Chapter 128: You Have Come to Seek Your Husband! If We Are to Die, We Die Together!

Hearing Ling Xuan’s words, the Dragon God was momentarily stunned. Fang Heng, however, turned his gaze toward the Dragon God and commanded, "Release your power; you are responsible for covering our retreat."

"Cover the retreat? What do you mean?" The Dragon God asked immediately. Fang Heng did not offer an explanation. With a shake of his body, a brilliant black radiance erupted from him, instantly forming a towering dark gate that stood firm amidst the dim, chaotic world.

Witnessing this spectacle, the crowd was left in shock. Fang Heng waved his hand and shouted, "Everyone below the Divine Martial realm, come here! I will protect you!"

As these words echoed, the Divine Martial experts in the area flashed their eyes in surprise. The expressions of the Soul Martial experts, in particular, revealed a mix of shock and gratitude; they had not expected Fang Heng to take such an action.

"What are you waiting for? Get behind my Dark Gate!" Fang Heng roared again. Hearing this, the Soul Martial experts shuddered, then broke through the air, rushing toward the gate.

*Roar!*

Seeing the Soul Martial experts fleeing, the puppets began to howl. Rumbling waves of black energy surged forth, attacking the fleeing group, as if desperate to slaughter them before they could hide behind the Dark Gate.

At this critical moment, Fang Heng’s eyes turned cold, and he looked straight at the Dragon God.

"Leave it to me!" Upon meeting Fang Heng’s gaze, the Dragon God uttered these three words. His body shifted, and the golden spear in his hand swept across the air. A terrifying golden brilliance erupted from the weapon, sweeping away the encroaching dark energy in an instant.

Taking advantage of this opening, the Soul Martial experts reached the safety behind Fang Heng’s gate, escaping immediate danger.

"Hehe... very good, very good. You, little boy, have truly surprised me. Even in this place, you still have the leisure to protect others? It seems you are truly tired of living."

A sinister laugh suddenly echoed in Fang Heng’s mind. Upon hearing this, Fang Heng’s pupils constricted. He knew that the voice belonged to none other than the Puppet Master.

"Tired of living? I think it is you who are tired of living," Fang Heng replied coldly through telepathy. "Now that this place has been exposed, how long do you think you can survive?"

"Hahaha... how long? Little boy, my puppets all possess the strength of the Divine Martial realm. Do you think I am weak? Do you believe that someone of my power could be taken down by trash like you?"

The wild laughter rang out again, and as it did, the earth began to vibrate. More dark radiance emerged, and in the blink of an eye, the original hundred puppet demons grew into three hundred!

Seeing this, the expressions of everyone present shifted.

***

The telepathic exchange between the Puppet Master and Fang Heng was conducted in secret; the others were unaware that this escalation was linked to Fang Heng. This made the change even more terrifying, as it was an unknown threat.

Fang Heng’s gaze flickered as he quickly relayed the information to Ling Xuan and the Dragon God. Their expressions grew grave. Ling Xuan transmitted back, "This is troublesome. Controlling three hundred puppet demons at once, each with the power of a Divine Martial expert—this proves that this being is likely at the Saint Martial realm!"

"No! Not necessarily Saint Martial. At best, a Half-Saint Martial existence. If he were a true Saint, we would have been dead the moment we arrived," the Dragon God countered. "I have witnessed the power of a Saint Martial expert with my own eyes."

"Even if you are right and he isn't a true Saint, the difference is negligible for us. Whether it is a Half-Saint or a true Saint, we have no way to deal with either," Ling Xuan retorted.

"Hehe, you are quite clever, and interesting, too. A spirit of resentment possessing a Divine Martial body, and having evolved into a soul—it seems you have obtained many treasures. In my view, you must be a soul fragment of some ancient demonic powerhouse. Otherwise, you would not have achieved such a feat."

The Puppet Master’s voice resonated again, revealing that he had been eavesdropping on their private conversation!

"What!"

The three of them were stunned. They had not expected this old man to intercept their mental transmissions. Furthermore, his ability to identify Ling Xuan’s true nature in a few words proved that his power was beyond doubt. "Divine Martial" was no longer enough to describe him.

"It seems you must be a Saint Martial senior," the Dragon God said coldly. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to hear our conversation so clearly. Only by transcending our level could one achieve such a thing. Since you are such a senior, why must you treat us this way?"

