Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

Xiao Yunhan then looked away from her mother and said, "The physical body has collapsed, but the soul still exists, though it is extremely weak."

The enormous icy blade vanished as ice crystals, scattering millions of ice crystals around it. If one didn't notice the blood of a powerful figure stained on it, the scene would actually be quite beautiful.

After the ice sword disappeared, the remains on the ground were a terrible sight, just like an egg or tomato had been smashed on the ground with a "thud," and the marks were just like those left on the old King Chu's body.

But besides that, there was a tooth remaining there, and the old King of Chu's weakened soul was attached to the tooth.

This soul is different from the soul-binding practices in Taoist or witchcraft traditions. Those souls are obtained by searching for "memory fragments" from corpses. Even if they can speak, they have no independent consciousness and only have a few memories and obsessions from their previous life.

However, the old Chu King's soul currently residing in those teeth is a complete soul. If given a certain opportunity, he could even rebuild his physical body, rise from the ashes, and make a comeback.

Forget about possession; his soul is too weak right now, and he doesn't have any spiritual energy to heal himself. His current state of barely surviving seems to be a characteristic of a strong person at this level, making him difficult to kill.

Xiao Yunhan showed no mercy, pondering a solution as if she were thinking about how to completely exterminate cockroaches:

"Even though he's already this weak, this last bit is the hardest to cut off..."

"How about we throw these teeth into the Abyss later? I'd like to see how effective the Abyss is against cultivators of this level."

Chu Mingkong felt that it should still be useful, as long as it went deep into the abyss. If it was placed in the area around the abyss, it would probably take time to make up for the difference in the concentration of the abyss's aura.

"Very well, to prepare for the arrival of the Buddhist monks later, you and Mother should hurry up and finish this matter."

Xiao Yunhan agreed with her brother's opinion and used ice again to freeze the tooth in place, giving him no chance to escape.

Xiao Zhi was in a daze and confused, unable to distinguish herself. She subconsciously heard her daughter's voice, but she didn't understand what she was saying. She habitually leaned closer to her daughter and hugged her, wanting to kiss her.

This habit is indeed not Xiao Zhi's fault. During the time when Yun Han was monopolizing Chu Mingkong's cultivation, Xiao Zhi had no choice but to look for kisses everywhere. Fortunately, Chu Mingkong was good at sweet talk, otherwise Xiao Zhi would have suffered even more.

Xiao Yunhan did not reject her mother's affection, but responded by cupping her beautiful face in her hands. Their words, intertwined, silently conveyed the deep affection between mother and daughter, as if they were sisters.

Chu Mingkong could understand his sister's heart, but he couldn't fathom her thoughts. However, he could now crack jokes with her.

"Yunhan, why don't we stay together a little longer and wait until Zhi'er is done before we go to the Abyss?"

However, Xiao Yunhan was very principled and decisively refused:

"No, that would waste time. After you're done, we'll head to the Abyss as soon as possible..."

"After you return and settle your mother, then you can cultivate with me."

Chu Mingkong: "..."

Why does it feel like the second sentence is the most important?

However, since he was in a hurry to get to the Abyss, Chu Mingkong recalled a past experience when he was also rushing to the Abyss.

"Yunhan, we can actually set off now."

"Then what about Mother Consort..." A hint of doubt appeared in Xiao Yunhan's eyes.

Are you just going to abandon your mother halfway through?

"We can set off now," Chu Mingkong repeated, his eyes conveying his seriousness and certainty to his sister.

then--

Through Chu Mingkong's deliberate actions, Xiao Yunhan witnessed her mother's swaying on horseback, and was then carried by Chu Mingkong deep into the Abyss...

The boundary at the deepest part of the abyss.

Chu Mingkong chose the same route as the ritual site where he had accompanied Yun Nongyu to "touch" the existence of Slaanesh last time.

In just a few days, the landscape here has undergone tremendous changes. The plains have turned into hills, and only a small patch of flat land still faintly shows traces of the past and evokes a sense of familiarity.

The dangerous, extremely yin aura did not affect the Chu Princess's distraction and focus. With each step Chu Mingkong took, drops of her fragrant sweat would fall from her body.

