The Return of Stars to the Jianghu

Chapter 219 Awakening at the Source of Wind Whisper Mountain: The Death Knell Rings

Yue Wuhen sat upright on the rock, the starlight and silver threads on his moon-white robe seeming to dance even faster, reflecting the increasingly profound amusement in his eyes. "The source behind the calamity..."

His slender fingers tapped lightly on his knee, his voice like a clear spring under the moon, yet still cold and sharp, "That's an interesting way of putting it. It seems the waters of Fengyu Mountain run deeper than we imagined. But..."

His narrow eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze like invisible threads wrapping around Ye Fan. "A True Essence Realm body carrying an ancient soul, how much of a ripple can it stir up in this deep pool? And what makes you think we know where the 'source' is?" The shadow behind him seemed to twist slightly, silently exerting another level of pressure.

Liu Xuanfeng, who had remained silent, still did not speak, but his calm scrutiny was more penetrating than any words, as if he wanted to thoroughly analyze Ye Fan from the inside out, including every word he uttered. The four Hidden God Sect cultivators he brought with them stood firm amidst the surging undercurrent of spiritual energy, their auras like real mountains and rocks.

Ye Fan (Zhou Jin) endured the distinct yet equally deadly pressure and probing from the four leaders. Li Wujiu's scorching aura almost set him ablaze, Yin Jiuzhu's bone-chilling poison intended to freeze his meridians, Yue Wuhen's playful gaze was like a sharp blade dissecting his soul, and Liu Xuanfeng's silent scrutiny brought a mountain-like heaviness.

In the air, scorching heat and chilling cold collided, domineering power and eeriness intertwined, starlight and death energy entangled, forming a chaotic and terrifying vortex of spiritual energy. Under the tearing force of this invisible force, the ground of the campfire ruins silently cracked open with tiny fissures.

Huang Yuyan felt a tightness in her chest, and the faint light from the jade pendant between her fingers flickered violently, as if it might go out at any moment. Roman supported her.

Beneath Roland's tightly closed eyes, cold sweat trickled down his face.

Luo Yifei's knuckles were white from gripping the musket so tightly that a thin layer of frost had formed on the cold metal of the gun, only to be instantly evaporated by another wave of scorching heat.

Qi Yuan instinctively shrank back, trying to find a relatively safe position.

At the heart of this pressure, enough to instantly crush an ordinary Yuan Dan cultivator, Zhou Jin's body, controlled by Ye Fan, only swayed slightly before becoming even more stable. His face remained expressionless, as if the power capable of crushing mountains was merely a gentle breeze brushing against bluestone. He even met Li Wujiu's almost fiery gaze with a slight twitch of the corners of his mouth, a faint curve that carried an all-knowing mockery.

"I'm standing here, and you've come in." Ye Fan's voice remained calm, yet it was like a drop of water thrown into boiling oil, instantly triggering an even more violent reaction. He ignored Li Wujiu's almost murderous gaze, his eyes slowly sweeping over Yin Jiuzhu and Yue Wuhen, finally lingering on Liu Xuanfeng for a moment with a strange understanding.

"As for that 'root of trouble'..." He paused, seemingly choosing his words carefully, each syllable striking a chord deep within everyone's tense hearts, "It resides in Wind Whisper Mountain, and has never left. And the 'source'..." He pointed to his temple, then seemed to sweep his gaze across the mountaintop shrouded in powerful energy, "...lies in the answer you all seek in your hearts. Do you truly believe..."

"You really think... with your meager skills, you can glimpse the whole truth?" Ye Fan's voice suddenly turned cold, as if ten thousand feet of ice pierced from beneath the calm lake surface, each word carrying a sharpness that could pierce the soul. He raised his finger and pointed at Li Wujiu's fingertip, as if containing some indescribable power of law, causing the scorching aura around Li Wujiu to freeze. "What Sect Master Li seeks is nothing more than ordinary iron tainted by the aura emanating from that 'source.' A mere trace of that aura has drawn you like a shark smelling blood, revealing your ferocious nature."

His gaze shifted to Yin Jiuzhu, his icy stare seemingly piercing through the heavy cloak. "What the Yin Hall Master covets is that wisp of deathly stillness leaked from the 'Source,' isn't it? You think it's a shortcut to the Netherworld? Ha, little do you know that it's nothing more than a reflection cast by the abyss, something that will corrode you and devour your soul and destroy your bones."

Finally, his gaze fell on Yue Wuhen's face, which always wore a mysterious smile. "Master Yue is indeed perceptive, sensing the antiquity of the soul. Unfortunately, you've guessed wrong. This is not possession, but... returning to one's rightful place." He spoke the last two words very softly, yet they struck Yue Wuhen's heart like a heavy hammer, causing a clear crack to appear in the playful look in his eyes for the first time.

