At the same military hospital, on the ICU floor.
Chu He supported himself with the longbow, sitting heavily on the ground. He wiped his hand on his waist.
The waist sash was already tight, and soaked in blood, it was even more shocking. The golden phoenix pattern was particularly conspicuous amidst the bloodstains. He took a few deep breaths, feeling a sharp pain where he had been struck by the demon-subduing pestle. His internal organs were definitely damaged.
Everyone in Team Five had one soul and two ethereal souls snatched away, and they lay scattered across the floor like vegetables. Shenwan Tiansi was on his last breath, lying unconscious on the side. Chu He took five seconds to pray that he wasn’t dead, then pulled out the pure azure long arrow that was embedded in his abdomen. The arrowhead immediately brought a splash of blood with it.
This long arrow was made of phoenix bone. There were twelve in total, twelve bones truly pulled from the Phoenix’s original body. During the early years of the god-demon wars, eleven of them were successively broken by Zhou Hui. The last one was caught by him in mid-air before it could leave the string, and thus was preserved to this day.
Later, Chu He had considered re-forging the pure azure arrows, but he could no longer bear the pain of pulling out bones and tendons, so he never put it into action. When Zhou Hui found out about this, in order to please him, he went to hunt down several top-tier great demons in the Sea of Blood and pulled out eleven bones to give to him.
Strictly speaking, their relationship at that time hadn’t reached the stage where the word “give” could be used. If one had to be precise, “offer” was more appropriate. Chu He reforged the pure azure arrows with these eleven demon bones. Although their hardness was still very different from phoenix bone and they lacked the power to purify and calm souls, they had been in use to this day.
Thinking back now, from the moment he started using demon bones as weapons, he had already begun to deviate from the constraints of the Heavenly Dao. However, at that time, why did he still accept Zhou Hui’s gift?
Was it because the man looked rather pitiful as he staggered over, holding the demon bones? Or was it because his expression, like he was presenting a treasure, was too foolish?
Chu He let out a breath and used the long arrow to stand up.
—Just then, a light ringing of a bell came from outside the hall.
Chu He was stunned for a moment, and then another series of bell rings came, like a gurgling stream, leaping in the wind.
The sound was very comfortable, like wind chimes singing on a meadow, birds dancing in the sunlight, filling one’s heart with joy and relaxation. He wanted to turn and look, but his entire body, even his bones, felt so comfortable and weak that he couldn’t help but kneel down.
Then, the sunlight faded, dark clouds drifted in, lightning split the sky, and a downpour began. The bell sounds, wrapped in icy water whips and a fierce wind, swept over him. Chu He painfully pushed himself off the ground, trying to stand, but was forced back down by layer after layer of pressure. In a daze, he felt as if he were the only one left in the universe, being endlessly lashed by the torrential rain, splattering him with blood.
Chu He gasped for breath, suddenly realizing what this was—an illusion!
The Golden Bell Illusion!
Chu He grabbed the pure azure phoenix bone arrow he had just pulled from Shenwan Tiansi and, gritting his teeth, stabbed it into his own palm. His palm was instantly pierced through. In the sharp pain, his mind cleared, and the illusion receded layer by layer like a tide, revealing the messy scene of the ICU hall. He whipped his head around and saw four gray figures standing behind him!
He had seen these people by the Demon Lord’s side before. He could recognize who they were without even looking and immediately knew why Shenwan Tiansi had been so thoroughly turned into a puppet—they were the Four Demon Elders, each a legendary figure at the level of an Asura King. The golden bells in their hands created Heavenly Demon Illusions that could make even gods and Buddhas lose themselves in the sound!
When Shenwan Tiansi encountered them, he must have put up a bloody fight, but was quickly exhausted and captured. The whole process didn’t even give him time to call for help. If he hadn’t been pierced by the phoenix bone, he would have either died in battle as a puppet or died from a mental breakdown. The best outcome would have been to be lost in the illusion for a lifetime, and Zhou Hui would have had to lock him in a mental asylum.
Chu He was furious and violently pushed himself back. However, the other side was faster. The four of them simultaneously threw their heavy golden bells, which were as large as lanterns. They clanged in mid-air, forming a huge net that covered him from above!
“You—”
“Please come with us, Your Highness the Phoenix Wisdom King,” the leading Demon Elder said in a deep voice. “We will take you back to the Hell Path. We meddled in the affairs of the human Path for this purpose.”
Chu He slammed to the ground. The golden net covered him completely, then transformed into an invisible force that tightened around his body. The gray-robed figures knew that he had been worn down by Shenwan Tiansi and had basically lost his fighting ability, so they had no scruples at all. Two of them walked over and pressed down on his wrists.
“The Demon Lord is waiting for you in the Sea of Blood…”
Chu He grabbed them, one in each hand, staggered to his feet, and retreated violently, shouting sharply, “If Fan Luo wants to see me, let him come himself! Who do you think you are?!”
