Chapter 129: The Sword Comes from the West

Rumble!

A tyrannical aura emanated from that pile of flesh and blood, connecting the heavens, the earth, and the netherworld. It was forcibly grafting the Heavenly Soul and Earthly Soul of the white-haired elder, along with his karma and lifespan, in an attempt to break free from the shackles of death and live a second life.

This was a desecration of the Heavenly Dao, and a desecration of Fengdu.

Everyone present could feel it; the clouds of calamity were gathering, brewing a thunder tribulation—a supreme disaster was about to descend.

Clearly, one white-haired elder was not enough to satisfy the hunger of the flesh-demon. A tentacle swept forward, smashing the body of a Qi Practitioner into a pulp. With a single inhalation, it devoured his essence, blood, and both his Heavenly and Earthly souls.

The human-like figure on the demon's body corresponding to that Qi Practitioner transformed into a face, which was then stitched onto the demon, serving as a vessel to graft the souls.

The crowd was terrified; every human-like figure on the demon’s body was one of its sacrifices. Fear gripped them, and they desperately wanted to flee.

But in the next moment, the land for dozens of miles around was dragged into an ocean of yellowish-green pus. Countless skeletons sank into the depths, and terrifying inner and outer demons began to spawn within the mire.

"Everyone, unite! As long as we kill it, everything will be solved!"

Xu Zhong shouted, rallying the others. He swept a glance over the sinking ocean of rot. *Could it be that the sword scar was meant to suppress this flesh, and by refining it, I inadvertently helped break the seal?*

He shook his head, pushing these thoughts aside for the moment. Then, he summoned his Jade Ruyi.

Having cultivated a Golden Core, he could manipulate the size of the Jade Ruyi at will. He channeled his full power into it, and in an instant, the artifact expanded to tens of feet in length, continuing to grow in both size and width.

This Jade Ruyi was specifically designed to strike at the soul. Inner demons, being akin to souls, were vulnerable to it. Under Xu Zhong's control, it slammed directly into the ocean of rot.

The massive impact stirred up waves ten thousand feet high, causing the very body of the flesh-demon to tremble. It locked its gaze onto Xu Zhong immediately.

"You smell so delicious," it said, despite having no mouth. "Let me take a bite of you."

It had caught a rich, intoxicating fragrance. This scent seemed to emanate from within him—his Golden Core was emitting this alluring aroma.

In an instant, the flesh-demon began dragging its mountain-like frame toward Xu Zhong.

The other Qi Practitioners were overjoyed at this sight.

"You draw its fire, and we will open a path!" a young Qi Practitioner shouted to Xu Zhong, his arm newly reattached, still bearing the remnants of Xu Zhong’s sword intent. "I'll visit your grave in Fengdu come Qingming Festival."

As he spoke, he joined the others in searching for an escape route. Their spells rained down in waves—golden, yellow, purple, and crimson energies swirled over the ocean like a torrential, violent downpour. Yet, they failed to carve out a path.

On the other side, the flesh-demon closed in. Xu Zhong hurriedly unleashed his Purple Jade Gourd and opened its stopper.

Instantly, ten thousand sword energies erupted, flowing like a mighty, torrential river. This was no illusion; it was a river of sheer, concentrated power. Having attained the Golden Core, Xu Zhong could refine starlight and moonlight into a river of sword energy. The torrent that poured from the gourd descended like a celestial river.

The flesh-demon transformed, swallowing the entire celestial river in one gulp. Then, with a shudder of its body, all the various sword energies within it were completely refined into blood and vitality.

"Don't waste your effort," the flesh-demon sneered. "I am swift. One bite is all it takes to consume your Heavenly and Earthly souls and your Golden Core. I guarantee you won't feel a thing."

Seeing the Purple Jade Gourd was useless, Xu Zhong tossed out the Four Symbols Spirit Banners and channeled his full power: "You’ve never died like this yourself, so how would you know it’s painless?"

The Four Symbols Spirit Banners transformed into the Four Divine Beasts, appearing at the four poles of the ocean like pillars supporting the sky. They cordoned off the area, and under the suppression of the formation, the flesh-demon’s movements slowed to a crawl.

"So this is a treasure, too?"

No sooner had it spoken than a brilliant sword light flashed out. This sword art was similar to the white-haired elder's, yet far more powerful. A slight tremor of the blade stirred the winds and clouds, with visions of dragons and phoenixes descending from the sky.

Watching this strike, the "Light of Intuition" flickered within Xu Zhong’s Niwan Palace, sharpening his wisdom. He saw every texture of the strike clearly and grasped its changes almost entirely.

Thus, Xu Zhong unleashed the exact same strike.

In an instant, dragons and phoenixes converged, their momentum fierce and unstoppable, like a rainbow piercing the sun. It connected heaven and earth, spanning the southeast, churning the winds and clouds as the blade shook the firmament.

This sword art was named: *The Dragon Soars and the Phoenix Dances, Impossible to Contain!*

Xu Zhong’s cultivation level was inferior to the flesh-demon’s, but the latter’s sword mastery could not compare to his. At that moment, Xu Zhong’s sword energy surpassed the opponent’s. It spiraled upward, coiling like a dragon, and tore a massive chunk of flesh from the demon. As the flesh hit the ground, it was instantly annihilated by the erupting sword light, like a phoenix wielding fire.

