The evil energy is very powerful, and the Marquis of Youzhou is also extremely strong.
But alas, the Power of Oblivion is irrational!
As the sword flashed, the Marquis of Youzhou's shoulder instantly fell off.
Xu Long was not known for his good temper; after landing a successful blow, he immediately followed up with another slash.
Sizzle!
Each time he was hit, the Marquis of Youzhou had to sever a part of his body.
The surrounding evil energy continued to gather, rapidly replenishing its depletion, but the Marquis of Youzhou was still unable to stop his continuous decline.
Almost four hours had passed; one was chasing, the other was fleeing.
As dawn broke, the Marquis of Youzhou finally stopped.
At this moment, the Marquis of Youzhou was in a miserable state, his clothes were tattered and torn, and his aura was constantly surging. Where was the elegance and composure of a strongman? He was no longer the ruthless and vicious king he once was.
"Are we really going to fight to the death?"
The Marquis of Youzhou's seven eyes were filled with a blood-red glare, and a terrifying killing intent emanated from them without any attempt to conceal it.
Xu Long had no doubt that he was prepared to fight to the death.
But does he really have the right to fight to the death in front of Xu Long?
"I flew for a whole day to find you, how could I possibly let you go so easily?"
Xu Long shook his head, completely unfazed by his threat.
"I need your memories."
My memories?
Upon hearing Xu Long's words, the Marquis of Youzhou was visibly shaken. "What do you want to know? I'll tell you everything! Everything!"
Faced with his soul scattering and his spirit dissipating, the Marquis of Youzhou unleashed an unprecedented will to survive.
However, it was all in vain, because Xu Long had no intention of letting him go.
"I don't care what you say; I only believe the information I obtained through soul searching."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Long's figure disappeared.
When they reappeared, they were already behind the Marquis of Youzhou.
Pfft!
His left hand, like a sharp claw, pierced fiercely into the body of the Marquis of Youzhou.
The Marquis of Youzhou, whose face had been contorted with rage, stood frozen in place, as if frozen in time.
"..."
Marquis of Youzhou roared inwardly; he wanted to resist, he wanted to escape, he even wanted to kneel down and beg for mercy.
However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move his body.
Moreover, he sensed his power rapidly draining away and his memories being quickly scanned.
In ten breaths at most, his power will completely dissipate, and his soul will utterly collapse.
By then, there was no way he could have survived.
"This... perhaps... is fate..."
The Marquis of Youzhou felt despair, but eventually resigned himself to his fate.
Because refusing to accept fate is useless; there's no way to break free.
"Hey! What kind of scoundrel dares to harm the Marquis of Youzhou!"
Just when the Marquis of Youzhou was in utter despair, a furious shout suddenly rang out from not far away, instantly giving Marquis of Youzhou hope.
He remembered the voice; it belonged to the leader of a sect under his command.
The king commands many evil spirits, but these things are mindless and act entirely on instinct.
Therefore, some kings and nobles would cultivate treacherous individuals to do their bidding.
Although he treated them all like trash that could be thrown away at will, the Marquis of Youzhou was never stingy.
It took the Marquis of Youzhou considerable effort to elevate him from a talentless weakling to First-rate expert capable of contending with martial artists at the Blood-Changing Realm Organ-Replacing Realm.
This human was also very grateful, providing him with a large amount of food and several fine treasures over the decades.
Upon hearing his subordinates' shouts, the Marquis of Youzhou was so moved he almost cried.
For the first time, he discovered that hard work pays off.
Not just treasures, but sometimes even life-saving items.
"I'm here to save you!"
The roar was powerful and resonant, like a thunderclap in a clear sky, or the howl of a tiger in the forest.
Then a burly man, eight feet tall and with a waist eight feet circumference, wielding a giant axe, came galloping towards them.
Then he tripped over a stone on the ground...
Marquis of Youzhou: "..."
Xu Long: "..."
Xu Long was speechless as he watched the burly man roll towards him like a ball.
However, he did not mock him, because this person was not as simple as he appeared.
Sure enough, when he was less than ten meters away from Xu Long, the burly man suddenly sprang up, raised his axe high, and slammed it down on Xu Long's head.
"Die!"
Ferocious, ruthless, and unstoppable.
The burly man knew that the Marquis of Youzhou was a ruthless monster who killed without blinking an eye, and he knew that he had killed his own people, but he did not regret it at all; on the contrary, he was extremely loyal.
His compatriots caused his family to be destroyed and his wife and children to be separated.
He never felt any warmth from his fellow countrymen since childhood; instead, he suffered greatly, making his life worse than death.
