Celestial Dragon Sword Venerable-Chapter 45: An Ant Gazing at the Heavens, the Dragon Soul Leaves the Body

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: An Ant Gazing at the Heavens, the Dragon Soul Leaves the Body

"There. You’re safe now. I am Yun Zhiruo, Ye Yuemei’s senior sister."

Yun Zhiruo released Ye Tianling.

They were already in the desolate burial grounds of Forbidden Moon Mountain.

This place was, evidently, ’safe’.

"Senior Sister Yun, thank you for saving my life. I can’t thank you enough. In the future, I will... repay you."

Ye Tianling said, enduring his grievous, near-fatal injuries as he bowed respectfully.

"There’s no need. And you’re not qualified to repay me."

Yun Zhiruo’s voice was frigid.

Her cold, arrogant gaze—as if she were looking down at an ant—trampled all over Ye Tianling’s dignity.

"You... you look down on me?"

Ye Tianling accelerated the circulation of the Muscle Strengthening Scripture, recovering a sliver of vitality. He suppressed a wave of indescribable humiliation and spoke.

’He hadn’t thought the girl had good intentions, but regardless, she had saved him. That was an immense debt of gratitude.’

’Otherwise, he would have certainly died back there. Perhaps if his Dragon Blood had fully erupted, there might have been a chance?’

’But the outcome would surely have been even more tragic.’

At his words, a cold, mocking smile seemed to appear on Yun Zhiruo’s indifferent face. "Look down on you? No. Someone with Talent as inferior as yours isn’t even worthy of my contempt."

Yun Zhiruo’s words were chilling, and she was completely serious.

She stated it as if it were the most ordinary fact in the world.

But her words ruthlessly ground Ye Tianling’s dignity into the dust.

Ye Tianling suppressed a surge of indignant rage and sneered, "Yun Zhiruo, you’re so impressive! But one day, you will learn just how laughable your so-called ’Talent’ truly is."

Yun Zhiruo’s brows knitted. "Laughable?" she said coldly. "More laughable than the state you’re in now, you pathetic little ant? I saved your life. It’s not easy to survive, so you’d better cherish it! And another thing—I don’t look down on you, because I wouldn’t bother looking down on an ant. Especially an ant that gazes at the heavens, oblivious to its own station!"

Humiliated, Ye Tianling’s extreme anger turned to laughter. "An ant gazing at the heavens? HAHAHAHA! A fine ’ant gazing at the heavens’ indeed. I will remember this day. It’s true you saved me, but one day, I will repay you for this!"

Yun Zhiruo spoke with detached contempt. "I’ve seen far too many insignificant people with your kind of temperament. They usually perish within three to five years. And given your current Soul injuries, you have about eight hours left to live. So, if you want to repay me, you can just give me your life back right now! The future? Your Soul is shattered. The only reason you’re still alive is due to your stubborn indignation and the burning potential of your father’s decent Fiery Sun Bloodline. You have no future—and for Mei’Er’s sake, I won’t allow you to have one.

Otherwise, Master’s efforts in training Ye Yuemei will have been for nothing."

Ye Tianling coughed up blood, his body weakened to its absolute limit.

His body trembled, yet his voice remained resolute. "Fine. I know you’re doing this on purpose, hoping I’ll kill myself to sever Mei’Er’s attachment! But... as you wish. I’ll repay you for saving my life right now!"

As he spoke, Ye Tianling closed his eyes and thrust the Fiery Sun Sword in his hand straight at the space between his brows.

CLANG—

A flash of golden light blocked the sword.

Ye Tianling’s arm went numb, and then the hand holding his sword lost all feeling.

"Lord Que will repay this debt! It’s just one life, right? I’ll give you a Celestial Secret Soul Stone. It’s enough to help your Master, Xiao Qingxuan, withstand one Sword Tribulation! That should be enough to pay you back, right?"

Que Xinyan was covered in blood, looking utterly wretched.

Yun Zhiruo was visibly moved, but her stunning face quickly returned to a state of calm. "If you didn’t give it to me, Ouyang Ruoxue would just snatch this Celestial Secret Soul Stone from you anyway! But I accept."

Que Xinyan said, "If I truly wanted to escape, could she have taken it? Even if she could, I would have destroyed the Celestial Secret Soul Stone first! So, this is a fair trade!"

Yun Zhiruo pondered for a moment, then said, "It is indeed fair—but this man only has eight hours to live. It’s not worth it."

Que Xinyan sneered, "You’re just like your master, looking down your nose at everyone! Not worth it? As a Gold-devouring Rat, Lord Que’s greatest skill is finding treasures. You’ll regret this one day!"

