Forge a path to success

"You martial cultivators are truly fascinating creatures. Even when your lives hang by a thread, you still stubbornly persist, as if you could pierce me with your Heavenly Eye." The black mist within Hong Nie's body trembled. "But can you still speak, Ji Qiufeng? How much power do you have left?"

"The law of the jungle is an immutable truth of the world. Old beasts are destined to become food for newborns!"

Another roar echoed from the rainbow, and a colossal shadow emerged from the depths of the sea of ​​illusions. As it appeared, a massive tornado rose, engulfing countless illusions within it, which transformed into colorless masks amidst their wailing. Those masks, some joyful and some angry, intertwined and merged within the water tornado, transforming into a majestic and furious countenance.

The colossal creature in the sea broke through its mask and revealed itself. It had the head of a bird and the body of a snake, with two wings sprouting from the back of its head, and nine eyeless snake heads on its serpentine body. Its massive body churned in the sea, exuding both monstrous ferocity and bewitching beauty.

The Demon of Ambition, Arik F. Bessen. A great demon who holds the true name, a fantasy beyond imagination.

Ambitious demons and rainbow fiends appeared, their terrifying presence dwarfing even the sea. The battlefield could hold no more, yet the world's malice knew no bounds. A grey wound split open in the center of the battlefield, from which a serene bell tolled, an ancient sound carrying the sorrow of countless millennia past.

As the bells tolled, the light between heaven and earth faded, and all things lost their color, turning into a monotonous and lifeless gray. The sound of hooves shattered the gray silence. A skeletal horse emerged from ancient times, carrying a knight clad in animal mane and black armor on its back.

It looked at the city lord and the dragon with pity, its fleshless eye sockets flickering with gray flames. It was the heretic who single-handedly ignited the third great war, and the culprit behind Ji Qiufeng's decline to this day.

Funeral procession - Priest who announces death. The embodiment of destiny.

"After twenty years of hardship, you should know the laws of nature." The Bone Knight's voice was firm and resounding. "Fate has decreed that all things must die."

Huilong raised his head, looking down arrogantly at the three heretics, disdainful of exchanging a single word with them. Ji Qiufeng, on the other hand, laughed, his mouth full of blood and foam, yet his eyes showed no fear.

"Twenty years have passed. I've thought about it a lot," Ji Qiufeng said. "So-called natural disasters are nothing but tyranny that tramples on the weak. Those who call themselves demons are nothing but delusions that take advantage of vulnerability. Death speaks falsely of destiny, only daring to show itself when old and seriously ill. How cowardly they are."

"Those heretics are nothing but such lowly things, just like you who have been guarding outside the city for twenty years, only daring to show yourselves to me today!"

The black mist within Hong Nie trembled. It saw something in the man's eyes that shouldn't have been there—hatred, a fierce and resolute hatred, as intense as a fire burning from blood. A dying martial artist shouldn't have such spirit; under such pressure, he shouldn't even have the strength to speak.

It discovered the source of the anomaly: the blood Ji Qiufeng coughed up was tinged with golden light; he had just swallowed a pill…

The elixir of the Pure Land Master!

In the blink of an eye, his emotions transformed into a burst of light. A filthy light emanated from Hong Nie's eyes, like a rainbow bridge spanning the heavens. In an instant, the rainbow traversed thousands of miles, crossing the flying clouds. From a higher celestial vantage point, one could see an extremely thin and bright "line" piercing the clouds, parting the sea of ​​clouds like waves, illuminating the continent beyond the shore as if it were daytime.

That was the "Anti-Law Rainbow" controlled by Hong Nie, a synonym for absolute power, whose radiance could destroy all magical treasures and defile the flesh and blood of gods.

But the rainbow light dissipated, all because of a mere paper fan. Ji Qiufeng tapped his fingers on the fan, his eyes gleaming with fighting spirit. He didn't need to use any power; a mere wisp of willpower was enough to shatter the anti-law light. Because he could see the flow of light, the trajectory of the power's transformation, and could sever any force simply by touching its vital points.

Point Five, the Secret Heavenly Eye, a cultivator in the mortal world. His cultivated "Mind's Eye" can perceive a thousand secrets and break through ten thousand kinds of laws!

