"It actually destroyed eighteen years of my cultivation..."
Before he could finish speaking, the sword flashed around his neck again, and his head rolled off once more, landing at Jiang Liu's feet, his face filled with disbelief.
Jiang Liu stomped his foot, and the man's head shattered, turning into a wisp of green smoke and disappearing.
The sword flashed five times in succession, and the judge finally collapsed to the ground with a thud, a wisp of green smoke dissipating between heaven and earth.
The city god looked solemn, wanting to retaliate, but the river flowed on and he could not stop it.
As the City God is a registered Yin deity in Heaven, Jiang Liu wouldn't dare kill him unless he was stripped of his title. The group of Yin deities who had just been killed, however, were unimportant. If we were to compare them to official ranks in the Tang Dynasty, it would be the difference between an official and a clerk.
The City God is an official, a legitimate civil servant of the Heavenly Court, while the assembled underworld deities who assist him are the clerks. These clerks are appointed by the City God, and their positions are frequently filled, with frequent deaths and injuries. When an official dies, the Heavenly Court will conduct a thorough investigation.
Therefore, Jiang Liu did not want to get into trouble, so he focused on restraining him and waiting for his divine office to be revoked.
After a day of stalemate between the two, a bright yellow scroll pierced through the barrier between Yin and Yang and appeared in the City God Temple of Huaiyin City. As the scroll was unfurled, a beam of bright yellow light shone directly onto the City God, and the light was accompanied by the rumbling sound of heavenly might.
Then the City God roared loudly, his official robes vanished in an instant, and his body swelled up violently like an inflated toad. His eyes turned blood red, and black smoke billowed from them, making him look almost like a vengeful ghost.
"Haha... Heaven is going to destroy you!"
Jiang Liu grinned maliciously, clenched his fist, and a clear ancient map of Yangzhou appeared on his fist.
The city records of Huaiyin state that in July of the tenth year of the Zhenguan era, a strange event suddenly occurred in Huaiyin. A bolt of lightning struck the City God Temple, causing the main hall to collapse and all the statues of the City God and other deities to be destroyed, but no one was injured. Then, a black and red light shot into the sky, with what appeared to be a human figure within it, and landed in the southern suburbs, disappearing without a trace.
Chapter 133 First Encounter
Jiang Liu opened his palms, revealing a chess piece in each hand, one red and one black, one representing the Han and one the Chu.
"The heirloom of Han Xin, the military genius?"
Han Xin, a peerless military genius, was revered as the "God of War" by later generations. Liu Bang commented, "In battle, he is sure to win; in attack, he is sure to capture. I am not as good as Han Xin."
"Unparalleled in the nation's history," "His achievements were unmatched, and his strategies were unparalleled" were the evaluations people gave him during the Chu-Han Contention. He led his army out of Chencang, pacified the Three Qin regions, captured Wei, defeated Dai, destroyed Zhao, subjugated Yan, and attacked Qi, until he annihilated the Chu army at Gaixia. He suffered no defeats, and no one in the world dared to contend with him.
After the establishment of the Han Dynasty, he was relieved of his military command and transferred to the position of King of Chu. He was accused of treason and demoted to Marquis of Huaiyin. Later, Empress Lü and Chancellor Xiao He conspired to lure him into Changle Palace, where he was beheaded in the bell tower, and his entire family was exterminated.
The legendary military genius has died!
Before his death, Han Xin sensed that his calamity was approaching and his days were numbered. He left behind a legacy, hoping that his descendants would inherit his mantle. Moreover, the legacy's treasure trove contained treasures he had acquired during his campaigns in the south and north. Legend has it that Xiang Yu's Overlord Halberd fell into his hands.
Jiang Liu had acquired many treasures in the Shu Mountain world, so he didn't care much for this token. Just as he put it away, a black aura spread from the northeast. It was like the calm before a storm, dark and ominous, giving the feeling that dark clouds were pressing down on the city, threatening to crush it.
The City God Temple had just collapsed, and now a dark aura was descending from the sky, plunging Huaiyin City into chaos.
Jiang Liu was startled, sensing an extremely familiar aura within the overwhelming black fog, an aura he would never forget.
"Corpse Demon!" Jiang Liu spat out the two words through gritted teeth.
The dark clouds shrouded Huaiyin City for a while, seemingly sensing that the City God of Huaiyin was dead, before covering the river.
How did you find me?
Jiang Liu was startled, then roared, "White Bone Cave Corpse Demon, you've finally shown yourself! Behold my Haotian Mirror!"
Strike first to gain the upper hand; a streak of white light crisscrossed the sky.
The dark cloud, illuminated by the "Haotian Mirror," instantly darkened, hovering overhead like billowing smoke. Then, the dark cloud transformed into a gigantic skull, its eyes flashing with two points of green light, glaring menacingly at the river below.
"It's you?" The skull's tone was incredulous, clearly sensing Jiang Liu's aura as well. It asked in confusion, "Xuanming's disciple from Qianlong Temple! Didn't I kill you?"
Jiang Liu didn't waste any words. With a flick of his finger, five flying swords swept over at the same time.
