Chapter 267

Chapter 267: Evil Demon Heart (4000 words, two-in-one)

Four days ago, in Xu Ming’s courtyard, Mo Zhu’er took out a box.

Upon opening the box, inside was a heart! This heart was pitch black, as if it had been soaked in ink for millions of years and then coated with a thick layer of oil.

But this heart seemed to still be beating, emanating an ominous aura throughout.

“What is this thing?” Wu Yanhan asked, clearly not liking this object.

“Is this the heart of an evil demon?” Wang Xuan furrowed her brows.

“That’s correct. This is indeed the heart of an evil demon, and Elder Wang Xuan certainly knows a lot,” Mo Zhu’er nodded, “This heart was obtained by our previous Black Lotus Sect leader during an accidental discovery in the Wasteland Demon Pit. Judging from its quality, it should belong to an Evil King.”

“What use does this heart have? Can it alone help Xia He reach the Ascension Realm?” Wu Yanhan questioned, “If that’s the case, wouldn’t everyone just go to the Abyss and hunt those evil demons?”

“…Xu Ming listened to their conversation, feeling somewhat lost.

To be honest, Xu Ming really didn’t know what these evil demons were.

“This naturally isn’t possible,” Mo Zhu’er shook her head, “If it were just ordinary evil demons, their hearts would be useless. As for the hearts of Evil Kings, they wouldn’t work either; otherwise, killing one Evil King would mean humanity gaining another Ascension Realm cultivator—there’s no such easy thing. But this heart is different.”

Wu Yanhan glanced at Mo Zhu’er, clearly not on good terms, “How is it different?”

“This heart is the most crucial medium—it’s the foundation of everything.”

Mo Zhu’er sipped her tea and slowly explained:

“Though I don’t know exactly what happened,

the Black Lotus Sect leader has indeed struck some mysterious cooperation with Xia He.

Each evil demon corresponds to special abilities.

Through experiments conducted by the current Black Lotus Sect leader, this evil demon’s heart contains the ability to convert fortune and absorb life force.

What I’ve said, Elder Wang Xuan must surely understand.

For every cultivator, so-called realms are nothing more than gates.

And what cultivators need to do is use various means to cross over these gates, thereby seeing the scenery beyond them.

Some find the key to the gate, some take shortcuts by digging tunnels under the gate, some fly over the gate, and others smash through it with brute force.

Most people fall into the first category—finding their Daoist heart, staying firm on their path, and when the time is ripe, they open the gate.

But what Xia He intends to do is the latter—smashing through the gate with brute force.

This heart is like the battering ram.

The Heavenly Profound Gate’s fortune, the guests, and the blood and fortune of deceased disciples will serve as the soldiers controlling this battering ram! What Xia He needs to do is call upon the guardian spirit of the Heavenly Profound Gate during the Purple Mist Grand Ceremony.

Then he’ll remove the guardian spirit’s heart and replace it with this black heart! Since the guardian spirit controls the Heavenly Profound Gate’s fortune, controlling this heart means Xia He controls the guardian spirit. Afterward, Xia He will consume the guardian spirit’s original heart.

A connection between them will be established, using fortune and life force to break through the gate blocking Xia He’s path to the Ascension Realm!

At this time, Xia He can also control the Heavenly Profound Gate’s magic array to kill, plus there are many hall masters and elder members who assist Xia He, which, according to my knowledge, already accounts for half of the Heavenly Profound Gate.

In short, this is an unbreakable situation.

We far underestimate Xia He’s power.”

“If we can’t break the deadlock, you wouldn’t be sitting here now telling us all this nonsense,” Wu Yanhan glared at Mo Zhu’er with dissatisfaction.

Wu Yanhan already had a bad impression of Mo Zhu’er.

Now that Mo Zhu’er was withholding information, Wu Yanhan liked her even less.

“Princess, please calm down. I’m merely stating some prerequisites,” Mo Zhu’er smiled gently, appearing very composed, “As the Princess said, in this world, there’s no unbreakable deadlock; it’s just that we haven’t found a way yet.”

“For example, if we destroy this heart right now, Xia He’s plan won’t be able to proceed, right?” Wu Yanhan stared straight at Mo Zhu’er.

Mo Zhu’er wants the Heavenly Profound Gate’s fortune, so she made a deal with us.

