Guarding the Prison for 100 Years, I Emerge to Overwhelm the Demon Venerable

’According to the Dragon King of the East Sea Dragon Palace...’

’This nine-story-tall tower named Venerable Nine is a replica of the Divine Artifact, the Venerable Emperor Tower, from the Dayu Immortal Dynasty. For it to appear in a prison cavern in the Great Xia Imperial City is already quite strange.’

’It’s said to be used to suppress something of the Demon Venerable, and that is certainly a possibility.’

Although he didn’t know exactly what was being suppressed beneath the tower, Su Bai was certain of one thing.

Whatever it was, it had to be terrifying!

After all, repairing the cracks on the tower granted Merit Points.

And the source of Merit Points was this world’s Celestial Dao.

’Something that even the Celestial Dao rejects can’t be anything simple.’

"Something of the Demon Venerable... how interesting," Su Bai murmured, his eyes flickering.

If it truly was something of the Demon Venerable, then the monstrous Evil Qi and profound Demonic Qi constantly leaking from the cracks in the tower would make sense.

He had also found some information regarding the secrets of the Celestial Net Sword and the Mingfeng Saber, but it wasn’t very detailed.

After all, that person was only a Vice Sect Leader. Even the Sect Leader of Rashomon probably didn’t know much.

Only by capturing that gray-robed man could he hope to learn more secrets.

’Next time I run into that gray-robed man, I definitely won’t let him escape.’

Su Bai was also quite curious about the great secret hidden within the two Sacred Artifacts, the Celestial Net Sword and the Mingfeng Saber.

Some time later, Su Bai left the mysterious cavern and returned to the prison.

There was nothing to do all morning, and Su Bai was happy to have the downtime.

Near noon, he stepped out of the prison under a sliver of scattered light from the sky, planning to get some fresh air.

Ever since the matter of the Dual Sacred Artifacts had concluded, the peace and order within the Imperial City had stabilized considerably.

At this time, in every street and alley, families—men and women, old and young—were gathered together, happily eating reunion meals.

The scene was festive and bustling.

But when Su Bai reached the entrance of a certain alley, he saw that several households had their doors shut tight. Even their windows were closed and covered with dark curtains.

From within, the faint sound of chanting could be heard.

Su Bai paused. He listened for a moment, and his expression quickly darkened.

"The Black Lotus illuminates the world, the Immortal Elder is eternal, the Karmic Fire is unquenchable, delivering all living beings..."

This was clearly the doctrine of the Black Lotus Sect.

Su Bai extended his Divine Thoughts into the houses.

The next moment, he saw that in the center of each of these homes was a square, black jade platform with a smooth, flat surface.

And the figure enshrined on the jade platform was a strange Immortal Elder, standing on a black lotus, with lowered eyes and a compassionate expression.

’The Black Lotus Sect has infiltrated?’

A monstrous wave surged in Su Bai’s Dantian Qi Sea, and a cold killing intent stirred in the depths of his eyes.

He spread his Divine Thoughts across the Imperial City but found no other traces of the Black Lotus Sect.

Apparently, the Black Lotus Sect was aware of his strength and didn’t dare to operate openly, choosing instead to spread their teachings secretly in the shadows.

After a fruitless search, Su Bai returned to the prison.

As he passed through the corridors and entered the rest hall, Zhang Wei walked over with a grim expression.

Without a word, he pulled Su Bai over to assemble with the others.

"What’s going on?"

Seeing his expression, Su Bai frowned and asked.

Zhang Wei was silent for a moment before replying concisely, "Lord Ning wants us to assemble immediately to wipe out a Black Lotus Sect den!"

Hearing this, Su Bai finally understood.

They had raided dens of the Black Lotus Sect before. Whenever these Demon Cult hideouts were involved, it always meant that they were about to witness a scene straight out of Purgatory.

Once everyone was assembled, Ning Fengyun, dressed in a crimson robe, stood on a high platform and surveyed the crowd with a profound gaze.

"Move out!"

A moment later, he retracted his gaze, tightened his grip on the black scabbard in his hand, and spoke in a heavy voice.

