Wei Daoren's entire cultivation was transformed into bloody energy, flowing toward the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade in Chen Shi's hand, then from the blade into his body. The Blood Sea Hell behind his head was also expanding rapidly.
Wei Daoren's physical body dried up at lightning speed, and his Primordial Spirit withered and decayed, as if struck by a deadly poison.
His soul was trapped by the Blood Lake Sutra and flew into the Blood Sea Hell, shouting, "Chen Shi, you will die under this blade too, and keep me company!"
Before he could finish, he plummeted into the Blood Sea Hell. Unspeakable pain assailed him, leaving him in a state of silent screaming without any sound.
This was the punishment within the Blood Sea Hell. Anyone who died under the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade would have their ghost fall into this hell, undergoing torment until their sins were cleansed. Only then would they escape the pain. But by then, they would have become part of the Blood Sea itself, unable to ever escape.
Chen Shi gripped the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade. After absorbing Wei Daoren's cultivation, the blade's demonic nature grew even stronger, invading Chen Shi's consciousness, seeking to take control.
He had already struggled to control the blade, and now, in such a short time, it had absorbed both Fei Zichong and Wei Daoren. Fei Zichong was a fallen immortal, and though Wei Daoren hadn't reached Dao Unification, his ten-thousand-year cultivation was immensely powerful.
Chen Shi tried to stabilize his Dao Heart, channeling all his strength to reverse the Blood Sea Hell and force it back into the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade. But the Blood Sea Hell continued its relentless operation, slow and steady.
He used every ounce of his power and finally let go of the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade, feeling a wave of relief.
"Getting rid of the demonic nature of the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade doesn't seem that hard..."
Chen Shi raised his hand to straighten his clothes. But when he lifted his palm, he realized the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade was still in his hand, still clutched tightly!
He thought he had let go, but it was only an illusion. The blade had never left his grasp!
This blade had become part of his body, like his own hand. How could he possibly put it down?
"Shouldn't I kill a few people to celebrate?" Chen Shi laughed.
He soared into the air with a whoosh, calling out from afar, "Killing is doing good! It's accumulating virtue! Kill all sentient beings, kill the ghost gods, kill the True Gods! Cast all deities into the Blood Sea Hell, and the world will be at peace, with no more suffering. Hahahaha—"
Behind his head, Little Duan Immortal quietly poked her head out of the small temple.
"He's definitely been taken over by the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade. When he gets in the killing frenzy, he'll end up killing himself too."
Little Duan Immortal's eyes flickered, thinking, "The Blood Lake Sutra and the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade are one. The blade must be using the Blood Lake Sutra to control him. If the Blood Sea Hell behind his head can be drawn back into the blade, he'll return to normal..."
She flew out and pointed her finger at the Blood Sea Hell behind Chen Shi's head, shouting, "Freeze!"
This single finger pierced through the Blood Sea Hell. Inside the Blood Sea, Fei Zichong, Wei Daoren, and the others saw a jade-like pillar descending from the heavens, colossal and massive, like a sea-calming needle. As it plunged into the Blood Sea, the surrounding blood waters stopped churning!
Chen Shi froze in place, motionless.
Little Duan Immortal sighed in relief. "It worked!"
She had once seen the ancestral masters of the Thirteen Great Clans suppress the Blood Sea Hell behind Chen Shi's head, pressing it back into the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade, which restored him to normal. So she mimicked their method.
Now that she had suppressed the Blood Sea Hell, all that remained was to send it back into the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade.
"Back then, they used three people to suppress the Blood Sea Hell. With my strength alone, I can do it too!"
Little Duan Immortal channeled her cultivation, ready to force the Blood Sea Hell back into the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade, when suddenly she noticed the corner of Chen Shi's mouth.
From her angle, she could only see the back of his head, his ears, and his cheeks, but she definitely saw it.
She saw the corners of his mouth stretching back toward his cheeks, extending all the way to the back of his head.
"Hee hee hee, darling..."
Chen Shi didn't move his shoulders, but his head twisted a full half-turn to face her. His mouth split all the way to his ears, laughing, "Won't share a bed, won't let me see. A wife like this is better off dead!"
Little Duan Immortal's heart jolted. The blade light was already at her neck, moving so fast she barely had time to dodge!
Without thinking, she shot like an arrow into the small temple behind Chen Shi's head, dodging the blade.
But without her suppression, the Blood Sea Hell resumed its operation.