Seeing the situation was dire, the ambitious demon immediately attacked, spewing forth poisonous fire that could boil the sea. A needle-like light flashed from the dragon's claws, expanding with each roar until it transformed into a bright yellow divine needle. Following the dragon's will, it pierced the sea, sealing off the battlefield. This was the Divine Needle Xuanji, a magical artifact personally crafted by the dragon, its divine power enough to calm the sea and anchor time itself.

Ji Qiufeng casually pricked his fingertip, a drop of blood seeping into the paper fan, staining the wooden ribs crimson. The paper fan trembled as if alive, elongating with the flowing blood, transforming into a straight steel rod, sprouting sharp curved blades, a red tassel at the tip fluttering in the wind. It was a halberd, a halberd as red as blood.

The boundless dark clouds fell silent, the raging winds and waves ceased, and all was quiet when the halberd appeared. Azure flames and rainbow light followed, carrying with them the vile fear of the heretics. The man picked up his weapon, and a blood-red light appeared beside him, forging into a complete set of majestic armor, transforming into a divine, awe-inspiring figure behind him.

He roared and brandished his halberd, unleashing unparalleled spirit and unmatched bravery. That strike forced the heretics to tear through the thick clouds, shattering the despairing sky with his unparalleled courage!

The Secret of Longquan Township: Amazing!

Amidst the earth-shattering might, the skeletal knight indifferently drew his sword. His sword had no form, only a desolate gray shadow. It was the Holy Sword of Apocalypse, bestowed upon him by the gods themselves, "The Ash of Death." When the knight drew his sword, it was already before Ji Qiufeng; there was no process, only a predetermined end. The Holy Sword of Apocalypse fell silently, foreshadowing the inevitable fate.

That was the sword that severely wounded Ji Qiufeng twenty years ago, the very sword that extinguished the last hope of Huilong City. But the invisible blade met the raging fire, striking the scorching halberd. Ji Qiufeng blocked the holy sword with one hand on the halberd, and the vision of man and skeleton intersected for a fleeting moment.

"All things in the universe are preordained. Do you insist on defying fate, Ji Qiufeng?"

"In my whole life..." the man said, emphasizing each word, "I don't believe in fate!"

Behind Ji Qiufeng, a blood-red figure raised his arm and shouted. At the point where the halberd and the holy sword clashed, countless tiny cracks appeared. Sounds broke through the silence, subtle and fragmented, like tender shoots breaking through hard soil.

He unleashed his power, roared, and repelled the holy sword of the dead, repelling so-called fate and death. The deathly silence and darkness shattered instantly, and color returned to the world. The power of that earth-shattering strike was unstoppable; that single slash caused golden light to rain down from the heavens!

Sunlight pierced through the broken clouds, illuminating the man's hard, iron-like profile. He was an undefeated, peerless general, whose bravery even outsiders feared. The twenty-year siege was not a cat-and-mouse game; they were waiting for Ji Qiufeng to die from his injuries. But this man did not die; he endured twenty years of suffering, waiting for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fight his enemy to the death.

Ji Qiufeng leaped away from the dragon's head and charged forward alone, roaring as he swung his battle halberd at the outsiders. His weapon was the deadly flames of war, and his companions were the godlike ancient dragons.

This is the real Ji Qiufeng. He is a man who even ghosts and gods fear. When he wields his battle halberd, the sky opens up!

Chapter 62 Wild Ambition Spreads

The city, engulfed in war, flickered between light and shadow, fragmented sunlight weaving through the fiery rain. Those lights emanated from the battlefield reflected in the water, from the afterimages of the soaring dragons. It was as if an invisible giant held the sky in its grasp, shaking it violently; the entire airspace trembled violently, giving rise to blinding flames that fell into the sea, scorching the illusory images and stirring up towering waves amidst mournful cries.

The battlefield was too far from the ground for anyone to know the situation or the outcome. But people could see it—in the flying sparks and the surging tides. They saw the seven-colored light transform into flowing venom, the churning black mist collapse into a hazy void; they saw a mad spirit with a bird's head and a snake's body howl to the sky, spewing blue flames and battling a jade-like dragon; they saw a skeleton riding a skeletal horse thrust out a mortal sword, clashing with a crimson halberd in mid-air.

