The flames, which should have been blazing and bright, warm and masculine, now appeared dim and greenish, like ghost fires flickering in a graveyard, flickering between visibility and obscurity.
“Watch out!” Facing this eerie scene, Meng Qi blurted instinctively, raising the Evil Calamity Saber, which trailed a streak of silvery-white lightning.
As the words left his mouth, a ghostly greenish and distorted shadow suddenly lunged from the ruins. It didn’t seem solid, more like a reflection rippling on water.
Wailing sounds, like those of a phantom weeping, carried a dense sense of fear. Oppressive and terrifying, this pressure sent a chill through Meng Qi and the others.
This kind of awe wasn’t from the aura of a primeval beast, nor was it the feeling of insignificance before natural disasters. Instead, it originated from deep within their souls, as if this greenish shadow was the master of their souls and the ruler of their lives. They couldn’t help but feel fear and tremble!
The sinister shadow targeted the swordsman who had once joined the ambush against Meng Qi. As a Nine Orifices expert, even though his mind was momentarily overwhelmed, he quickly regained his composure, chopping forward with a single slash. The blade was fierce and sharp, its energy surging with violent killing intent.
“It’s an evil god! Get back!” Wang Zai’s gaze turned sharp as he shouted loudly, brandishing his long sword like a scepter. A surge of righteous energy erupted, flooding the surroundings with immense and upright power, aimed at purging the sinister and malevolent forces.
When he swung his sword, he was still seven or eight zhang away from the Evil God. Yet before the blade descended, his entire body followed the sword’s momentum, closing the distance to within a zhang of the Evil God, as if space itself had shrunk.
As Wang Zai shouted, the swordsman’s blade had already struck the greenish sinister shadow. However, it seemed merely an illusion; the energy passed through with only a slight ripple, slicing directly through and severing a burning wooden beam with a loud crack.
Swift as a ghost, the sinister shadow lunged straight toward the blade. Yet it passed through without resistance, merging instantly with the swordsman’s body.
The swordsman’s protective energy barrier showed no reaction. His flesh melted like snow under the sun, mysteriously dissolving. Before Wang Zai could shout “Cut with the Sword of Integrity,” the greenish sinister shadow pierced through his body, rushing toward a constable. At the spot where the swordsman stood, only strands of hair floated down, all turned white, no longer black.
This sight sent shivers down everyone’s spine, making their hair stand on end. The Evil God Xie Shen was utterly terrifying!
Blades and swords were ineffective, energy attacks were useless. It devoured blood and flesh, unstoppable!
At the Open Apertures stage, martial artists internally fortified their bodies, their blood and qi vigorous. Minor malevolent and sinister forces could not easily invade them. Coupled with various techniques that utilized their inner yang energy and harmonized their qi, they were not defenseless against evil spirits and ghosts. However, this was no ordinary sinister force—it was an Evil God. Conventional methods at the Open Apertures level appeared completely ineffective!
The elder of the Ling family, gripping the “Reversing Cloud Saber,” was profoundly shaken by the Xie Shen’s overwhelming aura and terrifying display. Gritting his teeth, he activated the treasured weapon.
“Wait—” Wang Zai’s cry was drowned out by a deafening roar, as though heaven and earth were collapsing. The moonlight reversed, the sky darkened ominously, while a blade of light, carrying the power to overturn the clouds, slashed toward the Evil God.
The evil god Xie Shen suddenly dispersed, transforming into clusters of eerie green ghostly flames that danced in every direction.
The blade of light consumed the Evil God, and everything returned to darkness. Moonlight pierced through the ruins.
The elder from the Ling family, panting heavily and slightly relaxing, suddenly had his pupils contract violently. Before his eyes, clusters of greenish ghostly flames gathered again, reforming the sinister shadow. Though dimmer than before, its oppressive aura remained unchanged.
The Xie Shen pounced. Flesh dissolved, white hair fluttered down—it had “sacrificed” an elder of the Ling family. If not for the keen edge of the Reversing Cloud Saber, its wielder might not have escaped this disaster.
