Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 97

Volume 6 Chapter 97: Fate and Choice (5)

Suddenly, dark light shot out from Zhang Xusheng’s body, and a deep rumbling sound filled the air; in just a moment, Zhang Xusheng’s body exploded.

However, the explosion did not create the earth-shaking impact that everyone expected; compared to a violent explosion that could tear the ground apart and release strong winds, Zhang Xusheng’s self-explosion had an astonishing power of its own.

As Zhang Xusheng’s body shattered, countless things appeared from within him; suddenly, inside the barrier, countless vengeful spirits cried out and flew around, while endless blood mist spread everywhere, the wailing of the spirits chilling to the bone, leaving nothing alive in the mist.

Looking through the barrier at the scene inside, the masters could see a nightmarish sight that resembled hell.

Zhang Xusheng’s self-explosion was not simple; while others created shockwaves of Spirit Qi, he released the countless vengeful spirits trapped within him.

These vengeful spirits had been imprisoned in Zhang Xusheng’s body for many years, growing increasingly ferocious; after bursting out from his body, they flew into the sky seeking all living things, constantly crashing against the masters’ barrier, seeming to want to devour the masters outside the barrier with their terrifying and fierce faces.

The blood that had been contained in Zhang Xusheng’s body for many years, after transforming into blood mist, was incredibly poisonous; everywhere it passed, plants instantly withered, and even strong rocks made a hissing sound under the mist’s erosion, crumbling into nothingness moments later. The masters could clearly feel that even their barrier, set up with their combined strength, was rapidly weakening under the attack of the vengeful spirits and the erosion of the blood mist.

Looking at this scene, all the masters felt a wave of fear. If just now, the power of Zhang Xusheng’s self-detonation had not been weakened in time, and if the barrier had not been set up quickly to stop the spread of these vengeful souls and blood mist, then the entire Shenzhou Continent would have faced a terrifying disaster. The area around "Black Glory Valley" would have turned into a ghost realm for thousands of years to come.

"Zhang Xusheng, did he really just die?"

One master murmured in disbelief. In his opinion, a devilish master like Zhang Xusheng, who appeared once in a millennium, should have fought fiercely against countless righteous cultivators like Demon Ancestor did. He imagined him causing heavy casualties among the righteous cultivators and, in the end, dying tragically in front of many, instead of dying in such a way that, while shocking, seemed pointless.

"Maybe, but anyway, we have achieved our goal this time. After the power of his self-detonation subsides, we can go inside to investigate. As long as the ‘Four Spirit Sky Map’ is not damaged, it will be fine."

It was not known when Mr. Liu had awoken. Although his face was still pale and tired, like the other masters, he quietly watched the hellish scene before him and said softly.

Immortal Zizhen pushed aside his inexplicable disappointment and frowned as he said, "But we still have not found the trace of the ‘Ming’ organization. Zhang Xusheng’s self-detonation probably destroyed all clues as well. Even if we find the ‘Four Spirit Sky Map,’ it may be of no use."

"Let’s take it one step at a time. There is always hope; heaven will not simply abandon humanity. Even if the Shura Clan returns, the predecessors of the past could seal them away, and so can I now."

Mr. Liu replied. At this moment, everyone could only comfort themselves with the vague notion of the Heavenly Way.

Immortal Zizhen’s gaze sharpened as he asked, "Taoist Friend Liu, tell me the truth, how many of the Five Elements Sacred Tools do you have in your possession?"

"If I had all the Five Elements Sacred Tools in my hands, why would I still hang out with you?" Mr. Liu rolled his eyes and said, "However, the old methods may not work for us. We don’t need to have all the Five Elements Sacred Tools to defeat the Shura Clan. As the saying goes, there is always a way out. Let’s just take it one step at a time."

Immortal Zizhen silently nodded, but his expression became more serious.

Yes, the old methods do not apply to us. Back in the day, when humans fought against the Shura Clan, the Shura Clan was mostly restrained by their internal conflicts, and they had help from the Spirit Clan and the Sea Clan. But now, those races have been wiped out by human greed. Although the Shura Clan has lost a lot of strength, their top powers still remain. In truth, the situation is still more unfavorable than beneficial for humans.

