Stranger Danger

Chapter 294: Shoo

“Yes, you finally won. It only took you a couple hundred years is all.”

The devilishly handsome man didn’t seem concerned with the unusual change, however. He asked lazily, “So, what do you want?”

Xiangqi Demon stared at him with a crazed, savage expression. “I only have one wish. I hope you’ll accept it.”

“Wait! Let me guess.” The devilishly handsome man said unhurriedly, “You want to kill me, don’t you?”

“Kill you? Oh no no no!” Xiangqi Demon shook his head and replied in a flirtatious tone, “How can I bear to kill my partner for hundreds of years? I could never!”

“I just want you to become my artifact spirit!”

“Artifact spirit?” The devilishly handsome man raised his eyebrows, narrowed his peach blossom eyes, and curled his lips into a devilish, soul-stealing smile. “Tell me.”

“Do you know what my dream is?”

Xiangqi Demon didn’t answer him immediately. Instead, he faced toward the outside and stretched his arms wide as if he was planning to embrace the whole world. His voice was full of dreamy and full of yearning as he said, “My dream is to turn the Mountain of Demons into the Xiangqi of Heaven and Earth, the remnant soul and consciousness of every warrior in the Graveyard of Demons into pieces, and the Progenitor Demon’s mind as the soul. With all these elements in place, I would have forged the greatest Strange Artifact in the world; one that could change the world in every sense of the word.”

“I’m just one step away from completing my dream now. If you agree to become the artifact spirit of my Xiangqi of Heaven and Earth, then my dream will finally come true.”

“I see,” The devilishly handsome man replied before asking, “Is that why you went around hunting and refining the remnant souls and consciousness buried in the Guixu?”

“You knew?” Xiangqi Demon sounded surprised.

The devilishly handsome man shrugged. “Of course I do. Unlike you, I’m not blind.”

“Hahaha... they’re already dead, and it’s not like their remnant souls and consciousness are useful for anything. In that case, I might as well use them for my purpose, right?” Xiangqi Demon laughed so loudly that the demonic qi outside the old pavilion was shaking.

The devilishly handsome man rubbed his nose, smiling. “It’s a grand plan, but I’m pretty sure that forging your world-changing Strange Artifact isn’t your only goal.”

“Oh?” Xiangqi Demon narrowed his empty eye sockets into slits and stared at him closely.

“Let me guess...” The devilishly handsome man said lazily, “You wish to steal the Primordial Purple Qi that the Heavenly Way bestows when someone forges a Treasure of the Heavenly Way to resurrect yourself and become immortal, right?”

“At the same time, you’re planning to use the living beings within your Strange Artifact to fuel the reconstruction of your physical body, right?”

How did you know about that!?”

Demonic qi exploded from Xiangqi Demon. He was surprised that the devilishly handsome man found out about his assassination of the warriors’ remnant souls and consciousness within the Guixu, but this latest revelation truly shocked him to the core. It was because it was a secret that he and only he knew about. How on earth did his opponent find out?

His shock was mixed with a hint of worry as well.

The devilishly handsome man smiled devilishly. “Oh, I know a lot of things. For starters, I know that you hail from the Earth Gate of the Two Gates of Heaven and Earth. I also know that the Earth Gate possessed a mysterious cultivation art known as the ‘Infinity Soul Earth Gate True Sutra’. As long as a wisp of your Heaven, Earth, or Man Soul still exists, the cultivation art would allow you to rebirth your Three Heavenly Souls using a wisp of Primordial Purple Qi, and reforge your body using vigor, effectively resurrecting yourself from the dead.”

“And unlike most so-called ‘resurrection’ techniques where you must overcome countless obstacles as a remnant soul, the ‘Infinity Soul Earth Gate True Sutra’ bestows its practitioners true resurrection. Not only that, a being whose Three Heavenly Souls are reborn through the Primordial Purple Qi theoretically possesses an imperishable soul that will last as long as the world itself.”

“But of course, its restrictions are just as insane as its benefits. The Primordial Purple Qi is the first ever wisp of purple qi when the world was first created. It had become one with the world since time immemorial, and it didn’t exist anywhere in the world. The Heavenly Way would only bestow it to someone who attained an unparalleled amount of achievements and virtue, or a treasure that could change the world itself.”

“Am I right, Xiangqi Demon?”

“Impossible! Where did you learn about the ‘Infinity Soul Earth Gate True Sutra’? Who are you?” Xiangqi Demon yelled hoarsely. The fact that his demonic qi was quaking proved just how shaken he was.

He had known and competed against the devilishly handsome man for hundreds of years, but he realized for the first time that he had never truly known his opponent.

The devilishly handsome man smirked. “It doesn’t matter who I am. What matters is that I’m not a pipe dreamer like you.”

“Do you know why no one has ever lived forever even though the Earth Gate possessed a cultivation art that guarantees eternal life?”

Xiangqi Demon didn’t say anything. He simply stared at the devilishly handsome man and waited for an answer.

“It’s because living, aging, sickness and death are fundamental laws of the world. The world gave birth to countless creatures to nurture Man, so Man must die to repay the world. But if Man is immortal, then how could they repay the world? And why would the world ever allow this to happen?”

“That is why the ‘Infinity Soul Earth Gate True Sutra’ is considered a taboo. The world itself forbade Man from cultivating it. Those who tried all met a terrible ending where even their soul was completely wiped from existence.”

“Hahaha! That’s just the excuse of the weak!” Xiangqi Demon convulsed with disdainful laughter. “So what if it’s a taboo? So what if the world forbids it? My decisions are my own!”

