Chapter 466 65: End and Beginning

Yann Nanshuang!

No!

It should be Mola.

With a flick of her finger, the Invisible Sword Qi hidden within the Six Paths Demon Monarch's body instantly erupted.

The already heavily wounded Nascent Soul immediately shattered.

Greed filled Mola's eyes as she lunged forward, only to see a beam of bloody light suddenly shoot up from the Six Paths Demon Monarch's corpse and vanish in an instant.

"Hm?"

Her movements froze, and Mola's expression turned grim.

"It's a wisp of a remnant thought," Daoist Qingyuan said, seeing the situation.

"It's no matter!"

"Such a remnant thought can't linger. It will dissipate in no time, so there's no need to worry about it."

Let alone a remnant thought, even if a remnant soul had escaped, recovering its former Cultivation would be nigh impossible.

A remnant thought is just that—a thought. It's of no use.

Despite this, Mola's expression didn't improve. Her eyes shifted darkly as she cupped her fists at the others.

"Six Paths is dead, so this undertaking can be considered a Merit Perfection. I have urgent matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave!"

Without waiting for a reply, she wrapped her Physical Body in Sword Qi and shot into the sky, heading straight in the direction the bloody light had disappeared.

"I never thought..."

Yuan Zanfeng put away the Nine Yi Tripod and appeared on the scene, his eyes wide with shock as he said:

"That even shallow waters can nurture a Flood Dragon... For the resource-poor East Sea to actually produce a Nascent Soul True Man?"

Mola's intervention had been crucial to the success of this ambush against Six Paths.

It was precisely because of her.

That the Immortal Alliance could even carry out today's plan.

The result was ideal: the Six Paths Demon Monarch, who had loomed over the Immortal Alliance and the multitude of Righteous Cultivators, was dead.

"The East Sea's Cultivation resources aren't poor, just too scattered. There are many hidden Immortal Mansions there as well, so it's not entirely surprising for a Nascent Soul True Man to emerge by chance," Star-Picking Master said, stroking his beard with a grave expression.

"But this Mola..."

"She's very unusual!"

He was tainted by Dao Poison and already fated to die. However, as a Nascent Soul True Man, he wouldn't perish anytime soon.

Wuxin, on the other hand, had been annihilated, leaving only a Cross-Shaped Vajra Pestle floating quietly on the battlefield.

"Mola..." Zhu Ju began slowly.

"I saw her once in the East Sea. Back then, she was called Yann Nanshuang, but she shouldn't be the same person as this Mola."

"Possession? Body-snatching?"

"Mola and Six Paths must have known each other," Daoist Qingyuan said, his brow tightly furrowed.

"They must have come from the same place. I fear we've just driven off the Jackal Wolf, only for a tiger to arrive."

Over the hundreds of years of fighting, the Immortal Alliance had investigated Six Paths many times.

The Six Paths Demon Monarch was originally a mere servant disciple of the Netherworld Sect with mediocre Talent. Nearing the age of forty, he had accomplished nothing.

Then, for some unknown reason, he rose rapidly in just over a decade, advancing smoothly through the Dao Foundation and Golden Core realms.

He continued until he achieved the Nascent Soul realm and came to rule over the Six Demonic Sects.

Upon investigation.

That servant disciple had died long ago. The Six Paths Demon Monarch who took his place came from a Demon Realm.

In that case.

Mola must be the same!

"We have a Spirit Contract with Mola, so there shouldn't be any major chaos for the next hundred years," Star-Picking Master sighed.

"I will pass away in one month. Afterward, I hope Brother Qingyuan will look after the Star-Picking Tower."

"Wuliang Celestial Venerable!" Daoist Qingyuan said, waving his Duster as a flicker of imperceptible sadness crossed his eyes.

"Rest assured, my friend. As long as I am alive, nothing will happen to the Star-Picking Tower."

"Excellent."

Star-Picking Master nodded. Starlight enveloped his body. After cupping his fists to the others present, he transformed into a river of stars and sped toward the Star-Picking Tower.

In his final month, he had many matters to attend to.

Cultivators witness much of life, death, and separation, so they face their own demise with more composure than ordinary people.

"Little Friend Zhu."

Qingyuan waved his sleeve, sending the Cross-Shaped Vajra Pestle before Zhu Ju.

"The Profound Clarity Sect's Grand Array has been destroyed, and our Sect Disciples have suffered grievous losses. I must trouble you to make a trip to the Dachan Temple."

"Yes."

Zhu Ju agreed, taking the Cross-Shaped Vajra Pestle. As precious as the artifact was, it had to be returned.

"Cave Master Yuan," Qingyuan continued.

"I'll have to trouble you to make a trip to the Wentian Sect."

"Of course." Yuan Zanfeng accepted the Wind-Gathering Banner, glanced down at the pale-faced Shii Xuan below, and departed with a soft sigh.

...

「In a certain Cave Mansion.」

With a flash of Sword Qi, the Array protecting the Cave Mansion shattered, and the sturdy stone door was sliced to pieces.

Mola's figure appeared without a sound.

On the floor of the Cave Mansion, a bizarre pattern was drawn in blood. It resembled an Array, but it wasn't one.

"What is this?"

A clear voice rang out.

"Are you nervous? I've been with you for so many years, and this is the first time I've ever seen you so flustered."

