A tidal wave of negative emotions crashed into him, yet Qin Jingzhou felt nothing at all—in fact, he almost wanted to laugh.
He could discern the memory fragments carried by every strand of negative emotion, just as easily as he could distinguish every single molecule of water splashing against him.
He sincerely praised the System, “The Demon Lord really is doing his utmost. I’m touched.”
The System was deeply moved as well, especially after Brother Zhou told it just how many “water molecules” there were. “Gu Su needed several years after getting her golden finger to recruit just a few subordinates. The Demon Lord swings once and works with millions. But that little earring of his has major side effects. The longer the wearer is exposed to the Huiwu, the more they try to control, the stronger the intelligence-reducing effect.”
“Most of the side effects got cleverly redirected onto Lu Zhentong by the Demon Lord.” Qin Jingzhou used his divine sense to categorize, compress, and purify the layers of negative emotion weighing down on him. At the same time, out of sheer mischief, he maintained a thin film of negative energy around himself, making it look as if he was still trapped in the substance-solidified negativity. “Let’s see how everyone else is faring.”
He’d promised World Will that he’d wrap things up himself, but he couldn’t bear to let his silly son just reap all the benefits without effort.
Lu Jiuxiao, eyes red, was pummeling Lu Zhentong with both fists, going all out.
Lu Zhentong’s face and body were covered in fresh wounds from the blows, but he still counterattacked from time to time. The smile on his lips turned ever stranger.
The two were locked in close combat. Meanwhile, Gu Su, slumped on the ground, was as vacant as ever, eyes dull and lost.
Lin Baiming, swept by the edge of the ocean of negative emotion but not the epicenter, finally woke up. Sensing the spiritual runes that had appeared from guiding the negative emotions, his expression changed drastically: The Demon Lord wasn’t after some “cut off the snake’s head” or “I want to be the boss” scenario... He was planning to sacrifice half the ancient martial and Extraordinary world and try to ascend!
Shit!
This so-called ruins wasn’t a country manor or imperial residence. It was the Ascension Platform of an ancient great sect!
Seeing Lin Baiming regain his senses, Qin Jingzhou spoke up. “I’ve run into a small problem here, you go ahead.”
Lin Baiming looked anxiously at the massive cocoon by his side, ever-shifting in black, white, red, and gray, then at Lu Jiuxiao and Lu Zhentong still fighting tooth and nail. Realizing he couldn’t persuade them for now, he decided to do the next best thing and take the gradually recovering Qin Er and Xu Chen into the ruins to stop the Demon Lord.
Qin Er and Xu Chen exchanged a glance.
Don’t forget—Qin Er’s sixth sense had only grown stronger ever since qi entered his body. Even without fully seeing what sort of condition Uncle Cheng was in, he just had a feeling that “a small problem” was an exaggeration. If anything, Uncle Cheng probably didn’t need help at all.
This, most likely, was Uncle Cheng’s little test for them.
Not only that, he also sensed that following Lin Baiming inside would lead to some unexpected encounters, so he winked twice with his left eye.
Good buddy Xu Chen caught his meaning instantly.
Thus, the two of them agreed to follow Lin Baiming with whatever backup he could gather and head inside together.
The two worked in perfect unison, darting forward two steps, then lunging—Qin Er grabbed Lu Jiuxiao in a bear hug while Xu Chen seized Lu Zhentong’s shoulder and yanked him back.
Successfully splitting them up, Qin Er quickly explained to Lu Jiuxiao, “Didn’t you hear what Uncle Cheng just said?”
At this moment, Qin Jingzhou added from afar, “I’m fine.”
Hearing his father’s voice, Lu Jiuxiao instantly calmed down a bit. Xu Chen, dragging the obviously exhausted Lu Zhentong, shoved him in front of Lu Jiuxiao. Even though he was still having trouble moving, Lu Jiuxiao mustered his strength to punch Lu Zhentong three times.
Lu Zhentong still wore a faint smile, saying nothing.
Carrying Lu Zhentong along, the anxious Lin Baiming led the group deeper into the ruins. Xu Chen, shouldering Lu Zhentong, couldn’t hide his curiosity and asked his buddy in a low voice, “Has Lu Zhentong gone crazy, or is he just gone stupid?” After all, to pull out the trump card that could trap their boss, he’d have to pay some price.
