Chapter 474: Bloodstained Peach Blossoms (5K5)

Chapter 474: Bloodstained Peach Blossoms (5K5)



Swish.

Shen Yi listened to the rustling wind by his ears, a fleeting scene flashing before his eyes.

A hideous demon rushed towards him, its sharp claws piercing his chest.

Familiar faces filled with terror were torn apart by chaotic blades, blood splattering everywhere.

A monstrously large scarlet demon swept past the sky, beneath which a city collapsed into ruins, with endless wails of vengeful spirits.

"..."

Shen Yi gently flicked his sleeve, shattering the pathetically fake illusion.

Having cultivated the Divine Soul Technique since the Spirit Creation Realm and further enhancing his soul during his Spirit Trance Realm cultivation, such a crude illusion barely affected him.

Shen Yi raised his eyes to look forward.

Beyond the teleportation formation lay a massive pit. The rough stone walls towered a thousand feet high, with cave entrances large enough for a person to sit cross-legged every three feet.

Within each cave sat a solitary figure.

Some were cultivators, while others were mortals.

Their expressions were numb, their eyes closed, appearing calm and unperturbed. However, their vitality was dim, their lives hanging by a thread.

"Huh."

Shen Yi retracted his gaze, finding it challenging to count the number of people within the walls.

He finally understood why Peach Garden Villa dared to target even a blessed land of an immortal sect.

In the perilous South Hong region, aside from blessed lands of unity, it was estimated that no other place could provide such a terrifying number of beings to fill this bottomless abyss.

As for their purpose...

Based on the illusion that had invaded his mind earlier, he could make a rough guess.

It didn't cause physical harm but tortured the mind.

Enduring constant inner turmoil until one's spirit collapsed.

The surging resentment from the pit almost turned the desolate sky above gray.

And at the center of that grayness...

A pitch-black bead absorbed the wisps of gray smoke.

With each wisp that rose, a seated figure within the stone walls would sway and fall downward, joining the mountain of putrid white bones.

Soon, disciples of Peach Garden Villa arrived, leading another captive to take the fallen one's place.

The entire process was smooth and efficient, requiring no commands.

"Heh."

Qingxi Townshi's gaze turned grave as he looked towards the bead, where a black mist connected it to an aged figure atop the mountain of white bones.

"An alternative method of life extension?"

"This old bastard sure values his life."

Although Qingxi, the great demon, had only reached the sixth layer of Spirit Trance in his lifetime, he was still knowledgeable and immediately understood what Peach Garden Villa was doing.

Using vengeful spirits to conceal heaven's secrets and extending life by absorbing the vitality of living beings.

Killing two birds with one stone.

At that moment, a group of aquatic creatures clad in dragon palace fish-scale armor strode over arrogantly. "What took you so long? We brought 327,000 ordinary mortals. Forget the change, just get it done quickly."

They impatiently reached out towards the youth in ink-black robes.

Shen Yi silently stared at the group of demons before him.

He had seen the dragon palace's fish-scale armor more than once.

It seemed that the price of buying life wasn't only paid to those on shore; the underwater beings also had their share.

Just then, dozens of figures rushed in.

Upon seeing nearly twenty figures wearing Nanyang sect attendant robes, several dragon palace water soldiers' expressions changed as they sensed something amiss.

They knew that Peach Garden Villa was doing business with the sect attendants of an immortal sect.

But for cultivators to be involved in such matters was a grave sin. How could so many attendants from the same sect be involved simultaneously?

"..."

After barely escaping the madman's pursuit, Zhong Guangde stumbled into the pit and quickly signaled to the dragon palace water soldiers.

The water soldiers reacted and took out their conch shell communicators.

"Sect Master."

The few Nanyang sect attendants with the highest cultivation quickly freed themselves from the illusion formation.

They swiftly moved towards Shen Yi.

To create such a distracting formation that could cover so many people was costly, even for an immortal sect. Thus, they settled for it only affecting those with insufficient cultivation.

They warily glanced around.

It was supposed to be a visit from the main sect to its subsidiary, but now they felt like caged birds, trapped and helpless, despite their wings.

Indeed, as the dragon race water soldiers lowered their conch shells...

A towering green Qilin dragon smashed a wine jar between the mountain of white bones, grumbling, "It's so troublesome to earn some extra income. Double the price this time."

As it stood up, the terrifying aura of the ninth layer of Spirit Trance surged forth.

At the same time, the withered figure atop the mountain of white bones suddenly opened his eyes, his cloudy eyes seeming to hold endless vengeful spirits.

