Chapter 951: Virtue, Good, and Evil (II)

Just as the city stood on the verge of collapse, the first legendary artifact from the outside finally arrived.

The moment Evil Ksitigarbha revealed himself, the Imperial Supervisory Bureau realized that this was a crisis they could not face alone. They sent a call for aid to the sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten. With the help of the Circle of Immortal Friends Token, communication between the sects had become far more efficient than in the past.

After receiving the message, some immortal sects hesitated, while others were simply too far away to respond in time. The Endless Sword Sect of the Northern Regions was the closest to the Central Region, so it was the first to arrive.

The blazing Chunyang Sword had taken on a radiant form that was even taller and bigger than the city walls, and Sword Saint Old Li Ba was standing on it. With his full strength gathered, he charged straight ahead, aiming to cleave Evil Ksitigarbha in two.

For the first time, Evil Ksitigarbha no longer dismissed the attack. Yet, even so, he did not dodge. Instead, he made a sharp twist, and with incredible speed, he delivered a powerful kick to the sword’s blade.

Boooooooooooom!

While Old Li Ba was still standing on the Chunyang Ancient Sword, the entire sword was struck down and slammed into the ground. With Evil Ksitigarbha’s power already nearing the ninth realm, a cultivator at the eighth-and-a-half realm could no longer hold any advantage. Evil Ksitigarbha was so strong that he could totally face a legendary artifact head-on without being forced to retreat.

Seeing Old Li Ba seriously injured, the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner and Mingde immediately launched attacks at the Evil Ksitigarbha. Their goal was to draw his attention away, giving Old Li Ba time to recover and regroup.

But how could anyone who had drawn Evil Ksitigarbha’s wrath expect to escape unscathed?

Hundreds of beams of moonlight sword qi struck all at once, converging on a single point. For the first time, Evil Ksitigarbha stopped moving, and a thin crack appeared on his chest. But even then, not a single drop of blood could be seen.

Just as Evil Ksitigarbha locked onto the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner with his flow of qi, Mingde made a move. Since the barrier formed by the Panyang Ancient Jade had already been destroyed, he gathered all of the jade’s remaining spiritual energy and shaped it into a bow and arrow.

He drew the bow and released the shot. The arrow, forged entirely from Samadhi True Fire, cut through the sky like a rainbow piercing the sun!

The arrow flew straight toward the spot the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner had damaged just moments earlier. The supreme flames of the mortal world surged into Evil Ksitigarbha’s body. Even a celestial devil of a higher realm could not withstand the searing pain brought on by the Samadhi True Fire.

"Roooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaar!"

Evil Ksitigarbha let out a furious roar. The crack on his chest had darkened into a scorched black patch, and faint traces of black-gold blood were visible.

He was finally injured and bleeding!

After enduring a full round of coordinated attacks from the strongest cultivators in the capital of Yu, he had finally taken damage. But the injury only ignited an even greater rage within him!

His massive body flickered and turned into a specter in midair. For a figure so large to move with such incredible speed, there could be no doubt that his physical vessel was monstrously powerful.

Mingde was still holding the fire bow he had conjured and was preparing to fire another arrow when Evil Ksitigarbha suddenly disappeared from view. In his place, a heavy darkness appeared overhead. It was like the sun was gone!

Sensing the danger overhead, Mingde immediately dismissed the fire bow and summoned a red, mountain-shaped jade to shield himself.

It was the divine heirloom of the imperial Xia Family—the Panyang Ancient Jade!

Evil Ksitigarbha slammed his enraged fist downward. The Panyang Ancient Jade rose to block the blow, but a sharp crack rang out, and the jade shattered almost instantly. Even as the strongest enchanted artifact beneath legendary status, it still could not withstand the full force of Evil Ksitigarbha’s strike.

Boooooom!

That punch drove both the Panyang Ancient Jade and Mingde deep into the ground, burying them dozens of zhang beneath the surface. No trace of Mingde’s qi could be sensed, and whether he had survived remained unknown.

However, Evil Ksitigarbha had no time to pursue and deliver the finishing blow as two legendary artifacts had arrived to reinforce the battlefield.

A massive bronze wheel rolled out of the clouds, stirring up fierce heavenly winds. At the same time, a colossal figure clad in vajra armor descended from the sky, standing just as tall as Evil Ksitigarbha himself.

With a thunderous boom, the brothers of the Great Astral Sect made their entrance.

Lu Jiuwai, the leader of the sect, stood at the front, clad in the Xuanhuang Battle Armor. His eyes burned with excitement. A legendary artifact was not something that could be used at will. Every generation of sect leaders dreamed of wearing the armor into battle, but not all of them were given the chance.

In recent days, Lu Jiuwai had already taken part in several major battles while wearing the Xuanhuang Battle Armor, and now, his blood surged with battle fervor once again.

The one who tore through the void atop the East Sea Chrono Wheel was the Noble Azure Dragon, the guardian celestial beast of the Penglai Supreme Sect. Since the master of the Great Dao of Infinity had yet to emerge, the Penglai Supreme Sect lacked a strong wielder for its legendary artifact. Although the Noble Azure Dragon had also comprehended the Great Dao of Infinity and could operate the Chrono Wheel, his power remained limited, so he could only provide support from the flanks.

As soon as Lu Jiuwai landed in his Xuanhuang Battle Armor, he launched into a lock-and-throw technique, seizing the Evil Ksitigarbha by the throat and waist. With overwhelming force, he slammed him into the ground, leveling entire sections of the city with a thunderous crash.