Qin Er scrutinized Lu Zhentong for a moment and whispered, “He’ll wake up soon enough.”
The group walked for what felt like ages down winding stone passageways, until at last, after turning a corner, a dazzling light greeted them—brighter even than sunlight streaming down from the dome above.
Once their eyes had adjusted, they were shocked to see that the plaza floor was packed with layer upon layer of people. A rough glance suggested hundreds of thousands at least, the ones on top being the unconscious grandmasters of ancient martial arts and powerful Overseas Extraordinaries.
As for the scattered white bones bordering the plaza, most were nearly fossilized. Every so often, however, a shimmer of light would shift across the almost petrified bones, enough to prove that these dead cultivators had been stronger than mere Innates in life!
The Demon Lord stood at the peak of this "mountain of men," arms spread wide. “You got here just in time.” His gaze landed on Lu Jiuxiao. “Eh? You’re not crazy? And you,” turning to Lu Zhentong, “you couldn’t even keep Lu Jiuxiao in check? Useless.”
Lu Jiuxiao smacked his own forehead hard and asked Qin Er in a low voice, “What’s going on?”
Qin Er was clearly shaken. “He’s trying to perform a sacrifice.”
Lin Baiming, also finally snapping out of it, tore his eyes with difficulty away from the familiar faces trampled beneath the Demon Lord’s feet. “He’s almost succeeded.” He didn’t hold back. “We either have to kill the Demon Lord or destroy the array…”
Before he could finish, the Demon Lord slapped the air, sending Lin Baiming sailing out of the tunnel, all the way to the foot of the mountain of bodies.
For a congenital expert, a drop of dozens of meters was nothing. But as soon as he landed, Lin Baiming felt a tyrannical force invade his body. The force searched for his dantian, then forcibly started siphoning off his true qi. He fought back desperately, but could only slow the drain by a fraction…
At that instant, he understood what had happened to the elders beneath the Demon Lord's feet—and the fossilizing corpses right beside him made the threat all the more real. He could only gamble, hoping Cheng Jingzhou would hurry over. Yet whether Cheng Jingzhou made it in time or not, he… couldn’t give up. Clenching his teeth, he forced himself to climb upward.
As his true qi gushed away, the array soon began extracting his life force next. He fought his way up the mountain—dizzy, vision swimming, barely remaining conscious.
Having landed at the bottom, bleeding from mouth and nose yet still fighting, Lin Baiming caught the Demon Lord’s eye. The Demon Lord only smiled faintly, then beckoned to Lu Zhentong and Lu Jiuxiao. In an instant both men were dropped at his feet.
Lu Zhentong slowly got to his feet, calmly watching as Lu Jiuxiao pounced like a madman at the Demon Lord—only to be slapped away. “Cheng Jingzhou isn’t here yet, you’d better keep his son as a hostage.”
Drunk on his newfound power, the Demon Lord’s interest was piqued. “Oh? Looks like you’re awake.”
Lu Zhentong pressed his temples. “The earring shattered, and now my mind is filled with… information. If you keep doing this, you’ll never ascend.”
The Demon Lord’s eyes flashed with excitement. “You fused with the earring? Makes sense. The earring really is a product from beyond this world.”
Lu Zhentong wiped the blood off his mouth. “What you need to do is find a teleportation array that leads from this world outward. Otherwise, if you try to leave the mountain of men, heavenly lightning will incinerate you on the spot.”
The Demon Lord chuckled. “That does sound reasonable. But where is the teleportation array?”
Lu Zhentong’s answer was firm. “Cheng Jingzhou knows. He can also activate it.”
“And then?”
“We work together against him, then escape together.” As soon as he spoke, Lu Jiuxiao stabbed him in the back. Lu Zhentong slapped him aside. “I’ve put up with you long enough.”
Lu Jiuxiao flew uncontrollably into the air. As his arm swung past his face, he realized his limb had parted from his torso. But before he could react further, he felt a sharp pinch at the back of his neck… That familiar sensation…
He howled, “Dad! That hurts!”