Chapter 1077
Swallowing Everything
One night, Master Qingyang suddenly opened his eyes, his brows furrowed. He sensed a powerful aura rapidly approaching.
"Everyone be careful, a powerful enemy is attacking!" Master Qingyang shouted, warning his companions.
Yang Ling, Dan Yan, and Bai Yunzi immediately stopped cultivating, stood up, and looked around warily.
In the darkness, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows—the black-robed man who had vanished long ago. At this moment, his aura was even more powerful than before, his eyes gleaming with a chilling light, as if he wanted to devour everything.
"Are you all ready to die?" The man in black robes coldly uttered a few words, each one as if pulled from an ice cellar, carrying a chilling aura.
Master Qingyang gripped his divine sword tightly, his expression solemn. "We knew you would come again. Today, we'll show you the true power of the Heavenly Origin Spirit Pearl!"
The man in black robes snorted, his figure suddenly blurring, and in the next instant, he was in front of Master Qingyang, his long sword aimed straight for his heart. Master Qingyang reacted extremely quickly, swinging his divine sword to block the man in black robes' attack.
"Your speed is faster than before," Master Qingyang said, frowning.
"But it's not fast enough." The man in black robes sneered, his figure disappearing again, this time attacking Yang Ling.
Yang Ling drew his longsword, nimbly dodging the black-robed man's attack. Simultaneously, he swung his sword back, aiming directly for the man's back. But the black-robed man seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, easily avoiding the strike.
Seeing this, Dan Yan formed a hand seal, and a fire dragon roared out, charging straight at the black-robed man. The black-robed man, however, neither dodged nor evaded; he swung his longsword, sending a beam of black light to meet the fire dragon. The fire dragon and the black light collided in mid-air, creating a deafening explosion.
"Interesting." The man in black robes sneered, and with a flash, he attacked Bai Yunzi again.
Bai Yunzi formed hand seals, and suddenly thunder rumbled in the sky as a thick bolt of lightning struck the black-robed man. But the black-robed man seemed to have anticipated this move; he pointed his longsword, and a beam of black light met the lightning. The two collided in mid-air, creating another earth-shattering explosion.
Four men surrounded the man in black robes, but he moved like a ghost, his swordsmanship superb, allowing him to maneuver effortlessly amidst their encirclement. Each swing of his longsword carried immense power, forcing the four men to retreat continuously.
“This can’t go on,” Master Qingyang said, frowning. “We must find his weakness.”
"His movements are too unpredictable; we can't find any loopholes," Yang Ling sighed.
At this moment, the spirit of the Spirit Pearl suddenly spoke: "You need to use the power of the Spirit Pearl to engage in a mental battle with him."
"A battle of wits?" Dan Yan asked in confusion.
“That’s right. Through the Spirit Pearl, you can enter his mind and find his weaknesses,” the Spirit Pearl explained.
The four exchanged a glance and nodded. They closed their eyes and began to sense the power of the spirit orb. After a moment, they seemed to be in a dark space, surrounded by an eerie atmosphere.
"Is this the black-robed man's mental world?" Master Qingyang asked in surprise.
"Indeed, you must be careful; his resentment and killing intent permeate this place," the spirit of the Spirit Pearl warned. The four proceeded cautiously when suddenly, a dark shadow leaped out of the darkness, charging straight at Qingyang Zhenren. Qingyang Zhenren reacted swiftly, slashing his divine sword and cutting the shadow in two. But the shadow transformed into a wisp of black smoke, then reformed.
"This is the manifestation of his resentment. Only by finding his true form can we completely destroy him," said the spirit of the Spirit Pearl.
The four continued onward, with shadowy figures constantly emerging from the darkness to try and stop them. But none of the four were ordinary people, and they managed to escape danger each time.
Finally, they arrived before a massive black vortex. From within the vortex came the black-robed man's cold laughter: "I'm truly surprised you managed to get this far. But you think you can defeat me like this? Dream on!"
"Your resentment and murderous intent have corrupted your mind; you are no longer human," Master Qingyang said coldly. "Today, we will act on behalf of Heaven and destroy you!"
"Acting on behalf of Heaven? Hahaha!" The man in black robes slowly emerged from the vortex, his face twisted and ferocious. "What right do you have to act on behalf of Heaven? Heaven is ruthless, treating all things as straw dogs! Since I am no longer within Heaven's Dao, why should I fear it?"
Yang Ling coldly replied, "Heaven is merciless, yet it has its own reason. You take pleasure in killing, and have long since deviated from humanity. Today is your end!"
"Hmph, humanity? That's just an excuse the weak make for themselves," the black-robed man said disdainfully. "Only the strong can survive; that's the real truth."
Dan Yan angrily retorted, "Absurd! If the strong live only for their own selfish desires, what difference is there between them and beasts? What makes us human is that we have emotions, morality, and conscience!"
"Morality? Conscience? Hahaha, how laughable!" The man in black robes laughed loudly. "In this world, only power is everything! Your so-called morality and conscience are nothing but fragile fig leaves in the face of absolute power!"
Bai Yunzi calmly said, "Power is certainly important, but without moral restraint, it will become a tool of destruction. Your fate today is the best proof of that."
"Shut up!" the black-robed man roared, his figure flashing as he attacked Bai Yunzi. Bai Yunzi remained still, chanting incantations. Suddenly, a golden light descended from the sky, repelling the black-robed man.
"This is... the Heavenly Thunder Spell?" The man in black robes looked at Bai Yunzi in surprise. "You actually know this long-lost spell?"
"The way of Heaven is constant; it does not exist for Yao, nor does it perish for Jie," Bai Yunzi said calmly. "You have deviated from the way of Heaven, and you will surely be punished by Heaven."
The man in black robes roared and charged at Bai Yunzi again. But this time, his movements were much slower. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Qingyang Zhenren swung his divine sword, unleashing a sword aura towards the man in black robes. The man in black robes dodged the sword, but his left arm was slashed by the sword aura.
"You actually managed to hurt me?" The man in black robes looked at Master Qingyang in surprise. "It seems I underestimated you."
"Your power is great, but you are not invincible," Master Qingyang said coldly. "Today is your death day!"
The four attacked the man in black robes again, this time with even greater ferocity and perfect coordination. Although the man in black robes moved like a ghost and possessed superb swordsmanship, he gradually became overwhelmed by the four's combined assault. His wounds multiplied, and his breath grew weaker.
Finally, after a fierce exchange, the man in black robes was pierced through the heart by Yang Ling's sword and fell to the ground. His eyes were filled with resentment and regret, "I...I actually lost to you..." (End of Chapter)