"Insolent!"
Zhou Yang's face darkened. The Phoenix Flower Tree exploded with his aura, and in an instant, a hundred swords danced on its branches, piercing toward Xu Ying like a hundred-armed demon god!
The swords flew up and down, some fast, some slow, dazzlingly nimble!
Xu Ying had seen the giant deity's swordsmanship—the deity could control four swords simultaneously, wielding two in its hands and telekinetically guiding two flying swords.
That swordsmanship had repeatedly gotten the better of Xu Ying, even piercing his shoulder blade and nearly killing him!
But compared to Zhou Yang's Zhou Heaven Demon-Slaying Sword, the giant deity's technique was utterly insignificant.
When the Zhou Heaven Demon-Slaying Sword was unleashed, a hundred swords wove through the air, each executing different sword arts—as if a hundred flying-sword deities attacked Xu Ying simultaneously with a hundred different techniques!
Without swordsmanship, one would be dismembered in the first exchange—limbs severed, head lopped off, body riddled with holes!
Xu Ying gripped the willow branch, stepped forward, and charged into the sword formation with the branch as his sword.
"Ding!"
His willow branch met the first sword. At the instant of collision, the blade was deflected, and the tip of the branch erupted with sword qi, severing the vine behind the sword hilt.
Xu Ying advanced a step, dodged a sword from behind, and used the willow branch to parry another. Sword qi swept across the vine, and another sword fell.
More than twenty swords attacked from every direction. Despite his brilliant swordsmanship, Xu Ying was no three-headed, six-armed demon—he could not possibly block them all at once.
Suddenly, the willow branch left his hand, tracing elegant arcs through the air, swift as arrows, slicing through vine after vine!
"Flying sword technique!"
Zhou Yang's heart lurched. In a blink, more than thirty swords had fallen, and as Xu Ying moved, even more clattered to the ground.
Xu Ying twisted upward like a carp leaping over the dragon gate, threading through the rain of swords. The willow branch circled him; any sword that came within a zhang had its vine severed.
Without the vines to support them, the swords lost control and plummeted.
A continuous clatter rang out. When Xu Ying landed, the ground behind him was carpeted with swords—all with their vines cut at the hilt.
Zhou Yang sneered. The fallen swords' vines took root, growing at astonishing speed, their tendrils stretching longer and more flexible, wielding the swords as they surged toward Xu Ying from behind.
"Xu Ying, you have no idea how formidable my Zhou family's Zhou Heaven Demon-Slaying Sword truly is! Not just a Demon King like you—even a deity that receives incense and offerings would fall!"
Xu Ying landed only a few zhang from Zhou Yang. He flicked his finger, and the willow branch shot forward with explosive speed, straight for Zhou Yang!
Zhou Yang roared: "Vajra Indestructible Body!"
His body swelled to a height of twelve feet, glowing with golden light. His hands and feet expanded, his palms coated in a thin layer of golden qi as he reached for the willow branch.
The moment his palm touched the branch, its sword qi blazed. With a tearing sound, the qi pierced through his golden qi.
In the next instant, the branch pressed against his palm. A tremendous force erupted, and light rippled like waves where they met.
At the same time, Xu Ying burst through the encirclement of swords, seized the other end of the willow branch, and thrust with all his might!
Zhou Yang bellowed, channeling his cultivation. With a crack, the willow branch pierced through the bone of his middle finger, exited from the back of his hand, and flew free from Xu Ying's grip, driving straight for his brow!
Zhou Yang frantically retreated. He swung his other fist, shattering the branch—but Xu Ying had already seized a fallen sword, flicked it skyward with his finger, and sent it screaming through the air, sword qi blazing, straight at Zhou Yang!
Only then did Zhou Yang notice that more than a dozen swords hovered behind Xu Ying, orbiting the youth, intercepting every blade the Phoenix Flower Tree sent his way!
These swords were not artifacts—they served both sides equally.
Zhou Yang grabbed at one with his bare hand, and pain lanced through his palm—five fingers flew!
Zhou Yang activated the Mud-Pellet Hidden Gate, regenerating his severed fingers. But in that moment, Xu Ying's fist crashed into his skull, and behind the youth, the Elephant-King Divine Form manifested as divine power exploded.
Zhou Yang's head snapped back. His massive body hurtled backward!
"Dog-official! When you oppressed the people of Lingling, did you ever imagine this day would come?"
Xu Ying charged forward like a sacred elephant crossing a river. Each footfall shattered the ground, his aura terrifying. Behind him, swords shot forth like streaks of light, carrying dragon-elephant force, piercing toward Zhou Yang!
Zhou Yang, equal parts terrified and furious, shouted: "Help me!"
Swords flew to his defense. He blocked three, but Xu Ying spun and swept a kick across his face.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
Zhou Yang tumbled into the forest, and sword-light streaked after him. Sword qi erupted, slashing and cleaving, severing tree after tree!
The Lingling magistrate's officials rushed forward: "Prisoner, cease your arrogance!"
Before the words had left his mouth, a flash of green light pierced a man's skull!
The green light streaked through the air like a serpent, moving with impossible speed. The remaining twelve officials activated their Nuo sorcery, summoning vines to block it.
The green light hissed through the air, a strange wail accompanying its flight. Wherever it passed, vines exploded.
A nearby official's head tilted. The green light entered through his left temple and exited through his right. His vines went wild, flailing like maddened snakes, until his brain died—then, one by one, the vines collapsed.
A blue-robed official turned toward a sound from his left. Pain lanced through his chest as the willow branch pierced through from behind, emerging from his sternum.
The sword qi within the branch detonated his heart. He coughed blood and fell.