As he spoke, he reached into the void. The long spear lying in the rubble far away flew through the air and was caught in his hand. In an instant, he backhanded and sent the two gray-robed figures flying!
The status of an Asura King in the “Four Evil Paths” was extremely high, and there were four of them together. They had probably never heard such words as “who do you think you are.” The two who hadn’t fallen immediately pounced, saying sinisterly, “Your Highness, the Demon Lord wants you to return alive, but he didn’t say you had to be completely intact. You were indeed to be feared when you were in your true form, but are you still able to act tough now?”
Chu He’s ears were bleeding, and he actually didn’t hear what he said clearly. But then, the gray-robed figure’s next move was to reach out and grab fiercely at the air—
Corresponding to this action, the golden net that had been deeply embedded in his body suddenly tightened!
Chu He let out a pained cry that even he couldn’t hear. The intense pain was enough to drive one mad. In an instant, he grabbed his long spear and swung it with extreme violence, cutting down the entire shoulder and upper arm of the gray-robed figure closest to him in one strike!
—The bell rang from deep within his body. In the exploding blood mist, Chu He’s mind suddenly went blank.
He seemed to have suddenly shifted from reality to an illusion. Before him was no longer the messy hospital building, nor the fiercely pouncing gray-robed Asura.
He didn’t even feel pain. The blood that had burst out when he swung his spear was like strange red ink on a canvas, fading away in clumps, revealing a vast expanse of faint white light covering the mountains and plains.
—Am I dead?
Chu He stood on an empty piece of ground, looked up, and saw the vast and distant wind howling across the sky.
“Your Highness,” a cautious voice came from behind him. “What are you doing here?”
Chu He turned his head, his gaze still very scattered. After a moment, it slowly focused, and he recognized the towering, magnificent Buddhist hall of the Thirty-Three Heavens behind him. On the steps of the hall stood a young novice monk with clear features, looking at him respectfully.
He subconsciously asked, “Where is Zhou Hui?”
“What Zhou Hui?” the young novice monk looked at him strangely and said, “Your Highness, you just came out from kneeling and chanting sutras in the Buddhist hall and stopped here. Did you have an epiphany?”
“…No… no,” Chu He shook his head in a daze. “No.”
He turned his head back, looked at his own hands, and vaguely felt that he had just been in a very urgent situation, but his head would start to spin whenever he tried to think about it.
At this moment, a beast’s roar suddenly came from the back hall of the Buddhist hall. Because of the distance, it was not very clear, but it was faintly very mournful and sharp. After about a few dozen seconds of continuous howling, a loud dong of metal striking was suddenly heard. The ground under his feet shook a few times and then stopped.
“…What was that sound in the back?”
The young novice monk seemed even more surprised. “Don’t you know, Your Highness? The Buddha descended to the Sea of Blood to preach the Dharma and save all sentient beings. All the demons bowed before the lotus throne, except for one low-level demonic creature that refused to kneel. Because of its disrespect to the Buddha, it has now been captured and brought to the Thirty-Three Heavens, where its heart will be taken and its bones refined to deter the demons.”
The young novice monk smiled again. “This demonic creature is unruly and untamed. Even after being subjected to blades and axes and all kinds of punishment, it still refuses to submit to the Heavenly Dao. It has been struggling for its life these past two days. The Buddha has suppressed it within the Vajra Bell. What you just heard was probably the sound of it desperately ramming the bell.”
Another dull thud sounded, and the entire Buddhist hall vibrated with a slight hum.
The Phoenix Wisdom King frowned and asked, “What kind of demonic creature is it?”
The young novice monk lowered his head, seeming a little afraid. “I… I don’t know.”
The next second, he felt the flutter of robes in the light wind. He looked up and saw the Phoenix Wisdom King brush past him and walk towards the back hall.
His long hair was tied up and fell onto his snow-white kasaya. When he walked, a faint fragrance of lotus seemed to emanate from his sleeves. His figure was thin and slender, and his shadow was reflected on the golden bricks of the Buddhist hall as he walked. A single glance was enough to captivate one’s heart and soul.
The young novice monk couldn’t help but hold his breath.
In the back hall of the Buddhist hall, incense smoke curled. In the center was a huge Vajra Bell, and the vibrations and roars came from behind it.
This bell would ring ninety-nine times every four hours. Each time, it was like the wrath of the gods of the nine heavens and ten lands descending. The vast and endless vibrations would turn everything inside the bell to dust. Since ancient times, any monk who had committed a great crime would be suppressed under the Vajra Bell. Then, when the great bell rang, even if the monk had an indestructible vajra body, they would be trapped inside, their bones shattered, and they would be vibrated to death.
The Phoenix Wisdom King lifted the bell cover.