But if we destroy this heart, Xia He’s plan won’t be able to proceed, and Mo Zhu’er won’t get the Heavenly Profound Gate’s fortune.

Simply put, we’re not negotiating with Mo Zhu’er anymore, disregarding martial virtue, and flipping the table right now.

And Mo Zhu’er, being here in this courtyard facing us, especially with a transcendental realm expert like Elder Wang Xuan present, has nowhere to run.

Mo Zhu’er grinned brightly, “Princess, your words are quite intimidating, but if you can think of it, why wouldn’t others? This heart has already been enchanted. If it encounters danger, it will tear through space and automatically seek out Xia He’s location.”

Wu Yanhan: “…”

Mo Zhu’er closed the box and placed the heart in her storage bag, “So don’t think about any other tricks.

What you can do is cooperate with me.

Today, I will hand this heart over to Xia He, but I will inject something into it.

And this something will play a crucial role in breaking the deadlock.

Moreover, the key lies with Xia Donghua.”

“That guy?” Xu Ming was somewhat surprised.

“Yes~” Mo Zhu’er coquettishly replied to Xu Ming, her eyes twinkling.

Seeing Mo Zhu’er’s attitude toward Xu Ming, Wu Yanhan felt uneasy, sensing something off about this flirtatious woman, as if she were truly interested in Xu Ming.

“Although Xia Donghua is someone whom Lord Xu could easily crush with one hand,

don’t forget, another important function of the Purple Mist Grand Ceremony is selecting candidates for the Holy Sons and Daughters of the Heavenly Profound Gate.

Xia Donghua is one of the candidates, and Xia He has already set up the game so that Xia Donghua will definitely become the Holy Son.

The chosen Holy Son and Daughter will receive formal recognition from the Heavenly Profound Gate’s guardian spirit.

This recognition involves allocating part of the Heavenly Profound Gate’s fortune to the Holy Son and Daughter.

Therefore, Xia He will make his move when the guardian spirit acknowledges Xia Donghua because at that moment, the guardian spirit needs to allocate fortune and will be relatively weak, making it easier to ambush.

Moreover, once Xia Donghua receives acknowledgment, he will become the Holy Son and serve as a medium for the Heavenly Profound Gate’s magic array.

If we kill Xia Donghua at that moment,

the fortune given to Xia Donghua by the guardian spirit will return to the Heavenly Profound Gate’s guardian spirit, possibly causing it to briefly regain clarity due to this fortune.

Additionally, because Xia Donghua, the Holy Son, dies, the Heavenly Profound Gate’s magic array will tremble, causing partial backlash onto Xia He.

At that time!

We will unleash our full strength—not to kill Xia He—but to seize the Heavenly Profound Mirror! Release those old things like Xu Cang.

The situation will shift!”

In the Hundred Springs Plain,

Xu Ming watched as Xia Donghua charged towards him, a smirk forming on his lips.

Xu Ming had been waiting for this moment.

Xu Ming knew that when he was slightly injured, Xia Donghua would definitely rush to kill him.

This was a very normal reaction. When Xu Ming kicked Xia Donghua away earlier, he realized that he had become Xia Donghua’s inner demon, someone Xia Donghua undoubtedly hated deeply and wanted to kill first!

Just as Xia Donghua was twenty meters away from Xu Ming, Xia He’s pupils contracted sharply, shouting loudly to his son: “Donghua! Retreat!”

But it was already too late.

Xu Ming’s spiritual energy surged dramatically around him.

Even the rampant spiritual energy had formed a tornado.

The tornado was filled with sword qi cutting through everyone’s skin.

In the Hundred Springs Plain, every person’s body bore at least one wound caused by Xu Ming’s sword qi.

“Wo… wo…”

The sound of the Great Dao resonated continuously in the sky.

This sound came from Xu Ming.

Xia Donghua sensed something was wrong and tried to retreat.

Although Xia Donghua didn’t know how Xu Ming managed to not only withstand his father’s attack but also exude such overwhelming momentum,

he clearly understood that if he didn’t leave immediately, he would die! However, Xia Donghua didn’t have enough time to escape.

A longsword pierced through the tornado formed by spiritual energy.

All Xia Donghua saw was a fleeting shadow of a sword.

When he turned around, Xu Ming, holding the longsword, was already standing behind him.

