Chapter 977: The Immortal Demon (I)

"This isn't how we planned it!"

The sand dune in the desert was the meeting point that the Noble Dharma and Evil Ksitigarbha had agreed on before he escaped from Mount Shu. Although the two had met here as planned, the process had been far more complicated than expected.

"It actually makes sense that Mount Shu would send reinforcements. After the destruction of the Celestial Pivot Pavilion, it would’ve been strange if the sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten didn’t respond at all," the Noble Dharma said with a smile. "You said a brink-of-ascension cultivator wouldn’t be a problem, but I didn’t think you’d get beaten this badly by the Dao Master of Incinerating Heaven."

Evil Ksitigarbha stood across from Noble Dharma. His face was scorched, and cracks ran across his body, making him appear more battered and wretched than ever before.

It was all because of the newly ascended Dao Master of Incinerating Heaven, who had arrived alongside the reinforcements from Mount Shu.

Her attacks had been utterly ruthless.

The overwhelming divine fire of Samadhi struck just as Evil Ksitigarbha was at his weakest, nearly burning him beyond recovery.

Of course, part of it was his own fault. He had assumed he could easily possess the Azure Dragon and take the East Sea Chrono Wheel without anyone noticing. Unexpectedly, the Azure Dragon managed to force him out of the possession state and expose his presence, leaving him with no choice but to launch an attack.

𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

And that was how he got caught by Di Nufeng.

Evil Ksitigarbha had only succeeded because the Azure Dragon’s Great Dao was incompatible with the East Sea Chrono Wheel. If Daoist Cangsheng had still been alive, there was a chance he could have suppressed Evil Ksitigarbha by channeling the power of the Great Dao of Infinity through the East Sea Chrono Wheel.

It now seemed clear that the Demon God had weakened Evil Ksitigarbha far more than it first appeared. Then again, that was to be expected. After all, he had defeated the only ninth-realm cultivator in the world. Paying a heavy price for that kind of victory was only natural.

"Once I recover, I will wipe out every last member of the Mount Shu Sect," Evil Ksitigarbha growled. "No, my goal is to erase this entire realm. I’ll trap that woman’s soul and torment her for a thousand years. Not even death will bring her peace."

If a ninth-realm cultivator had been the one to suppress him, he wouldn’t have been this furious. But being beaten down by someone at the eighth realm was what made it so humiliating.

On top of that, the sting of shame had already begun to twist into rage.

He had boasted to the Noble Dharma that he was powerful enough to crush beings on the brink of ascending to the ninth realm. Of course, that had only been to scare the Noble Dharma into submission and keep any rebellious thoughts at bay. In reality, Evil Ksitigarbha had barely survived his battle with the Demon God. With injuries that severe, how could he possibly recover so quickly?

He thought handling someone like the Azure Dragon wouldn’t expose anything. But the moment Di Nufeng showed up, she completely tore through his cover.

He had no choice but to reveal that he was there. With the Demon God dead, the beings on the brink of ascension were all scrambling to ascend. Once a new ninth-realm being was born, Evil Ksitigarbha would be permanently trapped in the mortal realm. Right now, he no longer had the strength to fight another ninth-realm opponent.

The sudden appearance of the Noble Dharma had come at just the right moment. It was exactly what Evil Ksitigarbha needed to resolve his crisis.

If this man could really help him recover quickly, then so what if he had to help eliminate the other contenders?

Naturally, Evil Ksitigarbha still planned to kill every brink-of-ascension being, and the Noble Dharma would simply be the last one on the list.

Evil Ksitigarbha knew perfectly well that the Noble Dharma had his own hidden agenda. Nevertheless, if the Noble Dharma wanted to defeat the other brink-of-ascension cultivators in the race to become the next Hallowed One, he would have to rely on the power of Evil Ksitigarbha.

Evil Ksitigarbha was certain of one thing. Once the Noble Dharma ascended and became a Hallowed One, the first thing he would do was kill him.

