Volcanic Age

The Heavenly Demon was strong. There were no falsehoods or exaggerations about his reputation.

He became the leader of a cult where the presiding doctrine was the insane idea that strength was truth, and thus, strength was everything. There was no way he wouldn’t be strong.

As expected of such a place, the Demon Cult Leader was their strongest master.

The title of Demon Cult Leader didn't fall short of the Absolute Master Realm, which had various names depending on the era, such as the Seven Empyrean Overlords.

"Don't be afraid!" Gu Yeyin shouted, breaking the silence.

"The current Demon Cult Leader, the Heavenly Demon, didn't reach his position purely through his cultivation!"

To become a Demon Cult Leader, 'strength' was needed. However, that strength wasn't limited to one's pure Demonic Cultivation.

Poisoning was a given, as there were also assassinations using beauties and all kinds of drugs. Some even launched surprise attacks while the previous Demon Cult Leader was in the bathroom or the bedroom.

There were many cases of past Cult Leaders reaching their position and becoming the Heavenly Demon through methods like these. While such methods couldn’t be accepted by any faction except the Demonic Path, strangely enough, they worked quite well here.

It wasn't for nothing that the murim rejected the Demon Cult as being completely defying common sense. It was an environment beyond what ordinary people could comprehend.

As for the current Heavenly Demon, he, too, didn't become the Cult Leader solely through strength.

Like the Demon Cult was prone to do, the previous Cult Leader also invaded the Central Plains. However, he was fatally wounded in his defeat and forced to retreat.

As a result, he suffered in agony at the Ten Thousand Great Mountains and eventually died, leaving many demons to fight bloodily to take his place.

The fights that took place seemingly every day ended in absurdity as the cult essentially self-destructed.

Eventually, one of the experts directly under the Cult Leader became the new leader by chance. He trained in the Demon Cult's foundational cultivation method, the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, and managed to reach the master stage.

That was the current Heavenly Demon.

"Even if the Taiji Sword isn't here…"

"Hmph. Well, you're not wrong…"

"...!"

Gu Yeyin sucked in a shocked breath.

When…?

Nangong Shanxu had been standing in front of the main force, making it understandable that he had been pulverized, but in Gu Yeyin's case, he was standing at a distance from the side of the unit.

So, just how did this happen?

In the blink of an eye, the Heavenly Demon's figure had disappeared and reappeared directly in front of him.

Gu Yeyin wasn't the only one who was shocked. The other Martial Alliance masters also doubted their eyes.

"Is this all you amount to?"

The Heavenly Demon looked disappointed.

Since the man's words had been so flashy, he had come out to see how strong he was, but Gu Yeyin didn't meet his expectations.

"The Heavenly Demon Hidden Form Art...!" someone from Kunlun Sect muttered.

As the Demon Cult Leader, the Heavenly Demon's techniques were famous. His figure had completely disappeared, making it impossible to see him with the naked eye. It was only possible for one to sense him using their qi perception.

Although he also cultivated the unpleasant demonic qi that anyone would be able to notice from a distance, once one reached the Completion Stage of the Heavenly Demon Hidden Form Art, even that disgusting demonic aura grew faint, making it impossible to sense the user if their perception was lacking.

"It really seems like just one or two of you won't satisfy me."

The Heavenly Demon's hands moved little by little as if they were itching.

"Come at me all at once!"

The Heavenly Demon stamped his foot with all his might.

Boom!

The moment his foot made contact with the ground, an explosion erupted. The demonic qi that surged from his Yongquan acupoint completely destroyed the ground.

The demonic qi that rose through the cracks leaped out like an angry bull, raging wildly.

"Heup!"

The Heavenly Demon took a deep breath. Tensing his core, he pulled his right arm back and then thrust his fist forward.

Strike!

The demonic qi that had gathered in front of his palm instantly formed a circle the moment he stretched his arm out and then shot forward.

Crack!!!

The Martial Alliance members wondered if the man before them was truly a person.

The ground before him shook violently from just the palm force emitted from his palm, sending sand and a human body flying through the air.

"Ugh…!"

With Gu Yeyin at the forefront, the Beggar Gang members behind him were unable to withstand the palm pressure blasting through them and fell backward. There were a whopping fifty of them, and yet they all were blasted through the air, catching the fifty other warriors behind them as well.

"Ugh!"

"Agh!"

"Agk!"

Righteous Faction members refused to roll on the ground even if they died. They hated such shameful donkey rolls that they would often rather choose death.

