Estranged

g but was not in a dominant position.
His opponent was Princess Linglong, the demon Changming had met in the Luo Capital.

They had not seen her for quite some time, and Princess Linglong was not all alone this time.
She was shrouded with an inexhaustible demonic qi that flowed in a steady stream.
Her strength had increased, and she had fully occupied the body she had taken over.

Sun Buku was not in control of this battle, compared to his fight in the Wanlian Buddhist Temple.
Even though he was bestowed with the blessing of the Buddha statue, he could easily fall into a disadvantageous position in this place that was brimming with destructive demonic qi.
He was barely able to endure this assault.

Before Yun Weisi could see the end of Sun Buku’s battle, the scenery had changed once again.

Xu Jingxian was guarding the room where Changming was sleeping.
She was holding the Buddhist cane Sun Buku had given her before he had left.
She was fighting against He Xiyun, Zhang Jie, and others who were on the verge of going insane, as a result of having their minds contaminated with Demonic qi.
At the same time, Xu Jingxian was cursing out loud.
She scolded Zhou Keyi for not keeping his promise, Sun Buku for dismissing her concerns and walking away irresponsibly as well as Changming who was lying helplessly inside the room, which forced a fragile beauty like herself to bear this heavy responsibility alone.

She had not left Jiufang Changming so that she could flee for her life.
Maybe, she still thought that the situation could still be reversed, that a sliver of hope remained and she was afraid that Yun Weisi would come back to find her and get revenge.
Or, perhaps, she believed in Changming, and hoped that he or Yun Weisi would pop out of nowhere and rescue her at a crucial moment the way they had done before, immediately settling the situation and telling her that everything would be alright.
Or, maybe, she kept thinking about that muslin she had not been able to obtain.

Whatever the reason was, she had not run away and did not even retreat half a step.

“Maybe you want to see your old friend?”

Luomei snapped his fingers, and the fog covered Xu Jingxian.
The scenery changed once again, showing the dark, yellowish color of the Yellow Springs.
Deep underneath the Gobi Desert, shackles were slowly swinging, tightly binding a flood dragon.

Scales had fallen off of the flood dragon, and her body was smeared with blood.
She did not move, only trembled slightly, unable to endure the pain, which caused the iron chains to clang.
She was still alive.

Black qi and golden talisman writing, which were faintly visible on the shackles, were the cause of her suffering and rendered her unable to move.

Originally, she had only been a little carefree dragon, yet she had been targeted by malicious people because she had lent her dragon pearl to Yun Weisi.
She had been caught and imprisoned in the Yellow Springs to become one of the Liuhe Zhutian Formation’s pillars.

“Originally, Jiufang Changming was supposed to serve here in her place.
I never expected him to break the barrier around the Yellow Springs and return to the human world.
He even tricked you into remembering the past and persuaded you to leave the Nine Layers of the Abyss.
If it wasn’t for Jiufang Changming, everything would have been much easier.”

Luomei’s words carried a trace of regret.

“Jiufang Changming appeared out of nowhere that year.
One after another, he had learnt techniques from every sect.
At first, I thought that he was a genius rarely seen in five hundred years, so he would make a decisive chess piece in this game.
Unfortunately, he was worse than you even back then, and he refused to concentrate on cultivating like a clever person would have, and instead insisted on investigating the reason why demonic qi was leaking into the world.
In the end, he only harmed himself and others.
What is happening to him today are the consequences that he has brought on himself.
Daoyou Yun, you really shouldn’t feel guilty or remorseful.
As I see it, Jiufang Changming’s merits are exaggerated, and he’s no match for you.
He never deserved to be your shifu.”

Yun Weisi’s expression did not change, and he was not enraged, afraid, or puzzled as Luomei had expected.

The same could be said about Jiufang Changming.

His soul was calmly resting in the Chunzhao Sword, so the sword had almost no presence in Yun Weisi’s sea of consciousness.

In fact, they had already guessed everything that Luomei was now telling him before Yun Weisi had left for the Wanjian Immortal Clan.

They had only not figured out that the Wanlian Buddhist Temple was a feint their enemies had used to deceive them.
Their opponents had moved way faster than they had imagined.

While they were fighting against the thousands of ghosts that had appeared in the Wanlian Buddhist Temple, the real Liuhe Zhutian Formation had almost been completed.
Six Soul Gathering Pearls had been placed on six supporting positions in order to open the gap on the Sacred Mountain Wan.
Demons and monsters were already running wild, and the human world had already turned into another realm of demons.
They could not do much at this point.

