allonlinenovel Chapter 333 Returning
Chapter 333 Returning
Dark clouds churned like boiling ink, the eaves of Xianyang Palace appearing and disappearing in the lightning. The black-robed man's jet-black Dharma wheel spun rapidly, countless souls wailing mournfully, their cries mingling with the rolling thunder in the sky to create a deathly symphony. Xiao Qicheng held his Xuan Tie sword horizontally before him, the blade reflecting the black-robed man's distorted face—it was none other than the sealed Xuan Ming!
"So you're still alive!" Nine-Tanuki leaped onto the roof, its fur bristling, its nine tails blazing with eerie blue flames. "I should have ground you to ashes back then!"
Xuanming's laughter shook the glazed tiles: "Foolish beast, I have long since merged with the resentment of the earth's veins! This celestial flower is merely a prelude; those souls devoured by the Soul-Devouring Curse will become sacrifices to awaken the evil god!" He raised his hand and waved, and several black rays shot out from the Dharma Wheel, cracking the ground inch by inch wherever it went, gushing out foul-smelling black water.
Shen Mingyue's jade pendant suddenly became hot, and the phantom of her Nine-Aperture Exquisite Heart flickered in and out of existence. She took out three spirit beads, only to find that their surfaces were covered in black patterns, visibly corroding them. "Qi Cheng, the spirit beads have been corrupted by evil energy!"
Xiao Qicheng's pupils constricted sharply as he swung his sword at the approaching black water. The sword energy unleashed by the Xuan Tie sword was instantly swallowed by the black water. He gritted his teeth and said, "Nine Fox Cat, take Yue'er to the ancestral temple! I'll buy you time!"
"Don't even think about it!" Xuan Ming's fingertips twitched slightly, and suddenly a huge crack appeared in the ground, with countless skeletal hands reaching out from the earth to entangle Xiao Qicheng's legs. Seeing this, Shen Mingyue lashed out with her golden silk whip to wrap around her husband's waist, but was struck on the shoulder by a black light, blood splattering onto the spirit pearl.
A strange thing happened. The blood-stained spirit pearl suddenly burst forth with a bright light, and the black patterns began to fade. The Nine-Tails suddenly cried out, "It's the power of the Nine-Aperture Exquisite Heart! The Empress's blood can purify evil spirits!"
Ignoring the pain of her wound, Shen Mingyue bit her tongue and spat her blood onto the three spirit orbs. The orbs floated in the air, forming a golden triangular array that confronted Xuanming's Dharma Wheel. However, as more and more souls were absorbed into the Dharma Wheel, the phantom of the evil god gradually took shape in the clouds—a monster with a thousand eyes, its body covered in fleshy tumors, each eye oozing foul-smelling pus.
"Oh no! The evil god is about to awaken!" Nine-Tanuki's voice was filled with despair. "We must destroy the Dharma Wheel before it fully takes shape!"
Xiao Qicheng struggled to break free from the skeletal hands, his dragon robe soaked in blood. He roared, channeling all his spiritual power into the Xuan Tie sword, causing it to erupt with a dazzling light: "Yue'er, let's attack together!"
Despite her injuries, Shen Mingyue charged towards Xuan Ming alongside her husband. A golden whip wrapped around the Dharma Wheel, while the black iron sword pierced Xuan Ming's brow. However, Xuan Ming's body suddenly transformed into black mist, avoiding the fatal blow. The Dharma Wheel's suction force, however, intensified, even causing the Nine-Tails' spiritual chains to loosen.
At the critical moment, Shen Mingyue suddenly remembered the records in the "Heavenly Secrets Scroll". She pressed the three spiritual pearls to her chest and loudly chanted the ancient incantation: "Use the nine orifices as the guide, use fresh blood as the sacrifice, seal!" Golden light burst forth from her body, forming a huge cocoon of light, which enveloped the evil god's phantom and the Dharma wheel together.
"No!" Xuanming roared, "Are you insane? Doing this will cause your soul to be scattered!"
Xiao Qicheng, his eyes red, rushed towards the cocoon of light: "Yue'er!" But he was repelled by an invisible barrier. Shen Mingyue, through the cocoon of light, smiled through her tears: "Qicheng, do you still remember our vow? This world, I will protect it with you..."