While the masters were speaking, the main army of the Righteous Alliance arrived. They watched the terrifying scene before them but did not dare to ask questions. They simply stood quietly behind the masters, gazing at the scene in the barrier that looked as if hell had descended upon the world.

…

Meanwhile, inside the barrier, deep within the blood mist and vengeful spirits, the "Black Glory Valley," Zhang Xusheng’s headquarters was in the midst of unprecedented chaos and panic.

Several monsters were released from the dungeon. These monsters were extremely fierce and bloodthirsty, and no one in the "An" organization could resist them. Even though the headquarters had many traps and there were many skilled people inside, they were still retreating under the attack. In just over ten days, those monsters had fought their way from the lowest levels of the dungeon up to the eleventh floor.

One more floor up is where Mingluo and the others were staying.

However, Mingluo and the others did not feel anxious at all. Zhang Xusheng’s self-destruction had already made them feel like the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing.

At this moment, the "Disaster Cloud" had taken shape and could move at any time, but Mingluo, Jiluo, and other high-ranking members of the "An" organization just stared vacantly at the scene in the "Azura Mirror," their faces pale and their eyes dull and lifeless.

Zhang Xusheng was actually killed just like that?

Wasn’t Zhang Xusheng supposed to be invincible?

Suddenly, a tremor shook the ground beneath the fierce attack of the monster, waking Jiluo and the other loyal experiments from their stupor.

Jiluo and the others let out a wild roar and rushed outward, ready to fight Immortal Zizhen and the others.

However, Jiluo and his friends’ roar also startled Mingluo and the others, their eyes flashing with light as if they had realized something; then Mingluo’s body swayed, and in the next moment, he stood in front of Jiluo and the others.

"What do you want to do?"

"What do you want to do?"

Jiluo and Mingluo shouted at the same time, one with madness and the other with cold fierceness.

The aura around Jiluo became more violent as he said fiercely, "Mingluo, I know you have always had thoughts about our master. I don’t care if you hide like a turtle, but are you really going to stop us from seeking revenge? Our master is gone, and I won’t tolerate you any longer!"

Mingluo snorted coldly and retorted, "Revenge? I think you are heading to your doom! Besides, the boss is not dead yet. What revenge are you talking about? Could you please use your brain and calm down a little? Everything is already chaotic enough; I really don’t want to take care of you useless ones for the boss."

Hearing Mingluo’s insult, Jiluo was about to strike, but just as he raised his hands to transform, he suddenly realized the meaning of Mingluo’s words. He grabbed Mingluo and excitedly asked, "What did you say? The master is not dead?"

Mingluo gently freed himself from Jiluo’s grasp and coldly said, "I told you to use your brain. You think you are loyal to the boss, but maybe not as much as Anluo. Why is Anluo still silent till now?"

Seeing Jiluo deep in thought, Mingluo pointed at the "Azura Mirror" and said, "Also, take a good look at what’s inside the ‘Azura Mirror.’"

Jiluo looked carefully at the "Azura Mirror" and saw that although most of the blood mist was swirling chaotically, there was a small part where the blood mist was solidifying after Zhang Xusheng’s self-explosion. The color was much more vibrant than the other blood mists, and it was continuously changing into some very strange symbols.

These symbols could only be understood by the members of the ‘Dark’ organization.

"After I draw away those masters from the Righteous Alliance, we will activate the ‘Disaster Cloud’ and escape. We will meet three hundred miles west of ‘Black Emperor Cliff’ and will not get closer than a hundred miles to ‘Black Emperor Cliff.’"

Jiluo translated the meaning of these symbols word by word, and his eyes gradually showed signs of wild joy.

"I knew that the master is unbeatable."

Anluo and the other test subjects howled at the sky.

"Fool!"

Mingluo watched this scene, snorting in annoyance.

Mingluo understood the current situation more deeply.

