Chapter 240: Slain!
"You really think you've already won?" Xin Kui stared venomously at Jiang Yun, his voice dripping with malice.
Jiang Yun's eyes narrowed slightly, a faint, knowing smile on his face as he gazed at the other, almost as if he could see straight through him.
That look made Xin Kui's heart clench. The plan he had been utterly confident in now suddenly felt as if it stood on shaky ground.
He fiercely shook his head, banishing the thought. Impossible. How could a mere native of some backwater Lower Plane possibly understand the terrifying power of his clan's methods?
The other party was definitely bluffing. What a cunning bastard—trying to unsettle his mind.
Having convinced himself of this, Xin Kui glared viciously at Jiang Yun, then bit down on the tip of his tongue. A spray of blood essence shot into the sky. Within that blood essence, a blood-red command talisman seemed to manifest. The talisman burst apart, directly blasting the void itself to pieces.
"Demon-Commanding Talisman—Descent of All Demons!"
As Xin Kui's bone-chilling voice rang out, that stretch of void turned completely dark, as if it had formed a spatial passage leading to some unknown destination. At the far end of that passage, an indescribably evil aura began to seep through.
The people of the Dou Qi Continent, seeing this, felt their gazes freeze in horror. That sensation... the end of that passage seemed to be the very source of all evil. Could it be the enemy's main camp?
At this thought, everyone's scalps went numb. A single clan, a minor one at that, had nearly brought the Dou Qi Continent to ruin. If the enemy's full army descended, how could they possibly survive?
Thump—
Just as a victorious smile began to creep onto Xin Kui's face and countless people across the Dou Qi Continent once again sank into despair, a dull, heavy sound echoed. The expanding spatial passage seemed to be brushed by an enormous hand. A surge of chaotic light swept over it.
And then, before Xin Kui's utterly stupefied gaze, that planar rift slowly began to heal.
"Plane's Power?! You've already seized control of the Plane Seed?!" Snapping back to his senses, Xin Kui's infuriated roar thundered across the heavens and earth. Yet anyone could hear the thread of horrified shock running through it.
He had assumed Jiang Yun had only just begun to make contact with the Plane Seed—that both of them still had a chance to vie for it. But now... now he was being told that Jiang Yun had already refined it?
Then what in the hell was he even fighting for? He wanted the Plane Seed to break through to Demon Emperor, but if it already had a master, seeking it out was simply courting death!
What no one had noticed was that the moment that planar passage had begun to open, the entire Dou Qi Continent had been enveloped by a layer of azure light. That was the Azure Nether Tower taking action.
Jiang Yun had already calculated every card Xin Kui could possibly play. The one that concerned him most was this Demon-Commanding Talisman, so he had long ago positioned the Azure Nether Tower as a hidden contingency, concealed within the void outside the Dou Qi Continent.
With the dual protection of the Azure Nether Tower and the Plane's Power, he had been able to sever the talisman's signal from extending outward.
At this moment, Jiang Yun was cloaked in a layer of chaotic light. His robes billowed in the wind, and his handsome face seemed to glow with a jade-like luster. His dark eyes were as deep and profound as the starry sky, so much so that merely looking at them made one feel as if their mind was being drawn in, unable to pull away.
Everyone's gazes were fixed unblinkingly on Jiang Yun, and they could clearly feel that there was something different about him now.
Moments ago, the energy within Jiang Yun had been vast and surging. Even without actively circulating it, it had still radiated a terrifying pressure that weighed down on all. But now, that oppressive feeling was completely gone. He stood in the sky with a faint smile, and if one tried to sense him, it would seem as if all the energy in his body had utterly dissipated. Not the slightest fluctuation of power emanated from him.
Moreover, though their eyes could plainly see Jiang Yun standing right there, in their perception, the space at that spot was completely ethereal, devoid of any presence whatsoever.
Zi Yan and the others exchanged glances. Then, wild joy spread across their faces. The stronger Jiang Yun became, the happier they were. They were bound together as one—sharing glory and sharing ruin alike.
Jiang Yun, still smiling, slowly walked toward Xin Kui. And with each step he took, everyone could feel as if the very heavens and earth resonated in response.
An indescribable sense of majesty radiated from his body.
Up in the sky, as Jiang Yun advanced step by step, the evil demonic energy that had previously blanketed the world was forced into a continuous retreat. It looked as if the entire plane itself was rejecting its presence.
Xin Kui, too, was steadily driven back, his aura suppressed to the point of disarray.
"As I said, the Dou Qi Continent is a land of clear mountains and pure waters—a perfect place to bury one's bones," Jiang Yun said, his smiling gaze fixed on Xin Kui. His words, however, made the other feel as if he had fallen into an abyss of ice.
His voice was calm, yet it carried an infinite majesty, as if resonating with the world itself. Then, he extended his hand, and a boundless surge of chaotic light howled forth, transforming into a ring of primal chaos that shot toward Xin Kui, intent on trapping him.
