Chapter 1174: The Asura Sword’s Strike |
Facing Unpredictable Storm used by a true god, the Undying Demon Emperor—who only moments earlier had seemed unstoppable, as if he would destroy the world itself—was frozen in midair, completely immobilized. Golden rings of light tightened around him, their crushing force leaving him unable to break free no matter how he struggled.
It was then that Xiao Wu, who had stood quietly at Tang San's side all this time, finally moved. She stepped forward and swung out her right hand, and the Asura Shadow Sword flashed forth with a dazzling crimson glow.
Instantly, the Undying Demon Emperor felt the imminence of death.
It all happened too quickly. Just when every other Emperor thought that the Undying Demon Emperor might bring them hope, that he might slay Tang San and Xiao Wu, the pair launched a combined strike that made every single one of them feel suffocated. And they were not even using a fusion ability.
Meanwhile, even while wielding the fusion weapon born of his power and the Parasol Tree Nymph Emperor's, even after breaking through this plane's limits, the Undying Demon Emperor found no chance of escape.
And then the terrifying crimson blade was upon him.
Having touched that higher level, his senses were sharper than ever. He could clearly see it: His body had no way to withstand this sword. Not even the phoenix clan's innate gift, Nirvana Rebirth, would save him. This strike would kill him in body and spirit.
It's over…
His mind went blank.
Blood blossomed in the sky, torrents of scarlet spraying across heaven and earth.
A rain of blood poured down.
Another Emperor had fallen.
In that instant, the atmosphere over the Ancestral Court became unbearably heavy, pressing down so hard that even the Emperors felt they could not breathe. Heaven and earth themselves seemed to press down upon them with invisible yet colossal weight.
And then, after what felt like a heartbeat, or maybe an eternity, the Undying Demon Emperor slowly came back to his senses.
The golden rings had faded. In his grasp remained only a broken Parasol Spear.
Bleurghhhh!
He vomited blood.
The spear had been born of his own power fused with the Parasol Tree Nymph Emperor's body. With it severed, his spirit and blood origin both suffered grievous injury. But worse was the fate of the Parasol Tree Nymph Emperor: Under the Asura Sword's judgment, his soul was annihilated beyond rebirth. The falling blood rain was because of him.
Xiao Wu bowed her head slightly toward the Undying Demon Emperor. "Grandfather, please. It cannot be done. Don't force yourself. We don't want to kill you, and we don't want to destroy everything. We never did."
The Undying Demon Emperor stared blankly at his "granddaughter," who had allowed him for a brief period to dream the impossible dream of three Emperors in one family. A bitter smile twisted his lips.
"So be it, so be it."
Clutching the broken spear, he descended to the ground, sat cross-legged, and spoke no further.
At the final moment, Xiao Wu had stayed her hand. She had cut only the Parasol Spear, severing the bond between the two Emperors and annihilating the Parasol Tree Nymph Emperor but sparing the Undying Demon Emperor's life.
Breaking their union was essential. Once the trial of Conquering the Heavens ended, the restrictions of the rules would vanish, and all Emperors would regain freedom. The Undying Demon Emperor had already touched the next realm; if the Parasol Tree Nymph Emperor still lived to support him, he would remain a dire threat. Separating them was necessary. But killing him outright was not, and they truly did not want to do that. He had treated Xiao Wu well.
Tang San drew in a deep breath. A faint red glow rippled across his body like flowing light, and his eyes shone brighter. The phoenix-parasol union had been broken, but in a sense, it still existed within him. The Immortal Flame Phoenix bloodline imprint had evolved into a Perching Phoenix imprint, yet another transcendent bloodline.
To the watching Emperors below, it seemed that Tang San and Xiao Wu had easily defeated this incredibly powerful foe, even slaying one Emperor outright. In truth, they had been forced to resort to drastic measures: the Sea God's Trident and the Asura Sword. The Perching Phoenix Duo was strong, but against two transcendent divine artifacts and Tang San's supreme divine technique, it had no chance. There could have been no other outcome.
At least the Undying Demon Emperor could console himself with the thought that he'd forced the once-supreme God King to unleash one of the strongest combat techniques in existence with one of the strongest divine weapons in existence to defeat him.
Tang San turned his gaze to the next pair of opponents. "Your Majesties Sunborne and Earthshade, please step forward."
By the rules of Conquering the Heavens, there could be no pause, and Tang San himself was bound by these rules. After fighting the strongest Demon Emperor, he directly summoned the two strongest Nymph Emperors.
The Sunborne Nymph Emperor's eyes were heavy. She and the Earthshade Nymph Emperor rose together into the sky.
She had never expected the Undying Demon Emperor to fall so swiftly, not after revealing such astonishing strength. From the very beginning, this entire tribulation had seemed utterly unreal. But now, with three Nymph Emperors already dead, only three remained: herself, the Earthshade Nymph Emperor, and the Rainbowglaze Nymph Emperor. Never in the country's history had so few Emperors been left.
The Empyrean Dominion fared a little better. Aside from the Celestial Fox, who had yet to fight, the Undying, White Tiger, Crystal Phoenix, and Sword Saint Demon Emperors still remained. But even so, the overall picture was utterly bleak. At its height, the Ancestral Court had sixteen Emperors. Now only eight lived, and the trial was not yet done.
Before, the Sunborne Nymph Emperor's heart had burned with rage. The so-called Jin Miaolin had deceived her all this time. She had aided him again and again: subduing the Scourge Dragon, supporting his city lord evaluation and clan neutrality, and even offering to guard his cultivation. Yet now he stood revealed as humanity's scourge, the slayer of Emperors. The betrayal made her want to vomit blood.
But the Perching Phoenix Duo battle had been a bucket of cold water. She knew all too well that even combined with the Earthshade Nymph, they might not reach that level of power, at least not in terms of sheer destructive force. And even with that power, they had still been defeated.
Could she truly win against this man and his wife?
She had never been one to court death. And as the blood rain still poured from heaven, her fury gave way to something else.
She fixed Tang San with a cold stare. "What do you truly intend to do?"
No longer did she look down on him as before, but neither was there any trace of closeness left. Only icy distance.
the poing team's Thoughts
penguin: Hey guys, since this novel is almost over, I think it'd be a massive waste not to have you migrate over to some of the novels I'm into. I hope I'll see at least some of you in the comments~ In each of the last 10 chapters, I'll post one Penguin's Choice™ novel ^^
Penguin's Choice™ #1: Roadmap to the Boundless SkyThis is the work of our new translators, mogumoguchan. If you're into actual martial arts rather than wizards throwing fireballs at each other, this is just the thing for you! ____________________________
also penguin: am I the only one here who feels kinda sorry for Sunborne? she did her best and was tricked spectacularly by our very own TS