Paragon of Sin

Staring intently at the projected screen with a set of heavily furrowed brows, Wei Wuyin was in deep thought. Zhang Ziyi's vulnerable and unconscious state was indeed a loss. A loss that his calculations hadn't factored, an unseen complication. She was supposed to be the one in the least amount of danger, yet this happened. At this point, Han Yuhei's attitude was abundantly clear and Zhang Ziyi's stance was long since stated, they wholeheartedly supported Wei Wuyin.

Even with the War Talisman in his possession, an Earthly Saint was not an existence that could be dismissed in value. If the recent ambush revealed anything, it was that Earthly Saints were extremely difficult to deal with by those of similar cultivation bases unless the difference was extremely massive.

An existence like Wu Yu and the Soul Saint King could absolutely demolish Earthly Saints like Zhang Ziyi. And Zhang Ziyi was amongst the ordinary Earthly Saints. He knew that the average state of Runic Ascendant States for Earthly Saints in the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, from Ma Zheng, was the 2nd Runic Ascendant State. The Earthly Saints that Wei Wuyin had come across, from Lady Clearwind, Sun Li, Ever-Knights, Faye Liying, Tian Muyang, and the others were mostly high-level elites, top 50 amongst less than 200. 

The six Earthly Saints, for example, showed clear examples of this difference. Even Sun Li was a mere 3rd Runic Ascendant despite her wealth and status. Furthermore, there was a difference between initial state and current state. Unlike Wu Yu, these Earthly Saints were all high-level Earthly Saints with exceptional backgrounds, ranging from starfield leaders to seated members of wealthy forces, and their initial Earthly Ascension had occurred thousands of years ago, or even tens of thousands of years ago, allowing them to use their status to fully comprehend one or two additional Runes of Mysticism. 

Once again serving as a heartless, brutal reminder of one absolute fact: Cultivation is difficult. 

Yet despite being referred to as so-called elites of their cultivation stage, they had difficulty handling Trueborn's Earthly Saints. A sign that Earthly Saints was not to be underestimated. Just the sheer power they wielded, capable of devastating entire starfields, was enough to justify their importance.

Zhang Ziyi was an exceptional loss of potential strength, but most troubling was that Wei Wuyin could feel the interested, quiet gazes of Yang Chaoyue and Tian Muyang. Wei Wuyin had used the sole Mystic-World grade elixir he possessed to bring Ma Zheng from the brink of death, reaching the Earthly Saint Phase, Fourth Stage of the Mystic Ascendant Realm. The alchemical elixir was called the Rousing-Soul Demi-Mystic Elixir, and it was low-tier, low-quality. 

It was the greatest form of preparation for Cai Liuyang, the lover of that Blessed, Jing Jiu, in the Battlefield, and it was the only one that Wei Wuyin possessed. Its primary effect was extremely miraculous, according to Cai Liuyang's detailed notes. It could, for a brief period, initiate an artificial state of Awakened Mystic Intent within the Mystic Soul. That was enough to automatically initiate the Earthly Ascension, while increasing one's chances of reaching a higher Runic Ascendant State with the added support.

As stated in those notes, its specialness originated from the 100 Mystic Origin Liquids used in its concoction and a strange material labeled as Condensed Spirit Tears, generating Mystic-Soul Origin. This new material was then compiled with other mystic-graded materials to make it.

She cherished this bottle with the utmost importance. He felt it from how isolated it was in the Saint Ring, secured and stored in the proper environmental conditions. And from how it granted one a state of temporary Awakened Mystic Intent, one could see how extremely valuable this product was by examining Wu Yu's recent Earthly Ascension. As a cultivator who had a 7th Rune Ascension, he was pushed to the 8th Runic Ascendant State after having serendipitous enlightenment towards Mystic Intent. 

In fact, Ma Zheng's success was three-fold. It included his own 30,000 years of cultivation efforts, a 1,000 War Souls and their enhanced comprehension effects, and the low-tier, low-quality, Mystic-World grade Rousing-Soul Demi-Mystic Elixir. His achievements were not unexpected at all. Some beyond the sealed regions might go crazed with envy after hearing of it. 

Now, with the two Imperial Clan's Earthly Saints staring at him, he felt pressed to handle this matter. Unfortunately, he didn't have anything to assist her immediately. There were a few recuperative Mystic-Earth grade products within Cai Liuyang's Saint Ring, but it couldn't achieve an instantaneous effect like he had done before.

Unfortunately, he couldn't deal with this in an impressive fashion. He knew that Ma Zheng was openly answering for the same reason, helping elevate his prestige and value once again. While he appreciated the effort, it truly placed him in a spot. 

Wei Wuyin could only deliberately unfurrow his brows into a relaxed expression, relieved by Zhang Ziyi's living status. "As long as she's alive," was all he said. The response to this sentence was as expected with Yang Chaoyue and Tian Muyang's eyes flashing with various emotions. They were fully aware that injuries of Earthly Saints were absurdly difficult to deal with. 

Ma Zheng caught on with Wei Wuyin's intentions, cancelling the projection with a hint of a smile. Afterwards, the comets of light finally passed the borders. The Soul Saint King had deliberately sent them his way. 