Under the Vajra Bell was another layer of iron bars, like a giant cage inverted on the ground. Inside the cage lay a monster over nine chi tall.
It looked like a lion and a tiger. Its body was festering in many places, and the bones of its four claws were exposed from its struggles. Its mane was covered in foul-smelling flesh and blood. Probably because it had bitten itself while enduring the pain, its fangs were covered in blackened, clotted pieces of flesh, looking both ferocious and wretched. Only its pair of green beastly eyes were incomparably gloomy, staring at the Phoenix Wisdom King, letting out a low, unwilling growl.
The Phoenix Wisdom King stared at it and asked, “Why don’t you kneel?”
The demonic creature let out an angry roar and lunged forward, slamming hard against the iron cage!
At that moment, its fangs were only a few inches from the Phoenix’s long eyelashes, but the Phoenix Wisdom King did not retreat a single step. He repeated, “Why don’t you kneel?”
The demonic creature stared at him fixedly. After panting for a long while, it finally let out a hoarse, rough voice. “…Why should I kneel to you?”
The Phoenix said, “I don’t need you to. Why didn’t you kneel when you faced the Buddha in the Sea of Blood?”
Man and beast stared at each other through the iron cage. After a long moment, the demonic creature finally retreated slowly, sitting half-squatting on its bloody hind legs, and said proudly, “I don’t believe in the Heavenly Dao, so why should I kneel!”
“If you don’t believe, you will die, your soul will be scattered, and you will never be reborn. You still don’t believe?”
The demonic creature said, “I don’t.”
The Phoenix Wisdom King stared at it quietly. After a long moment, he suddenly reached out, and the giant cage disintegrated and collapsed.
The demonic creature suddenly stood up, walking a couple of steps in disbelief. But it suddenly stopped at the edge of the cage, as if suspecting some kind of conspiracy. In its suspicious and wary gaze, the Phoenix Wisdom King did not explain much. He turned and walked towards the outside of the back hall, saying, “You can go.”
“…Why?” the demonic creature couldn’t help but shout sharply. “Why are you letting me go?”
The Phoenix Wisdom King didn’t turn his head. He walked out of the back hall, his snow-white robes trailing behind him. Every step he took seemed to bloom with endless lotuses. Before him, the nine-tiered jade steps stretched down out of sight. In the distance, the magnificent temples stretched on, rising into the sky, disappearing into the ethereal clouds. “There is no why,” his voice drifted in the wind. “Just go.”
The demonic creature stared at his back in a daze. It wasn’t until the Phoenix Wisdom King had walked far away that it suddenly leaped over the threshold and headed down. In its frantic rush, many pieces of flesh and blood were shaken from its body, splattering along the jade steps, but it seemed not to notice.
It leaped high like a black meteor. The Phoenix turned his head, raised his hand in mid-air to block, but the demonic creature broke through the invisible barrier with lightning speed and swooped down in front of the Phoenix Wisdom King. “Wait—”
In the hospital, the four golden bells rang in unison. Chu He covered his ears in agony, but it was completely useless. In a daze, the world before his eyes froze on the last scene. The demonic creature descended from the sky, its fangs flashing with a cold light, aimed like an arrow at his throat—
Chu He’s pupils constricted. He frantically grabbed the pure azure bone arrow and, with all his strength, stabbed forward!
—Pfft!
Blood splattered in front of him. Zhou Hui gritted his teeth and grabbed the pure azure arrow, using all his strength to prevent his right side from being pierced through.
He held Chu He’s wrist, his grip light to avoid scratching the wrist bone, but firm enough at a non-negotiable point, and slowly pulled the long arrow out from under his ribs, bringing blood and flesh with it. Chu He was unconscious and stumbled forward. Zhou Hui chopped him on the back of the neck, knocking him out, and then caught him in his arms.
“…It’s been years since you’ve thrown yourself into my arms like this,” Zhou Hui hissed, pressing on his side. He turned to stare at the four gray-robed Asuras and said sinisterly, “For this, I’ll give you a quick death today.”
The four of them exchanged a look under their hoods. It was clear they didn’t want to face Zhou Hui head-on and quickly retreated at the same time. However, at the same time, Zhou Hui’s figure disappeared from where he stood and reappeared behind the fastest-retreating Asura.
His face was expressionless, like the god of death reigning over the mortal world. He held Chu He in one arm and swung his saber horizontally with the other.
—In the flash of white light that cut through the sky, the Asura was cut in half at the waist!
Half of the body flew through the air with black water and fell to the ground with a thud. From its abdominal cavity, a tide of snakes as thick as bowls gushed out, bursting into flames upon contact with the air, letting out ear-piercing hisses and screams!
“—Boss Zhou!” The other three’s expressions changed drastically. One of the Asuras, holding a golden bell, shrieked, “We just wanted to escort the Phoenix Wisdom King away! Do you want an endless war with the Hell Path?!”
