94: Chapter 94 Ye Yuan's Sacrifice (Part 1)

In the depths of the "Sword Prison," located within the forbidden grounds behind the Penglai Sect.

This was the place the Penglai Sect used to imprison disciples who committed serious violations of sect rules.

Zhao Feng and Ye Yuan had both been imprisoned here once before.

And now, Ye Yuan was a "repeat offender."

Imprisoned alongside him was Su Chen.

Being locked up here was not the final verdict for Ye Yuan.

The elders of the Penglai Sect and the warriors of the Xuntian Division were still discussing the punitive measures for Ye Yuan.

But even a fool could guess what was coming.

Given the style of the Xuntian Division, a quick death by the sword would be getting off easy.

What he would face next was, in all likelihood, a punishment so cruel it defied all humanity.

In the dark, damp cavern, Ye Yuan's body was pierced through by three iron chains as thick as a human arm.

He was locked tightly against the wall, his breath faint.

Yet, Su Chen could not detect a single trace of panic from him despite being a prisoner.

Su Chen, naturally, was not panicked.

His human transformation cooldown would reset very soon.

To be ruthless about it, with his strength, even if he couldn't defeat the personnel from the Penglai Sect and the Xuntian Division.

He could still manage to break out alone, return to the city of East Lai, and whisk Cang Mingyue and Ye Jingjun away to safety.

But Ye Yuan.

At the very least, Su Chen could not understand why a man who had always been indecisive could suddenly face death with such equanimity.

What about your promise to Zhao Feng?

What about Ye Jingjun's future?

Su Chen listened quietly to the sound of blood dripping from Ye Yuan's body onto the ground.

That rhythmic sound silently broke the deathly stillness.

He silently calculated the time.

The Hour of the Rat was approaching; the cooldown for his transformation was about to end.

Just then, Ye Yuan, who had been hanging his head with a faint breath, suddenly moved his lips ever so slightly.

"Su... Chen."

Su Chen's consciousness within the sword jolted.

"Little Friend Su, you should be in the sword as well, right?"

That was Ye Yuan's voice.

Seeing that Su Chen did not respond initially, he specifically repeated himself.

All of this proved one thing.

He firmly believed that Su Chen existed within this sword.

Ye Yuan... he had indeed known all along.

That was it.

From the moment he met Ye Yuan, Su Chen had never deliberately hidden his existence, and had even intentionally guided Ye Yuan to discover it.

There was a contract between him and Su Chen's sword body.

Logically speaking, as a Sword Immortal whose strength and talent were not poor, it should not have been difficult for Ye Yuan to discover his existence.

If Ye Yuan realized his existence.

With him to vouch for him, Su Chen could legitimately become Ye Jingjun's sword technique instructor.

In this way, it would actually facilitate his investment.

However, ever since he signed the contract with Ye Yuan, he had spent even more time with Ye Jingjun than with Ye Yuan.

As time passed, he even discovered that Ye Yuan likely didn't even know of his existence within the sword.

But looking at it now.

Ye Yuan probably wasn't that foolish.

Hearing this, a thought stirred in Su Chen's mind.

Hum—

The sword body trembled slightly, and a soft white light flowed out from it, coalescing in the dark prison.

The next moment, that familiar figure in a green shirt quietly appeared, standing before the chained Ye Yuan.

There were no lamps in the cell, only a sliver of moonlight filtering through the stone cracks, outlining Su Chen's tall silhouette and Ye Yuan's bloodless face.

"Senior Ye."

Su Chen spoke, his voice calm.

Since it had already been pointed out, there was no need to pretend anymore.

Ye Yuan raised his head, his hollow, blind eyes "looking" in Su Chen's direction.

"You really... are here."

He panted, and every word he spoke tugged at his wounds, causing dark red blood to seep out.

"Actually, I sensed your existence long ago."

"In Great Ning, swords harboring a sword soul are actually not common."

"But coincidentally, I happened to come from the Penglai Immortal Sect, so I am particularly sensitive to this aspect."

"If I only had a suspicion back at the blacksmith shop in Qingzhou..."

"Then the time you guided Jingjun in sword practice, I saw it with my own eyes."

Su Chen nodded noncommittally.

He had not made any move to hide his existence at that time either.

Because ultimately, in this investment, although his strength was not considered very high, he could still handle a Ye Yuan.

If he had any thoughts detrimental to him, it wouldn't have been impossible to slay him on the spot.

Ye Yuan continued to speak to himself.

"No need to guess; I didn't perceive you solely through cultivation."

"But rather... the blood pact."

"Your soul level is too high. When we formed the contract, the originally equal pact turned into a master-servant contract, with the sword as the master and the person as the auxiliary."

"If you die, I perish. If I die, you will be fine..."

"Every time you transform, I can vaguely sense the fluctuations in your soul power."

So that was it.

Su Chen suddenly understood.

"Since you already know, Senior, what are your plans?"

Su Chen asked directly.

At this critical moment of life and death, Ye Yuan pointing this out now was certainly not just to reminisce.

Ye Yuan's voice suddenly became serious.

"Su Chen, there is not much time left."

"Listen, we still have one last chance to turn the tables."

Su Chen listened attentively.

Although he himself had no problem saving his own life.

But if he could turn the current situation in East Lai around, he would certainly be more willing to do so.

"Do you remember, I once said that Zhao Feng and I were once imprisoned here together?"

"At that time, the two of us were in the lowest level of this Penglai Sword Prison."

"We discovered... the biggest secret of the Penglai Immortal Sect."

"As a sword soul, you should have discovered long ago that there is a wisp of sword soul within the sword of every sword cultivator in the Penglai Sect."

"This is not natural, but artificially and intentionally created by them."

"In the lowest level of this Sword Prison lies the secret to how they can mass-produce sword souls."

After saying this, he pointed to a passage extending downwards beside him.

"Go there and find it..."

"It is placed in a very obvious location, right on the stone platform in the center of the secret chamber at the end."

"My body is bound, and I cannot move freely."

"As it stands, you are the only one who can break this deadlock..."

Su Chen did not hesitate any longer. His figure flickered, turning into a formless green smoke as he snuck into the depths of the Sword Prison.

The lowest level of the Sword Prison was even more eerie than the upper levels.

Su Chen could occasionally find uncleaned bloodstains and the skins of unknown creatures.

It was evident that this Penglai Sect was by no means a so-called "righteous sect."

Finally, Su Chen stopped in the square secret chamber at the end of the passage.

This was the location Ye Yuan had directed him to.

There was nothing else in the secret chamber, only a black stone platform standing in the center.

On the stone platform lay a book with a pitch-black cover.

Su Chen picked it up and saw only four large characters on the cover.

"Soul Fusion Secret Tome."

He curiously flipped through the pages.

The deeper he went, the greater the chill in his heart.

What this secret tome recorded was far more than just cultivating sword souls.

It was fundamentally an inhumane and evil art.