Xin Kui was horrified, but before he could even react, a terrifying pressure descended, locking his body in place. In the next instant, the ring contracted violently and bound him tight.
Ssssss—
A heartbeat later, the moment the ring touched his body, his form went rigid. Brilliant flames invaded his body, and in the blink of an eye, he was transformed into a human torch, blazing fiercely.
"Ahhh—!" The flames were so terrifying that even Xin Kui had no way to block them. Agonized screams rang out. In just a few short breaths, Xin Kui's body already showed signs of melting.
"Jiang Yun... you may kill me today... but when you enter the Great Thousand World... my clansmen will make you suffer a death far worse than mine... AHHHHH!!!"
Amidst a succession of wretched screams, Xin Kui dissolved into a pool of black liquid.
Bang—
The flaming ring pulsed, and that black liquid was reduced to dust, scattering into the void.
"It's... it's over..."
"..."
Watching the dissipating black mist in the sky, countless faces were etched with bewilderment and shock. For a moment, everyone seemed utterly lost.
Then, swift realization struck. They stared at the scene, trembling with overwhelming emotion, their eyes fixed on that black-robed, handsome young man high above.
"The life-saving grace of Heavenly Emperor Jiang Yun—none under heaven shall dare forget!" Countless people, tears of fervent emotion streaming down their faces, knelt and bowed with trembling bodies. The sincere and impassioned voices merged together, shaking the very heavens and earth.
What had originally been a contest for the Emperor Pill between the Hun clan, Gu clan, Lei clan, Yao clan, and others had abruptly transformed into a world-shaking battle for the survival of the Dou Qi Continent itself. The battlefield had seen reversal after reversal, surprise after surprise, and in the end, even multiple Dou Di-level figures had emerged.
And, of course, several had fallen. It could be said that the people of the Dou Qi Continent had been utterly caught off guard.
But this great battle, this planar calamity, had finally reached its absolute conclusion with Xin Kui's death.
This outcome plunged the entire world into unbridled celebration. That sense of hope born from the depths of despair carried with it an almost uncontrollable surge of excitement and ecstatic joy.
Sensing the will of the masses, Jiang Yun wore a faint smile, but his heart remained as calm as still water. He cared nothing for such scenes. He could play the role of savior, rescuing all living beings, or he could become an asura, annihilating an entire plane.
To him, no matter the path taken, the only thing that mattered was the final result.
Under the watchful eyes of countless gazes, Jiang Yun slowly sat down cross-legged. His eyes gently closed, and his consciousness once again immersed itself into that planar space.
Xin Kui had been mistaken. He hadn't truly seized control of the Plane Seed or broken through to Heavenly Sovereign. He had merely managed to initially control the other party for a brief moment and borrowed a fraction of the Plane's Power. What followed next was the true beginning of his refinement of the Plane Seed.
Though the masses had no idea what Jiang Yun was doing, they waited in respectful silence, awaiting the instructions of this supreme figure of the Dou Qi Continent.
At this moment, Jiang Yun had undoubtedly become their spiritual leader. If he were to rally them now, the unification of the entire Dou Qi Continent could likely be achieved in an instant.
Jiang Yun, at this moment, felt as if he were immersed in an ocean of chaos. The vast and boundless power of chaos surged toward him, finally coalescing into a ray of chaotic light that slowly poured into him from the top of his head.
Boom!
This chaotic light was the primal force born at the very inception of the plane—boundless and majestic. In terms of quality, even in the Great Thousand World, it would rank among the most supreme powers. However, this substance was extremely rare, only obtainable within planes that had given birth to a Plane Spirit.
Feeling the vast power flooding into him, Jiang Yun immediately activated his cultivation method. Instantly, his flesh and blood shuddered as if they had turned into a ravenous maw, greedily devouring every trace of the incoming, boundless energy.
In scarcely a few dozen breaths, Jiang Yun felt his strength begin to soar at a terrifying pace. And so, Jiang Yun sank into a state of profound cultivation. His figure was as still as a boulder, not moving a single muscle. Even his breathing gradually weakened until it was practically nonexistent.
This was a world of deep, shadowy gloom. The sun and moon were dim, as if they emitted only a faint, grayish light that shrouded the entire, endless realm.
Buzz!
Suddenly, an unusual fluctuation appeared in this world. A massive spatial vortex rapidly took shape. But in the very next instant, the spatial vortex collapsed and crumbled away, as if the whole thing had been nothing more than a fleeting illusion.
Swoosh—
However, what place was this?
This was the very heartland of the Extraterritorial Evil Clan, guarded by countless experts of sky-high strength. Although that fluctuation had vanished in a flash, it still attracted the attention of quite a few powerful entities within this world.
Gaze after gaze pierced through space, projecting toward the end where the spatial vortex had disappeared, as if trying to trace the path back to its source.
"It seems someone activated a Demon-Commanding Talisman..."
"Judging by the fluctuations, it should be a junior from the Heart Demon Clan."
"Heart Demon Clan?"
"The Heart Demon Clan is one of our realm's thirty-two great clans. To be forced to use a Demon-Commanding Talisman... what exactly happened?"
