Zhi Xuan took a long breath, satisfied. He touched his storage bag, ensuring that he still possessed enough black jade stones for recovery, although his need for pure spiritual essence for healing had now greatly diminished, thanks to his powerful physical foundation. He ignored the twelve mounds of blood dust that remained. Nature would soon claim them.

  With a light yet firm step, Zhi Xuan continued his journey. His speed now felt far greater. He was no longer just leaping; he was gliding, his body moving as if lifted by the wind. The physical transformation caused by the twenty-three Slaughter Seals made him a highly efficient cultivation machine.

  The journey continued without further incident. The desert sun began to crawl up the horizon, turning the dark sky into somber shades of purple and gold. Zhi Xuan moved like a ghost hunting at the border of dawn and night.

  When the sun fully rose, painting the canyons and dunes with searing golden light, Zhi Xuan arrived at the location marked as the end of the rat path: a narrow gap hidden between two giant rock formations that looked like ancient gates. That gap, according to Tu Yan's map, would lead them directly to the back gate of the Great Emperor's Tomb.

  Zhi Xuan stopped, hiding behind the shadow of a rock. He channeled his divine sense. The spiritual essence here felt incredibly dense, different from the surrounding desert. The air felt cold and ancient, carrying the smell of metal, poison, and something older, something resembling a decaying will.

  This was the border of the Ancient Wasteland. No guards were visible, no obvious defensive formations. The place seemed derelict and neglected, but Zhi Xuan, with his new senses enhanced by Xiao Die, could feel that the hidden dangers were far greater than any Wind Bandit. Ancient Natural Formations, the wills of cultivators that had decayed into spiritual poison, and the aura of a long-dead Great Emperor all converged in this place.

  Zhi Xuan stepped into the gap. The sky above him immediately vanished, replaced by the towering shadows of the rocks. The gap was narrow, slippery, and filled with strange moss. He moved slowly, every step full of vigilance. A few hours later, he reached the end of the gap. The light entering the crevice suddenly became brighter. Zhi Xuan stepped out of the darkness.

  The view before him was a soul-crushing landscape. It was a vast plain, but everything appeared dead. Giant trees had become charcoal, rocks had been split by countless essence cracks, and the ground was a deep grey, with no life to be found there.

  In the distance, at the end of that decaying plain, loomed a horrific structure—a complex of ruined black pyramids, shrouded in dark mist. That was the Great Emperor's Tomb. The impression the Tomb radiated was not grandeur, but tragedy and oppression. The building looked like a fortress destroyed by thousands of Heavenly attacks, yet the will of a Great Emperor still lingered there, rotting and refusing to leave.

  "The Great Emperor's Tomb," Zhi Xuan murmured. He felt a wild spiritual resonance within his body. It was the spiritual map given by Zhu Qinglan—the map was reacting, pointing to a spot behind the Tomb, where the Extreme Yin-Yang collided.

  "Back there, behind that will of death, lies the Seven Lotus Yin Fruit," Zhi Xuan whispered, his goal now feeling real.

  He channeled his divine sense, scanning the Tomb. He could not see through it. The Great Emperor's will, even after thousands of years, was still too strong, acting as an impenetrable spiritual shield. However, he did not need to scan the Tomb. He only needed to scan the surrounding area, searching for the formation hiding the Divine Stone Mine.

  Zhi Xuan walked forward. Every step produced a crunching sound on the dry grey earth. He did not move with haste; he moved with cold efficiency. The power of the twenty-three Slaughter Seals gave him a deep tranquility as well as a desire to continue seeking bloodshed.

  Around noon, Tu Yan's caravan arrived. Tu Yan and his guards, exhausted but full of vigilance, stepped out of the narrow gap. They immediately saw the hooded figure standing in the middle of the death plain, staring at the horrific Great Emperor's Tomb.

