Chapter 976: Death God Sickle
Although Xiao Chen had the Reincarnation Lamp, he did not dare to be careless.
However, there was good news. Gongsun Hualong and Mister Wei had managed to injure this Golden Bone Demonic Soul. So it was no longer in its peak condition.
“Whoosh!”
Xiao Chen’s figure flashed and blocked the Golden Bone Demonic Soul, which was preparing to charge at Xiao Bai. With one wave of its hand, the huge sickle in the grim Golden Bone Demonic Soul’s hand turned into a dim light flying at him.
Fast! Only the word “fast” appeared in Xiao Chen’s mind. He quickly circulated his energy and materialized the Flawless saber Dao, using his body as a saber, his palm as a saber.
Xiao Chen hacked with his palm, blocking the Golden Bone Demonic Soul’s huge sickle in the time it took for a spark to fly.
Dense, extremely pure Death Qi surged out.
At this instant, the saber intent that Xiao Chen gathered on his body shattered upon contact with the energy from the sickle.
A strange light flashed in Xiao Chen’s eyes. He quickly switched moves, using his palm as a saber and his shoulder as the saber tip. When strength was insufficient, technique made up for it.
Xiao Chen struck the sickle with his palm, and his shoulder became like the tip of a saber, shining flawlessly bright as he crashed towards the Golden Bone Demonic Soul’s chest.
“Bang!” Golden Bone Demonic Soul went flying back a kilometer with several broken ribs.
As expected, the broken ribs on the Golden Bone Demonic Soul reconnected in the time it took for one to blink.
This ridiculous ability put even Xiao Chen’s healing ability to shame.
Seeing the Golden Bone Demonic Soul about to charge over again, Xiao Chen suppressed the Death Qi in his body. Then, he glared and tossed out the Reincarnation Lamp.
He flicked out a drop of essence blood from his fingertip and ignited the lamp wick. An illusory sagely figure in the light started reading the Sin Cleansing Scripture.
The ancient scripture contained the power to cleanse sins and hence the impure soul of the Golden Bone Demonic Soul.
The body of the Golden Bone Demonic Soul instantly created two illusory figures of different colors—one black and one white. Clearly, they represented good and evil. An intense battle between the two sides began.
One sought to free itself from worldly concerns; the other sought to sink into depravity.
Xiao Chen paled slightly. This was his first time meeting a Phantom that struggled so strongly. The Sin Cleansing Scripture that the figure in the Reincarnation Lamp read seemed incapable of suppressing this demon.
His heart sank. He could not help but increase the speed of his Law Energy’s circulation. Rings of purple light slowly appeared behind him. The swaying flame in the Reincarnation Lamp’s wick flared.
Xiao Chen lowered his head and looked down. Xiao Bai was waving at him, having already obtained the Icy Snow Flame.
Yuan Xu and Kong Yuan were waving as well. They already dealt with the severely injured and weakened Gongsun Hualong.
“Given my strength, I will not be able to settle it any time soon. I should not care about it for now,” Xiao Chen muttered to himself.
His gaze wandered all over the Golden Bone Demonic Soul. The battle between the black and white figures already reached an incandescent level.
Sometimes, the good side would be ahead. The Golden Bone Demonic Soul gave off a gentle aura when that happened. Sometimes, the evil side would come out ahead, a vast baleful aura soaring into the sky.
Good and evil swapped positions multiple times. Xiao Chen seized the opportunity when the good side of the Golden Bone Demonic Soul held the advantage. He opened his hand and pulled back the Reincarnation Lamp before turning around and flying off.
“Let’s go!”
Xiao Chen summoned out the Eight Ghost Palanquin. Xiao Bai and the others had already been waiting for very long. Their figures flashed as they quickly entered. He controlled the Eight Ghost Palanquin to speed towards the center of the island.
After losing the Reincarnation Lamp’s power to cleanse sins, the benevolence that came from the Golden Bone Demonic Soul lasted for a few moments before vanishing, never to appear again.
When the Golden Bone Demonic Soul saw the empty mound nearby, it roared furiously and ran amuck, destroying its surroundings.
