Chapter 2573 Burning Hatred!

A sword had torn through the air and pierced straight through Kong Jue! The sight struck Lin Xun like a bolt of lightning. His eyes widened, bloodshot and trembling with disbelief.

That...how could this be?!

After enduring so much to slay five Immortal powerhouses, after finally clawing their way toward a glimmer of hope, it all shattered in an instant by this sudden and devastating sword strike!

“Martial Uncle!” Lin Xun cried out hoarsely.

In his field of vision, a bloody hole had been torn open in Kong Jue’s chest. His aura plummeted, no longer radiating the might or brilliance of a supreme sovereign. The sword strike hadn’t just wounded him, but also shattered his mental state, plunging him into a haze of confusion and disorientation.

“I just wanted to drink, why do you want to kill me....” Kong Jue’s face twisted in pain, his eyes dazed as he cried out in agony.

Shua!

The very next moment, Ling Xuanzi sprang into action. He grabbed Kong Jue’s figure, pulled him back, then seized Lin Xun and fled with all his might toward Chaotian City.

His expression was icy, his face pale, eyes blazing with terrifying madness. His body burned with fury, and his teeth clenched so hard they nearly cracked. This battle had been far too dangerous, far too brutal!

From killing the four Immortals, Nan Feidu, Gu Lingzhen, Li Shangjun and Yun Jiuwei, to facing the siege of five Nirvana Spirit Immortals such as Donghuang Kong in this boundless universe, every moment had been a brush with death, every step filled with slaughter.

If Kong Jue hadn’t awakened and intervened, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Now, just when they had finally slain Donghuang Kong and the others, a sword came from nowhere and ruined everything.

That strike was utterly devastating!

Furthermore, when he saw his martial uncle being pierced by that sword, Ling Xuanzi’s fury exploded. His handsome features twisted with hatred. His bloodshot eyes were filled with grief, pain and a maddened rage.

In the end, reason held him back. He wasn’t afraid of death, but he couldn’t allow his junior brother Lin Xun to die with him!

“Little Junior Brother, take martial uncle and go. This time, I’ll carve out a path for you no matter the cost. If I die, then help me take revenge on those enemies. That way, I can die without regret.”

As they fled, Ling Xuanzi's voice was unusually gentle and soft, like he was extolling his final wishes.

“Fourth Senior Brother! If we die, then we die together!”

Lin Xun’s eyes brimmed with blood as hatred and fury consumed him. In all his years of cultivation, he had never suffered a defeat as crushing as this. The overwhelming sense of powerlessness made his chest feel like it was about to burst.

“Nonsense! Martial Uncle Kong Jue gave everything for us. Do you want him to die in vain? Only if you survive can he still have a chance to live.” Ling Xuanzi’s expression remained calm, but a hint of self-mockery flickered in his eyes, “Back then, I was nothing but a scourge on Fangchun Mountain. I did a lot of foolish things. Whether it was Second Senior Brother Zhong Qiu, Third Senior Sister Ruo Su, or the other junior brothers and sisters...they all rejected me in their hearts.

“I don’t blame them. If I think about it now, I also want to slap my younger self. But no matter what, I, Ling Xuanzi, regard Fangchun Mountain as my home. Deep down, I would never harm my fellow disciples. Master knew this best. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have chosen to simply suppress me back then.

“Haha, does it sound like I’m rambling? It's just that I’ve kept these words buried in my heart for a long, long time. Maybe it’s true what they say...a person speaks from the heart when death draws near. If you see our senior and junior brothers and sisters, tell them this: I, Ling Xuanzi, may be a calamity, a sinner beyond redemption, and I don’t expect them to change how they see me, but in my heart, they’ve always been my family.” His voice gradually faded.

Lin Xun’s chest tightened. A storm of emotions churned inside him. Only then did he realize that even someone as proud and defiant as Fourth Senior Brother harbored guilt toward the fellow disciples of Fangchun Mountain!

He had truly changed, just as Martial Uncle Kong Jue had said. Those long years of suppression might have tempered his heart and forged a different man from before.

Clang!

The sharp, chilling sword hum rang out again, like a soul-reaping cry from the depths of hell. The moment it echoed, Ling Xuanzi was struck. A streak of sword qi shot across his back, tearing his skin and flesh, and spraying blood through the air.

He grunted from the pain, but his expression remained composed. Without pause, he continued teleporting through the void with Lin Xun.

Lin Xun had no idea how grave Ling Xuanzi’s wounds were, but his heart clenched with indescribable pain and hatred.

Who is it?!

Who the hell attacked?!

Lin Xun whipped his head around, his deep, black eyes blazing with fury, but there was no enemy in sight. Only a flying sword hovered in the depths of the universe. The blade was black as ink, like a weapon forged from pure darkness. Even across that vast distance, it emanated a terrifying, soul-piercing aura.

Faintly, behind the flying sword, stood a figure so vast and imposing that it seemed to blend into the void itself. Its aura blanketed the surrounding starry sky, terrifying beyond imagination.

Clang!

The sword hum rang again. A bone-piercing sound like wind slicing through the universe. Lin Xun’s vision flared with pain and he could no longer see.

However, he felt that Ling Xuanzi was struck once again. A spray of hot blood splattered across his face.

“Fourth Senior Brother!”

Lin Xun’s eyes flew wide open, and he saw Ling Xuanzi’s chest had been torn open from behind, his body on the verge of splitting apart. The injuries were horrific and perhaps beyond saving.

