Evil Venerable of the Sword Dao
Chapter 463 - 112 Soul Killing Divine Stone

Chapter 463: Chapter 112 Soul Killing Divine Stone

Chapter 112: Soul Killing Divine Stone

"The Palace Master knows far more than you think. From now on, don’t try any more tricks, understood?"

Zhou Yan glanced at the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy, his tone indifferent.

The Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy was startled, his expression changing suddenly, but he hid the shock and trepidation in his heart well, adopting an even more respectful demeanor as he said, "Lord Envoy, for many years, for the sake of the Palace Master, I have truly exhausted my wits and laid down my life, without a hint of rebellious thoughts. Lord Envoy, please see clearly."

When Zhou Yan heard the words of the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy, he just replied with a sarcastic smile, "What you have done, you know better in your heart than I do. But the Palace Master must know about it! However, don’t worry, since the Palace Master sent me here, it means no matter what you did, if you cooperate with me this time, everything else will not be a problem. And no matter what you did, it doesn’t matter."

Zhou Yan had already grasped the overall situation, so he could manipulate the mindset of the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy and deliberately intimidated him.

For a formidable being like the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy, who was comparable to a Saint, being in such a remote place and rarely contacted by the Netherworld Palace Master, it was normal for him to develop thoughts of rebellion.

After all, a wise person is unlikely to be blindly loyal, and it was this point that Zhou Yan used, threatening and warning, to thoroughly subdue the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy.

This was a psychological tactic, first letting the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy fully confirm his authority to speak on behalf of the Palace Master, then showing his own might, pressuring the envoy, which in turn could have an unexpected effect.

If he had still been extremely polite at that time, it would have made the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy think that Zhou Yan was nothing special, feeling that even before the Palace Master’s envoy, he still had the right to be arrogant and overbearing.

Now, by continuously pressuring and suppressing him, he instead felt this was exactly the Palace Master’s style, and everything seemed incredibly logical.

What the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy didn’t know was that Zhou Yan, having grasped his thoughts and faintly sensing his inner ideas, could act without any concerns.

"Yes, yes, the Palace Master is wise. I didn’t expect the Palace Master to be watching over me, yet here I was solely researching the Soul Killing Chains without planning to report back... Lord Envoy, rest assured, I will tell you everything about the Soul Killing Chains, and when you leave, I will convey it all to the Palace Master. Then, the credit will be yours, Lord. I ask not for merits, but for no faults."

The Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy was extremely respectful at this moment, lowering his own status even more as he spoke.

Zhou Yan just watched him coldly, his expression not changing much.

Of course, to Zhou Yan, life forms like the Yin Spirits typically did not show much variation in expression, and even if there were changes, they were hard to detect.

Regarding Yin Spirits, Zhou Yan had limited knowledge. He could deceive the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy largely thanks to a part of the memory about the secret order carried on the Soul Token of the Netherworld Eight Soul Envoys, otherwise the success rate of this process would have been much lower.

As for what the Netherworld Queen said initially, Zhou Yan just made a conservative estimate and wasn’t truly confident. He said this because he didn’t want the Netherworld Queen, Xiao Shuang, to worry too much about him. Because there was no choice in this matter, he had no better path to take and could only walk this difficult path. Zhou Yan knew that if the path was indeed filled with hardships, Xiao Shuang, who was now completely devoted to him, would definitely fight desperately with the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy to secure his chance to live.

Although past memories didn’t exist, Zhou Yan understood the Netherworld Queen Xiao Shuang very well—he knew she would sacrifice everything for him.

This understanding was like memories carved across several cycles of reincarnation, resurfacing in his heart, though still somewhat unfamiliar, but destined like a spiritual connection from a previous life.

"Lord Envoy..."

The Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy slightly raised his head, examining Zhou Yan’s expression—his cold gaze harbored a touch of expectancy and appeasement.

If one didn’t know the strength of the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy was comparable to the Sword Saint Realm, no one could imagine such a fawning existence to be so powerful.

Although Saints are powerful, in the eyes of beings like the Palace Master, they are still mere ants, just as Sword Saints are ants in the eyes of Sword Gods.

