Paragon of Sin

The dull sound of the corpse-induced thud and sight of spurting white blood geysering outwards from its severed neck generated surprised silence. The widened eyes of many fell on the corpse of the formerly alive Spirit of War, Zhou Dou, and the pooling liquid forming beneath his body. The stillness within the air, the tension, the unrealistic scene of a saber-wielding, closed-eyed, white-dressed mortal standing before 9,999 Spirits of War unfolded. 

Those amongst the Spirits of War were given an unexpected jolt of shock, unable to comprehend what just happened or how. A few even tunneled their entire senses to inspect Wei Wuyin, only to discover that his body reeked with the scent of a mortal being. Yet lying beneath his feet was an Ascended soldier of the finest quality, decapitated in an instant.

The warhorse beneath the Legion Commander was roused, growing animated and fierce as it snorted, neighed, and the flames enveloping its hooves increased in intensity. It seemed to have discovered something, desiring to charge forward yet unable to do so without an order. 

The Legion Commander sat powerfully atop it, using a single hand to touch its neck, causing it to swiftly settle down. Unable to view his full facial expression from his dragon-head helmet, his current emotions couldn't be gleaned upon. Yet those sharp, piercing eyes of his that viewed the world was chilling as a vicious blizzard, as glacial as humanly possible.

He lifted his armored hand, inspecting it briefly, turning his head towards his spirits of war, and the icy aura from him increased greatly. From the beginning to end, he had never revealed a trace of killing intent, yet his imposing demeanor was stifling enough. 

When he returned his focus to Wei Wuyin, this blind mortal that held a smile, wielding his saber on his shoulders, with his stance relaxed, and his smugness readily arrogant, there was a raw feeling dispersing into the atmosphere. 

"Poison!" The Legion Commander didn't even need to say anything. A feminine voice sounded out, and a figure shot forward at a swift pace from within the 9,999 Spirits of War. The figure was a leader of sorts from her dressing, likely a Battalion Commander. Despite her armor being lighter than most, the exquisite shape and design denoted a much higher ranking. 

"Commander Zhanzheng! There's poison in the air!" She immediately shouted upon arriving beside the warhorse riding leader, her tone urgent and solemn. She was the poison expert of the army. After all, how could a powerful Legion not have their own units skilled in using or dealing with poisonous attacks? In warfare, all things were fair. 

Yet she was also a little shamed. She hadn't discovered this until she inspected the air and moisture of the area, realizing that she had already breathed and absorbed a fair amount into her body already. That said, it wasn't very dangerous, at least its effects weren't very apparent. But the poison was insidiously difficult to dispel or isolate. It felt like a parasitic insect that hid itself by mimicking one's cells. The entire army was appalled, with many checking their internal condition and being thoroughly shocked after finding foreign particulates in their bodies, but when they tried to disperse it, they were suddenly hit with a burst of weakness.

A few soldiers even outright tumbled and started experiencing seizures. These were the weaker soldiers. They served as a reminder to others not to act until all things were made clear, only helping their allies and ensuring they didn't die.

The Legion Commander was totally silent. The tense atmosphere intensified. The 9,998 Spirits of War were waiting for orders to fight, to kill this mortal, yet they were unable to act without any orders. Some couldn't fathom why their Legion Commander hasn't even given the order. Was he waiting for the poison to take full effect?

The poison expert amongst the army hurriedly brought out a few tools from somewhere, carrying a vial of clear liquid and a strange needle with a ball-point end on both sides. She put the needle in her mouth, sucked a little, then dipped it into the vial. 

Instantly, the vial of clear liquid vibrated slightly, but it remained clear. The poison expert exclaimed softly, hurriedly bringing out a few materials like grass, a pellet of sorts, and a few other things that fell into the liquid. Yet despite various intense reactions, it remained clear. 

"I haven't been poisoned?! It's not poison..." This caused the poison expert to become incredibly confused. She looked at Wei Wuyin who carried a wisp of interest in his facial expression, who seemed to be 'looking' at her through his closed-shut eyes. 

"Continue testing," the Legion Commander demanded, causing the nearby world to tremble violently. The poison expert was taken aback for a moment, and then hurriedly brought out more tools and needles, even extracting her own innate energies, yin essence, and blood. She didn't hesitate to cause a little self-harm. 

Her movements were frighteningly quick. Despite this taking a long time to describe, her actions were completed in three to four seconds. If a mortal were to view her, they would see her moving like a shadow in the darkness with various images overlapping. A poison expert had to be swift because lethal poison was typically very fast acting. Identifying it and dealing with it in the shortest possible time was absolutely a crucial skill to have.

"You're quite confident," the Legion Commander no longer spoke as if Wei Wuyin was an insignificant insect. To poison them all without even him noticing, a being that could be considered an absolute Monarch of the Battlefield, wasn't something a typical being could do, mortal or Ascended. 

Wei Wuyin shook his head, "I'm really not. That said, I can see you all have life within you and developed intelligence. I don't know if killing you all will end your lives forever despite your Spiritform-like states, but I've set my sights on this Obelisk of War, and nothing will stop me. So, just surrender. It'll be easier for both of us." 

The Legion Commander inspected Wei Wuyin for a very long time, yet he didn't respond. How foolish was it to think Spirits of War like themselves could ever surrender? And to a mortal no less? 

The poison expert finished her actions, her exposed skin revealed faint signs of sweat, and even her skin had grown paler. She huffed out a breath, "It's not a poison! But it can be!" She came upon a startling discovery, looking at Wei Wuyin as if he was a monster. 

