Chapter 202 - 200: Bloody Slaughter of the Red Lotus

Chapter 202: Chapter 200: Bloody Slaughter of the Red Lotus

The Red Lotus Sect’s doctrines were harsh. To the sect, ordinary believers were nothing more than materials for providing Incense Fire Will Power.

These Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists present were the true core members. They knew what the so-called Red Lotus Pure Land was really like.

Therefore, while self-immolation was a path to paradise in the next life for ordinary believers, for these core members, it was a fate akin to torture.

As nice as it was to accompany the Red Lotus Saint Mother, they much preferred to enjoy power in their current lives.

As the Saintess of the Red Lotus Sect, Su Mei held immense power and was known for her capricious temperament.

They had better complete the mission given to them by the Saintess; otherwise, the consequences would be dire.

At this moment, there were over thirty Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists, ten of whom were at the Condensing Truth Realm Late Stage.

Leaving five behind to maintain control of the Array, the remaining twenty-plus charged directly at Chen Yuan and Gu Lichuan.

Facing the siege of the Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists, Chen Yuan pushed the Blood Fiend Power around him to its absolute limit, and the Blood Killing Heaven-Seizing Hand came crashing down.

A blood-colored Palm Seal, over a hundred feet wide, descended from the sky. Its Killing Tribulation Power extinguished all other forces; not even a strange and mystical power like the Red Lotus Willpower could withstand a direct confrontation with the Blood Killing Heaven-Seizing Hand.

More than ten Condensing Truth Realm Martial Artists from the Red Lotus Sect were instantly sent flying. Three of the weaker ones, who were only in the Condensing Truth Realm Early Stage, were killed on the spot!

This scene stunned everyone present, including Murong Li and the other Martial Artists trapped in the Array.

They were all Martial Artists of the Condensing Truth Realm, yet this Chen Jiutian’s strength was truly incomparable. For him, slaughtering cultivators of the same rank was as easy as butchering chickens and dogs.

But Murong Li frowned slightly.

’Why does this Chen Jiutian’s power feel somewhat familiar? It’s as if I’ve seen it somewhere before, yet it feels foreign at the same time.’

The Blood Fiend killing tribulation that erupted from that palm strike was somewhat similar to the description of the Sacred Artifact in this Blood Killing Realm.

Murong Li had been trapped here ever since he arrived, so he had limited information. He had no idea that the Sacred Artifact in the Blood Killing Realm was a Seven Kills Stele Fragment.

The Blood Slaughter Venerable had never publicly uttered the three words "Seven Kills Stele," only describing it as a Sacred Artifact containing the Killing Intent Origin.

If Murong Li were to see the Seven Kills Stele again, he would surely recognize it. The Sacred Artifact in this Blood Killing Realm was an exact match for the description of the Seven Kills Stele on the altar in Lianshan City.

While Chen Yuan’s attacks were incomparably violent, Gu Lichuan’s were no less impressive.

In his left hand, he wielded the Nanming Fire Sword, and in his right, the Nine Abyss Cold Prison Sword. Finally, he brought the Mountain and Sea Sword Scripture crushing down. With three supreme Swordsmanship techniques unleashed at once, he instantly suppressed the Red Lotus Sect’s Martial Artists.

That supreme Sword Qi also instantly tore a Martial Artist to shreds.

The leading Red Lotus Sect Martial Artist was maintaining the Array to prevent Murong Li and the others from escaping.

But when he saw that his side, with more than twenty men, was suppressed by only two opponents in a single exchange, his expression changed drastically.

"Useless! A bunch of useless trash!"

The leading Red Lotus Sect Martial Artist roared at the few men beside him, "Use all your strength to maintain the Array! Don’t let them escape!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the Red Lotus Sacred Fire flared up around him. He stomped his foot, and with a whistling BOOM, he shot straight toward Chen Yuan.

"Guan Ping, Banner Master of the Red Lotus Holy Sect, is here to kill you!"

