Realm of the Night God

Duda's suggestion caught Zhong Siyu off guard, and she clearly did not expect his proposal to be like this.

After a momentary pause, Zhong Siyu recovered and couldn't help but burst into laughter, her gaze at Duda revealing a hint of disdain beneath the laughter.

Duda, however, didn't react much to Zhong Siyu's laughter. He only furrowed his brow slightly, a trace of displeasure on his face.

"Make me your guardian yin spirit, an old undying one; that's a clever move. It seems like it might be one of your motivations for risking tonight," Zhong Siyu asked with a wicked smile.

Duda shook his head and said, "Tonight, my main goal was to kill Deng Feng, and secondly, to let my guardian yin spirit devour you, allowing her to successfully evolve into a malevolent spirit. However, the situation has exceeded my expectations, so I had to change plans on the fly. Now that Deng Feng is dead, and he left us with unexpected benefits, it's better if we don't resort to fighting. What do you think?"

Duda maintained a serious expression, devoid of any joking, while Zhong Siyu, upon hearing his words, added a touch of bloodthirsty flavor to her wicked smile.

"Old undying one, did you fall asleep while playing dead on the ground, and are you still in a dream now? Let me become your guardian yin spirit; on what basis and qualifications?" Zhong Siyu taunted.

Duda's expression, which had remained relatively unchanged, turned a bit unpleasant upon hearing Zhong Siyu's words.

"Since you don't appreciate the opportunity, then it's not my fault. I might have to subdue you first, and then negotiating the contract would be much easier."

At this point, Duda glanced at the wounds on his body. Seeing that they had already healed, he felt more at ease. This way, when he released his spirit power, it wouldn't cause significant harm to his body.

"Old undying one, I thought you were a smart person. But now it seems you're just a bit arrogant. Do you really think the power I displayed using the Death Mark Seals is all I have?" Zhong Siyu smirked.

"No need to be cryptic. If you really had the ability to kill me, you wouldn't waste time talking here with me. The reason neither of us has made a move is because we each have our own concerns," Duda replied.

"What are you worried about? I can probably guess some of it. Once you attack me, you probably won't be able to focus on suppressing the Death Mark Seal in that guy's body, right?"

Duda spoke confidently, as if he had already seen through everything, but Zhong Siyu simply responded with a casual "Hehe, no."

In Duda's eyes, Zhong Siyu was just showing off. He believed his speculation was correct, but Zhong Siyu was unwilling to admit it, or perhaps afraid to admit it.

Shaking his head, Duda expressed regret, "If you won't accept the toast, you'll have to bear the punishment. After I subdue you, I'll take my time to train you."

With that, Duda seemed to lose interest in further banter with Zhong Siyu. Although his strength hadn't fully recovered to its peak, the Death Mark Seal within him constantly released Yin Qi to aid in his recovery. He felt confident that he could defeat Zhong Siyu.

As his spirit power erupted, Duda's momentum soared. At this moment, he could easily overpower Zhong Siyu, at least in terms of aura.

However, Zhong Siyu still wore a wicked smile, unaffected by Duda's change in demeanor. Her eyes flashed with a bloody light as she moved ahead of Duda, casting an illusion.

The immediate surroundings remained unchanged, but Zhong Siyu disappeared from Duda's sight. Initially puzzled, Duda thought Zhong Siyu had hidden herself for a sneak attack. However, he soon sensed that something was amiss, his face darkening and his brow furrowing.

"So, it's an illusion. The weakening of your strength has made your illusions full of loopholes. Trying to deal with me with this level of illusion is too naive," Duda coldly declared, swiftly forming seals with his hands, leaving behind afterimages.

"Spirit summoning! Break the illusion!"

With a fierce shout, a powerful force surged outward, causing instability in the surroundings. The world before them seemed to shatter like glass after a crisp sound, fracturing into pieces.

Spirit masters, like Underworld Envoys, often dealt with ghosts for extended periods. In particular, spirit masters, in their quest for a stronger guardian yin spirit or to enhance their existing one, sought out powerful ghosts. These formidable ghosts possessed the ability to create illusions, easily ensnaring individuals and potentially leading to fatal consequences. Hence, spirit masters developed a specialized form of spirit summoning specifically designed to counter ghost illusions.

If it were an illusion created by Zhong Siyu at her peak, even Duda's spirit summoning might not easily break it. Reflecting on the past, Deng Feng, as a Burial Master, almost fell victim to Zhong Siyu's illusions, emphasizing the terrifying nature of her illusions.

However, Zhong Siyu's current strength was significantly inferior to her peak, causing the illusions she created to weaken. This made it easier for Duda to dispel them.

As the illusion shattered, a surge of Yin Qi rushed towards them. With a composed expression, Duda, empowered by spirit summoning, swung his cane towards the space in front of him.

Boom!

The Yin Qi dispersed, and a powerful recoil sent Duda's body floating backward several meters.

Undeterred, Zhong Siyu, wearing a wicked smile, manipulated a vast amount of Yin Qi from all directions, launching an assault on Duda.

Eerie cries and haunting ghost laughter echoed in the space. The Yin Qi transformed into terrifying ghost faces, relentlessly charging towards Duda. It seemed as if they intended to devour Duda's spirit soul.

"Childish tricks!"

Duda shouted, and his cane, infused with spirit power, emitted billowing black smoke. He swung it consecutively, each swing shattering a ghost face. In just a few breaths, the space was devoid of the chilling laughter, and all the ghost faces made of Yin Qi dissipated under Duda's cane.

"Now, you are no match for me. Becoming my guardian yin spirit benefits both of us. It's a simple truth; why can't you see..."

Before Duda could finish his sentence, his voice abruptly stopped. His expression changed drastically, shifting his gaze from Zhong Siyu to the position where Yang Haoran was.

Simultaneously, Zhong Siyu seemed to sense something as well, directing her gaze towards Yang Haoran below.

At this moment, Yang Haoran lay on a mass of Yin Qi, his entire body blurred, making it impossible to discern his appearance.

At some point, he had stopped screaming, and his body ceased struggling. He lay quietly on the Yin Qi, resembling a corpse torn apart by wild beasts.

However, this seemingly lifeless body was not truly dead, as it still emitted signs of life. If it were just this, it wouldn't have drawn the attention of both Duda and Zhong Siyu simultaneously. What captured their focus was the sudden intensification of the faint life force on Yang Haoran's body.

The thick Yin Qi enveloped Yang Haoran's body, and the blood and flesh that had fallen off started regenerating at a visible speed. If one paid attention, they could even observe the growing flesh moving rapidly.

This was the Yin spirit power repairing Yang Haoran's shattered body. However, achieving such rapid restoration required not only potent Yin spirit power but also specific conditions, which could only occur when a qualitative change happened in the internal forces during a breakthrough in realms.

Yang Haoran, just a Night Watch, was on the verge of opening his heaven soul and entering the soul awakening realm, making the scene unfolding on his body indicate that he was likely about to open his heaven soul.

Duda and Zhong Siyu witnessed this scene, both realizing its significance. However, their reactions were vastly different.

Zhong Siyu chuckled heartily, in good spirits, while Duda's face darkened, his heart filled with shock and anger!