"Hehe, 'treat you'? You must understand, I am not attacking you; you brought yourselves to my doorstep. I was sleeping in the passage of this Divine Palace of Creation, but this boy’s arrival woke me. He carries the key to opening the palace," the Puppet Master laughed. "I could not enter without the key, but now that it is here, would you not expect me to take it?"

As he finished speaking, the roar of beasts echoed again. The three hundred puppets outside began to move, unleashing fierce attacks that caused the world to tremble. Terrifying shockwaves instantly engulfed the remaining Divine Martial experts and Fang Heng’s group.

"Move and fight! Do not fight head-on. If it is a pure energy attack, do not intercept it; I will handle those. But the rest is up to you. The situation is dire, and we must cooperate to survive. Do you understand?" Fang Heng’s voice rang out. The scattered Divine Martial experts nodded, immediately unleashing their own world-power to combat the monsters. They understood the truth in Fang Heng’s words; with over three hundred puppets, each possessing Divine Martial strength, cooperation was the only way to avoid death.

Seeing the others engage, Fang Heng turned back to the Dragon God and Ling Xuan. "Same strategy. Ling Xuan, you focus on attacking and destroying the puppets. Dragon God, you protect those behind the Dark Gate. Do not worry about energy expenditure; I will provide it."

*Rumble!*

Fang Heng’s body surged with power, and a black force of absorption was released. The countless energy shockwaves and attacks from the puppets began to be drawn into Fang Heng’s Dark Gate.

Once the energy was gathered, Fang Heng waved his hand, and streams of pure energy flowed into the Dragon God and Ling Xuan. Their auras swelled instantly. Ling Xuan shouted, "Wings of the Great Demon God!"

Vibrations hummed behind Ling Xuan as two blood-red energy wings formed. As they appeared, an evil will—a sense of bloody purgatory and immortality—was released. *Cracking* sounds filled the air as the surface of the puppets began to fissure under the pressure of this evil intent.

"Oh? The Will of Immortality? I see. I was wondering which ancient powerhouse’s soul fragment you were; it turns out you are the soul remnant of the First Immortal Demon God of the ancient demonic path. Ha! No wonder you have reached this level. Not bad, not bad."

The Puppet Master’s voice returned to their minds. "But it is a pity. While the Will of Immortality is powerful, your manifestation is too weak—it lacks substance. You think you can suppress my puppets with this? Look at this: the Will of Absolute Yin!"

*Crack!*

Following the voice, crisp sounds rang out. Everyone froze as they saw icy armor manifesting over the cracks on the puppet demons. This armor radiated a bone-chilling cold that seemed capable of freezing flames and sealing the world itself.

"What!"

Fang Heng’s expression darkened. "The Will of Absolute Yin! This is the power of the Demon God of Absolute Yin! My wife, Mo Yun, was indeed taken by you! Why did you take her?"

The Puppet Master chuckled sinisterly. "Why take her? You are mistaken. I did not take her; she contacted me. The will of the Absolute Yin Demon God was calling out to me."

"What do you mean?" Fang Heng demanded coldly. "The Absolute Yin Demon God died long ago. She is merely a soul fragment that survived and merged with my wife. And after the merger, she was completely suppressed by Mo Yun. How could she call out to you?"

"Hehe, suppression does not mean death. As long as she exists, how could I not feel the will of Absolute Yin? I am, at the very least, a Saint-tier existence," the Puppet Master laughed. "I told you, you are the key-bearer. The moment you appeared in the passage, I awoke and began to investigate you. I was surprised that a mere Soul Martial boy could wield such power. Through the aura of your wife, I realized she was no ordinary person. After I secretly released my will to contact her, I learned of the situation. She was indeed suppressed, so I helped her break free. The price? She gave me all her memories concerning you, along with a portion of her power. She agreed."

Hearing this, Fang Heng’s fists clenched tightly.

He finally understood the sequence of events.

In short, when he entered the space passage guided by the fragment of the Divine Cauldron of Creation, he had awakened this Puppet Master. The Master had woken up, seen him, and dispatched puppets to observe him and his wife.

Everything began with his arrival.

If he had never entered, none of this would have happened. At the very least, his wife, Mo Yun, would not have been taken.

"Hehe, are you feeling guilty? In truth, it matters little. A mere Soul Martial brat possessing such power and achieving so much—you have done well. So well that I cannot help but applaud. The predicament you find yourself in is not your fault; it is simply because I am too strong. So, accept your fate."