Inside the cocoon of light, Shen Mingyue's body began to become transparent, and the power of her Nine-Aperture Exquisite Heart was fully released. Her consciousness entered a chaotic space, where she saw countless imprisoned souls. Outside the cocoon of light, Xiao Qicheng, Jiu Li Mao, and Ayina and others who had rushed to the scene were engaged in a fierce battle with the remnants of the Netherworld Pavilion.
“It’s time to end this.” Shen Mingyue channeled her spiritual power into the three spirit orbs, which transformed into streams of light and shot towards three key points on the Dharma Wheel. With a deafening roar, the Dharma Wheel shattered, and the phantom of the evil god let out a resentful roar before gradually dissipating into the light.
Xuanming's true form was revealed in the light—a twisted mass of black resentment, struggling frantically. Nine-Tails seized the opportunity, its nine tails transforming into chains to bind it. Xiao Qicheng raised the Xuan Iron Sword and, with his last ounce of strength, brought it down: "Today, I will avenge the people of Nanzhao!"
As Xuanming screamed in agony, the dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed, and sunlight once again shone upon Xianyang Palace. Xiao Qicheng rushed into the cocoon of light and embraced the fading Shen Mingyue: "Yue'er, don't leave me..."
Shen Mingyue gently stroked her husband's cheek with her fingers: "Don't be sad... I never left..." Her body transformed into countless points of light, merging into three spirit orbs. The spirit orbs slowly landed in Xiao Qicheng's palm, their surfaces shimmering with a warm glow.
The breathtaking battle finally ended. Xiao Qicheng stood atop the ruins, clutching the Spirit Pearl, tears streaming down his face as he looked at the smiles of the people who had survived the catastrophe. Nine-Tails perched on his shoulder, unusually quiet: "Don't worry, the Empress's power is with the Spirit Pearl; she will always protect Nanzhao."
After the war, Xiao Qicheng built an exquisite pavilion in Xianyang Palace and enshrined the three spiritual pearls there. Every night, the pearls would emit a soft light, illuminating the entire palace. The people of Nanzhao said that those were the eyes of the Empress, silently watching over them from heaven.
On the glazed tiles of Xianyang Palace, the soft light emanating from three spirit pearls intertwined with the moonlight, casting layers of halos beneath the eaves of the Linglong Pavilion. Xiao Qicheng pressed his face against the cool pearls, as if he could still feel the warmth of Shen Mingyue's fingertips. The Nine-Tails, curled up under the offering table, its tail idly brushing against the blue bricks, suddenly perked up its ears: "Someone's breaking the formation!"
A dull tremor emanated from the ground, and the floor tiles of the Linglong Pavilion cracked with spiderweb-like patterns. Xiao Qicheng swiftly drew his Xuan Tie sword, only to find that what emerged from the cracks were not remnants of the Youming Pavilion, but dozens of mysterious figures clad in silver armor. Their masks were engraved with sun totems, and the leader removed his hood, revealing himself to be the long-lost high priest of the Kucha Kingdom.
"Your Majesty of Nanzhao, we have come to retrieve the Spirit Pearl." The high priest's voice was like sandpaper rubbing together. "Three hundred years ago, our ancestor made a pact with the Nine-Aperture Exquisite Heart. Now the pact is about to break, and the kingdoms of the Western Regions are suffering annihilation." He unfurled a tattered parchment scroll, on which were drawn burning cities and twisted monsters.
Nine-Tanuki suddenly bristled: "So the priests of Kucha Kingdom were involved when the evil god was sealed away! Why are you only showing yourself now?"
A flicker of guilt crossed the high priest's eyes: "The Netherworld Pavilion had planned this all along. They used illusions to deceive us, making the Kingdom of Kucha believe that the Nanzhao Kingdom was hoarding the Spirit Pearl with the intention of monopolizing it. Until half a month ago, Princess Ayina broke the curse with her life..." He pulled a blood-stained scimitar from his robes, Ayina's very sword.
Xiao Qicheng gripped the Spirit Pearl tightly, and the glass lamp suddenly shook violently. In the distance came cries of alarm from the people; a scarlet crack appeared in the western sky, and countless monsters with bat wings swarmed out. The Nine-Tails' tail glowed a warning eerie blue: "It's the remnant soul of an evil god! They're searching for a new host!"