Zhou Yan, seeing the Netherworld Nine Souls Envoy this way, thought of the Netherworld Palace Master and through him, recalled the Ancestor of Ten Thousand Ghosts Wan Jian Tian, who was still trapped in shackles.

At his peak, Wan Jian Tian had reached almost the realm of a Sword God, but unfortunately, his current situation was truly endangering himself, otherwise he wouldn’t have been left with the Primordial Magnetic Pole Light and calculated against, allowing Zhou Yan to be so passive.

Even so, Zhou Yan didn’t blame the Ancestor of Ten Thousand Ghosts at all and even thought about rescuing him if he got a chance.

Zhou Yan’s thoughts flashed and immediately returned; the past could not be fully recollected, and there were more important things to handle now. Moreover, being distracted could be damaging, which was not a rational behavior.

"I have made all these points clear, so you needn’t worry. As for credit, taking your credit won’t benefit me in any substantial way. With the Hall Master so wise and capable of strategizing, why would I need your accomplishments to seek rewards? Are you belittling the Hall Master?"

Zhou Yan said in a cold voice.

"No, no, I didn’t mean that at all. I just wanted to show my sincerity..."

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy became even more cautious, and he secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

If the other party really took his credit, then even if he cooperated well with him, there wouldn’t be any interactions with him in the future. Once the other party faced difficulties, he would definitely kick him while he was down.

But now, since the other party didn’t care about this credit, it meant that he was still worth associating with, so it was also worth collaborating with him closely.

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy thought this, but he didn’t know that once Zhou Yan grasped part of his thoughts, his utilization of souls got increasingly proficient, thus his thoughts became clearer in Zhou Yan’s mind.

"Soul Killing Chains are highly valued by the Hall Master, and he is aware of your contributions. Sending me has two purposes, to test you and to stabilize you. Of course, if you do not behave, the Hall Master has also given me the means to erase you.

However, taking that action would also be troublesome for me and would certainly lead to the failure of the plan for the Yuan Ci Secret Realm, which would be counterproductive. Now I am too lazy to play any tricks, and I’ve clarified everything to you so that you do not need to worry. Just follow my orders and do your job well!"

Zhou Yan hesitated slightly, appearing to ponder something, but eventually, he relaxed a bit and spoke.

Hearing this, the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy finally took a long breath and felt much more relaxed.

"Yes, Lord Envoy."

The Nine Soul Envoy replied more respectfully.

Zhou Yan nodded and said, "Organize the Soul Killing Chains. Temporarily hand them all over to me. Regardless of the level or stage, we’ll put a halt to everything. After I collect them, we’ll finalize the plans for the Yuan Ci Secret Realm together, and you can help me arrange everything."

Zhou Yan spoke.

"Yes, my lord."

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy complied very obediently.

He had completely considered himself a subordinate, viewing Zhou Yan as though he were the Hall Master himself.

Apart from realizing from Zhou Yan’s attitude that he was worth associating with, what was even more frightening was the pure Netherworld Power emanating from Zhou Yan, identical to that of the Hall Master himself.

Initially, the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy thought he might have perceived incorrectly, or perhaps the Netherworld Eight Soul Envoy was deliberately displaying such Netherworld aura to flaunt his status, but subsequent observations showed every word and action naturally exuding such pure Netherworld Power, which was utterly terrifying. This indicated that in the eyes of the Hall Master, he was even beyond the status of a True Disciple!

In other words, the future prospects of this Netherworld Eight Soul Envoy were unimaginably frightening.

At this moment, cooperating with him and currying favor in advance meant that even if he couldn’t gain much later, at least he would definitely not become an enemy!

And avoiding such a powerful enemy was a fortunate thing in itself.

The Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy had his own considerations, therefore he willingly humbled himself without minding that his status and strength were higher than those of the Netherworld Eight Soul Envoys.

Zhou Yan carefully sensed the thoughts of the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy. He had initially wanted to explain some matters, but seeing the envoy’s mindset, he immediately accepted all his gestures of obeisance without even bothering to return them.

Seeing Zhou Yan agree, the Netherworld Nine Soul Envoy was not angry but immediately produced an object as black as the Heavenly Dao Soul Stone, even more bizarre and extraordinary.

In all aspects, it even had more cohesiveness and presence than the Heavenly Dao Soul Stone.