Lifting his eyes, Duan Junyi saw Sang Hua standing amidst a vast expanse of blood and filth, looking jarringly out of place. He was far too pristine to ever step foot into such a turbid, defiled realm. Duan Junyi’s gaze lingered on Sang Hua for a long while, the only thing he dared not do being to look directly into Sang Hua’s eyes.
Unable to believe everything his eyes were witnessing, Sang Hua faced the scattered corpses and debris across the ground, yet even more unable was he to convince himself that this was a mere illusion.
Beholding this chaotic disaster before him and this inhumane, massive slaughter, Duan Junyi had already braced himself for Sang Hua to draw his sword against him.
The two confronted each other in a standoff for a long time, yet Sang Hua merely asked a single question: “A-Yi, why?”
Things had already reached this juncture, and yet Sang Hua only asked him why. Gritting his teeth, Duan Junyi tightened his grip on his longsword, pointing it straight at Sang Hua as he sneered derisively: “Why? Does a demonic lord need a reason to kill? If you’re here to uphold the righteous path and exterminate demons, then draw your sword.”
Duan Junyi’s original intent was to provoke Sang Hua into anger, but Sang Hua steadfastly walked closer right into the path of his sword tip: “This is not your true intent. Tell me, why have you done this? What on earth happened during the seven years I was in seclusion? Did they humiliate you, or did someone force you into this? Tell your master, your master will make decisions for you.”
Just as Sang Hua was about to collide with the blade’s edge, Duan Junyi abruptly withdrew his longsword, maintaining a cold smirk on his lips: “Master? Why doesn’t this seat recall having a master? You’re quite interesting other cultivators in the immortal sects see this seat and shout about ridding the world of evils, yet you actually think someone could force this seat to suffer grievances? And you want to seek justice for a great demonic lord?”
Pointing a finger at his own head, Duan Junyi let out a mocking laugh: “Which immortal sect do you belong to, Immortal? Is something wrong with your brain?”
“Duan Junyi!” A flash of anger finally surfaced on Sang Hua’s face as he gritted his teeth: “Fine! If you refuse to speak now, you’ll follow me back and explain it slowly!”
At this, Duan Junyi reined in the mocking smile on his face, speaking with stern solemnity: “Listen well, Immortal: I am a malicious spirit, not your little disciple. He died long ago, and this vessel is now commanded by me!”
Although the appearance remained the former appearance, the individual before him was steeped in an aura of blood, harboring coldness and murderous intent in his eyes entirely unlike the disciple in Sang Hua’s memories.
“This seat is not that weak disciple of yours! Nor do I know any past history between you and your little disciple. Still, I must thank the Immortal Venerable for not destroying this vessel directly upon discovering an undead spirit resided within it, and for cultivating the disciple so well. The moment this seat awakened, I inherited such a fine physique.”
The words had barely faded when a cold flash swept past, and Sang Hua’s longsword tore through the wind in an aggressive strike.
The sword techniques were fierce and piercing, aiming straight for vital points with every move. Familiar with every single form and stance of Sang Hua’s, Duan Junyi knew the man was genuinely enraged.
Faced with an angry Sang Hua, Duan Junyi was forced to respond with absolute seriousness. Neither of their cultivations was weak; once they went all out, the barrier which had already been cracked by Sang Hua earlier proved entirely unable to withstand the shockwaves of their clash, shattering apart completely.
The pace of their combat grew increasingly frantic. Secretly watching from the side, Jing Li and Chong Huai found themselves unable to even track the movements of their swords; if either of them dared to step forward right now, the only outcome awaiting them would be being pulverized into dust.
A duel at their tier demanded absolute unity of mind and intent; the slightest distraction carried mortal peril.
Yet at the most critical juncture, Sang Hua suddenly withdrew his longsword, driving his body straight toward Duan Junyi’s blade.
Duan Junyi’s sword had already lunged outward. The instant he saw Sang Hua withdraw his weapon and hurl himself directly onto his sword tip, Duan Junyi forcefully pulled his sword back mid-strike.
Forcing a retraction mid-strike resulted in a counter-shock of opposing forces that instantly injured Duan Junyi internally.
His entire arm went numb, and his internal organs churned tumultuously within him, yet Duan Junyi had no leisure to care for himself, fixing his dead gaze upon Sang Hua to confirm that he hadn’t injured the man by even a fraction.
Concern warring with irritation, Duan Junyi snapped with a scowl: “Are you trying to seek death?”
Sang Hua shook his head faintly, pointing a finger toward his own chest: “This is the second time. If you truly were a cold-blooded, heartless evil spirit, you’ve had two opportunities to pierce my heart, yet you chose to pull back both times.”
This left Duan Junyi momentarily at a loss for how to respond. Stepping up his pressure no further, Sang Hua returned his Feibai sword neatly to its scabbard: “Since you don’t yet know how to explain things to me today, I will give you time. A-Yi, remember the oath you took when you first entered discipleship.”