"Dare you!" the skull roared, opening its massive mouth to swallow the flying sword whole.
Jiang Liu sneered, and the bronze mirror in his hand once again shot a strong white light towards the dark clouds. At the same time, five flying swords whistled past, piercing five large holes in the dark clouds and emerging on the other side.
A scream suddenly erupted from within the dark clouds.
Jiang Liu was overjoyed; this was the primordial spirit of the injured demon corpse.
The smile had barely appeared on his face when it froze, as a thick, dark cloud descended upon him.
Suddenly, they were plunged into an environment where they couldn't see their own hands in front of their faces, and the black mist seeped into every pore of their bodies, thick and disgusting, completely isolating them from the outside environment.
A flash of lightning revealed countless black tentacles waving before him, like a chaotic dance of ghosts, a scene of utter devastation, akin to the end of the world, a hellish spectacle. His mind was filled with the wailing of ghosts, a gloomy, oppressive atmosphere, as if he had fallen into the deepest abyss, devoured by hordes of demons, his consciousness churning.
Pain and numbness.
"snort!"
Jiang Liu snorted coldly, and the "Ten Thousand Year Warm Jade" and "Nine Heavens Primordial Yang Ruler" instantly protected his body. With nine golden flowers and a wisp of purple energy blocking the invasion of evil spirits on the outside, and the supreme yang energy of the "Ten Thousand Year Warm Jade" protecting his body on the inside, Jiang Liu was like an inextinguishable lamp in the dark night. No matter how the black tentacles attacked, they could not break through his defense.
The "Nine Heavens Primordial Yang Ruler" is a top-tier spiritual artifact, just a hair's breadth away from becoming a celestial artifact, while the "Ten Thousand Year Warm Jade" is a supreme treasure born of heaven and earth. Although the Corpse Demon is strong, it has only recently entered the Earth Immortal realm and has not yet had time to refine a magic weapon. It possesses a body full of magical power but cannot move Jiang Liu in the slightest in a short time.
The voice of the demon corpse rang in their ears, coming from all directions and exploding repeatedly: "Hahaha... I didn't expect this! I didn't expect this! Hand over the token held by the City God of Huaiyin, and then hand over the magic treasures on your body, and I'll spare your life!"
Jiang Liu narrowed his eyes. What was swirling up the black clouds was not the true form of the demon corpse, but a wisp of its primordial spirit. But he hadn't expected that even the primordial spirit would be so powerful.
Refining essence into qi, refining qi into spirit—there is an insurmountable chasm between them; crossing it leads to immortality, while failing to cross it means remaining a mortal.
There is a difference between immortals and mortals!
Their strengths are naturally separated by countless mountains and rivers.
Even Xuanming Zhenren, who was just one step away from entering the realm of Earth Immortals and who cultivated the extremely powerful and yang-like "Nine Heavens Thunder Orthodox Method," could only injure the demon corpse in the slightest when fighting it, while he himself died and his cultivation dissipated.
Seeing that Jiang Liu remained unmoved, several clusters of emerald green phosphorescent flames suddenly appeared all around, flying over with a sinister and unpredictable speed.
Jiang Liu looked around but couldn't find the location of that primordial spirit.
"The power of an entire state" is strong enough, but it cannot be used lightly. It is a trump card, and if the first strike fails, there will be no second chance.
Five sword lights pierced into the black mist once more, hovering around his body. Jiang Liu flicked his finger, and the Surging Wave Sword flew towards the phosphorescent flames.
With a sweep of its broad blade, the sword collided with the phosphorescent flames, wiping them out completely.
However, the phosphorescent flames did not extinguish upon contact with the sword; instead, they clung to it tightly, and within a few breaths, the low-grade spiritual weapon flying sword was burned to ashes.
The phosphorescent flames trembled and flew up again, but this time they were fused together, the size of a basketball. Although no temperature could be felt, there was no doubt that anyone who touched them would burn flesh and bones to ashes.
"It's a pity I didn't get the Snow Soul Pearl in the Shu Mountain World!" Jiang Liu felt a pang of regret. The Snow Soul Pearl was formed from the essence of ten thousand years of accumulated snow, and it was naturally able to restrain this kind of fire-based divine power.
Although I didn't get the "Snow Soul Pearl", I did get the "Xun Palace Ice Silkworm", which is the essence of the five elements of water and the condensation of ten thousand years of Yin ice energy!
With a swift movement, he stepped forward, his hand reaching for the phosphorescent flames. Within his palm, however, lay the "Xun Palace Ice Silkworm." About two feet long, its shape was identical to a silkworm, its entire body snow-white, faintly gleaming with silver light, and it felt no coldness when held in his hand.
As soon as you put your hand into the phosphorescent flame, the flame flickers and then disappears without a trace.
"Ah... destroy my Yin Soul Fire, I will kill you for seven days!"
Killing someone is merely a matter of beheading them; to kill them for seven days is nothing more than torture. Even the most cruel form of slow slicing only takes two days and involves 3357 cuts.
