Chapter 110: The Otherworldly Celestial Demon

The Fangcun space rumbled endlessly, trembling as though the earth itself were quaking.

As the master of Fangcun, Li Shun suddenly found an uncontrollable urgency and yearning welling up from the depths of his soul, like a man dying of thirst catching sight of sweet rain after a long drought. His gaze never wavered, remaining firmly fixed upon Lord Ge's statue.

In that instant, he found the source of Fangcun's violent reaction.

Under the influence of this strange phenomenon, something previously invisible suddenly appeared before his eyes.

Wisps of faint Xuanhuang Qi floated around the statue like strands of finely woven silk, layer upon layer enveloping its entire body.

Within that hazy aura, light and shadow flowed endlessly. In a daze, Li Shun seemed to witness Ge Linfeng's entire life.

He had measured every inch of Jiuyi Mountain with his own feet.

Every county within Jiuyi Commandery, every village scattered throughout the Hundred Thousand Mountains, the abyss where earthfire burned unceasingly throughout the year, the poisonous depths perpetually shrouded in deadly miasma. Wherever the people of Great Qian lived, Ge Linfeng had walked.

He had not merely passed through.

He had truly lowered himself to listen to the pleas of those as insignificant as blades of grass, personally sweeping away the dark clouds hanging over the common people's heads. On the day news of Lord Ge's death spread, the entire populace mourned. Every household erected a memorial tablet in his honor.

'Ge Linfeng spent two hundred years as an official, dedicating every part of himself to this land.'

'Though he has passed away, so long as the people of Jiuyi endure, his name will never be forgotten.'

'His heroic spirit has become one with the mountains and rivers, as though it has truly become part of heaven and earth itself.'

'So the aura surrounding this statue is...'

'The Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth?'

As Li Shun sensed the mysterious aura surrounding the statue, a name inexplicably surfaced within his heart.

The unprecedented upheaval within Fangcun told him that this Heaven and Earth Xuanhuang Qi would be of immense benefit to it.

He glanced sideways at Duan Jiuzhang.

After struggling with himself for a brief moment, he ultimately failed to resist the temptation that arose from the very depths of his soul.

His divine sense quietly extended outward like invisible tendrils toward a single strand of Xuanhuang Qi.

The instant it made contact, he managed to collect only the tiniest wisp.

Then, everything changed.

The statue of Lord Ge suddenly erupted with boundless golden radiance, divine brilliance illuminating the heavens.

The clay statue seemed to transcend life and death, truly coming alive.

Yet the gaze it cast upon Li Shun was no longer one of gentle compassion.

Its eyes blazed with righteous fury.

Its divine majesty was as terrifying as the heavens themselves.

Outside Lord Ge Shrine, the skies over Jiuyi Commandery instantly changed color.

Rolling black clouds poured in from every direction, blotting out the heavens.

Their momentum and pressure exceeded the previous Tribulation of Deviant Dharma Li Shun had encountered by well over a hundredfold.

This was the rejection of heaven and earth.

The judgment of the world's laws.

It was as though Li Shun had committed an unforgivable crime, and this world could no longer tolerate his existence, swearing to grind him into dust.

Meanwhile, Li Shun found that he could no longer influence the Xuanhuang Qi surrounding Lord Ge's statue.

No matter how desperately he urged his divine sense, the strands of Xuanhuang Qi remained as immovable as towering mountains.

He could no longer draw them into the Fangcun space.

Worse still, the harder he tried to force them inside, the more violent heaven and earth's hostility became.

Boom!

With an earth-shaking roar, an indescribable force tore the roof clean off Lord Ge Shrine, exposing the dark heavens above, where endless bolts of lightning churned within the clouds.

Duan Jiuzhang and Li Qing both froze in shock at the sudden upheaval.

"The Tribulation of Dharma Deviation?"

After standing stunned for a moment, Li Qing cried out in horror, his face deathly pale.

Duan Jiuzhang remained silent for much longer.

When he finally spoke, however, it was an entirely different phrase.

"An... Otherworldly Celestial Demon?"

He stared at Li Shun, disbelief filling his eyes.

Yet that astonishment quickly transformed into sudden realization.

And then...

