The Immortal Assembly Unleashes Every Means
The execution platform was located in the very center of the Immortal Society branch compound, its three-zhang-square bluestone surface imbued with countless spiritual energies.
Four Soul-Locking Pillars stood at the four corners, with dark runes flowing across them, silently suppressing all divine and spiritual power.
Chen Du was bound to a bronze pillar in the center of the platform by heavy Black Iron chains. The Spirit-Sealing Formation Patterns spread down the pillar, wrapping his body layer by layer and firmly suppressing the True Essence that outsiders perceived as belonging to Eighth Stage cultivator.
A crowd of over a hundred people had gathered below the stage, including disciples of the Immortal Society dressed in dark green immortal robes, wandering cultivators who were resting on their journey, and a few inner disciples of the Ancient Path Holy Land who were huddled at the back of the crowd with anxious expressions.
Steward Liu stood to the side of the platform, holding a scroll of spirit silk in his hands. He glanced at the crowd below and announced loudly, "Today, the Mount Tai Immortal Assembly publicly pronounce judgment on serious criminals. Listen carefully, everyone."
He read aloud the charges on the document, word by word, his voice booming throughout the courtyard. "Zhang Shun, a disciple of the Ancient Path Holy Land, committed murder on the Immortal Society's merchant ship, disregarding the Immortal Society's three-thousand-year-old rules. According to the law, he shall be executed."
After finishing reading, he slowly closed the book, his gaze sweeping across the entire area with a chilling arrogance. "Today's execution is a warning to all cultivators who roam this territory."
Whispers of discussion slowly spread through the crowd, drifting towards the platform, each word carrying countless expressions of disdain and mockery.
A rogue cultivator stood on tiptoe to look at the stage and sighed softly, "It's such a pity that someone so young can become an inner disciple of the Holy Land."
Another rogue cultivator standing beside him scoffed, "What's a pity? Can't you see? Steward Liu is just using him to establish his authority. Who told him to run into the Immortal Society's crosshairs?"
Several disciples from the Ancient Path Holy Land huddled together, whispering amongst themselves, their eyes filled with helplessness. "Elder Sun has tried his best to mediate, but the Immortal Society won't show him the slightest leniency."
A fellow disciple beside him shook his head slightly, his tone full of dejection, "Even if he's an inner disciple, if he falls into the hands of the Mount Tai Immortal Assembly, he'll probably have a hard time leaving this platform alive today."
Within his sea of consciousness, a pale golden light quietly shone, and lines of text slowly emerged: [Deliberate Revenge triggered. The opponent's arrogance was extremely high. Successful slap in the face. Hatred Qi Value increased: 70,000 years.]
[Super Upgrade triggered, talent enhanced: Deliberate Revenge, Hatred Qi Value Sublimation Multiplier: 10x, Enmity Qi Acquisition: 700,000 years.]
Chen Du lowered his eyes, taking in all the numbers on the panel, his face still showing a helpless expression, waiting for his execution.
Steward Liu strode to the bronze pillar, looked down at the chained boy, and a cold smile curled at the corner of his lips. "Zhang Shun, now that things have come to this, what do you have to say?"
Chen Du slowly raised his head, a faint smile playing on his lips, "Steward Liu, my physical body is naturally strong; ordinary weapons probably can't harm me in the slightest."
Steward Liu's face darkened, his sarcasm deepening. "Still being stubborn even when death is imminent? I'd like to see if this body of yours can withstand the Soul-Slaying Demon Blade."
He waved his hand behind him, and a disciple of the Immortal Society quickly stepped forward, holding out a long sword with a black sheath in both hands. As the blade was drawn, a chilling aura emanated from it, and the blade was covered with layers of demonic runes.
Steward Liu reached out and grasped the hilt of the sword, lightly hefting the long blade between his fingertips. His voice carried an undeniable pressure, "This Soul-Slaying Blade is specifically designed to shatter the souls of cultivators. Even Ninth Tier cultivator will be utterly destroyed upon contact with it."
He took a step forward, aimed the tip of his blade at Chen Du's heart, and, activating his Tenth Tier cultivation, thrust it forward fiercely.
The moment the blade struck Chen Du's chest, a crisp metallic clang suddenly rang out, and the enormous recoil force surged into Steward Liu's arm, numbing his hand. The blade hadn't even managed to cut through a layer of clothing.
Steward Liu stood there, stunned, his confidence gradually fading. He quickly adjusted his angle and thrust the knife out again, this time with even greater force than before.
The second strike also failed; the sharp blade merely grazed the fabric of the clothing, leaving no mark whatsoever.
With his third strike, he poured all his Tenth Tier cultivation into the blade, thrusting it forward with all his might, as if trying to pierce through the strange body before him in one fell swoop.
The blade tip struck the object as if it were hitting divine iron that had been tempered over millions of years. The longsword bounced back violently, and Steward Liu staggered back half a step, his face turning ashen.
He turned to his disciples below the stage and shouted sternly, "What are you all standing there for? Bring up all the rest of the torture instruments!"
The disciples of the Immortal Society hurriedly ran around, bringing all sorts of killing tools, poisoned hidden weapons, Slaughtering Formation Disk, and an Executioner's Great Axe was rumored to have severed the head of a Tenth Tier expert.
Countless poisonous needles whistled out, striking Chen Du's body before bouncing off in all directions and landing on the bluestone surface with a crisp, tinkling sound.
The Slaughtering Formation Disk was placed around the copper pillar. After the spiritual light had rotated a few times, the array patterns collapsed on their own, turning into fine spiritual dust scattered all over the ground.
The burly man shouldered the heavy axe and brought it down with all his might. With a loud hum, the axe blade broke open, leaving a noticeable gap, and the giant axe rolled off his hand and onto the high platform.
