Siblings Tear Off the Mask, Finally Time to Reel in the Net
Siblings Tear Off the Mask, Finally Time to Reel in the Net
Jiang Yang’s appearance left Yao Yao momentarily stunned.
She never expected that he would also come to the Sky Pool of Death, and even claim he was here to find her.
Soon, she snapped out of it. Anger and a thick, icy coldness involuntarily surfaced on her little face, and she said nothing.
After all, this was the chief culprit who had schemed her Shifu into coming to the Sky Pool of Death.
During this time, if the person she missed most was Gu Changge, then the person she hated most was absolutely Jiang Yang!
If not for Jiang Yang, how could her Shifu have rushed to the Sky Pool of Death? How could he have met with danger there, his fate unknown even now?
Not to mention, the Jiang Yang of today was no longer the brother she once had, but the old monster who had possessed her brother’s body—the former Prime Ancestor of Celestia Holy Land.
During this period, she and Grandma Yin Hua had also heard about Celestia Holy Land being besieged by the various Mystic Mountains and Forbidden Areas.
The final outcome was that Jiang Yang activated the Celestial Seal, annihilating all the invading enemies—and even Celestia Holy Land itself, with its million-year legacy, was destroyed in the process, reduced to ashes and scorched earth.
This act truly shocked the two of them.
No one knew how Jiang Yang was able to activate the Celestial Seal, but the two of them knew perfectly well—because the soul within Jiang Yang’s body was the Celestia Sacred Emperor!
The Celestial Seal was his weapon to begin with. Why wouldn’t he be able to activate it?
This was something Gu Changge had told Yao Yao back then, and Yao Yao had then told Grandma Yin Hua.
So both of them understood it clearly.
The Celestia Sacred Emperor was an immensely legendary figure of the Heavenly Star Realm. It was said he was not born in this realm, and no one knew where he came from.
After founding Celestia Holy Land, he vanished without a trace.
But that day, in order to trap and kill enemies from all directions, Jiang Yang did not even hesitate to destroy the very Dao lineage he had once founded.
From this incident, one could see just how utterly deranged Jiang Yang was!
This left the grandmother and granddaughter deeply unsettled, their wariness of Jiang Yang growing even deeper.
Seeing Yao Yao’s icy expression, Grandma Yin Hua couldn’t help but grab hold of her, gently shaking her head to signal her not to act impulsively.
Before confirming whether Gu Changge was alive or dead, if Yao Yao tore off the last shred of pretense with Jiang Yang, the odds would be grim.
After all, that strange state of hers back then was not something she could control at will.
Yao Yao understood this reasoning too. She gritted her teeth hard, clenched her little fists, and forced herself to calm down at this moment, to not clash head-on with Jiang Yang.
“Brother, how did you know Yao Yao would be here...”
Then, she spoke softly, her eyes—brimming with poetic charm—holding only calm.
“I know you’re worried about your Shifu’s safety, so with one guess, I knew you’d come here.”
Jiang Yang smiled. He had noticed Yao Yao’s icy expression just now, but didn’t much care.
In his eyes, Yao Yao was just a little girl. Now that the Shifu she relied on had fallen and died, besides him, her brother, who else could she rely on?
The little girl might be distant and cold toward him over some matter, but he believed such things would change with time.
In Jiang Yang’s heart, after erasing the previous consciousness, there were actually two lingering obsessions left behind by that consciousness. The first was hatred toward Celestia Holy Land—the unwillingness to accept being thrown away to dig the Celestial Path for all those years, nearly dying within it.
The second was the attachment of an older brother—his longing for Yao Yao, the desire to cherish her and let her live happily.
Jiang Yang had never taken these two obsessions seriously before.
After all, his soul was incomparably powerful; these obsessions simply could not affect him.
But now, he felt that if he didn’t resolve these two obsessions, it would trigger unimaginable consequences.
His very soul might even become unstable.
Jiang Yang had reincarnated many times, yet this was the first time he had encountered such a situation. In the end, he concluded the cause most likely lay with Yao Yao.
Because this little girl’s existence was tied to the worldly fortune that originally belonged to him.
“As your brother, of course I’d worry about you. Leaving without a word like that truly made me anxious—I was terrified something might happen to you.”