"Thank you for your assistance," Wei Wuyin gave the nearby comets a glance before earnestly giving thanks to Tian Muyang and Yang Chaoyue. Their help was essential to this successful operation.

Tian Muyang merely smiled in response. He hid his tumultuous feelings. After all, they had assisted in ambushing Trueborn. The clandestine organization was not a simple entity. Moreover, Wei Wuyin clearly seemed to hold a heavy grudge against them. 

First, the Fire Phoenix and likely that strange Earthly Saint from earlier destroyed a Shadow Egg. Then, the Earthly Saints fought against and dealt with Trueborn's Earthly Saints, killing one on scene and leaving two fleeing for their lives. Now, there was a planned ambush to thwart a heavily invested in operation of theirs that led to one Earthly Saint and four Demi-Mortal Lords losing their lives and more being captured.

It was an outrageous sequence of developments and a clear sign of Wei Wuyin's declaration of war on Trueborn. But for the life of him, he couldn't understand why. Now, the two of them were accomplices to Wei Wuyin's vigorous wrath. It would be a blessing if this doesn't cause troubles down the line. 

Yang Chaoyue also felt similar, but instead of feeling just wary about this developing situation, her personal interest in the handsomely talented Wei Wuyin grew. This mortal's feats were becoming increasingly greater than she could've ever predicted. The fact he fielded a united effort of eleven Earthly Saints, many of them with highly reputable statuses, two of which he made, was unimaginable. 

It was outright unthinkable.

Yet, here they were.

So the sparkle in her eyes refused to give way, and the alluring charm exuded from her smile was constantly on display. "A small matter, Ascendant Emperor Wei." 

Tian Muyang rolled his eyes in his heart at her. Can she not be so overt with the flattering? However, considering what he'd just accomplished, maybe he deserved that title. 

Wei Wuyin could sense her desirous eyes searing into his face. Maintaining an unaffected expression, he faintly smiled and watched as Ma Zheng retrieved the comets. The Imperial Monarch and Sky Monarch immediately saw this and glanced at each other. Without hesitation, they left with mind-blowing speeds. 

It was best not to complicate the situation with their presence further, especially with Trueborn captives. While they would love to continue staying, the channel for communication was established. 

The others were soon brought over, revealing the captives of both sides. The masked Ascended beings of Trueborn seemed oddly quiet and dispirited while most of those a part of Wei Wuyin's line-up was confused by the sudden shift in dynamics.

Sun Li, on the other hand, who wore her exquisitely designed battle armor, brightly smiled as she moved closer to Ma Zheng, who promptly unraveled her seals, freeing her completely, and allowing her Mystic Aura to grandly flourish. "Thank you."

Ma Zheng showed a smile as well, a little less bright, but earnest and emotional. This operation could have easily gone sideways, definitely for all those who participated in the fighting. There were endless detrimental variables that could have revealed themselves during the fight. Just surviving was a huge win for them.

Huoyan Liulan saw this brief interaction from her sealed state, and her eyes glinted strangely. When Ma Zheng finally removed her seals, she unleashed her Mystic Aura in an even more impressive fashion. 

Her reaction came as no surprise to Sun Li, who showed no response. She merely looked at the captives with a thoughtful gaze. 

Lady Clearwind released a heavily suppressed breath after her seal was undone. While the others had light restraints, she was shackled thoroughly. The feeling was beyond uncomfortable. 

"He let us go…" Faye Liying was the most baffled by the outcome. She was confused on many points, mostly with the Soul Saint King allowing her to freely leave. She was almost certain that she wouldn't be leaving the Ninestar Starfield without an exceptionally heavy cost.

"He did. What happened?" Lady Clearwind questioned immediately, looking at Ma Zheng. Afterward, she exerted her spiritual sense to try and locate Wu Yu. Unfortunately, her efforts yielded no results. A glint of disappointment flickered in her gaze. 

"Where's the armored fellow?" Faye Liying added to the question. The War Commander and Soul Saint King had fought, something lasting for over two minutes, the majority of which was concealed in bright radiance, and at the end, the Soul Saint King came out unscathed and let them go free. The entire situation was incredibly suspicious.

"We succeeded," Ma Zheng calmly stated. He didn't say they won, but that their mission had been a success. From the captives present, that was clearly the case. The others couldn't help but frown at the non-answer, but when they looked to Wei Wuyin, they found themselves unable to inquire further.

Wei Wuyin and Bai Lin were already invested in other important matters. He approached the captives with his Celestial Eyes at full strength, inspecting what he could. Unfortunately, they, as Ascended beings, made this exceptionally difficult. Additionally, their concealment robes and masks were forged using high-level, mystic-graded, shadow-attributed materials. Even the burnt corpse of Huoyan Liulan's opponent was thoroughly hidden, the concealments adhering to his melted flesh.

That said, he could feel Karmic Sin on quite a few. They truly felt like fuel for Blessed.

"Unmask them," Wei Wuyin calmly ordered.

A wave of tension slowly spread out.

The question on everyone's mind was about to be answered: "Who were these Earthly Saints?"