Even the green Qilin dragon before him seemed minuscule in comparison.

A cultivator who had truly crossed that dividing line! Even though he hadn't successfully broken through after so many years, that robust aura still belonged to one who had reached the peak of the Spirit Trance Realm.

The Peach Garden Villa Master didn't try to dissuade him like Zhong Guangde had.

Perhaps Nanyang sect had crossed his bottom line, or perhaps he had lost his sanity after absorbing too many vengeful spirits in his quest for longevity.

He rose into the air, his ten-story-high gloomy palace dominating the sky, exuding overwhelming might.

Spiritual lights flickered within, hinting at its fragile state.

But what replaced it was an even more sinister and violent aura.

"You've seen what you wanted to see. Can you close your eyes in peace now?"

Zhong Guangde rose into the air with a sinister smile, blocking everyone's escape route.

The Nanyang sect attendants were already on edge, their gazes fixed on Shen Yi.

They never imagined that Peach Garden Villa would dare to commit such a heaven-defying act.

Zhong Guangde was right; once Nanyang sect stepped in, there would be no room for negotiation.

It had to be said that this time, they might have played a little too big...

"..."

Shen Yi lowered his gaze to his palms, his fingertips twitching slightly.

Everyone else was uncertain, except for Nie Jun, who seemed to have guessed something.

In that instant when the thought crossed his mind, even Nie Jun, known for his ruthless killings, felt his heart skip a beat.

As Shen Yi's fingertips stopped twitching...

Such a grand spectacle seemed to proclaim four large words.

Leave no one behind.

As Shen Yi's palm descended.

His ink-black robe had been replaced by the dazzling white robe of the Nanyang Sect, with the radiant sun emblem between them, and golden flames raging.

With the empowerment of the Sect Master's robe.

The golden flames burned away the gray mist, causing the gloomy sky to shine brightly.

The sea of blood churned, and the purple qi rose from the east.

Like the rising of the great sun, the entire pit was illuminated with splendor, and even the baleful aura shrouding the mountain of white bones quickly dissipated.

The Wu Liang Demon Emperor's Palace, only five stories high, seemed to rival the ten-story tall Daoist Palace.

"..."

Not to mention others, even the Peach Garden Villa Master's cloudy eyes showed a hint of astonishment.

As a powerful cultivator who had reached the pinnacle of the Immortal Returning Realm, he had witnessed many magnificent Daoist Palaces over the years, even if he couldn't compete with the true celestial geniuses.

He had indeed seen a true celestial palace.

But the Wu Liang Demon Emperor's Palace, exuding the boundless purple qi, far surpassed that of his peers!

Could it be that... even the heavens are unfair? How could someone receive such abundant blessings?

The formation rippled again.

The silver-armored youth stepped in, carrying a corpse in each hand, which he casually threw to the ground, blocking everyone's escape route.

"Are you scared now?"

It raised its head, its bloody and mangled face splitting into a grin, revealing bloodstained white teeth.

"You damn thing."

The Qinglin Jiaolong, clad in exquisite fish-scale armor, waved its hand, and a long-handled broadsword appeared in its palm.

It signaled to the ten-odd water soldiers with a glance.

Then, it stepped into the air and viciously slashed at the Dao General guarding the formation with its broadsword! Such an odd celestial palace of a cultivator was a matter of great importance, and it had to be reported to the Dragon Palace.

As for the Peach Garden Villa, what did it have to do with them?

No one dared to owe the Dragon Palace anything, even if they were just out on a private job.

Swish!

The broadsword cut through the sky, its sharpness causing almost everyone present to instinctively dodge.

Only the silver-armored youth slightly raised his dazed expression and then lifted his hand, meeting the blade with the back of his palm, causing fine cracks to appear from his palm to his entire arm and even his body.

This block was extremely forced.

It showed the vast difference in their cultivation levels.

However, just as the Qinglin Jiaolong was about to swing its broadsword again, it met the Dao General's eyes, filled with fear and madness.

For an instant, the Jiaolong lost its focus.

The next moment, a shattered palm viciously slapped its face.

Boom! The Qinglin Jiaolong was sent flying, smashing through the mountain of white bones.

Crack... Crack...

The Dao General staggered forward, its body shattered and its steps unsteady, yet it exuded a wild and arrogant aura.

Although it had not truly cultivated the Heavenly Derivative Technique, after sitting in meditation for three million years, the vast insights that threatened to shatter its divine intellect had gradually infused its every action.

