ATAVID CH111

The further they walked into Tiandu City, the more numerous the resentful spirits became.

This time, Jiang Qunyu would not allow Wei Xun to do a thing. He cast his red sickle outward, and a sky full of crimson flowing light suddenly cascaded down, carrying a gentle sword intent. As the resentful spirits struggled to escape it, Jiang Qunyu commanded the sprite to take those spirits into its body.

The sprite regretted this immensely: “If I had known, I wouldn’t have told you earlier!”

Jiang Qunyu let out a chuckle, pinching its wings and placing it on the red sickle: “A quarter of an hour ago, if you hadn’t spoken up about your ability to dissolve the obsessions of these resentful spirits just to gain a bit of attention, Wei Xun and I wouldn’t even have known you had this use.”

With that, Jiang Qunyu retracted his smile and focused his mind, raising his hand to cast the red sickle far out once more.

The crimson light pierced through the gloomy sky as the red sickle spun in a sharp, sweeping arc through the air, instantly enclosing and trapping all the scattered, fleeing resentful spirits within its bounds.

With nowhere to hide, the sprite could only hug the sickle’s body tightly, wailing and screaming incessantly. Once the red sickle stabilized the resentful spirits with its sword intent, it reluctantly opened its mouth, swallowing those spirits into its belly one by one, obediently dissolving their hostility and obsessions.

By the time the sprite returned, it was already thoroughly wilted. Jiang Qunyu took a bit of delight in its misfortune: “Didn’t you just say you were going to show off your grand skills in front of Wei Xun and me?”

Full of resentment, the sprite pouted with slight grievance: “But there were so many resentful spirits, it’s very tiring for me too!”

Jiang Qunyu laughed heartily, cradling the sprite in his arms to scratch its ears. He felt a deep sense of empathy; he was also so tired! He remembered back when he could still turn into a black fog ball—when he was tired, he could rest on top of Wei Xun’s head, just like how the sprite was currently resting in his arms.

Thus, Jiang Qunyu nudged Wei Xun: “Alright, alright, you must really want to show off your grand skills!”

Hearing this, Wei Xun curled his lips into a smile, not exposing Jiang Qunyu’s lazy intentions hidden beneath his words. He simply pinched a sword seal with his fingertips and raised his hand to summon Soul-Eater.

At the instant the cold light flared, he lightly turned his wrist. The long sword drew a perfect crescent moon in mid-air, and a biting sword intent unfurled along the arc of light. Wherever it passed, crystalline ice ridges spread and grew along the ground. Frost flowers drifted down in flurries alongside the sword qi, completely freezing and suppressing the agitated resentful spirits around them, vanishing them in an instant.

The sprite’s eyes widened. It flapped its wings and flew up from Jiang Qunyu’s arms, circling twice around the Soul-Eater sword suspended in mid-air, speaking with utter shock: “Where did those resentful spirits go? How did they disappear all at once?”

Jiang Qunyu said: “Soul-Eater is fundamentally an ominous sword. Those resentful spirits can attach themselves to it. Once the matters here are resolved, they can be sent to the River of Forgetfulness.”

The sprite was highly interested in the great devil’s sword, but given that its prior interactions with Wei Xun hadn’t been very pleasant, it cast a few more reluctant glances at it before fluttering back, saying insincerely: “It’s not any good thing anyway.”

Jiang Qunyu felt this line sounded incredibly familiar. After a moment, he realized—wasn’t that his own line from before?!

This line should have come from his mouth! Back when he found Wei Xun disagreeable, he was always possessive and sour about everything Wei Xun owned.

But now that Wei Xun was his, he was no longer sour. Wei Xun’s things were his things.

Jiang Qunyu took this for granted, though he had thought this way in the past as well.

“His sword is called Soul-Eater, so what is your weapon called?” the sprite asked.

Jiang Qunyu: “Red Sickle.”

The sprite: “?”

It repeated the words in disbelief: “It’s just called Red Sickle?!”

Highly unsatisfied with its attitude, Jiang Qunyu said with a wooden face: “Don’t you think this name is very easy to understand?”

The sprite twitched its lips: “It is indeed very easy to understand.”

