Archfiend

“Cough!” Xu Yangyi couldn’t help but spray out another mouthful of blood. The inside of his body was already a perforated mess, as if he’d been stabbed by endless knives! Even if he won this time, he would have to recuperate for a year. The Qi Explosion Pill’s residual effects were too great. Only through his incredibly firm willpower could he go up against the anguish of many blades rushing his body. But if this devilish pill couldn’t be used at a blade’s edge, he would surely be the one to otherwise die.

Regardless… his reddened eyes looked at Enihilus. He absolutely couldn’t let go of this opportunity!

“Myriad Spirits Suppression!” His right hand violently flung out, and a pill fiend swept forth. But at the same time, his hand slammed downwards.

A puff of spiritual force that targeted spiritual sense quietly formed around Enihilus. It was in this time that Xu Yangyi put on the Azure Winged-Demon Mask.

It blocked spiritual sense!

For spiritual-sense divine abilities, it was equal to a sure hit!

“CLOSE!!!” In this moment, Enihilus’s scalp went numb. Without hesitation, he forced his arms again, and his palms firmly moved to close together in the middle. However, as the spiritual light of his swastika glimmered again, an intense pain rumbled through his mind, just as the symbol spun for the second time!

“A two-prong offensive spiritual-sense divine ability!!!” His yell surged into the sky, and he cradled his head as he miserably wailed. Originally, he’d believed that this spiritual-sense seal was Xu Yangyi’s attack, but no! The true killing move lay here!

The swastika… was no longer illusory this time. On the contrary… it was beginning to fully turn into mist. Soon, in less than half a second, it vanished in the air!

“No good!!!” Enihilus resisted the violent headache with great difficulty, and his eyes snapped open. Right now, he didn’t have a hair’s defense against the three approaching attacks!

His divine ability had been blocked twice. He wasn’t able to cast it for a third time anymore!

Nonetheless… there was no longer any technique that would give him more time to think. Under his feet, a rocketing red light blazed to life!

The Heavenly Opening Great Explosion… was descending!

Enihilus raised his head up with a swoosh. In the instant he was submerged in red light, he glared daggers at Xu Yangyi.

“Mongrel… Mongrel!!!” Accompanied by his heart-tearing screech, a massive mushroom cloud loudly exploded in the imperial palace!

BOOOOOOM! Sand flew through the air and rubble skipped off the ground. The red cloud made for a glorious sight to behold! Followingly, all the buddha statues around, except for the four statues with chains, crumbled apart!

An invisible blast wave, along with surging sand and stone, turned into a round wave. It scattered to the four sides, slamming against the wall and producing a violent crash.

Moonless and Rocjourney coldly gasped. In almost an instant they were sent hurtling through the air! Their divine abilities still existed, though. Myriad white lights and an azure streak closely followed the great explosion and into the mushroom cloud!

This was just like a chemical transformation. The second mushroom cloud exploded at the nuclear of the first one, but it had a total of three layers of color: azure, red, and white! From inside, a wretched scream was vaguely heard.

RUUUMMMBLE!!! In this twinkling, Xu Yangyi, Rocjourney, and Moonless all felt as if they had lost the ability to hear. The entire world seemed to be a stretch of silence.

But in this silence, a clap of thunder was heard. Nothing could surpass this!

“So strong… so strong!!!” Rocjourney was forcibly blown away, finding himself stuck to a wall. In disbelief, he looked at the not-too-distant Xu Yangyi. In his heart, he felt incomparable astonishment. “This is the second time, the second time he’s used this move… The first time it killed the Nightmare king, and the second time… I don’t know whether Enihilus can take it head-on! But… he’s Great Circle Foundation Establishment!”

“So strong…” Likewise, Moonless was sent flying away. Even though he maneuvered his qi to steady his footing, he still only managed to slow down the speed of his flight. The shock in his heart was no less than Rocjourney’s. “He… actually had such a killing move! Perhaps even a cultivator a little bit away from half-step Core Formation wouldn’t be able to avoid it!”

“No!!!” Rocjourney’s eyes suddenly flickered, and his voice became sharp. “T-This!”

Xu Yangyi was also stunned.

This was the first time his sword had bore the full weight of the five Heavenly Opening Erosions. Furthermore, it was according to order, from the first, the second, the third, the fourth, and then ultimately to the fifth. There wasn’t one trace of discord.