An overwhelming intent to kill.

"So you're an Otherworldly Celestial Demon?"

"A royal blood relative who appeared out of nowhere..."

"So that's what this was all along!"

As though everything had suddenly become clear, Duan Jiuzhang's gaze toward Li Shun turned utterly cold and devoid of emotion.

He looked at him as one would regard a mortal enemy whose death alone could settle the score.

Without any unnecessary movements, Duan Jiuzhang merely took a single step forward.

The surrounding air instantly solidified.

His murderous aura descended like an enormous mountain, causing every bone in Li Shun's body to creak beneath the pressure.

"Abomination. Die."

Duan Jiuzhang's voice was icy.

The earth beneath Li Shun's feet suddenly released an endless force of attraction, dragging him down as though he had sunk into a swamp.

Above him, the void thundered.

A colossal phantom millstone large enough to cover the heavens slowly emerged, carrying with it the terrifying weight to crush all existence.

The surrounding Principles were completely sealed beneath its pressure.

Under this overwhelming oppression, Li Shun could not move a single finger.

The moment the giant millstone appeared, even the tribulation clouds rolling across the heavens seemed to pause.

'When Principles manifest, the Celestial Phenomena change.'

'This Duan Jiuzhang... is actually a Celestial Phenomena Realm cultivator?'

'According to the information Fang Xun gathered before, he was only at the peak of the Grotto Mystic Realm.'

'Why would an imperial official conceal his true cultivation?'

'And what exactly is this Otherworldly Celestial Demon...'

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant.

Having only just arrived in the Southern Yantian, he had already encountered an entirely unforeseen disaster.

The terrifying heavenly tribulation overhead, coupled with the enormous millstone descending toward him, made Li Shun fully understand that there was no possibility of survival.

Yet there was not the slightest trace of fear upon his face.

That calm composure seemed only to further confirm Duan Jiuzhang's suspicions.

His eyes brimmed with icy killing intent as he prepared to drive the millstone down and utterly obliterate Li Shun.

Just then...

Li Qing shot forward like an arrow released from its bow, charging frantically toward Duan Jiuzhang despite the mountain-like pressure.

He was merely at the peak of the Spirit Resonance Realm.

How could he possibly contend against a peak Celestial Phenomena expert like Duan Jiuzhang?

Before he could even draw near, an irresistible force blasted him away.

"Boy, wake up!"

"He's no longer your brother."

"He's an Otherworldly Celestial Demon!"

Duan Jiuzhang roared sternly.

Li Qing climbed back to his feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.

He glanced at Li Shun, whose flesh had already been crushed into a mangled ruin beneath the millstone.

The hesitation in his eyes quickly vanished.

"I don't know what an Otherworldly Celestial Demon is."

"I only know..."

"He's my brother!"

The moment those words fell, a resolute determination appeared within Li Qing's eyes.

His entire aura surged explosively.

The blood and qi within his body roared like mighty rivers.

From deep within him arose the faint cry of a dragon intertwined with the clear ring of a sword.

Sword qi erupted in every direction.

Violent winds swept across the shrine, sending Duan Jiuzhang's hair and robes flying wildly.

"The Sword Dao?"

A trace of astonishment flashed across Duan Jiuzhang's face.

But it was instantly replaced by even colder killing intent.

"You cannot distinguish righteousness from evil."

"You are hopelessly foolish!"

"In that case..."

"You may accompany him in death!"

Duan Jiuzhang showed no further mercy.

The Principles surged violently as he pushed his power to its absolute limit.

The enormous phantom millstone instantly solidified into reality, sending ripples through space itself as it descended.

The might of the Celestial Phenomena Realm resembled the collapse of heaven and the splitting of earth.

Within a single breath, the two brothers were swallowed by boundless divine radiance.

As the millstone turned...

Li Shun and Li Qing were instantly ground into ashes, disappearing without a trace.

Only shattered ruins remained behind, silently bearing witness to the brutal battle amid the scorching winds of Jiuyi Commandery.

And with the disappearance of the "Otherworldly Celestial Demon," Li Shun.

The endless tribulation clouds hanging above dispersed in an instant.

The sky returned to its former tranquility.