But wasn’t this too easy to understand?! It was a red, curved sickle, so it was called Red Sickle?!

Then it could already imagine how terrible its own name would be!

Unwilling to accept its fate, the sprite asked with lingering hope: “Is there really no other name?”

Jiang Qunyu pondered for a moment: “There is indeed another name, called Residual Rainbow. But I always feel it lacks the domineering aura of Red Sickle.”

The sprite: “…”

It let out a dry laugh: “I won’t just be called Sprite, will I?”

Jiang Qunyu nodded: “Wow! You’re actually quite smart!”

The sprite snapped and fainted.

Just as Jiang Qunyu caught it, Wei Xun’s thin lips parted slightly as he spoke: “We’re here.”

The smile on Jiang Qunyu’s face vanished instantly, his fingertips quietly tightening around the red sickle. Neither spoke another word, stepping forward in silence. In the next instant, they felt as if they had stepped into an invisible cage.

Throngs of dark resentful spirits twisted together here to form the boundary of a formation, churning and writhing in dense masses. Countless souls resembled candle flames flickering in the wind, revealing hideous and terrifying countenances in their dimming and brightening states. The hostility and malice had almost solidified.

Compared to the scattered, wandering evil spirits on the periphery, the dark, baleful energy here was so dense it was nearly impossible to disperse. The sky was as dark as ink, letting slip only a few weak rays of daylight, while the edges of the horizon carried a lingering, persistent blood-red stain, creating an oppression that made it difficult to breathe.

At the very center of the grand array stood Xuan Jin, clad in black robes. Beneath his feet lay a complex, obscure magic formation with intersecting patterns, each line swirling with a strange, eerie, and ominous black energy that carried the deadly aura of world destruction. Standing at the edge of the formation were Qin Shiyue and Su Fuyao.

The moment the two stepped into the barrier of the formation, the entire grand array surged with violent fluctuations of spiritual energy. The three people within the array turned around almost simultaneously. Seeing that the newcomers were Wei Xun and Jiang Qunyu, Xuan Jin merely arched his brow indifferently. With no ripples of emotion in his eyes, he turned back a moment later, continuing to focus on the formation beneath his feet.

Beside him, Qin Shiyue’s entire body tensed instantly, his guard raised to the absolute limit. He was originally a ghost cultivator; at this moment, his fingertips condensed slightly as chains glowing with a cold, black energy climbed section by section along his forearm, manifesting out of thin air. With a soft clinking of the chains, a ghost of monstrous malice was summoned directly, its cold gaze falling upon Jiang Qunyu and Wei Xun.

Qin Shiyue had clearly not expected them to find their way all the way here. His eyes darkened, the narrow corners of his eyes squinting slightly as the ghostly qi around his body surged. Gripping the chains in his hand, he charged straight toward them, bringing a wild gale with him.

Without a shred of hesitation or intent to hold back, Wei Xun leaped forward to meet him with his sword raised. The moment their two figures collided, their respective domains unfolded with a resounding boom. A flash of bright light erupted, and both vanished completely from the spot, leaving only the fluctuating Qi in mid-air yet to disperse.

Jiang Qunyu was not surprised by this. He was even wondering how many strikes Qin Shiyue could withstand under Wei Xun’s hand, given his cultivation level.

Within this massive cage of resentful spirits, only he, Su Fuyao, and Xuan Jin remained.

Jiang Qunyu kept his eyes half-lowered, his long lashes concealing all emotions. Grasping the entirely crimson red sickle firmly in his hand, his steps were steady as he walked step by step toward Xuan Jin at the center of the array.

Halfway there, however, he was blocked before the array by Su Fuyao.

Jiang Qunyu finally raised his eyes. His face was entirely calm and undisturbed as he tilted his head slightly, asking him in a flat tone: “Do you want to fight me?”

Although this was the first time Su Fuyao had met Jiang Qunyu face-to-face, the moment the other’s gaze fell upon him, an uncontrollable fear welled up in his heart, causing even his fingertips to tremble uncontrollably.

He wanted to summon the system in his consciousness as he usually did: System! Quick, give me this person’s information!