Jiang Yang smiled and continued speaking, walking closer toward Yao Yao.
Behind him followed Zhao Yi, her expression complicated.
This little girl Yao Yao clearly hid a great secret—otherwise Jiang Yang would not treat her this way.
These past days, after Jiang Yang had domineeringly trapped and slaughtered every enemy, that invincible bearing of his had deeply shaken her.
Yet Jiang Yang treated Yao Yao like this, which shocked her even more.
Jiang Yang was simply too powerful, too mysterious!
Even that terrifyingly mighty Exalted Immortal had been trapped and killed by him at the Sky Pool of Death. Zhao Yi felt that following Jiang Yang was the most correct choice of her life.
And with a Sacred Noble Realm maidservant like her, Jiang Yang had dealt with quite a few minor troubles along the way, so he naturally didn’t mind letting her tag along.
“Brother doesn’t need to worry about Yao Yao. Grandma and I can find Shifu on our own.”
Hearing this, Yao Yao softly shook her head. “I don’t believe someone as powerful as Shifu would die here.”
Jiang Yang didn’t refute her words, understanding that this little girl was the type who wouldn’t give up until she hit a dead end.
Then he revealed a faint smile and said, “That’s right. With the Exalted Immortal’s strength, how could he so easily perish here?”
“I think those rumors from the other day were probably mistaken. And as the saying goes, if alive you must see the person, if dead you must see the corpse. Since I’m already here, I might as well help you search for the Exalted Immortal.”
The hidden trump cards of the Sky Pool of Death were far more terrifying than those of Celestia Holy Land. No matter how heaven-defying that Exalted Immortal’s methods were, he was bound to perish here.
He said all this merely to placate the little girl, to make her give up hope.
Yao Yao also knew she couldn’t refuse at this point—saying too much would only arouse Jiang Yang’s suspicion—so she nodded. “Thank you, brother.”
Jiang Yang smiled. “No need to thank me. Helping you is only natural.”
Yao Yao pressed her lips together and said no more.
Soon, the group headed into the Sky Pool of Death.
The surrounding mountains were all exceptionally steep, with all kinds of strange ancient trees towering into the sky, vines hanging down and draping in every direction.
Layers of white mist drifted down from high above, making the place seem all the more deathly silent, giving rise to a chill and unease.
Under normal circumstances, there would be at least some living creatures here, such as ferocious beasts, but now it was excessively quiet—apart from the sound of the wind, there was no movement at all.
The entire Sky Pool of Death seemed dead. Besides their group, not a single living being appeared!
Across the many mountain ranges, Great Dao patterns interwove and flowed, like strange floral designs, radiating brilliant and dazzling light.
Deeper within, thick chaotic mist could be seen shrouding everything, turning heaven and earth gray, as if one had arrived at the very site of creation!
Jiang Yang’s explanation to them was that a great battle had taken place here that day, and all living creatures had likely perished in the aftershocks.
But Yao Yao and Grandma Yin Hua didn’t believe a word of it!
“The fish has finally taken the bait. Looks like I can start reeling in the net.”
“From this day forth, there shall be no Mortal One in this world.”
Deep within the Sky Pool of Death, Gu Changge sat cross-legged within the lotus body, devouring and refining the Source of the World Purifying Green Lotus. His gaze was profound, terrifying visions of sinking mountains and seas surfacing within it.
At this moment, Gu Changge murmured to himself, his smile carrying a hidden depth. He had long since noticed the several auras approaching from outside.
Yao Yao, Grandma Yin Hua, Jiang Yang, and his Supreme Elder maidservant Zhao Yi.
Four people—not one missing!
If he hadn’t interfered, according to the normal plot, these four should have been traveling together, providing Jiang Yang with all kinds of assistance.
But now, Yao Yao and Grandma Yin Hua, this pair of kin, already deeply despised Jiang Yang—they were just short of tearing off all pretense.
As for that Zhao Yi, normally speaking, she would eventually be taken into Jiang Yang’s harem, since she had already followed him to this extent.
Gu Changge had no interest in her. Though her cultivation looked decent, her potential was actually exhausted—he could slap her to death with one palm.
