Chapter 0652 Puppet Warriors

Chapter 0652: Marionette Fighter

Qin Yun had already obtained one Beast King crystal core, and now he needed to help Xiao Yuelan acquire another. The two of them left the hollow tree to search for other Beast Kings.

Above Demon Martial Island, numerous levitating artifacts hovered in the sky.

The elders from Canghuo Immortal Mountain flew out from a black airship and arrived outside Granny Ma’s large carriage, radiating killing intent.

They hovered in midair, their expressions grave as they gazed down at Demon Martial Island below.

Elders from the other four immortal sects, five star sects, and three moon sects also emerged from their respective flying treasures.

After stepping out, Granny Ma asked, “What do you want?”

“Four of our disciples are dead!” roared an elder from Canghuo Immortal Mountain.

“What does their death have to do with me?” Granny Ma said with a mocking smile.

“It must have been Qin Yun’s doing!” The elder’s veins bulged furiously on his forehead.

“Don’t make baseless accusations! You all know well what Demon Martial Island is like. Forget the sixteen Beast Kings—even many of the demonic beings inside are not to be underestimated!” Granny Ma replied irritably.

“We will find proof!” The elder from Canghuo Immortal Mountain wore an extremely grim expression, his rage unleashing a powerful oppressive aura.

The elders from other sects were inwardly alarmed.

They all knew that the disciples of Canghuo Immortal Mountain were exceptionally skilled.

Yet shortly after entering Demon Martial Island, four of them had been killed—this pointed squarely at Qin Yun.

Of course, no one knew exactly what had happened inside.

Granny Ma sneered, “Even if it was Qin Yun, do you really think he provoked them first? You were the ones who placed a bounty on him with a King Artifact! Every disciple inside Demon Martial Island would leap at the opportunity to kill him for that reward!”

Her words gave pause to the elders of the other sects.

Inside Demon Martial Island, anyone who encountered Qin Yun would likely attack him.

Although weapons and artifacts were restricted, Qin Yun had defeated Jian Nanhu—who used a weapon—without using any himself. That alone demonstrated his formidable power.

Seeing the worried looks on the elders’ faces, Granny Ma let out a hearty laugh. “Who knows? Perhaps this time, very few disciples will make it to the Martial Supremacy Tournament!”

“You—you—if it really was Qin Yun, we will demand that the Elder Council of the Sigil Temple pass judgment!” the elder from Canghuo Immortal Mountain thundered in rage.

“Enough! It was you who suddenly offered a King Artifact as a bounty on Qin Yun, encouraging disciples within Demon Martial Island to target him! This is entirely your doing! Besides, there is still no evidence that Qin Yun killed your disciples!” Granny Ma retorted sharply.

As they argued, a white-robed old man suddenly flew over—it was Han Fenghu from the Sigil Temple.

“Elder Han, you’ve arrived just in time! Four of our disciples sent into the island have all died—it was Qin Yun’s doing!” the Canghuo elder immediately declared.

“As I recall, disciples from all sects are allowed to fight and kill each other within Demon Martial Island, correct?” Han Fenghu said with a calm tone.

“That… that…” The Canghuo elder was reduced to silence.

“If such conflict is permitted, then no one can be blamed. When you decided to participate in the Martial Supremacy Tournament, you should have known that countless prodigies have fallen in this competition over the years.”

Han Fenghu continued, saying with a laugh, “Of course, those who perish can no longer be called prodigies—they are merely the deceased. If Heaven decreed their fate, then what kind of prodigy were they to begin with?”

Granny Ma also laughed. “A true prodigy has nothing to do with martial souls or meridians, nor with natural endowments. It is about whether one is blessed by providence and can endure long enough! To endure is to triumph!”

Han Fenghu also laughed and said, "Back in the day, plenty of gifted geniuses pushed me around relentlessly, but hardly any of them are still alive today!"

"Those with superior talents tend to be arrogant and quick to pick fights. Add in the indulgence and protection from their powerful backers, and they become even more conceited," Granny Ma shook her head.

Han Fenghu continued, "You shouldn’t have posted a bounty of a King Artifact on Qin Yun at this time—it will only get your disciples killed!"

Kill Qin Yun, and you’ll obtain a King Artifact stronger than a Dao Artifact!

The disciples inside the Demon Martial Island stood little chance against such temptation.

At that moment, a black-robed elder flew in.

The elder was also from the Runes Master Hall. As soon as he arrived, the elders from Canghuo Immortal Mountain, Yaoxian Valley, and the Long Family all lit up with delight.

The Runes Master Hall itself was divided into several factions, originally formed through an alliance of various major powers.

"I’m here to spice things up for the disciples in the Demon Martial Island!" the black-robed elder gave a sinister chuckle.

"What kind of challenge?" Han Fenghu asked coldly. "Was this approved by the higher-ups?"

"Of course it was!" The black-robed elder then pulled out ten hulking figures from his storage artifact.

Seeing them, Granny Ma’s expression darkened. "Are these Spirit Martial Puppets?"