“It’s nothing. Just a scratch. It won't kill me. Little Junior Brother, look, we’re almost at Chaotian City.” Ling Xuanzi spoke softly, his expression calm as ever.

Ahead, the silhouette of Chaotian City finally emerged, veiled beneath a mysterious forbidden power. Even the apocalyptic shockwaves of the battle couldn’t shake it in the slightest. The mysterious forbidden power came from the law spirit Haotian.

Just then, at this moment, a figure appeared without warning, blocking Ling Xuanzi’s path. It was an old man, tall and imposing, with snow-white hair and clad in a feathered robe. His eyes carried the weight of countless years, and his entire body radiated immortal laws.

Fu Huaiqin!

If any cultivator from Chaotian City was here, they would recognize him instantly. He was an Immortal figure from the Fu Clan of the Eighth Heaven Domain.

Fu Huaiqin looked at Lin Xun and sighed deeply, “Originally, I hoped to recruit you into the Fu Clan, but unfortunately, you are from Fangchun Mountain. The world truly is unpredictable.”

“Get out of my way!”

Ling Xuanzi let out a thunderous roar and summoned the Dao Endless Pagoda, unleashing a terrifying momentum as if staking his life on the strike. Fu Huaiqin’s sleeves billowed as a verdant mountain peak took form between his fingers, swirling with an immortal aura unlike any other. From a distance, it blocked the strike.

Just as Ling Xuanzi was about to continue to advance, a streak of sword qi swept in from behind, severing his left arm in an instant. Blood gushed violently into the air. The blow sent him staggering, his qi surging in disarray as if might collapse at any moment.

His injuries were unimaginably severe, but even so, he still stood firm, shielding Lin Xun with his body!

Fu Huaiqin gazed into the depths of the universe, a trace of solemnity flickering in his eyes. He spoke aloud, “That was the Sword of Dao Judgment of the number one immortal giant, the Wang Clan. Even if I do nothing, I’m afraid you won't survive...”

The Wang Clan!

The number one immortal giant!

Sword of Dao Judgment!

Lin Xun silently engraved each word into his heart. His eyes turned bloodshot, brimming with hatred and rage.

If I survive this...I will repay this a hundredfold! A thousandfold!

“Little Junior Brother, it seems you won’t be able to enter Chaotian City after all. But behind Chaotian City is said to lie the path to the Eternal True Realm. As your senior brother, I’ll send you off now!”

As he spoke, blazing dao light erupted from him. His essence, qi and spirit all seemed to ignite at this moment.

“With my soul and spirit essence, I summon the Gate of the Infinite...” Above Ling Xuanzi’s head, an illusory gate suddenly emerged.

“Hmph!” Fu Huaiqin’s expression darkened. The verdant mountain peak howled through the heavens, crushing the void as it hurtled toward Ling Xuanzi. Who would have thought such a terrifying strike was forcibly stopped by the blazing dao light surrounding Ling Xuanzi, unable to advance even an inch.

“With my blood, I open the path of life and death...”

Ling Xuanzi’s expression was solemn as he uttered an obscure dao incantation. Though gravely wounded and at the brink of death, his handsome face remained incomparably calm. Endlessly blazing dao light surged around him like a vast ocean. In the blink of an eye, it swept Lin Xun into its embrace and hurled him toward the illusory gate.

In that moment, Lin Xun struggled with all his might, screaming hoarsely as he tried to stay behind, but it was futile. All he could do was watch helplessly as he was engulfed and swept into the gate.

“Fourth Senior Brother! If you die, I swear I’ll bury the Ten Immortal Giants with you!” Lin Xun’s voice was hoarse and hysterical, and his heart was consumed by boundless hatred and grief. He watched helplessly as his fourth senior brother sacrificed his life to carve out a path for him, and he didn’t even have the strength to refuse or fight back!

It felt like countless blades were tearing through his heart. The pain was unbearable like he was on the verge of collapse.

“Junior Brother, if there's an afterlife, may we all meet again!”

Ling Xuanzi gave a faint smile filled with relief. Then, he waved his hand.

Boom!

The gate suddenly transformed into a beam of light, ripping through the cosmic void before vanishing without a trace. Even though Fu Huaiqin had done everything in his power to stop it, it was all in vain, because this was a sliver of hope that Ling Xuanzi had bought with the price of his life!

Pu!

In the next instant, a ray of sword qi swept in from the distant void, cleaving through Ling Xuanzi’s body. His physical form exploded into pieces, and blood rained across the heavens. Only his primordial spirit remained, but it hovered on the verge of collapse.

Even then, he remained as calm and composed as ever. Clutching the Three Thousand Vicissitudes and the Dao Endless Pagoda that were both stained red with his blood, he murmured softly, “Master, I’ve always wanted to prove that my path was right, but now...it seems I’ll never get that chance...”

His primordial spirit dimmed and flickered, growing faint and illusory. His consciousness blurred, fading away bit by bit.

“You think you can just die like this? Impossible! I’ll imprison your primordial spirit and refine it into a treasure. Your fate will be worse than death!”

Furious that Lin Xun had escaped right under his nose, Fu Huaiqin’s face twisted with rage. He activated the verdant mountain once more, sending it hurtling toward Ling Xuanzi’s collapsing primordial spirit.

Boom!

Green light poured down like a tidal wave, and just as it was about to suppress and imprison Ling Xuanzi’s primordial spirit, the Dao Endless Pagoda, stained scarlet with his blood, suddenly released a deep, resonant hum.