In a sprawling valley, encircled by mist-draped mountains, verdant forests flourished. A crystal-clear river meandered through the heart of the valley. Amidst this natural splendor, a cultivation sect resided in the middle of the valley, with tall wooden buildings and pavilions interspersed among vibrant flower gardens and parks. The air was imbued with the sweet fragrance of blooming flowers, enticing butterflies to dance in colorful swirls around the abundant flora.

In the heart of the valley, the cultivation sect formed a circular city, its center situated atop a hill. Here, the most majestic building stood tall, commanding attention with its grandeur. Despite its city-like formation and bustling population, the surroundings remained refreshingly green, adorned with plentiful trees and green spaces enveloping the city. Numerous small compounds and village-like structures dotted the landscape around the city, adding to the serene charm.

About tens of thousands of people resided in this valley, comprising both cultivators and mortals. However, what stood out most prominently was the striking fact that everyone was female, each one remarkably beautiful, lending an air of enchantment to the entire scene.

This sect is known as the Serene Moonlight Sect—an all-female cultivation sect and one of the top 10 cultivation sects in the Luoshan continent. In the main hall of the sect, a female figure, the sect master of the Serene Moonlight Sect, sat alone in the main seat, holding a communication talisman in her hand.

"Senior sister, currently I am with Zheng Kai, Zhan Lei, Elena, Malachi, and Wei Zhi. Don't worry about Xiu Hui and Yan Mei. Also, you don't need to make a move. I don't want to involve the sect; I am the one who caused all of this, and I will deal with it," a voice transmission echoed from the communication talisman.

With a solemn expression, the sect master watched as the communication talisman crumbled to dust in her palm. She clenched her hand into a tight fist, understanding the significance of the short message she had received.

"Junior sister, be careful," she uttered slowly. "Hmp! If something were to happen to you, I will slaughter my way to their sect if necessary," she said, slamming the armrest, her expression fraught with anger. An intense Qi pressure suddenly emanated from the main hall, startling the disciples nearby.

"Please remember your position. You are the sect master; you can't just cause problems as you please. If you start killing left and right, it will cause war," a voice transmission echoed in the main hall, but the figure remained unseen.

"I'll just resign from being the sect master! Then there is no problem, right?!" the sect master declared.

"Sigh...." came the exasperated response over the voice transmission, as the speaker seemed to have a headache dealing with the sect master.

...

Six figures hovered in the sky, each exuding tremendous Qi pressure, their bloodlust and killing intent filled the air as they prepared for battle.

"Let's not involve the juniors," Snow Rose declared, after secretly using a communication talisman to send a message to her senior sister.

"Why would I care about those brats? I am only here for you," Mad Saber retorted, drawing his saber and pointing it towards Snow Rose.

"Don't worry, we won't touch them," Absolute Diamond chimed in, cracking his knuckles. The others remained silent.

"Cough... Snow Rose, it's time for you to pay for... cough... thousands of years ago... I will kill you... cough... don't worry... you won't die easily... cough... I will make sure... that you die... cough... a slow and painful death..." Noxious Viper's voice rasped through the air, accompanied by fits of coughing. As a cultivator specialized in poisons, he's been exposed to various kinds of poisons that have affected his health.

"Kill me? You are not qualified... Oh, I also have some debt from that time that needs to be settled with you," Snow Rose retorted.

"Good, let's end it here. Cough... Let's see who would stand the last," Noxious Viper declared. He raised both his arms high in the air, dark, thick poisonous gas emerged from his body, swirling and surrounding him in a dark sphere.

"Rise, [Dudao Hei Yan Zhao - Poisonous Path of the Black Smoke Swamp]! Time to bring despair!" Noxious Viper commanded.

Suddenly, a black semi-corporeal being emerged from the dark sphere—a giant white skull with many long black tentacles. The eyes of the skull shone bright red, while the black fog surrounded the semi-corporeal being. Faintly visible inside it was Noxious Viper himself.

The semi-corporeal being emitted a continuous creepy sound, "kakakakakaka," echoing ominously through the air, accompanied by hissing and whistling noises from the black poisonous gas that kept producing from the tentacles of the being.

"Se... Senior sister, is that...?" Yan Mei watched the terrifying being in fear.

"It's a Soul Manifestation," Xiu Hui explained, swallowing as her mouth felt dry from the tension in the air.

In the Dantian of Qi Condensation realm cultivators, Qi exists in a misty or vaporous form. Qi condensation realm cultivators need to condense and transform all of the Qi in mist form into liquid form to achieve a breakthrough and reach the Foundation Establishment realm.