"These aren’t ordinary Spirit Martial Puppets—they were forged from living humans! Their strength matches late-stage Spirit Martial warriors, and their bodies are nigh-indestructible, resistant even to Profound Artifacts."

The black-robed elder chuckled again and dispatched the ten puppets into the Demon Martial Island.

Next, he released ten large circular mirrors.

The scenes seen by the ten Spirit Martial Puppets were each projected onto the ten mirrors.

Granny Ma grew uneasy, fearing these puppets would specifically target Qin Yun.

"Elder Wen, four of our Canghuo Immortal Mountain disciples have died, and I suspect Qin Yun is responsible! Since Qin Yun possesses such formidable strength, let’s put him through his paces!" the Canghuo Immortal Mountain elder declared.

"Is that so?" Elder Wen was slightly startled, a trace of anger flashing across his face as he sneered, "Good, I’ll make sure to test Qin Yun thoroughly!"

Granny Ma balled her fists and whispered to Han Fenghu, "Elder Han, how strong are these Spirit Martial Puppets?"

"An average early-stage Mystic Martial warrior without weapons or armor would certainly die if they encountered one of these puppets!" Han Fenghu frowned. "Let’s hope Qin Yun can stand his ground!"

"What about their speed?" Granny Ma watched the ten mirrors as the puppets entered the island, fanning out and darting forward at incredible speeds.

"They’re extremely fast. These Spirit Martial Puppets are worth more than Dao Artifacts!" Han Fenghu said gravely. "Within the Runes Master Hall, most of the elders want to capture Qin Yun to force Yang Shiyue to show herself!"

"I heard Yang Shiyue is still in the Youyue Mountain Range!" Granny Ma now understood that Qin Yun’s greatest value was his ability to make Yang Shiyue surrender the Star Monarch Rune Soul.

With that soul, one could easily carve star runes and even discover more powerful ones.

In the Proud Star Continent, the most powerful and prestigious individuals were master Runes Masters.

"It’s also people from the Runes Master Hall who posted the King Artifact bounty on Qin Yun! They’ve got no beef with him but are willing to offer two King Artifacts for his capture—all for the sake of the Star Monarch Rune Soul."

Han Fenghu sighed. "No one can confirm whether Yang Shiyue is really in the Youyue Mountain Range, but many powerful figures have already surrounded it completely!"

"Even half-immortals and Emperor Wus from other continents have gotten in on the action! It’s said that 80% of the half-immortals and Emperor Wus from the Demon Wasteland and Spirit Wasteland have gathered in the Youyue Mountain Range!"

Hearing this, Granny Ma let out an impressed whistle. "This Yang Shiyue is something else… those connected to Qin Yun are no slouches themselves!"

"Now everyone is worried that Yang Shiyue might head to the Immortal Weapon City, because there's an immortal inside. Once she enters, they won’t be able to do anything about it!" Han Fenghu said.

Just then, a figure suddenly appeared on one of the mirrors.

A Lingwu Puppet had spotted someone.

"It's one of our disciples from the Herb Immortal Valley!" an elder from the Herb Immortal Valley exclaimed. "Ask him—has he seen Qin Yun?"

The Lingwu Puppet immediately responded, its voice smooth and natural, controlled by Elder Wen: "I am Elder Wen from the Arcane Glyph Temple. This puppet’s here to test Qin Yun. Have you seen him?"

Sensing the puppet’s formidable strength, the disciple from the Herb Immortal Valley quickly replied, "Yes! He was originally with three others, but our squads surrounded them, forcing Qin Yun to separate. That guy’s fast—we lost him in seconds!"

Granny Ma sneered, "See? They were sent here to kill the Demon Beast King, but instead—they’re targeting Qin Yun right off the bat. If they get killed by Qin Yun, they deserve it!"

"You should know—Qin Yun holds grudges. Who knows if the ones who jumped him first will survive?"

Hearing this, the elders’ faces fell.

Meanwhile, Elder Wen continued controlling the puppet, sprinting through the island in search of Qin Yun.

...

Qin Yun and Xiao Yuelan were searching the forest for traces of the Demon Beast King.

Suddenly, the ring on Qin Yun’s finger glowed, emitting a golden light.

"Xiao Yun, what’s going on?" Xiao Yuelan asked, eyeing the ring.

"Crap, a Xuanwu-tier puppet is nearby... Silver means a Lingwu Puppet, gold means a Xuanwu Puppet," Qin Yun muttered. "It’s close!"

"But Demon Beast Island has a barrier, right? Puppets shouldn't be able to enter, especially ones at the Xuanwu-tier level!" Xiao Yuelan frowned.

"Yuelan, let’s put on masks! The puppet’s after me—if we hide our faces, we’ll be safe," Qin Yun said. "It can’t track me by aura, only by sight—which means whoever’s controlling it is watching through its eyes!"

Xiao Yuelan and Qin Yun quickly pulled out masks.

"We’d better hurry. Xuanwu-tier puppets aren’t easy to deal with," Qin Yun urged.

The puppet sent by the Arcane Glyph Temple was Xuanwu-tier, which was why Qin Yun’s ring glowed gold.