“No matter how the worldly masses choose to pass judgment, I can choose not to believe it. Back then I believed you would not turn to demonic ways, and today, it is still the same.”
Watching Sang Hua’s departing silhouette, Duan Junyi felt the lingering stench of blood surrounding him threaten to make him vomit.
“Master, just pretend that your little disciple on Yujin Peak… is dead…” Duan Junyi murmured softly. Swept by a chill wind carrying the scent of blood, all his words were swallowed by the wintry blast, so faint even he could barely hear them.
Confirming that Sang Hua had departed and moved far away, Jing Li and Chong Huai who had been hiding off to the side—returned to Duan Junyi’s side. Noting the abnormal pallor of Duan Junyi’s complexion, neither dared to utter a sound.
Fortunately, Duan Junyi swiftly reined in all his turbulent emotions. Turning his head, he saw Chong Huai holding the bird-shaped lantern from earlier. Following the fierce slaughter, not a single speck of blood had stained the lantern, and the candle within had even been relighted by Chong Huai.
“You’re quite thoughtful.” Reclaiming the lantern from Chong Huai’s hands, Duan Junyi cast a tiny protective barrier to shield the flame. “The barrier shattered just now—did any tainted miasma leak out?”
Chong Huai answered respectfully: “Reporting to Master, this subordinate kept a close eye on the miasma; not a single trace was allowed to escape.”
“Well done.” Duan Junyi’s voice remained flat and detached, entirely devoid of joy or anger. “Send word to Fuweimen, monitor every single move of the Yujin Immortal Venerable. I want to know about every single action he takes.”
“Understood!” The two responded deferentially. It was evident that ever since Sang Hua’s appearance, Duan Junyi’s mood had grown strange, leaving even the usually boisterous Jing Li too cowed to make an extra peep.
Within the small town, blazing fires raged while billowing plumes of dark smoke soared straight toward the clouds. Having left shortly before, Sang Hua landed upon a nearby mountain peak, gazing out at the town shrouded in flames and smoke. Through the haze, he wondered what his disciple might be thinking at this moment.
“Elder!”
Chasing after Sang Hua’s footsteps, several Fuweimen disciples landed beside him and bowed in greeting.
Turning his head sideways, Sang Hua recognized one of them as the sect leader’s personal disciple, named Youlian, and asked him: “During the seven years I was in seclusion, what happened?”
Before Sang Hua entered seclusion seven years ago, Duan Junyi was still the obedient disciple listening attentively on Yujin Peak.
Yet seven years later, upon emerging from seclusion, the stone tablet on Yujin Peak was shattered, and the entire immortal world pointed fingers at his disciple, denouncing him as the supreme demonic overlord of the current age cold-blooded, heartless, and bloodthirsty by nature to the extent that even when he descended the mountain personally to search, what he witnessed was Duan Junyi slaughtering an entire small town.
Even so, Sang Hua steadfastly refused to believe it.
Someone who couldn’t bear to watch a child cry, someone who would think of burying a bird even if he saw it dead, Sang Hua refused to believe he would fall into demonic corruption.
Faced with Sang Hua’s inquiry, the arriving disciples exchanged glances, none of them daring to speak up directly.
Scanning his gaze across them one by one, Sang Hua’s eyes landed on Youlian standing at the front. Stammering slightly, Youlian answered: “Elder, a month after you entered seclusion seven years ago, Duan Junyi shattered the stone tablet on Yujin Peak, released the demon king Xulang from the Suppressing Demon Tower, and betrayed Fuweimen. Prior to that, he hadn’t exhibited any strange behavior.”
“Is that so?” Sang Hua’s cold gaze swept over the disciples one by one, under which not a single disciple dared meet his eyes. “When I bring A-Yi back, you had better be able to stand before me with this same unblemished conscience.”
A single, simple sentence left the disciples bathed in cold sweat.
Sang Hua’s implication was that he intended to track Duan Junyi down and bring him back. Yet the sect leader’s explicit directive was for him to expel Duan Junyi from the sect and execute him on the spot.
As the preeminent leader among all immortal sects, Fuweimen’s disciplinary elder’s sole disciple had turned into the world’s greatest demonic overlord a scandal that shook the entire cultivation world.
Now that Fuweimen’s disciplinary elder Sang Hua had emerged from seclusion, the leaders and heads of all immortal sects had gathered at Fuweimen to jointly deliberate on how to besiege the Dome, bring the great demonic lord to justice, and console the souls of the lives lost beneath his blade.
Returning from the mortal realm, what greeted Sang Hua was the assembly of sect leaders debating how to punish his disciple. Stepping into the grand hall, his gaze swept across the crowd as he stated calmly: “You are all discussing how to make me deal with my disciple did any of you bother to ask whether I agreed?”
Fuweimen’s sect leader, Xi Heng, instantly flared up in anger: “Sang Hua, things have reached this point, and Duan Junyi has already thoroughly fallen into demonic corruption. He has committed countless sins of bloodshed are you still going to shield him?”
