Fate-Defying Demon Emperor

Chapter 498: Chapter 498: Crane and Clam Fight, One Dead One Injured

Dead! They’re all dead!

He was the only one left in the entire Heavenly Demon Cult, a realization that caused grief to well up from the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign’s heart. Although he was a Demon Cultivator, he was not heartless. As the leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult, he had poured his heart and soul into it, but now, it had all become a fleeting illusion.

The Swordsaint, with one man and one sword, had slaughtered the entire Heavenly Demon Cult. The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign could only watch helplessly as even his own father self-destructed and perished before his eyes. This despair, like an invisible giant hand, clenched tightly around his heart, making even breathing an agonizing task.

”Now, it’s your turn!”

The Swordsaint held the Cold Iron Holy Sword and stared coldly at the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign, then unmercifully slashed out. The Swordsaint was suspicious by nature and obstinately self-reliant. He would never allow any threat to linger. Thus, upon discovering he had been poisoned, he gave the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign no opportunity to explain. He didn’t need an explanation—as long as he perceived a threat, he would strike first to gain the upper hand.

SWISH!

A kilometer-wide expanse of Great Sun Sword Radiance once again stretched across the sky. Bearing intense heat and sharpness, it shot toward the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign with overwhelming force.

This was a strike that even the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign, at the Ninth Layer of the Supreme Realm, might not be able to block.

But block it he must, because the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign did not want to die. He frantically circulated his Cultivation Technique as an overwhelming Evil Qi erupted from his body. He expanded his Domain and resisted with all his might.

Alas, his efforts were futile, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. He was cleaved out of the sky and sent smashing into the ground below, collapsing three or four palaces upon impact.

”Hmm? He’s still not dead!”

Sensing the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign’s faint Aura, the Swordsaint furrowed his brow, somewhat displeased.

It seems my injuries are indeed too severe. I failed to kill a mere Supreme in a single strike. But no matter. If he can withstand one sword, can he possibly withstand a second?

The Swordsaint raised his Cold Iron Holy Sword, about to strike again and deliver the killing blow. However, the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign knew he couldn’t escape. Gazing at the devastation and the fields of corpses that were once the Heavenly Demon Cult, a grim resolve hardened within him.

”I’ll take you with me!”

A roar erupted from the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign, and in its wake, the entire Poison Miasma Marsh began a tumultuous upheaval. This perilous marsh, a natural deathtrap saturated with poison and miasma, was a place ordinary people dared not tread. Yet, it had become the very headquarters of the Heavenly Demon Cult. Over thousands of years, the Heavenly Demon Cult had established countless mechanisms within the Poison Miasma Marsh. The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign had now activated them all, triggering a complete detonation with the intent of taking the Swordsaint down with him.

RUMBLE!

The marsh churned violently. A massive torrent of poisonous miasma swept forth like a storm, obscuring the sky and enveloping the entire Heavenly Demon Cult. The Swordsaint was inevitably caught within.

”Let’s die together!”

The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign’s eyes looked ready to burst from their sockets, his features contorted in agony. As the poisonous miasma eroded his flesh, his body turned black and began to rot away, resembling a pile of putrid flesh. He looked like a vengeful demon clawing its way out of Hell to claim the souls of the living. An endless surge of poisonous miasma swarmed in, coalescing into a massive pillar several thousand meters thick that completely engulfed the Swordsaint and what remained of the Heavenly Demon Cult.

The pillar contained not only poisonous miasma but also terrifying, explosive shockwaves that pounded relentlessly like a brewing storm. The already devastated grounds of the Heavenly Demon Cult began to collapse entirely. Buildings tumbled, decorative rockeries shattered, and the very earth cracked open, spewing forth foul, black sludge. The sludge gradually submerged the sect, threatening to sink it completely into the marshland.

The Swordsaint’s brow was tightly furrowed, his eyes glinting with grim concentration. The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign had detonated the entire Poison Miasma Marsh. Facing such a force of nature, even a Saint Realm expert like himself dared not be careless. Moreover, he was already severely injured. He had no choice but to channel the Great Sun Sword Body with all his might, causing his entire form to glow with brilliant, intense sword light.

”Heavenly Rank Low Level Martial Technique—Myriads Swords Return to Origin!”

The Swordsaint gripped his sword with both hands and raised it high above his head. Instantly, countless beams of sword light roared toward him, swiftly converging upon the blade. The scene was like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, a truly monumental spectacle. Ultimately, the Holy Sword above the Swordsaint’s head transformed into a three-thousand-meter-long beam of Great Sun Sword Radiance. It was a torrent of Sword Qi, within which one could clearly see innumerable sword gleams darting about like schools of fish.

”Slash!”

Blood trickled from the Swordsaint’s mouth and nose. It was clear that unleashing this strike in his current state was immensely difficult, but he had no other choice. He had to act, lest he be completely overwhelmed by the pillar of poisonous miasma.

CRACK!

The slash descended as if a sun god himself were wielding the sword, powerful enough to cleave the entire Desolate Heavenly Ancient Realm in two.

Sword Qi spanned thirty thousand li, a single sword’s cold light chilling nineteen provinces!

This one sword strike seemed to sunder the heavens from the earth as it collided with the pillar of poisonous miasma. The black poisonous miasma and the golden Great Sun Sword Radiance each consumed half the sky. The terrifying energies clashed, setting off continuous, deafening explosions like a string of firecrackers.

In an instant, the area became a roiling ocean of pure energy. Many of the demonic beasts inhabiting the Poison Miasma Marsh were instantly torn to shreds by the terrifying forces, reduced to nothing but bloody fragments.

”You destroyed my Heavenly Demon Cult and killed my father! I cannot exist under the same sky as you! Even as a ghost, I will never let you go!” the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign spat viciously, then instantly teleported forward, lunging ferociously at the Swordsaint.

BOOM!

The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign also self-destructed. He had little time left to live after detonating the entire Poison Miasma Marsh anyway. In his rage and despair, he chose to detonate his own body, hoping to empower the pillar of poisonous miasma and finally kill the Swordsaint.

The Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign’s self-destruction caused the Swordsaint’s pupils to contract violently. With no time to think, he gathered every last shred of Spiritual Energy in his body, pushing his Great Sun Sword Body to its absolute limit. He transformed into an Energy Physique, the Power of Space-Time coiling around his Cold Iron Holy Sword as it radiated a peerless edge.

The pillar of poisonous miasma engulfed the Swordsaint’s silhouette. The ensuing explosion was so terrifying that it tore the very fabric of the world apart. Countless spatial rifts emerged, spreading rapidly like a spider’s web.

After a long while, the terrifying energy storm gradually subsided. The figure of the Earth Fiend Demon Sovereign had completely vanished. Like Leng Rufeng before him, he had ultimately chosen self-destruction.

A weak coughing sound arose from within the dark, stinking mire, where a mud-caked figure was struggling to pull itself free.

It was the Swordsaint. He was grievously injured and on the brink of death, but he had ultimately survived thanks to his Great Sun Sword Body having reached the Great Accomplishment stage. He had less than one percent of his strength remaining and was weakened to the extreme. All he wanted was to leave this place immediately, find a safe location, and begin his recovery.

However, just at that moment, a great hall descended from the sky, whistling as it fell to envelop him completely.

Then, an icy voice rang out:

”Today, I shall slaughter a Saint!”