A Pawn's Passage

Just as Qi Xuansu was wondering how he could apply the Demonic Blade, Chen Longtu served himself up on a silver platter.

Qi Xuansu was itching to test his newly learned blade technique. Unfortunately, this was the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, not the lawless Jianghu, so Qi Xuansu could only suppress the growing killing intent fueled by his blade training.

Originally, the Demonic Blade had the intent to kill but did not carry such an overwhelming killing aura. It was more about following one’s primal instincts and madness.

However, the version of the Demonic Blade that Qi Xuansu learned was the modified version by Elder Ning, who was known as the Bloody Blade. The intensity of Elder Ning’s killing aura was evident, and thus, his modification of the Demonic Blade took on the approach of using poison to cure poison.

By increasing the proportion of killing intent to counteract the rampant madness, the madness was converted into a controlled bloodlust, striving for a thread of clarity. As a result, the blade technique became a balance of both killing intent and demonic nature.

One had to acknowledge Elder Ning’s ingenuity. By reducing extreme madness, the power of the Demonic Blade’s first truth was somewhat weakened. However, it naturally aligned with the second truth—killing to stop war. Overall, this adjustment still resulted in an increase in the technique’s overall power.

This was also one of the flaws in the original Demonic Blade. The technique evolved alongside Song Zheng’s personal growth, improving as he rose to power.

Song Zheng did not initially have ambitions of ruling the world. At first, he was merely a small-time figure struggling to survive in Jianghu, not so different from Qi Xuansu.

Beyond a few fleeting thoughts of attaining wealth and power, his main goal was simply to live. Thus, the Demonic Blade’s first truth was that survival could only be obtained through fearless madness. He had to climb upward at all costs and cut down anyone who stood in the way. It might sound naive, but this mentality of slaying gods that blocked his path made the name “Demonic Blade” a fitting one.

The Demonic Blade’s truth about stopping war only emerged after Song Zheng became a powerful warlord. At that point, his concerns were no longer about survival or carving a bloody path upward but rather about seizing dominion over the world.

That was how he came up with the truth of stopping war by killing. As such, the Demonic Blade began to transform. Extreme yin gave birth to yang, and prosperity emerged from great adversity. In an ironic twist, it even shared some similarities with the grand and righteous Heavenly Blade.

However, Song Zheng had no intention of passing down this technique to future generations, or perhaps he simply never had the time to consider it. As a result, he never deliberately revised the first truth, which led to a partial disconnect between the two truths.

As such, without experiencing a similar journey, it was difficult for others to grasp Song Zheng’s immense shift in perspective—from seeking a sliver of survival by slaying gods to using slaughter to stop war. Anyone else trying to learn it might find themselves stuck between the two truths. This was precisely why Sun Hewu had said that it was best to create a technique for oneself.

When Elder Ning revised and supplemented the Demonic Blade, he was already in his sixties. His cultivation was profound, and he had experienced countless hardships, having witnessed and participated in the war to unify the land. With this broader perspective, he was able to integrate his own technique, the Bloody Blade, into the Demonic Blade.

Elder Ning adjusted the first truth, reducing the disconnect between the two truths, thereby lowering the entry threshold for learners.

This modification had both advantages and drawbacks. The benefit was that once one reached the second truth, they would be able to stand against the Heavenly Blade on equal footing while also maintaining greater mental clarity. The downside was that the power of the Demonic Blade was weaker at first.

The modification preserved some rational thought and intensified the killing intent, which led to more bloodshed. For instance, when encountering someone who could be killed or spared, one might originally choose mercy and let them go. But after the increase in killing intent, one would slash them without a second thought. However, this did not necessarily mean losing one’s rationality.

After all, rationality itself was influenced by emotions—it merely depended on which side dominated. The Taishang Emotionless Sutra completely discarded all emotional influences, pursuing absolute rationality. Meanwhile, the Demonic Blade allowed emotions and instincts to override reason, even amplifying them, making it another extreme.

At the moment, Qi Xuansu showed no obvious abnormalities in his words or actions. He could even exchange pleasantries as usual. No one could say he lacked reason. However, those familiar with him would immediately notice something different about him. This was the change brought about by the Demonic Blade.

Qi Xuansu also sensed the rising surge of killing intent, so he chose to suppress it. However, suppression was never as effective as redirecting the flow. Just then, Chen Longtu actively provoked him and unknowingly walked straight into his line of fire.

The Wanxiang Daoist Palace strictly prohibited private duels, except in Xun Garden. The condition for dueling was mutual consent. Since both of them agreed to spar, it was not a violation of the rules.

The two men made their way from Gen Garden to Xun Garden, a place originally designed for combat training.

Back in the day, Elder Ning and Elder Shangguan had dueled here. Even though it had since been repurposed as a residence for Apprentice and Prospective Mages, parts of the training grounds remained. It was more than sufficient for an ordinary duel.

It was the dead of night, so the training grounds were empty. They picked a secluded area where their battle would not disturb the others, each standing on opposite sides.

Qi Xuansu retrieved Flying Shadow from his magical receptacle with a calm expression. Yet, the moment he gripped his blade, he distinctly felt an uncontrollable surge of killing intent, to the point of surpassing madness. This inexplicable urge compelled him to slay the man before him.

Sensing Qi Xuansu’s murderous intent, Chen Longtu smirked deviously.

He had originally thought Qi Xuansu was a formidable figure, but it turned out the latter was just another reckless fool.

Qi Xuansu erupted into a murderous rage after being prodded with just a few words. It was evident Qi Xuansu lacked even a shred of composure. How could he possibly accomplish anything by being so small-minded?

What Chen Longtu did not realize was that this had nothing to do with Qi Xuansu’s character. Rather, the Demonic Blade continuously magnified and distorted Qi Xuansu’s negative emotions.