Though the impact had not caused serious damage, it was the first time Evil Ksitigarbha had been knocked off his feet since his arrival.

"Roar!" he bellowed in fury, and a terrifying burst of demonic flame erupted from his body.

Sizzleeeeeeeee!

The Xuanhuang Battle Armor began to sizzle under the heat of the flame, giving off strange, eerie sounds. The armor itself stayed intact, but Lu Jiuwai inside could no longer hold on.

The poisonous fire burned his body, and pain spread through him. He clenched his teeth and quickly pulled back to create distance.

The Evil Ksitigarbha was not just physically powerful! It possessed an unimaginable level of spiritual energy! He did have the ability to use divine techniques, but the earlier battles simply hadn’t been worthy of such power.

At that moment, all the Eminent Ones and legendary artifacts surrounding him were struck by the same thought.

If the world were to face even one more creature like this, how could it possibly survive?

...

Whoooooosh!

After taking a direct hit from Evil Ksitigarbha, the Guardian Ruler had no time to tend to his wounds, nor to search for the crown prince. He grabbed the Emperor of the Yu Dynasty, leapt onto the back of the Golden Crow's Soul Essence, and streaked out of the capital in a blaze of light.

With the speed of the Golden Crow’s Soul Essence, it would not take long for him to reach Mount Shu. The Demon God was stationed there, so at the very least, Evil Ksitigarbha would not be able to kill whoever he wanted.

It was ironic. The Demon God, the existence that the entire world sought to kill, had now become humanity’s only hope for survival.

Yet, the firelight never reached the Southern Regions. It stopped abruptly, not far from the capital.

Though the Guardian Ruler was severely injured, his spirit sense remained sharp in the face of danger. He detected a faint ripple of spiritual energy in the night sky ahead and brought the Golden Crow’s Soul Essence to an abrupt stop before carefully scanning the area around them.

"As expected of the Guardian Ruler. Even while gravely wounded, you remain so alert," a soft voice praised from within the darkness.

The dark sky ahead began to ripple and distort. A massive ring, stretching from the heavens to the earth, slowly took shape. The glowing ring gradually shrank, becoming no larger than a bracelet, and through it, the silhouette of a figure appeared.

It was an old man’s face, still carrying a trace of divine presence. This was someone the Guardian Ruler had met before.

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

He was the Noble Dharma, the revered figure of the Holy Mountain in the Northern Regions and a saint renowned throughout the nine provinces.

That glowing ring from moments ago had been the Celestial Cosmic Ring. If the Guardian Ruler had been even slightly careless and flown into it, he would have been pulled straight into Noble Dharma’s domain. Escaping from there would not have been easy.

As the Golden Crow continued to beat its wings, the Guardian Ruler fixed the Noble Dharma with a sharp, hostile gaze. After a moment of silence, he spoke, "Your appearance here now can only mean one thing. That so-called death of yours was part of a scheme from the very beginning."

"We cultivators seek nothing but the Great Dao. What schemes could I possibly be planning?" the Noble Dharma replied with a calm smile.

"If you're only contending for the Dao, then we have no reason to stop you," the Guardian Ruler said with a deep frown.

"I have no intention of making an enemy of the Guardian Ruler," the Noble Dharma replied as he turned to look at the emperor beside him. "But as for the Emperor of the Yu Dynasty... Your Majesty, I’m afraid you’ll have to endure a bit of suffering."

The emperor stood calmly atop the Golden Crow’s back with his hands folded behind him. He had already guessed that this man had come for him. In a composed voice, he asked, "I have always held you in the highest regard. May I ask what has led to today’s outcome?"

"Your Majesty did nothing wrong. The blame lies with me," the Noble Dharma said with a long sigh. "You cannot imagine how many years I spent in closed-door cultivation, seeking enlightenment. In the end, I came to understand that there is no such thing as good or evil in this world. Immortality, enlightenment, and power over heaven and earth are not given freely. They must be taken by force.

"I spent my life walking the path of a Buddhist, only to realize at the edge of death that mercy and virtue do not truly exist. Spiritual energy is granted by the heavens and the earth, but the ability to seize it is a skill. To survive until the end is what defines righteousness. And in order to keep living, I committed many evil deeds, far more than the good I had done in the first half of my life."

"Exactly," a mocking voice echoed from behind the Guardian Ruler.

Lin Poyun stepped into view and blocked the Golden Crow’s path of retreat.

He continued, "This old man calls himself a saint, but he’s taken more lives than I ever have."

"All that nonsense, and what, you just want a fight?" the Guardian Ruler scoffed. "You two mangy strays think you're enough?"

Calling them mangy strays was not just an insult; it was an accurate description. Both the Noble Dharma and Lin Poyun had lost their homes and could no longer return to the Holy Mountain of the Northern Regions or the Dark King Sect.

The Guardian Ruler's uncanny ability to deliver the most precise insult in the shortest time was truly one of his defining skills..

This seemed to be a trait passed down from generations among the members of the imperial Xia Family.

A third voice then echoed from the void. "Are you still so blind to who the real strays are, Guardian Ruler?"

While that voice sounded, another streak of light flew in from the direction of the capital.

As the glow faded, it revealed an elderly figure in gray robes.

The Guardian Ruler recognized the face immediately.

The elderly figure was the Celestial Master of the Celestial Charm Sect.

"Everything went well in the capital. No one can stop Evil Ksitigarbha..." he said as he came to a halt in midair. Then he turned to the Noble Dharma and greeted with respect. "Esteemed Teacher."