In the Foundation Establishment realm, cultivators need to gather all the liquid Qi and solidify it into a core. When the cultivators successfully transform all the liquid Qi into a core and solidify it, the core will transform into a 'Golden Core', and the cultivators will advance to the Golden Core Realm.

In the Golden Core realm, cultivators need to nurture their Golden Core. After the Golden Core is fully nurtured, to advance to the Nascent Soul realm, cultivators need to crack it open to release the Qi within, which has manifested into a being akin to a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. The Qi that has manifested is called Soul Manifestation.

Cultivators can activate the Soul Manifestation by calling its name, causing it to emerge into the outside world and take a semi-corporeal form, thereby boosting combat capabilities and granting unique abilities. However, because the Soul Manifestation uses Qi to take form in the outside world, it consumes a significant amount of Qi to use.

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"What a nasty-looking Soul Manifestation," Yan Mei remarked, feeling goosebumps as she gazed upon the terrifying and creepy being.

Snow Rose looks very small in front of Noxious Viper's Soul Manifestation, yet her demeanor remained composed as if the colossal semi-corporeal being before her was unworthy of concern. Retrieving a sword from her storage ring, she slowly unsheathed it, her movements deliberate and unhurried.

"I don't know who will stand the last," she declared, pointing her sword towards Noxious Viper. "But you will be the first to fall [Qingxue Bishi Zhiyou - Gentle Snow Concealing the Shadow of Death]." Her words were delivered calmly and deliberately.

Snow Rose's body glowed brightly before dimming, and a semi-corporeal being appeared, slightly larger than Snow Rose herself. Unlike Noxious Viper's terrifying and creepy Soul Manifestation, Snow Rose's Soul Manifestation resembled her, beautiful and graceful, adorned in a stunning white cultivation robe as if it originated from the immortal realm. The being had a complexion as white as snow.

Her Soul Manifestation fully encapsulated her, surrounding her entirely like armor. Snowflakes began to form around her and gently fall, continuously lowering the temperature in her vicinity. Gradually, the area around Snow Rose where snowflakes formed widened, encompassing a larger space.

Mad Saber, Absolute Diamond, Silver Marionette, and Roaring Thunder immediately grew cautious, distancing themselves from both Snow Rose and Noxious Viper. They prepared themselves in case they were attacked by Snow Rose. Additionally, knowing that they were fighting alongside a cultivator who used poisons, they needed to be careful, even if they were on the same side.

"Take this! [Seven Breaths of Bone Dissolution Poison]!" Noxious Viper exclaimed.

His Soul Manifestation, the giant skull, opened its mouth and exhaled black gas towards Snow Rose. Even if Snow Rose is exposed to just a small amount of it, her body will weaken. After the seventh breath, her bones will be completely dissolved, causing excruciating pain.

Noxious Viper wasted no time, unleashing his Soul Manifestation and one of his strongest poison attacks right from the start. Confident in his ability to either kill Snow Rose or, at the very least, weaken and injure her with his poison attack.

"[Sword Dance of the Moonlight, Frost Moon Slash]!" Snow Rose's sword glowed as she delivered a vertical slash toward Noxious Viper, unleashing a crescent-shaped sword attack that streaked towards him.

"[Dianlong Wu Yun Hai - Dance of the Lightning Dragon on the Sea of Clouds]!!! [Descent of the Azure Lightning]!!!" Roaring Thunder immediately summoned his Soul Manifestation, which took the form of a being similar to him and clad in lightning armor.

While Snow Rose was focused on attacking Noxious Viper, Roaring Thunder seized the opportunity to strike. Black swirling clouds appeared above Snow Rose, with azure-colored lightning slithering within them. Roaring Thunder raised his spear and slashed downward, directing the lightning to strike Snow Rose.

From the center of the black cloud, a thick azure-colored lightning bolt descended upon Snow Rose, striking her cleanly. The intense brightness of the lightning illuminated the area, accompanied by a loud clap of thunder. As the lightning surged through her body, it emitted a loud crackling sound.

"Did I get her?" Roaring Thunder questioned, his Soul Manifestation enveloping him, lightning crackling around his body as he gazed warily at Snow Rose.

Snow Rose's crescent-shaped sword attack swiftly soared towards Noxious Viper, slicing the black poisonous gas exhaled by the giant skull into two.