What's the difference between such compatriots and enemies?
In contrast, the Marquis of Youzhou helped him improve his strength and gave him various martial arts skills.
Even if they are evil kings or nobles, whoever feeds them is their mother; those who are good to them are the good people.
Filled with gratitude towards the Marquis of Youzhou and anger towards Xu Long, the burly man exerted all his strength, even using a secret technique that burned his blood and qi, allowing him to unleash power beyond his own limits.
Snap!
The sound was crisp and clear, but to the burly man it sounded like the death knell.
The giant axe stopped two meters in front of Xu Long. With this swing, it struck the Soul Crystal Wall and shattered it.
It must be said that the strong man was quite strong, as he was able to shatter the Soul Crystal Wall.
However, Xu Long had a full thousand such items...
"Game over!"
He turned his head and glanced at the burly man, whose body suddenly froze, then vanished like a bubble in the sun.
Marquis of Youzhou: "..."
Alright, now I can finally give up completely.
Marquis of Youzhou sighed silently. Having experienced great ups and downs, he was prepared to face death.
He was already dead to begin with; this is simply a return to his origins.
Pfft!
He pulled his hand out, and the Marquis of Youzhou followed in the footsteps of the strong man, disappearing completely from the world.
[Defeat the Marquis of Youzhou! Obtain the Treasure Chest - Youzhou!]
"What exactly is the Yin Nest? How could even a king not know?"
Xu Long frowned deeply. He had thought he could get the answer from the Marquis of Youzhou, but he didn't expect that even he didn't know.
Long ago, the Marquis of Youzhou once entered a Yin Nest.
The dense, sinister aura and the ubiquitous evil spirits made him feel extremely comfortable.
However, what happened next surprised the Marquis of Youzhou.
Those evil spirits actually began to attack him, fearless and utterly frenzied.
The Marquis of Youzhou released his aura, thinking that the evil spirits would stop.
Evil spirits have no reason and act entirely on instinct, therefore their hierarchy is extremely clear.
Those of lower rank wouldn't dare to act recklessly in front of those of higher rank, and wouldn't even hesitate to ask them to die.
But the evil spirits inside the Yin Nest were different; they completely ignored his aura.
The Marquis of Youzhou was very surprised, so he went deep inside to discuss the details of the Yin Nest.
The ending was predictable: after being besieged by endless evil spirits for ten days and ten nights, they were finally defeated.
Of course, the Marquis of Youzhou did not think he had lost; he was simply fed up with those brainless people.
Although no information related to the Yin Nest was obtained, there was quite a bit of other information.
The Great Tang Dynasty had a vast territory, consisting of ten circuits and three hundred and fifty-eight prefectures, each ruled by a king or marquis.
To put it simply, there were 358 people like the Marquis of Youzhou in the entire Great Tang.
I used to think that human survival was difficult, but now I see that it's not just difficult, it's that we could Miejue at any moment.
The aristocratic families consist of only five cannibalistic demon families: fox, weasel, tiger, wolf, and Vulture, as well as three reclusive families that do not eat people.
Although these kings and nobles had 358 fools under their command, there were still 358 of them.
Don't underestimate the fighting ability of fools. If a real fight broke out, a king or nobleman could easily wipe out all the powerful families.
"The fact that it has been able to maintain itself for so many years without completely traversing Space-Time suggests that the problem lies with the Good People Bureau."
Xu Long sighed; the more he learned about the world, the heavier his heart became.
This is Hell!
Opening the treasure chest yielded surprisingly good items.
[Received 500 High-Grade Spirit Stone!]
[Gained a trace of Spirit Rhyme!]
[Obtained Nether Crystal!]
Name: Spirit Rhyme
Level: None
Type: Heirloom/Consumable/Other
Origin: Reincarnation Temple
Effect:
1. Restores soul depletion and repairs damage caused by the backlash of laws. It can also be used to enhance soul strength and has a small chance of advancing the soul to True Spirit.
Note: Spirit Rhyme is the energy necessary for cultivation at the Immortal Realm and above, produced by certain unique spiritual plants of heaven and earth.
Name: Nether Crystal
Level: None
Type: Heirloom/Consumable/Other
Origin: The Secrets of the Heavenly Book
Effect:
1. Contains powerful Power of the Netherworld. When used by evil spirits, it will inherit the power and memories of the Marquis of Youzhou. When used by humans or demons, their bloodline will collapse, turning them into a pool of blood.
Note: This is the legacy of the Marquis of Youzhou, and also his last chance to be resurrected.
