Fate-Defying Demon Emperor

Who was Mu Qingyun? He was the current Sect Master of the Seven Stars Sect, a supreme powerhouse at the Supreme Realm Ninth Layer. Wielding the Semi-Holy Artifact, the Seven Stars Sword, he was said to be unkillable unless a Saint personally intervened.

Yet now, he had perished by self-detonating—a truly heroic and tragic end.

Although he had been biased in the matter concerning Su Han, everything Mu Qingyun did was for his sect. He had dedicated his entire being to it, including his very life. In that regard, he was selfless and had proven himself worthy of the Sect’s ancestral masters.

A massive mushroom cloud billowed into the air, obscuring the sun. It coalesced into a dark storm cloud that shrouded the sky, unleashing a torrential downpour as if the heavens themselves wept for Mu Qingyun’s death.

The space within a one-kilometer radius had collapsed into a lethal dead zone. No one dared to set foot inside, knowing it would take a very long time to heal.

”COUGH, COUGH!” A violent coughing fit erupted as a figure scrambled out of the blast zone. His hair was disheveled, his body was bathed in blood, and his flesh was brutally torn and mangled. From his faint aura, he was identified as none other than Qin Wushuang.

He had once had a fortuitous encounter and acquired a life-saving Defensive Treasure, which had allowed him to barely survive the terrifying self-detonation. But he was now gravely injured and in critical condition, having lost all Combat Power. He could only retreat to a safe distance to heal.

THUD!

Another figure plummeted from the sky, slamming into the ground and carving out a human-shaped crater. This person was charred black, in an even more wretched state than Qin Wushuang. His features were unrecognizable, and he was barely breathing.

”Father!”

The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign’s heart clenched. He flew swiftly to the crater’s edge, took out several Healing Pills, and fed them to Leng Rufeng. This was just enough to keep Leng Rufeng clinging to life; he would need far better treatment to survive.

Qin Wushuang and Leng Rufeng were still alive, but Zhang Qiyi had vanished without a trace. Mu Qingyun’s self-detonation had turned him to ash, completely obliterating him, body and soul.

Others had also been caught in the blast. The Taiyin Demon Venerable was pale, with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, clearly injured. The other elders of the Heavenly Demon Cult were also harmed to varying degrees. Only the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign, with his formidable strength and the Semi-Holy Artifact Ghost Poison Knife, remained largely unscathed.

”Sect Master!”

Finally reacting, the members of the Seven Stars Sect broke down, their faces streaked with tears as grief overwhelmed them.

With Mu Qingyun dead, the Seven Stars Sect had lost any chance of turning the tide. Though experts like Lei Ming were strong, they were no match for a peak combatant like the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign, a master at the Supreme Realm Ninth Layer who wielded the Ghost Poison Knife.

Furthermore, while the Heavenly Demon Cult had lost Zhang Qiyi, and Qin Wushuang and Leng Rufeng were out of the fight, they still had ten Supreme Realm experts remaining. Among them, the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign and the Taiyin Demon Venerable were exceptionally powerful. In stark contrast, the strongest person left in the Seven Stars Sect was merely an elder at the Supreme Realm Sixth Layer. With only six Supreme Realm experts in total, their numbers were vastly inferior.

Could today truly be the day our sect is annihilated? A bitter taste filled Lei Ming’s mouth. Beside him, Liu Rumei’s eyes grew dim, and the other surviving elders lost all hope.

”The Sect Master is dead... the Seven Stars Sect is finished,” a disciple murmured, his eyes vacant and his heart filled with ashes of despair.

”I don’t want to die here! I’ll defect! I want to join the Heavenly Demon Cult! My Lord, I’m willing to be your most loyal servant!” one disciple screamed, his mind breaking under the pressure. Desperate to live, he openly betrayed his sect, preparing to kneel before the invaders.

PFFT!

A flash of cold steel silenced him. The disciple who had tried to save himself through betrayal was cut down on the spot by a Core Disciple brandishing a battle saber, his face a mask of furious indignation.