The Qingxi Demon also laughed wildly and strode towards the Flood Dragon.

These two eighth-layer Return to Nothingness cultivators displayed an incomprehensible arrogance before the ninth-layer Return to Nothingness Dragon Palace demon.

As all eyes were focused on this scene.

As the cultivator with the highest cultivation in the deep pit.

The Peach Garden Villa Master stared intently at the white-robed figure of the Nanyang Sect Master.

Compared to those two strange stone puppets, what truly made him feel uneasy was the young Nanyang Sect Master.

As he watched the surging sea of golden flames give rise to purple qi.

He abruptly raised his palms.

Within the gloomy Daoist Palace, a towering thousand-faced statue suddenly appeared.

Its body was like a mountain range, and its faces were like evil spirits.

Countless faces wailed, sneered, and seethed with resentment, faintly visible in the thick gray mist.

In an instant, the thousand-faced evil spirits tilted their bodies forward as if a malevolent god was looking down upon the mortal realm.

"Accept my bow!"

The Peach Garden Villa Master's shriveled and skeletal face moved, and a hoarse and sharp sound escaped his lips.

The thousand-faced evil spirit statue bowed.

A solid mass of resentful energy swept forward, finally diverting everyone's attention from the stone puppets. Their hearts pounded as if struck by a heavy drum, their faces reddening as if blood would drip from them.

Even the Water Moon Business Alliance ministers, who had reached the seventh layer of Returning to Nothingness, were unsteady, as if they would be drowned by the tide of shrill screams of the tortured souls.

They were merely cultivators and not true immortals or gods.

How could they bear the terrifying resentment born from the endless suffering of countless sentient beings?

And as the one facing this bow.

The beautiful white robe was instantly covered by the gray mist.

But it didn't last long.

Purple-gold flames surged, like a phoenix dancing in the sky, sweeping away the evil spirits.

Seeing that the situation was unfavorable, the Peach Garden Villa Master manipulated his technique again.

The massive thousand-faced evil spirit statue bowed down! Like a horrifying mountain collapsing!

Countless faces smashed into the gray mist, and piercing wails echoed within the deep pit.

When the mist cleared.

Countless faces were shattered, adding a touch of sorrow to their hideousness.

Before this enormous bowing thousand-faced statue, Shen Yi stood with his hands behind his back, his white robe fluttering slightly, dispelling the thick resentment.

Purple-gold flames danced on his white robe.

Like purple clouds reflecting the great sun.

The terrifying statue knelt before the slender figure.

Shen Yi took a leisurely step, treading on its skull, and walked along its spine towards the desiccated elder in the sky.

For a Grand Master of the Unity of Heaven and Man, this was just a casual garment.

But at this moment, empowered by the law robe, the surging purple-gold flames seemed capable of melting the entire Peach Garden Villa.

As he stepped forward, a sharp set of wrist guards appeared on his arm, hidden beneath his sleeve.

They were also gray, but unlike the gray mist filled with resentment in the gloomy Daoist Palace, this set of armor's gray represented nothingness, the end of all things.

Empowered by the boundless purple qi, he was protected by the Ruinous Immortal Armor.

Shen Yi slowly walked up to the Peach Garden Villa Master.

Everything in the deep pit seemed to freeze at this moment.

Instead of seizing the opportunity to attack, General Daohai's eyes widened with fear, his expression turning fearful.

He reached out to hold the Flood Dragon's head, forcing it to look up as he murmured, "Look."

The Flood Dragon punched and shattered his right shoulder, but General Daohai showed no reaction, continuing to stare upward. Enraged, the Flood Dragon roared, "What are you looking at?!

"Look... at the true sky..." General Daohai's eyes, filled with fear, now shone with fanaticism.

The Flood Dragon, driven by curiosity, looked up as well. The next moment, under the gaze of those purple-gold eyes that filled the sky, it felt a chill run down its spine.

In almost everyone's line of sight, a figure in a white robe appeared.

That handsome, pale face turned to look back, and within those purple-gold eyes seemed to lie the secrets of the heavens and the earth.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Countless explosions reverberated through the deep pit, as countless blossoms of blood simultaneously bloomed, more dazzling than the mountains of peach blossoms. Countless figures instantly shattered.

The deep pit turned into a churning sea of blood.

Shen Yi stood atop the thousand-faced evil spirit statue, his pale, delicate fingers untouched by the bloodshed. He held a mysterious mechanism cone, which he inserted into the old man's brow.

