Chapter 117: One Sword is Not Enough, What About Ten Swords, A Hundred Swords?

Chapter 117: One Sword Not Enough, What About Ten Swords, a Hundred Swords?

"Slay the great demon!"

"Restore clarity to the mortal realm!"

"With the great demon dead and heart demons vanquished, we shall be eternal heroes!"

The many supremes of the Purple Heaven Alliance converged upon the Ends of the Earth.

Shang Yanran, Bai Ze, and the Mad Daoist also arrived at the Ends of the Earth, standing by Qi Yuan's side.

They gazed at the distant war vessel, their eyes blazing with fierce battle intent, yet tinged with a shadow of worry.

Upon the war vessel stood one hundred and twenty-three supremes.

Among them, over ninety hailed from the Purple Heaven Alliance.

The remaining supremes came from various other major powers.

These figures stood upon the vessel, their bodies radiating intense combat fervor.

The war vessel halted five li from the Ends of the Earth, suspended in midair.

The Blood Palace forces at the Ends of the Earth felt a profound threat.

They sensed that if the hundred-plus supremes on the vessel struck together, none of them could withstand even a single blow.

Yet, seeing the figure in the blood-red robe remain unruffled, their hearts steadied slightly.

Just then, an ethereal female voice rang out: "Hand over the great demon, and the Blood Palace may live."

The owner of that voice was none other than the legendary Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden.

The expressions of those at the Ends of the Earth did not waver. Shang Yanran's eyes flashed with scorn: "Hand over the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden, and we shall spare your lives!"

At these words, all the supremes on the war vessel erupted in fury.

The Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden, however, remained unmoved. Her gaze fell upon Qi Yuan, turning icy cold: "Your former self was once a compassionate Buddha, yet for the sake of a seductress, you stepped into evil, spawning endless heart demons and causing the fall of hundreds of millions of souls in the Flowing Wind Realm. Your crime merits death.

Great demon, why not take your own life? I shall not trouble the others of the Blood Palace."

Qi Yuan laughed: "If you covet the *Demon Binding Art*, just say so. Why pin a crown on my head? What a shrimp-headed woman!"

"Hmph!" A man on the war vessel roared in anger, "Great demon, the Stone of Fate has recorded it: you are the great demon. Do you still try to twist the truth? Surrender at once!"

Qi Yuan's face remained calm: "In the heat of battle, I rarely waste words on banter.

But today..."

He shifted his tone: "When I destroyed the Purple Heaven Alliance headquarters, Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden, your male favorite told me a shocking secret!"

Qi Yuan's words instantly stirred everyone's hearts.

All eyes fixed on him, eager to learn the hidden truth about the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden.

Even in this tense moment, curiosity lingered.

"Your male favorite told me that the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden is his mother!" Qi Yuan declared loudly.

His voice carried over twenty li.

All who heard were stunned.

The Blood Palace forces were taken aback, then burst into laughter.

Among the supremes on the war vessel, some flushed with rage, while others cast strange glances at the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden.

Her face darkened like water, her killing intent almost tangible.

Then Qi Yuan continued.

"Who can't write a little story?"

"I, too, can spread rumors!"

"But then again, I don't bother proving to others whether I am a great demon."

"What of slander? What of false accusation?"

"You say I am a great demon, a scourge to the world. Then today, I shall truly act as a great demon and bring calamity upon this world—so what?"

"I have a single sword to slay you all!"

For Qi Yuan, defense was the weakest recourse.

Proving innocence through death would only invite mockery from his foes.

The best method was simply... kill, kill, kill!

Qi Yuan was no master of verbal sparring, nor of justification; his forte was nothing more than beheading.

As he spoke, the sea behind him began to boil in an instant.

For dozens of li, the ocean turned blood-red.

These bloody waters swiftly coalesced into a crimson longsword.

In Qi Yuan's left hand, a sword appeared.

An overwhelming aura spread in that moment, making Qi Yuan truly resemble a great demon.

All who beheld him felt an inexplicable terror rise in their hearts.

Only the Golden Canary looked at him with stars in her eyes.

This was her childhood sweetheart!

Still, she whispered softly, "Blood Bead, I'll go to Sister Yanran."

After all, Blood Bead was about to unleash a great battle, and if she still held his hand, she would be a burden.

Qi Yuan's eyes held a smile: "To kill them, why should you leave?

I trust no one else to protect you; I feel safer guarding you myself."

He glanced at Shang Yanran, then turned his gaze back to the war vessel.

The Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden's face also grew solemn.

"As expected of a great demon, with demonic flames soaring to the heavens.

But to stand against the world—this is nothing but a death wish!"

