Chapter 1188 - A Lifetime of Bragging Rights
“Has His Excellency the Temple Master been possessed by a god!?” Meng Changyun gasped, his mind practically blank with astonishment.
The situation turned around far too quickly.
Moments prior, the Custodian’s majesty had been as vast as the heavens, as if he were a sovereign.
But in the blink of an eye, he had lost the support of the surrounding Laws and was flung back into the mortal dust for Su Yi to torment as he pleased!
“How is this possible?” Mo Rongshan was frantic. And here he thought he was about to kill two birds with one stone.
Who’d have thought Su Yi would turn around and toy with the helpless Custodian?
“Your Excellency, you have to stand tall——!!” Mo Rongshan cried out frantically.
Dammit, that old dog really needs to get put down! Meng Changyun inwardly gnashed his teeth. Bad enough that Mo Rongshan had led the Custodian right to them. Now, he was even cheering the Custodian on! If the Custodian lived, how could Meng Changyun possibly survive?
He silently took action; he’d decided to block the road ahead to ensure that ol’ dog Mo Rongshan couldn’t escape!
Meng Changyun was also worried that if Mo Rongshan did escape, he’d reveal what had happened here, including how he’d surrendered to Su Yi. If word got out, the mighty factions of the stars were sure to see him as a traitor.
Thus, Mo Rongshan had to die!
Meanwhile, the man in white couldn’t stand upright. Before he’d risen to his full height, Su Yi kicked him back down. His vision went black, and he almost sank into unconsciousness.
“How does that feel?” Su Yi gazed down at him.
He could have killed the Custodian earlier, but he had refrained from striking the killing blow to give himself an opportunity to vent first.
The man in white coughed violently, blood flowing from the corners of his lips.
His gaze was dark and sinister as he gnashed his teeth. “I’m a Custodian! Kill me, and the entire Birthplace of Ten Thousand Daos will become your enemy! You won’t just lose your opportunity to undergo trial in the secret origin grounds and obtain the greatest good fortune of antiquity. You’ll die! Can you really accept such consequences?”
Su Yi laughed. “Custodians guard and maintain order, and they act in accordance with the rules. But you? For the sake of your personal desires, you’ve violated the rules. Don’t you think you ought to die?”
The man in white laughed derisively. “In the Graveyard of Fallen Immortals, I am a Custodian. I am in control of the rules, and what I say goes! I heard that you were someone impressive in your past life. Don’t you have enough common sense to understand that?”
Su Yi shook his head. “It’s because I understand that I’m so disappointed in your conduct.”
He gazed up at the dome of heaven. “You can kill others as you please, but others cannot kill you? What kind of bullshit rule is that? If I kill you, I’ll become the others’ common foe? Fine, then. I don’t mind helping the Graveyard of Fallen Immortals establish a new rule.
“A rule... that belongs to me, Su Xuanjun!”
Before his voice had even finished echoing through the air, Su Yi raised and swung his sword, killing Custodian Shan Ning on the spot!
In the last moments before his death, Shan Ning’s eyes widened. He couldn’t even imagine how someone in this world could dare to kill him.
Rather, he couldn’t wrap his head around it. Who would do this when the consequences were so obvious? And so dire?
Sometimes, those who knowingly violated the rules were mere barbarians. Other times, they were valiant figures who disregarded even the risk of universal condemnation! To Su Yi, killing a Custodian really didn’t mean much.
Off in the distance, Meng Changyun bellowed, “You think you can run, you old dog? Forget about it!”
Su Yi looked over and saw Meng Changyun standing in the sky, blocking Mo Rongshan’s escape route.
Mo Rongshan was frantic, and he attacked directly. The two of them were originally World Kings on the same side, yet now, they fought viciously.
It might have seemed ridiculous, but given the circumstances, they were already irreconcilable enemies.
After all, one supported the Custodian Shan Ning, while the other stood with Su Yi. It would have been stranger if they hadn’t fought.
“The old man sure knows how to add flowers to brocade,” Su Yi laughed dryly.
It was easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to send coal in a blizzard.
Still, a fairweather friend was better than a knife in the back.
As Su Yi pondered, he walked over.
Mo Rongshan was locked in combat with Meng Changyun, and he instantly cried out in panic. “Your Excellency the Temple Master, I can switch sides too! I’m willing to work like a horse or a dog on your behalf!”
Meng Changyun spat. “Who do you think you are? You want to serve the Temple Master? You’re dreaming!”
“If you can do it, Ol’ Crook Meng, why can’t I?” Mo Rongshan was obviously frantic.
But Su Yi had no intention of letting him go. He walked right over and killed him where he stood.
Meng Changyun felt a massive weight lift from his shoulders.
Now that Mo Rongshan was dead, only he and the Temple Master knew what he’d done today. He naturally had no further need to fear being labeled a traitor and taken to justice.
A moment later, Meng Changyun looked ashamed, and he bowed deeply to Su Yi, his voice full of terror. “I’m ashamed that I couldn’t kill him myself, and that I had to trouble you, Your Excellency. My heart is truly ill at ease.”
He was a World King, yet his bootlicking skills had reached such a high level. Su Yi couldn’t help but look at Meng Changyun in a new light. This old man sure is a wonder!
“Gather the spoils. Then you can leave,” ordered Su Yi.
He looked down at the Tiny Heart of the Cosmos. Faint cracks had appeared all over the ethereal blade.
