Chapter 538: The Chosen One Is Down for the Count, Young Master Shen Is Laughing!
"How many times have I told you, you need to have self-control!"
In the underground secret room, Shen Anyu watched this scene, shaking his head. Zhang Zhiyun, who had been practicing for eight two-and-a-half-year periods, was still too young.
"There's another one without self-control." Shen Anyu lowered his head and smiled again.
At this moment, Ji Xiaolin had lost control.
[Ding! The main emotional storyline of the Child of Destiny, Zhang Zhiyun, has been severely damaged. Plundering +800,000 destiny value!]
As the underground secret room gradually heated up, in the Villa courtyard above.
As Shen Anyu expected, Zhang Zhiyun was completely enraged. A primal roar tore from his throat, his eyes bloodshot with an uncontrollable fury. He charged at the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect, a seasoned Celestial Master expert, with a complete disregard for his own safety. The air around him crackled with nascent lightning, his righteous fury manifesting as raw, untamed power that ripped up the flagstones with every thunderous step.
"Zhiyun, no!" Zhang Tianen bellowed, his own heart seizing with dread, but the boy was already a blur of motion, too consumed by rage to be stopped.
The Master of Myriad Dharma Sect's taunt had struck its mark perfectly. A cruel, knowing smirk twisted his lips as he watched the young prodigy hurtle toward his doom. With a flick of his wrist, a three-inch Dharma Sword materialized in his hand. It was no ordinary weapon. Its blade was a malevolent, obsidian black, etched with countless crimson and dark runes that seemed to writhe and squirm like living things. A chilling aura of decay and malice pulsed from the weapon, a low, unnerving hum that promised a fate worse than death.
"The Wan Fa Sect's Myriad Curses Sword?"
Zhang Tianen's breath hitched, his face draining of all color. Horror shot through him like a shard of ice. He knew the legends of that vile blade. It was the Wan Fa Sect's most guarded and heinous treasure, a repository of centuries of accumulated curses and black magic. The slightest scratch from that sword would unleash a torrent of corruption into a cultivator's body, poisoning their meridians and soul. Even a full-fledged Celestial Master would find their chances of survival perilously slim.
Zhang Zhiyun was walking directly into a death trap!
How could Zhang Tianen stand by and watch his brilliant, promising future son-in-law be cut down? The boy was the future of the Tianshi Sect, the man he had chosen for his daughter! Though he knew nothing of this so-called Young Master from the Yanxia Shen Family, he instantly concluded this was a vicious scheme orchestrated by the Wan Fa Sect. His daughter, Ji Xiaolin, had never associated with such people; it was an obvious fabrication designed to provoke. With no time for hesitation, he acted. Roaring with fury, Zhang Tianen thrust his hands forward. The air split apart as chains of violent, silver lightning erupted from his palms, lashing through the night like celestial whips. He ignored the lesser fries, his entire attack focused on the Sect Master, employing the desperate tactic of 'besieging Wei to rescue Zhao' to force his opponent onto the defensive and save the boy.
[Akarin's Note: "Besieging Wei to rescue Zhao" (围魏救赵) is one of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. It means attacking the enemy's home base or a vital point to force them to abandon their current attack and retreat.]
"Stop him!" the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect commanded, his voice sharp and cold.
Instantly, the Wan Fa Sect's Left and Right Protectors, along with a horde of their elite experts, surged forward, forming a human wall around Zhang Tianen. Dozens of Artificer True Persons and the more powerful Grand Artificer True Persons moved with practiced efficiency, their dark energies weaving together. Led by the two Half-Step Celestial Masters, they conjured a massive, interlocking Formation. A shimmering barrier of chaotic, inky energy pulsed into existence, just in time to intercept the devastating lightning chains.
CRACK-BOOM!
The collision was apocalyptic. Silver lightning crashed against the dark shield in a blinding explosion of power. A shockwave of pure force erupted outwards, shattering every window in the villa and blasting a crater into the courtyard. The ground itself trembled violently. The Wan Fa Sect experts grunted, their legs buckling under the immense pressure.
