Lao Sha let out several joyful barks at the sight of the sea of flames nearing them. A familiar aura was within that sea of flame, and Lao Sha knew from that aura alone that his "master" had returned.

“Yunfei…”

Tang Xinyun stood beside Lao Sha. She gave a sigh of relief at the same sight. Knowing that Bai Yunfei was here alleviated most of her concerns. Not only did the sea of flames mean that Bai Yunfei was safe, but it also meant it was possible for the tables to turn now.

Just like how Lao Sha felt like Bai Yunfei was a peerless existence, Bai Yunfei was a man of indomitable strength to Tang Xinyun. As long as he was here, she wouldn"t worry even if the sky was falling.

“……”

The raw amount of power coming from the flames caught everyone"s attention. It was impossible for them not to notice the auras of four Soul Emperors.

“Is…is Bai Yunfei and the first elder back?!”

It was with great concern that the crafters regarded the sea of flames first. They were worried that more enemy reinforcements were here, but now that they could sense the auras, the crafters were beside themselves with joy.

“Xiao Binzi is back? I see he has finally become a Soul Emperor…but who is this Bai Yunfei?”

Chu Yintian asked.

“He"s a disciple of Zi Jin, a genius of a Soul Emperor and also possessor of three Regalias, the Core Stone, the Soul Sealing Mandate, and the Soul Sentinel Scarf. I didn"t think they would come back so soon from aiding the Water School, but with them here, our problems may be resolved!”

Yang Yao explained to Chu Yintian with excitement.

“What! He has three Regalias?!”

Chu Yintian found it hard to believe such news. He himself had lived for many decades, but not once had he ever the pleasure of coming across a single Regalia. So hearing someone from the younger generation having three of them was an especially stunning piece of information.

“Yes, three of them!” It was Heavenfire who replied. “None of them are meant for attacking, but the Crafting School and the Soul Sealing Mandate have wide-scale effects Bai Yunfei could use to win against Dongfang Ming!”

“Are you saying he can win against Dongfang Ming?!”

Again, Chu Yintian found it hard to believe such a statement. Now that he had experienced Dongfang Ming"s strength for himself, Chu Yintian felt his self-confidence waning. The fact that the opposition had a demonic body triumphed over his own superior strength. Chu Yintian could only feel the aura of an Early-stage Soul Emperor from within the flames, so he saw little reason why Heavenfire had so much faith in this Bai Yunfei.

“Be at ease, Bai Yunfei trains in the Dual Flame Artes. Aside from the three Regalia, he has multiple lifebound armaments even stronger than yours. Each and every single one of his many soul armaments have powerful "effects" of all kinds. He"s far stronger than he appears. Dongfang Ming might have a demonic body, but I"m confident Bai Yunfei has a greater chance of victory.”

“The Dual Flame Artes?! And…multiple lifebound armaments?! That"s…”

Chu Yintian felt himself overwhelmed. Everything he was told seemed outlandish. Impossible to be true. It almost seemed like a bad joke even.

“Whoosh…”

Several figures streaked through the battlefield like lightning bolts to stop in front of the crafter"s side of the field. The light around their persons disappeared to reveal Bai Yunfei, the three soul cultivators, and Xiao Qi.

“Yunfei!!”

Unable to help herself, Tang Xinyun cried out Bai Yunfei"s name the moment when she saw him.

A boulder of anxiety was lifted off Bai Yunfei"s shoulders when he saw Tang Xinyun unharmed. He smiled first to her before bowing to the others.

“Master, teachers…your student has returned.”

Yang Yao nodded gratefully, “Yunfei, this is your senior, teacher Chu.”

“Your student Bai Yunfei pays his respects to teacher.” Bai Yunfei bowed. He was surprised to see how strong Chu Yintian was, but he managed to hide it well.

“Be at ease.” Chu Yintian smiled back.

Having people go through etiquette while there were enemies nearby seemed pointless, so Bai Yunfei quickly scanned the area to determine the situation for himself.

Then his eyes widened in shock at several specific individuals.

“Master!!”

That was because he saw who Kou Changkong was holding. The injured Zi Jin who was currently being treated by Yang Ying.

He was beside Zi Jin"s side at once. “What happened?!”

He could already see the gruesome wound in Zi Jin"s throat despite his asking. Grabbing his master"s wrist, Bai Yunfei scanned his vitals only to pale when he felt the presence of a foreign energy trying its best to kill Zi Jin. The foreign energy in his body was even more invasive than the energy from a Soul Refining Palm!

“This feeling…this is a demonic armament!! Master was hurt one of them?! What in the world happened?!” Bai Yunfei gasped. This foreign energy felt similar to the blowback when Zheng Kai used the Devouring Edge; Zi Jin"s wound had to be the work of an enemy demonic armament.

“It was Dongfang Ming! He was controlling little Rui when she was rescued and had her strike him with one…”

Kou Changkong growled under his breath. It was clear to hear his anger at the situation.

“Dongfang Ming!! Controlling ah"Rui?!” Bai Yunfei whipped his head to Huangfu Rui, who was still as still as a statue in Cang Yu"s arms. Immediately, Bai Yunfei felt his heart plummet.

He had been hoping that nothing bad had happened to the school on his way here. Bai Yunfei just never expected to come back to a situation like this…

His master at death"s door by the hand of Huangfu Rui! And the way Huangfu Rui was right now…she was definitely being controlled by Soul Puppetry!

Both these people were people Bai Yunfei treasured deeply. To see them in their current state was a pain to the heart that felt as sharp as if a literal dagger had plunged into it.

An uncontrollable fire erupted inside Bai Yunfei. The heat of anger filled his body at once toward the one who caused it all.

Dongfang Ming!!

Following the glance given to him by Kou Changkong, Bai Yunfei glared off in the distance toward Dongfang Ming. He never saw what Dongfang Ming looked like, but he could tell by the aura alone that this person was without a doubt his target!

“Boom!!”

A fiery aura exploded forth from Bai Yunfei. It spread from his body into the skies above along with a wave of killing intent.

“Enemies of my school, you will all die today!! Dongfang Ming…I"m coming for you!!”

……

Because of the arrival of Bai Yunfei and the others, a large clamor was beginning to rise up amongst his enemies.

“It"s Bai Yunfei! And Xiao Binzi! But how? They weren"t supposed to be back this quickly!” Qi Ning barked, “Did they not go to the Water School then?! And if they didn"t, does that meant senior Yue and the others failed?!”

Huo Zhenting"s eyes were narrowed together. “Perhaps they turned back mid-route…Four Soul Emperors…that Bai Yunfei has the power to kill even a Mid-stage Soul Emperor. This, I"m afraid, will not be an easy battle…”

He glanced over to Dongfang Ming as he spoke.

And it just so happened that the killing intent of Bai Yunfei had finally hit their side of the battlefield.

Dongfang Ming snapped back to reality upon being hit with it. “So you came back so soon?” He laughed to himself, “Did Mo Ni and the others fail then? No…they probably ran off scared after a death or two. Gui Nu, perhaps? Mo Ni should be fine. He"d have use that thing if he had fought Bai Yunfei and was close to death…”

He allotted himself just a few seconds to think about what happened to Mo Ni and the others. His smile grew even more p.r.o.nounced upon locking onto Bai Yunfei.

“A battle with me? How coincidental, I"ve been waiting to see how strong you really are…my demonic core will finally be complete if I can devour a Regalia…”
Previous ChapterNext Chapter