“Well said.” The devilishly handsome man gave him a clap. “You are a once-in-a-century genius, and you knew very well that the path you’re trying to walk is most likely going to end in disaster. That is why you decided to use the Demon’s Tomb\'s unique qualities to subvert the world’s laws, and the Mountain of Demons to forge your world-changing treasure. This way, you’ll gain everything you desire without the downsides.”

“To be honest with you, I do admire your ingenuity. If you succeed, then even I would have to give it to you.”

“Does that mean you agree?” Xiangqi Demon spun toward him with a crazed but hopeful expression.

The devilishly handsome man shook his head. “I never said that.”

Xiangqi Demon flew into a murderous rage. “But why?! Why do you reject me? It is your honor to be able to witness my ascension to godhood! Plus, I can grant you eternal life after I become a god as eternal as the world itself! Just why?!”

“Because I don’t want to. Because I believe that being a human is more interesting than being a god. It’s that simple.”

The devilishly handsome man clapped his hands and sang,

“A glass of wine,

A blade of steel.

What is fame and glory,

When master of your own destiny, you can be?”

“A cool autumn,

A bright moon.

Wind or rain,

I envy the free and only the free.”

“Foolish. Truly foolish,” Xiangqi Demon scoffed in disdain. “There’s nothing you can do to change your fate though. Absolutely nothing.”

As he cackled, more and more blood poured down his eye sockets until the floor was completely drenched in blood. “So what if you refuse? You and I swore an Oath of Rahu. If you lose, then you must agree to my request. If not, then you would suffer a demonic tribulation and be annihilated.”

“That is why there’s nothing you can do. It won’t be long before I become as immortal and eternal as the world itself! Hahaha! Hahahaha!”

As Xiangqi Demon laughed, the crisscrossing threads of blood shone brightly. The entire pavilion was transformed into a pocket world that trapped the devilishly handsome man in place. However...

“Did I ever tell you that you have a disgusting laugh?” Inside the circle, the devilishly handsome man smiled lazily and flicked a finger. There was a thunderous boom, and the pocket world was shattered just like that. Naturally, the old pavilion couldn’t withstand the pressure and crumbled into thick demonic qi as well[1].

“You dare resist? You’re just going to aggravate your demonic tribulation even more!” Xiangqi Demon exclaimed in shock and a hint of fear. He didn’t think that the pocket world he spent so long to create would be destroyed so easily.

“Heh. You think I’m afraid of a mere demonic tribulation? A mere oath?” The devilishly handsome man scoffed. “You could be the Progenitor Demon himself, and I’m still going to kick your sorry ass!”

As soon as he finished, Xiangqi Demon abruptly disintegrated as if crushed by some sort of massive, unstoppable force.

As if on cue, demonic clouds suddenly rolled in from the horizon. Dark lightning flashed, and ominous flames burned within the clouds. Then, the elements transformed into an infinite number of Heavenly Demons, all of them formless and intangible, and descended upon the devilishly handsome man.

At the same time, demonic, disturbing noises engulfed the entire Guixu. Everyone began hallucinating all kinds of things born from one’s Six Desires, Seven Emotions, Eight Bitterness and more.

The strong-willed ones were still able to resist, but the weak-willed ones were immediately corrupted and plunged into the Dark Ways. Their bodies steamed with demonic qi, and their eyes were bloodshot with demonic power.

“That’s the Boundless Heavenly Demon Heart Tribulation! Kekeke! You broke the Oath and Rahu, so the Progenitor Demon has sent a demonic tribulation to destroy you! You’re so dead!”

Xiangqi Demon reappeared a far distance away from the devilishly handsome man and stared at the demonic clouds rolling in rapidly, laughing. His laughter was full of resentment and hatred.

“You should’ve just allowed me to refine you to an artifact spirit. You should’ve just witnessed my ascension and become eternal yourself! Now, you’re just going to die! Foolish! Foolish!”

The Boundless Heavenly Demon Heart Tribulation was the ninth strongest demonic tribulation of the One Hundred and Eight Worldly Tribulations. Formless and insubstantial, it was accompanied by dark lightning and strange fire and possessed the ability to contaminate one’s essence. Xiangqi Demon didn’t believe for a second that Xiao Feng—the devilishly handsome man—would be able to survive it.

To be honest, he was reluctant to lose Xiao Feng to the Boundless Heavenly Demon Heart Tribulation. After all, he was the most critical component of his plans. Xiao Feng was exceptionally strong and most suited to be the artifact spirit of his creation. In fact, he had plotted several hundred years just to get closer to him and earn enough trust to swear an Oath of Rahu.

Unfortunately, he screwed up at the last step and couldn’t convince Xiao Feng to become his creation’s artifact spirit. Not only that, the man had seen right through his ploy.

Still, what’s done is done. If Xiao Feng wouldn’t aid him, then he must die. He had plotted far too long already, and he wouldn’t allow anyone to ruin it at the final step, especially considering that someone knew his secret.

Losing Xiao Feng was definitely going to throw a wrench or two into his plan and extend the time he needed to become a god, but then again, he had already waited for almost a thousand years. He didn’t mind waiting a couple more centuries to become god.

Why must you do this, Xiao Feng? Truly, there is no stopping someone from committing suicide.

“So noisy.”

The demonic noise was growing louder and louder. It got to the point where the entire Demon’s Tomb was affected by it. Countless people and Stranger were going insane under its effects right now, and even Xiao Feng looked clearly irritated by it. So, he looked up at the sky and roared out a single word, “Shoo!”

Rumble!

Space shattered, and the world shook. The skyful of demonic clouds and Heavenly Demons abruptly disintegrated into nothing, and even the demonic noise was overwhelmed by his shout.

When the world returned to silence, only a cool breeze and a bright moon remained.

1. Remember, practically everything in the Guixu is made of demonic qi. ?