Chapter 900: Three Snaps of the Fingers
This late at night, the streets ought to be deserted, yet a solitary figure was walking toward them carrying a white paper lantern.
This scene was unquestionably strange.
But the moment Su Yi looked over, wisps of dim, distorted light appeared soundlessly on the sides of the street he and You Xue now stood on.
Then, the stars seemed to shift around them, and the scenery changed dramatically. They now found themselves in a world as dark and grim as death itself.
Su Yi’s expression remained just as calm as before, but You Xue furrowed her brow. A formation!
But Su Yi hadn’t said anything, and she wouldn’t attack without permission.
The eerie glow of the white paper lantern was the only source of light amidst the darkness.
The person carrying it appeared out of nowhere. He was an old man in gray with a waxy complexion. His hair was sparse, and his eye sockets were hollowed out. Instead of eyes, each socket was home to a broad bean-sized toad, one black, one white.
“Don’t panic, you two. My master has extended an invitation to both of you. I hope you can visit him outside the city, at Inverted Ridge,” said the old man in gray in a voice like the grinding of jagged metal.
“And who is your master?” asked You Xue, the depths of her gaze as cold as ice.
“You’ll naturally know once you’ve met with him,” said the old man in gray. “If you refuse his invitation, don’t blame me for helping you agree.”
Holding the white paper lantern aloft, he was shrouded in mist, looking illusory and utterly strange.
“Oh?” said Su Yi. “This is Snowy Skies City, you know. Aren’t you afraid of death?”
The old man in gray was stunned, but he quickly realized what Su Yi was getting at. “Given the current situation, the Night Watchman dares not offend us, either. If he does, there’s no way he’ll be able to bear the consequences.”
Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh, then look around and jeer, “Is that true, Fellow Daoist?”
The old man in gray was stunned.
A moment later, a middle-aged man in simple cloth robes appeared in the deathly gray landscape, seemingly out of nowhere.
His robes were worn-out, and his face was thin and unsmiling. His aura was as firm and unyielding as an ancient, solitary mountain.
This was none other than the Night Watchman.
The old man’s expression changed dramatically, but he quickly regained his calm. “This old man has come here on his master’s orders to invite our two young friends to Inverted Ridge for a chat. I humbly request your cooperation, Your Excellency.”
Although he called the Night Watchman “Your Excellency,” his behavior wasn’t the least bit respectful.
The simply-dressed middle-aged man paid him no heed.
Instead, he looked at Su Yi. “I’ve embarrassed myself.”
Su Yi sighed sympathetically. “I can tell that the Mysterious Netherworld Divine Court has put a lot of pressure on you of late. It’s gotten so bad that even a dirty toad dares strut about and throw its weight around in your city.”
The nearby old man in gray couldn’t help but snort coldly. “Mind your manners, friend!”
The Night Watchman ignored him once more. After a moment’s silence, he said, “Fortunately, you’re here. Starting tonight, I won’t need to tolerate them any longer.”
The old man in gray seemed to sense that something wasn’t right, and his expression shifted. “Your Excellency, what… Do you mean by that?”
The Night Watchman said nothing. He simply walked toward the old man in gray, his steps light and airy.
Bang!
The gray landscape suddenly collapsed like a popped soap bubble, and the white paper lantern went out. Everything reverted to reality.
The old man’s expression changed dramatically, and the toads inhabiting his eye sockets lit up, firing two sharp arcs of light. One was black, the other white, and their paths crossed, forming the character “乂.” They tore through the skies and cleaved at the Night Watchman!
But the simply-dressed old man was as calm as a long frozen river. He casually raised his hand, and…
Boom!
The black and white arcs of light shattered, and a force drew the old man toward the Night Watchman from afar.
“Your Excellency, do you know the consequences of…” the old man in gray shrieked in terror and started to say something.
However, before he could finish his sentence, the simply-dressed middle-aged man tightened his grip. Everything beneath the old man’s neck shattered into countless fragments, the flesh reduced to ash and scattered to the wind before even hitting the ground.
All that remained was the old man’s head, which the Night Watchman held aloft.
From beginning to end, the simply-dressed middle-aged man said nothing. He was calm and casual even as he attacked, with no majestic aura to speak of.
Yet he’d killed a mid-stage Profound Illumination Yao Emperor of the heretical path as if he were swatting a fly, destroying him with casual, understated ease!
You Xue couldn’t help but feel stunned. She suddenly recalled what Su Yi had told her earlier——
This was Snowy Skies City. Here, the Night Watchman was practically invincible!
“Go back and tell Malevolent Release that from now on, any member of the Mysterious Netherworld Divine Court who enters Snowy Skies City will be reduced to ash.” With that, the simply-dressed man raised his hand and flung.
The old man’s head flew through the air like a ball, whooshing through the night sky and disappearing into the distance.
“There ought to be quite a few members of the Mysterious Netherworld Divine Court currently in the city, right?” asked Su Yi.
The simply-dressed man nodded. “All of them will die tonight.”
Just as You Xue was wondering what kind of storm of bloodshed the Night Watchman would cause tonight, Su Yi asked with great interest, “How long will it take you?”
“Why do you care?” asked the simply-dressed man.
Su Yi gestured to You Xue. “She’s curious about your abilities.”