BOOM—

In the eyes of the Prison Guards who remained behind, a vast contingent from the Prison Suppression Bureau galloped out of the prison. They rode on superior Dragon Horses, each wielding a sharp weapon, as they charged out of the Imperial City.

Their crimson hooves kicked up fierce winds, and the sound of their charge was like rolling thunder.

The common folk in the city were startled by the huge commotion and looked up one after another.

"It’s the Martial Artists from the Prison Suppression Bureau!"

"Looks like they’re off to capture some major criminals."

"Sigh! I hope those officials can catch more of those criminals who spread the Evil Cults. Those people really deserve to die!"

An ancient, white-haired old woman leaning on a cane did her best to widen her cloudy eyes and said in a trembling voice.

"What do you mean by that?"

A burly, middle-aged man with messy hair stopped in his tracks upon hearing this and asked curiously.

The old woman pointed to an empty house not far away and sighed. "Look at that house!"

The burly man looked toward the house the old woman was pointing at.

Only then did he notice that the residence was quite large, with exquisite architecture. It looked like the home of a wealthy family.

But strangely, the main gate was wide open and the furniture was neat, yet there was no one inside. It was like a withered old tree, completely devoid of Vitality.

He focused his gaze and saw some black stains in the courtyard.

They looked like the traces left behind after something had been burned.

He retracted his gaze and looked back at the old woman.

The latter coughed a few times before speaking.

"Originally, this family was one of the most respected and wealthy families in our alley, merchants for generations."

"They were all kind-hearted. Whenever a neighboring family was short on money or rice, they would personally go to their door to help."

"It’s a pity. Later, for some unknown reason, their son fell gravely ill, and no treatment seemed to work."

"With no other options, the family, in their desperation, clutched at straws and started believing in an Evil Cult."

"They were told that drinking a few bowls of Talismanic Water and chanting scriptures a few times a day would cure the illness."

"But where in the world is anything ever that easy?"

The old woman let out a long sigh.

"As you’d expect, not only did the family lose a lot of money, but in the end, the husband and wife set themselves on fire."

"They said they were sacrificing their lives to the Immortal Elder to save their son’s life."

"But in the end, their son, in his despair, also walked into the fire. The whole family of three was consumed by the flames."

The burly man fell silent upon hearing this.

He now understood what those black stains he had just seen in the courtyard... were.

"An old woman like me, I’ve lived a long life, but I don’t know much."

"But I do know this..."

"In this world, the ugliest sickness, besides poverty..."

"Is a sickness of the heart."

The old woman said, raising a hand to wipe away a tear.

She then looked at the house and murmured.

"Actually, I can understand them..."

"As parents, having to watch their own son grow weaker day by day in his sickbed, knowing that any day could be his last..."

"As long as they could save their son’s life..."

"What did their own lives matter in comparison?"

As the old woman spoke, her eyes welled up with tears.

"Sigh, these Evil Cults are a plague!"

Finally, she lowered her head and lamented.

Something seemed to surface in her memory, her expression turning sorrowful and pained.

Under the bright sunlight, her body seemed to become even more stooped.

Her body cast a silhouette behind her.

Like a dying, stunted tree.

"They really do deserve to die!"

The burly man watched the Prison Suppression Bureau’s contingent receding into the distance and couldn’t help but lower his head and sigh.

...

On the way to the Black Lotus Sect’s den, Su Bai learned from Ning Fengyun that the target of their raid was a small city to the east of the Imperial City.

「At the same time, on the border of the Great Xia Dynasty.」

A simple, small city was located there.

The city’s population wasn’t large, only about 500,000.

At this moment, the sun was bright in the sky, casting a brilliant golden glow upon the city.

The streets were filled with pedestrians, and all sorts of sounds—the cries of vendors, shouts of hawkers, laughter, and angry curses—filled the air.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man in a green shirt walking down the street felt the sunlight on his face seem to dim slightly.

’What’s going on?’

He froze for a second, stopped walking, and felt a sense of confusion.

The next moment, he couldn’t help but look up at the sky.

But when he saw clearly what was floating in the sky, his eyes widened in shock, and his body began to tremble!

Then, with a look of utter disbelief, he spoke.

"Wh-what is that?"