  "Zhang Gui," Tu Yan hissed, his tone now more respectful, mixed with deep fear. He had returned to the canyon where the Giant Earth Scorpion was destroyed, and he had found nothing but a ruined crater and a strange scent of death. He concluded that this Ghost Zhang was a heretical cultivator far more dangerous than any Wind Bandit. Zhi Xuan turned his head. He ignored the caravan and focused on the Tomb.

  "We have reached the border," Zhi Xuan said, his voice hoarse and clear. "Behind that Tomb, there is a mine."

  Tu Yan nodded. "Yes. Our slave smuggling route ends here. This Great Emperor's Tomb is a massive Natural Formation. Beneath it lies the Divine Stone Mine, its back gate hidden behind an illusion known only to a few. This is the promise we kept, Zhang Gui."

  "Good," Zhi Xuan replied. "You may continue. I will remain here, keeping your path safe until you leave."

  Tu Yan smirked thinly, knowing that Zhi Xuan did not want to see where the slaves would be taken. He directed the caravan, which now only had a dozen very weak slaves remaining, toward an ordinary-looking rock formation ruins to the north of the Tomb.

  Zhi Xuan watched them go, his sharp eyes unblinking. He did not care about the fate of those slaves. The Divine Stone Mine was his goal. Once the caravan vanished behind the illusion formation, Zhi Xuan turned, his hidden face now filled with cold determination. He stepped forward toward the shadow of the Great Emperor's Tomb.

  Just as he was about to step, dark strands smelling of blood appeared around him. There were ten or more people surrounding him, wearing transparent robes that made them look as if they had no bodies, their faces covered by something unutterable. These robed figures carried an intent for murder.

  "You will step no further, Black-Haired Devil," hissed a voice originating from one of the transparent robed figures. The voice felt hollow, devoid of emotion, like wind blowing through a graveyard. "Your newly born Devil Dao has attracted the attention of the Eternal Killing Temple. We were sent to reap your madness and return it to the earth."

  Zhi Xuan stopped, his hooded shadow looming tall on the death plain. The twenty-three Slaughter Seals beneath his skin immediately reacted, radiating a boiling heat, an instinctive response to such pure killing intent.

  "Oh? You know that name," Zhi Xuan said, one eyebrow rising with curiosity, yet the slant at the corner of his lips betrayed his surprise. "I wonder who sent fertilizer like you to me. Tell me, how much are you being paid to hunt me down?"

  Zhi Xuan allowed the tense silence to linger, permitting the Eternal Killing Temple to enjoy their illusion of dominance. The transparent robed figures, radiating a trained yet corrupt Consciousness Transformation aura, no longer felt like a threat, but rather like a collection of slightly difficult sheep sent to the slaughterhouse.

  "Oh, I know," Zhi Xuan murmured, looking around to see the figures one by one. He raised his hand, which immediately put the figures on alert, yet Zhi Xuan only touched his chin casually. "Someone who is perhaps aggrieved and now hires puppets to kill me? Truly shameless."

  Zhi Xuan's voice, calm but piercing, was like a sharp blade slicing through the silence of the death plain. The transparent robed figures, holding thin weapons that radiated an aura of death, fell silent. They were professional assassins from the Eternal Killing Temple; they were not supposed to show emotion. But the accurate statement and suspicion managed to disturb their composure.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  ZHINGG!

  One of the robed figures attacked first, and above in the air appeared a circle of three swords that shot directly toward Zhi Xuan. The whirring of the spiritual swords sharpened and merged into a single blade.

  ZRRTT! SRAK! WHUMP!

  With a calm step, Zhi Xuan leaped low and backward to evade it, his sapphire eyes sharpening and the corner of his lips curling into a cold smile that did not reach his eyes. He snorted sharply, immediately raised his hand, and brought out the Divine Cauldron; he knew these figures sought only one thing, and they would kill him regardless of the outcome.

  DING! DING! DING!

  The ancient bronze cauldron spun in his palm, radiating a calm yet ancient Four Seasons resonance, a stark contrast to the death aura surrounding him. He did not intend to use the Cauldron as a weapon, but as a defensive shield. The unified spiritual sword shot with a speed exceeding the Consciousness Transformation realm, carrying the weight of execution from the Eternal Killing Temple.

