Zhanxian

004 – I’m The Executioner

“As my lord instructs!” Yang Cheng bowed and accepted the ring. When the supervising official indicated it, he slowly placed it on his finger.

On putting on the ring, it issued a soft light that enveloped Yang Chen’s whole body. The ring then disappeared from Yang Cheng’s finger, only leaving behind a mark like a tattoo.

“This is the pass token of the Immortal Execution Stage, it’s by relying on this token that you can enter the stage!” The supervising official gave his instructions expressionlessly, then pointed behind Yang Chen: “Besides you, only the people to be executed can enter the Immortal Execution Stage!”

Yang Chen turned his head and discovered that at some point a road had already appeared behind him, leading to a dazzlingly splendorous great gatehouse. The gatehouse was more luxurious than any in the mortal world, even having two golden dragons roaring against the sky mounted on giant pillars. In the middle above it was written three bold large words in blood red, Immortal Execution Stage. When approaching one would discover that these three words were actually made from living flesh, still squirming. Below the gatehouse stood four fully armored soldiers as guards.

“Halt, who dares enter the Immortal Execution Stage without authority?” When Yang Chen approached, someone immediately called out to him.

Yang Chen stretched out his hand, the marks on his finger immediately visible. Strangely, at this point, the ring itself suddenly appeared, making the guards understand. After seeing it, the four stepped away from the gate, letting Yang Chen enter.

Entering the gatehouse, there was a misty light, hiding everything. Yang Cheng stretched out his hand, and touched the space. Thinking about it, he approached the white light with large strides. The white light didn’t block him, letting him enter.

Only when they saw this scene did the four soldiers outside relax. One soldier suddenly turned his head to ask: “Lord, he’s light fingered, robbing the corpses, why would he be chosen?”

The supervising official lord had appeared next to the four at some point, looking at the ball of light without anything strange, then said: “You’re well aware of who will be beheaded on the Immortal Execution Stage this time. Only he and one other beheaded the criminal without taking bribes, and also beheaded the beautiful woman with one cut, and still dared to kick down and behead the king of yesterday and tomorrow, where the others first kowtowed before executing. The other people weren’t strict with the criminal, were reluctant to behead the beautiful woman, or didn’t even dare. This Immortal Execution Stage doesn’t have people more suitable than them. Taking things from the dead, is always better than from the living.”

“Besides, having entered the Immortal Execution Stage, besides food and water to eat and drink, there is also the Immortal Executioner Blade, and it’s only as long as one isn’t tarnished by any blood, flesh or items from immortals that one can leave.” The supervising official watched the four gatekeepers next to him: “Do you feel that he, a mortal, while beheading so many immortals, will still have the chance to leave? His thievery, how couldn’t that sever his chance to come out?”

The guards then finally came to a realization, the series of tests were only to choose a suitable candidate. Not only did he need outstanding bravery, but also a weak point. People fitting such requirements were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horn, finding such a suitable person was exceptionally rare, truly a prodigy.

When Yang Chen set foot in the white light, it was as if he suddenly stepped into another world. The scene revealed before him was an incomparably vast execution ground.

In truth, Yang Chen had never had a chance to see the Immortal Execution Stage even in his previous life. The Immortal Execution Stage, as the name implies, was the place where the heavenly court executed immortals, and the immortals that could enter had only one identity, that of sentenced prisoners. Yang Chen was no executioner in his previous life, nor was he a sentenced prisoner, so naturally he had no chance to experience it.

Just ahead was a golden blade stand, made in the style of two dragons coiled together, the dragon heads facing upward, their mouths open wide. Within the two open dragon mouths, a blood red extremely vicious blade was neatly placed. After Yang Chen entered, he only swept his gaze around the execution ground, then was attracted by the long blade.

This blade was different from the great executioner’s blade Yang Chen usually used. The edge was longer, and faint flashes of lightning spread along it. The wide blade was a different tune played with equal skill compared to the executioner’s blade, only useful for beheading. The handle was black, but seemed as if it had long sharp teeth, leaking a malevolent aura, as if one would be swallowed by a fearsome beast just by gripping it.

Taking a step forward, Yang Chen gripped the black handle. Instantly, a violent to the limit killing intent rushed into his mind like a landslide or tsunami. Mixed within it were countless wails and howls, as if the countless people who had died under this blade were all wildly voicing their anger.