Before he could finish, the person felt a coldness on his neck.
He felt himself flying, but in the corner of his eye, he saw that his body was still on the ground. The next second, his head hit the wall with a thud and rolled to the ground. After landing, his mouth opened and closed twice, but not a single sound came out.
The remaining two never expected Zhou Hui to be so ruthless. They were completely dumbfounded. When they came to their senses, they immediately began to shake their bells frantically. The heavy Heavenly Demon Golden Bells let out a series of bright clangs. The invisible, deadly sound waves surged and filled every inch of the hall. Any other person would have collapsed immediately, but Zhou Hui didn’t even bat an eyelid.
“Using the Demon Path’s tricks on me?” he said lightly. “You’ve got the wrong person.”
He took a step forward. The moment his foot landed, the bones of his entire body expanded and deformed, silently transforming into a giant beast that resembled both a lion and a tiger. Its fur was black and glossy, its shoulder height almost reaching the ceiling, and its eyes, like those of a snake, glinted with a venomous green light.
“Back when I was courting the Phoenix Wisdom King, I spent every day trying my best to please him and seek his favor. I even stood guard outside the Thirty-Three Heavens at night, afraid to be even half a step away… Now your Demon Lord, he summons Feng Si at will, dismisses him at will, and still deludes himself into thinking he can put a green hat on me.”
It looked down at the two gray-robed Asuras, baring its cold and terrifying fangs. “Truly foolish to the extreme. I was also a fool to have seriously considered him a rival in love.”
The gray-robed Asura turned and ran, but he didn’t even get two steps before the black giant beast descended from the sky and, with one paw, tore off the scalp and skull of the slower one!
The corpse fell to the ground in a splash of black water, its brain matter squeezed out of its seven orifices. The last Asura, knowing there was no hope of survival, in a fit of desperation, roared and lunged forward in a last-ditch effort, but was then met with a world-shaking roar from the giant beast and was fiercely slammed to the ground!
The massive, heavy paw pressed down firmly, creating cracks over ten meters long in the reinforced concrete floor. The Asura screamed and struggled, but was unable to break free from the overwhelming demonic power. One of his arms had already been cut off by Chu He, and black blood gushed out again, splattering the walls and floor with terrifying pools of blood.
Zhou Hui narrowed his beastly eyes, an expression that looked exceptionally ferocious on the face of a demonic beast.
“Go back and tell your Demon Lord…” a cold, hissing breath came from between its fangs, “…that I’m only dealing with him because I’m getting paid to appease the Heavenly Dao. But if he doesn’t want to really die, he should stay far away from the Phoenix Wisdom King. Go, tell him exactly that.”
Zhou Hui released his claws. The gray-robed Asura staggered to its feet, not daring to even look back, and ran straight to the end of the corridor, broke through the glass window, and leaped out.
In mid-air, a huge gate of hell appeared, slowly opening a thin crack accompanied by the wails of ghosts. Countless skeletal hands scrambled to climb out, but as the gray-robed Asura fell straight into the crack, the gate slammed shut and, with a long, mournful wail, disappeared into the void.
The giant beast stared fixedly at his disappearance before gently sliding Chu He from its back onto the ground and sniffing at the crook of his neck.
Chu He’s eyes were tightly closed, and he was unconscious. He seemed to be in some pain even in his unconscious state, his brow slightly furrowed, his breathing shallow and cold, his body having a particularly soft feel in the dim light.
The demonic beast raised its paw and pushed him very lightly, receiving no response.
It suddenly remembered the first time it saw the Phoenix Wisdom King. At that time, the Phoenix’s status was so high, like a beautiful and noble flower blooming on a cloud. It itself was humble, wretched, and its wild nature untamed. No matter how unwilling it was, it could only lie in the dust and accept the other’s pity and charity.
But now, everything was reversed.
Tens of thousands of years had allowed it to transcend the limits of gods and demons, becoming an extremely powerful and terrifying existence in the six Paths, causing the nine heavens and ten lands to change color at its name, even forcing the supreme Heavenly Dao to compromise again and again.
It could finally easily touch this unreachable lotus on the clouds, devour, torture, pluck it, and ravage it to destruction, and no one could stop it. It had earned for itself the right to do as it pleased.
Perhaps because it was harder for a demonic creature to control itself, Zhou Hui felt, for the first time in a long time, the blood in his whole body heating up, flowing rapidly and crashing against his blood vessels, causing the muscles all over his body to tense up involuntarily. His breathing involuntarily became heavy, and he even forgot the terrible environment and timing. He just lowered his head and, with his hot snout, urgently sniffed Chu He’s neck, shoulders, and chest. The smell of blood made him extremely irritable, but even more so, it was the uncontrollable craving and excitement of instinct.