At its peak, the Red Lotus Sect had thirty-six halls and three hundred and sixty banners. Each banner was led by a Banner Master who could command hundreds of sect members and thousands of believers just by raising his standard.

Though Guan Ping only had twenty or thirty subordinates now, during the Red Lotus Sect’s peak, he was a figure capable of controlling an entire city.

Moreover, his own cultivation was already at the Condensing Truth Realm Late Stage, and he had recently been empowered with immense Qi and Blood Power by Su Mei.

As Guan Ping’s power erupted, his might was already comparable to that of a Half-Step Primordial Pill expert.

The Martial Artists of the Red Lotus Sect were roughly divided into two types.

One type was the upper echelon, like Su Mei, who were masters of various strange and treacherous Secret Techniques.

The other type was Martial Artists who had risen from the lower ranks. They primarily used the Red Lotus Sacred Fire for Body Refining, following a physical path.

Guan Ping was of the latter type. He wielded a Blood-red Warhammer that was over ten feet long, with a head so massive it resembled a water vat.

With a great roar, the majestic Qi and Blood around him surged as the Red Lotus Sacred Fire burned intensely. He brought the warhammer down with immeasurable power, unleashing a deafening, explosive WHISTLE.

Demon Flame and Blood Fiend power converged on Chen Yuan’s Celestial Blade. He unleashed the Blood Refining Divine Saber, which struck like a roaring, backwards-flowing Blood River, meeting attack with attack as it slashed against the Warhammer.

The Celestial Blade looked pitifully small compared to the enormous Warhammer.

But as the two collided, Guan Ping felt a heaven-shaking Giant Power wash over him, causing the hands gripping his Warhammer to tremble.

’What kind of Cultivation Technique does this bastard practice? How is his physical strength this formidable?’

’And that surging Demon Flame on his body is bizarre.’

The Red Lotus Sacred Fire, enhanced by Red Lotus Willpower, could suppress most True Qi Attributes and diminish their power.

’But the Demon Flame on this Chen Jiutian is so tyrannical that it’s actually devouring the Red Lotus Sacred Fire!’

At that moment, the surrounding Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists charged forward once more. Buddha Light bloomed around Chen Yuan, and the sound of Buddhist Chanting descended.

With the release of the Six Paths of Vajra Mantra of Master Padmasambhava, a Brahma Sound shook the void, causing the Qi and Blood of the Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists to roil and their movements to falter.

Chen Yuan spun and slashed. Blood Fiend and Demonic Qi intertwined, and under the power of Blood Demon Devouring the Sun, he instantly tore two Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists to pieces.

Guan Ping roared and charged again, but in a pure contest of strength, he was unable to suppress Chen Yuan.

After several exchanges, both of their Qi and Blood were in turmoil, yet Chen Yuan actually gained the upper hand. He even found an opening to use the Profound Celestial Finger to kill two of the weaker Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists.

The longer Guan Ping fought, the more anxious he grew. Not only could he not defeat his opponent, but his own men were being slaughtered one after another.

Although Gu Lichuan’s kill count wasn’t as monstrous as Chen Yuan’s, by unleashing his three swords, he could still take on ten men at once, and had already exploited openings to slay two of them.

Inside the Array, Qin Suguang said in a low voice, "Everyone, Brother Chen and Brother Gu have tied down most of the Red Lotus Sect’s forces. There aren’t many left guarding the Array."

"What if we all attack a single point at the same time to break the Array? What do you say?"

Murong Li and the others all nodded in agreement.

Though they belonged to different factions, they were all currently trapped by the Red Lotus Sect. A time like this called for unity and a combined effort to break the stalemate.

Led by Qin Suguang, the group attacked as one. The Red Lotus Sect only had four Martial Artists left to maintain the Array. They hastily gathered their power to defend, but could only watch as the Array began to crumble.

"Banner Lord! The Array is about to collapse!"

The four men desperately called for help, but Chen Yuan was pressing his attack on Guan Ping, giving him no opportunity to disengage.