With the Stone of Fate in her possession, the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden was immensely arrogant.

For the Stone of Fate was far more powerful than imagined.

And she had uncovered its true secret.

A secret even the Buddha had not discovered.

With the Stone of Fate, she feared not even the Buddha's revival!

"Seeking death are you!"

Qi Yuan raised his sword high.

Heaven-Slaying Sword-Drawing Art!

He did not move.

The blood-red longsword soared into the sky.

The sword grew larger and larger.

It was a full li in length!

The mighty blood-colored longsword, with a great shout from Qi Yuan, descended directly.

The Blood Palace crowd, seeing this, all showed expressions of shock.

Especially Shang Yanran; she had thought the gap between her master and herself was not great.

But she never expected the gap to be so vast.

This single sword strike was enough to annihilate her!

Even to wipe out all of Blood Palace.

The Supremes on the war boat also became moved, some even terrified.

Only the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden remained unhurried.

The Fate Slab swallowed into her belly flashed, and she was filled with heroic spirit.

"In this world, I am invincible!"

She reached out her hand, and aura surged from it, forming a colossal giant hand.

The power of the Fate Slab transmitted into her hand.

Her hand directly grasped the blood-red longsword.

Crack.

She exerted force.

The blood-colored longsword seemed unstable, slowly dissolving under her immense power.

The Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden smiled at the corner of her mouth: "Justice will eventually vanquish darkness. Your ultimate strike has been blocked by me. What other tricks do you have?"

Shang Yanran's face turned cold as she constantly observed the battle.

If the battle turned unfavorable, she would execute the second plan and flee to the ends of the earth!

The others felt the same; the Blood Lord's power had shocked them, but the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden was clearly even more terrifying.

Qi Yuan looked at the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden with a strange expression.

His Heaven-Slashing Sword-Drawing Art had never been so easily caught by anyone of the same rank.

Generally, when this sword was drawn, even those several levels above Qi Yuan would die.

His eyes began to work.

[Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden, an ordinary cultivator, currently in a special state.]

Special state?

Unfortunately, his eyes were not omniscient.

He did not know what the special state of the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden referred to.

But that did not matter.

"You have indeed surprised me, but that is all."

Heaven-Slashing Sword-Drawing Art! ×10.

Qi Yuan's mana pool was very deep.

Otherwise, facing the old assassin of Earth's End, he would not have been able to kill him outright.

In an instant, the sea behind him turned blood-red again.

Ten terrifying blood-colored longswords gathered once more, standing in the sky.

All the blood-red robes, following Qi Yuan's gaze, fell heavily onto the war boat.

The Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden's expression changed greatly, but she still gritted her teeth and said: "You have exceeded my expectations, but that is all!"

She gritted her teeth, and one-third of the blood in her body poured into the Fate Slab.

She reached out her hand again and blocked those ten longswords.

Her face was pale, yet filled with boundless killing aura.

This scene stunned all the Supremes on the war boat.

Those Supremes were extremely excited and shouted loudly: "The Alliance Leader is invincible!"

"Having used such a powerful divine ability, he must be depleted!"

"Greatly weakened!"

"To slay this demon, today is the day!"

"The Alliance Leader is invincible!"

If not for the Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden, this great demon would likely ravage the world, unstoppable.

Qi Yuan squinted his eyes, looking at the completely depleted Purple Heaven Mystic Maiden, and said slowly: "It seems the Fate Slab is truly a supreme treasure, able to elevate you to such a level. But then... does that help?"

Qi Yuan did not even move.

Just a single glance.

The sea behind him overturned again.

And this time, the blood-dyed sea was a hundred times greater than the first!

Heaven-Slashing Sword-Drawing Art! ×100.

Death Radiance!

This time, Qi Yuan also used Death Radiance.

He needed to recover some mana.

Using a hundred Heaven-Slashing Sword-Drawing Arts at once was somewhat unbearable for him. So, he simultaneously used Death Radiance to recover some mana from these Supremes!

Kill!

Hundreds of longswords, each a li in length, hung in the air—how magnificent, how awe-inspiring.

The entire world turned into a mass of blood.

Qi Yuan held the Goldfinch with his right hand, and with his left hand pointed at the war boat.

His hand slowly lowered.

On the war boat, everyone trembled!

The joy from before was completely gone.

Was this still a human?

Hundreds of giant swords!

The face of Zitian Xuan Nu showed terror for the first time.

Yet, she forced herself to hold on, roaring: “Destiny Stone Tablet!”

She had uncovered the deepest secret of the Destiny Stone Tablet; she was meant to be its master.

The power the Destiny Stone Tablet granted her should have been enough to sweep the world.

