, however, was a little worried. "But as it stands, it's precisely the temple's presence that suppresses the Weak Water and keeps this mountain from being submerged. If we remove the statues and disrupt its layout, and it doesn't have the desired effect, we'll have nowhere to escape."

Zu'an gazed at the turbulent Weak Water below and said with a solemn expression, "Even if we fail, we'll merely be swept away by the Weak Water; it doesn't necessarily mean we can't get out. On the contrary, if we do nothing, we'll remain trapped here forever, unable to solve this challenge or ever leave this secret realm."

Yan Xuehen suddenly felt a moment of detachment, thinking that being unable to leave this secret realm forever wasn't entirely unacceptable. At least she wouldn't have to face worldly ethics, strange relationships, and curious gazes outside...

At this point, Yun Jianyue said, "I agree with Xiao Anzi. As the saying goes, 'nothing ventured, nothing gained.' Besides, given that Wei was hung in that manner, he was clearly being punished for something he did wrong."

Yu Yanluo also expressed her agreement, and Yan Xuehen naturally found it difficult to object further.

Soon, Zu'an ran into the temple and brought out the hanging statue of Wei, presenting it before the Yayu. "Is this the Wei you mentioned? I don't know what grudge you hold, but I imagine he also suffered a severe punishment back then and received his due."

"Wei!" Upon seeing the statue, the Yayu's eyes nearly burst, and its entire body began to spin relentlessly around the sculpture.

"Hahahaha, I never thought you'd come to such an end." The Yayu seemed not to have spoken for a long time; its voice was very hoarse at first, but after speaking for a while, its articulation became clearer.

Suddenly, it pounced on the statue, opened its cavernous mouth, and swallowed it whole.

The group exchanged bewildered glances. It just ate a statue like that?

What kind of deep hatred and resentment was this?

The Yayu alternately cried and laughed, appearing to have gone mad.

After a while, it stared at the dilapidated temple. "Erfu, do you think punishing him will appease my hatred? It was you who killed me back then!"

Hearing this, Zu'an returned to the dilapidated temple, from which rumbling sounds echoed.

Soon, he emerged with heavy steps, revealing that he had, against all odds, managed to carry out the main statue.

It was fortunate that as a cultivator, he possessed immense strength; otherwise, it would have been impossible to present such a massive statue to the Yayu.

"Erfu!" Upon seeing the human-faced, snake-bodied statue, the Yayu's eyes widened instantly, and it let out an furious roar.

Zu'an said calmly, "The main culprit is here now. Avenge your grudges, right your wrongs."

The Yayu roared and pounced directly.

The group watched expectantly, wondering how it could possibly swallow such a large statue.

To their disappointment, however, the Yayu hesitated with its mouth open, ultimately not swallowing the statue. Instead, its sharp claws relentlessly tore at it, quickly reducing the statue to pieces.

Immediately afterwards, the Yayu roared repeatedly, its tail lashing out like a long whip, instantly tearing the dilapidated temple into fragments.

Seeing the remnants of the Erfu statue and the ruined temple reduced to a pile of rubble, the Yayu's twisted, ferocious expression gradually softened.

Wisps of black mist dissipated from its body, and sunlight from the sky broke through the clouds, scattering across the land.

The previously roaring Weak Water also receded at a visible pace, soon returning to its original calm state.

By this time, all the black mist had vanished from the Yayu. A translucent, human-faced, snake-bodied figure slowly rose from it—the very soul-form that Zu'an's large hand had drawn out during his earlier purification.

"Thank you all for rescuing me and allowing me to be completely free," the apparition said. Its previous ferocity was gone; instead, its expression was extremely serene, like that of a kind old man.

The three women collectively breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that it hadn't ended badly.

Zu'an cupped his hands and asked, "How should I address you, venerable sir? Are you called Yayu?"

The apparition shook its head. "No, I am called Yayu (窫窳)."

The figure used gestures, and only then did they finally understand how the two characters were written.

Everyone: "..."

What an unusual name.

"What exactly happened? Why did you turn into a monster like the Yayu?" Zu'an asked curiously. He was originally more curious about the deep animosity between him, Erfu, and Wei, but he refrained from asking, fearing he might upset the spirit again.

The apparition sighed deeply. "It's a long story of fate's capriciousness. Back then, Erfu and I both had human faces and snake bodies, and our status was highly respected. My temperament was more gentle, and I was always well-liked. Erfu, on the other hand, was fierce and loved to kill. So, people often compared us."

"Erfu naturally felt uncomfortable about this. If it had just been that, it wouldn't have been a big deal. However, Erfu had a subordinate named Wei, who was very skilled at stirring up trouble. I had offended him once, so he harbored resentment and constantly sowed discord between Erfu and me."

"Erfu was already discontent, and under Wei's instigation, they found an opportunity and collaborated to ambush and kill me."

"So, after your death, your resentment transformed you into this Yayu monster?" Yu Yanluo asked curiously.

The apparition shook its head. "Not exactly. I did die at that time. When the Heavenly Emperor learned of it, he took pity on me because I had always been benevolent and died unjustly. So, he ordered someone to revive me with the Elixir of Immortality..."

"The Elixir of Immortality?" The group exclaimed in surprise, never expecting to find another clue about the elixir here, especially with a living example proving it could revive someone.

Zu'an then asked curiously, "Who is this Heavenly Emperor you speak of?"

"The Heavenly Emperor is simply the Heavenly Emperor; who else could he be?" The apparition gave him a strange look, seemingly unable to comprehend why he would ask such a question.

Zu'an had to explain. The apparition shook its head and said, "I don't know if it's due to a missing part of my soul or something else that made me forget some memories, but I don't know the Heavenly Emperor's personal name. I only know that, since ancient times, everyone seems to have referred to him this way."

Zu'an and the others were secretly alarmed, wondering what kind of being this Heavenly Emperor was. Could he truly be the emperor of celestial immortals?

How terrifying must his power be.

At this point, the apparition continued, "However, after I was revived, I didn't return to my original form. In a dazed state, I fell into the Weak Water and became a monster like the Yayu. My soul was filled with hatred and resentment, causing this Yayu's nature to be completely opposite to my former self—fierce, tyrannical, and poisoning all living beings wherever it went. Fortunately, with your help, I have now been completely freed from that nightmarish cycle."

Zu'an and the others suddenly felt a chill down their spines. "Wait, are you saying that after taking the Elixir of Immortality, you came back to life but transformed into this insane monster?"