Now, under his layers of arrangements, most of the trump cards the Mortal One had left behind at the Sky Pool of Death had already been turned to his use.
Yet at this moment, Jiang Yang remained completely oblivious.
Shua!
Soon, without moving his body, Gu Changge’s powerful and terrifying divine sense—like an ineffable ancient god—burst forth from the Spiritual Palace between his brows, carrying a sky-blotting Grey Fog.
Nature God’s Chant.
Under his visualization method, the might of his Primordial Spirit alone could swallow heaven and earth, easily slaughtering Great Sages!
Even the Primordial Spirit of a Perfect Prodigy would not necessarily be feared!
Abruptly, a strange fluctuation began to appear above the Sky Pool of Death.
Weng!!
Streaks of dense black demonic clouds blotted out the sky, emerging from all directions and beginning to converge there, as if pushed by an invisible giant hand!
The heavens were covered!
Honglonglong!
“As my Lord commands!”
“Kill!”
A headless knight, sensing something, suddenly burst out from within a blood-stained cliff, his aura towering to the heavens!
“As Master commands!”
In another direction, an extremely blurry blood-red phantom emerged within a deep ravine, its eyes scarlet, its killing intent towering, staring fixedly outward.
“This place really is strange. But Yao Yao, you and Grandma stay close—don’t stray too far from me. If danger strikes now, I won’t have time to help you...”
Meanwhile, on the mountain path, Jiang Yang walked in front, speaking with a calm expression. Wherever he passed, strange lights seemed to evolve.
Every inch of this place was saturated with terrifying aura.
Array Patterns permeated the area, killing intent soaring to the heavens.
Yet he was somehow able to walk through it unscathed, carving out a path of survival leading deeper in.
The many terrifying auras merely surged nearby, never approaching him in the slightest.
An ordinary person here would probably have long since gone weak in the knees with fright, not daring to move an inch.
But Jiang Yang’s expression remained perfectly composed as he calmly led the way ahead.
Say he had no tricks up his sleeve? Who would believe that?
Actually, by this point, there was no need to spell it out—Yao Yao already understood clearly that the Sky Pool of Death had a deep connection to Jiang Yang.
He definitely knew many of this place’s secrets.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so confident, spreading word to lure Gu Changge into a trap?
And now, though Jiang Yang claimed he had come to find her, in truth he had come to the Sky Pool of Death to seek his own fortuitous opportunity!
Thinking of all this, the icy coldness in Yao Yao’s eyes grew ever deeper.
Even she failed to notice the changes occurring in her own body.
Grandma Yin Hua, standing beside her, did see the peach-blossom-like patterns beginning to emerge between her brows—just like the last time Yao Yao had suddenly gone berserk.
This was completely without any apparent cause!
It was more like she had been provoked by something.
This made Grandma Yin Hua’s expression change involuntarily. After all, Jiang Yang held a Sacred Emperor Realm artifact in his hands—even if Yao Yao entered that state, would she be a match for him?
“All along this journey, aside from the traces of that great battle, we haven’t seen a single corpse. Though the Exalted Immortal possessed boundless power, looking at things now, I’m afraid his fate was more ill than good.”
Jiang Yang walked at the very front, gazing at the Sky Pool now within arm’s reach, and couldn’t help revealing a faint smile.
After the long journey, they had finally arrived.
Within the boundless expanse of the Sky Pool, ripples spread continuously, and a layer of white mist drifted across its surface.
Deeper within, immortal mists swirled ethereally, emerald waves rippled, and green radiance shot up into the sky.
It was precisely this light back then that had attracted countless cultivators and living beings—including that Exalted Immortal, who ultimately perished here.
Thinking of this, Jiang Yang’s expression grew even more serene. Only in his heart did he feel a twinge of regret that he hadn’t personally struck down that Exalted Immortal—it always felt like something of a pity.
After all, that was the only person who had ever brought him humiliation.
Along the way, he had deliberately avoided touching the backup arrangements he had left behind in years past, lest Yao Yao notice anything unusual. Moreover, with his aura, those terrifying creatures lurking in the shadows wouldn’t dare make a move against him.
Just then, Jiang Yang’s brow suddenly furrowed slightly.