And right now… on the Animus Armament… the fifth Star-Deity took his seat!

A massive phantasm appeared behind Xu Yangyi. It had an ox’s head, antler horns, and six arms! It was saddled atop a yellow horse.

Mars!

The Star of Fire!

The God of War!

Swoosh swoosh swoosh!!! Golden light flowed over the armament, coming back down for a second time on the sword’s point until it finally flashed!

However, this was not all!

The Five Star-Deities, five globes of golden light twinkled and erased all the blackness on the sword’s body. At some unknown time, the openwork designs of the Five Star-Deities had been engraved onto the blade. A glaring orb of golden light flickered out of Xu Yangyi. Soon… the august might of a Nine-Quiniums Lord loudly erupted!

There was no qi, but the heavy oppressive might that carried China’s 5,000 years of fate was absolutely not a weight that onlookers could bear!

Surprisingly, the Heavenly Opening Great Explosion’s blast wave hadn’t reached Xu Yangyi, instead automatically dissipating. Yet at the same time… a red dragon of blood thundered forth at Xu Yangyi’s position!

“ROOOAR!!!” It was the spitting image of life. Each of its scales and every one of its whiskers were clearly distinguishable. The dragon coiled ceaselessly around Xu Yangyi, blocking off all harm!

“This…” Rocjourney stared into space, but his eyes then saucered wide. “Magik treasure?! Magik treasure?! A magik treasure’s recognition of its master?! This is a magik treasure’s recognition!!!”

“My god…” Moonless took a step forward. In the wake of the blood-dragon’s appearance, he sensed a majestic imperial might, as if it had strode across the plane of existence and descended in an instant!

His breadth of experience was much greater than Rocjourney’s. After all, Rocjourney had never left the Garden of the Twin Sal-Trees in these past hundreds of years. He understood all too well what this was.

“Emperor Armament… that’s an Emperor Armament!!! I’ve heard people mention it before, but this is the first time I’ve seen one! Such oppressive might… even to cultivators, it makes one feel above the myriad masses! It is simply beyond provocation! It can only be worshiped!”

“The Emperor Armament of a Nine-Quiniums Lord has recognized its master!!!”

“I understand... T-This was originally a magik treasure! But it required a special method to undo the seal. This magik treasure… maybe it didn’t recognize its master… because the one who cast it wasn’t able to make it recognize a master! It already possesses a trace of spirituality! It will only choose its own suitable master!” His voice began to tremble, “In the cultivation world, such an object is called… a spirit treasure!”

“Especially regarding magik treasures that have the great hope of advancing into spirit treasures!” Astonishment appeared in his eyes. “This child… what virtue and ability does he have…? What Dao confirmed this treasure, to actually make it recognize its own master?! And which supreme cultivator… forged this magik treasure?! Not even he himself actually had a way to make it recognize a master!”

“Mongrel!!! I’m going to kill all of you! Kill all of you!!!” At this time, while the blood-dragon remained circling around Xu Yangyi, a world-shaking roar awesomely tore apart the remaining explosion, echoing throughout the entire imperial palace!

BOOM!!! A violent shock wave shot out from the heart of the explosion. Rocjourney and Moonless almost didn’t react. They both seemed to be slapped by giant, invisible palms, without time to even scream. Two loud booms rang out, and the bearded man and the wolf slammed into a wall a thousand meters away.

“Urk!” “Puh!” Moonless’s and Rocjourney’s gazes instantly dimmed, and they freely vomited blood. Behind them, spider-web cracks fissured.

Nonetheless, as this formless blast wave reached the front of Xu Yangyi, the blood-dragon suddenly let loose a furious roar. “ROOOAR!!!”

This howl was even more violent than the explosion. This time, actual shock waves of spiritual pressure, visible to the naked eye, came out of the dragon’s mouth. They appeared as layer after layer of white. In the air, a heavy noise boomed, and both sides vanished at the same time.

The frontal collision of spiritual pressure brought forth savage winds that broke off into remnant waves. In the explosion, a broken body noiselessly emerged.

