Chapter 125.2: Plotting Against the City of No Return? Courting death

Only a few could stand atop the City of No Return's wall, Chen Huan, Yuan Qi, and of course, Qi Yuan and Little Bride.

Qi Yuan held Little Bride close as they watched over the city. "After twisting screws all day, it feels great to come out for some fresh air."

As always, Little Bride leaned quietly against him. A wooden plaque with a smiley face slid from her sleeve into Qi Yuan's hand.

"If only you could take on a human form," he murmured.

Even this late in the game, Little Bride was always with him. As always, she didn't speak.

"My memory's been unstable lately. It is sometimes clear, sometimes fuzzy," Qi Yuan said, his expression turning distant. "When I entered the Myriad Phenomena Gate, I almost lost myself to the forgetting realm. Aside from the canary's call, I also felt someone tugging at my sleeve. Was that you, Little Bride?"

These days, Qi Yuan had been relentlessly trying to push the Great Forgetfulness Sutra to the Subtle stage. Strange, fragmented images kept surfacing in his mind. For example, when he fell into the forgetting realm, something had been gripping the corner of his clothes the entire time. He had only remembered these fragments now.

A small wooden plaque slipped from Little Bride's sleeve again, depicting a sleeve holding a sleeve.

"So it really was you." Qi Yuan reached to boop Little Bride, yet caught nothing but air. He wasn't disappointed, and simply pulled Little Bride close again. "What else happened in the Myriad Phenomena Gate that I've forgotten?"

He had a feeling that once he remembered everything, the Great Forgetfulness Sutra could reach the Subtle stage. The milestone would greatly boost his confidence.

As it was, he was only invincible among those of the same realm. He had never met the White Supreme or the Supreme One, hence he had no idea how powerful they were, or whether they were on the same level as a Yin Spirit. If they were, this game would become very tedious to clear.

"A pity I've already hit the limit of what killing demons can offer. Am I supposed to wipe out the entire population of this world to level up?" Qi Yuan wasn't a slaughter maniac, nor was he that selfish. "If only there were a new farming zone..."

To advance further, he'd have to kill Supremes instead.

"How strange... What is the limit of this world? How can it produce so many Supremes without exhausting its resources?" Qi Yuan murmured. "Or, is this just fishing with dynamite...?"

Normally, a world's peak experts followed a rough pyramid structure. This world had too many Supremes, yet too few beings on the level of the Supreme One and the White Supreme. It was completely unbalanced.

***

Deep within the White Supreme Palace, the South's strongest opened his weak, dim eyes. A complicated light flickered within them.

"The Thirteen Northern Demons... have they reached the Ends of the Earth already? Hopefully... this time it won't end in failure. Old debts... should be settled. Master... if you were still here, what would you do? Back then, when heaven and earth shook, it was like the sermon at Nine Plate Mountain replaying, was that drop of your reincarnated blood returning to the world? The comrades in the Myriad Phenomena Gate... won't last much longer."

His gaze was bleak. He wasn't just holding up the Southern Region, but the entire Flowing Wind World. The North South Pact existed only to wipe out demon spawns, when their true enemies were the demons themselves.

The greater battlefield was the Myriad Demon Gate. A hundred thousand years ago, his master had entered the Myriad Demon Gate, and nearly perished clearing it. Afterward, guided by the Slate of Fate, the Thirteen Northern Demons—White Supreme’s junior brothers and sisters—entered the gate to rouse him.

It worked. The Blood Master awoke and used his vast power to scour the entire Myriad Demon Gate clean. However, he died soon after. Only a single drop of blood flowed out, subsequently vanishing.

The threat within that gate was gone. Unbeknownst to anyone, the Myriad Demon Gate also housed endless demons clawing to escape.

The White Supreme had long suspected that the slate had manipulated them into entering, inadvertently opening the gate. Either way, there was no point dwelling on what couldn’t be undone.