“We’ve arrived. If we go a little further ahead, we’ll reach the depths of the Abyss. The aura there will be much stronger than here. I don’t recommend that you go in with me, Yunhan.”

"..."

Xiao Yunhan's gaze remained mostly on her mother. Even though she was as indifferent as she was, after witnessing the whole thing, she couldn't help but look at her with a complicated and questioning feeling.

She returned her attention to the important matter at hand:

"I won't go in, but I want to try. If anything goes wrong, I'll come out... Also, could you please put Mother down?"

This is natural. Chu Mingkong wouldn't dare to take Xiao Zhi to the depths of the Abyss so casually. Even if she still had the resources to use the Extreme Yang Shield, she probably wouldn't be able to hold out for long.

Considering her sister's intense thirst for cultivation these past few days, Chu Mingkong really wanted to ask her a question:

Is it because you've let go of your mother that you want to come back up?

But it wasn't appropriate to say what was on his mind. Chu Mingkong put the mature and graceful princess down, but still held her in his arms, pouring out his deep familial affection for her like a spring.

Xiao Yunhan took out a crumpled talisman paper, peeled off the talisman, which was equivalent to breaking the seal and suppression. Inside was a piece of ice. The ice melted, and then the old King Chu's tooth was revealed.

"Could this be considered his relic?" Chu Mingkong suddenly asked.

"I don't know, maybe it counts." Without hesitation, Xiao Yunhan used her inner energy to lift the tooth and toss it into the depths of the abyss within the boundary.

A few breaths later, the howling from within the teeth shattered the peace and tranquility of the Abyss.

It's a bit noisy and a bit ear-piercing.

Xiao Yunhan nodded and said, "It seems that it can indeed work in the depths of the Abyss, but the timing is a bit late. It's hard to confirm whether it's only useful when a powerful expert in the Divine Soul Realm is extremely weak, or whether it poses such a threat even when they are at their peak... I'll take a couple of steps in and try it out."

On the white dress of the snow-haired woman, ice crystals were adorned as if by divine craftsmanship. A circular ice shield appeared beside her, which quickly turned translucent. Inside the shield, besides Xiao Yunhan herself, snowflakes were falling.

Sister Xiao Yunhan seemed to be inside a crystal ball in a winter fairy tale, beautiful and dreamlike.

After making preparations, she also stepped into the border of the deepest abyss.

Looking in from the outer area, nothing seemed amiss, but just a step away, the surrounding sky became even more gloomy, dark, and mesmerizing.

Along with this came an immense sense of oppression; ice-sculpted cracks instantly appeared on her "crystal ball," as if it were about to explode.

Fortunately, Xiao Yunhan had previously suffered an injury to her Yin Divine Soul while treating her younger brother, so she had some adaptability to the Abyss and managed to stabilize herself.

She used her internal energy to restore the shield, and the cracks on it were slowly erased as if time were flowing backward.

"If I had no adaptability to the power of extreme Yin, it would be even harder to hold on here... Even now, with my spiritual cultivation and adaptability to the power of extreme Yin, I still find it a bit strenuous and it would be difficult for me to stay here for long."

This step also brought a question to Xiao Yunhan's mind: why is there a distinction between the outer perimeter of the Abyss and the depths of the Abyss?

Moreover, the boundary is so clear that the degree of erosion and fragmentation of the landforms is obviously different.

If the difference is simply a matter of the density of extreme Yin energy, then it's a bit hard to understand why these more threatening extreme Yin energies don't spread outwards.

Is it because there is something deep in that abyss?

"Yunhan, why are you spacing out? Your Ice Shield is about to break." Chu Mingkong's voice reminded Xiao Yunhan, who then snapped out of her daze.

The sound she heard was muffled, like being in the sea and listening to people talking on the surface.

Without further thought, she took a step back and left the depths of the abyss.

With just this one step away, Xiao Yunhan suddenly felt as if she were emerging from the water, and the pressure instantly eased.

“If I don’t get distracted, I can hold out in there for quite a while. At that point, using the depths of the Abyss to deal with the Buddhists should be feasible,” Xiao Yunhan said. “Mingkong, how much pressure will you be under in there?”

"I'll give it a try too."