Once Qi Xuansu gripped his weapon, his desire to kill grew exponentially. Even if Qi Xuansu had no grudges against Chen Longtu, this killing intent emerged from nothingness.

If Qi Xuansu was not careful, he could have even killed his loved ones when caught in this state of mind.

Qi Xuansu held Flying Shadow in his right hand, while his left index and middle fingers pressed together, slowly tracing along the narrow blade. The reflection in the mirror-like surface revealed his eyes.

That was when Qi Xuansu realized that his eyes had become completely bloodshot at some point.

Chen Longtu also drew his weapon—a long spear.

Weapons that were longer generally held an advantage in melee combat. If their cultivation and strength were evenly matched, a short blade would struggle against the reach of a spear.

Chen Longtu sized up Qi Xuansu and said nonchalantly, “This is the Infinite Spear of the Quanzhen Sect.”

Qi Xuansu had intended to say something neutral, but as soon as he opened his mouth, his tone carried an unintentional hint of mockery. “Infinite Spear? I’ve seen Deputy Hall Master Zhang use it before. It’s still not as good as her Cihang Sword Sequence.”

Chen Longtu chuckled lightly. “It may not be enough to match Deputy Hall Master Zhang, but it’s more than sufficient to kill you.”

Qi Xuansu knew he was beginning to lose control, so he stopped speaking and spun his blade with a flourish.

Chen Longtu took a single step forward, crossing more than half of the training grounds and arriving within 3 meters of Qi Xuansu. He thrust his spear straight toward Qi Xuansu’s chest.

Qi Xuansu dodged back just in time, barely missing the attack. However, he did not immediately counterattack.

Chen Longtu’s spear moved like a dragon as he continued his relentless assault. The fierce gusts from his spear shook the surrounding trees, sending countless leaves fluttering down. His overwhelming aura was truly imposing.

Upon closer inspection, one could see a tiny vortex at the tip of his spear, containing a hidden spiral force. If caught in it, the opponent would be involuntarily pulled along by the spear’s movement. At worst, the opponent would lose their weapon entirely.

Yet, Qi Xuansu continued to dodge left and right without counterattacking.

Chen Longtu, still launching relentless attacks, sneered. “Daoist Qi, is dodging all you can do? How could Deputy Hall Master Zhang take a liking to a coward like you?”

The blood-red hue in Qi Xuansu’s eyes deepened. Upon closer observation, the blade of Flying Shadow was trembling ever so slightly, as if in restless agitation.

After more than ten moves, Chen Longtu still had not managed to land a single hit on Qi Xuansu. His previous frivolous demeanor was gone, gradually replaced by a solemn expression.

Qi Xuansu avoided each of his strikes by the narrowest margin. If it had happened once, it could be attributed to luck. But for it to happen every single time meant that Qi Xuansu had anticipated his every move.

This was precisely the wonder of the Demonic Blade. The Heavenly Blade relied on divine calculations to predict countless possibilities, granting an almost prescient foresight that allowed one to prepare in advance.

On the other hand, the Demonic Blade operated purely on instinct and intuition, eliminating the need for conscious thought and maximizing reaction speed. At first glance, its rapid speed seemed less like a reaction and more like prior knowledge.

The two perfected methods were entirely different, yet they ultimately led to the same result.

A storm could not rage forever. After unleashing another dozen spear thrusts, Chen Longtu inevitably began to slow down. At that moment, Qi Xuansu lunged forward, slashing straight at the opening in Chen Longtu’s defense.

The Heavenly Blade calculated and analyzed weaknesses, while the Demonic Blade sensed them. Just as it relied on instinct to dodge, it relied on instinct to strike.

Chen Longtu immediately sensed an immense crisis and dared not let his guard down for even a moment. His spear moved in an impenetrable dance, creating a tornado-like force within a radius of 30 meters.

However, this did not hinder the fearless Qi Xuansu, who relentlessly struck Chen Longtu.

Every slash targeted the flaws within Chen Longtu’s spear technique, forcing him into a constant struggle to defend himself.

Chen Longtu had considered counterattacking instead of defending, but he soon realized that Qi Xuansu simply did not care.

It was not that Qi Xuansu was indifferent about injuring himself. Just as a person did not concern themselves with whether their weapon would break, a blade that controlled its wielder did not care for the wielder’s life or death.

A duel for victory and a fight for survival were two entirely different mindsets.

At this moment, Qi Xuansu was clearly aiming for a fight to the death.

When skill and cultivation were evenly matched, the outcome would be decided by sheer courage. In a head-on collision, the braver one always prevails.

As the two exchanged wounds, Chen Longtu managed to stab Qi Xuansu once with his spear, only to receive three slashes in return. His resolve crumbled, forcing him into a purely defensive stance.

Meanwhile, Qi Xuansu moved like a ghost, appearing in front one moment and behind the next, vanishing unpredictably.

With each swing of Qi Xuansu’s blade, Chen Longtu felt as if countless razor-sharp slashes were converging on him from all directions, leaving him with nowhere to escape and no way to defend himself.

Driven to fury by fear, Chen Longtu swept his spear in a desperate attempt to wound Qi Xuansu.

The Infinite Spear differed from other spear techniques. Its essence lay in drawing circular arcs rather than striking in a straight line.

Victory was decided in an instant. Qi Xuansu allowed Chen Longtu’s spear to shatter his lower leg, but in return, he plunged his blade straight into Chen Longtu’s throat.

Blood gushed from Chen Longtu’s mouth, rendering him unable to speak.

His spear clattered to the ground.

Qi Xuansu was about to follow through and sever his opponent’s head, only for a hand to suddenly extend from the side and press firmly against his wrist to stop him.