Chapter 134 Sword Slaying Demons
I'm going to kill you for seven days!
Suddenly, Jiang Liu saw the surrounding black mist recede and reform into a skull that looked almost tangible. The surrounding darkness also receded, and the world brightened, returning to the clear sky.
Looking up, one sees the dark clouds still there, heavy with an oppressive atmosphere that makes it hard to breathe. Within the dark clouds appears a strange monster, resembling a human, about ten feet tall, with green hair, red eyes, a wide mouth, fangs, a flat nose with upturned nostrils, and a face covered with a few inches of green hair. Its entire body is as white as snow.
He wore a string of skull prayer beads around his neck, his arms were longer than his body, and he held a staff made of five skulls of different colors in each hand. He was surrounded by black clouds and smoke.
"It has finally appeared, the primordial spirit of the demon corpse!"
Only now has the corpse demon revealed its primordial spirit.
Jiang Liu's lips twitched. The supernatural power that had just trapped him was actually just a skull in the staff.
His gaze sharpened, staring directly at the primordial spirit, yet he showed no weakness, remaining cold and unmoved.
"Hehehe... I'm getting more and more curious. Where did you get all these treasures? That mirror must be a celestial artifact! But after today, all of these are mine... Hehehe... Five Ghosts Lock the Heart, Five Ghosts Devour the Soul!"
At the same time, Jiang Liu bit his tongue, spat out a mouthful of blood, and pointed his finger. In an instant, a lightning talisman made of blood was drawn in the void.
His voice boomed like thunder, echoing throughout heaven and earth: "Nine Heavens Thunder, heed my command!"
Above the black mist of the demonic corpse, the wind and clouds shifted, and a thundercloud descended. Suddenly, a terrifying bolt of lightning, as thick as a bucket, appeared, its tearing blue-white light piercing as it struck straight down!
"Heh heh, a mere trifle!"
The corpse demon waved its hand, and black mist enveloped Jiang Liu, swirling with yin energy and eerie ghostly aura, instantly isolating the heavens and earth and interrupting his spellcasting. The summoned lightning, no longer under Jiang Liu's control, gradually dissipated.
Then, he raised the white bone staff in his hand, and from a ball of green fire and black clouds, five huge demon heads appeared, their blood-red mouths wide open, flying straight towards Jiang Liu like lightning.
This staff is called the "Five Ghosts Soul-Devouring Staff." It was forged by a corpse demon in the White Bone Cave after a hundred years of painstaking work, according to the five elements' mutual generation and restraint, finding five six-yang leaders, and capturing the souls of eighty-one Qi cultivators. It has reached the level of a superior spiritual weapon.
A month ago, he entered Qianlong Temple with the intention of capturing Xuanming Zhenren and using his supreme yang essence containing the meaning of heavenly thunder to devour the five beasts, merge them into one, and thus break through to the level of immortal artifact.
But in the end, his attempt to steal the chicken backfired, and he not only failed to obtain the supreme yang of heavenly thunder, but his physical body was also damaged by the heavenly thunder from the nine heavens.
The corpse demon muttered incantations, and amidst the stench, five skeletons opened their mouths and bared their teeth. One spewed out sinister phosphorescent flames, another released dark green poisonous smoke, another was surrounded by gusts of cold wind, another stirred up a sky full of yellow sand, and another billowed with demonic energy that blotted out the sun.
Seeing that the "Nine Heavens Thunder Orthodox Method" could not be used, Jiang Liu finally realized how arduous the battle had been for his master that day.
In this level of combat, martial arts are no longer effective; it all comes down to the strength of magical treasures and the power of supernatural abilities.
"Autumn Dew!"
Jiang Liu flicked the Autumn Dew Sword, which was as warm and smooth as water, in front of him. The sword trembled, and a chilly autumn wind rose.
"The cicadas are singing!"
The sound of the sword was like the chirping of cicadas in the height of summer, a hissing sound that was not exhausted.
"Heavenly Roar!"
When the rooster crows, the world turns white!
"Azure Ox! Formless!"
His words thundered, and in an instant, sword light flashed across the sky. He wielded five swords, their blades crisscrossing the air in a dazzling display. Jiang Liu held the "Haotian Mirror" in his hand, ready to deliver a fatal blow to the corpse demon at any moment.
This time, the sword control was not the previous frenzied, sweeping attack, but rather a delicate and precise control, as if five sword masters were clashing on their swords. Jiang Liu had already gained some understanding of Guang Chengzi's "Way of the Sword," and if described in terms of levels, it would be the realm of "comprehensive mastery."
Each flying sword is different in thickness, veins, and materials, and each has its own emphasis on the circulation of Qi.
While others wielded only one sword, Jiang Liu controlled five flying swords simultaneously, requiring the swordsman to divide his mind into five. Fortunately, Jiang Liu had studied the "Mysterious Female True Explanation" and had experience in condensing a second primordial spirit, so it wasn't too difficult for him.
In an instant, they charged towards the five skulls, which were surrounded by demonic fire and eerie winds, their eyes flashing with emerald light, their bloody mouths open, and their fangs interlocking.