Myriad Realms Gatekeeper

"Shen Ye, what happened to you?"

Yun Ni asked.

"I sprained my ankle, and I got hurt a little during the fight," Shen Ye said vaguely.

"I see. I'm skilled in healing. This situation is easy to fix. Want to give it a try?" Yun Ni asked.

Before she could finish speaking, a soft light emerged from her hands and flashed into Shen Ye's body.

A faint glow appeared, forming words:

"This weakened state is caused by forcibly activating the second Dharma Aspect. Your soul is resonating with it, which has resulted in weakness."

"All healing arts are ineffective."

Ineffective!

Shen Ye sighed and shook his head:

"I appreciate the thought, but it's no use."

A hint of surprise flashed through Yun Ni's eyes, immediately followed by a grave expression.

How could it be ineffective?

This kid might not know his stuff, but she did.

It should be possible to heal him!

But for him, it was ineffective!

Could it be a special physique?

If Shen Ye died, she would vanish into thin air, never to have another chance at life again.

At this time, Xiao Mengyu also realized the other party was using a high-level healing art.

"Thank you for your kindness—since you are also stuck on this cliff, please stay here with us. At least it's relatively safe here."

There was a touch more sincerity in her tone.

"Thank you so much," Yun Ni said joyfully, pressing her hands together.

She shot a glance at Shen Ye.

—See how I'm doing? Didn't I tirelessly protect you?

Shen Ye couldn't be bothered with her.

Exhausted, he took a few breaths and suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe. Everything went dark, and he passed out.

In the last moment.

He saw Yun Ni rush in front of him, her hands forming a Spell Seal, her eyes filled with fear.

Damn it.

She thinks I'm going to die?

That thought flashed through his mind, and then he fell into darkness.

Endless darkness.

A hue of grey flame quietly appeared.

Around the flame, colors formed Runes, cycling endlessly, extending outward to form a massive image.

Shen Ye opened his eyes.

In the darkness, he found there was no 'himself.'

At this moment, it was perhaps only his consciousness that was present.

Yet that massive image, built of grey flame, kept on expanding—

Where the flame passed.

The darkness dispersed.

—So what exactly is this?

Suddenly.

The voice of Underworld Lord Miket Tikaxiwa quietly arose:

"It has begun."

"This is the Nightmare World's Dharma Aspect, which is weaving rapidly, and your task is to find my skeletal fragments, to give me the strength to continue weaving."

"When you've obtained a fragment of my skeleton, I begin to do this for you…"

"It wasn't necessary to tell you this early."

"Who would have known that someone would inject you with the sixth layer of the Dharma Realm's strength, making you perceive the Nightmare Dharma Aspect all at once."

"So the avatar absorbed all your strength and left you in a state of weakness, even weaker than mere weakness."

"Your body needs time to recover."

"Before that, stay in the connection between your soul and the Dharma Realm."

As Shen Ye watched the formation of that image, he couldn't help but sigh:

"To be honest, it's quite dangerous out there right now."

"When is life ever a constant smooth path? People can still choke to death drinking water, let alone the union between your world and mine," Miket Tikaxiwa said indifferently.

She extended her hand and released a stream of light that entered Shen Ye's brow.

"This is the power of the Nightmare Avatar. Since you're here, start comprehending it ahead of time."

"…Alright."

As Shen Ye lapsed into unconsciousness.

Yun Ni rushed up with a Spell Seal in her hand.

Xiao Mengyu was holding Shen Ye with one arm and had her hand on the hilt of the Luoshui Divine Sword, her gaze fixed on Yun Ni.

Yun Ni paid no attention to her, focusing solely on Shen Ye.

After a long while.

"He's not dead... whew, you scared me to death..."

She collapsed to the ground, her body drenched in cold sweat, her eyes moist.

This scene surprised Xiao Mengyu.

"Yun Ni, have you met Shen Ye before?"

She asked tentatively.

"I have," Yun Ni said.

"No wonder you're so concerned about him," Xiao Mengyu probed further.

Yun Ni's eyes twinkled, and she laughed coquettishly, covering her mouth:

"Shen Ye is a True Disciple of Chaotic Heaven Gate, extremely excellent. I've always taken him as a role model."

Indeed, Xiao Mengyu's expression changed slightly.

Yun Ni saw it and was about to tease her further when suddenly a strange sensation arose in her heart.

This presence...

Not good!

Those people have arrived!

"I was just kidding earlier," she patted Xiao Mengyu on the shoulder, "Actually, I'm friends with Nangong Sirui. He asked me to look after Shen Ye if I saw him."

—Great danger looms, we must stand united inside!

Don't let a woman become emotionally unstable; it can affect combat effectiveness!

Especially when that woman is the main combatant.

Yun Ni may jest, but she knew the gravity of the situation.

While Xiao Mengyu was still in a daze, Yun Ni's figure flashed, she dashed through the cave entrance and landed on the cliff outside.

"I'll scout the situation. Take care of Shen Ye," she said before disappearing.

Leaving Xiao Mengyu behind, holding Shen Ye, sitting deep within the cave mouth.

—Along with her Biochemical Avatar.

—And of course, the Husky.

"Did you hear that? She's actually a friend of Nangong Sirui, even specifically taking care of Shen Ye," Xiao Mengyu mused.

"Of course, I heard. I didn't expect Nangong Sirui to have such a beauty as a friend," the Husky pondered Yun Ni's words, "But… why did Nangong Sirui make a point to instruct her on this matter?"