”We are Martial Artists! Why should we fear battle? The Heavenly Demon Cult follows a demonic path! I would rather die than surrender! Kill them!” This Core Disciple roared, filled with righteous fury. His blood boiling, he charged forward, ready to fight until his last breath.

Some outer sect disciples frantically tried to flee, seeking any path to survival. I don’t want to die! I have to escape! I’m just an outer sect disciple; I’m insignificant. They won’t even notice me.

In the wake of Mu Qingyun’s suicidal sacrifice, the Seven Stars Sect began to collapse from within. The morale of the thousands of disciples shattered. Some were paralyzed by terror, some turned traitor on the battlefield, some burned with defiant fervor, and others clung to life without dignity. The full spectrum of human nature was on raw display.

BOOM!

The Taiyin Demon Venerable made his move. A three-thousand-meter-long beam of Taiyin Netherworld Sword Qi slashed through the sky and into the crowd below. Like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, the sword qi reaped a bloody harvest, instantly annihilating hundreds of disciples with unstoppable force. It gouged a massive fissure in the earth, leveled palaces, and blanketed the battlefield in a layer of chilling frost.

The strongest of these ordinary disciples were at the Phenomenon Realm. Even the Outer Sect Elders were merely at the Physique and Divine Power Realms. Against an expert of the Supreme Realm, even a Heavenly King Realm elder would be as fragile as a clay chicken or a pottery dog, utterly unable to withstand a single blow.

Now, with the Big Dipper Formation shattered and Mu Qingyun dead, the entire Seven Stars Sect was like a flock of lambs awaiting slaughter. Their situation was miserable, their future bleak.

WHOOSH!

A streak of light tore through space, fleeing outward at high speed. It was Elder Lin from Tianquan Peak. Although he was a Supreme Realm expert, he did not want to die. If there had been any hope for the Seven Stars Sect, he would have gladly stayed to fight. But now, the sect was doomed. He refused to wait for his own death, so he fled.

”Don’t let him escape!” the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign commanded. ”Today, we will wash the Seven Stars Sect in blood! Leave no one alive!” At his order, two elders from the Heavenly Demon Cult gave chase. A fierce battle quickly erupted, and Elder Lin found himself in mortal danger.

”There’s no retreat. We fight!” Lei Ming snarled, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. A ferocious light glinted in his eyes as he steeled his heart for a final, desperate battle. ”Kill one, and we break even. Kill two, and we’ve made a bloody profit!”

Liu Rumei nodded, taking her place beside Lei Ming. Together, they charged toward their formidable enemies.

”They overestimate their own strength. Annihilate them!” the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign ordered once more. The Heavenly Demon Cult’s elders swarmed forward. The Taiyin Demon Venerable also joined the fray, his deep-seated hatred for Lei Ming drawing him directly toward his old foe.

”Lei Ming, if you hadn’t foiled my plans all those years ago, I would have destroyed the Seven Stars Sect long ago!” The Taiyin Demon Venerable’s gaze was venomous, his eyes filled with boundless hatred as he stared at Lei Ming. ”Now that Mu Qingyun is dead, you can join him in the underworld!” Unleashing his full power, he lunged at Lei Ming.

Lei Ming was already gravely injured and was only at the Supreme Realm Third Layer. The Taiyin Demon Venerable, despite having been sealed for years, still possessed the power of the Supreme Realm Seventh Layer. The disparity in their strength was simply too vast. Lei Ming was no match for him.

BANG!

In a matter of moments, Lei Ming was struck and sent flying, coughing up blood. The Myriad Laws Thunder Spear was knocked from his grasp, and his Destruction Thunder Domain began to collapse.

”Die!” the Taiyin Demon Venerable roared, brandishing his Taiyin Netherworld Sword Qi and slashing down viciously toward Lei Ming. If this strike connected, Lei Ming would surely be killed.

SWISH!

At that very instant, a ray of starlight shot down from the heavens like an arrow. It precisely struck and shattered the Taiyin Netherworld Sword Qi, saving Lei Ming from certain death.

This sudden turn of events stunned everyone.

Does the Seven Stars Sect still have another master in its ranks?