"With my current level of Soul Power, I wonder what cultivation level of being I can subdue using the Puppet Soul Threads secret art. Let's test it."
Ye Yunfei suddenly thought of this and moved, arriving before a group of martial artists.
This group of martial artists were from the Sword Emperor Pavilion, captured by Ye Yunfei earlier in Mao City and Zhongyang City, and had been imprisoned in the Phantom Tower ever since. Ye Yunfei had later used the Puppet Soul Threads secret art to subdue over a hundred Astral Perception Realm experts and a few Star Shattering Realm experts as slaves, leaving over a hundred Star Shattering Realm and above experts still imprisoned here.
Ye Yunfei's thoughts moved as he executed the Puppet Soul Threads secret art, sending a thread into the soul sea of a middle-stage Star Shattering Realm expert.
"Ah!"
The man immediately screamed in agony.
"Master!"
A moment later, the man stood weakly before Ye Yunfei, addressing him respectfully.
"Good. I can easily subdue middle-stage Star Shattering Realm experts." Ye Yunfei nodded.
He continued his attempts, successfully subduing a late-stage Star Shattering Realm expert and then a peak Star Shattering Realm expert.
"Now, let's try someone at the Star-Gazing Realm level."
Ye Yunfei's gaze fell on a person with early-stage Star-Gazing Realm strength and directly activated the Puppet Soul Threads secret art, entering his soul sea. All these Sword Emperor Pavilion members were sealed and powerless to resist.
After a short while, Ye Yunfei successfully subdued this early-stage Star-Gazing Realm expert, then attempted to subdue a mid-stage Star-Gazing Realm expert.
"Success!"
Not long after, Ye Yunfei was pleasantly surprised to find that this mid-stage Star-Gazing Realm expert had also been successfully subdued and made into a slave.
Next, Ye Yunfei attempted to subdue a late-stage Star-Gazing Realm expert but failed.
"It seems, with my current Soul Power level, I can only subdue beings at the mid-stage Star-Gazing Realm and below," Ye Yunfei inwardly noted.
Thus, Ye Yunfei proceeded to subdue all those among the hundred-plus Sword Emperor Pavilion captives who were at the mid-stage Star-Gazing Realm or lower, turning them into slaves. There were about eighty-some in total.
This brought Ye Yunfei's total number of Sword Emperor Pavilion slaves to over two hundred. They were all sword cultivators.
Ye Yunfei selected a formation technique called the 108 Heavenly Astral and Earthly Fiend Sword Array, which required one hundred and eight sword cultivators to practice together. With over two hundred sword cultivator slaves, he could form two Heavenly Astral and Earthly Fiend Sword Arrays.
"You all must cultivate this sword array diligently, without laziness," Ye Yunfei instructed them.
"Yes, Master!"
The two hundred-some sword cultivator slaves answered in unison.
Ye Yunfei then took out a batch of cultivation resources and distributed them among the slaves.
"I should first make a trip back to the Mao Clan. Return their Clan Chief and the five Elders."
Ye Yunfei had kept the Mao Clan's Clan Chief and five Elders with him all this time, but with his current strength, they could no longer be of much help, so they had remained in the Phantom Tower. Ye Yunfei now decided not to take them along anymore.
Emerging from the Phantom Tower, Ye Yunfei returned to the surface.
"There are people nearby, watching!"
The moment Ye Yunfei appeared on the surface, he discovered many people lurking in concealment around the Purple Subtlety Sect Ruins, clearly keeping watch over this area.
"Without a doubt, they were sent by those factions of the Tianxiong Domain." Ye Yunfei inwardly sneered, directly casting the One Thought Soul-Devouring Flower secret art.
"Ah…!"
Soon, screams echoed one after another around the Purple Subtlety Sect Ruins.
Swoosh!
His Blood Clan doppelganger rushed out, beginning to devour those lurking in concealment around the ruins. After the battle in Guyin Valley, the Blood Clan doppelganger had devoured part of Old Woman Yueyin's and Black Wolf Deity's origin essence blood, causing its strength to surge dramatically.
Moments later, all those lurking near the ruins had been killed.
Ye Yunfei took out the green flying ship, entered it, and soared into the sky, heading towards a secret base of the Mao Clan. To avoid reprisals from the Sword Emperor Pavilion, all members of the Mao Clan had left their headquarters in Mao City and were hiding in several secret bases of the Mao family.
Half a day later, Ye Yunfei quietly arrived at one of the Mao family's secret bases. This was the Mao family's primary secret base, where the family's high-ranking members and most of its elite disciples resided.
"The Clan Chief and the five Elders have returned!"
