Chapter 123: Impermanence

A nameless town south of Lingnan suddenly erupted into a raging inferno, the entire settlement consumed by a sea of flames.

Old Qi looked at Shen Sanqian and suddenly began to cough violently. With every convulsion, a series of sharp, crackling sounds emanated from his body. His already aged face withered further, wrinkles deepening until the skin began to split. Bright red blood instantly flooded his features, rendering his aged face even more ghastly and terrifying. His black robes were soaked through, turning a strange, eerie dark crimson. Yet, the expression on the old man’s face remained exceptionally calm, carrying a hint of relief and a trace of consolation.

"I rarely admire anyone," Shen Sanqian said slowly after a long silence, looking at Old Qi. "From today on, you are one of them."

"I never said I had given up," Old Qi chuckled, though the movement aggravated his injuries, triggering another bout of violent coughing.

"You forcefully activated your inner core; you are now at the end of your tether. There is no point in dragging this out any further." Shen Sanqian drew his Youlong Sword and declared, "It is time to end this."

Just then, a deep intuition stirred within him. He looked toward the distance, his brows knitting tightly. Old Qi, experienced in combat, immediately sensed the unusual shift in Shen Sanqian’s state. How could he let such a golden opportunity pass? He opened his mouth and spat out a volley of dark, spectral needles, which whistled toward Shen Sanqian.

Facing the attack, Shen Sanqian did not dodge at all. He stood rooted to the spot, allowing the needles to strike him. A flash of bright silver light flickered and vanished, followed by a series of clattering, shattering sounds in the air; the needles had failed to inflict even the slightest scratch. Shen Sanqian’s brows furrowed deeper as he muttered something under his breath.

Though unaware of what had happened to his opponent, Old Qi knew that one must strike while the enemy is vulnerable! Having assumed his death was certain, he had not expected this sudden, miraculous turn of events. Old Qi raised his dark blade, transforming into a blur of ghostly shadows. He appeared behind Shen Sanqian in an instant, gripped the hilt, and brought the sword down with all his might. The blade shimmered with a dark, spectral light, distorting the very space around it. This strike was the absolute limit of Old Qi’s power.

"Die!"

Shen Sanqian still did not evade, but this time, he finally reacted. He punched forward with his right hand, the fist tearing through the air and slamming into the cloud of blade-light with astonishing speed.

Boom!

The dark cloud before Shen Sanqian was pulverized by his strike. The dark blade shattered instantly, its obsidian fragments raining down upon the earth. Shen Sanqian’s fist, its momentum unchecked, continued forward and pierced straight through Old Qi’s chest.

Old Qi looked down, his eyes filled with disbelief. Then, a sharp, twisting pain bloomed in his chest. Shen Sanqian withdrew his right hand, clutching a deep, pitch-black crystal, which he crushed to dust with a firm squeeze. As the crystal shattered, Old Qi’s body began to crack apart. In his final moments, he met a pair of ruthless, cold, and murderous eyes. Through that gaze, he felt the profound rage hidden deep within Shen Sanqian’s heart.

"So, you have feelings after all..." Old Qi grinned. Before the words could finish, his entire body exploded, turning into a mist of powder that dissipated into the world.

Shen Sanqian stood where he was, watching the direction in which Xuan Mo and the others had fled. After a moment of silence, he chose not to pursue, instead turning and flying in the exact opposite direction. Behind him, the fire reached toward the heavens, the merciless flames continuing to burn until everything was consumed. The ways of the world are truly fickle; Ning Xiu would never have imagined that his actions had inadvertently saved the lives of Xuan Mo and the others. One wonders what their respective reactions would be if they ever learned the truth.

Be it coincidence or destiny, thanks to Old Qi’s sacrifice, Xuan Mo and his party had miraculously survived Shen Sanqian’s wrath.

...

When Shen Sanqian returned to the Six Fan School, dawn was just breaking, the pale blue sky still studded with a few lingering stars. Many in the school were still lost in their dreams. This was all thanks to Leng Ying.

The "Xiezhi" Temple was situated in the deepest part of the Six Fan School, with the altar located in the innermost sanctum. Separated by layers of heavy stone doors, whatever transpired inside was impossible for those outside to detect. Even if someone heard faint sounds, they would only assume it was a normal occurrence during the divine enlightenment ceremony. Who could have guessed that someone as audacious and insane as Ning Xiu would exist? To the average constable, Leng Ying was a god-like existence; they could never imagine that one as powerful as he would end up without a corpse to bury.

"Lord... Lord Shen!" A constable who had risen early spotted Shen Sanqian and doubted his own senses, wondering if he were still hallucinating in his sleep. He rubbed his eyes, confirmed he had not been mistaken, and quickly knelt on one knee, bowing respectfully. But when he looked up, Shen Sanqian was already gone. This left him wondering if something was wrong with his own vision.

...

Shen Sanqian walked straight to the Xiezhi Temple, pushed open the great doors, and stepped inside. As he ventured deeper, his expression grew increasingly grim. It was hard to imagine that a man who could face the entire Nether Alliance alone with nonchalance could ever wear such a look.

The corridor leading to the altar was guarded by eighteen stone doors, all constructed from black steel rock. Even a cultivator at the Transcending Mortal realm would find them difficult to destroy. Yet now, they were shattered into heaps of rubble. The dark, obsidian rock gleamed with a deep luster under the dim light. Shen Sanqian took a glance and continued inward. Though he appeared calm, every eruption is preceded by a moment of stillness.

When he finally beheld the ruined altar, the vanished divine statue, the severed limbs, and the utter chaos within the sanctum, he could no longer suppress his emotions.

"Ning Xiu, I will make sure you suffer a death with no place to be buried!" Shen Sanqian clenched his fists, grinding his teeth as he spoke in a low, guttural voice. A terrifying force surged from his body, as if he intended to tear the entire temple apart. Yet, this terrifying energy was quickly reined in. The great hall fell silent once more. Shen Sanqian stood amidst the ruins, no one knowing what thoughts were churning within him.

He knew clearly that anger was useless, serving only to make one foolish.