There was no blood on Xu Ming’s sword, but Xia Donghua tightly clutched his neck.

“You… you…”

The next moment, Xia Donghua felt dizzy, his head falling to the ground.

The black spring water devoured Xia Donghua’s body!

“Xu Ming! You’re courting death!” Xia He roared angrily.

Xia He wasn’t angry because Xu Ming killed his son.

For Xia He, losing Xia Donghua wasn’t a big deal; once he reached the Ascension Realm, he could try to have another.

Even if he didn’t, he didn’t care much about continuing his bloodline.

However, his son couldn’t die now; his death might cause unforeseen variables.

Sure enough,

Xia He’s greatest concern came true.

Because Xia Donghua died, the fortune bestowed upon him returned partially to the Heavenly Profound Gate’s guardian spirit.

As the guardian spirit regained some consciousness, she also realized what the current master of the Heavenly Profound Gate had done.

With her last bit of clarity, the Heavenly Profound Gate guardian spirit forcibly reversed the sect’s magic array, retaliating against Xia He.

Xia He spat out a mouthful of blood.

But soon, Xia He stabilized himself and activated his spells again.

“Aaaaahhhh!!!” The Heavenly Profound Gate guardian spirit screamed endlessly.

The black heart in her chest continued to erode her sanity.

Looking at everything in the Hundred Springs Plain—the disciples slaughtering each other, the corpses scattered everywhere, the Heavenly Profound Gate in disarray—a flicker of human sorrow appeared in her eyes.

The Heavenly Profound Gate guardian spirit turned her gaze directly at Xia He, her fury seeming to want to devour him.

At the last moment before her sanity was completely eroded, the Heavenly Profound Gate guardian spirit reached into her own heart and grabbed fiercely!

“Damn!”

Xia He rushed forward hastily, never expecting the guardian spirit’s willpower to hold out to this extent.

But it was already too late.

“Boom!”

With a tremendous explosion, the Heavenly Profound Gate guardian spirit self-destructed, the massive spiritual energy impact rippling outward like ripples on a lake.

“Fool! Do you think destroying yourself will make any difference?!”

Xia He coldly stared at where the Heavenly Profound Gate guardian spirit had been, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. The black heart remained.

Xia He spread his arms wide and shouted, “Things have come to this point, and no one can stop me anymore. You will all become my medicine!”

“Is that so?”

Just as Xia He finished speaking, a voice sounded beside him.

Xia He tensed up, his first action being to sidestep.

A longsword slashed past Xia He, the sword qi cleaving a nearby mountain peak in half!

“Xu Ming! How did you enter the Jade Pudding Realm!”

Xia He, after putting distance between them, looked incredulously at the other side, but Xu Ming’s next strike followed swiftly.

Xu Ming’s cursive script technique delivered fatal blows with every slash, each movement precise and without excess.

Even though Xia He was at the peak of the Transcendental Realm, he dared not meet the intense sword qi head-on.

Xia He cast a spell, muttering the Eight Trigrams Decree, attempting to strike Xu Ming’s head.

This spell specifically countered sword cultivators—if they used sword qi, it would absorb the qi and reflect it back at them; if they didn’t use sword qi, the spell would hit Xu Ming’s head directly, leaving him either dead or severely injured!

But Xu Ming didn’t use sword qi.

Xu Ming wielded his longsword gracefully, each clever stroke dismantling the Eight Trigrams Decree. In less than a breath’s time, all of Xia He’s spells were destroyed.

At this moment, Xu Ming gained a deeper understanding of the phrase, “There is no hierarchy between sword techniques, sword qi, and sword intent—all can reach perfection.”

After breaking Xia He’s spells, Xu Ming transformed into a streak of white smoke and thrust his sword toward Xia He’s heart.

“Clang!”

Xu Ming’s sword collided with a turtle shell, the sword qi and spiritual energy sweeping out, pushing both apart.

“Whelp!”

Being beaten so embarrassingly by a junior cultivator, Xia He became enraged!

Xia He raised his right hand high, summoning a ferocious magical manifestation from the Heavenly Profound Gate array, lunging at Xu Ming.

But at this moment, Xu Ming suddenly redirected his sword, charging straight toward the Heavenly Profound Mirror hovering a hundred meters above!