But in the next moment, a wave of guttural choking sounds filled the air. The numerous experts of the Wan Fa Sect simultaneously vomited fountains of blood, their faces turning a ghastly, waxy pale. The combined Formation flickered violently, cracks spiderwebbing across its surface.
"Zhang Tianen is that strong?"
The Right Protector, a grim, black-robed, one-eyed old man, stared in terror and disbelief. His entire body trembled from the backlash. So many of them, their most powerful elites, had joined forces in a combined Formation, and they were nearly obliterated by a single, hasty attack. The power of a true Celestial Master from the Tianshi Sect was beyond terrifying.
However, a quick glance toward his Sect Leader and the charging brat brought a wave of relief washing over him. A cruel, triumphant smile spread across his blood-flecked lips.
They had still won!
Facing the tempest of lightning Dharma that Zhang Zhiyun unleashed, even the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect felt a flicker of surprise. The raw power contained in the attack was immense, far exceeding what one would expect from a cultivator so young. This boy had truly inherited the core Legacy of the Tianshi Sect. His command of lightning was already on par with that of an ordinary Celestial Master.
'Fortunately, I acted in time,' the Sect Master thought, a cold knot tightening in his gut. 'If I had let this boy mature for another decade, the consequences would have been unimaginable! Du Zhao of Emei Peak has performed a great service.'
His thoughts raced, but his actions were fluid and instantaneous. His black Dharma robe billowed out, not from the wind, but from an internal surge of power. A dark, glossy light coated the fabric, transforming it into a vortex of shadows that seemed to drink the light from the air. As Zhang Zhiyun's furious lightning spear struck, it was simply swallowed by the robe, vanishing with a muffled hiss, its brilliant energy absorbed into nothingness.
At the same time, the Myriad Curses Sword in his hand had already been activated. It hummed with a thirsty, wicked energy. With a soundless whoosh, the blade shot forward, faster than the eye could follow, a streak of black death aimed directly for Zhang Zhiyun's heart.
There was a wet, tearing sound that cut through the night. Blood sprayed through the air in a fine, crimson mist. In the final, desperate instant, Zhang Zhiyun's battle instincts allowed him to twist his body just enough to avoid a fatal blow to his heart. But it wasn't enough. The Myriad Curses Sword plunged deep into his right shoulder, piercing through flesh and bone.
Instantly, an agony beyond imagination erupted from the wound. The thousands of malicious curses stored within the blade flooded into his body. He could feel them—a tide of pure, sentient evil—surging through his meridians, corrupting his qi, and clawing at his very soul. He collapsed to the ground, his body convulsing violently.
Zhang Zhiyun's skin crawled as crimson and dark curse marks spread across his body like venomous spiderwebs. He struggled to lift his head, his gaze locking onto the victorious Master of Myriad Dharma Sect, his heart a storm of absolute, crushing unwillingness.
He was the most outstanding successor of the Tianshi Sect in a thousand years. A Celestial Master was never his final goal; he was destined for greater heights, with a real hope of becoming a Land Immortal. And now… now he had fallen here, at the feet of his enemy, powerless. He tried to speak, to curse, but he couldn't even utter a single word. A metallic taste filled his throat, and a torrent of dark, viscous blood gushed from his lips.
He recalled his Master's final words before he descended the mountain. 'Once you descend, you will be like a Dragon entering the great sea, destined to dominate and spread the prestige of the Tianshi Sect.' A profound bitterness, a deep and soul-crushing unwillingness, filled Zhang Zhiyun's eyes as his world dissolved into darkness, and he collapsed unconscious on the spot.
[Ding! The Child of Destiny, Zhang Zhiyun, was severely injured due to the host's scheme. Plundering +66,666 destiny value!]
[Ding! The Child of Destiny, Zhang Zhiyun's invincible Dao Heart was damaged. Plundering +500,000 destiny value!]
..."ZHANG ZHIYUN!"