“I will go with you.” Xiao Qicheng put the spirit pearl into his personal pouch. “But the spirit pearl needs to be activated by the bloodline of the Nine Apertures Exquisite Heart. Now Yue’er…” His voice choked up. Suddenly, he noticed that the pouch was glowing faintly—the golden silk whip left by Shen Mingyue was slowly being repaired, and the pendant at the tip of the whip was faintly showing the Nine Apertures Runes.
In the desolate deserts of the Western Regions, the White City of the Kingdom of Kucha had fallen into ruins. Amidst the crumbling walls, countless people had been transformed into half-human, half-demon monsters, their skin covered in purple veins, their eyes flashing with a crazed killing intent. The High Priest knelt before the ancient altar, slicing open his palm with a dagger: "Use the power of the sun as a guide, awaken the slumbering guardian!"
Before the words were even finished, the ground suddenly trembled, and twelve enormous stone figures burst forth from the earth. They wielded flaming spears, and the gems embedded between their brows resonated with the spirit orbs. However, as the monster horde charged, the flames on the stone figures began to dim. Seeing this, Xiao Qicheng pressed his soft whip onto the altar, and Shen Mingyue's remaining spiritual power flowed through the whip's tip into the spirit orb.
Three spirit orbs soared into the sky, forming a golden barrier in mid-air. Wherever the barrier passed, monsters let out shrill screams and transformed back into humans. But suddenly, a gigantic demonic claw emerged from the crack, tearing a gap in the barrier. Xiao Qicheng stared at the wedding ring left by Shen Mingyue in his palm, gritting his teeth and pushing his spiritual power to its limit: "Yue'er, lend me your power!"
In the instant the golden light surged, Shen Mingyue's phantom appeared in the clouds. Her fingertip touched the spirit pearl, and the entire sky transformed into a massive sealing array. The monster in the rift was forcibly pulled back, but at the last moment, it flung the core of the evil god—a beating black heart—towards the Kucha Royal Palace.
"Watch out!" The high priest lunged forward, shielding his heart from the impact. His skin began to carbonize, but a relieved smile appeared in his eyes: "Finally... I can fulfill the ancestor's last wish..." Before he could finish speaking, he turned to ashes, leaving behind only a ring engraved with a sun totem.
The moment Xiao Qicheng caught the ring, the spirit pearl suddenly emitted a joyful hum. The ring and the spirit pearl resonated, forming a miniature vortex in his palm. Nine-Tails suddenly exclaimed, "This is... a spacetime anchor! Perhaps it can send the evil god's heart back to ancient times!"
At this moment, the foundation of the Kucha Royal Palace began to collapse, and the black heart was continuously absorbing the power of the earth's veins. Xiao Qicheng fused the spirit pearl with the ring, and Shen Mingyue's phantom reappeared, clasping his hands with his. In the golden light, they saw the battlefield where the evil god was sealed in the past, and they also saw the potential crisis that might arise in the future.
"So it's all a cycle." Shen Mingyue's voice echoed in the void. "Qi Cheng, our mission has never ended."
The vortex expanded rapidly, drawing the black heart into it. Xiao Qicheng and Shen Mingyue's consciousness were also swept into the spatial turbulence. In the chaos, they saw countless parallel worlds: in some, the Netherworld Pavilion ruled the continent; in others, the Nine-Aperture Exquisite Heart was reincarnated as an ordinary child; and in still others...
When they opened their eyes again, they found themselves back in the Linglong Pavilion of Xianyang Palace. The three spirit pearls lay quietly on the offering table, as if nothing had happened. But Xiao Qicheng knew that everything was different. He placed the High Priest's ring into the brocade pouch and whispered to the void, "Yue'er, no matter how many reincarnations I go through, I will find you."
Afterwards, Xiao Qicheng established the "Sun and Moon Alliance" in Nanzhao, uniting the Western Regions kingdoms to fight against the Netherworld Pavilion. He compiled the medical and mechanical skills left behind by Shen Mingyue into a book and opened academies in various places. Every time the moon is full, the spirit pearl of Linglong Pavilion will automatically rise, illuminating the night sky of the entire Nanzhao. People say that it is the Empress protecting her people.