"As for the 'source' itself..." Ye Fan slightly raised his chin, his gaze seemingly piercing through the chaotic spiritual energy field surging atop Wind Whisper Mountain, reaching towards the higher heavens, or perhaps the deeper past, "It has never disappeared, it has merely slumbered. And your greed and reckless actions have only prematurely tolled its death knell. You entered this place not to seize anything, but... to walk right into its trap!"

The moment the words fell, there was no earth-shattering explosion, but a chilling silence suddenly descended. It was as if even the air itself had frozen, and all sounds—the hissing of Li Wujiu's heavy armor and demonic runes, the subtle crackling of frost flowers forming beneath Yin Jiuzhu's feet, the shimmering light of stars and moon flowing within Yue Wuhen's sleeves, even the heavy breathing of the crowd—were abruptly choked by an invisible hand.

The rage on Li Wujiu's face froze instantly, like the final, ferocious posture of lava before it cools. The flames burning in his tiger eyes seemed to be extinguished by invisible cold water, leaving only disbelief and astonishment. He squeezed out a "hoarse" sound from his throat, and the muscles under his heavy armor bulged and tightened. The spot where Ye Fan's fingertip had touched him felt a strange, cold, stinging pain that came from the depths of his soul, causing even his proud Lava Body to tremble instinctively.

Yin Jiuzhu's wide cloak trembled violently, and the pale arc of shadow beneath the hood vanished completely. A chill far purer and closer to primal death than before silently seeped from Ye Fan's words, causing even this being, who had spent years with death, to feel a chilling fear rising from the depths of his bones. The pale ice crystals spreading beneath his feet seemed to have encountered their nemesis, their speed decreasing sharply, even retreating slightly.

The mysterious smile on Yue Wuhen's face finally vanished completely. His narrow eyes opened fully for the first time, no longer filled with amusement, but with a sharp, knife-like astonishment and scrutiny. "Return to its place?" he murmured, the melodious sound of his voice gone, replaced by a cold, probing tone. "This Wind Whisper Mountain… is it a 'place'?" He subconsciously scanned the seemingly ordinary rocks and vegetation around him, his divine sense spreading out with unprecedented intensity, attempting to capture the earth-shattering secret hidden in Ye Fan's words. The shadow behind him twisted violently, as if a hidden entity was also restless because of this information.

Liu Xuanfeng, who had remained silent as a rock, tensed almost imperceptibly for a moment beneath his gray robe. The ripples in his usually placid eyes, stirred by Ye Fan's words, suddenly widened, almost transforming into a raging storm. He stared intently at Ye Fan, his gaze for the first time revealing undisguised shock and… a hint of indescribable apprehension. He seemed to have grasped the terrifying truth, far exceeding his previous expectations, that lay behind Ye Fan's words about "source" and "return to one's place." The four Hidden God Sect cultivators behind him, who stood like stone statues, also experienced a brief moment of disarray in their auras.

"Nonsense!" Li Wujiu finally snapped out of his shock. His suppressed rage, mixed with the shame and annoyance of having his thoughts exposed, erupted like a volcano at its most vulnerable! A crimson, molten aura surged from his body, instantly scorching and distorting the stagnant air above him. Dark red demonic runes danced wildly across his heavy armor, emitting piercing screams. "Playing tricks! Die!"

His massive body, imbued with terrifying power capable of scorching mountains and boiling seas, unleashed a punch without further ado! The air in front of his fist was instantly compressed and ignited, forming a giant lava fist burning with dark red flames, carrying an overbearing will to crush everything, heading straight for Ye Fan's (Zhou Jin's) face! Before the fist even arrived, the terrifying heat had already melted the scorched earth beneath Ye Fan's feet into glass, and Luo Yifei and the others behind him felt their skin about to crack, the air they breathed carrying a burning pain in their lungs!

Almost simultaneously with Li Wujiu's attack, Yin Jiuzhu's figure left a distorted afterimage, like a ghost merging into a chilling tide, silently appearing in Ye Fan's blind spot on the other side. Beneath his wide cloak, a deathly pale hand silently emerged, its fingertips swirling with an intensely condensed, eerie white light—not frost, but a finger of death capable of annihilating life! Silent and still, yet more deadly than Li Wujiu's roar!

Yue Wuhen didn't attack directly, but as he sat on the rock, his moon-white robe fluttered without wind, and the star-moon silver threads on his sleeves suddenly burst forth with dazzling light. An invisible halo of light, as clear and cold as moonlight yet containing terrifying cutting power, instantly formed, hovering before him and locking down all possible escape routes for Ye Fan, as if it could even slice through space itself. A slight smile returned to his lips, but it was as cold as a blade: "Whether it's true or false, once I capture you, I'll know!"

Liu Xuanfeng remained motionless, even closing his eyes. But his hands silently formed an extremely complex and ancient hand seal within the sleeves of his gray robe. A strange, imperceptible yet profoundly powerful energy, like the very essence of the earth, emanated from him, spreading silently like ripples on water, instantly merging into the body of Fengyu Mountain. This energy wasn't an attack; it was more like a…imprisonment, a subtle alteration of the rules of this space, quietly blocking any possible escape route Ye Fan might take using the mountain's veins.

