The Purgatory Calamity
Chapter 547 - 521 Stranger_1

Chapter 547: Chapter 521 Stranger_1

Hongdu Fragment Land, in the northeast direction.

A patch of dense clouds, crimson as blood, from within came the roars of countless Great Demons, spreading madly in all directions.

The blood clouds tightly enveloped a mountain several hundred feet tall.

The Great Demons and Demon Kings, made from the blood cloud essence, entered Green Mountain through the caverns, hunting down the Individual Cultivators hidden in the dark recesses and exterminating them one by one.

Deep within the pungent blood clouds, there was a long and lean figure resembling a Demon, his disheveled hair dancing wildly like blood-red lightning.

The surging blood clouds flowed from within him, making him the creator of this massacre.

The Great Demons and Demon Kings refined from his blood cloud were living flesh with a beating heart, and possessed vague Spiritual Intelligence; they could even wield some of the Secret Skills of their bloodline when alive.

It was for this reason that he, with merely a cultivation at the Soul Wandering Realm, dared to scheme against this mountain harboring several cultivators from the Extinction Realm.

"After this massacre, he will surely advance to the Extinction Realm,"

Dozens of miles away, at the peak of a thousand-foot-tall barren mountain.

The old man with the hook-nosed gaze satisfactorily at Dong Tianze, saying, "Lv Qinghe, what do you think of our Blood Spirit Sect’s holy son?"

"Can this child truly suppress the Phoenix Seal within his body?" Lv Qinghe had some doubts.

When Heaven Phoenix was alive, it commanded the submission of countless Great Demons in Purgatory and forced Old Thunder Dragon to conceal his brilliance and silently retract his sharpness.

In Lv Qinghe’s mind, Heaven Phoenix possessed the ability to hunt God Spirits alone in the Outer Domain Galaxy.

The Phoenix Seal left by Heaven Phoenix, deeply embedded within Dong Tianze, transformed him into a Divine Guard, and as Dong Tianze grew, so would the Phoenix Seal.

The stronger Dong Tianze became, the stronger the constraining power of the Phoenix Seal would be, ensuring that Dong Tianze could never rid himself of it.

"When I saw him, the enslavement of that Phoenix Seal had already weakened significantly," the hook-nosed old man explained with some confusion, "Which means, even without the Blood God Skill and without my interference, this boy would eventually break free from the control of the Phoenix Seal. I even feel..."

"What?" Lv Qinghe curiously asked.

"I feel that the inheritance left by Heaven Phoenix also counts him as one of the beneficiaries," the old man chuckled, "If that is truly the case, once he advances step by step to the Immortal Realm, we have a great chance of gaining another True God."

He looked towards Hongdu City, then glanced eastward, saying, "The creation of a True God can never be foolproof. Even the mighty Pu Zhaotian can fail. Don’t you think that these two at present are also not set in stone?"

Lv Qinghe spoke, "Even achieving one would be good."

"Dong Tianze, with his current state, has thoroughly grasped the Blood God Skill. Once his cultivation reaches the peak of the Immortal Realm, and a place of Godhood becomes available, his probability of ascending to True God will definitely surpass those two current candidates, don’t you think?" the old man asked again.

After weighing the options, Lv Qinghe had to admit he was right.

In terms of talent for cultivation, Dong Tianze was not lacking at all, with successive serendipitous encounters and his Spiritual Soul filled with significant divinity, on top of the many secret blood techniques left by Heaven Phoenix.

Combining that with the Blood God Skill and his already lone-wolf-like cruel nature,

Such a person, if he truly reaches the peak of the Immortal Realm, the odds of godhood are naturally far greater than those of other evil cultivators.

...

Hongdu City.

As the excited crowd debated with City Lord Shang Xiuchun, Pang Jian secretly observed each suspect.

But he still couldn’t determine which one of them was trying to use Hongdu City and these nearly a thousand Individual Cultivators to ascend to True God.