One kilometer away, two figures descended. Qing Cheng and an azure-robed old man, who had been silently following Xiao Chen’s group, appeared in the air. When they saw the berserk Golden Bone Demonic Soul, they were astonished.
“No wonder Young Miss is looking at this person in a new light. If that Secret Treasure of his lands in the hands of the Ghost Monarch, it would be a disaster,” the old man said, flabbergasted.
Qing Cheng frowned and did not say anything. She just emerged from a month of closed-door cultivation. The moment she entered the eighth layer of purgatory, she saw the entire forest burning.
She also felt the undying Phantoms in Last Breath Lake disappear. It was like a miracle. All the Phantoms in Last Breath Lake were cleansed.
Qing Cheng was astounded. She had forgotten that Xiao Chen had that Secret Treasure. Moreover, she had not expected it to be able to burst forth with such horrifying power.
Smiling, the azure-robed old man continued, “He used a will clone to kill Mo Lian and offended Xie Zixuan. He has already completely offended the Ghost Monarch’s faction. This gives us the chance to pull him over to our side.”
Qing Cheng nodded slightly and asked, “Have you obtained the Soul Returning Grass yet?”
“Yes, Jiang Chengzi handed it to me while Young Miss was in closed-door cultivation.”
The azure-robed old man took out a brocade box and opened it, revealing a jade-green stalk of Soul Returning Grass.
Qing Cheng received it and revealed a satisfied smile on her face. She said, “You may go back. I plan to go to the Yellow Springs Road alone together with them.”
“Young Miss, no one has gone to the Yellow Springs Road for many years already. We do not know what danger is there. Let this old man accompany you there,” the azure-robed old man said worriedly.
However, Qing Cheng did not seem to care. “I already came over to Last Breath Lake. What danger can there be at Yellow Springs Road? If there is any, I’ll just return. I have long wanted to see whether reincarnation still exists on the other side of the Bridge of Helplessness.”
Seeing her so insistent, the azure-robed old man did not say anything more. He took his leave.
---
Inside the Eight Ghost Palanquin, Xiao Bai felt very excited. They managed to kill a great grandmaster-level Martial Sage without even a scratch. This was something that they had never dared to imagine at all.
Xiao Chen’s emotions were fluctuating slightly as well. Things were moving along more smoothly than he anticipated. The only drawback was that he used the Supreme Sky Emperor’s will clone.
However, he did not regret doing so.
When facing a great grandmaster-level Martial Sage, a will clone had the absolute strength to kill one. However, there was no guarantee when facing a quasi-Emperor. Furthermore, it could only be used once.
If the Taiji Yinyang Flame Diagram could be improved on and executed, Xiao Chen would still be able to defend himself against great grandmaster-level Martial Sages as well.
Although the Taiji Yinyang Flame Diagram was not as tyrannical as the will clone, which could burst a great grandmaster-level Martial Sage with one strike, it had no limit in usage.
Xiao Chen felt that using a will clone in exchange for the Icy Snow Flame was totally worth it. Furthermore, they earned a lot. At the very least, Mister Wei had several good Medicinal Pills, benefiting the group.
“Elder Brother Xiao Chen, the Icy Snow Flame.”
Xiao Bai giggled as she held out a clump of liquid-ice-like Icy Snow Flame on her jade-white palm, looking extremely beautiful.
“Be careful. This flame has dense cold Qi. Elder Brother Xiao Chen, don’t get injured by it.”
Xiao Chen smiled faintly. His left eye contained a flame that was even colder than this.
With a thought, the Lunar True Flame in Xiao Chen’s left eye started spinning, forming a whirlpool. Then, it sucked the Icy Snow Flame into his eye.
Xiao Chen removed his shoes and sat cross-legged on the big bed in the palanquin. Then, he closed his eyes and started to let the Lunar True Flame slowly consume this Icy Snow Flame.
Kong Yuan and Yuan Xu, who were currently sorting out and counting the wealth in Mister Wei’s, Mo Lian’s, and Gongsun Hualong’s spatial rings, revealed shock on their faces when they saw that.