Their battle tore the sky apart, and that towering figure stood amidst endless light and fire, resisting demons with his blood and courage, and confronting heretics with his martial arts. He was once weakened, once on the verge of death, but he rose again, just as he had built a city in the sea decades ago, just as he had led his people to repel the demonic tide twenty years ago.

He will win, he will definitely win, because he is an unparalleled general, because he is the invincible lord of Huilong City!

"Huilong, go into battle! City Lord, go into battle!!"

Exhilarating roars echoed throughout the city as the once-retreated warriors rose again in the light. The dragon's radiance healed their wounds, making their blood boil. They took up their weapons once more and charged towards the invading Scourge and demons. The standard weapons had truly wounded the bodies of the heretics; these were clearly just mortals who couldn't even set foot on the path, yet they now displayed a bravery no less than that of the Ascended.

On a floating island, in a warehouse filled with relics, a demon with a bird's head and a snake's body reappears, its fiery eyes scanning the sky.

"Even mortals who have not yet found their way have the power to fight; the power of the Ancient Dragon Totem is indeed terrifying," it said to the contractor.

"She was a true guardian deity. If it weren't for her power being used to maintain the water curtain, I probably wouldn't even have had a chance to rise to power before I died long ago." The contractor's voice remained flippant. "The mirror is still there, isn't it, Bessen?"

“Of course.” Bessen, the fragment of the ambitious demon Arik F. Bessen, methodically advanced its plan. It tidied the belongings within its temporary body and walked towards the warehouse door. “I will use this mirror to disrupt the battlefield. Prepare for the summoning; when the message arrives, call upon my true self—”

Bessen opened the door, and a man with silver tentacles stood in the entrance, holding a blood-stained knife. The blade severed the arm that was blocking his way, and a tentacle shot out like a spear, shattering a snake's head!

"Things don't seem to be going well on your end," the contractor said. "Should we change the backup plan?"

"Change! Change! Change!!!" Bessen roared as it retreated. Its remaining eight snake heads simultaneously erupted, shattering the warehouse walls and ceiling. The firefly crows, sensing the anomaly, rushed to help, but few responded, as most lay dead in pools of blood. In the short time it took to exchange a few words, Chu Hengkong had wiped out the nearest crows; he cleared the area to kill this demon in one fell swoop.

"You're still alive?" Even someone as knowledgeable as Bessen found it hard to believe. The scene before the curtain broke should have sealed Chu Hengkong's fate. He was on the sky island closest to the rift, the one who faced the Demonic Gale at the closest distance. That was the erosion of a powerful Outer Path of the Point 4. Even a skilled hand, with all its abilities, should have been turned into a glowing corpse.

But he was still alive! Not only alive, but also full of energy, with no sign of fatigue in his eyes, and even his tentacles had become shinier than before. Chu Hengkong stepped forward with his knife in one hand, the blade aimed directly at Besen's right eye.

“I’m not so fragile that I’ll be blown over by the wind,” he said.

Bessen's eyes gleamed with a bright blue light, and two beams of fire shot out like lasers. Several glowing corpse crows leaped into the warehouse, firing blood-red bullets from specially made short guns. Chu Hengkong deflected the fire with his sword, enduring the crows' barrage of bullets with his light armor. Like a ranger, he wielded his sword in reverse, sweeping past Bessen and leaving a long, narrow wound on the snake's body. At the same time, his tentacles extended and danced wildly, killing three crows with a single sweep.

He spun around, brandishing his blade, the blade and tentacles each repelling a swarm of crows. Bessen's main body swung its claws, which he parried with his rock blade. The rock blade trembled with the force, and using techniques honed from the Steel Blade School, he broke the claws apart. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Chu Hengkong kicked out, smashing the biting snake head once more.

“I admit I underestimated you,” Bessen whispered. Perhaps because its true form was outside the city, it seemed more “human” than usual.

Bessen flapped its wings behind its head and retreated. Two of its nine snake heads were gone, and there were two rather large wounds on its body, but no blood flowed out. Only when it was this close could one see that its body was still a puppet. The snake body was made of refined brass, and the bird head was made of animal bones, bird feathers, and gemstones. Through the wounds, one could see countless relics flowing inside its body, which was the flesh and blood of this puppet.