But this time, as she roared, the Destiny Stone Tablet, her contracted artifact, seemed to play dead, offering no response at all.

Hundreds of great swords descended from the sky. This time, Zitian Xuan Nu’s outstretched hand, without the support of the Destiny Stone Tablet’s power, was shattered by that single sword.

The entire war vessel capsized in that moment.

Zitian Xuan Nu’s face showed disbelief: “No!”

She could not understand.

She could not believe.

Why had the Destiny Stone Tablet, which had given her immense power, allowing her to freely traverse the river of time and even annihilate a nation with a single strike, now fallen silent?

Was it all an illusion?

Crack!

The hundreds of giant swords of the Heaven-Slashing Sword Art demonstrated to the world that bigger meant stronger, and more meant better!

Full heavy firepower unleashed, the war vessel was shattered.

None of the supreme experts even had time to flee.

The entire battle left only Zitian Xuan Nu’s battered body and an ordinary stone tablet.

Endless rain of blood began to fall across the ends of the earth.

Qi Yuan’s face bore a contemptuous expression: “I am no mere great demon; I am the Fourth Calamity, a thousand, ten thousand times more fearsome than any great demon!”

A great demon was not even fit to polish his shoes.

The crowd from the Blood Palace on the field were all stunned by this sight.

A hundred supreme experts, along with Zitian Xuan Nu who possessed the Destiny Stone Tablet, had all been annihilated by the Blood Lord with a single sword?

What kind of majestic power was this?

They had thought this battle would be incredibly difficult, with most of them falling.

But in the end, they had no chance to act.

The Blood Lord had merely moved his lips, not even shifting his position.

And then, the hundred supreme experts on the war vessel… were gone?

The crowd marveled, and Jinsi Que was especially thrilled, directly tiptoeing to peck a light kiss on Qi Yuan’s cheek: “Blood bead, you’re amazing!”

Kissed by Jinsi Que, Qi Yuan was somewhat stunned.

It seemed that in the game, this was the first time someone had kissed him.

But at this moment, Qi Yuan did not let his guard down.

Suddenly, Zitian Xuan Nu’s corpse transformed into a streak of light, and before anyone could react, it entered the Gate of Myriad Forms.

Zitian Xuan Nu’s corpse seemed to bring a tremendous change to the terrifying heart demon within the Gate of Myriad Forms.

Then, a pounding heartbeat suddenly resounded.

Qi Yuan sharply turned his gaze toward the Gate of Myriad Forms.

Within the Gate of Myriad Forms, it seemed a terrifying monster was walking out.

This also brought an ill omen to everyone present.

“Blood bead… my head hurts so much!” Jinsi Que looked at Qi Yuan, her usual vitality completely gone, her face pale as paper, as if she were enduring something.

“I… the heart demon!” Shang Yanran’s face also turned deathly pale.

“The heart demon in the Gate of Myriad Forms… is coming out!” Yu Daoren also wore a pained expression, suppressing the evil within him.

Qi Yuan’s face turned serious for the first time.

He understood the state of everyone better than anyone.

The Demon Binding Art had trapped everyone’s heart demons.

Only upon a natural death would they emerge as demonic calamities.

But now, the terrifying heart demon of the Gate of Myriad Forms was walking out, stirring the heart demons in everyone’s depths.

If this continued, the heart demons within everyone present would burst forth, and they would die here.

Once the heart demon of the Gate of Myriad Forms emerged, everyone in this world would likely perish.

Qi Yuan embraced Jinsi Que, a hint of reluctance in his eyes: “Jinsi Que, I must enter the Gate of Myriad Forms. Remember… I will find you at the end of time.”

During this enlightenment of the origin, many things had happened.

Yet the time was the shortest, not even two months.

He had just reunited with Jinsi Que, and now they had to part again.

Jinsi Que’s small face was pale, but she forced a bright smile: “This lady… will wait for you.”

Qi Yuan swept his gaze over the crowd, then glanced at where the Destiny Stone Tablet lay.

But the Destiny Stone Tablet seemed to have vanished from his sight.

He knew he could wait no longer.

He looked at the Gate of Myriad Forms and charged into it without hesitation.

As the figure in the blood-red robe disappeared, the Gate of Myriad Forms closed again.

The terrifying heartbeat, at that moment, grew faint.

The pallor on Jinsi Que’s face faded, and she stared at the Gate of Myriad Forms, her eyes full of reluctance.

“Blood bead… is he alright?”

She looked at the others.

The crowd gradually returned to normal, Shang Yanran’s face showing worry.

“Within the Gate of Myriad Forms, there are endless heart demons.