Ye Fan (Zhou Jin) was instantly trapped in a deadly trap! He was met with a molten lava fist that could scorch the heavens and boil the seas from the front, and a silent finger of death from the side. His retreat was blocked by the sharp moonlight wheel, and even the space to escape was quietly imprisoned by Liu Xuanfeng's secret technique!

Okay, this is the revised text:

The pupils of everyone at Fengyu Mountain contracted sharply! Huang Yuyan screamed in alarm; the jade pendant's light surged, yet it appeared so weak under the terrifying pressure from the four intertwined forces. Roman groaned, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. Roland's tightly closed eyes snapped open, bloodshot, his hands frantically forming hand seals. The mountaintop array hummed under the strain, attempting to gather power to protect Ye Fan, but it was torn to shreds by the chaotic and violent spiritual energy field. Luo Yifei roared, instantly raising his musket, the muzzle flashing with blazing white runes, yet he didn't know where to aim. Qi Yuan was deathly pale, almost collapsing to the ground.

However, Ye Fan, at the eye of the storm, completely lost the faint mockery on his face. In its place was an almost cold calm. Facing the giant molten fist that could instantly vaporize him and Zhou Jin's bodies, facing the silent finger of death aimed at his ribs, he made no move to dodge. He simply raised his right hand slowly, as if brushing away dust.

His fingertips emitted no dazzling light, no violent energy fluctuations, only an indescribable silence that seemed to originate from antiquity.

Just as the giant lava fist was about to touch his fingertips, and the finger of death was about to strike his ribs at the last second—

hum!

The entire summit of Wind Whisper Mountain suddenly trembled!

This tremor did not originate from Li Wujiu's fist, nor from Yin Jiuzhu's finger, but from the depths of the mountain! It was as if a primordial beast, slumbering for millennia, had been disturbed by the clamor and killing intent of the outside world, and for the first time in its endless slumber... it stirred its eyelids! An indescribable, vast and boundless aura, so powerful it made one's soul tremble, like an undercurrent slumbering in the ocean, suddenly rose from every corner of the mountain!

Li Wujiu's incomparably ferocious lava fist, less than three inches from Ye Fan's fingertips, crashed into an invisible yet indestructible wall of sighs, shattering with a deafening roar! The violent lava fire scattered and burned countless craters into the ground, but could not advance even an inch further!

Yin Jiuzhu's silent finger of death, just inches from Ye Fan's gray robes, seemed to pierce into some kind of extremely viscous swamp of spacetime. That single point of pale, eerie light flickered violently, emitting a hissing sound like melting ice and snow, and visibly dimmed and dissipated! Yin Jiuzhu's figure beneath his cloak trembled violently, as if struck by an invisible giant hammer. He let out a muffled groan and swiftly withdrew his hand, retreating hastily!

The cold, sharp moonlight halo in front of Yue Wuhen emitted a piercing wail, its light dimming instantly, flickering like a candle in the wind, as if it would be extinguished at any moment! The cold smile on Yue Wuhen's face froze completely, and for the first time, disbelief and horror appeared in his eyes!

Liu Xuanfeng's tightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open, his gaze flashing with unprecedented shock. The restraining energy he had merged with the mountain melted away silently, like ice and snow meeting the blazing sun, the moment it touched that rising, vast aura! He groaned, his body swaying violently, and spiderweb-like cracks silently appeared in the rocks beneath his feet!

Dead!

A deathly silence, even more complete and terrifying than when Ye Fan had spoken!

Everyone froze, even the lingering rage on Li Wujiu's face transformed into utter bewilderment and horror. They could clearly feel that the ground beneath their feet, the sky above their heads, the surrounding air... the entire Fengyu Mountain had come alive at this moment! That vast and boundless aura was not directed at any one of them; it was omnipresent and far-reaching, like an invisible ocean, gently and irresistibly enveloping and covering them all, along with this space.

It was so ancient that it transcended the measure of time, and so powerful that it inspired no thought of resistance. The mere natural expression of its aura was enough to make these powerful figures, whose every stomp shook the world, feel as insignificant as dust!

Ye Fan (Zhou Jin) slowly lowered his raised hand, his gaze calmly sweeping over the undisguised shock and bewilderment on the faces of the four leaders. The corners of his mouth curled up again, this time with a truly indifferent air of looking down on them.

“It seems,” his voice rang out clearly in the deathly silence shrouded in a vast aura, like a death knell tolling deep within everyone’s soul, “that the death knell has already sounded.”

The moment his words fell, that vast aura suddenly intensified! It was no longer the breathing of a sleeping behemoth, but rather it fully opened those eyes... eyes that pierced through eternity and disregarded all living beings!

The true secret of Fengyu Mountain, or rather, the dormant "source," has finally been awakened by the combined "disturbance" of the leaders of the four forces!