The poison expert didn't wait for further orders to explain, hurriedly going towards the Legion Commander and whispering out a few words that even the others couldn't hear. This private communication method in such a suppressive battlefield intrigued Wei Wuyin. Unfortunately, it was unlikely for him to acquire it.

"So that's what it is. Insidious. Ingenious." The Legion Commander spoke out, his tone heavy and enlightened. "Men! Do not circulate your internally innate energies! Rely on your physical body until further notice!" The men heeded his order, mentally restraining themselves from exerting their internally innate powers. This meant they wouldn't be able to perform certain feats until told otherwise. Those who were currently suffering had acted prior, doing just that in an attempt to remove the poison.

The poison expert was extremely skilled at her role, discovering that the poison wasn't a typical poison, but one that adhered to the innate energies, meridians, and flesh of a being, seeping through the skin and inhaled through their breath, even able to penetrating through standard semi-permeable life-sustaining defenses. 

However, it was incredibly well-disguised as moisture and air particles. To think that two different states existed for this poison that were absorbed as if to ensure a person was thoroughly affected. If one wasn't aggressively looking, they would be unable to sense it. If one wasn't adept in the Alchemic Dao, they wouldn't even know what was happening to their bodies except realizing their bodies had been tainted with foreign particles. Furthermore, they would soon realize that their own bodies were willingly carrying it to every aspect of their body as if it was a cultivation resource.

The poison expert looked at Wei Wuyin, unable to hold back: "Your means are exquisite, from delivery to composition, your poison is quite something. But even if you infected us with this poison intermixed with alchemic qualities that activates if we circulate our energies, it's heavily flawed. It won't activate if we don't trigger it. Furthermore, its not very long lasting, perhaps only a few minutes or so before it gets refined out by our bodies?" 

Her tone of triumph and mocking was quite clear. She had discovered the flaw in Wei Wuyin's poison, a product of his stealthy delivery method. He had fused Elemental Origin Intent and Alchemic Eden Force to transform the Myriad Gravestone Poison and the World Devouring Rose's essence into moisture and air particulates, then dispersed it outward. But even if he did do so, it might prove to be difficult to avoid the instinctive senses of an Ascended, and they may have means to disable it at the very first moment it started affecting them, so he modified it further.

Unless the victim circulated their energies, it would be totally inactive, subtly mimicking its surroundings, be it air, moisture, blood, or flesh. This allowed the poison to build up and permeate throughout, unless one specifically searched. Unfortunately, he couldn't remotely activate the poison by keeping his own power within the poison without alerting others. Thus, he was forced to let the victim be the sole detonator—a sad consequence.

That Spirit of War from earlier had acted, circulating all their energies, and the poison subsequently activated. When he was hit with a sudden burst of weakness, his neck met Wei Wuyin's saber. While it was quick, the Ascended slowed down considerably for a single moment, and that was enough. 

It was indeed flawed, but effective in restraining these Ascended advantages of mystic powers. And to him, that was enough.

The poison expert gained some confidence after seeing Wei Wuyin's expression slightly change. "Even if we don't use our energies to enhance our strength, you're just a mortal. Our physical bodies are countless times stronger than yours, and are more than enough to handle you!" Her confidence infected the others, allowing them to realize that this mortal's poison might be extraordinary, but it was still forged by a mortal. While one soldier had fallen to this, that would be it—only one.

Wei Wuyin's grin fell, then he softly sighed. "It doesn't matter," he shruggingly stated as he started to slowly move towards the army of 9,999. "No matter the existence, mortal or Ascended, they always underestimate those they perceive to be weak."

Step.

"But you seem to have forgotten something…"

Step. Step.

"...I'm here; standing before you despite knowing all of this."

"...!" Every Spirit of War present was startled by those words. Even the Legion Commander's hand clenched tightly.

Step. Step. Step.

"A mere mortal, standing before 10,000 Spirits of War with just his saber in hand, and a will in his heart. Perhaps only a fairytale could rival such a feat," Wei Wuyin wistfully said. "No one tells you how the person in these types of legends feel. Are they afraid? Are they happy? Or were they just suicidal and held no fear in their hearts? I got to say, I feel a little nervous, but mostly…"

Wei Wuyin's body began to transform. A layer of hexagonal grey-scales formed over his skin, compacted and flexible. True Draconic Form!

SHIING!

His saber howled! 

"...mostly, I'm just really excited. After all, I've never gotten to use my full power since that event." Just as those words finished, a spiritual aura of four different spirits erupted from his body, ascending higher and higher with every passing breath.

The Legion Commander realized the situation was developing strangely, making him feel uncomfortable, so he decided to act, no longer underestimating this mere mortal of a man! "PHALANX FORMATION, ARCHERS AT THE READY!!" He explosively ordered, causing the soldiers to snap out of their thoughts and act upon instinct.

The heavily armored infantry took the forefront, carrying shields and spears, facing a single man moving slowly towards them. Those others moved back with orderly movements, readying to enter the battlefield at a moment's notice. Despite being neutered with the poison in their bodies, unable to use their full power, they were still terrifyingly powerful existences.

Wei Wuyin brandished his saber slightly, lifting his head to 'look' at the swiftly moving troops shuffling about at remarkable speeds. Yet he was unbothered, murmuring to himself, "Let's hope I don't explode." 

Those words seemed to be the trigger that those four Astral Souls of his were waiting for! 

ROAR!!!