Chapter 393 - 374: Then I Shall Borrow the Bodies and Souls of You Three

Chapter 393: Chapter 374: Then I Shall Borrow the Bodies and Souls of You Three

"Huohua is an elder of the righteous Celestial Furnace Sect. How could he be colluding with the likes of you?"

Mr. Celestial Sword of the Celestial Sword Pavilion strode through the air. The moment he appeared, he raised his hand and sent a brilliant beam of sword light straight for Huohua’s Token!

’True or not, I’ll destroy this so-called "evidence" first and we can talk later!’

"CLANG!!"

A massive boom reverberated through the heavens. The soundwave was so powerful it even shattered the clouds below, yet the Token remained completely unscathed.

Instead, the beam of sword light he had just unleashed—powerful enough to split mountains and sever rivers—instantly shattered into a sky full of light motes and vanished the moment it touched the young man’s dharma idol.

’How is this possible?!’

A storm raged in Mr. Celestial Sword’s heart.

’I may not have used my full power in that strike, but doesn’t this kid look like he’s only just entered the Nascent Soul stage? Is he using a Cultivation Technique to hide his true Cultivation? Or could it be... that this boy’s understanding of the Sword Dao is actually greater than my own?!’

Mr. Celestial Sword stared intently at Lin Qingfeng’s back. The murderous intent he’d felt, his desire to silence him permanently, was extinguished in an instant.

’The Guixi Sect...’

’No wonder Huohua took such a fall.’

’It’s not worth making a mortal enemy with unknown potential for the Celestial Sword Pavilion over a mere mortal city and the Celestial Furnace Sect’s messes. Besides, this is just a transaction between the big shots up top...’

Just as Mr. Celestial Sword was hesitating in shock and suspicion, two sinister and violent auras erupted from the other side.

"Well, well, Celestial Sword, you old dog. Look at you now."

Mr. Youquan and Xuehe cackled sinisterly upon seeing Mr. Celestial Sword suffer a setback.

"Young friend, why don’t you and I join forces? What say we cut this old dog down right here, today?!"

"Idiots!!"

Facing the risk of being attacked from both sides, Mr. Celestial Sword’s face turned livid. He whipped his head around and roared at the two demonic masters, "Open your damn eyes and look! Is this the time for infighting?!"

"Don’t forget the orders from above! If you ruin the grand plan of both the righteous and demonic paths... how many heads do you two have to offer?!"

"If you want to die, then go right ahead!"

The two of them exchanged a look, a flash of fear in their eyes.

’The big shots from above... those are beings we absolutely cannot afford to offend.’

The so-called opposition between the righteous and demonic paths was truly a joke in the face of mutual interest.

"...Consider yourself lucky." Xuehe grumbled as he retracted his blood-red qi. Though reluctant, he obediently stepped aside and dropped the subject of joining forces.

Seeing that he had intimidated the two, Mr. Celestial Sword finally breathed a sigh of relief and composed himself.

When he turned his head back to Lin Qingfeng, the furious expression on his face had vanished instantly. In its place was the face of a benevolent "elder," full of worldly compassion.

"My apologies for that display, young friend."

Mr. Celestial Sword stood with his hands behind his back, his tone becoming affable. "For a fellow Daoist so young to have such attainments in the Sword Dao is truly rare. It’s a pity, however, that you are inexperienced in the ways of the world. You see only the surface, and your eyes have been clouded by others."

He pointed to the terrified Anhe City below, his voice filled with compassion. "Young friend from the Guixi Sect, there is something you do not know. This Anhe City is a place of extreme yin, and Demonic Qi has long since eroded the earth’s ley lines."

"The Righteous Alliance and the demonic path cultivators reached a tacit understanding long ago. We must use this city as the eye of a formation, sacrificing it to enhance the strength of both our paths. This is to deal with an unknown ancient demon and the future Destructive Beast Tide. It is a grand plan to sacrifice the few to save the many."

Mr. Celestial Sword’s words were not entirely a baseless pretext.

According to those from above, a Void Rift near the Ancient Celestial Vine was constantly expanding.