If Zhu Ju had been present, he would have immediately recognized the owner of the voice: Yann Nanshuang.

"Hmph!"

Mola snorted coldly.

"This is a summoning Curse Technique, similar to the Array you used to summon me. But it doesn't summon a specific Demon from the Demon Realm. Instead, it transmits this world's coordinates directly to the Demon Realm."

"Oh?" Yann Nanshuang's voice was tinged with surprise.

"You mean this thing will summon a lot of Demons? Then why haven't you destroyed it yet?"

"It's too late," Mola said, shaking her head.

"Once the Array was activated, the coordinates were already sent. Destroying it now is pointless."

"I never thought..."

"That Six Paths would pull a stunt like this right before he died. The coordinates are only visible for a short time, though. Hopefully, not too many Demons will see them."

"What do we do now?" Yann Nanshuang asked.

"Are all the beings from the Demon Realm like you and the Six Paths Demon Monarch?"

"Demons vary in strength. While Six Paths and I weren't weak, we certainly weren't considered top-tier in the Demon Realm," Mola mused, her hand on her chin.

"However, we are born from demonic thoughts. To come to this world, we must inhabit or possess a local. Even a Venerable Level Demon needs time to grow and mature."

"If I can devour them before they mature, my own power will increase."

At this, she couldn't help but hesitate.

'Devouring my own kind is no easy task. Besides, I can't draw too much attention to myself, or I'll attract unwanted predators.'

Just like Six Paths.

If the Six Paths Demon Monarch hadn't been so arrogant, she, with her newly attained Nascent Soul Cultivation, could never have succeeded in her sneak attack.

This had disrupted her plans.

'It seems replacing Six Paths and ruling the Six Demonic Sects is no longer viable. I'll have to develop in the shadows from now on.'

Sighing softly, Mola murmured:

"I'll recruit more people and keep an eye on anyone whose strength skyrockets in the next few decades. If I can devour a few Demons of the same level, I too can become a Demon Venerable!"

*

*

*

「Bright Void Sect.」

Zhu Ju gently caressed the Jingque Sword. Then, with a light flick of his hand, he sent the Treasure Sword into the core of the earth-fire.

During the battle to kill the Six Paths Demon Monarch, Pei Jingque had briefly regained consciousness.

Otherwise, his own power would not have been so formidable.

The Jingque Sword's control over Heaven and Earth Energy was terrifyingly potent, multiplying the power of Zhu Ju's Sword Technique several times over.

Finally, it had guided him to master the Divine Technique of Refining Sword into Silk, giving him the true means to contend with a Nascent Soul True Man.

Not only that, but the life-and-death struggle against the Six Paths Demon Monarch had also caused Zhu Ju's Primordial Spirit to tremble, allowing him to perceive the existence of his Life Soul.

He let out a long, turbid breath.

Zhu Ju's eyes drooped. His hands formed a Seal Technique, and his Physical Body trembled slightly as it connected with his Life Soul, one of the Three Souls.

A person has Three Souls: the Celestial, the Terrestrial, and the Life Soul.

And Seven Spirits: Essence, Heroic, Qi, Force, Central Hub, Spiritual Wisdom, and Celestial Impact.

His Seven Spirits had already entered his body, and his Life Soul was now connected. All that remained was to cultivate slowly and draw the Life Soul fully into his body.

By then.

The Power of his Physical Body would advance by leaps and bounds, and his overall strength would soar.

Sensing the changes within his body, Zhu Ju pondered for a moment before taking out a Spirit Talisman and tossing it into the air.

Soon.

A figure appeared outside the Cave Mansion.

"Master, you called for me?"

"I need to enter seclusion for a while. I am not to be disturbed," Zhu Ju said slowly.

"It could be for a few years, or it could be... for several decades."

Hm?

Xi Chen looked surprised.

"Master."

"The Six Paths Demon Monarch has been slain, and the Immortal Alliance plans to counterattack Dazhou. Our Bright Void Sect has received massive material support from the Immortal Alliance, and the Sect Disciples are in high spirits. These coming years are a critical time..."

"My mind is made up," Zhu Ju said, cutting him off.

"If Daoist Qingyuan asks, tell him that I am heavily injured and cannot take action for the time being."

"If you encounter danger, have Shui Qianning awaken the Jingque Sword. With its help, I imagine no one will be able to threaten the Sect."

"...Yes." Xi Chen opened his mouth, but could only agree helplessly.

With Zhu Ju present, the Bright Void Sect was now firmly established among the Major Sects of the Immortal Alliance.

But aside from Zhu Ju, the Sect currently had no second Golden Core cultivator, and only two at the Late-Stage Dao Foundation.

Their current strength was far from enough to justify the resources the Immortal Alliance was giving them.

However, Zhu Ju no longer cared about these matters.

His consciousness sank into the Heavenly Mirror, and countless worlds appeared in his perception, like a sky full of stars.

One particular world was rapidly pulled closer.

The Zhenyan Realm!

This realm had been established by the Celestial Court in ancient times specifically to suppress Demons. Though the Celestial Court was later destroyed, the Immortal Group maintained the realm out of tradition.

Chains, each stretching for tens of thousands of miles, crisscrossed to form a profound and unfathomable Immortal Array, locking that entire world within.

This world,

Held what Zhu Ju wanted!

A path forward!

A path forward that didn't require a Nascent Soul.

However...

Getting inside would not be so simple.