The next moment, with a deafening BOOM, Qin Suguang and the others finally shattered the Array. They immediately cut down the four Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists and charged toward the rest.

Guan Ping’s expression changed, his concentration broken.

Chen Yuan seized the opportunity. A crimson Karmic Flame bloomed on his Celestial Blade, instantly igniting all the power around him and transforming it into a magnificent, crimson blaze.

As his blade fell, a Karma Fire Red Lotus bloomed—one even more magnificent and brilliant than the Blood Qi Red Lotus Su Mei had previously condensed.

Red Lotus Sin-Slaying Saber!

That single slash cleaved Guan Ping’s Warhammer—and his entire body—in two!

With Guan Ping dead, the remaining Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists instantly lost their will to fight and were systematically slaughtered by Gu Lichuan and the others.

Murong Li and his group also attacked with fury, determined to annihilate their foes.

Chen Yuan and his companions had come to investigate a case, so their presence in the Blood Killing Realm was understandable; they hadn’t come for any wedding banquet in the first place.

Murong Li and the others, however, had traveled a great distance specifically for the wedding banquet. They had each carefully selected and presented fine gifts, all for the sake of building a good relationship with Wu Daoquan.

And what was the result? They were dragged into this damnable mess. It turned out they had been invited to the banquet solely for their Qi and Blood.

With everyone attacking at once, all the Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists were slaughtered in less than fifteen minutes.

After all the Red Lotus Sect Martial Artists were dead, everyone present simultaneously turned their gaze toward the bodies of the Blood Slaughter Venerable and Master Dust Crossing.

They weren’t sure about anything else, but the saber in the Blood Slaughter Venerable’s hand was clearly no ordinary object. It was possibly of the Celestial Soldier Level.

Furthermore, the two Prayer Beads in Master Dust Crossing’s hand were emitting an astonishing Buddha Light.

Just then, a Martial Artist suddenly exclaimed, "There’s writing in front of Master Dust Crossing!"

Everyone looked over and saw two lines of text carved by finger into a stone slate in front of Master Dust Crossing.

"I, the humble monk Dust Crossing, have slain the Blood Slaughter Venerable here. But my body has been burnt away, and many of my fellow Jianghu cultivators have also perished in the Blood Killing Realm. We can no longer suppress the evil artifact."

"I hope that future members of the Jianghu who come here will not be seduced by the evil artifact. You must seal it, bury the Blood Killing Realm, and ensure Qin Province is never again plagued by the calamity of slaughter."

"All of this humble monk’s lifelong learning is contained within these two Prayer Beads. I leave them for a future member of the Jianghu to take, to seal the evil artifact with the Buddhist Teachings."

Reading Master Dust Crossing’s last words, even Chen Yuan couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion.

He didn’t hold the Buddhist Sect in high regard, especially since most of the Buddhist Martial Artists he had initially encountered were paranoid and overbearing.

But this Master Dust Crossing could absolutely be called a true eminent monk of the Buddhist Sect.

The slaughter unleashed by the Blood Slaughter Venerable in Qin Province actually had little to do with Master Dust Crossing.

An expert of his level would not be affected by such worldly slaughter.

Yet, he used his prestige to gather numerous heroes of the Jianghu to destroy the Blood Killing Realm, even perishing alongside the Blood Slaughter Venerable. He did it all to end killing with killing, sparing the people of Qin Province from the suffering of slaughter.

The last words he left before his death were also extremely thoughtful.

Because Master Dust Crossing and the Martial Artists who came to destroy the Blood Killing Realm had all died here, they had failed to completely seal the Seven Kills Stele or bury the Blood Killing Realm.

Thus, he deliberately left his Cultivation Technique inheritance behind, hoping that future Martial Artists who entered would gain something from it, and thereby avoid merging with the Seven Kills Stele like the Blood Slaughter Venerable and unleashing slaughter upon the Jianghu.

This level of self-sacrifice, like feeding a hawk with one’s own flesh to save another, was what truly earned him the title of an enlightened, eminent monk.