Beyond the skies of the Sky Pool of Death, streak after streak of divine light was rushing over. He had thought his speed was fast enough, but unexpectedly, someone had still managed to follow him.
Jiang Yang didn’t know how the other party kept managing to track his movements.
And clearly, that group was led by the mysterious woman who had plotted to kill him back then—pursuing him relentlessly, they had actually already arrived here.
“So many days have passed—why has no one from the Mortal Palace come looking for me? Even outsiders can learn of my whereabouts, so why doesn’t the Mortal Palace know? Could something have happened to the Mortal Palace?”
A faint sense of wrongness arose in Jiang Yang’s heart, and that feeling of being schemed against surfaced once more.
However, he could not have mistaken the fluctuation of the secret technique of the Mortal Palace’s Successor that day.
Yet in the end, no one appeared—instead, the other party had used it as bait to lure him in?
Could it be that the Successor of the Mortal Palace had fallen into their hands?
“Shifu... he disappeared right here?”
“Shifu... is he really gone...?”
At that moment, by the edge of the boundless Sky Pool.
Yao Yao stared blankly ahead, her face pale, murmuring to herself in disbelief.
Lotus leaves, emerald as the ocean, stretched one after another without end—no boundary in sight, no gap to be seen.
Each one was a pure, washed green, as large as a washbasin.
Most striking of all was a green lotus wreathed in Chaos Energy, incomparably tall, unfurling there accompanied by the Dao rhythm of a Celestial Spirit, emitting rumbling sounds like the turning of a world.
All these divine wonders... none of them mattered to her anymore...
Because she hadn’t seen Shifu—let alone his figure, she couldn’t even find any trace of what he had left behind.
“Wuu wuu wuu... Shifu, do you really not want Yao Yao anymore...?”
Suddenly, teardrops large as beans fell from her face like a broken string of pearls, unable to accept this reality.
Grandma Yin Hua’s face was full of bitterness, and she didn’t know how to comfort her.
In such a short time, Yao Yao’s Shifu had already come to hold an unrivaled place in her heart.
Now, truly facing the fact of her Shifu’s death? Could she accept it?
“Yao Yao, the Exalted Immortal may truly have perished. You must grieve and accept what cannot be changed. Rumor has it his body was torn to pieces that day, and with so many fierce beasts here, I’m afraid he was devoured completely, without even bones remaining.”
“I really don’t understand either... why did he insist on coming to this place? Making you so heartbroken...”
At this moment, seeing Yao Yao crying there, Jiang Yang’s brow furrowed slightly in his heart, feeling an inexplicable irritation.
He knew this was residual emotion left over from forcibly fusing with the memories.
Still, it couldn’t affect him.
On the surface, he still wore a regretful expression as he spoke, wanting to comfort Yao Yao.
Yet there wasn’t the slightest bit of genuine concern—there was even a faint trace of mockery.
Someone he wanted to trap and kill had never yet escaped!
A mere Exalted Immortal—what did that amount to?
“Shut up! This is all your fault that Shifu ended up like this! If not for you, how could Shifu have possibly come to a place like this? This is all your doing!”
“And now you’re still pretending to be pitiful, when it’s clearly you who’s been plotting against Shifu!”
However, hearing Jiang Yang’s hypocritical words, Yao Yao suddenly spun around.
Her small body trembled, her icy gaze fixed on Jiang Yang, filled with boundless hatred.
How could she endure Jiang Yang speaking of her Shifu this way at a time like this?
“Yao Yao, what do you mean by that? What do you mean it’s all my fault?”
Jiang Yang frowned and said displeasedly, “I merely spoke the truth, as your older brother.”
As he spoke, he lowered his eyes, his voice turning somewhat low.
“Could it be that in your eyes, I, your brother, can’t compare to your Shifu at all?”
Jiang Yang could sense the change in Yao Yao at this moment.
Had she really noticed something?
Or had Gu Changge said something to her when he left the Sky Pool of Death?
“You old monster—not only did you seize my brother’s body, now you’ve schemed against and murdered my Shifu...”
“At this point, what are you still pretending for?”
Yao Yao’s voice suddenly turned ice-cold. It was hard to imagine such an expression appearing on a little girl like her.
One had to know that not long ago, she was still a child who would turn pale with fright at the sight of bandits.