"Hmph!" Noxious Viper exclaimed upon seeing the incoming attack. Swiftly, he controlled his Soul Manifestation to shield himself, directing the skull's many tentacles to intercept the attack. He also activated multiple defense artifacts, a smug grin spreading across his face as he felt confident in his defenses.

He also remained confident in his attack, convinced that even if it were to be sliced apart, it would still reach Snow Rose, ensuring the outcome of this exchange would be in his favor. Moreover, Roaring Thunder also launched an attack towards Snow Rose and managed to strike her.

The skull's many tentacles produced a dark, gooey poisonous liquid that enveloped them, the tentacles weaving and moving in an attempt to block the incoming attack. Noxious Viper's body, encased within the skull, was also surrounded by several layers of defensive energy barriers.

The crescent-shaped sword attack struck the tentacles, slicing through one, two, three, and more. It continued its trajectory towards Noxious Viper, effortlessly cutting through the tentacles as if they were nothing. Finally, it penetrated the skull, then pierced through the multiple layers of defensive energy barriers one by one. Slashing past Noxious Viper's body, the sword attack continued onward, streaking towards the distant horizon, cutting through the ocean of clouds for kilometers and parting them in two.

Noxious Viper's smug grin had vanished, replaced by a look of horror as a bright line appeared on his body where the sword attack had passed. His body was bisected vertically into two, yet it remained held together by the wound, which slowly froze. The freezing gradually spread from the wound, accompanied by the sound of ice crackling. His body started to crumble bit by bit into ice which then disintegrated into snowflakes. His high vitality as a Soul Ascendance Realm cultivator allowed him to barely stay alive, but he was already doomed as his life force diminished bit by bit.

"No... No..." Noxious Viper muttered, his soul manifestation screaming loudly, "KKKKAAAAAAA!!!" The sword attack had severed many of its tentacles and slashed through its body, causing it to crack and crumble into many pieces before completely disappearing, leaving only thick black poisonous gas in its wake.

Meanwhile, the poisonous attack from Noxious Viper, which had been sliced in two previously, rejoined and finally reached Snow Rose, who was still being continuously bombarded by the relentless azure lightning. Snow Rose's figure became fully enveloped by the black poisonous gas. Suddenly, Snow Rose's body disintegrated into countless snowflakes, dispersing in all directions.

"?!" Roaring Thunder exclaimed.

Then, in front of Noxious Viper, countless snowflakes gathered and formed a snow figure of Snow Rose.

"Tch!" Roaring Thunder grunted, realizing that his attack hadn't affected Snow Rose much.

"Damn it... cough... I will take you down with me... cough..." Noxious Viper, his body almost entirely frozen, muttered hoarsely. Thick black poisonous gas billowed from his mouth, with additional streams emanating from his other facial orifices. He didn't know where Snow Rose's real body was hiding. He is planning to blow up his body and cover the area with poisonous gas.

"No need to struggle, just die... [Eternal Icy Prison]," Snow Rose's voice emanated from the snow figure as it declared. Countless snowflakes formed around it, swirling in a whirlwind as they moved toward Noxious Viper, attempting to trap him.

"Nooo... Snow Rose!!! Curse You!!!" Noxious Viper's voice grew smaller as he was fully covered in a large snowball, which slowly turned black from the poisons. The snow figure used its palm strike to send the black snowball flying into the distance.

"Bloom..." uttered the snow figure.

The black snowball, propelled into the distance, disintegrated into countless black snowflakes, scattering in all directions like a blooming firework. With it, Noxious Viper met his demise.

The snow figure also dissipated into countless snowflakes, and Snow Rose's figure was nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, snowflakes continued to form in the area.

Roaring Thunder, Silver Marionette, Absolute Diamond, and Mad Saber wore bitter expressions but remained relatively calm. Roaring Thunder then glanced towards Mad Saber.

"Just stick to the plan," Mad Saber sent a voice transmission using his spiritual sense to Roaring Thunder, Silver Marionette, and Absolute Diamond.

Roaring Thunder nodded in response, his body surrounded by crackling electricity, and his soul manifestation enveloping him.

Silver Marionette retrieved two puppets made of silver, both closely resembling her. She controlled the puppets using Qi threads, positioning them on either side of herself preparing to defend from any attack.

Absolute Diamond, a body refinement cultivator, utilizes his strong and sturdy body as his weapon. He is ready to launch fist and palm attacks.

Mad Saber gripped his saber tightly, prepared to attack at a moment's notice.

They all utilized their senses, including sight, hearing, and even smell, while also scanning their surroundings using their spiritual sense, but to no avail.

Where is she? they wondered internally.