Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

"I'm asking you one last time, do you want these things or not?"

Ye Tianjue was seething with anger.

It was as if Yang Xiao's refusal to accept his legacy was some unforgivable sin.

Initially, deep down, Ye Tianjue had been truly reluctant to part with these things.

It was just as Yang Xiao had thought.

They were the proof of his existence, and he had even worried that Yang Xiao might go back on his word.

But now, whether it was Yang Xiao's respect for the fallen True God of the Ye Family within the God-Suppressing Coffin or his attitude toward him, it all made Ye Tianjue feel he had entrusted everything to the right person.

So, naturally, he felt he had to look out for him.

But Yang Xiao, too, had his principles.

He was especially exasperated to see this man trying to force his belongings on him.

He felt truly helpless.

But he still shook his head.

No meant no.

'This elder is looking out for me, and he's a descendant of Junior Brother Xuan Yang. How could I let him watch as I erase the last trace of his existence?'

'That would be too cruel.'

"Fine, fine! You're as stubborn as they come! But do you really think you can stop me, Ye Tianjue, from doing what I want? Get over here!"

To Yang Xiao's surprise, his second refusal thoroughly enraged the already hot-tempered man.

He raised his hand and seized Yang Xiao, holding him fast.

He roared at him, "Since I've decided to give you my things, you'll take them whether you like it or not! Don't you have a Treasure Weapon on you, one refined using a Blood Sacrifice Secret Technique? Fine! If you don't want them, I'll give them all to it!"

Without another word, and regardless of whether Yang Xiao was willing, Ye Tianjue reached toward his Qi Sea and grabbed.

With that single motion, he ripped the Bloodthirsty Sword right out of Yang Xiao's body.

Yang Xiao stared, dumbfounded.

But in the next instant, he understood the man's intentions.

"No, don't—"

But it was too late.

Ye Tianjue, now holding the Bloodthirsty Sword, gave him no time to react and stabbed forward.

He plunged it into the center of the God-Suppressing Coffin.

Piercing deep into his own Divine Body.

In that instant, the sword sensed the essence contained within the Divine Blood.

The Bloodthirsty Sword's terrifying Devouring Power was activated.

Immediately, the Immortal Divine Body, which had remained perfectly preserved for over six thousand years, began to wither. The essence of the Divine Blood within was completely absorbed by the Bloodthirsty Sword.

This was Yang Xiao's Lifebound Artifact. The Bloodthirsty Sword had already absorbed the flesh and soul essence of over three hundred cultivators at or above the Daoist Fifth Level and was just shy of leveling up.

Now, in a single instant, it broke through to the level of an Ultimate Grade Treasure Weapon.

A fourth Treasure Pattern materialized upon it.

And its aura kept climbing.

Higher and higher it climbed.

'This is a disaster! I'm completely screwed.'

Watching this unfold, Yang Xiao wanted to cry but had no tears.

Ye Tianjue, however, just roared with laughter.

It was as if the Bloodthirsty Sword wasn't absorbing his own Divine Body, but that of a complete stranger.

He was acting like a complete madman.

He even gloated to Yang Xiao, "Little guy, you're still a bit too green to contend with me. But this sword of yours is truly incredible. Its Devouring Power alone surpasses any Treasure Weapon I've ever seen. No, forget Treasure Weapons; even Daoist Weapons or Divine Soldiers might not be able to compare. Not bad. Looks like you have some amazing luck."

'Damn right my luck is good! And that's because I merged my sword with the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan! If it didn't have this kind of Devouring Power, how could the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan have become the common enemy of all flesh-and-blood creatures in the Ancient Era?'

Of course, Yang Xiao didn't say any of this out loud.

At this point, he was too exhausted to even complain.

Meanwhile, the Bloodthirsty Sword...

It was his Lifebound Artifact, after all, and was connected to his Heart Spirit.

As soon as its promotion was complete, a stream of information was transmitted to him.

It was all information about the newly formed Treasure Pattern.

However, before Yang Xiao could examine it in detail,

the aura of the Bloodthirsty Sword shifted.

It was leveling up again.

"A Low Grade Daoist Weapon! Holy crap, does it have to be this fast?"

Yang Xiao was utterly stunned.

But the surprises that left him dumbfounded were far from over. Having advanced to a Daoist Weapon, the Bloodthirsty Sword's devouring ability became even more terrifying.