Of course, in Gu Changge’s eyes, this change came as no surprise at all. After all, Yao Yao was the true Daughter of Fortuity of the Heavenly Star Realm—even without him, without the Reincarnation of the Mortal One, she would still undergo a tremendous transformation.
After all, her original destiny template came from that most talented woman of all ages, and she was also the Dao Fruit of that Mysterious Peach Tree.
At this moment, hearing Yao Yao’s words.
Jiang Yang’s expression changed abruptly, then turned calm again.
“Yao Yao, what nonsense are you spouting? I’m your brother—have you forgotten our childhood? Back then...”
“Stop talking nonsense. At a time like this, don’t let yourself be bewitched by some demon and forget your own identity...”
He spoke gently, preparing to play the emotional card.
Yao Yao speaking this way meant she intended to tear off all pretenses with him. Honestly, Jiang Yang was quite surprised—he had never expected things to suddenly develop this way.
He suspected that Gu Changge had most likely said something to Yao Yao at the very beginning. Otherwise, how could she be so certain?
So Jiang Yang’s heart grew dark, hating himself for not having trapped and killed Gu Changge sooner, allowing all these complications to arise for no reason.
Weng!!
“You deserve to die!”
“Yao Yao will avenge Shifu today!”
However, Yao Yao’s transformation was drastic. The spot between her brows erupted with dazzling light, peach blossoms blooming in incomparable splendor—she simply wouldn’t listen to his nonsense.
She rose into the high sky.
Her dress fluttered, her bare feet whiter than snow, strands of rules and order cascading down around her, exquisite as a flawless spirit, yet her face was cold as frost.
At this moment, a might that could shatter heaven and earth emerged from her body.
The next instant, her small hand swept through the air, and streaks of immortal light appeared, transforming into peerless immortal swords containing supreme offensive power, sweeping down toward below to annihilate Jiang Yang!
“When exactly did she become wary of me? Did that Exalted Immortal tell her all this from the very start? Truly ruining my grand plans—he deserves worse than death.”
“And her aura is much stronger than last time...”
Seeing this, Jiang Yang’s expression turned grim. Yao Yao had actually torn away the last shred of pretense and intended to strike at him.
With this, all the many arrangements he had prepared were completely wasted.
Things had slipped like a runaway horse, entirely beyond his control!
But at this point, the urgent priority was to stop Yao Yao, lest she affect his greatest plan.
“Take this and hold her off for me!”
Jiang Yang’s expression was ugly. With a wave of his large hand, a crystalline little cauldron flew into Zhao Yi’s hands behind him.
At the same time, he formed seals with his hands, and the four directions of the Sky Pool of Death began to rumble and rotate.
At the outermost edge, sky-piercing killing intent emerged, accompanied by all the awakening Array Patterns, transforming this place into a land of absolute slaughter to resist the mysterious woman who had pursued them to the Sky Pool of Death.
The backup arrangements he had laid were beginning to take effect!
“The Sky Pool of Death is even more dangerous than Celestia Holy Land. It seems Jiang Yang truly intends to borrow this place’s wonders to soar to the heavens in one leap. If he succeeds, wouldn’t he be able to use it to escape this realm?”
Outside the Sky Pool of Death, Yue Mingkong’s delicate brows furrowed tightly. Behind her, the vast host of Golden Warriors stood at the edge of the sky like celestial soldiers and generals, conquering in all directions.
She felt a sense of miscalculation.
Hidden within the Sky Pool of Death was the greatest divine object the Mortal One needed.
Beyond that, it also held his greatest arrangements. If one stumbled in by mistake, a single careless moment could mean utter destruction of body and soul.
The Mortal One was indeed as cunning and sly as ever—not to be underestimated.
Hong long long!
At that moment, the sky suddenly darkened, as if the most terrifying True Demon of chaos was awakening in the deepest depths.
A dreadful Grey Fog surged up to blot out the sky, and within it, a pair of indifferent eyes emerged, looking down upon heaven and earth!
The entire Sky Pool of Death, with its vast and boundless territory, trembled at this moment.
In even farther places, countless terrifying fierce beasts awakened one after another, lifting their heads to gaze afar in boundless terror.