These rifts seemed to connect to an indescribable, otherworldly demonic land. At first, only low-level demonic creatures emerged, but recently, several demonic beasts with power comparable to the Core Formation Stage have broken through the seal.

According to the deductions of the top leaders of both the righteous and demonic paths, a Destructive Beast Tide that will sweep across the continent is destined to erupt in the future.

Although this matter had little to do with Anhe City, it was the perfect pretext to use.

Mr. Celestial Sword’s gaze burned as he stared at Lin Qingfeng. "Have you cultivated to such a realm, fellow Daoist, and still not understood the meaning of sacrifice? Rather than offending both the righteous and demonic paths for these ants in a city doomed to die, and ruining the grand plan for all life... why not... take this opportunity to form a good relationship with us instead?"

"Besides, with the strength of yourself and the sect behind you, young friend, it wouldn’t be difficult to claim a city for offerings or blood sacrifices. Why be so fixated on this one?"

...

「Inside Su Wenxuan’s protective barrier, flying back to Anhe City」

Every word of that pompous speech passed through Lin Qingfeng’s Spiritual Power barrier—a deliberate act—and entered Su Wenxuan’s ears.

’A place of extreme yin? Eroded by Demonic Qi?’

Su Wenxuan was stunned.

’What place of extreme yin?’

Every morning, the sun rose in the east as usual. Every evening, the setting sun in the west still reflected upon the Jade Belt River.

’Where is it yin here? Where is there any Demonic Qi?!’

’It’s absolute bullshit!!!’

Su Wenxuan trembled with rage, his young face flushed crimson. He looked down at the approaching city, at the neighbors who were once so full of life and were now just corpses.

’This was clearly once a city bustling with life and warmth!’

’Boss!! Don’t believe him!!’

Su Wenxuan hammered against the protective barrier like a madman.

He was terrified that his boss would actually be swayed by this grand rhetoric that claimed to be for the sake of all living beings.

After all, in the face of this so-called "greater good," the lives of mortals like them were truly worthless—so worthless that they could be erased at will with a single, weightless word: "sacrifice."

’But why?!’

’Why should they be the ones sacrificed?! Why should they have to die for some so-called "grand plan"?!’

’Are... are the lives of mortals not lives at all?!’

...

「The center of the battlefield」

After hearing all this, Lin Qingfeng, who had kept his back to everyone, finally reacted.

He slowly nodded, his voice calm:

"I see. So it was all for the sake of the people."

Mr. Celestial Sword rejoiced inwardly. ’This young man is still green after all,’ he thought. ’Just a few words about the greater good are enough to fool him.’

He was just about to open his mouth and praise him—’This boy can be taught’—when Lin Qingfeng’s tone suddenly shifted. "In that case, the energy required for this formation’s eye... I assume the stronger, the better, right?"

Mr. Celestial Sword froze.

"Mortals are just ants. Their Spiritual Qi is thin. How could they possibly provide enough power to suppress anything?"

Lin Qingfeng spun around abruptly. He wore a harmless, innocent smile, but his gaze swept over Mr. Celestial Sword and the nearby Mr. Youquan and Xuehe.

"I see the three of you seniors possess world-shaking Cultivation, and your Nascent Soul Essence Blood is as vast as the sea. If I were to use your three bodies and souls for my own cultivation refinement, wouldn’t the effect be hundreds, even thousands of times better than using those mortals?"

"It is, after all, for the sake of the people. A sacrifice of the self."

Lin Qingfeng raised his hand. The colossal Sword God dharma idol behind him took a thunderous step forward, and the clang of a billion swords shook the heavens and the earth!

"As for that pathetic Beast Tide? Those rift monsters?"

"That kind of dirty work... my Guixi Sect will settle it with a single swing of the sword!"

"So... for the sake of all the people in this world, I’ll be borrowing the bodies and souls of you three!"

BOOM!!!

Before his voice had even faded, Lin Qingfeng struck!

The wheel of swords behind the Sword God dharma idol spun wildly, and a sky-blotting rain of swords descended, enveloping Mr. Celestial Sword and the two demonic patriarchs all at once!