It was at least ten times more potent than before.

Absorbing Ye Tianjue's Divine Body was now as effortless as when it had devoured those Immortal Cultivators at the Daoist Fifth Level and above.

In the blink of an eye, it had absorbed Ye Tianjue's Divine Body completely.

Not a single trace remained.

But it wasn't over.

All the items within the God-Suppressing Coffin—the Spirit Medicines, the Treasure Pills, even the Inheritance Technique and the Armor that was an Ultimate Daoist Weapon—lost their luster. The only exception was the Blazing Divine Sword, a Middle Grade Divine Weapon that had accompanied Ye Tianjue for most of his life.

Their Spiritual essence, energy, and even their physical matter were being frantically devoured by the Bloodthirsty Sword.

And when the Bloodthirsty Sword advanced to a Middle Grade Daoist Weapon, even the Blazing Divine Sword could no longer resist.

Finally...

...its power grew to an insane degree. Not only was everything else devoured without a trace, but it even began to consume the God-Suppressing Coffin, an artifact inscribed with countless Divine Patterns and capable of suppressing a Divine Body.

...was also absorbed by the Bloodthirsty Sword.

And after absorbing so many things, the Bloodthirsty Sword finally welcomed its most important transformation.

It ascended from a Middle Grade Daoist Weapon to an Upper-Grade Daoist Weapon, and then to an Ultimate Daoist Weapon.

Finally,

it began to form Divine Patterns,

poised to enter the ranks of Low Grade Divine Weapons.

"What the hell?! What kind of sword is this? How is it so powerful?"

This time, even Ye Tianjue was left completely dumbfounded.

He had only meant to scare Yang Xiao a little, to pressure him, or perhaps to show him the extent of his determination.

At most, he had only wanted Yang Xiao's Lifebound Artifact to completely devour his Divine Body.

That way, with even his Divine Body gone, what reason could the boy possibly have left to refuse?

He never expected, however,

that a Lifebound Artifact, at the Peak of the Upper-Grade Treasure Weapon tier, would be so incredible. Not only did it effortlessly devour his Divine Body completely,

but it also consumed every single one of his other belongings.

Those were the testaments to his entire existence.

"The Blazing Divine Sword, the Pure Yang Daoist Robe, and the million-year-old True Inheritance Technique of my Ye Family, the Profound Sun Scripture! What the—all of it, just gone! I..."

Ye Tianjue glared at Yang Xiao.

But Yang Xiao met his glare without showing any weakness.

"Isn't this a disaster of your own making? If you hadn't thrown my Bloodthirsty Sword in there, would any of this have happened? And now you're going to blame me for it?"

"Er..."

Ye Tianjue was speechless.

"Besides, didn't you want to make me stronger? Now I can't even fucking use my own Lifebound Artifact! How am I supposed to get stronger like this? And all that stuff you had—it was worth at least one Upper-Grade Divine Weapon, right? If not, it was comparable to a Peak Middle Grade Divine Weapon, surely? Now you've gone and wasted it all, leaving me with a newly promoted Low Grade Divine Weapon. Do you think that was worth it?"

Yang Xiao grew more and more worked up as he spoke.

He was truly exasperated.

A perfectly good pile of treasures that could have enhanced his strength and been used for all sorts of things was gone.

Now, it was all gone.

The most infuriating part was...

...that he...

...couldn't even use the Bloodthirsty Sword anymore.

A Divine Soldier!

No matter how much of a prodigy Yang Xiao was, he would still need to reach the Great Divine Power Realm and have his Spiritual Level reach the Divine Communication Peak just to be able to wield it. And that was a very, very long way off.

"Great. Now, not only have I not gotten any stronger, I've actually lost my most powerful means of attack. I'm afraid even an Immortal Cultivator at the Daoist Tier One could probably walk all over me now."

Yang Xiao truly wanted to cry but had no tears.

Sensing his thoughts, Ye Tianjue's expression grew even darker.

"I caused this. Don't worry, I will give you a proper accounting."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Ye Tianjue once again reached out a finger.

He tapped the spot between Yang Xiao's eyebrows, and in that instant, a torrent of Spiritual Power flooded into him.

For a moment, Yang Xiao was stunned.

When he understood what Ye Tianjue was doing, a tear couldn't help but trace a path from the corner of his eye.

He cursed silently in his heart.

'This man...'

'...he really is a madman.'