The Blood Lord, entering, will suffer the agony of a thousand tears and ten thousand devourings!”

The others, hearing this, felt a mix of tragedy and pain.

“The Blood Lord did this for us, for this world, willingly feeding himself to the demons!

And yet this world calls him a great demon—how utterly ridiculous!” Bai Ze said sorrowfully.

Jinsi Que stared blankly at the Gate of Myriad Forms: “Blood bead… when will he come out?”

She did not care how the world saw Blood Bead; she only cared that he would come out alive.

Shang Yanran shook her head, saying dejectedly: “No one who enters the Gate of Myriad Forms has ever come out.”

And he... would eventually be assimilated into a heart demon as well."

Heart demon... Blood Demon.

"No, there must be a way!" The canary refused to accept this truth, and she ran toward the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences.

But she could not even approach it.

The Gate of Ten Thousand Differences, so close at hand, seemed as distant as the ends of the earth.

All present fell silent.

A strange light flickered in Shang Yanran's eyes: "The Tablet of Fate—if we obtain the Tablet of Fate, perhaps we can find a way to save the Blood Lord!"

The crowd looked toward where the Tablet of Fate had been, but found only emptiness.

...

Within the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences.

Countless agonies gnawed at Qi Yuan's soul.

Even he felt an overwhelming pain.

This pain was a hundredfold, a thousandfold more intense than facing those ancient monsters of the Earth Abyss.

He stood within the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences; behind him was a door.

This was the door through which he had entered.

He looked upward.

He saw a staircase descending from the heavens, its height immeasurable.

At the zenith of the sky, there was also a door.

Upon the staircase lay a withered corpse.

The corpse was clad in a neat kasaya, exuding an air of profound serenity.

Its skin was like dried tree bark, as if untouched by water for millennia.

Its sunken eyes, like those of a dead fish, were dry and foul, glaring at Qi Yuan with venomous hatred.

This corpse was descending the steps, as if to reach Qi Yuan and push open that door.

"Are you the heart demon of the Great Demon?" Qi Yuan asked, enduring the pain.

The withered corpse spoke, its voice hoarse yet tinged with compassion: "Thank you, benefactor, for entering the Gate of Ten Thousand Demons and helping this humble monk to close it."

"Otherwise, once I step out, this world will sink into utter ruin."

Its voice was gentle, but its gaze was venomous—the two seemed at war.

"Gate of Ten Thousand Demons?" Qi Yuan recalled that the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences was the gate of all gates, capable of being any gate.

In this Buddha's eyes, it was the Gate of Ten Thousand Demons, but in Qi Yuan's eyes, it might be something else.

"Benefactor, your entry into this gate is likely not merely to close the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences and prevent this humble monk from leaving," the withered corpse spoke again.

"Mm," Qi Yuan nodded.

Another crucial purpose for his coming here was to comprehend the origin.

At this moment, within the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences, his understanding was advancing every instant, and at an astonishing rate.

"Benefactor's purpose, this poor monk does not know."

"But to achieve your goal, benefactor, you will likely need to send this humble monk into the cycle of reincarnation and then ascend this Staircase of Ten Thousand Demons," the withered corpse said.

To send into reincarnation meant to slay him.

Qi Yuan nodded and asked, "You seem... out of place in this Flowing Wind Realm."

His eyes fixed on the dried corpse, he gleaned some useful information.

A trace of softness finally emerged from the corpse's venomous gaze, as if recalling something.

"This humble monk came from the Buddha Land."

"This realm is tainted with inauspiciousness, a land forsaken by the gods, where sentient beings cannot enter reincarnation or attain bliss."

"Believing my cultivation profound, I brought three thousand volumes of Buddhist scriptures, pushed open the Gate of Ten Thousand Demons, and entered this realm, hoping to deliver it."

"Unexpectedly, my own mind was shallow, and I instead bred a heart demon, bringing great calamity to this world."

"I beg benefactor to grant me release, and to deliver this world!"

"Otherwise, if the Gate of Ten Thousand Differences opens, the inauspiciousness will spread to the Buddha Land, and the Buddha Land may sink!"

As the corpse spoke, its hateful gaze once again fixed on Qi Yuan.

It suddenly leaped, charging at Qi Yuan as if to tear him to shreds.

Qi Yuan's eyes turned cold: "I can grant you release, but as for delivering the world—that I cannot do."

This world had not wronged him; why should he deliver it?

Thanks to ←God Without Tears for two thousand rewards, thanks to book friend 20230326094541974 for a thousand rewards, and to Wind and Thunder Emperor for the reward!

(This chapter ends)