The green light swept through the forest like an agent of death, its sharp wail gradually slowing until it drifted calmly back behind Xu Ying.
Behind Xu Ying, massive vines twisted through the forest, growing frantically, then gradually exhausted themselves and collapsed.
Beneath the vines lay the bodies of thirteen officials.
Ahead of Xu Ying, Zhou Yang, drenched in blood, had been smashed into a cliff face.
On the cliff, someone had carved the characters "Wuwang"—No Delusion.
"Pew pew pew pew!"
Four swords pinned Zhou Yang to the cliff—one through each limb. He struggled and roared, trying to break free.
"Magistrate Zhou, I used to envy officials like you."
Xu Ying's violent aura gradually calmed as he regarded the man pinned to the cliff. "You wore fine clothes, rode spirited horses, and looked down from on high. You were the parents of the people. Everywhere you went, everyone knelt in respect, honoring you as they would a deity. With a single order, a single document, you could command the people to surrender their wealth, their wives, their children! You lived better than gods!"
Zhou Yang ceased his struggle and laughed: "Xu Ying, why didn't you say so? I am a scion of the Zhou family—arranging a position for you would be child's play!"
His eyes flickered. The Phoenix Flower Tree silently gathered scattered swords, vines dancing—but then a streak of sword-light severed the demon tree at its roots.
Zhou Yang's face darkened. He dared not try anything else.
Xu Ying recalled his life in Jiangji Village. "Deities merely sit behind offering tables, on shrines, receiving bows and incense, eating only twice a month—the first and fifteenth. They must hear the people's prayers and regulate the winds and rains. But officials, receiving court salaries, eating fine food and wearing silk, are bowed to wherever they go—far surpassing deities! When I was young, you officials rode past in your fine clothes and spirited horses. I stood by the road, my face caked with mud, and your horses' hooves splashed muddy water onto me. I envied you so much. I dreamed of being like you."
Zhou Yang secretly activated his Nuo sorcery. "It is not too late. My Zhou family has no quarrel with you. We only sought to coerce you into service because of your talent. Since it was a misunderstanding, why must we be enemies? We can still arrange a position for you."
Xu Ying continued as if he hadn't heard: "When I was a snake catcher with my foster father and grandfather, I could never sleep soundly. I would wake at night, hearing officials arresting people—women screaming, children crying, old women jumping walls to flee. During the day, I saw officials ride into the village, arrogant and domineering, plundering like bandits. And I had a dream—I wanted to be like them."
Zhou Yang laughed: "You can be. As long as you pledge loyalty, the Zhou family will not mistreat you."
Xu Ying went on: "But the next day, I saw a woman throw herself into a well, and a man hang himself from his own gate. And I thought being an official wasn't so wonderful after all."
Zhou Yang sighed: "I too often lament the hardships of the people. Corrupt officials abuse their power, and those below follow suit. If you truly wish to reform the system, you should become an official. Once you hold power, you can sweep away the old and usher in the new, governing for the people's benefit."
Xu Ying's expression darkened: "Later, my grandfather caught a snake, was bitten, and died of poison. My father took over caring for me. He was not my birth father, but he cared for me well. He worked himself to the bone for years, saved some money, and bought two acres of land. He said, 'A-Ying, stop catching snakes. If you keep catching them, you'll die by a serpent's fangs one day. Plant crops instead.' The day after he bought the land, an official came to collect the Green Harvest Tax."
His mouth twitched. After a silence: "He had no money to pay. The land was seized and sold to Master Jiang."
Zhou Yang frowned slightly: "Paying taxes is the law. It has nothing to do with Lingling's officials."
Xu Ying said: "My foster father cried for a long time, saying the money had been bought with my grandfather's life and should have been saved for me to marry someday. He said he had failed me and failed my grandfather, and he would earn the money back. So he went into the mountains to catch a strange serpent. He didn't come back for days. When I found him, he was dead—poisoned. Even the demons wouldn't eat him. I carried him back and buried him beside my grandfather."
Zhou Yang said: "With such a tragic past, you should join the Zhou family and become an official. As an official, you can prevent others from suffering as you did."
"Master Zhou, you misunderstand. I am not telling you this to beg for pity or a position."
Xu Ying lifted his head, gazing directly into his eyes. "The reason I tell you this is that the village people said when someone dies unjustly, they become a vengeful ghost. And my friend Yuan Qi told me that explaining things to a corpse is superfluous."
The willow branch drifted slowly from behind him.
"Therefore, before I kill you, I will explain clearly why you must die."
Xu Ying turned. The willow branch, like a streak of azure light, pierced through Zhou Yang's brow.
Wuwang—utter sincerity.
Wuwang meant absolute honesty of the heart.
Xu Ying's actions were merely sincerity in heart and swiftness in deed: if he said Zhou Yang must die with his eyes closed, then die with his eyes closed he would.
Zhou Yang's eyes bulged. He let out a roar that shook the heavens, dying with his eyes wide open.
Xu Ying glanced back at his expression and shook his head. "The village people probably lied to me. I explained so clearly, and he still died with his eyes open. Next time I'll kill first, then explain—that'll be safer."
The great bell flew out from behind Xu Ying's head: "A-Ying, do you know why your power has advanced so rapidly, allowing you to slaughter so many Nuo shamans so quickly?"
Xu Ying shook his head.
"Because you are a Qi-refiner."
The bell's voice was low and contemplative. "Your Qi-gathering stage has reached its absolute peak. You have glimpsed the Mysterious Pass within your body, and you are on the verge of knocking on the gate to open the Celestial River. Once you cross that threshold and master the divine arts, you will be a true Qi-refiner."
"When you take that step, you will be different from all others."