Just as Xiao Mengyu relaxed, her heart suddenly tensed up again.

Right.

This isn't right!

Why is Nangong Sirui so concerned about Shen Ye?

On the cliff wall.

Yun Ni used hand and foot, dashing speedily up the vertical and slippery rock face.

"So many people have come..."

"No, I have to stop them quickly, they must not be allowed to kill Shen Ye!"

Suddenly, Yun Ni leapt up, her physique spreading out, flying upwards.

Her speed had reached the extreme.

In the void, a lingering afterimage kept flashing upwards, as if traversing through space repeatedly.

Finally—

She stopped.

Opposite her, a white-haired man in full chainmail stood in the passage on the first level of the Great Tomb.

Behind the white-haired man stood dozens of fully armed human professionals.

All of them took up a defensive stance.

"Eh? Isn't this the Master of Weeping Demon Prison? I thought it was a strong figure from within Breath Soil High School... You really gave me quite a scare," said the white-haired man with a grin.

Those behind him also relaxed, staring at Yun Ni with disdain.

"You are one of Tai Yan's underlings," Yun Ni observed.

"That's right, I heard you messed up your job—how can you still have the face to live?" asked the white-haired man.

"I'm here to kill you," Yun Ni said bluntly.

"Just you? A mere slave dares to be so arrogant?" the white-haired man laughed derisively.

Talk aside, a broken, mist-constructed sharp claw suddenly emerged from behind him.

Avatar · Hand of Decay!

The misty claw grabbed at the empty air, seemingly disregarding distance and Yun Ni's defenses, and snatched her up, squeezing forcefully—

"Die," the white-haired man snarled with a fiendish smile.

Boom.

All the mist dispersed.

The giant hand ceased to exist.

"The gap between us is too great," Yun Ni stated calmly, standing in the midst of the dissipating mist:

"The basic attributes of this body of mine have been enhanced some, currently about 20 times yours, so a simple technique will suffice."

She too extended her hand, grasping at the empty air.

In an instant.

Stones from the floor shattered, turning into countless sharp fragments, instantly piercing through the bodies of everyone present.

In the midst of dense screams—

The blade-sharp stone fragments gathered in Yun Ni's hand, fusing to form a stone ball around three meters high.

Drip-drop. Drip-drop.

Bright red blood seeped from the stone ball, continuously dripping onto the ground.

Deathly silence.

In the entire passageway.

Apart from the whistling wind and the sound of blood droplets falling, no other sound could be heard.

The living people just moments ago had all turned into corpses.

Suddenly.

A round of applause echoed.

At the end of the passageway.

A man with a mask leaned against the door, clapping continuously.

"To break the Avatar: Hand of Decay so easily, I must admit, it's quite an eye-opener even for me," he said.

Yun Ni gave him a cold glance and asked,

"Are you wearing a mask because you're afraid to show your face?"

"Sorry, I've sided with Tai Yan. It's somewhat difficult for me to kill kin of this world, so it's better to wear a mask," the man replied.

"How does it feel to be someone else's dog?" Yun Ni questioned.

The man formed a spell seal with his hand, his voice laced with a hint of brutality:

"It's much better than being a slave like you."

The Avatar unfolded beneath his feet, rapidly spreading throughout the passageway, turning into countless maws, all opening wide to reveal sharp teeth.

Dark Devouring Avatar · Barrier Shattering Demon Prison!

"This is a special Avatar of the Sixth Layer of the Magic Realm—given my strength, I originally wanted to take you as a maid, but unfortunately, you are too foul-mouthed, so let my Avatar completely devour you instead," said the masked man as he pointed.

The whole passageway came alive.

It was like a writhing intestine, the mouths on the wall all twisted and turned, biting towards Yun Ni's body.

And that was not all—

Even more flesh maws appeared on the cliffs below the corridor, spreading towards the depths of the earth.

—The cliff, as deep as an abyss, was gradually turning into flesh!

A scorpion hiding in a rocky peak, sensing a slight tremor and attempting to escape, was suddenly picked by a tongue and fell into one of the flesh maws, chewed up and devoured.

All life that had been hidden on this cliff would be swallowed by this Avatar.

Without exception!

Yun Ni with one hand formed a spell seal, softly speaking:

"It has been quite a while since I've used an Avatar…"

"But you are too dangerous; I cannot let you go and kill him."

A strange fluctuation emitted from her hand.

In a flash.

Something seemed to happen, but that sensation existed only for an instant before completely vanishing.

Yun Ni still held the spell seal in one hand.

The masked man still stood not far away from her.

The only difference was—

Every last one of the numerous maws filling the passageway had disappeared.

The flesh ceased writhing and quickly receded from the rock, as if it had never existed.

The abyssal cliff returned to its original form.

The corridor below was cool and quiet.

Everything returned to normal.

The masked man sighed and began to speak:

"Why did you become enslaved?"

Yun Ni answered seriously, "Our world was headed towards destruction. I was badly injured and had no choice but to be captured and serve the 'Five Desires.'"

"Tch... What a damned situation, why did I have to meet you... why could you transform into a person…" the masked man said.

The wind blew.

His entire being turned to ash, vanishing into nothingness.

Yun Ni shook her head, already contemplating other matters.

"No, that's not right... why was he so weak?"

"Maybe he still has some secrets on him?"