“The evil deity can disperse and reassemble at will. We must use righteous energy to immobilize it before a treasure weapon can destroy it!” Wang Zai’s voice carried a mix of urgency, compassion, and righteousness.
Although the Xie Shen’s retaliation destroyed the Yin soul and the furnace, rendering resurrection impossible, the Xie Shen itself could disperse and reform. Difficult to target and eliminate, it required specialized techniques to immobilize it or strike precisely when it consumed a living person. As a result, both the Six Ministries and the aristocratic sects considered the Xie Shen a threat that must be eradicated.
Realizing that Wang Zai’s righteous aura could immobilize it, the Evil Deity maintained an illusory form to evade him. In just a few breaths, four or five screams erupted as elders and guests from the three families were struck down.
The greenish sinister shadow flickered, like a shadow in the night, lunging toward Meng Qi.
Meng Qi activated the Deathless Seal Art, projecting his spirit outward while keeping his mind inwardly calm, his heart tranquil, reflecting the surroundings. He simultaneously activated the A-nan Breaking Precept Saber Technique, sensing the heart through the heart.
Violence, slaughter, bloodshed… The Evil God (Xie Shen) seemed like a convergence of all negative thoughts, writhing and stretching—the very embodiment of impurity and worldly corruption, rendering Meng Qi incapable of employing techniques such as Severing Purity or Falling into the Mundane.
His thoughts shifted, and the Evil Calamity Saber flared, like a thunderclap in a clear sky, striking downward.
This slash was Meng Qi’s ultimate exertion, its force almost comparable to the divine retribution of heavenly thunder—supremely powerful and domineering, fierce and violent. It drew in the surrounding air currents and life force, amplifying the lightning energy of the Evil Calamity.
The blade of light transformed into a cyan thunderbolt, crashing down with overwhelming force, giving onlookers the sensation of a shrinking world, filled entirely by the thunderlight.
The shadow of the Xie Shen, which had been indistinct before, suddenly split open, revealing a bizarre yet majestic eye. A green light coalesced into an arrow, evading the lightning bolt with speed surpassing even the flash of a blade, and shot straight toward Meng Qi’s head.
Meng Qi had anticipated the Evil God’s spiritual assault. His projected spirit swiftly withdrew, forming an impenetrable defense at his brow chakra. His right hand remained rock-steady, without the slightest tremor.
(Note:
1. “邪神” is translated as “Evil God” to maintain the ominous connotation while being culturally accessible.
2. “brow center” is rendered as “brow chakra” to convey the esoteric energy point concept more precisely in spiritual contexts.
3. The martial imagery of “steady as a mountain” is preserved through “rock-steady” while adapting to English idiom.)
Silently, the arrow of green light struck Meng Qi. He felt his head spinning, pain splitting his skull, a continuous buzzing sound, blood flowing from his nostrils, and streaks of blood from his ears, eyes, and mouth.
The Evil Calamity Saber slowed briefly but quickly stabilized, still striking down with unmatched force.
The blade thrust into Xie Shen with a crackling sound, yet electric sparks danced and scattered, dissipating streams of Yin energy.
The Evil God (Xie Shen) froze momentarily. Wang Zai rushed forward, shouting loudly, “Unyielding in Might!”
His entire figure seemed enveloped in a radiant glow, his aura surging higher and higher, righteous energy filling the courtyard, suppressing the Evil Deity until it trembled and quivered, as if paralyzed.
Meng Qi stepped back a few paces, stabilizing his wounded spirit, recovering from the dizziness, yet his eyes remained fixed on Wang Zai, not missing the opportunity to witness the use of the righteous energy.
“Unyielding in Might,” one of the major techniques of the righteous energy… Meng Qi’s heart tightened.
This technique could only be unleashed after attaining mastery of righteous energy at an advanced level, summoning formless righteous power from heaven and earth, growing mightier when confronted with greater force—”Indomitable Might!”