Faced with his sect leader, Sang Hua maintained a degree of courtesy, softening his tone in response: “Sect Leader, please do not anger yourself prematurely. I am not shielding him; rather, I believe there are hidden circumstances behind this. Even if we are to punish him, it must wait until I investigate the full truth of the matter before making a judgment.”
The sect leader glared furiously: “The countless commoners slaughtered by Duan Junyi are an indisputable reality! The methods he used to massacre cities are sickening to the core do you actually think we wronged him?”
Aside from Xi Heng, whenever the immortal sect leaders mentioned Duan Junyi, they gnashed their teeth with equal venom: “For the immortal world to produce such a universally reviled demonic overlord is an utter disgrace to our sects! Yujin Immortal Venerable is the disciplinary elder of Fuweimen as well as a paragon of the immortal path; he must lead by example, exterminating evil spirits and rectifying the heavenly dao!”
Earnestly and earnestly, Xi Heng admonished Sang Hua: “Sang Hua, Duan Junyi is an undead spirit have you forgotten the prophecies regarding the calamity of the undead? When you insisted on taking him in as a disciple back then, the rest of us should never have agreed. Had we eliminated this malicious spirit early on, we wouldn’t be facing such massive turmoil today!”
“A-Yi is not an evil spirit! Nor has he fallen to demonic ways!”
The usually detached and serene Yujin Immortal Venerable raised his voice in public refutation, facing the assembly of all immortal sect leaders.
“Prophecies of the undead are nothing more than ethereal, illusory hexagrams; to determine life and death based on a single hexagram, to dictate good and evil—I refuse to accept it! What is the truth? Whether he harbors hidden hardships remains unknown, yet you rush to condemn him, I refuse to accept that as well!”
“Sang Hua! You…” Xi Heng was choked with rage, struggling to speak. Sitting down to calm himself for a long while, he conjured a water mirror within the grand hall, pushing it forward toward Sang Hua.
Within the water mirror was the scene of Duan Junyi committing slaughter in the mortal world. Every single time he massacred in the mortal realm, the cities were unfailingly piled high with corpses and flowing rivers of blood; he spared not a single living witness, nor did he overlook even the livestock within the cities.
The tortuous horrors of hell itself were no worse than this.
“Do you see it? This is the bloodshed he accumulated over the seven years you were in seclusion! How many souls perished miserably at his hands? An evil spirit is an evil spirit he must be killed!”
The sights within the water mirror were tragic beyond description; none of the immortals could bear to gaze upon them for long. Sang Hua clenched his fingers tight. The massacre at the Fuyun Mountain small town remained vividly etched before his eyes. Sang Hua could never have imagined that aside from Fuyun Mountain, there were so many more…
Perhaps even these were merely the tip of the iceberg.
Sang Hua dared not imagine what had transpired over the past seven years to turn everything so unrecognizable.
An evil spirit! Was it truly possession by an evil spirit?
If Duan Junyi’s present vessel were truly and thoroughly occupied by an evil spirit, then he had possessed two opportunities to slay him back then; yet at that time, Duan Junyi had clearly chosen to self-inflict injury rather than harm him by even a fraction.
There had to be other hidden circumstances.
Pondering this, Sang Hua slowly relaxed his clenched fists, his gaze growing resolute: “I believe him! I believe he will not fall to demonic ways! Because he is an undead spirit, because of that prophecy, you have all harbored biases against him in your hearts from the very beginning, determining that he was bound to turn demonic and plunge the world into chaos.”
“Just because he was an undead spirit who unexpectedly revived from the dead, and because of that prophecy, how much humiliation and bullying has he suffered from fellow disciples in Fuweimen over the years behind the scenes? I imagine Sect Leader is not unaware. For a vast Fuweimen to prove unable to accommodate a single young disciple simply because of a prophecy how utterly laughable is that?”
“A-Yi is my disciple. If the immortal sects cannot accommodate him, I will accommodate him! There must be hidden reasons behind the slaughter; until the underlying truth is uncovered, I will never permit anyone to condemn him!”
It was the first time Xi Heng had ever witnessed Sang Hua display such obstinate persistence over a matter and yet, it was for the sake of that great demonic lord.
Rising to his feet, Xi Heng walked up to Sang Hua and pointed toward the snowy mists swirling within the water mirror: “Even if there are hidden circumstances, how innocent are the souls slaughtered by his hands? Do you acknowledge this crime!”
“I acknowledge it!”
Unhooking the token of the Disciplinary Elder, Sang Hua knelt upon the grand hall floor, striking his head heavily against the ground: “Disciple Sang Hua of Fuweimen failed to educate his pupil properly, feeling deeply ashamed before our ancestors, our sect, and the world. The disciple’s faults shall be borne by himself alone. I beg the Sect Leader to strip Sang Hua of his position as Disciplinary Elder, subject him to the Nine Heavens Thunder Punishment, and expel him from Fuweimen!”