He sighed softly—lonely, desolate. "If this succeeds, the Flowing Wind World might endure another three hundred years... If it fails, the entire world will become a playground for demons and demon spawns. Yanran... has the Slate of Fate affected you as well?"

His clone needed to merge back with his true body and enter the Myriad Demon Gate. The situation there allowed no delay.

***

In the City of No Return.

Supremes gathered from across the land. Within dozens of miles, not a single living demon spawn remained. Even without Qi Yuan, the city was now perfectly safe.

Two thousand peak Mythwalkers filled the city—some anxious, some excited, some trembling. Many Supremes had captured large numbers of demon spawns, earning the right to listen to the Blood Master's sermon again.

Wang Gai and Li Yunzhi stood among the crowd. Compared to Wang Gai's calm, Li Yunzhi appeared jittery and pale.

"Wang Gai, how are you not nervous?" he whispered. Just now, he had seen Supreme Mi Luo, whom he recognized as the Great Sorrow City’s guardian.

"Why would I be? Would you be scared of a bunch of cabbages and radishes?" Wang Gai replied casually.

Wang Gai was actually looking forward to what was about to happen. Ever since witnessing the Blood Master fight, he'd regarded him as the one true god, the child of destiny.

Li Yunzhi grumbled, "You—! You know something I don't! If I'd known, I wouldn't have been worrying myself sick."

It was obvious that Wang Gai knew far more than he did.

Wang Gai glanced at Supreme Yang Hun, who, despite his great power, was behaving like a bootlicking lapdog. "In a bit, you don't need to do anything. Just... act like Supreme Yang Hun over there and lick boots.”

The moment Wang Gai's words fell, a mysterious and unfathomable aura swept across the area. Everyone fell silent, stopping mid‑conversation. Their gazes shifted toward the blood‑robed figure standing atop the city wall, and awe flickered across their faces.

The voices boomed like rolling thunder. "Greetings, Blood Master!”

Even the sermon at Nine Plate Mountain had been far less lively compared to this. Unfortunately, the people gathered here were neither as simple nor as pure‑hearted.

Standing within the crowd, Mi Luo watched as hundreds of Supremes bowed to Qi Yuan. His eyes shone with yearning. He wished, more than anything, that he was the one standing up there.

His heart was restless, filled with the anxious excitement one felt right before attempting something monumental. Just then, Qi Yuan's eyes landed on him, and his heart skipped a beat.

𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

He then heard the Qi Yuan's ethereal voice drift down. "Supreme Mi Luo seems hesitant to speak. Is there something you wish to say?"

Countless thoughts flashed through Mi Luo's mind. Was he exposed?

Forcing himself to remain calm, he slowly replied, "Blood Master truly lives up to his name, you bear the weight of all beings, teaching the dao to the masses without asking for anything in return."

Mi Luo was genuinely praising him, if a little excessively.

"If it were me, I'd never be able to do that," Mi Luo remarked in passing.

Qi Yuan's smile carried a deep, unreadable meaning. "And if it were you, what would you do?"

Mi Luo said honestly, "If it were me, I'd have them swear an inner demon oath beforehand. Only those who pledged loyalty to me would receive my teachings."

Frankly, most Supremes would have done the same. Hence why none of them understood why the Blood Master chose to teach freely.

Qi Yuan nodded thoughtfully. "What you said seems reasonable. How about this, why don't all of you swear an inner demon oath and pledge loyalty to me?"

He looked down at the Mythwalkers gathered below, a faint smile tugging at his lips. The gathered powerhouses exchanged uneasy glances, some were outright terrified.

Mi Luo's palms were dampened with cold sweat. If they really swore the oath, the infiltrators hidden among these mighty figures would be exposed instantly. Panic gnawed at him. Why did it feel like the Blood Master could see straight through him?

Suddenly, Qi Yuan laughed. "I'm joking. What would I do with your loyalty, anyway?"

Loyalty was nothing compared to a life.

"Now then, let the sermon begin."