  KRING! DHUAR!

  The sword struck the Heavenly Trifold Reincarnation Cauldron with a force capable of shattering mountains. The Cauldron vibrated violently, Four Seasons runes exploding outward, withstanding the weight of the attack. Zhi Xuan felt his spiritual essence vibrating wildly, but his physical foundation reinforced by twenty-three Slaughter Seals held him from being thrown back. He stood tall, unmoving, even as the dust and pebbles around him were crushed into ash.

  "Hey, you are too excited," Zhi Xuan said coldly, flicking his hand as the spiritual sword shattered into pieces. "Come, release all your techniques; a sheep that fights back is more interesting than a helpless one."

  Zhi Xuan's composure and contempt were the catalysts that triggered the cold rage of the assassins. They were machines, but their enemy's arrogance was an insult to the Dao of Killing they believed in. They did not communicate. They only responded with one intent: total execution.

  ZHING! ZHANG! ZHRRRT!

  The remaining ten transparent robed figures lunged simultaneously. They did not use fancy sect formation techniques; they used the most efficient Laws of Killing. Every assassin glided with a speed that nearly reached the limits of the Consciousness Transformation realm, cutting off Zhi Xuan's perspective from ten different directions.

  Their weapons were not grand spiritual swords, but thin and curved blades radiating a lethal aura of death essence. These blades did not aim to destroy, but to pierce and sever vital meridians, a classic technique of the Eternal Killing Temple that ensured a quick and efficient death.

  SRAK! DUM! SRAK!

  Zhi Xuan avoided them with practiced ease, throwing the Divine Cauldron to strike several figures, sending them reeling backward. He turned his head and immediately pulled his face back as a blade nearly grazed him. He leaped away and formed a mudra with his hand as he propelled himself.

  "Heavenly Destroyer Palm!"

  From above Zhi Xuan, a Palm appeared carrying the weight of destruction; he released the Palm which immediately shot sharply toward one of the figures. That figure held their ground by summoning a triple-layered shield, the shield spinning around their body to withstand the impact of the Palm.

  WHUMP! WHUMP! WHUMP! KRAK! BOOM!

  Zhi Xuan's Heavenly Destroyer Palm hit the triple-layered shield with massive force. The outer shield immediately cracked, followed by the second layer. The robed figure, forced to exert all their essence to defend, staggered back, their feet dragging a long line in the dry grey earth. The final layer of the shield shattered into cold fragments of light, and the destroyer Palm continued its path, though its power had been greatly reduced.

  The robed figure let out a subtle hum of pain, dark blood seeping through the transparent robe at the chest. They were not yet dead, but their Consciousness Transformation foundation had vibrated violently. This was a power far beyond ordinary Consciousness Transformation; it was a Palm imbued with the pure will of destruction.

  ZZZT! WHUMP!

  Seeing the opponent's moment of vulnerability, Zhi Xuan darted forward and channeled essence into his fist. His muscles rippled and he immediately appeared before the robed figure. With a hard swing, he punched the robed man's chest, snatching away his vitality and swinging a second fist that made the robed man explode into blood dust.

  BOOM! DUAG!

  The explosion of blood was so fast and brutal, leaving nothing behind but a dark red mist that was immediately absorbed by the dead grey earth. The first robed figure destroyed by the Heavenly Destroyer Palm and finished with two brutal punches vanished from mortal existence.

  Zhi Xuan stood in the midst of the blood dust remnants, his fists clenched. He felt no disgust, only a familiar hot sensation spreading through his body. The twenty-three Slaughter Seals beneath his skin pulsed wildly, absorbing the corrupt Consciousness Transformation essence of the assassin he had just annihilated. One new Slaughter Seal was immediately engraved, merging with his foundation. A total of twenty-four Seals. The increase in his strength now felt more subtle but more solid, as if he had added a dark golden anchor into his physical foundation.