Only when excruciating pain struck did the Master of Peach Garden Villa snap out of his daze. Instinctively, he tried to manipulate his dao technique, but the connection to his dao palace suddenly became sluggish.

In that brief moment of hesitation, ten threads of the mysterious mechanism had already sealed his brow, mouth and nose, limbs, and vital organs.

Within the gloomy dao palace, the second wave of dao technique gathered.

But it was much slower than before.

The Master of Peach Garden Villa watched helplessly as the young man in front of him rolled up his sleeves, his handsome face unchanged, but now bearing a hint of maliciousness.

In the next instant, fierce fists rained down from all directions.

The perfected Heaven's Derivative Technique was once again unleashed in full force.

With the empowerment of the Sect Master's robe, the gift from Xuan Qing, and the combination of two spirit techniques and the threads of the mysterious mechanism, something inconceivable happened.

A cultivator at the middle stage of the Returning Void realm, leaping across two great boundaries, displayed power that defied all logic and understanding.

The gloomy dao palace churned with gray mist, as malicious dao techniques descended toward the pit.

However, they struggled to keep up with the elusive figure.

The white robe fluttered in the air, and with each appearance, the withered old man's body shattered.

From the air to the ground, it took only a dozen breaths.

But to the Master of Peach Garden Villa, it felt like an eternity, as if he had been forged a thousand times over. Yet, he knew that the hammer-wielder had no intention of creating a masterpiece, but was merely venting his anger.

As the withered old man fell to the ground, five fingers tore into his body.

With a ruthless strike, his dao infant's organs were obliterated.

Scorching golden flames consumed him entirely.

Shen Yi stood atop the sea of blood, watching as the gloomy dao palace in the sky crumbled layer by layer. Finally, he exhaled a turbid breath.

"Phew."

Behind him, within the deep pit, aside from the figures on the stone walls, only the disciples of the Nanyang Sect and two badly damaged stone puppets remained.

The dazzling blood blossoms that had exploded in the air earlier now soaked the delicate peach blossoms, their crimson color a stark contrast to the pale pink.

The entire mountain forest echoed with countless agonized screams.

The process did not take too long.

Soon, in the grand hall that had once stood, only three quivering figures remained.

"Sect Master Shen, please spare us! We're just here to admire the peach blossoms!"

"We're an allied sect! Qingyue Sect... Qingyue Sect has helped you a lot, don't you remember?"

The outer sect elder of Tianjian Sect forced a smile, while the Qingyue Sect's executive frantically tried to curry favor. Only the Wushuang Sect's executive sat on the ground, his face pale.

The intricate Five Elements Treasure Lotus Formation had trapped them all within Peach Garden Villa.

In the main seat, Shen Yi quietly flipped through the ledger retrieved by the Nanyang Sect executives.

Behind each payment for life extension was a simple note, representing the countless lives traded for longevity.

It was a heart-wrenching sight.

The Nanyang Sect executives stood stupefied.

While they had witnessed Shen Yi's ruthlessness before, it had mostly been directed at demons. This was the first time they had seen him act thus towards cultivators...

A few of them recalled Li Qingfeng's previous warning—Sect Master Shen was not merely skilled at demon slaying.

Even after wiping out Peach Garden Villa, it seemed the matter was not yet concluded.

"Sect Master... surely you won't interfere in the affairs of an allied sect?" one of them thought.

Just then, Shen Yi finally came across a few familiar names.

He glanced up at the three people before him.

"Don't be foolish! I'm an outer sect elder of Tianjian Sect!" Xie Chaoyu's face twisted in embarrassment as he backed away a few steps, shouting, "The Seven Sons Assembly hasn't started yet, and you're not officially the Sect Master! Even if you are, you have no authority over Tianjian Sect!"

The Qingyue Sect executive's mind collapsed, and he slumped to the ground alongside the Wushuang Sect executive.

As the executive of Tianjian Sect's closest allied sect, he had heard tales of this Sect Master's character...

"..."

Shen Yi gently placed the ledger on the table.

The white robe remained still.

But below, three muffled sounds rang out.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three heads exploded simultaneously, adding a few more splashes of blood to the grand hall.

Nie Jun stood in the hall, sword in hand, watching the scene unfold. Suddenly, he felt a strange sensation in his heart. Perhaps he, along with the other executives, had overcomplicated the matter.

To Shen Yi, it might have been a much simpler affair.

After all, the man before them was a bona fide... killing machine.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end