A false body possessed. Chu Hengkong thought of Tina and her dog. This demon hadn't yet possessed a human body, so the Black Workshop used relics as its vessel. This meant he had to adjust his fighting style; he sheathed his sword and switched to fighting bare-handed. He stared into the demon's eyes.

"Where is Kanin?"

"Where he belongs," Bessen said, clenching his fists. "Go and claim the victory he deserves!"

The demon stomped one foot, unleashing a scorching ring of fire. Deadly blue flames blazed towards them. Chu Hengkong used his tentacles to hook onto an exposed steel bar—the most effective way to avoid the flames. Besen had specifically studied his movement patterns and could predict his strategy. As the tentacles extended, Besen opened his mouth and fired two fire arrows, aimed directly at the steel bar below. As Chu Hengkong leaped, he would be pierced through the chest by the flames and die.

The tentacles extended and then suddenly slammed down—a feint! Chu Hengkong wasn't afraid of the demon's flames because he carried the jade carving of the swirling dragon. The jade dragon emanated a cool, refreshing power; it was this carving that had protected him from the aftershocks of the demon's appearance, and it was because of it that he was unafraid of the raging fire. He charged into the ring of fire alone, drawing his sword almost touching Bessen, the blade nearly half-slicing into the brass snake's body.

Three snake heads shattered, and a large amount of debris flowed from the wounds. This irreversible strike almost cleaved the snake's body in two. Besen was momentarily at a disadvantage; after all, it was only a divided spirit without a real body, and it was difficult to contend with Chu Hengkong in close combat. Therefore, it did not use conventional means to retaliate. Instead, it pressed its index fingers and thumbs together, forming a triangular claw mark. The blue flames in its eyes twisted, forming two bird-like runes.

"As long as the fire in one's heart burns, one's ambition will spread like wildfire."

Just as Chu Hengkong was about to swing his sword, his body trembled. A sharp pain shot through his chest and abdomen, as if he were being burned by raging fire. The burning heat seemed to have a spirit, gripping his heart and invading his body. He suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a ball of burning blue flesh and blood.

"cough--!"

Chu Hengkong clenched his teeth, but flames continued to seep from between them. His eyes burned, his breath was labored, and the nameless flames surged wildly within him, seeking an outlet with a violent force.

Chu Hengkong's movements slowed down, and Besen's four snake heads lashed out in succession. He barely managed to parry three bites with his knife, but the fourth snake head bit his shoulder. Besen seized the opportunity to spew out a fireball, which blasted Chu Hengkong straight out of the warehouse!

"Clearly possessing a resolute will, yet lacking ambition?" Bessen unleashed three fireballs in quick succession. "Then be consumed by the flames! Those who cannot reach the heights will ultimately become food for those higher!"

Chu Hengkong managed to roll away, dodging the fireball, but was thrown back by the blast wave. He could have used a defensive maneuver to dodge, but the flames within him prevented him from making any further moves. The demon's power was strange and inexplicable; even the jade carving of the dragon could not completely withstand it.

Strangely, only the tentacles could move freely at this moment, and the flames seemed to dislike the sticky limbs, not spreading even a little to the left arm. Bessen swung its claws, unleashing waves of flames. In desperation, Chu Heng hooked onto a steel bar and used the elasticity of the tentacles to leap up.

His mind raced as he floated in the air. He was temporarily out of moves with the Dragon Township Fist Technique, his combat relics were useless, and now wasn't the time to use that talisman. What else could work? What else…?

There's still medicine!

The steel bars snapped, and Chu Hengkong plummeted to the ground, crashing head-on into a massive fireball. He abandoned any chance to dodge or defend, using his tentacles to retrieve the unfinished Chang Le Dan. The burning inner fire rendered him incapable of even chewing, so Chu Hengkong steeled himself and plunged the tentacles directly into his esophagus!

"...??"

Bessen, who was spewing fireballs, was momentarily stunned. He had never seen an enemy like this before, willing to take the hit head-on rather than let the entire tentacle pierce his esophagus. This masochistic act was less of an attack and more of a sacrifice... a sacrifice...?

Besen suddenly recalled the ambiguous tentacles and the various suspicious points during the battle. It immediately realized that it was a ritual during the battle! Chu Hengkong was indeed a contractor as well; he was sacrificing pain to summon his contracted demon!