However, such stubbornness didn't work in front of the Heavenly Demon. They were all made to roll across the ground fiercely.

Some tried to hold on but ended up getting injured and spitting out blood, losing consciousness.

It was just a single palm.

With just one palm, over a hundred men had been struck down.

The martial artists were astonished by the overwhelming power.

"Breaking Heaven Asura Palm (破天修羅掌)!"

It wasn't one of the Heavenly Demon's exclusive techniques, but it was considered one of the best demonic arts within the Demon Cult.

With three forms, each of the forms could be called a peerless divine art.

"Surround the Heavenly Demon!" the Milky Way Sage shouted in a panicked voice.

At his words, the experts of each sect rushed out.

Starting with the Milky Way Sage, Wei Zhijie of Mount Hua, Hong Gao and Hong Jin of the Shaolin Temple, Bai Gongzi of the Qingcheng Sect, and Zhi Yiguang of the Kongtong Sect gathered, with their elite units, such as the Plum Blossom Swordsmen and the Eighteen Arhats, supporting them.

Things could become dangerous elsewhere if their powers were concentrated in a single place like this, but there was nothing they could do considering who their enemy was.

The supporting elites, such as the Eighteen Arhats and the Plum Blossom Swordsmen, kept watch over the area to prevent the Demon Cult experts from interfering.

Inside their blockade, the best of the Martial Alliance surrounded the Heavenly Demon.

"Good. Doesn't it have to be this much to kill some time?"

"How arrogant, Heavenly Demon!"

Hong Jin furrowed his eyebrows in displeasure.

"You'll all probably start babbling if I leave it alone again. You Martial Alliance—no, you Righteous Faction bastards are so talkative that it's a problem."

The Heavenly Demon raised his arm horizontally without even looking at his target.

Shing!

Then, a sword suddenly shot through the air, bypassing their blockade, and landed effortlessly in his hand.

What?! Just what sort of Spatial Manipulation was that…

What incredible suction power.

The Martial Alliance experts gulped nervously. Spatial Manipulation was something that could be used as long as one had the qi to support it. However, pulling a sword from such a distance at that speed, was nearly impossible.

"Now, watch."

The Demon Cult Leader's eyes became bloodshot.

"I will personally teach you the first technique."

The moment Heavenly Demon gripped the handle tightly, a dark demonic qi surged forward like a storm.

"Heavenly Demon's Three Sword Forms, First Form."

His gray hair swayed wildly in the wind, and the Martial Alliance masters around him became tense.

"Heavenly Demon Manifestation."[1]

Shing—

The pressure of his move was so strong that they struggled to open their eyes. However, somewhere along the line, the pressure suddenly disappeared, sucked into his sword. The moment the Martial Alliance masters opened their eyes in wonder, the Heavenly Demon swung his sword lightly.

"Flash (閃)."

However, the power of his sword was not merely a simple flash.

Shing!

While it was both dark and pitch-black, it was also a source of light. The moment their brains recognized that the darkness itself had flashed, they were crushed by the pressure of the sword.

BOOM!

A wind blew. It turned into a storm stronger than a simple gust of wind.

The black haze seeped into the earth, destroying everything in its path.

What heavens?!

Just what the f—!

UGH!

The ground flipped over, and the dust turned into a sandstorm. The Martial Alliance experts all deployed defensive qi barriers to block it.

Despite that, their bodies couldn't hold out, and their qi was being consumed at a terrifying rate.

Blood trickled from their mouths as their legs sank into the ground, forcing them backward.

The yifus that they kept so clean shook violently in the wind, turning into a mess as they suffered wounds all over their bodies.[2]

"UGH!"

"AGH!"

Four zhang.

The immediate area within four zhang around the Heavenly Demon became a complete mess.

Whether it was the Martial Alliance or the Demon Cult, all martial artists within that range were swept away by the sword pressure and were either flung backward or were cut in two, dying instantly.

"Ahahaha!"

The Heavenly Demon laughed.

"This is a pretty good start!"

"Kill him!"

The Martial Alliance's experts rushed in at the same time without anyone having to shout. The Heavenly Demon's cultivation sounded the alarm.

Woosh!

The Milky Way Sage's attack hit the Heavenly Demon first.

Star Plucking Finger poured out a stream that traced a trajectory like a falling meteor.

There were an incredible six of them, and the power contained within was not only unbelievable but also was imbued with finger aura.

Moreover, it didn't just shoot in one direction but rather spiraled like a whirlwind, aiming for a single point from six different directions.