“He actually dares to consume the Icy Snow Flame in such a rough manner? What is that white flame in his left eye?” Kong Yuan asked, feeling confused.
Yuan Xu had a grave expression as he replied, “If I saw right, it is surely the Lunar True Flame. Furthermore, it even condensed an Origin Flame.”
Lunar True Flame!
Xiao Bai and Kong Yuan were both startled. Solar and Lunar, these were the two kinds of flames that were the strongest under heaven. If one could obtain just a clump of either of these two flames, one would be extremely lucky.
It was truly unbelievable that Xiao Chen hid so much Lunar True Flame in his left eye, even condensing an Origin Flame.
Kong Yuan sighed and said, “I have been astonished too many times these days. I’m already starting to be numb to this.
“In the past, if someone told me that it was possible to snatch treasures so easily from a great grandmaster-level Martial Sage, I would not have believed it even if you beat me to death. However, this truly happened today. I have no choice but to believe.”
Yuan Xu smiled faintly, his charming face showing a noncommittal expression. He understood Kong Yuan’s frustration. They were all outstanding talents, but the gap between them and Xiao Chen was too big.
On the other hand, Xiao Bai smiled warmly. She thought to herself, I still have to put in more effort. The distance between Elder Brother Xiao Chen and me increased again.
Half a day later, Xiao Chen opened his eyes. He already finished consuming the Icy Snow Flame. Now, he really wanted to find a place to test this strength out, to see if he could achieve a balance between Yin and Yang to execute the Taiji Yinyang Flame Diagram.
However, he still had even more important things to do. He could only give up on this thought for now since they already arrived at the Gates of Hell.
Xiao Chen put away the Eight Ghost Palanquin, and the group slowly descended, sizing up the Gates of Hell before them as they did so.
There was a black signboard made from ten-thousand-year-old ancient wood. Above an inscribed tablet in the middle were three scarlet words—“Gates of Hell”—written in cursive that radiated Death Qi with every stroke.
A barrier of black light covered the entryway, blocking out the world behind the gates. According to rumor, after stepping through these gates, one would leave the world of the living and enter the Yellow Springs Road, never to return.
There was no one near the Gates of Hell. A mysterious oppressive aura made everyone feel uncomfortable.
“Let’s go in!”
Xiao Chen took the lead, ready to enter the Gates of Hell. As a bladesman, he feared nothing. There was no need for him to overthink the situation, not daring to advance or retreat.
Since the group had to enter sooner or later, and they could not figure out anything about the Gates of Hell, there was nothing wrong with openly walking in.
However, just as he was about to step in, he stopped right before the Gates of Hell.
Xiao Bai felt confused. She asked, “Elder Brother Xiao Chen, what’s wrong?”
Xiao Chen looked back and replied calmly, “Someone is rushing over.”
“Hehe! Young Master Xiao is really bold. Do you need a partner for the Yellow Springs Road?”
A peal of silvery laughter rang out. Qing Cheng suddenly floated down, wearing a red dress.
Everyone’s eyes lit up. They had not expected her to make another appearance, especially near the Yellow Springs Road that she was unwilling to visit.
“Whoosh!”
After Qing Cheng landed, she tossed out a brocade box. Xiao Chen caught it. When he opened it, he found that it contained one of the three items he sought—the Soul Returning Grass.
“What do you mean by this?”
Xiao Chen looked suspiciously at the other party. He could not tell what Qing Cheng was thinking.
Qing Cheng giggled and said, “What’s wrong? You don’t need it? Given your brains, you probably already figured out that meeting Mo Lian and Xie Zixuan was my setup.
“You have already completely offended the Ghost Monarch’s faction. There will definitely be a battle between Ghost Empress Xi Xun and the Ghost Monarch. When that happens, I believe you know which side to stand on.”
Xiao Chen thought very quickly. Now he knew what Qing Cheng was planning. She was forcing him to choose her side.
The expressions of Xiao Bai, Kong Yuan, and Yuan Xu all changed slightly. Now, their gazes towards Qing Cheng turned somewhat hostile.