“You crude animal… insignificant middle-stage… INSIGNIFICANT MIDDLE-STAGE!!!” Enihilus appeared in the sky of brimming red light. He… could no longer be considered human. Countless little mouths split open on his entire body, making him resemble Bladevessel. The space between the jagged teeth was filled with eyes. Alternating in black and white, bony horns covered him from head to toe. Even on his head, two curved, fiend-like horns grew out.

“Insignificant middle-stage… on the basis of your lowly form, you actually dare to injure me!!!” The left half of his body had already disappeared into thin air. Pain made him seem insane, and he clutched at his wounds as he murmured lowly. All of a sudden, he raised his head up and screamed violently, “Even with your lowly life, there’s no chance I’ll be able to compensate for the wounds I have suffered!”

“I will suppress you in the nightmare for eternity! I will have flocks of eagles and sparrows peck at your eyeballs and internal organs! I will make you feel pain and die! This Throne… you!!! A magik treasure?!”

The demon monk only managed to scream out half of what he was saying. Afterwards, as if someone had pinched his throat closed, the rest of his words were firmly blocked within.

His chest rapidly heaved up and down for air. In the places he was seriously injured, there was no blood or flesh, but rather misty black fog that wafted into the air. But at this moment, he simply didn’t care for his injuries as he stared at Xu Yangyi in shock.

Magik treasures… didn’t necessarily have to be nourished until late Foundation Establishment. As long as one’s qi reached a standard, they could likewise be used in the middle stage! It could be said that of those able to enter ‘Inside’, all middle Foundation Establishment could use magik treasures. Moonless, though, was an exception, having stayed ‘Inside’ for too long.

Still, knowing was one thing. But right now… after he was seriously injured, a magik treasure forcibly pulled out in front of him was another matter!

This was an attack on his mind and vision!

Enihilus had lived for too long. He clearly understood what a magik treasure was. A magik treasure’s horror didn’t stem from its menacing ability, but rather the comprehensive strengthening that it offered to a cultivator! Perhaps to the fleshly body, or to the magik treasure itself, or… divine abilities!

Variables… At this moment, he loathed variables with every fiber of his being!

“No… this is no ordinary magik treasure…” He gritted his teeth, and black qi aired out from between the gaps of his teeth. “Legend says… that truly apex magik treasures will bring about anomalies when they manifest. I do not know whether this counts… but if it does… this mongrel’s luck is just not ordinary!”

Xu Yangyi was also stunned.

He looked at the Animus Armament in his hand. Only now in this moment was his grandeur revealed.

In the golden light, the armament had long since shortened in size. It wasn’t a three-foot sword, but instead a foot-long shortsword.

To call it a dagger was not wrong.

The hilt was pitch-black, but the head and pommel of the blade was engraved with Mars!

And on both sides of the hilt, Star-Deity Sui and Star-Deity Zhen were carved.

On the guard of the sword, Venus was to the left and Mercury was to the right! Star-Deities Jin and Chen!

The body of the foot-long blade was snow-white, and a bloody scar was in the middle, as if it had drank a monarch’s blood a thousand years ago. Two tiny, ancient characters were inscribed on it.

“This…” Xu Yangyi squinted his eyes, and his breathing became slightly rushed. “Fish… bowel?”

His mind suddenly flashed, and he said in amazement, “Fishbowel? The Fishbowel Sword?”

“THAT Fishbowel Sword which Zhuan Zhu used to assassinate King Wu?”

As if it sensed its master’s thoughts, the Fishbowel Sword erupted with a blood-red glint.

In this glinting light, a symbol floated up and down.

However, when this symbol appeared, two of those present in the throne room suddenly changed color!

This symbol… was the character of ‘Arrival’! [1]

“During a time of calamity… someone shall bring the character of ‘Arrival’ and certainly descend… During a time of calamity… someone shall bring the character of ‘Arrival’ and certainly descend…” Enihilus’s crazed expression quickly stilled. Afterwards, he began to tremble from head to toe. Drops of cold sweat seeped out from his bare skin, and he looked at Xu Yangyi in disbelief.

“Arrival… Arrival! This is Arrival!!!” Rocjourney stared into space for a few seconds, but he then started to wildly cry out with the utmost delighted surprise. “The character of Arrival is certain! The character of Arrival is certain to emerge!”

A prophecy from a thousand years ago had been fulfilled a thousand years later!

Against all odds, someone truly was wielding Fishbowel. With them, they brought ‘Arrival’, certain to descend!