The Heavenly Demon rolled his creepy, dazzling eyes to track their movement and then spun in place.

He didn't just spin.

Holding the sword loosely at his side, he extended his free hand, spread his fingers wide, and spun his body in a fierce, circular motion.

Bang!

The Heavenly Demon's palm struck the Milky Way Star Plucking Finger. He didn't even try to dodge it but rather struck it head-on, successfully deflecting it.

The flying bolts of finger aura flew into the air as if nothing happened and disappeared as soon as they hit his palm.

But it wasn't over yet.

"Ha!"

Hong Gao let out a fierce roar and unleashed a fist from a hundred paces away.

It was the Hundred Paces Divine Fist.

As expected, it was a fist blast formed of fist aura. Its power was extraordinary.

The Heavenly Demon exclaimed, 'Oho,' and swung the iron sword in his hand upward, its blade wrapped in a dark sword aura.

The blast of the Hundred Paces Divine Fist, which had been aiming for the Heavenly Demon's chest, disappeared.

Woosh!

As soon as Hong Gao's attack ended, three experts rushed in.

The timing of their attacks from the left, right, and rear was almost simultaneous.

"Heup!"

Bai Gongzhi's Azure Clouds Crimson Haze Sword struck from the left, emitting a sharp killing aura.

"Ha!"

Wei Zhijie's Twenty-four Sword Forms of the Plum Blossom also quickly stabbed from the right.

The one aiming for the rear was Hong Jin.

Nine Grades of the Lotus Pavilions!

Although only three people had attacked, suddenly, it split into twelve figures.

Hong Jin's figure blurred, and nine clones appeared in addition to his main body, surrounding and encircling the Heavenly Demon from all sides.

This is the end!

Not even the Absolute Master Seven Empyrean Overlords could block a joint attack of this level.

Except for Zhi Yiguang, who was on the verge of reaching the Harmony Realm, the rest were all Harmony Realm Masters.

So, this time, they thought that the Heavenly Demon wouldn't be able to get out unscathed.

Or so they thought.

"Yes, it needs to be at least this much!"

The Heavenly Demon's mad laughter rang out.

"Heavenly Demon Domination Steps!"

Even in a life-threatening situation, the Heavenly Demon never lost his smile and continued to shout his techniques in a crazed manner before he used them.

However, even if the others knew what techniques he would use, there was no way that they could stop him.

As proof, the expressions of the experts of the Martial Alliance simply hardened as a nightmare unfolded.

"He, ha, ha, ha!"

The Heavenly Demon's laughter could be heard from hell, his laughter echoing from all directions.

Time seemed to stop.

Before the swords of Bai Gongzhi and Wei Zhijie, as well as Hong Jin's Thirteen Palm Forms to Purify a Demon, reached the Heavenly Demon, something changed.

The Heavenly Demon's body became hazy like fog, and his flesh divided itself into twelve identical bodies.

If the Shaolin Temple had the Nine Grades of the Lotus Pavilions, the Demon Cult had the Heavenly Demon Domination Steps. Once one reached the Completion Stage of the Heavenly Demon Domination Steps, their form would split into twelve, and like the Nine Grades of the Lotus Pavilions, the illusions of form became fully substance.

To prove this, the Heavenly Demon was able to counter like Hong Jin had with various techniques—no, not just any techniques, but by even mixing sword techniques and palm techniques.

Bai Gongzhi's Azure Clouds Crimson Haze Sword bounced off the Heavenly Demon's sword as Wei Zhijie's Twenty-four Sword Forms of the Plum Blossom were also stopped.

Hong Jin, who had additionally created nine clones with the Nine Grades of the Lotus Pavilions, was also hit by a sword, fist, and palm.

Finally, the time that had seemingly stopped started flowing normally again.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

Bang, bang, bang!

Boom! Bang!

"Ugh!"

"Agh!"

The Martial Alliance forces were all defeated, and the martial artists nearby were left speechless.

They couldn't even tell what had happened.

It all happened so fast that time itself seemed to pause.

Everyone who saw what had just happened shared the same thought.

Maybe the Seven Empyrean Overlords should have been ranked.

1. The term here, 現身, has a literary meaning that pertains to Deities, which denotes the Manifestation of a God's Incarnation. It literally means to appear in the flesh. However, the full term, Heavenly Demon Incarnation Appearance, sounds weird, so I just used manifestation, even though it's not the specific term. ☜

2. Martial arts uniform. ☜