Seeing this, Zhang Tianen's composure finally shattered. A father's protective rage, a master's grief, and a sect elder's fury all combined into a cataclysmic explosion of power. Lightning, no longer silver but a terrifying, brilliant white, erupted from his entire body. His qi surged, creating a visible aura of destruction around him. The violent lightning coalesced into a hurricane, a dragon tornado of pure elemental fury that swept towards the remaining experts of the Wan Fa Sect, spiraling hundreds of meters into the air.
Under the shocked and horrified gazes of the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect and his Protectors, the tornado of lightning descended. One by one, the Wan Fa Sect experts were engulfed. There were no screams, only the flash of unbearable light and the sickening smell of burnt flesh. Whether they were Artificer True Persons, Grand Artificer True Persons, or the two powerful Half-Step Celestial Masters, all were annihilated in an instant, their bodies turned to blackened charcoal statues before crumbling to ash. The ground beneath them melted from the extreme heat, solidifying into a scorched, glazed wasteland.
The Master of Myriad Dharma Sect's pupils constricted into pinpricks. Heartache and dread warred within him. The high-ranking members of the Wan Fa Sect, the core of his power, had been almost completely wiped out in a single devastating attack.
But his objective had been achieved. He had no desire to fight a berserk Zhang Tianen to the death, mainly because he knew, with chilling certainty, that he couldn't win.
The Master of Myriad Dharma Sect's Mental Energy surged, recalling the Myriad Curses Sword back to his hand. He then kicked Zhang Zhiyun's unconscious body, sending it tumbling through the air toward Zhang Tianen, and let out a loud, mocking laugh:
"Zhang Tianen, you don't want Zhang Zhiyun to die, do you? Save him now; perhaps he can still be saved."
But the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect sneered inwardly. Struck by the Myriad Curses Sword, the boy was beyond saving. Unless an Immortal descended from the heavens, he was certainly a dead man.
"Where is my daughter?"
Seeing the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect preparing to flee, Zhang Tianen completely ignored the falling body of Zhang Zhiyun, his form flashing to block the Sect Master's path as he angrily demanded an answer.
Although he valued Zhang Zhiyun, it was only because he considered the boy his future son-in-law. His daughter, Ji Xiaolin, was his precious treasure, more important than his own life. Between Zhang Zhiyun and Ji Xiaolin, there was no choice. He would undoubtedly choose his daughter every time.
Zhang Zhiyun fell to the ground with a heavy, wet thud, looking utterly miserable. The impact forced a few more mouthfuls of black blood from his lungs.
Looking at Zhang Tianen, whose body was still surging with terrifying lightning and boundless qi, the Master of Myriad Dharma Sect's mouth twitched. He didn't dare to engage with the enraged Tianshi Sect Master and answered without hesitation:
"She's in this underground secret room. You can sense her if you release your Mental Energy."
"Master of Myriad Dharma Sect, if you lie to me, if you harm Xiao Lin in the slightest, I will kill you!"
Zhang Tianen snorted coldly, released his Mental Energy to sense, and then quickly retracted it. He only caught some sounds, his daughter's voice, and a man's voice. He couldn't hold back and quickly withdrew his Mental Energy.
Zhang Tianen's expression immediately became strange, complex and unreadable.
Although his Mental Energy was withdrawn quickly and he didn't see anything, he heard some sounds.
Especially the man's voice, which seemed to be shouting, "Ji Xiaolin, you need to have self-control," "Ji Xiaolin, don't go too far," "Ji Xiaolin, stop~" It seemed that his own daughter was the one being proactive.
Shen Anyu smiled slightly. In reality, with the Mental Energy shield, he wasn't worried about Zhang Tianen or the Wan Fa Sect seeing or hearing anything with their Mental Energy; it was all intentional on his part.
Looking at the increasingly audacious Ji Xiaolin, Shen Anyu smiled slightly: "You made the first move, so I won't pretend to be a gentleman anymore."
How could he, the dignified Young Master Shen, be someone who long remained subordinate to others? It was time for him to become the Master!
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