Steward Liu gritted his teeth, personally retrieved a Ninth Tier short sword, rushed to Chen Du's side, and raised his hand to slash at his neck.
The short sword grazed the skin, leaving only a faint white mark, without even a trace of blood.
There was a brief moment of silence in the audience, followed by a suppressed laugh that broke the tense atmosphere.
Steward Liu turned his head sharply, his fierce gaze sweeping over the person who was laughing. The laughter was immediately swallowed back, but the expressions on everyone's faces could no longer be concealed.
Some people stared wide-eyed at the platform, unable to believe what they were seeing; others turned their heads and whispered to their companions, their eyes filled with disbelief.
A disciple from the Ancient Path Holy Land stared blankly at the stage and whispered, "Zhang Shun, just who is he?"
Steward Liu stood in the center of the high platform, gripping the short sword tightly in his hand. His face turned pale and then flushed, and he could hear whispers all around him.
He suddenly realized that this meticulously planned execution had completely deviated from his intended course.
He gripped the short sword tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force, and a fierce rage surged within him.
He never imagined that a mere Eighth Stage junior could make him lose face in front of so many cultivators.
He abruptly tossed the short sword to his disciple beside him, his gaze as cold as ice, and loudly addressed the crowd below. "Everyone, do not panic. This person only managed to block all the attacks by relying on a protective treasure."
He turned to look at the core disciples of the Immortal Society standing below the steps, his voice filled with unwavering resolve, "Take the God-Locking Thunder Spear, and reactivate the High-Podium Suppression Formation. Today, no matter what, I will kill this man here."
The murmurs among the crowd erupted again, and those rogue cultivators who had been secretly amazed earlier reverted to their previous sarcastic attitudes.
They all began to speculate about the origin of the treasures on Chen Du's body, and they all asserted that the secret treasures would eventually run out of spiritual power.
A disciple of the Immortal Society, dressed in a dark green immortal robe, raised his chin and sneered at his fellow disciples beside him, "So what if he has a protective treasure? The Suppression Array is the foundation of our Immortal Society branch; it's enough to crush the physical body and soul of a Tenth Tier cultivator."
Another disciple chimed in, his tone brimming with an arrogant confidence, "Steward Liu's mind is made up. Zhang Shun has absolutely no chance of leaving this execution platform alive today. No amount of trickery can save him."
Deep within his consciousness, the gilded characters slowly resurfaced: [Deliberate Revenge triggered. Enraged, the opponent insisted on killing him, publicly declaring they would not hesitate to use their branch's grand formation, further escalating their arrogance. Hatred Qi Value increased by 20,000.]
[Super Upgrade triggered, talent enhanced: Deliberate Revenge, Hatred Qi Value Enhancement Multiplier: 10x, Hatred Enmity Qi Acquisition: 900,000.]
Chen Du calmly absorbed this substantial amount of sublimated Enmity Qi into his sea of consciousness. His eyelids drooped slightly, and he still appeared powerless to break free from his restraints, but in his heart, he quietly waited for his opponent to reveal all his trump cards.
Steward Liu watched as two disciples carried over the God-Locking Thunder Spear, which was wreathed in purplish-black lightning.
Watching the other disciples quickly set up array bases around the high platform, his anger did not diminish in the slightest; on the contrary, it grew even stronger.
He secretly vowed that if he could not cut off Chen Du's head today, he would never be qualified to command this merchant ship again, nor would he be qualified to issue orders in the Southern Border Branch.
He took two steps forward, getting closer to the bronze pillar, staring at the calm Chen Du, and slowly spoke, word by word, "I originally wanted to give you a clean and tidy ending, but you refused to accept your fate and forced me to use the Immortal Assembly's suppression methods."
Chen Du slowly raised his eyes, his gaze calmly landing on him, and said softly, "Are you sure this great formation can really kill me?"
Steward Liu heard this question, he felt a burning pain on his face, as if all the gazes around him had turned into needles pricking his skin.
He waved his hand and gave a stern order to the disciples who had set up the formation, "Activate the formation, unleash the lightning spears, and kill!"
The Soul-Locking Pillars at the four corners of the platform simultaneously lit up with a blinding red light, and countless blood-red lines spread and intertwined along the bluestone surface.
A heavy and powerful suppressive force descended from the void, enveloping Chen Du fiercely.
The God-Locking Thunder Spear hovered in mid-air, its purple-black lightning crackling and surging incessantly. Its violent thunderous power swept in all directions, causing even many low-level rogue cultivators below the stage to involuntarily take a few steps back.
An elderly rogue cultivator, gazing at the constantly trembling lightning spear, whispered to his companion beside him, "It seems there's truly no turning back now. The Immortal Assembly has even brought out their killing formation; it's clear they're leaving him no way out."
The disciples of the Ancient Path Holy Land, standing at the edge of the crowd, clenched their fists upon witnessing this scene. Their despair grew heavier, and one of them sighed softly, "Steward Liu has been blinded by rage. We must take his life no matter what."
Steward Liu stood outside the array's light barrier, his hands constantly forming complex hand seals, continuously pouring his Tenth Tier True Essence into the array's base. His eyes were fanatical and fierce, and he had only one thought in his mind: to tear this young man in front of him apart and reclaim all the face he had lost.
He stared at Chen Du, who was enveloped in a blood-red net of light, and roared, "I will let everyone see the consequences of provoking the Mount Tai Immortal Assembly! No matter what protective treasures you possess, you will not escape death today!"
The violent lightning converged along the veins of the great formation onto the lightning spear. The next moment, the lightning spear, carrying an aura of destruction, transformed into a streak of purple-black light and charged straight toward Chen Du in the center of the bronze pillar.