It was said that once a Wang family disciple mastered this technique at the Seven Orifices stage, he encountered an opponent at the threshold of the external realm. Growing stronger against greater odds, he survived bloody battles and ultimately killed his opponent.
The effect of “Unyielding in Might” surpassed Meng Qi’s Self-Sacrifice Decree, with far fewer side effects. In Meng Qi’s words, it was simply cheating—an essential boost in critical moments!
Of course, it had its drawbacks, unable to exceed the total strength of the opposing forces, unlike the Self-Sacrifice Decree, which used one’s own power as the standard.
The Sword of Integrity descended, striking the Evil Deity with a mighty and righteous force.
The Evil God trembled violently, streams of greenish-black energy continuously gushing out and dissipating, leaving it frozen in place.
Wang Zai withdrew his sword hastily. The elder from the Wan family understood his intent and raised the Liao Yuan Spear, thrusting forward!
Countless spear shadows filled the sky, yet the spearhead remained constant amidst infinite variations, gathering intensely red flames, highly concentrated without the slightest dispersion.
This time, nothing nearby caught fire, nor was there any natural reaction. The swaying flame burned deeply and inwardly, following the spearhead into the body of the Evil God (Xie Shen).
With a roar, the crimson flames erupted, feeding on the sinister Yin energy, swiftly turning the Evil God into a blazing torch.
The righteous energy around Wang Zai vanished, cold sweat pouring from his forehead. The backlash from “Unyielding in Might” was evidently severe. The elders from the Wan and Ling families, wielding their weapons, were even more exhausted, feeling as if walking would require catching their breath.
Fortunately, the Evil Deity Xie Shen was now destroyed, and everyone exhaled in relief, grateful that no serious consequences ensued.
Suddenly, the sound of burning bricks and wood collapsing echoed, and a brightly purple sword floated out. Behind it hovered a faint greenish flame, slowly stretching and expanding, taking the form of a human figure!
“Not dead yet?”
“Just a little more!”
Everyone was startled and fearful once more. Was this Evil God truly so indestructible? If it managed to recover by consuming flesh and blood, not a single person present—nor any living being in the entire city—would survive!
Qi Zhengyan clenched his teeth, prepared to attempt the Hun Tian Bao Jian, though uncertain of its effectiveness against the Yin evil forces. The other elders and guests turned their gazes toward Wang Zai, hoping he would summon his remaining courage to eradicate the last remnants of the Xie Shen.
Wang Zai’s face turned pale as he focused on restoring his energy.
At that moment, a figure rushed forward.
“Tang Erlang!”
“Xiao’er!”
“Tang Jing!”
A chorus of startled cries revealed the identity of the one who had acted—it was Meng Qi!
Meng Qi raised the Evil Calamity Saber, lightning entwining around it, purging evil and filth, striking the greenish ghostly flame.
The flame flickered, continuously dissipating under electric strikes, yet it stubbornly refused to vanish, persistently attempting to lunge toward Meng Qi.
Everyone held their breath, anxious and uneasy!
The overwhelming Yin energy surged toward Meng Qi, its sinister presence drawing near. Gritting his teeth, Meng Qi unleashed the few strands of Purple Thunder Force (Zi Lei Jin) he had cultivated in his dantian.
Crack!
Streaks of purple lightning erupted, supremely mighty and radiant, noble and majestic. They coursed along the Xie Shen’s flame, completely shattering it, even its phantom shadow obliterated!
Meng Qi hadn’t yet mastered the Purple Thunder Saber Technique, merely using the Purple Thunder Energy directly. Yet, unexpectedly, the effect was so effective!
Wrapped in purple lightning, a greenish object condensed and fell. Meng Qi extended his left hand, silently catching it.
It was an eye—an eerie green eye!
As the purple lightning dissipated, the Yin energy within the courtyard was completely eradicated. With a clatter, the Zi Shang Sword fell to the ground.
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