He placed the "unconscious" Queen Consort of Chu in his sister's arms, and immediately transformed into a black-blooded giant, over two meters tall and nearly three meters tall, standing beside the Queen Consort and her daughter.

Xiao Yunhan looked at her "unrecognizable" younger brother and was still a little nervous. However, she found that Chu Mingkong did not need any protective spiritual energy shield when he entered the depths of the abyss. Walking in it was no different from walking in the outer area.

"Yunhan, if I'm here, the extreme yang energy in my heart will be depleted a bit too quickly, but Zhi'er has given me quite a bit these past two days, so it's not a big problem." After transforming into the Abyss, Chu Mingkong's voice was hoarse and had a muffled echo, like a monster speaking human language.

The tooth's wailing continued, though it had indeed weakened considerably.

Chu Mingkong walked over, picked up the tooth, and squeezed it hard with his claws, causing the old Chu King's hiding place to crack: "The tooth quality isn't very good."

Grabbing the increasingly ethereal soul, Chu Mingkong said, "Take off!" and threw the soul deeper into the depths.

Unfortunately, the soul disappeared before it even landed.

Xiao Yunhan didn't care about her biological father's fate; she was only thinking about her younger brother's words.

According to Mingkong's idea, as long as he has a woman with extreme Yang power, and he can keep her on his waist at all times for cultivation, he can stay in the depths of the Abyss forever.

Chapter 224 Awareness

The thorough examination of the depths of the Abyss is over, and the complete annihilation of the old King Chu is no longer a matter of concern. However, it cannot be said that it is not a matter of concern, as it at least confirmed that the depths of the Abyss can be used to deal with enemies at the Divine Soul Realm.

It's a pity that there's no way to set up any teleportation array in the Abyss. Otherwise, Chu Mingkong would have turned the depths of the Abyss into a graveyard for Buddhist attackers, teleporting them directly there to be killed, just like those reckless Yin Shi witches back then.

"Alright, let's go back. Yunhan, come up here, I'll carry you out."

Chu Mingkong did not deactivate his Abyss Transformation. The tall, black-blooded man knelt down on one knee, bowing before the elegant and cold beauty, placing his paws on the ground and waiting for her to "take a seat."

Xiao Yunhan didn't say anything, but sat down on her brother's paw. Chu Mingkong held the mother and daughter in his arms as if they were priceless treasures, and slowly walked outside.

As he walked, he was lost in thought.

Aside from the adoptive father acting as a guide, there really wasn't much of a commotion. It wasn't even an appetizer before the real arrival of the Buddhist attackers; it was merely a way to deal with the aftermath of the assassination of the emperor in the capital.

Thus, he had settled accounts with his two enemies during the Xiling Abyss disaster.

Everything up to this point seems to be fulfilling a childhood joke I made with my master, Zuo Qiuchi...

It's that phrase, "with the enemy as the center and all beautiful female relatives as the radius..." that seems to be what they've been doing so far.

Of course, Chu Mingkong had no intention of seeking revenge against his mother, Consort Xiao Zhi, and his sister, Yun Han. In particular, Yun Han never did. However, he still couldn't shake the feeling of having said something in his childhood.

In Buddhism, this would be called a "grand vow"—one cannot become a Buddha until a certain goal is achieved. In the context of the scholar's ideals, it would be called "finding peace and establishing oneself in life."

Fortunately, Chu Mingkong did not make any such vow. The current target of the conflict has shifted to the Buddhist attackers, who have no mothers or female relatives.

They can be considered the greatest enemies of Chu Mingkong's lifelong ambition. If he wanted to take revenge, he could only go after them personally, and he could not do so to his heart's content.

However, it cannot be said that there are no women in Buddhism. Aren't those strange women in Shejia a good example? Chu Mingkong would not seek revenge on them.

Seeing that his younger brother had been silent for so long, Xiao Yunhan asked:

"Mingkong, what are you thinking about?"

A chuckle came from among the black-blooded figures:

"How is it considered wild thinking? Can't it be profound and far-sighted reflection?"

The aloof woman sitting in his lap said calmly:

“Your brain has been corrupted by Qiu Chi since you were little. Even when you're trying to think things through, you just drift off and let your mind wander. The most insightful and correct thing you did in the capital was to ask Rong’er to help you think things through.”