Yun Zhiruo couldn’t be bothered to argue further. "If you think it’s worth it, that’s all that matters," she said flatly. "Hand it over."

"Fine."

Que Xinyan drew an oval, azure stone the size of a grain of rice from the space between his brows.

The moment it appeared, the stone instantly expanded, quickly growing to the size of an egg.

Yun Zhiruo accepted the Celestial Secret Soul Stone. Her eyes brightened for a moment, but her demeanor remained as frosty as ever.

Just then, she suddenly looked up toward the distance. "Ouyang Ruoxue is here. Do you need me to stop her?"

Que Xinyan replied, "No need."

As he spoke, he suddenly brought out a Blood-Colored Array Disc. Pulling Ye Tianling close, he said, "Master, let’s go! Once we’re stronger, we’ll come back with a vengeance and dig up the Ouyang Ancient Clan’s ancestral graves! We’ll wipe out that bastard Ye Cangqian and the entire Ye Race!"

Using the Blood Escape technique, Que Xinyan activated the Transmission Array Disc and teleported away into the Void with Ye Tianling.

Yun Zhiruo, however, finally revealed a flicker of surprise. She murmured, "Master? That Ye Tianling is the master of the Gold-devouring Rat, Que Xinyan?"

...

The crimson light of the Blood Escape shot through the ruined burial grounds of Forbidden Moon Mountain, traveling for an unknown amount of time.

Ye Tianling’s condition was terrible, but he remained silent.

Along the way, Que Xinyan fed him two Profound Tier Top Grade Creation Pills, but they had little to no effect.

Ye Tianling forced himself to stay conscious, continuously circulating the Muscle Strengthening Scripture just to keep breathing.

Meanwhile, the Xuanyuan Dragon-Controlling Immortal Sword Technique had begun to circulate on its own. It wasn’t healing Ye Tianling’s injuries; instead, it started to burn the Dragon Blood and Sword Essence Power flowing within his body.

At the same time, the Treasure Tower Celestial Ladder at the center of his brow was also clearly shattered.

Ye Tianling could no longer sense it; his Soul had been utterly crushed. He himself had no idea how he was still alive despite such grievous injuries.

Relying on sheer willpower and obsession, Ye Tianling fought off unconsciousness and held on.

As he held on, his consciousness seemed to leave his body.

It was as if an independent soul had emerged, a Fusion of the Dragon Blood from the Treasure Tower Celestial Ladder and his own shattered Soul.

This soul then flew up, hovering a few feet above him, and quietly observed his own body.

The sensation was profound and mysterious.

Ye Tianling felt as if he had transformed into an Unparalleled Dragon Soul, calmly observing everything, devoid of all feeling and emotion.

From this perspective, everything around him was clear and bright, filled with a mystical and delicate spectrum of colors.

Their surroundings were now a vast desert.

Bathed in the afterglow of dusk, the setting sun stained the sky blood-red. Specks of fluorescent light dotted the space between Heaven and Earth, creating a scene that was both eerie and anciently desolate.

Ye Tianling looked down at Que Xinyan.

There was a gaping, bowl-sized bloody hole in Que Xinyan’s back—an injury left by a greatsword that had run him through.

Que Xinyan was carrying Ye Tianling’s body—which resembled a pile of mangled flesh—as he continuously flew forward using Sword Control.

He coughed up blood intermittently but never stopped talking.

"Master, don’t die on me! You still haven’t taught Lord Que... your Disciple... the art of Nine Palace Mathematics."

"You still haven’t made all those damned, arrogant Saintesses your handmaidens and servants!"

"Master, just hang on a little longer! Lord Que will take you to beg the descendants of my own unscrupulous Master’s closest friends! There has to be a way to save you!"

Que Xinyan rambled on without pause.

Ye Tianling wanted to answer him but was trapped in a bizarre state, completely unable to speak.

It was as if his own shattered Soul had been completely supplanted by the Dragon Soul, the two fusing into a single entity.

And because his physical body was so grievously wounded, on the verge of complete Destruction, the Dragon Soul had separated from it.

For now, the Dragon Soul silently circled the area above his body, able to move within a five-meter radius of it.

Ye Tianling felt as if he had a god’s-eye view, watching everything unfold with an unnerving calm.

Ye Tianling tried to guide the Dragon Soul back into his physical body, but a searing, violent force repelled it, making entry impossible!

Worse, the very thought of it caused his physical body to turn a deeper shade of crimson. Blood began to flow out in a sudden RUSH, and his injuries immediately worsened.

After trying numerous methods to no avail, Ye Tianling could only resign himself to maintaining his current state for the time being.