“I do not fear the living, so how could I fear the dead?” Yang Chen sneered, basically paying it no heed. The killing intent rushing into Yang Chen’s mind seemed to have suddenly run into a firewall dike, instantly surrendering, fundamentally unable to raise the slightest commotion.

The vicious blade seemed astonished, and again sent a burst of thoughts: “Obey me, I will bring you to behead countless immortals of the primary heaven! Before you, even the killing intent of great primary golden immortals will be in awe!”

Undeniably, it was unknown how many powerful immortals had been beheaded by this vicious blade, and it had a natural suppressing effect when confronting immortals. Yang Chen felt a chill throughout his body, unconsciously trembling. That was a normal reaction when immortals confronted the Immortal Executioner Blade.

But Yang Cen was a former great primary golden immortal, and sobered after just a distracted thought, his boundlessly powerful will starting to contend against the will of the vicious blade.

Nobody knew the scene within the Immortal Executioner Stage, and Yang Chen hadn’t anticipated that he would have to face such a great inconvenience after entering the Immortal Executioner Stage with his mortal body.

The vicious blade already had a will of its own. If ordinary mortals entered, without need for debate, there would be only one outcome: to serve the vicious blade, to become a slave to the Immortal Executioner Stage under the control of the vicious blade’s will.

“Obey me!” The violent will forced itself inside once again, and Yang Chen, his body unable to endure such pressure, knelt on the ground. Confronting such a mountainous killing intent, Yang Chen could spare no effort to keep his mind from being suppressed.

The unwillingness of his previous life, the grievances, the pointless scenes appeared before Yang Chen once again, forcing a shout from the bottom of his heart: “I will not surrender!”

His master’s delicate appearance before her death appeared again, flashing Yang Chen a sad and beautiful smile, instantly turning back to the happy scene when Yang Chen just held the Bright Light Sword.

“You’re just a blade, I’m the executioner!” Yang Chen shouted loudly, rising back to his feet.

Boom, all the essence of the killing intent completely rushed into Yang Chen’s body, all of it absorbed by Yang Chen without any apprehension. In his mind, the only thing Yang Chen remembered was what he had shouted just now, I’m the executioner!

Yang Chen’s body became an all new battlefield. However, the scene was completely different from before. if before it was the vicious blade’s will trying to influence Yang Chen on the blade, making Yang Chen surrender to the blade, then now it had become an away game for the vicious blade, completely located in Yang Chen’s body.

“Obey me!”

“Surrender!”

“I will lead you to behead immortals!”

……

No matter the threats or coercions, Yang Chen only guarded that one bright point in his heart. I am the executioner! This sentence immediately decided who was the master, and no matter how the vicious blade exhausted various methods and strategies, it was left powerless before Yang Chen’s heart.

Finally, the vicious blade’s will grew weaker and weaker, and, under Yang Chen’s tightly guarded mind, began to merge with the killing intent Yang Chen had gained from killing more than a hundred people in the mundane world.

When this merging of killing intent began, there was no longer any time for rest, the whole process finished like a hot knife through butter, the next moment, the vicious blade’s will had completely merged into Yang Chen’s killing intent.

“I’m the executioner!” Yang Chen’s eyes gradually brightened, saying this as unhesitating as slicing through a nail. The vicious blade was already docile in his hand, and besides a closely intertwined fluency, there was nothing else. Lifting the long blood colored blade, Yang Chen squinted and added: “You’re just the executioner’s blade.”

With the series of unexpected events, the fusion of killing intent, Yang Chen hadn’t sensed the changes that had occurred in his body. Holding the vicious blade, standing there, he sensed a killing intent overflowing heaven spring up. His whole body seemed enveloped in a faint red light. As he opened his eyes, rays of severe killing intent shot out, making people shudder.

“This is?” Seeing the vague red light his body released, Yang Chen jumped with surprise. Back when hunting old devil Yi, because he had killed too many people, the old devil had also been enveloped in a layer of red light. Even though Yang Chen only had a faint red sheen right now, it still seemed the same as old devil Yi, killing intent overflowing from the body, clearly revealing a unique vicious devil.

“Fortunately I prepared in advance!” Yang Chen smiled, but didn’t mind in particular. He raised his blade and walked ahead, stepping towards the tall stage. That was the true Immortal Executioner Stage, the place for putting immortals to death.

