After a brief clash, Shen Wuyi and Pan Buwang retreated to opposite sides of the battlefield. Their profound strengths were close, and both wielded diverse and formidable techniques, making it difficult to predict who would emerge victorious.
A solemn expression appeared on Pan Buwang's face. He had believed that his three years of torment and rigorous training had elevated him to the ranks of the strongest among the divine sons and daughters. Yet here he was, facing Shen Wuyi without gaining even a shred of advantage.
The new Goddess of Eternal Night... She's even more terrifyingly talented than the rumors claimed.
Still, Pan Buwang had no intention of giving up. Though the future of the Owl Butterfly Divine Kingdom weighed heavily on his shoulders, nothing compared to the place Shen Wuqing held in his heart.
Back when he was nothing more than a disgraced figure crushed in the mud, few in his kingdom spared him a glance. Scorn and mockery were all he received. Because of this, his attachment to the Divine Kingdom had long faded. To him, his life had been saved by the Mist Emperor. Everything since was a rebirth—and that new life, he had vowed, would be lived for himself alone.
"Shen Wuyi, you are indeed strong," he said, his voice cold with conviction, "but I will never surrender. The sole purpose of my existence... is revenge!"
As if responding to his unshakable will, the dark energy around him surged violently.
"Dark Moon Gale!"
Pan Buwang hurled the Dark Moon Blade with all his might. It spun through the air, gathering dark profound energy as it accelerated. A black tornado took shape around it, howling with fury as it barreled toward Shen Wuyi like a storm destined to destroy everything in its path.
Though she wore a low-profile black robe, Shen Wuyi's noble and icy presence was unmistakable. Her face remained tranquil, her expression calm. Despite facing such a fearsome opponent, she didn't show the slightest trace of fear.
With a wave of her hand, countless ice cones materialized in midair, suspended like a deadly minefield. Each spike radiated a biting cold, dropping the temperature on the battlefield by several degrees in an instant.
Standing amidst the frost, she looked like the queen of an eternal winter—an empress of snow and ice. The ice cones shot forward, colliding with the incoming tornado.
She was clearly a master of ice-based techniques. During her time in the Eternal Night Realm, she could often learn entire techniques simply by watching them once. Ice profound energy had always come naturally to her. And since meeting Yun Che, she had begun to understand why: her original cultivation method had been a rare, ancient Ice Element Divine Art—one deeply imprinted in her soul.
Moreover, a second inheritance buried deep within her was beginning to awaken.
The Dark Moon Gale met the storm of ice, and the battlefield split into two realms: one shrouded in a churning, chaotic darkness, and the other a serene, glacial world of frost and silence.
Pan Buwang stepped onto a surge of dark energy and shot into the air. The Dark Moon Blade returned to his hand as he initiated Dark Moon Assault once more, weaving between the ice cones like a ghost and charging toward Shen Wuyi.
The Owl Butterfly Divine Kingdom specialized in spatial manipulation. As its divine son, Pan Buwang had mastered many of these techniques. His Dark Moon Assault, paired with the Shadow Step, was no longer limited by the conventional bounds of movement—it resembled a deadly spatial shift, unpredictable and nearly impossible to counter.
It had felled even enemies two realms stronger than him in the past. But Shen Wuyi was not like the others.
Her eyes flickered with a trace of light. With graceful footwork, she retreated at just the right moment, her movements precise. She had seen through his trajectory with ease.
Because of the Wuming Divine Master, the Eternal Night Realm placed extraordinary emphasis on cultivating spiritual perception and soul awareness. Although Pan Buwang's movement was near perfect, his spatial manipulation still caused subtle distortions—imperceptible to most, but not to Shen Wuyi.
Pan Buwang's expression darkened. The first time his attack had been blocked, he'd dismissed it as luck. But being countered again—and so effortlessly—struck a deep blow to his confidence.
"Holy Feather Ice Crystal Silk—Bind!"
The Holy Feather Ice Crystal Silk danced in the air like it had a life of its own, slipping free from Shen Wuyi's direct control and snaking toward Pan Buwang with eerie precision.
Her expression remained unchanged, but a transformation took place in her gaze—her once-black pupils turned a bewitching shade of purple, glowing with divine allure. It was a beauty that seemed not of this world.
At the same time, a sword appeared in her hand, its blade laced with crackling purple divine energy.
"This is... the power of Zi Que!" Yun Che's pupils shrank. Gripping the rock beside him, he unconsciously crushed it into dust.
There was no mistaking it—the divine purple radiance from the Moon God Realm. This power had once haunted his nightmares. He had suffered its wrath, felt its overwhelming might, and was scarred both physically and emotionally.
Qingyue… you've truly returned.
The first time I saw this divine power, it left a mark on my soul. The second time, it was with hatred that I buried Qingyue in the abyss with my own hands.
And now… she's here again—just as radiant, just as brilliant. She's the Qingyue I remember… My fears were unfounded.
He looked back to the battlefield, conflicted.
Buwang is still too young. He can't control his emotions yet. There's no suspense in this match… but I must not let Qingyue go too far.
Although he was in awe of Shen Wuyi's awakening power, Yun Che's concern shifted toward Pan Buwang. He had once felt the full force of Zi Que's Divine Might, even when fighting alongside Qianye Ying'er. Now, with Shen Wuyi at the sixth level of the Divine Destruction Realm, Pan Buwang didn't stand a chance.
"You worry too much," Li Suo said gently. "As your disciple, he's very much like you. But Shen Wuyi won't kill him. She won't even harm him."
"…?" Yun Che was surprised, but he trusted her. He halted the step he had been about to take forward.
"Zique Divine Domain!"
As Pan Buwang prepared to escape the silk's entrapment, an overwhelming pressure suddenly crashed down on him. His body locked up, slowed by the suffocating force. His soul flickered, caught in a momentary trance.
In that instant, the Holy Feather Ice Crystal Silk bound him completely. He couldn't move. Even the Teleportation Star Ring failed to activate.
Shen Wuyi withdrew her divine domain. Her eyes returned to black, and the purple vanished from her irises. Holding her blade to Pan Buwang's chest like a judge passing sentence, she looked down on him with a piercing gaze.
The situation had reversed in a flash. Pan Buwang, who moments ago had the upper hand, now stood immobilized, utterly defeated.
"If you wish to fight, then fight. I have nothing more to say. You are stronger than me," Pan Buwang said quietly. There was no regret in his tone, only deep resentment and unwillingness.
"You're too impulsive. Blinded by vengeance," Shen Wuyi replied. "My profound level surpasses yours. Our skills are equal. What made you think you could defeat me?"
She paused, then said, "Your dark power is immature… but oddly familiar to me. That's one reason I didn't kill you."
She leaned closer, her eyes unwavering. "But do you want to know the real reason I spared you?"
.....