Yu He knew nothing of the Snake‑BreakerRod.
Across eternity, few had ever glimpsed it.
Only one who had lived millions of years, who had traversed countless forbidden realms and learned the secrets of creation, could have understood its nature — and that was Li Qiye.
To those unaware, it was no more than a stick.
### The Killing Blow
Xu Hun, bleeding and broken, still shrieked defiance.
Unable to stand, he howled and something tore open beneath his ribs —
two golden talons shot out and slashed for Li Qiye's heart.
Those talons could pierce iron mountains.
He was of the FlameGoldenEagleline,
his father a cultivator of that race; within him lay claws forged to kill.
Bang!
The Snake‑Breaker Rod struck once; the sound was sharp as thunder.
The talons quivered, nerves numbed — seven‑inch strike upon a serpent's heart.
"Seeking death," Li Qiye's voice turned cold.
A white flash — two short blades were already buried in Xu Hun's shoulders,
pinning him to the ground like a butterfly on board.
"You dare try and kill me? Today I'll teach you pain."
He raised the rod again, eyes ice.
### The Elder's Fury
"Enough!"
Protector Xu dropped into the arena, voice cracking like a whip.
Li Qiye looked at him once, almost bored.
"What now? The pupil loses, so the master joins in?"
"Insolent whelp!"
The protector's gaze was a knife.
"Release him, or I'll cut you down myself."
Li Qiye's tone remained mild, as if speaking of the weather.
"A moment ago, I might have let him live.
But you chose to threaten me — so now he dies."
He tightened his grip on the blades.
Shhk!
Xu Hun's scream split the heavens;
the crossed blades ripped through him, body sliced to pieces in a burst of crimson light.
Blood spattered the earth like rain.
"Hun'er!"
Protector Xu's roar was pure madness.
He had never imagined Li Qiye would kill within his reach — utterly without fear.
"Die, brat!"
Blood qi erupted to the sky;
a divine sword of ten thousand zhang descended for Li Qiye's head.
### The Stone God Moves
Protector Mo could only stare, soul scattering.
At that speed, no one could save the boy.
Boom!
A tremor rocked the mountain.
A stone foot descended from the sky — no mortal, no man could resist.
Under that tread, heroes and lords alike became dust.
"No—!"
Protector Xu's cry was cut off as the colossal foot struck.
Flesh and bone burst; he was crushed to pulp in a single step.
All gazed in terror.
For the one who had moved — was not Li Qiye, but one of the four stonestatues standing around the battlefield.
### Divine Retribution
Yu He blanched, blood energy rushing skyward. He swung a blade of light to shield the fallen elder.
The giant statue shifted again—its other foot kicked forward.
Boom!
Even Yu He, a Warlord whose name shook realms, was hurled like a stone,
slamming into the main peak, vomiting blood.
"Cease this madness!"
A voice rolled through the heavens as laws cascaded like waterfalls.
A figure appeared above the clouds, crowned by infinite radiance; his movement alone could boil oceans.
"The Grand Elder!"
The disciples knelt, stunned.
The Grand Elder formed a seal, divinity roaring, pressing across eight desolations.
He struck down — the might of a world‑lord.
But the statue lifted its arm and met him head‑on.
Crash!
The seal shattered.
Blood splashed the sky.
The Grand Elder spiraled back, a comet of scarlet.
The entire Nine Saint Demon Gate fell silent.
A guardian idol of stone had just defeated their strongest Saint.
The colossus lowered its hand and stood once more, as if nothing at all had transpired.
"I warned you," Li Qiye said calmly, standing amid the blood‑soaked arena.
"If your sect breaks its own rules, I'll tear it down and start again."
He seemed bored; none dared breathe.
Mo and Huairen were frozen where they stood—
never in their lives had they dreamed of seeing a stone idol defy the sect itself.
### Descent of the Emperor
The Grand Elder rose again, blood‑light flaring, stepping into the sky for battle—
but a voice rolled from the depths of the sect:
"Elder, be still. That is our Guardian God."
The tone alone bent the air — royal, sovereign.
"The Sect Master—!"
All recognized it —the voice of the DemonEmperoroftheBurningSun,
the supreme ruler of Nine Saint Demon Gate.
The Grand Elder halted midair, glaring at the statue in shock.
The students and elders alike could hardly believe it; they had never heard of any "guardian god,"
and never imagined one would raise a hand against them.
"Elder Yu, Protector He—invite Young Lord Li to the Heaven Hall."
The Emperor's voice deepened. "What does the Young Lord say?"
Li Qiye smiled, the curve of his lip cold.
"So someone here still has eyes. Very well—let's talk."
Yu He, battered and pale, stepped forward to escort him.
Even he trembled. The boy was terrifying beyond reason.
### The Heaven Hall
The Heaven Hall was the heart of the sect, seat of all great councils.
Only elders were permitted entry.
It hung aloft above the deepest grounds of Nine Saint, suspended in arrays of light.
That day, Yu He himself — a Warlord of immense power — stooped down to carry the youth up.
Inside, the Grand Elder and all elders assembled.
Each was a living world; laws flowed around them, life‑wheels spinning.
These were TruePersons—beings who could level the Cleansing Dust Sect with a gesture.
Yet Li Qiye sat among them as if in a tea garden, relaxed and serene.
### The Emperor Speaks
"Through the ages," came the Emperor's voice from the shrouded chamber,
"none have ever communed with our Guardian God."
Li Qiye snorted softly.
"I don't parley with voices that hide behind walls."
Gasps filled the hall — to address the Demon Emperor so was madness.
"It is not unwillingness," the voice replied, composed, almost gentle.
"I remain in closed seclusion; I cannot meet face to face."
"Then so be it," Li Qiye said with a smile. "I won't press you. I'm reasonable, after all."
His casual tone made the elders' faces darken with fury; their Emperor, master of a nation,
was being mocked by a boy of thirteen.
"I would hear how the Young Lord spoke with our Guardian," the Emperor said.
Murmurs crossed the hall — most elders had never heard of a "guardian" at all.
The Emperor continued, tone sober:
"We possess four Guardians — the stone statues of the dueling grounds.
They were invited by our founder himself to anchor the sect's earth veins,
guarding the flow of heaven and earth beneath us.
Since our creation, none had moved—until today."
His voice echoed heavy as iron.
Every elder's eyes fixed on Li Qiye.
A guardian that had never shown divine power for ages—
and yet had awakened for him.
Unthinkable.