The person opposite her laughed mirthlessly. His eyes brightened, as if he had just found a treasure. "This plane's defense is indeed very strong. We had to do so much preparation, but every time we got here, our efforts would be wasted. It's impressive enough that a naturally low-quality plane like this can hold itself so well. If we were new to invading planes, all of you might have escaped this outcome."
"..." In other words, this was not their first time invading a plane?
"Your assistant is particularly shocking! His powers far surpass that of other planes' managers. It took us so long to control his consciousness. It's a pity that he has not fully grasped his power. That was our greatest tool!
"..." Tool?
"That's right – you have another assistant as well." The man's eyes twinkled as if he just thought about something useful. "He looks even more powerful. I'm sure he will make a great tool as well" The moment he finished speaking, the entire layer of ice vibrated. Images of what was happening outside of the glacier appeared.
There was a man standing in the middle of a vast patch of ice. There were countless wounds on his body. In one hand, he held a long sword. The man was standing unsteadily – he looked like he would fall over at any moment. All around him were many figures who looked exactly like Father Niu, as well as the Celestial Emperors and Skyfiends, whose consciousness were being controlled. It was almost as if the man in the center could not see their attacks on him. He stubbornly stabbed the ice beneath his feet with the sword, no doubt trying to rescue Shen Ying out of there.
His powers had evidently been sealed. There was no way he could use any sorcery to break the ice. More and more wounds accumulated on his body, so that he was becoming almost unrecognizable.
Chef!
When Shen Ying saw that image, her expression darkened. An anger like she had never felt before seemed to explode out of her body. She threw all the plans she had in her head aside – f*ck logic!
"Heh.." She suddenly let out an icy laugh. She turned around to glance at the familiar face in the sky. A chilling aura blasted forth from her body. In a very dangerous voice, she said, "You... are good!" So good that she was finding it hard to control her temper!
"He will become ours very soon," laughed the man in the air. "Just like this plane... Eh? Why is your body's power becoming... No, that's impossible. I've sealed.."
The screens around Shen Ying turned black. Even the defensive layer that had been surrounding her body was kept away. The layers of ice could no longer come any closer to her. Something scary was emanating from her body, threatening to explode with a formidable force. The layers of ice suddenly cracked in half, like cabbage that had been sliced open. Step by step, she walked forward. With each step, cracks appeared on the ice layer beneath her feet. The heavens and the earth threatened to break apart as she advanced.
"I'm pretty sure we did everything we could to minimize the manager's powers.. How is it that you're still so powerful?" The man's face turned pale as he looked on in disbelief at the fast advancing woman. In a panic, he summoned more crystals, trying to form a wall between himself and the woman. Yet, they proved to be useless. They just broke into pieces, like the rest of the ice layers around them. Subconsciously, he retreated. "That's... that's impossible. Don't come any closer.
Shen Ying's expression was ice cold by now. She emphasized each word as she said, "Don't you like playing with light? I'll grant your wish!"
"..."
***
Outside the ice mountain.
Yi Qing could not hang on any longer. HIs vision was blurring, and so was his mind. Unbearable pain seared throughout his body. His assistant's powers and God Power were sealed up, and there were countless enemies forming a wall all around him. It was impossible to fight his way out using pure sword technique. But... Master! Master was still stuck inside there. That encapsulator could isolate the space inside from the plane, so that her manager powers would be limited. What's more, Master had not yet fully recovered. She was in grave danger!
With the numerous attacks raining down on his body, Yi Qing could hardly keep himself standing. All he could do was crawl toward the ice which was trapping his master. He had to save her... He had to...
Suddenly, he heard a loud crash. The attacks on his body stopped. Before his eyes, hundreds of thousands of red beams shot out of the stubborn ice mountain. In a blink of an eye, the layers of ice broke into pieces, as if they had been cut up by a giant sword.
The ice mountain that stood so tall that it reached the clouds began to collapse. They quickly turned to flashes of light and disappeared. All that remained were the red beams of light. The source of the red beams walked out.
"Mas... Master..." Yi Qing stared blankly at the familiar figure walking slowly out of the mess. Suddenly, his eyes burned. Hot tears flowed down his cheeks. She was fine... That's good.
Shen Ying's expression remained icy. It was almost as if all the ice that disappeared had gathered on her face instead. Her body radiated a frightening aura. She walked toward Chef, raising her finger and touching it on Yi Qing's forehead.
Yi Qing felt the suppressive force that had been weighing down on him disappear. His powers flowed back into his body and the wounds covering his body began to close up. After a few moments, he was half-recovered. Soon, all that reminded him of the wounds he suffered earlier was the dried up blood left behind on his body.
He was almost fully recovered by now. Another familiar figure flew out from within the red beams of light. He looked exactly like Father Niu, but he was covered in blood for some reason. He looked even more miserable than Yi Qing. He stole a glance at Shen Ying, eyes full of fear. Before she could meet his gaze, he looked away, and gestured toward the group of people surrounding Yi Qing "Move!"
The air twisted, and they saw a blue light flash. A realm gate opened.
"Master..." Yi Qing said anxiously. He wanted to say something, but Shen Ying held his chin and planted a kiss on his lips. With affection, she touched his head and said, "Wait for me – I'm going to clean up this mess!"
Yi Qing stiffened.
The next moment, Shen Ying appeared just behind the man in the sky. She turned and pulled hard on the realm gate. The crack in the air sealed up at once, with such force that the impact could be felt even from the ground, where Yi Qing was.
She stared at Father Niu's true body. Emphasizing each word, she said, "I'm sorry. The immortal realm is closed today!"
Father Niu: "..."
Yi Qing: "..."
Everyone: "..."
——————
Three hours later.
The rear hall of the Invincible Heavenly Palace.
Shen Ying sat upright at the table, clearing the food on the table in a dignified and rapid manner. Three metres from the table sat several rows of high-level and well-dressed... buns!
The kind that only looked that way because they had been beaten up!
The Celestial Emperors and Skyfiends had regained their own consciousness by then. They tried to make themselves look as small as possible as they looked on at the woman who was still wolfing down huge scoops of rice. They did not even dare to breathe too loudly. The only sound that could be heard in the entire hall was the sound of Shen Ying's spoon hitting her bowl.