Chapter 36: The Anomaly
As the dust settled, the sprawling pavilions of the Imperial Palace were once again swallowed by a viscous darkness. The lingering heat of the Phoenix Talisman had not yet dissipated, and the air was thick with a nauseating, scorched stench.
I. The Underground Palace: Rebirth and Shadow
Wen Buhuo and Song Meng reunited with Liu Jing, who had narrowly escaped death. As they prepared to scout deeper into the palace, they saw Chen Qiaoqian and Zhong Weiyan escorting an elderly man in bright imperial robes, who was trembling uncontrollably.
"Senior Brother Wen, we found the Emperor. He is badly shaken," Chen Qiaoqian said softly.
The group gathered and began their descent into the deepest sanctum of the palace. At the end of the path, a massive bronze door etched with eerie, distorted carvings blocked their way. Song Meng tried to push it with brute force, but the door remained unmoved, the recoil numbing his hands.
Wen Buhuo stepped forward, his fingers brushing over nearly invisible grooves along the door's seam. His eyes sharpened as he pressed several protruding stones in a precise, rhythmic sequence.
Click—
The heavy gears groaned as the door slowly groaned open, releasing a sudden gust of decayed, foul-smelling, and icy wind.
II. The Seed of Suspicion: The Last Sentinel
Wen Buhuo intentionally lagged behind the group. His eyes—calm to the point of coldness—never left the "cowering" Emperor.
"Three Foundation Establishment demons, endless blood-sacrificing techniques... If he were truly a hostage, how could this mortal Emperor remain completely unscathed?"
He quickened his pace, casually striking up a conversation: "Your Majesty has suffered. However, I find it strange—with the palace so heavily guarded, how did so many demonic heretics infiltrate? Did Your Majesty notice anything unusual before this?"
The Emperor’s body stiffened visibly. He kept his head low, his voice trembling and evasive: "I... I live in seclusion. I only saw the demonic clouds above; how could I know the origins of those monsters? Immortal Master, please, ask no more. Just take me away from this godforsaken place."
The more he played the coward, the stronger Wen Buhuo’s sense of impending crisis became.
III. Pure Inhumanity: The Cauldron of Ten Thousand Names
Passing through the door, the sight before them turned their blood to ice.
In the center of the hall stood a massive, dark-red cauldron several zhang high. Etched onto its surface were not ancient runes, but thousands upon thousands of names written in fresh red—each representing a missing cultivator or an innocent civilian.
Inside the cauldron, the remains of countless victims had long since turned into a foul black liquid, their concentrated resentment almost tangible in the air.
At the foot of the cauldron, they found their missing junior brother. His limbs had been severed, his eyes gouged out; he had only a single, rattling breath left in his throat.
"Beasts... they are less than beasts!" Liu Jing’s eyes turned bloodshot, his aura of righteousness fluctuating violently with rage.
IV. The Deadly Betrayal: The Mastermind Revealed
Just as the group was paralyzed by the horror and Liu Jing rushed forward in fury, the ground beneath them shifted.
Rumble—
The smooth stone floor suddenly collapsed. As everyone struggled to find their footing, the "cowering" Emperor suddenly looked up. The fear was gone, replaced by a deranged, obsessive cruelty.
A pitch-black dagger appeared in his hand. Seizing the moment of Liu Jing’s distraction, he lunged, driving the blade straight through Liu Jing's back and out his chest.
"Jing Ge!!" Zhong Weiyan let out a piercing scream, tears erupting from her eyes.
The Emperor clamped a hand around Liu Jing’s throat, using him as a human shield, and laughed manically: "Immortal Masters? Long life? With this cauldron of 'Spirit Elixirs,' I shall be the eternal God-King! You self-righteous fools are nothing but stepping stones on my path to divinity!"
The Emperor was the true mastermind; the demons were merely his hired hounds.
V. A Tragic Elegy: The Snowy Sacrifice
Liu Jing spat out a great mouthful of blood, his handsome face rapidly withering. He could feel his life force draining away, along with the uncontrollable spread of demonic poison within him.
"Weiyan... go... leave now!"
Liu Jing looked at his beloved’s helpless tears and let out a roar of absolute desperation. Before their horrified eyes, his hair turned from ink-black to a startling, snowy white in a single heartbeat.
"I, Liu Jing, have spent my life slaying demons. I will not... I will not be humiliated by a mortal, nor imprisoned by the dark arts!"
Wen Buhuo caught a glimpse beneath Liu Jing’s torn robes—his skin was covered in a dense, glowing Self-Destruction Array.
"Senior Brother Liu, NO!" Zhong Weiyan tried to rush forward like a madwoman, but Wen Buhuo caught her in a death grip.
"Run! He’s going to take the entire palace down with him!" Wen Buhuo’s eyes were red, but he forced himself to stay rational. He dragged the collapsing Zhong Weiyan toward the exit, shouting at Song Meng and Chen Qiaoqian, "GO! We can't save him!"
VI. The End: A Lonely Shadow in the Sea of Fire
The group ignited their flight lights and escaped through the collapsing ruins just in time.
BOOM—!!!
Behind them, a golden pillar of light, powerful enough to pierce the night sky of the capital, erupted. It was Liu Jing’s final strike, fueled by his very soul, burying the evil cauldron, the mad Emperor, and those filthy secrets forever beneath the earth.
The palace continued to crumble, its red walls and green tiles dissolving into a sea of fire.
Zhong Weiyan collapsed onto the cold ground, staring blankly at the inferno. Her cries turned from piercing shrieks to a hoarse, hollow sobbing—the sound of a soul torn apart by death.
Wen Buhuo stood a short distance away, clutching the shattered life-token of their fallen junior brother. The night wind blew, fluttering his green Daoist robes. He looked up at the sky, the firelight reflecting in his deep pupils. The path to immortality was indeed cold, bloody, and merciless.
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