He could survive facing the demonic storm head-on, and he could still move despite being struck by the Heartfire… All these strange occurrences were easily resolved in front of the “Contractor,” which must be the power of Chu Hengkong’s contracted demon! Besen suddenly realized, and he immediately changed his moves, using azure flames to draw a counter-summoning magic circle. This magic circle closely resembled the “sealing” formation during ascension, but it lacked the central triple circle, and the outer symbols only represented the “sea” of demons.

He hastily chanted an incantation directed at his own kind: "In the name of my true form, my burning ambition, Arik Fida Bessen. Return to the Abyss, you mad spirit of nothingness—"

"Drink!" Chu Hengkong brandished his tentacles like a sword!

"what?!"

However, no new demon appeared. Chu Hengkong burst forth from the flames, striking Bessen's head with a lightning whip. The unrestrained force spread throughout the demon's body, destroying several mechanisms within its relic-like form, immediately slowing Bessen's movements. Its blue eyes blazed with fire, the entire demon burning with rage: "What tricks are you playing? Are you insulting me?!"

"Utterly inexplicable!" Chu Hengkong responded coldly. The medicinal power spread like a clear spring, seeping into his body and instantly alleviating the burning pain. Bessen tried the same trick again, casting another spell, but Chu Hengkong sprinted around the demon at incredible speed. As he ran, he continuously threw water bullets, which, at excessive speed, merged into one, their overlapping trajectories resembling a wheel spinning around Bessen. Thirty, seventy, one hundred…

The water bullets, though causing little damage, were relentlessly fired, driving Bessen to a frenzy. It thrust out with its claws, unleashing pillars of fire that vaporized the fly-like, annoying water bullets. But Chu Hengkong somersaulted through the air and continued hurling, this time hitting Bessen squarely on the head, causing the demon to freeze abruptly.

The limbs, torso, and head—all the places that had been hit by the water bullets—simultaneously felt a needle-like pain. Fine cracks spread across the snake's body, followed by hundreds of wounds bursting open at the same time!

Dragon Village Fist Technique - Chaotic Stars. A secret technique that uses high-frequency strikes to embed force into the enemy's body, simultaneously unleashing a devastating burst of damage!

"Nonsense...a secret technique from Dragon Village...?" Bessen was stunned. "A skillful hand...?"

Bessen moved haltingly like a broken machine, hundreds of stray beams of light and fire erupting from its wounds, instantly transforming the surroundings into a demonic realm where there was nowhere to stand. Chu Hengkong silently gripped the Perception Necklace, ignoring even the enemy's attacks, his eyes fixed solely on the burning relics within the wounds. Necklace, gloves, jewels. Bessen's fireballs. Daggers, feathers, leaves. Charred lungs. Needles, thread, a mirror…

He saw a jet-black mirror in the fire, its edges adorned with purple diamond fragments, exactly like the mirror Mrs. Ansa had given him. Chu Hengkong instantly returned from extreme agitation to extreme stillness. He crouched down, took a step forward, and drew his sword, the rock blade piercing the black mirror's surface.

Bessen's body exploded with a bang.

Chapter 63 The Unquenchable Flame of the Heart

The demon's explosion unleashed a fierce wind, with blue flames scattering in the air like magical fireworks. Chu Hengkong coiled his tentacles into small "shields" to protect his head, then planted his rock blade in the ground to steady himself.

Sparks flew as the blade struck the ground, leaving a mark over 50 meters long. When the wind finally subsided, Chu Hengkong couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He felt as if he had been brutally beaten by a storm, every bone in his body groaning in pain.

The exhaustion from continuous combat suddenly overwhelmed him. Chu Hengkong hunched over, pressing his body tightly against the hilt of his sword, like a dying green shrimp. His skin was covered in bloody wounds, and his body was covered in burns. Blood flowed down his face from the wound on his forehead. He took out his yellow crystal communicator, only to realize that his voice was cracking when he spoke.

"Done." Chu Hengkong took a deep breath. "Did it work?"

Several seconds passed, a length that even the assassin felt uneasy, before Jie An's ecstatic shout came from the crystal: "It's done!! The firefly is no longer under command!!"

"Great!!" Chu Hengkong clenched his fist excitedly. They made the right bet!