As the Nether Crystal appeared, the surrounding Yin and evil energy, which had been rapidly dissipating due to the rising sun, quickly gathered within it.
At the same time, a faint fluctuation also appeared in my perception.
"That's interesting!"
Xu Long chuckled and probed into it with his mental power, and sure enough, he discovered a faint consciousness.
While sharing the same origin as the Marquis of Youzhou, they also have significant differences.
This is a new consciousness, and when it grows to a certain point, it will become the new Marquis of Youzhou.
Xu Long casually destroyed it, swallowed the wisp of Spirit Rhyme, and left the Nether Crystal behind.
This is a treasure; once the news gets out, many nobles and kings will probably be unable to resist coming to snatch it.
That's right, they are kings and nobles!
Those evil spirits have no intelligence. If they sense something, they will definitely take action. But if they don't sense it, it won't matter if you say it hundreds or thousands of times.
But kings and nobles are different; they can be considered another form of intelligent being.
Xu Long planned to spread the word to attract more princes and nobles.
However, before that, Xu Long would kill several princes and nobles along the way as a token of his loyalty to the Good People Bureau.
" The Good People Bureau certainly won't believe me easily, but that's alright, I didn't expect them to believe me anyway. As long as we eliminate all the princes and noble families, that will be enough."
Xu Long muttered something to himself, a chilling sneer appearing on his face.
While finding princes and nobles is difficult, finding aristocratic families and Good People Bureau is much easier.
According to the information obtained from Ruyue, the Su Family's headquarters are located in Chang'an.
The Tushan Clan is a pure-blooded demon family, and the Good People Bureau does not allow them to approach the capital of the Great Tang.
But the Su Family is different!
After countless generations of crossbreeding, the fox demon bloodline contained within the Su Family has become extremely rare, only allowing them to barely possess the weak power of demons.
Of course, occasionally an individual with a bloodline that has reverted to its ancestral form will appear, and they will usually be taken away by the Tushan Clan.
This was an agreement between the Tushan Clan and humans. In return, the Tushan Clan would intermarry with humans every so often, and the offspring born would not return to the Tushan Clan for three generations.
Of the five demon clans, Tushan is considered relatively benevolent.
Long ago, the daughter of the Tushan family head fell in love with a human, who died protecting the young princess.
Countless years have passed, and the once-little princess has become the head of the Tushan Clan, thus developing a closer affinity for humans.
Over thousands of years, the connection between the Tushan Clan and humans has deepened, and with the Su Family as a link, many demons have come to believe that the Tushan Clan has become a lackey of humans.
This has led to poor relations between the Tushan Clan and the other four families, resulting in frequent conflicts.
Xu Long's first visit was to the head of the Tushan Clan, that old fox who had lived for countless years.
Besides paving the way for future plans, he also wanted to see just how powerful the pinnacle of power in this world truly was.
It was February, and the weather was still quite cool.
A light drizzle fell on the earth, nourishing the plants hidden underground.
Although the temperature was not suitable at the time, they all possessed extremely tenacious vitality.
The firm soil could not break them, and the scarce rain could not make them bow their heads.
When the time is right, the world will be covered in green.
At the entrance of a magnificent mansion, two women sat on benches, gently waving folding fans in their hands.
"Oh, spring is here, and I'm going to shed again."
The speaker was a little girl, about 1.23 meters tall, with a youthful face that made her look quite young, but her swollen chest made it difficult to tell her age at first glance.
"It will be fine in a few years. Once these layers of lanugo fall off, the new hair that grows back will be soft and beautiful."
Another woman beside her stroked her hair and said with a grin.
"Sister Lian'er, did you find anything fun on your trip? I heard there are lots of delicious things to eat out there."
The child licked his lips, a touch of naivety on his face.
"I didn't encounter any fun things, but I almost didn't make it back."
The woman called Lian'er sighed, as if she had remembered something terrible, and her body trembled slightly with fear.
"It must be a human being, an extremely terrifying human being!"
"Humans? Aren't humans food?"
The little girl asked in surprise, because in her limited knowledge, fragile humans were all food.
Not only does it taste delicious, but it is also very beneficial to cultivation.
Like her great-grandmother, she devours 100,000 humans every time she awakens.
"Could it be that Sister Lian'er encountered Sword Saint Pei Min? I heard that human is extremely wicked and killed many brothers and sisters."
"It wasn't Sword Saint Pei Min, it was someone I didn't know..."
Lian'er suddenly stopped speaking, her body trembling uncontrollably.
The little girl followed the gaze and saw someone walking in her direction.
Holding a long sword, he was unremarkable.