The outcome had come earlier than expected, yet Jiufang Changming was inexplicably relieved.
It was just like that story of how he lost his river lantern at the Mid-autumn Festival.
He had been looking for it for a long time along a river.
In the end, when he finally found it, the lantern had already gone out and had almost been submerged, completely soaked in the water.
However, he felt relieved because his search had come to an end.

River lantern: people set them floating on water during certain festivals to worship gods etc

The incense stick had finally burned out.

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Black clouds had enveloped the sky above their heads, and the last ray of light in the human world was swallowed by darkness.

The seething demonic qi raged forwards.
Wherever it flowed, the plants withered, and leaves and flowers dried up one after another.
Even if some animals or trees survived the onslaught of the demonic qi by sheer luck, they were demonized, their shape turning bizarre and twisted, and their colors becoming ashen.
Little by little, everything would take on the appearance of its counterpart from the Darkest Abyss.

Changming felt that Yun Weisi was changing as well.

The demonic qi he had forcibly suppressed in a corner was now getting restless as if it had reunited with its companions after a long separation.
It hurried excitedly to respond to the call from outside and struggled with all its might to break free from being suppressed by Yun Weisi.
Yun Weisi had started to lose control.

A red flash zipped past, noticing its host’s weakness.
Using the gap, it grew larger, and washed over his consciousness quicker than a flash of lightning!

“Haven’t you felt it just now, daoyou Yun? The overwhelming demonic qi welcomes you to join its ranks.”

Luomei snapped his fingers, and the Guyue Sword appeared in his hand.

Yun Weisi had seen the sword before.

Luomei used to travel around the world, disguised as Jiang Li’s disciple, Chen Ting.
At that time, he was carrying around the Guyue Sword.

Its blade was like water, like the lonely moon in the sky—piercingly cold, pensive yet eye-catching.

Lonely moon: literal translation for “gu yue”

But Luomei was not going to kill Yun Weisi with this sword.

He could not win against Yun Weisi who had turned into a demon.

“Don’t you want to see blood right now? The Demonic heart will make you stronger, fulfill your desire to destroy.
Only destruction leads to new birth.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Luomei suddenly cut his own arm.

He was even ruthless towards his own successor.
This cut was a deep wound, and his blood was gushing out, staining his clothes.
Half of his arm was smeared with the red color, yet his expression did not even change.

“Yun Weisi, I will be the first sacrifice on your path to attaining the Dao.
I only hope that one day, when you become a demonic deity, you will tell me whether anyone can turn into a deity, and what the realm looks like?”

The smell of blood made the Demonic qi inside Yun Weisi’s body finally burst out, and he could no longer stop it.
He stretched out his hand, aiming for Luomei’s heart.

Luomei did not move.
He only closed his eyes slowly, seemingly enjoying the bitterness of the situation, as if it were the sweetest syrup.
It seemed that he would actually let himself be killed.

Changming frowned and soon got startled.

He suddenly saw through their enemy’s plan—

At this moment, Luomei was shrouded in demonic qi, but there was no sign of him getting contaminated with it or becoming a demon.
His body was like a walking corpse, and the only thing supporting it was a secret technique.

He was damned for eternity, unable to become neither a deity, nor a demon.
Even occupying the body of his disciple, Jiang Li, did not solve his problem.
He had to start searching for another human vessel.
Of course, Yun Weisi was the best choice.
When Yun Weisi’s consciousness lost control over his body, Luomei’s souls would come to grips with him, and in the end, regardless of if they would be forced to coexist, or if Luomei replaced his souls, Luomei would still be granted a chance at rebirth.

Just like how he had occupied Jiang Li’s body, Yun Weisi was someone Luomei “carefully guarded and trained” because Yun Weisi was his prey.

I won’t let him succeed!

As soon as this thought appeared, the Chunzhao sword appeared without its master’s will, blocking Yun Weisi’s way to Luomei.

The sword was shining brightly and let out a sharp cry.
Yun Weisi stopped, and his red eyes cleared up a bit.

Luomei moved his finger, and the Guyue Sword slashed towards the Chunzhao Sword, while he stretched his hand out to Yun Weisi.