"Heh—from the way it reacted just now, they must have run into a tough character in some Lower Plane. Why else would the passage have been severed in an instant?"
"This Demon-Commanding Talisman can only summon a single Demon Emperor. The Heart Demon Clan's patriarch and several lords are currently absent, and the other party reacted far too quickly, erasing all traces. I fear it will be difficult..."
"..."
Numerous demonic thoughts exchanged and communed across the realm. In the end, not a single Demon Emperor was truly willing to make a move.
The other party's methods had been clean and decisive. To investigate further, only a few top-tier Heaven Demon Emperors would be capable of doing so. The Heart Demon Clan's patriarch could have done it—he was, after all, ranked among the top ten Heaven Demon Emperors in the entire Extraterritorial Evil Clan.
But as ill luck would have it, he and several other Heaven Demon Emperors seemed to be in the midst of plotting something and had been nowhere to be seen for quite some time.
After a long while, the multitude of demonic thoughts began to recede. Without those few "big shots" making a move, they were unable to trace the source of that place. They could only offer silent prayers for the unlucky soul.
Ultimately, it was just a little demon spawn who hadn't even reached Demon Emperor yet. Though his fall was a bit of a sting, it was nothing catastrophic. And most importantly—he wasn't from their clan, so why lose sleep over it?
After the many demonic thoughts had scattered, an aged figure slowly materialized in this place. His murky eyes gazed in the direction where the passage had vanished. A long time passed, and then a glint of light flickered deep within those turbid eyes. A low murmur escaped his lips: "That was the power of the Azure Nether Tower... Could it be Yun'er?"
"Yun'er... twenty years have passed. You must have grown up by now. Grandpa hopes you've become strong... yet also hopes you haven't become too strong..."
The old man was none other than Jiang Hong. He, too, had sensed the anomaly here. However, compared to those Demon Emperors, he knew with absolute certainty whose power that was. It was, after all, the soul-bound weapon he himself had forged. In this world, there was no one more familiar with it than him.
Since no Demon Emperor was willing to act, there was naturally no need to worry for Jiang Yun's safety. He now simultaneously hoped Jiang Yun would be strong and continue growing, and also hoped he could live a peaceful, safe life on some unknown Lower Plane. It was, in short, an extremely complicated feeling.
Sigh—
In the end, Jiang Hong's voice faded from the air, leaving behind only a single, complex sigh.
In cultivation, time seemed to stand still. Only the chaotic light continued to pour ceaselessly into Jiang Yun through the crown of his head. This state persisted until, at a certain moment, a change finally occurred.
At that moment, Jiang Yun's statue-like body seemed to tremble ever so slightly. In the next instant, his tightly shut eyes slowly opened.
Buzz!
The instant his eyes opened, a ray of divine light shot out from them. That beam was so dazzling it defied description. It pierced straight through the primal chaos and shot toward the chaotic void outside the Dou Qi Continent, finally disappearing into the boundless, misty expanse.
Jiang Yun's body gave a slight shudder, as if countless thunderbolts had exploded within him. At this moment, he felt that almost every inch of his flesh, every bone, and even every single drop of blood contained an indescribably immense spiritual power.
Bang—
"Ah!" Jiang Yun's sudden transformation caused the crowd below to cry out in shock and terror. Zi Yan and the others watched this scene with eyes so wide they seemed about to split, their hearts breaking. But before they could even begin to grieve—
In the next instant, Jiang Yun's body violently burst apart. Strangely, no blood sprayed through the air. Instead, his form dissolved into a sky full of powder. Each particle shimmered with a crystalline light as it floated silently.
Countless motes of light drifted, and no one knew how long this lasted. Then, suddenly, a gentle breeze seemed to coalesce. The breeze howled, ceaselessly pulling at those innumerable specks of spiritual light, as if trying to reshape them.
As time passed, the motes of light gradually converged. Faintly, a human silhouette began to take form within them, as if a physical body was about to be reforged.
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Thanks for reading the chapter!
I started a new translation and I would be very happy if you decided to check out my new translation story. It's a crossover of Toaru and One Piece... Well, the only Toaru element here is one cute Misaka. This is all that came of my desire to translate a Toaru fanfic, but I'm not complaining—even though I've only just started reading and translating it, I'm really enjoying the story. It has plenty of slice-of-life elements, and the pacing is quite slow and detailed. It's written in a sweet, positive way—at least for now. There likely won't be any romance, as there were no tags indicating such, but I won't say for sure until I've finished reading it myself. I'd recommend it to those who aren't craving violence, carnage, or excessive cruelty. In my opinion, it's a worthwhile story, though it's definitely a matter of personal taste—especially since the protagonist is a girl, which isn't everyone's cup of tea (though it doesn't really matter for now—at least as of 30+ chapters in, Misaka is still 6 years old). Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story as much as I do.
One Piece: Railgun Misaka Misaka https://www.webnovel.com/book/one-piece-railgun-misaka-misaka_37195209600636405