"Even if found, killing him would be difficult."

"However, there is a way to thwart his path to godhood,"

The Origin Demon offered advice from the shadows, "Evil cultivators creating slaughter in the east, south, west, and north cause the people in the city to lose hope, while their fear, despair, and unease grow with each day. If this extreme environment and its accompanying oppressive feeling persist, the various forces of helplessness they generate will continue to nourish him."

"But you, by giving these Individual Cultivators hope and allowing them to be full of confidence in the future, no longer lost or afraid,"

"The power that the True God hopeful can harvest will accordingly decrease, and his steps toward ascension will be forced to a halt."

"In any case, this place can breed evil gods out of despair, yet hope can also snuff out the flame of their ascension to godhood."

Pang Jian held the Origin Demon Sword wrapped in a blue cloth in his hand.

He searched every corner of the city, heeding the secret strategies imparted by the Source Demon.

"Young brother."

A man at the corner of the alley called out softly.

He waved his hand, signaling Pang Jian to come closer.

His eyes, heavy with the weight of years, seemed to look at Pang Jian but without focus, giving a feeling of emptiness.

The man was of considerable age, wore gray hemp clothing, and sandals that exposed his toes, which were blackened with dirt, resembling a beggar.

Pang Jian had previously released his Qi and Blood and swept the area with his Divine Sense, but he did not notice anything special about the man and thus did not take him to heart.

The man’s initiative in greeting him made Pang Jian feel that something was amiss, so he moved closer as instructed.

"Old man, what do you want with me?" Pang Jian asked as he came to a stop.

"Sit."

The man casually pointed to the open space opposite him. His eyes that were heavy with dusk began to shine with a faint glimmer, and he said, "Everyone in the city is in a state of panic and despair. How come you are not frightened at all? Young brother, aren’t you afraid of death? Don’t you know that you too may die here?"

Pang Jian was taken aback and obediently sat down where he pointed.

Inwardly, he communicated, "Source Demon, can you discern any inner goodness or evil, any thoughts from this person?"

"I’ll try."

The Source Demon exerted its power quietly.

A spiritual magnetic field, inscrutable to the common man, was released from the blue cloth for an instant and then briskly retracted.

"I can’t see through." The Source Demon from within the small world inside the sword also displayed a look of surprise for the first time, saying, "His thoughts and desires, just like his gaze and breath, are empty. His soul... eh!"

"It seems like his soul isn’t within his body!"

The Source Demon cried out in shock.

"That thing you’re holding, it’s somewhat interesting." The man’s vacant gaze fell upon the Origin Demon Sword wrapped in blue cloth in Pang Jian’s hand, and he smiled slightly, saying, "Young brother, it looks like you’re searching for something?"

By now, Pang Jian’s scalp was numb, and his hair stood on end.

He was starting to suspect that this person, whom the Source Demon claimed was devoid of a soul, might be the peak evil cultivator hiding within the city, trying to ascend to True Godhood using nearly a thousand Individual Cultivators.

Pang Jian looked him in the eye, as if facing a formidable enemy, and said, "I am looking for an evil cultivator attempting to ascend to True Godhood!"

"Whoosh!"

The man’s hollow and boundless eyes absorbed Pang Jian’s two streams of Divine Sense, dragging his Divine Sense into a void-like foreign land.

This foreign land, with no sky above and no ground below, was vast and nothingness.

Unlike the land of Eternal Darkness, this place was neither dark nor cold and eerie.

"I am looking for him too."

The old man’s voice echoed in this realm of void, as if only here he could speak freely, "What you hold is the Origin Demon Sword, and you are Pang Jian of the Sword Tower. You can’t manage the disaster of Hongdu Fragment Land."

"I’ve heard that you can retreat into the earth, so just keep retracting."

"Don’t show your face again, and don’t meddle in any affairs of the Fragment Land. Just keep yourself alive."

...