The fact that the firefly crows attacked like an army is bizarre in itself. Regardless of the workshop's private soldiers' seemingly reckless fighting spirit, the fireflies are mindless corpses; they have no reason to obey commands or use weapons. Either the workshop owner possesses some kind of bizarrely large relic, or it's some other form of mind control unrelated to relics.

Chu Hengkong had seen this method before: the mass infection of the Imaginary Demon, just like the group of refugees who followed Sansen Wangxiang in breaking the curtain. If the demons behind the controlled individuals could be defeated, the mass control would naturally be broken. And now that the relic possessed by Bessen had been destroyed, the pressure on the Central Court was naturally greatly reduced.

"Old Jie, something's weird! The enemy on my side has suddenly gone berserk!" "Damn, load the ammunition, load the ammunition! We've got a chance!" "Where did the transport team go?" "They're alive! They're still breathing!!"

The team members' reports rang out in a cacophony, almost out of control due to their overwhelming joy at surviving the ordeal. They witnessed firsthand how the mechanical crows suddenly scattered like headless flies, abandoning the enemy and chasing after the flames and halos in the ruins.

The sudden change bolstered the team's spirits, allowing them to brace their battered bodies and unleash a frenzied barrage of water-based weapons. Jie An called out to each district in the channel, the only way he could confirm the situation now being this primitive method: "Is the West Third District Chief still there? East Fifth District?"

"Yes! The pressure on Gushui Street isn't too great, there's a ghost... a spirit dog helping us!" "The battle on Yongquan Street is going well! Granny Sangjia pulled off a lucky break, all the brothers are still alive!" "Heiyong Road is still holding!" "Cat Street has just recaptured the tower!"

A series of encouraging responses rang out, and Jie An's brows relaxed. Chu Hengkong couldn't help but smile as well; the shadow that had hung over him since the sudden outbreak of war was finally beginning to dissipate. They had finally defended the city, and all their tasks were complete. Now it was all up to Ji Qiufeng and Huilong.

"Chu Hengkong, how are you doing?" Jie An asked, overjoyed. "Hurry up and get checked out. That demonic gust was closest to you just now."

Chu Hengkong examined his body and found nothing abnormal except for the injuries he sustained in the battle. He realized that the dragon had specially spared its strength to protect them during the dragon's ascension, which was all thanks to the dragon's blessing.

Even if there are still some minor problems, that Chang Le Dan should have cured them all.

"It's nothing serious, Youyou protected me," Chu Hengkong said.

He ran towards the edge of the floating island, where the dilapidated aircraft had luckily escaped destruction. He jumped onto the aircraft and headed towards the giant tree in the center of the city, reminding Yellow Crystal to warn him: "I haven't found Kanin; he's probably still on the floating island. But defending the city is the priority now. I'll go to headquarters to meet you and stand guard until the very end."

"What did you say?" Jie An was stunned for a moment before realizing he was talking to Ji Huaisu. He spoke weakly, "Girl, did you hear me? I'm talking to you."

There was no echo.

Chu Hengkong frowned: "Ji Huaisu?"

There was still no response, only Jie An's breathing and the shouts of the team members on the communication channel. Chu Hengkong gripped the perception pendant, and he gradually heard the noise hidden beneath the crowd's words. It was the noise of a sword cutting through metal, the deeply suppressed, weary breaths, and the crackling sound of flames burning the air.

Amidst the cacophony, a clear announcement suddenly rang out, both frivolous and friendly, like an elegant magician.

That was a man's voice. He said:

"The dust has not yet settled, so let's not talk about victory or defeat."

·

Kanin removed the mask from the last enemy, revealing a weathered face. It was an old soldier, perhaps a veteran of the great battles of yesteryear. He released his grip, and the old soldier fell to the ground, burning to ashes in the rising blue flames.

Kanin removed his bird-beak mask and shed his black clothes, transforming from an ordinary crow into a gentlemanly blond young man. He had been blending in with the crows, so no one had found the leader of the black workshop.

Behind him lay charred, charred standard equipment; an entire elite squad had been wiped out in less than half a minute. Kanin turned to look at the headquarters gate of the Resurrection Force. The Calamity Knights had arrived at the gate three seconds earlier, battered and bruised, but their eyes were terrifying.