But Yang Chen didn’t immediately step onto the stage, but rather looked to the side. The accommodations of the Immortal Executioner Stage were very simple, one kitchen where Yang Chen could eat and drink, one small room where he could sleep, as well as a bathroom. Food and drinking water would be arranged automatically for Yang Chen, without need for him to do anything, in the room was also a set of seamless heavenly robes in the style of an executioner for him to wear, repelling dust and water. Everything Yang Chen needed to live was provided here.

The spacious execution ground was where prisoners would be tied up, but now there still wasn’t a soul in sight. But Yang Chen knew that it would very soon be filled with more immortals than could be believed, for Yang Chen to behead one by one.

Drinking water, eating food, bathing, changing clothes, Yang Chen finished everything without hurry, then picked up the vicious blade and stepped onto the Immortal Executioner Stage. After sitting down, he began to study the ring on his hand.

Since entering the Immortal Executioner Stage, the ring had always been in the shape of a ring. Yang Chen had once possessed a ring of this style in his previous life, that was a token of holding a post at the heavenly court. Apart from this, it also recorded accumulated achievements, and was also a pretty decent storage ring. The ring on Yang Chen’s hand was relatively special, it was the only one the heavenly court issued to mortals.

Nobody had anticipated Yang Chen to know all this like the back of his hand, nobody knew the extraordinary things Yang Chen had already experienced in his last life. This life he would keep those regretful things from happening again.

Boom, boom, boom, three crashes of thunder, and in the execution ground below the Immortal Executioner Stage suddenly appeared a dense crowd. By Yang Chen’s rough calculations there were several hundreds, and the number was constantly rising.

Yang Chen saw everything, but didn’t make a move, still quietly sitting on the Immortal Executioner Stage, his eyes closed in rest. With the appearance of so many people within the Immortal Executioner Stage, suddenly, the vicious blade’s will started making noise within Yang Chen’s body again.

“Kill them! Kill them!”

The sudden appearance of targets made the vicious blade’s will hibernating in Yang Chen’s body go crazy again. That kind of thirst for beheading the living, urge to strip their flesh, almost made Yang Chen unable to hold onto his mind.

In the end, Yang Chen finally firmly remembered that he was the executioner, and the melting of the vicious blade’s will he felt before seemed too quick, a bit illogical. Sure enough, after the targets of the Immortal Executioner Stage appeared, it appeared once again.

If Yang Chen had began to work just now, the vicious blade might have already touched Yang Chen’s will, once again invading his heart. But Yang Chen forcibly endured, sitting upright and motionless on the stage, and the vicious blade could only jump around and flaunt its ferocity again.

In fact, this will basically wasn’t that of the vicious blade, but rather the will of the entire Immortal Executioner Stage. The vicious blade was in itself a part of the Immortal Executioner Stage. It had always been putting immortals to death and beheading devils, its killing intent flourishing until it was practically irresistible, ever since the foundation of the Immortal Executioner Stage. If it was anyone else, they would definitely have been controlled by the Immortal Executioner Stage. Unfortunately, the mortal that entered this time was Yang Chen.

Already well prepared, naturally he wouldn’t be controlled by the Immortal Executioner Stage. Tightly guarding his heart, Yang Chen always held fast, I am the executioner! No matter how it dashed left and charged right, that violent will was still unable to Control Yang Chen.

The vicious blade was always held in his hand, its body trembling slightly under the influence of the Immortal Executioner Stage, as if it wanted to leap from Yang Chen’s hand and begin the executions on its own. Yang Chan rigidly held the handle, his other hand gripping the blade, never giving the vicious blade the chance.

Finally, the Immortal Executioner Stage’s struggle came to an end again. The trembling vicious blade slowly calmed down, and within his heart there was no longer that kind of violent will agitating Yang Chen to kill those prisoners, as if that immortal Executioner Stage will had no choice but to step aside, and recognize Yang Chen as the executioner.

“You have to keep firmly in mind that you’re just the Immortal Executioner Stage, just a blade.” Yang Chen once again solidified his confidence: “I’m the executioner, I’m the master here, only I can decide who will be killed, and when!”

The Immortal Executioner Stage’s will didn’t struggle further, obediently accepting Yang Chen’s authority. The entire Immortal Executioner Stage seemed to be alive, changing according to Yang Chen’s control.

“Very good, I’m the executioner!” Sensing this obedience, Yang Chen gripped the blade and stood.