This was the consequence of using the Laws of Profound Ruin forcefully. The power of this Grand Dao was just too terrifying.
Although the Tiny Heart of the Cosmos was a Xiantian Treasure, it was ultimately a treasure of the Imperial Realm; it couldn’t quite bear the strength of the Laws of Profound Ruin.
Su Yi’s heart ached at the sight of it.
Fortunately, I just gathered an abundance of World King-level divine materials. I’ll just have to find an opportunity to reforge the Tiny Heart of the Cosmos, thought Su Yi.
As Su Xuanjun, this was the sword he’d been most pleased with, and it was extraordinarily meaningful to him. There was absolutely no way he’d give up on it, not if there were any other choice.
Before long, Meng Changyun finished gathering the trophies, and he approached from afar.
“Your Excellency, the Custodian had a command medallion and a bronze seal, but there was nothing else on him. He really was dead broke.” As Meng Changyun spoke, he proffered both items.
The command medallion was perfectly square and about the size of a palm. It was refined from a strange, chaotic spirit jade, with the word “Custodian” carved on the front.
The back was carved with the mysterious markings of a formation.
“Not simple!” Su Yi’s eyebrows rose slightly. He could tell at a glance that the medallion’s materials were extraordinary. Shockingly, it contained a portion of the ambient Laws.
And the formation markings carved on the back were shaped like the ancient character for “immortal.” They emanate a forbidden air.
The sight of the formation markings made Su Yi give up on all thoughts of sensing the medallion. There was a problem with them; he suspected that they were a type of fetter. The moment he made contact, they’d fetter him, too!
Custodians ought to act in accordance with the rules. That Shan Ning person most likely used this command medallion to borrow the power of the surrounding Laws... thought Su Yi. It won’t be too late to investigate the medallion’s secrets after I’ve learned its origins.
He put the medallion away, then turned his attention to the blood-colored bronze seal.
It too had belonged to Shan Ning, and it was a peak World King ancient treasure.
However, the power of reincarnation had frittered its strength away. It was badly damaged and not worth much.
“Your Excellency, these are the trophies I collected from that old dog Mo Rongshan’s corpse.” Meng Changyun approached and proferred a spatial treasure.
Su Yi put it away without even pausing to look at it. “You can leave.”
He’d already been planning to proceed to the Black Blood Ruins.
“Err... about that...” Meng Changyun stammered, as if ill at ease. Finally, he gnashed his teeth. “Your Excellency, might I.... Might I accompany you?”
With that, he flung himself to the ground and lowered his head. “I can swear to the heavens that I’m willing to turn over a new leaf and mend the error of my ways. I’m willing to serve you until the day I die!”
He spoke every word with staunch conviction.
Su Yi was briefly stunned. A moment later, he said flatly, “Tell me what you’re really after.”
Meng Changyun said softly, “I’m afraid to die, and I’m afraid the other Custodians will take revenge against me. I hope to receive your protection.”
He paused, then added, “That aside, my heart is full of admiration for you. I don’t expect a meteoric rise to prominence, but I do hope to establish a positive karmic tie between us!”
Su Yi laughed dryly. “You’re afraid of death? That, I can believe. As for your so-called positive karma, that sounds awfully fake.”
Meng Changyun was instantly sheepish. “Your Excellency, your eyes are as keen as torches. In this old man’s estimation, given time, your cultivation will surely far surpass your past life, and you’ll stand at the pinnacle of the starry skies! They say that when a man achieves the Dao, even his dogs and chickens rise into the heavens. I would simply like the opportunity to become one such dog or chicken!”
He’d given voice to all of his true intentions.
A moment later, he said solemnly, “Your Excellency, please rest assured. Since I’ve decided to serve by your side, I’m naturally prepared to face death! I can even swear a Grand Dao oath to prove my sincerity!”
“No need for a Grand Dao Oath,” Su Yi said flatly. “I still don’t really trust you.”
Meng Changyun was stunned, and his expression was instantly somber. “I understand. Given your horizons and status, someone like me really is far from qualified to serve you...”
He was a World King, yet he seemed hurt and somber, humble to the extreme. Were anyone else to see this, their eyes might well have fallen out of their sockets.
But Meng Changyun didn’t think his reaction was at all strange. After all, this was the reincarnation of the Temple Master! The legend who’d wandered the countless worlds of the stars freely, like an immortal from on high, standing proudly above the human realm!
Even World Kings could only lower their heads meekly before him!
Even the top experts of the Eastern Profound Star Domain had to avert their gazes before him!
Su Yi didn’t find his reaction strange either. Meng Changyun’s humility was not enough to surprise him.
“I can give you an opportunity and let you work alongside me for now. Beyond that... We can discuss it later,” Su Yi said casually. With that, he put his hands behind his back and sauntered off.
“Uh...AH!?” The kneeling Meng Changyun froze, stunned, almost not daring to believe his ears.
A moment later, his old face lit up with excitement. He was incoherent with joy. “Thank you, Your Excellency! Thank you! Oh, oh...! Wonderful! I’ve never been so happy in my life!”
“I say this with heaven and earth as my witness: I’ll be bragging about this for the rest of my days!”
He was a Heavenly Longevity Realm World King, yet here he was, crying tears of joy!
Su Yi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He was even at a loss for words. Old man, is this... really worth all that fuss?
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