The Night Watchman sounded a bit stunned. “A bunch of small fries, that’s all. None of them are worthy of my attention. At most it’ll take… three snaps of my fingers. That should be enough to clean them all up.”
Within three… snaps of his fingers?
You Xue was stunned.
Snowy Skies City was enormous, even bigger than a small mundane nation. Its population numbered at least ten million.
And he was specifically targeting the experts of the Mysterious Netherworld Divine Court. That was like trying to fish a needle out of the ocean!
Yet the Night Watchman said he could wipe every Mysterious Netherworld Divine Court expert in the city out in the time it took to snap his fingers three times! How could You Xue be anything but surprised?
She then watched as the simply-dressed middle-aged man brushed his fingers through the air.
You Xue instinctively looked up.
Amidst the darkness enshrouding Snowy Skies City, it would have been difficult for even most cultivators to detect, but the power of a Law was fluctuating faintly overhead.
You Xue, however, saw it clearly. Countless formless chains of the Laws shot toward different parts of the city, disappearing in a flash.
The chains were mysterious and inscrutable. The aura lingering around them was as cold and desolate as the night itself. Even just looking at them, You Xue felt a sense of oppression bearing down on her, and despite herself, her heart shook. This power was obviously a Law presiding over everything within the bounds of Snowy Skies City! It wasn’t at all weaker than a Profound Unity cultivator!
“You’re using Fengdu’s source, the Laws of Annihilation, to take out small fries like that? That’s a bit wasteful,” Su Yi said softly.
The simply-dressed middle-aged man nodded. “It is, but this is the only way to ensure that I kill every last one of them.”
As they conversed—
Within an opulent palace, beautiful dancers flitted lightly about a stage, their delicate bodies just barely discernible through their gauze clothing. The sound of music filled the air.
A group of demonic cultivators was enjoying a banquet, and the atmosphere was lively.
But then, chain after chain appeared out of nowhere and descended upon them, like the judgment of the heavens.
There were thirty-five demonic cultivators in attendance, but all were reduced to ash before they could even react.
The uproarious conversation came to an abrupt halt.
The dancers and musicians’ faces paled. They were obviously bewildered.
A moment later, shrieks filled the air.
……
A secluded cave covered in formations.
Moans of ecstasy emanated through the curtains of a canopy bed.
A mighty Imperial Realm yao cultivator was seizing Yin to replenish Yang when a misty gray chain descended.
A terrified shriek followed, and the curtains parted. A moment later, an almost naked woman threw herself out of bed. However, perhaps due to excessive fright, her knees were like jelly, and she collapsed on the ground.
There were no longer curtains obscuring the bed, but save for the terrified woman and the bed itself, the only thing visible was a pile of ashes.
……
Similar scenes unfolded practically simultaneously throughout the different districts of the darkness-shrouded city.
Whether they were mighty Imperial Realm yao cultivators or experts of lower cultivations, all of them were reduced to ash in the time it took the Night Watchman to snap his fingers. Nothing remained of them but ash, and their Daos died with them.
This was what made the Laws of Annihilation so terrifying. When they killed someone, not even a corpse remained!
Only a few peak Profound Serenity Realm Emperors sensed the disturbance caused by the Laws of Annihilation. Like Yun Songzi of Yellow Springs Palace or Meng Po Palace’s Lu Changming.
But even these old monsters found nothing when they tried to seek out the cause of this sudden development.
This was because the attack wasn’t directed at them, and it was over as soon as it began. Just three snaps of the fingers later, and it disappeared without a trace.
Meanwhile, on that abandoned city street, the simply-dressed middle-aged man said softly, “It’s done.”
“Already?” You Xue couldn’t help but ask.
The simply-dressed man nodded, his expression calm, as if he couldn’t even be bothered to discuss something so trivial any further.
He looked at Su Yi. “Want to come back with me and have another drink?”
Su Yi shook his head. “Let’s skip it. That place of yours is far too dull. It won’t be too late to choose a spot for a feast after I return from the Dark Capital.”
“Mm.” The simply-dressed man grunted his assent, then disappeared into thin air.
“The Night Watchman… really is terrifyingly calm. I suspect that the heavens could collapse around him and his heart wouldn’t so much as ripple with emotion,” sighed You Xue.
Su Yi laughed. “Let’s go find an inn and have ourselves a nice rest.”
With that, he proceeded into the distance, and You Xue followed.
Moments later, a figure streaked over from the distant skies. When he saw Su Yi and You Xue, he stopped in his tracks.
Su Yi saw the new arrival clearly at the same time, and despite himself, he was a bit stunned.
It was a graying, bearded man in a feather coat, with a thin, withered face. This was none other than Third High Elder Lu Changming of Meng Po Palace!
When he recognized Su Yi, Lu Changming was obviously surprised too.
He took a moment to calm himself, then smiled and inclined his head in greeting. “They say that when people part ways, they’re sure to meet again. Young Lord Su, it’s been months since I last saw you, but your bearing is even more magnificent than before.”
Su Yi looked calmly at Lu Changming. “Earlier today, as I entered the city, I bumped into Yuan Linning. I wouldn’t have thought that this time, I’d bump into you. It really is quite the coincidence.”
Lu Changming felt inwardly conflicted. It was because of Su Yi that Emissary Mo Wuhen had stripped him of his position as high elder!
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