Although the Chunzhao Sword was a spiritual weapon, it did not have a sword soul, unlike the Sifei Sword.
Even though it was formidable, it still needed an order from its master to move.
Yet this time it moved against Yun Weisi’s will, engaging in a battle with the Guyue Sword.
Its spiritual power far surpassed its abilities, and it rang loudly.
Purple light erupted from the sword, rising up amidst the black flames.
Unexpectedly, the Chunzhao Sword’s radiance was getting even greater, while the Guyue Sword dimmed in comparison.
In a moment, it was tricked into obeying the Chunzhao Sword, and turned against its owner, Luomei!

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Yun Weisi suddenly reached out to stop the sword.

Blood was dripping down the blade.
Changming felt as if a large bell had been hit hard near his consciousness, and demonic flames launched themselves at him.
His soul had almost fallen out of the Chunzhao Sword, dazzled and stunned, tortured with unbearable pain.

Yun Weisi, who had been finally possessed, snapped the Chunzhao Sword!

He dropped the broken sword to the ground, turning towards Luomei once again.

Luomei was not resisting at all, letting Yun Weisi’s finger pierce his chest, touching his beating heart.

He only needed Yun Weisi to kill him, and his spiritual soul would enter Yun Weisi’s sea of consciousness with the help of the seal set by Princess Linglong.
After that, he would take control of Yun Weisi’s body.

He folded his fingers into a seal and firmly grabbed Yun Weisi’s arm.
His expression changed slightly, and the corners of his mouth curled up—no one knew whether the reason for it was pain or satisfaction.

“[Three sounds reach one’s heart, and a demonic seal burns one’s body; you receive its divinity, and I receive its body!]”

As he was voicing the incantation, Yun Weisi’s arm that he had grabbed started turning black, and the color quickly spread up, with dark flames engulfing Yun Weisi’s body and rushing towards Yun Weisi’s soul!

And at this crucial moment, the broken Chunzhao Sword that was lying on the ground, abruptly erupted with brilliant rays of light!

Driven by the intense pressure of the fleeing soul, the body that was a thousand li away also moved, and the two parts instantly merged together!

A figure appeared in front of Yun Weisi, taking on Luomei’s black flames itself!

A giant glowing object burst out, and black and white intertwined together, like life and death battling each other.
This violent spiritual power even managed to push away Yun Weisi, and he stumbled back, bumping against a tree.

The tree fell down with a loud noise, and Yun Weisi’s expression darkened.

He saw Jiufang Changming’s silhouette!

Both Yun Weisi’s hands had already been tied with black flames.
Luomei had spent many years on the formation, giving it his all.
Even if he succeeded in destroying the world, but failed to obtain Yun Weisi’s body and occupy it as a vessel, the efforts he had spent on this trap would be wasted in the end.
Luomei’s rage was entirely directed at Jiufang Changming.
The white and black rays were so intermingled that it almost looked as if their bodies had become one.

But Yun Weisi knew that they were going to perish together!

Jiufang Changming was going to sacrifice himself, dying together with Luomei, destroying both good and evil in one move!

“Yun Weisi, although it has seemed like I was unable to give you what you wanted from me and I’ve been pursuing the Heavenly Dao my whole life, asking for nothing more, it was still only you—you were my only attachment to this world.
From this day on, my souls will scatter away, and we will never meet again.
But, if there’s a next life—”

Half of Jiufang Changming’s body had been melted by the black fire, but the white light had also been engulfing the dark flames.
The Demonic qi was striving to strike at the two people, and everything had been absorbed by Changming.
Yun Weisi was so angered that his eyes were almost popping out of their sockets, yet he managed to drive his Demonic heart to the depths of the sea of his consciousness, and the tempestuous waves of his spirit consumed it whole.

He felt that the two zhang distance between him and Jiufang Changming was greater than the span of one’s whole life, even greater than the boundless Milky Way, and completely insurmountable.

Jiufang Changming slightly turned amidst the brilliant rays, as if smiling at Yun Weisi.

“If there’s a next life, I’ll be your shifu again.”

“Shizun!!!”

“Jiufang Changming!!!”

Yun Weisi’s spiritual soul cracked, and his raging spiritual power shot up to the skies, engulfing the demonic flames around his body before dispersing quickly in every direction.

Far away, just when Princess Linglong was about to deliver her killing blow to Sun Buku, she abruptly cried, looking at the dark clouds swirling in the skies.

There, at a distance, someone’s spiritual power had suddenly burst out with a great radiance, breaking the imprisonment of the endless night!