The Demon King did not descend to the mortal realm in his true form, but instead possessed the body of a Heavenly Demon. This was his contingency plan, yet he never anticipated that this backup would also fail him.
Just as he prepared to detach himself from this body, he suddenly discovered a thin golden thread had appeared on his divine soul at some unknown time.
This thread firmly sealed his divine soul within the body, rendering him immobile like prey caught in a spider's web.
"What is going on!"
The Demon King was incredulous. When had his divine soul been tampered with?
He had not sensed it at all.
"We knew long ago you would descend. How could we have been unprepared? This time, you are at death's door!" Jing Zhi Laozu sneered.
The Demon King had to be left behind, even if the Demon King could escape.
After a moment of panic, the Demon King finally discovered the origin of this golden thread: it stemmed from the demonic sword in his hand.
And this demonic sword...
It belonged to that woman!
The woman who was killed by the demonic sword!
Nalan Yan, mentioned by Jian Shi Wanyan Xue!
Although the Demon King had not paid particular attention to the love-hate entanglement between Wanyan Xue and Nalan Yan, as the true master of the demonic sword, it was not difficult for him to know these things.
He quickly understood everything.
Nalan Yan had not truly died, or rather, Nalan Yan's death was also part of their plan.
They had used Wanyan Xue to feign the death of Nalan Yan, who possessed the Nine Revolutions Golden Physique, allowing her to attach herself to the demonic sword and lie dormant. Then, at this crucial moment, she delivered a fatal blow.
No wonder, no wonder Nalan Yan had died so easily.
It was all fake!
Fake!
The Demon King laughed furiously, his blood-red eyes seeming to surge with blood. "If that's the case, then none of you will survive!"
Knowing he was trapped in a deathly predicament, the Demon King intended to level the entire Kyushu Continent.
The aura within him surged again, and he let out a loud laugh towards the sky.
However, the next moment, his laughter abruptly ceased.
He looked down at the bloody hole in his chest, his frenzied aura leaking out through it.
He stared blankly at the black ruler stained with his blood. It circled in the air once before returning to the hand of the green-robed female cultivator.
Impossible...
How could his defenses be broken by an ordinary artifact from the mortal realm.
Unless this artifact was not ordinary.
He realized belatedly that in addition to the sharp tearing sensation, his wound also burned with a searing pain.
"It's the Vermilion Bird Fire..." he chuckled grimly. "Heaven is unjust..."
Before he could finish speaking, the attacks from Ji Xiu and the others rained down, engulfing the Demon King's body in various spiritual lights.
Xu Yi gently stroked the Discipline Ruler, her heart filled with joy.
Having regained all her memories, she now knew the secret of the Discipline Ruler.
This Discipline Ruler, which she had treated as a mysterious exotic treasure, was actually forged by her.
The Discipline Ruler was her personal life-bound supreme treasure. Later, after ascending, she accidentally obtained the Vermilion Bird Divine Fire and reforged the ruler with it, turning it into a renowned divine artifact even in the Upper Realm.
Later, time flowed backward, and the Heavenly Dao sent the Discipline Ruler and Xu Yi back to the past. Therefore, the Discipline Ruler had never been recorded in the sect's archives, but it would actively recognize her as its master upon her appearance.
With her past memories and knowledge of the Discipline Ruler's divine might, Xu Yi was able to manipulate it to break through the Demon King's defenses.
Watching the Demon King turn to dust under the barrage of attacks, Xu Yi's smile deepened. "It's finally coming to an end."
Without the Demon King, the demon race was like a heap of loose sand.
This war, destined to be etched in history, lasted for five days. When the last demon was slain, even the most stoic cultivators broke into joyous laughter.
Cultivators, whether they knew each other or not, embraced each other with excitement, celebrating this hard-won victory.
Amidst this jubilant atmosphere, a certain location where several cultivators gathered seemed exceptionally quiet.
"Take care, everyone." Xu Yi cupped her fist in salute.
The figures opposite her quickly returned the gesture. After a few polite words, they turned and ascended the Heavenly Ladder.
With the great war concluded, they no longer had the face to remain there and face their acquaintances.
Ji Xiu walked at the rear of the group. The moment his toe touched the Heavenly Ladder, he abruptly turned to look at Xu Yi. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but found himself at a loss for words.
Xu Yi remained silent, offering him a gentle smile, much like the one she had given him that day when he, after his first defeat at her hands, had challenged her.
He suddenly felt a sense of release.
"I'll wait for you in the Upper Realm."
Xu Yi watched his figure disappear at the end of the Heavenly Ladder. She let out a soft sigh and turned, saying with a hint of helplessness, "He's gone."
Ji Buwang strode out. "He said he'll wait for you in the Upper Realm." His voice, cold and clear, carried a trace of resentment.
Xu Yi shrugged it off. "I'm still at the late stage of tribulation and need at least two hundred years to ascend. If he's willing to wait, then so be it."
Ji Buwang's lingering sourness abated slightly. Just as he was about to ask Xu Yi for another promise, he heard her say softly, "Shouldn't you be explaining the matter of the dreams to me?"
Ji Buwang's expression stiffened. He inwardly cursed his forgetfulness.
So much had happened during this period that he had forgotten something so important.
Most of the events in Xu Yi's dreams had been constructed by him based on what another version of himself had said. The only difference was that there was no affection between Xu Yi and Ji Xiu.
"I..." Ji Buwang remained silent for a long moment before stating frankly, "I apologize."
Xu Yi's expression was unreadable. "Why?"
"I didn't want you to develop feelings for Ji Xiu," Ji Buwang confessed.
Xu Yi: ?
She felt as if she understood, yet at the same time, she didn't.
Ji Buwang revealed his darkest secret to Xu Yi. "Ji Xiu is a prodigy, and you share a bond of camaraderie. I am jealous of him."
Xu Yi suddenly understood. Her brow furrowed slightly, but then quickly smoothed out.
"Then is there anything else you've been hiding from me?"
"No."
"Really no more?"
"Really."
Xu Yi nodded and walked straight ahead, brushing past Ji Buwang.
Ji Buwang's eyes instantly dimmed, his fingers curling into a fist.
After a few steps, Xu Yi stopped and tilted her head. "Let's go. The demon race may be resolved, but the demon beasts haven't been dealt with yet. I already know how to retrieve the soul of the Roc, and with it and Bai Shan, the demon beast race will no longer cause trouble."
Xu Yi felt she still had many things to handle. While Ji Buwang's manipulation of her dreams had annoyed her somewhat, she decided to give him a chance to amend his ways.
After meeting Ji Xiu and the others, she found Ji Buwang considerably more likable than them, at least in terms of his taste.
Ji Buwang paused for a moment, then quickly caught up. The frost on his face melted away rapidly, finally transforming into a gentle smile.
He was willing to spend his lifetime making up for the mistakes he had made.
The immortal path was long, but she was fortunate to have a companion.
(The End)