Even if Zhang Xusheng didn’t die, he was severely injured. At least, to stop the backlash from the three great powers caused him to lose half of his vengeful blood and souls, and after causing this self-detonation, it was likely he lost even more of his blood and souls.

Zhang Xusheng was called the "Immortal Body" because he had endless vengeful souls and blood inside him to bear various injuries. Moreover, during battles, these souls and blood provided him with endless dark energy, allowing him to fight longer than other masters. This was why he dared to use the three great powers at the same time before.

But now, with the vengeful souls and blood he had collected over the years gone, Zhang Xusheng’s "Immortal Body" and energy supply were lost, turning him into an ordinary Soul Splitting Stage Grandmaster. Although he was still one of the top beings in the cultivation world, it was impossible for him to fight against fourteen masters alone like before in the next three to five hundred years.

With a quiet sigh, Mingluo stopped Jiluo and others from venting in madness and said calmly, "Don’t get too happy just yet; we should follow the boss’s instructions for now."

…

On the other side, the masters quietly observing the situation inside the barrier gradually noticed something was wrong.

Inside the barrier, the vengeful spirits and blood mist were still swirling around, but they were slowly gathering together, fully charging at a certain point in the west of the barrier, crashing and eroding it. That part of the barrier was quickly becoming weak from the impact and erosion.

Could these vengeful spirits be so intelligent?

"No, everyone be careful, Zhang Xusheng may not be dead yet!"

Mr. Liu’s eyes sparkled with intensity as he said coldly.

However, Mr. Liu’s warning came too late.

As Mr. Liu’s words fell, a sudden and brilliant flash of crimson light erupted from the blood mist, striking at the already weakened area of the barrier.

This beam of blood light was very powerful; it took advantage of the barrier’s weakness and, along with the vengeful spirits and blood mist, broke through to create an opening, then without hesitation, quickly flew toward the Western Desert.

In the blood light, everyone could still faintly see a shrunken image of Zhang Xusheng, dozens of times smaller.

"That is Zhang Xusheng’s Original Life Essence Blood and Nascent Soul, quickly, chase after it!"

Immortal Zizhen shouted and quickly chased after the blood light.

Also pursuing were Mr. Liu, who had regained his strength with the help of the "Nine Turn Azura Pill," and Li Fulu.

Original Life Essence Blood is the essence of the human body; as long as it exists, even if the body is completely destroyed, a cultivator can rebuild their body with it. The Nascent Soul, on the other hand, is the essence of the Mahayana cultivator’s Original Soul and all the Spirit Qi in their body. If both of these escape, Zhang Xusheng could quickly regain most of his strength.

Before chasing, Mr. Liu turned to the other eleven masters who were ready to follow him and said, "Please, dear Taoist friends, stay here and dispel the blood mist and vengeful spirits within the barrier."

As he spoke, Mr. Liu transformed into a light and sped to the other end of the barrier, miles away.

…

Immortal Zizhen flew in front, and when he reached the west side of the barrier, where Zhang Xusheng’s Nascent Soul and Original Life Essence Blood had escaped, he saw that in just a short time, a large amount of blood mist surged from the barrier’s exit, along with countless vengeful spirits escaping.

When Immortal Zizhen appeared, the wronged spirits let out a wailing sound that chilled the heart and rushed at him with outstretched claws.

The wronged spirits carried a deep-seated hatred for all living beings in the world.

However, although these wronged spirits were a hundred times stronger than ordinary ones, they could not withstand Immortal Zizhen.

Immortal Zizhen merely waved his hand lightly, and a beam of purple light passed by, instantly turning the countless wronged spirits before him to dust.

Just as he finished vanquishing one wave of spirits, a second wave rushed in behind it.

Immortal Zizhen frowned with impatience, ready to eliminate the spirits just like before.

However, Immortal Zizhen was so focused on chasing Zhang Xusheng that he did not notice a peculiar wronged spirit among this wave—its black hair covered its face, it wore white clothing, and from beneath the hair shone two bright green lights, staring at him intently.

The green light flickered, filled with a strong killing intent!

A change was about to happen!