The malice between them was clear and mutual. In a twisted sense, both of them were honest with each other.

"Let’s talk about the rest later. Give me the Chrono Wheel," the Noble Dharma said. "If I use the Great Dao of Infinity to activate the East Sea Chrono Wheel, I can reverse the time on your body to the moment before the battle at Mount Shu, and you’ll be back at your peak. But with your cultivation so high, doing this will drain nearly all of my spiritual energy."

"As long as you can help me recover my strength, you won’t even need to lift a finger. So why worry about running out of spiritual energy?" Evil Ksitigarbha replied, flicking his palm sharply. "Killing those brink-of-ascension cultivators will be as easy as reaching into a bag."

Evil Ksitigarbha was not exaggerating. If he truly returned to his peak, killing a few brink-of-ascension cultivators would be a simple matter. Back in the netherworld, even the Ten Ghost Kings, who were comparable to brink-of-ascension cultivators, had been completely helpless against him.

The Noble Dharma gave Evil Ksitigarbha a long, steady look before speaking in a gloomy voice. "I hope you’re not lying to me."

Evil Ksitigarbha thumped his chest heavily, then raised three fingers. "I swear on the lives of all my blood kin."

The Noble Dharma paused to think for a moment, then asked, "Do celestial devils even have blood kin?"

"Hurry up already!" Evil Ksitigarbha snapped. "Why are you spouting so much nonsense? You think you can do this on your own?"

"Fine..." the Noble Dharma said. He took the East Sea Chrono Wheel, drew a deep breath, and began channeling the power of the Great Dao of Infinity.

Like the Azure Dragon, he had comprehended the Great Dao of Infinity, but he was not the master of this Great Dao. As a result, his control over the Chrono Wheel and the power he could draw from it were much more limited. However, his cultivation base was far deeper. As long as he was willing to overdraw his spiritual energy, he could still force the Chrono Wheel to produce the desired effect.

Whooooooooooosh!

The East Sea Chrono Wheel hovered in midair as a beam of light shot forth, striking Evil Ksitigarbha and wrapping him in a swirling vortex of time. His lifespan began to drain at an alarming rate.

Evil Ksitigarbha immediately sensed something was wrong. Red light burst from his eyes as he roared, "You’re trying to kill me!"

He began to struggle violently, trying to break free from the vortex. But the Noble Dharma flicked his finger, summoning the Celestial Cosmic Ring. A glowing circle appeared and locked tightly around Evil Ksitigarbha, holding him in place.

With the Chrono Wheel and Cosmic Ring working together, Evil Ksitigarbha stood no chance of breaking free in his current condition!

"Argh!" Evil Ksitigarbha roared, once again staring death in the face.

As a celestial devil from the higher realms, when had he ever suffered such humiliation? Yet in just a few short days, he had been driven to the brink of death again and again.

"Stop!" Evil Ksitigarbha cried out.

Seeing that the Noble Dharma showed no intention of stopping, and that his flickering life force was moments away from burning out, he finally began to beg. "I’ll serve you as your slave. Just spare my life!"

The Noble Dharma let out a cold laugh. "Do you really think I’d believe you?"

"Argh! Why? Why?!" Evil Ksitigarbha screamed again, slamming himself against the barrier created by the Cosmic Ring.

"You’re still asking why?" the Noble Dharma said coldly, a glint of ice flashing in his eyes. "Don’t I look even the slightest bit familiar to you?"

"Huh?" Evil Ksitigarbha looked confused, unable to understand why such a question had been asked.

"Have you really never wondered how I managed to open the seal?" the Noble Dharma asked coldly. "It was hidden in a secret location unknown to anyone in the human realm, guarded by layer upon layer of safeguards. And yet I found it. Do you truly not recognize who I am?"

"Ah..." Evil Ksitigarbha raised a trembling hand and pointed at the Noble Dharma. "You’re that monk from back then!"

...