As soon as Ye Yunfei, the Mao Clan Chief, and the five Elders returned, a large number of Mao Clan members came out to greet them. Having been hiding in this secret base, they had been on edge day and night, and were now pleasantly surprised to see their Clan Chief back.
"Clan Chief, great news! Xinlan seems to have awakened the legendary Orchid Physique! This was the physique of our Mao Clan's second-generation patriarch!"
A regular elder of the Mao Clan excitedly told the Clan Chief.
"What? Is it true? Summon Xinlan immediately! Let us have a look!"
Upon hearing this, both the Clan Chief and the five Elders instantly grew excited. According to the Mao Clan's genealogical records, their second-generation patriarch possessed the Orchid Physique, making him the most powerful expert in Mao Clan history—a Half-Emperor who had once shaken the entire Feixian Continent. Although many generations had passed, the second-generation patriarch remained a source of pride.
"Grandfather!"
Soon, a beautiful young woman rushed over. It was the Clan Chief's granddaughter, Mao Xinlan. She was one of the three Mao Clan women previously captured by Young Master Jing of the Sword Emperor Pavilion and later rescued by Ye Yunfei.
"Quick! Xinlan, let Grandfather see. Have you truly awakened the Orchid Physique?"
The Clan Chief and five Elders immediately surrounded Mao Xinlan, releasing their Soul Power to examine her.
"She indeed has awakened the Orchid Physique," Ye Yunfei, standing to the side, recognized it at a glance and spoke.
The Orchid Physique was considered a decent constitution on the Feixian Continent. Those who awakened it possessed particularly strong comprehension and extraordinary willpower, granting them cultivation speeds far surpassing others. Comprehending various cultivation methods and martial skills came with ease. Moreover, the Orchid Physique could automatically cleanse impurities, allowing the user to consume large quantities of various medicinal pills for rapid breakthrough without worrying about unstable realms or shaky foundations due to overconsumption.
"Hmm, the Mao family finally has a promising seedling worth nurturing," Ye Yunfei inwardly remarked while appraising Mao Xinlan.
"Excellent! It is indeed the Orchid Physique, exactly as recorded in our Mao Clan genealogy! Our ancestors are watching over us! Our Mao Clan has produced another bearer of the Orchid Physique!"
Soon, the Clan Chief confirmed Mao Xinlan had indeed awakened the Orchid Physique, becoming so moved that hot tears welled in his eyes.
"Our ancestors shelter us! Our Mao family has hope for resurgence!"
The five Elders were also extremely excited.
"Clan Chief, ever since Xinlan was rescued last time, she has been in closed-door cultivation. Yesterday, she suddenly awakened the Orchid Physique—a true blessing in disguise, heralding our Mao family's future resurgence!" a high-ranking elder said to the Clan Chief.
"Clan Chief, five Elders, the truth is, not only did Xinlan awaken the Orchid Physique recently, but many young geniuses across the Tianxiong Domain have also been awakening various special physiques. To name some well-known ones: Tianliang Sacred Land's Holy Son Mao Xiaohao awakened the Source Path Physique; the Sword Emperor Pavilion's core disciple Ximen Yu awakened the True Sword Physique; Western Teachings' core disciple Tianhui awakened the Vajra Physique; the Zhu Family's eldest young master Zhu Yuan awakened the Myriad Elephant Strength Physique. Moreover, not only has the young generation been awakening these physiques, but many top-tier veterans among the older generation in the Tianxiong Domain have suddenly touched upon opportunities for breakthroughs. Many have announced they will go into seclusion to advance their realms and progress further! It is said an Arch-Elder of Tianliang Sacred Land is attempting a breakthrough to the Heavenly Boundary Realm, with a high likelihood of success. Furthermore, more and more martial artists in the Tianxiong Domain are spreading a rumor: that recently, the world has undergone a sudden, abrupt change. The energy and Laws of the Great Dao of our world have suddenly leveled up. An age of prosperous martial arts is coming!"
Suddenly, another senior high-ranking elder stepped forward and reported this to the Clan Chief.
"The energy and Laws of the Great Dao in our world have suddenly upgraded?"
Upon hearing this, the Clan Chief and five Elders were momentarily stunned.
"Is such a thing happening? An abrupt change in the world's energy and Laws… might not necessarily be a good thing."
Hearing this, Ye Yunfei also frowned lightly. The Mao Clan Chief and five Elders had been staying inside the Phantom Tower all this while, and Ye Yunfei himself had been in secluded cultivation deep underground at the Purple Subtlety Sect Ruins. Thus, they had not noticed the changes in energy and Laws occurring across the continent.