Little Duan Immortal's heart sank. "The Blood Lake Sutra has elevated his cultivation nearly to that of an immortal. Alone, I can't force the Blood Lake back into the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade. But where can I find help?"
Chen Shi's face filled the sky outside the small temple, one eye squinting as he peered inside. The Ginseng Grass Dolls and other spirit herbs inside the temple panicked, pulling themselves up by the roots and fleeing deeper into the temple.
He tried to slash at the small temple with his blade, but the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade stopped short just before the temple's entrance.
Chen Shi's hand trembled, as if he were struggling against the demonic nature. "This was bestowed by Godmother. I must never destroy it..."
He swung his arm and sheathed the long blade.
Little Duan Immortal's eyes lit up, thinking, "He still has his wits about him. He hasn't been fully controlled by the demonic blade's nature. As long as he's not completely possessed, there's still a chance!"
She stared intently at Chen Shi, waiting for an opportunity to suppress the Blood Sea Hell again.
Suddenly, a thought struck her, "Why am I so worried about his safety? Could it be... I've actually developed feelings for him? No, no, it's Little Duan influencing me, not my own feelings. Little Duan is just a memory of mine, nothing more. The reason I want to save him is only to save myself, after all. I still need his small temple to keep me from being corrupted."
"It must be that!" she said to herself.
Chen Shi muttered furtively, "It's too bad I can't kill the little lady. But she'll definitely try to interfere with our relationship, and then we can kill her. Hee hee, just one cut..."
Hearing this, Little Duan Immortal's heart tightened. "I need to time my move perfectly. Otherwise, I could really end up capsizing in the gutter."
Her gaze fell on another immortal artifact in the small temple—the Yin-Yang Sun-Moon Rings. For the past few days, Chen Shi had kept this treasure in one of the miniature shrines, offering incense to it, hoping it would become sentient and connect with him.
"Perhaps I can use this treasure..."
---
In Bozhou, the Ren Family residence.
Ren Xiao, the former Minister of War and head of the Ren Family, had been sent back to his hometown in Bozhou in forced retirement after the Young Master's death.
The heavenly upheaval had merged the realms of Yin and Yang, plunging Bozhou into chaos. Ghost gods roamed everywhere, and everyone was terrified. Only the Ren Family remained relatively peaceful. The family's descendants were strong and well-prepared, having already sent people to various regions to collect grain and stockpile it for the future.
Ren Xiao was a man of great ambition. Otherwise, he would never have risen to the position of Minister of War. Now, with the heavenly changes, he was recruiting cultivators from the countryside, gathering a large force of experts.
In times of war and chaos, with ghosts and gods lurking, having both grain and men meant power!
Ren Xiao stood with his hands behind his back atop the Dragon Gathering Pavilion in the Ren estate, looking down from on high at Bozhou.
Bozhou was now more than half empty. Many people couldn't endure the hardship, abandoning their homes and fleeing to other regions. Ren Xiao's eldest son, kind-hearted, told him that these people would likely face death on the road. He suggested setting up a few porridge stalls to help keep some alive.
Ren Xiao scolded him harshly for being wasteful and not understanding the stakes.
As the saying goes, mercy cannot command troops, and righteousness cannot manage wealth. Though the Ren Family had seized most of the grain from the nearby countryside, how long could it last? Three years, five years—perhaps. But ten years, twenty?
Twenty, thirty years?
If they gave it all away now, when the grain ran out, what would they eat?
He berated his eldest son thoroughly, but he doted on his youngest son, Ren Feng. Every time Ren Feng led a group of cultivators on a "grain-buying" trip, he would return with several carts of grain, as well as pigs, horses, cattle, and sheep, winning his father's favor.
The eldest son complained to Ren Xiao that Ren Feng's grain and livestock were stolen, and that he had even massacred a village.
Ren Xiao disliked his eldest son even more for this.
Just then, a voice laughed, "What's on your mind, Lord Ren? If you don't drink this Small Immortal Chrysanthemum tea soon, its flavor won't be the same."
Ren Xiao turned around, walked to the tea table, and sat down gracefully. He raised his teacup to toast the guests seated around him, but as he brought it to his lips, he let out another sigh.
Sitting across from him was a young man, around forty or fifty years old, but already a cultivator at the Great Ascension Realm. His name was Shui Xuanzhi, formerly the Chief Administrator of the Fu Zheng Pavilion under the Young Master. Seated beside him were Qin Su and Dou Qi.