But the system did not appear as it had in the past.

A sudden urge to retreat sprouted in Su Fuyao’s heart, but turning his head to look at Xuan Jin at the center of the formation, he ultimately grit his teeth and summoned his natal sword: “Brother Yuanzhou is about to be resurrected! I’ve gone to such lengths to gather his three souls and six earthly spirits; I will absolutely not allow you to step forward!”

The system had brought him here, promising that as long as he sacrificed the remaining resentful spirits to the two in the array, he would be able to see Brother Yuanzhou again. Therefore, even if he had to fight this man of unfathomable cultivation, he would not back down.

Jiang Qunyu: “…”

Where did this script of a wretched person’s true devotion come from?

Exercising his patience, he offered a well-meaning piece of advice: “Do you truly believe your Brother Yuanzhou can still return?”

Su Fuyao trembled all over with anger upon hearing this. He immediately raised his sword and came at Jiang Qunyu, his eyes turning red as he said sharply: “Utter nonsense! Don’t think that because you say so, I will believe you!”

He had spent a hundred years running around, finally gathering Lan Yuanzhou’s soul. Even though he couldn’t find the missing divine bone, the person in the array had clearly promised that he could still help Lan Yuanzhou live another life.

Jiang Qunyu’s fingertips condensed slightly, and the blood-red sickle instantly stood horizontally before him, steadily blocking Su Fuyao’s sword strike.

Su Fuyao felt a force like an overwhelming tide rushing back along the blade. His wrist instantly went numb to the point of losing sensation. He used all his strength to grit his teeth and stabilize his form, but that force was simply not something he could contend with, and his steps retreated uncontrollably.

“Why would I lie to you?” Jiang Qunyu said with a wooden face. “If I hadn’t seen you working for free for so many years, I wouldn’t even bother to tell you.”

Though Su Fuyao couldn’t understand the strange vocabulary Jiang Qunyu used, it did not stop him from hearing the exasperation in Jiang Qunyu’s tone.

He wanted to raise his sword to fight back again, but Jiang Qunyu merely turned his wrist slightly. The red sickle exerted force in tandem, and a stronger surge of demonic energy pressed down, making it impossible for Su Fuyao to hold the hilt any longer.

Clang—

The natal long sword slammed heavily onto the ground, emitting a crisp and piercing sound. The blade chipped, humming as it fell several feet away.

With the force entirely dissipated, Su Fuyao lost his balance and fell heavily backward onto the ground. His back collided with cold, crushed stones, and a dull ache spread throughout his body, yet he was completely oblivious to it, merely staring blankly at the long sword that lay far from him.

He had long known that Jiang Qunyu’s cultivation was unfathomable, a realm far beyond his reach, but he had never imagined that his sword strike—which carried a hundred years of his cultivation and everything he had—could not even withstand a single move from his opponent.

Footsteps slowly approached, the hem of a green robe brushing past the stones. Stiff all over, Su Fuyao raised his eyes, meeting Jiang Qunyu’s gaze.

The young man wore a clean, simple green robe, untainted by a speck of dust. His features were exceptionally beautiful yet gentle, enough to make the dim formation around them lose its color. However, those beautiful eyes held not a shred of emotion—no joy, no anger, no pity, and no hatred. He simply looked down at him calmly, as if looking at a stubborn stranger.

Jiang Qunyu squatted down in front of him, a soft “tsk” escaping his lips as he said: “Sorry about this.”

Su Fuyao’s consciousness was still stuck on that light, airy sentence, and before he could react, a gentle but irresistible demonic energy suddenly swept across his forehead. The green-robed figure in front of him abruptly blurred, and as the world spun, he completely lost consciousness and fell into a deep sleep.

Jiang Qunyu fished out a soul-binding thread from his cosmic bag and tied Su Fuyao up. Confirming that he would likely sleep for three to five days and wouldn’t cause any more trouble, he threw him outside the formation.

Although this little white lotus always loved to weep and cry, and he couldn’t bring himself to like him, Su Fuyao had never provoked him. In fact, from Su Fuyao’s perspective, this was their first time meeting, and they didn’t know each other at all.