The flesh-demon frowned slightly and unleashed the white-haired elder's second strike. This technique had two manifestations: one was the erratic gathering and dispersing of wind, the other was the way of water—nurturing all things while containing the cycle of life and death.

The demon struck, but Xu Zhong quickly learned it, improved it, and even added his own refinements.

He delivered his own strike, and instantly, a gale rose from the ocean, the hurricane whipping up ten-thousand-foot waves with a roar that seemed to swallow the sky.

This strike was named: *Wind and Waves Shake the Earth, Autumn on the Sea and Mountains.*

The flesh-demon’s sword art was effortlessly dismantled by Xu Zhong. It struck again, and again, Xu Zhong neutralized every move.

*Strange,* Xu Zhong mused. *It knows its sword mastery is inferior to mine, yet it keeps feeding me moves without tiring?*

After dozens of rounds, the opponent repeated only a few sword techniques, lacking any systematic structure and mixing two different sword styles.

*Could it be that it possesses no Dao of its own, and only gains these techniques by eating people?* Xu Zhong’s eyes darted around. *In that case, as long as I prevent it from eating anyone else, I can curb its arts.*

A spark of joy rose in his heart. *Once that’s done, finding its weakness and a way out of here will be easy.*

But the flesh-demon retreated at that moment.

By now, the calamity had descended upon it. Thunderclouds churned overhead, and the purple lightning was the wrath of the Heavenly Dao. To be struck down by purple thunder was, in itself, a mark of distinction.

"I’ll eat the others first, then come back for you!"

It grew impatient. A flying sword swirled out from its mouth, unleashing streams of brilliant light. The Qi Practitioners, caught off guard while searching for an exit, were struck by the blades. In the next instant, their flesh was harvested by the tentacles, and their souls were fused into the demon.

A golden light flashed in the flesh-demon’s eyes. It waved a hand, manifesting a "Painting of Mountains and Rivers." Every mountain, every river, every blade of grass and tree within the painting was made of sword energy. The painting descended, crushing everything beneath it.

The young man who had spoken to Xu Zhong earlier managed to resist for two breaths before being crushed to dust by the painting. Only his soul managed to escape his body, only to be swallowed by the flesh-demon in the next heartbeat.

Seeing this, the others were terrified, but they quickly regained their senses and unleashed their ultimate techniques, attacking the demon in unison.

"If you had done this earlier, so many wouldn't have had to die," Xu Zhong sighed. He summoned his Cloud-Swallowing Sword. A white light rose, streaking across the east, as the mountains, rivers, and bright moon pressed down upon a single line.

This was what Xu Zhong had learned: *The Southeast Remains the Pillar of the Golden Heavens.*

This strike followed, piercing the demon’s many tentacles. Sensing the danger, the demon retracted them, but the line of sword light tracked its path, unerringly burying itself into the demon’s body and shattering the tentacles to pieces.

The other attacks were all absorbed by the flesh-demon. It ignored Xu Zhong, focusing solely on slaughtering the others.

"Damn it! How is this monster unkillable?" a female Qi Practitioner with striking features cried out, her eyes flashing with anger.

As she spoke, she summoned a mirror. Within it lay a bright moon and a sun, a scene of Yin and Yang in embrace. Instantly, the two energies merged into a breath of Chaos, evolving into a chaotic world.

The flesh-demon stepped into that chaotic world, effectively entering the mirror's dimension.

"If I can't kill you, at least I can suppress you!"

The female Qi Practitioner was jubilant as she reached for the mirror, only to hear Xu Zhong shout: "Retreat, quickly!"

As the words left his lips, the mirror hanging before her shook violently. Cracks spiderwebbed across its surface, and the chaotic world began to collapse.

The woman was panicked and lost, her mind blank; she failed to escape in time. In the next moment, she was swallowed by the flesh-demon.

"That's a nice technique."

After digesting her, the flesh-demon excitedly unleashed a spell. Lacking a mirror, it used the ocean of pus as a reflecting surface.

Suddenly, an irresistible force of law surged over the ocean. It was a power of creation—the sun, moon, mountains, and rivers emerged in an instant. A great sun and a bright moon hung in the sky, while the clear and turbid separated, spreading across ten thousand miles of mountains and rivers.

With this spell, it bundled all the remaining Qi Practitioners into its mirror-world. It effortlessly kneaded the ten-thousand-mile landscape into a pill the size of a fingernail.

Just as it was about to swallow it, hoping to use the energy to withstand the rolling thunder of the tribulation, a dazzling sword light arrived from the west, piercing the flesh-demon’s body.

The sword energy expanded and exploded. Countless threads of light shredded the demon, scattering its flesh across the ground. Then, Samadhi True Fire descended, refining the remains and purifying them into a single pill.

The swordsman then looked at the pill created by the mirror spell and flicked his sword lightly.

The world within the pill expanded once more.

Xu Zhong and the others were still alive.

The moment they reappeared, they saw the white-clad swordsman sheathing his blade. The flesh-demon was so thoroughly destroyed that not even a trace of its body remained.

The calamity had dissipated, and the thunderclouds were being replaced by a crimson glow.

A Qi Practitioner looked toward the direction where the white-clad swordsman had vanished, seemingly having recognized him. He sighed: "So, it was Chen Taifeng, the White-Clad Sword Ghost."