  Zhi Xuan wasted no time. He did not wait for the remaining assassins to recover from the shock of seeing their comrade explode into blood dust. With twenty-four Slaughter Seals now supporting his foundation, every one of Zhi Xuan's movements was a manifestation of perfect violence. He lunged forward, ignoring the death blade attacks coming from three directions. He did not evade entirely; he let the blades graze his robe, focusing on the most efficient counterattack.

  DUG! DUG! BLARR!

  Zhi Xuan channeled his essence into his boots, gliding with a cruel back-kick that hit the ribs of one of the robed assassins. There was no sound of a scream; only the sound of ribs being crushed into splinters. The robed figure shot backward, bouncing across the dry earth, no longer moving. Zhi Xuan did not stop. He spun, facing two other assassins who were now closing off his space.

  ZHING! ZHANG!

  The two thin blades moved in a lethal arc, targeting Zhi Xuan's neck and chest simultaneously. It was a pincer technique designed to kill even the most agile Consciousness Transformation cultivator.

  WUSHH!

  Zhi Xuan bent low, twisting with an impossible agility. The blades only sliced the air above his hood. As he rose, his hands already gripped the wrists of both assassins with a steel-like grasp. Twenty-four Slaughter Seals exploded with the Heavenly-Blood Body Law. That power was not used to destroy, but to drain. From Zhi Xuan's wrists, dark runes immediately spread, piercing the transparent robes and the skin of the two assassins.

  SSSHHH! SSSHHH!

  Their corrupt spiritual essence and life essence were drawn out by force, absorbed through Zhi Xuan's meridians. The bodies of the two assassins withered in an instant, their transparent robes drooping empty, while the absorbed essence engraved two new Slaughter Seals beneath Zhi Xuan's skin. Twenty-six Seals.

  Zhi Xuan released the wrists that were now cold and devoid of life. His Tattered Hood rose slightly from the wind produced by his last lethal movement. He stood in the middle of the death plain, surrounded by bloodless corpses that left only drooping transparent robes. The sudden silence that fell on the field felt heavier than any roar.

  A total of seven Eternal Killing Temple assassins remained. They were machines, but they were not blind. They had witnessed their comrades being destroyed, drained, and even exploded into blood dust in less than a few breaths. However, they did not flinch. They were blades forged by the Temple, programmed with only one goal: success or total destruction.

  "Seven," Zhi Xuan hissed, his voice hoarse behind the hood. The desert wind brushed against the drooping transparent robes, adding to the atmosphere of oppressive silence. "You are more persistent than those bandits. I shall value your tenacity."

  The seven remaining Eternal Killing Temple assassins immediately tightened their grips on the thin, curved blades in their hands. They made no sound, showed no fear, and there was not even a hint of hesitation in their spiritual eyes. Their pure and fearless killing intent flowed out, creating a layer of cold aura around them, a promise of death that could not be revoked.

  They had witnessed the brutal power of Zhi Xuan's Heavenly-Blood Body Law, seeing their comrades turn into fertilizer and dust, yet the Dao of Killing they followed did not permit retreat. If the target was too strong, they had to sacrifice themselves to ensure at least one strike landed, or at least provide useful information to the Temple.

  ZHING! ZHANG!

  With perfect coordination born from years of training, the seven transparent robed figures lunged simultaneously. They no longer used individual attacks; they formed a concise Seven-Star Killing Formation. Their speed increased sharply, and their blades spun in a circular pattern, creating a storm of blades that left no gap in the air. That blade storm, shrouded in death essence, aimed to tear Zhi Xuan into the smallest fragments.

  Zhi Xuan no longer retreated. The twenty-six Slaughter Seals consolidated beneath his skin gave him a solid foundation, giving him a cold confidence that he could ignore attacks not aimed at killing. He ignored the Divine Cauldron, relying on the most brutal weapon: himself.

  Zhi Xuan snorted coldly, his eyes sharpening as he glanced at the blade storm surrounding him. "Let's try it then—a body forged with the blood of your friends."