After the Young Master's death, the Fu Zheng Pavilion disbanded. Shui Xuanzhi and the others had originally planned to assist Chen Shi, urging him to change his surname to Zhu Shi and compete for the True King's position. But Chen Shi flatly refused.
They had ties to Ren Xiao, and when the Ren Family began recruiting heroes, they answered the call.
Shui Xuanzhi's gaze was warm. He smiled and said, "It seems you do have a worry on your mind, Lord Ren."
Ren Xiao set down his teacup and recounted the matter of his eldest and youngest sons, saying, "I have thoughts of deposing the elder and establishing the younger, but I fear it would cause internal strife and instability in the family."
Shui Xuanzhi laughed. "With the Fu Zheng Pavilion backing you, Lord Ren, your family will not fall into chaos. You may rest assured."
Ren Xiao sighed. "It's a pity the Young Master is no longer with us. If he were, in this chaotic era, he would raise the righteous banner, drawing a hundred responses, and ascend to the True King's throne. The people wouldn't be suffering like this, and I wouldn't have to trouble myself over matters of succession."
Qin Su and Dou Qi exchanged glances. Qin Su smiled, "The Young Master's absence might actually be a good thing. Now that the Thirteen Great Clans have crumbled, the Western Capital court can't reach this far and has no power to quell the chaos in various regions. This is the perfect time for a hero to rise! If the Zhu Family could take the world, why can't the Ren Family?"
Ren Xiao quickly said, "Lord Qin is putting me on a burning rack! You mustn't say such things anymore. My Ren Family has been loyal for generations. We only dare to serve at the True King's side; we have no intention of claiming the title of True King."
Shui Xuanzhi said with utmost sincerity, "Lord Ren, we have the heart to restore the nation and the ambition to follow the dragon. Though the Young Master is gone, our aspirations remain unchanged!"
A smile tugged at the corner of Ren Xiao's mouth, but he restrained it, saying repeatedly, "Let's discuss this after the world has been pacified. For now, let's drink tea!"
The tea had long gone cold, but the hearts of everyone present were burning hot.
The Thirteen Great Clans were finished.
The Upper Realm that had fallen from the sky, the dead celestial gods, the burning continent, the sun and moon haphazardly hanging in the air, the chaotic stars—all of it proclaimed that the Thirteen Great Clans had reached their end.
Though the Thirteen Great Clans might still wield immense power, they were no longer the colossus that could unify the realms of Yin and Yang.
Now, the Thirteen Great Clans could only be local strongholds, better off than the Ren Family, but not by much.
The True King's throne—the Ren Family could sit on it too!
Just then, a commotion erupted outside: "Murder! The Young Master is dead!"
Ren Xiao's face changed instantly. He shot to his feet and rushed out of the Dragon Gathering Pavilion.
Just then, he heard a familiar voice: "Ren Xiao, Shui Xuanzhi, Qin Su—you're all here. Excellent, excellent. This way, we don't have to go looking for you one by one."
"Chen Shi!" Ren Xiao's face twisted with shock and fury.
Chen Shi walked over with his blade in hand, looking around with delighted surprise. He smiled, "Shui Xuanzhi, didn't we tell you to hide? We also told you that if we found you, we'd kill you."
Shui Xuanzhi was taken aback. "We?"
Little Duan Immortal's eyes flickered. Her heart raced, "One Great Ascension Realm expert and one Return to Emptiness expert. I wonder if they can force him to use his full strength... Definitely not!"
She frowned slightly. She couldn't find an opening to act.
Along the way, Chen Shi hadn't been indiscriminately slaughtering innocents. He only struck when he encountered Ren Feng leading a group of cultivators into a village, stealing grain and killing people. He had slain Ren Feng with a single cut, killed all the cultivators, and let only one escape.
He had followed that man to Bozhou City, tracked down the Ren Family, and then killed him with a single cut.
Because of this, Little Duan Immortal believed Chen Shi wasn't completely possessed by the demonic nature. As long as she could suppress the Blood Sea Hell, he could still be saved.
"Hmm, besides these two, is there another expert?"
Little Duan Immortal suddenly sensed something, looking into the distance with a surprised expression. "That person is very strong!"
Outside the city, a moon shaped like an eye hung in the sky. In the region of its pupil, several figures stood, gazing from afar at Bozhou City.
Their demonic aura was deep and profound.
"We have finally found His Majesty."
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