As for his crimes of being deceived by the system to gather resentful spirits everywhere and cause chaos throughout the land, how he should be punished and judged was a matter for the cultivation world. He would just hand him over to Shen Peiqiu to deal with later.

At the same time, Wei Xun and Qin Shiyue returned to the formation.

Dark, lingering ghostly patterns still climbed across half of Wei Xun’s cheek, and his body was enveloped in a dense demonic energy. His long lashes were slightly lowered, and his distinct, knuckle-lined hand tightly gripped Soul-Eater. His face held no excess expression, and his aura was cold enough to deter anyone from approaching.

Only when he raised his eyes and met the gaze of Jiang Qunyu standing at the side of the array did the coldness in his eyes dissolve in an instant, like snow meeting the warm sun.

Behind him, Qin Shiyue was covered in wounds. His chains were broken into pieces, and he lay paralyzed on the ground, completely depleted of even the strength to stand.

Wei Xun withdrew his gaze and gathered his strength. Raising his wrist as he held Soul-Eater, he was about to deliver the final strike to completely obliterate Qin Shiyue’s soul, when Xuan Jin, who had been standing quietly at the center of the array like an outsider, suddenly shifted his aura, finally preparing to act.

Qin Shiyue kept his eyes lowered. He was unwilling to become a burden, let alone make Xuan Jin lose focus because of him.

Thus, without any further hesitation, he channeled the remaining internal energy in his body and chose to destroy his own soul.

In a mere instant, his physical body dissipated, replaced by his soul, which dissolved bit by bit into the air.

Seeing this, Wei Xun withdrew his sword stance and desisted.

Xuan Jin’s body froze abruptly. The step he had taken forward stopped dead in its tracks. The hand hanging at his side clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white, but he ultimately remained where he was, taking no further steps forward.

Seeing Xuan Jin stop, a satisfied smile spread across Qin Shiyue’s eyes. He lay face up on the cold ground, staring at the gray sky above. As his vision blurred, he seemed to return to Tiandu City two thousand years ago. That day, the sky had been just as gloomy and oppressive, the cold wind carrying a chill, yet the snow delayed its fall.

He suddenly let out a low laugh, his breath growing weaker and his soul form becoming fainter. Yet, using the very last of his strength, he called out softly to Xuan Jin just as he had in his youth: “Your Highness… I followed you here, and I am willing to depart for you…”

Two thousand years was indeed too long. They had walked for so long; they ought to succeed once.

As his voice fell, Qin Shiyue’s final thread of soul turned into specks of flowing light, completely dissipating into the world.

Xuan Jin quietly stared at that empty space. After a moment of silence, he turned around to continue the final step of the formation.

Jiang Qunyu looked at him with a complex expression. After a moment of silence, his fingertips suddenly tightened, and the crimson light of his red sickle sliced through the air. With a soft shout, his blood-red domain unfolded with a roar.

The domain power, as thick as blood mist, swept outward in all directions with him at the center, unfolding layer by layer to completely envelop the entire array of resentful spirits. The red light surged, forcefully suppressing the dark, cold, and baleful energy churning around them.

Without turning around, Xuan Jin spoke in a flat, waveless tone: “It is already too late. There is no need to perform an unnecessary action.”

The moment those words fell, the entire grand array underwent a sudden, drastic change.

A wild gale erupted between heaven and earth, howling as it whipped up crushed stones and yin souls. A dense, ink-black resentment soared into the sky, blotting out the sun and turning the entire sky into a dead, pitch-black void in an instant.

Countless resentful spirits from all directions, having been dormant for so long, seemed to have their wild nature triggered, erupting into shrill, miserable shrieks all at once.

That sound pierced directly into the consciousness, so sharp that it caused acute pain to the soul, like countless fine needles stabbing into the sea of consciousness simultaneously.

Jiang Qunyu’s body swayed, and he nearly lost his footing.

In the next moment, Wei Xun gathered him in from behind. His slightly cool palm covered the side of Jiang Qunyu’s ear, completely blocking out those heart-wrenching, sharp screams.

The world suddenly fell quiet. Only Wei Xun’s shallow breathing and that faint scent of pine and snow remained.