Chapter 1918: The Zhuxian Curse

Upon seeing the colorful immortal glow, Ye Chen’s expression turned ice-cold. He was certain that the one who had cursed Ji Ningshuang was the Zhuxian Jian. That damned sword of the heavens had escaped, yet it continued to wreak havoc.

“Damn it,” Ye Chen roared in fury, a primal scream from his soul. His clenched fists dripped with fresh blood, and his radiant golden eyes were streaked with blood vessels, turning them a deep crimson. His anger toward the Zhuxian Jian had seeped into his very bones, and now it had targeted the person closest to him, provoking his unbridled rage.

He moved at an astonishing speed, his entire body engulfed in flames, like a searing golden beam hurtling straight toward the desert.

In the desert, the sky was dark and ominous, with thunder roaring and lightning flashing amid rolling yellow sands, where a fierce battle raged among three figures.

Ji Ningshuang, now cursed, stood on a magnificent sea of immortals, with the Bao Lian Xian Deng hovering above her head. The supreme principles of all things encircled her, intertwining with the colorful immortal glow to form visions of world-ending destruction. She stood at the center like a supreme queen, overlooking the four seas and eight wastelands.

She had lost her senses, or rather, had become a puppet controlled for killing. The “curse” character on her forehead was strikingly vivid, driving her to attack relentlessly without mercy, unleashing deadly techniques.

Dongshen Yaochi, with her unparalleled elegance and combat prowess rivaling Ye Chen’s, had been transformed into a tool of slaughter by the curse. Yet she was terrifyingly powerful, facing off alone against Ming Jue and Xiao Chen without falling behind in the slightest.

“This woman is strong as hell!” Ming Jue grimaced, looking utterly disheveled.

“The Zhuxian Jian’s curse is meant to turn her into a killing puppet,” Xiao Chen said coldly, fighting while maneuvering strategically and transmitting his thoughts to Ming Jue. “Her power is enhanced by the curse, along with the divine might granted by the Zhuxian Jian. She’s now stronger than Ye Chen. The sword’s real target is Ye Chen—imagine if she had suddenly attacked him when he was alone before. Even the Huang Gu Sheng Ti’s strength would have suffered a devastating blow.”

“What a cunning plan.” Ming Jue snorted coldly, still haunted by the earlier scene where Ji Ningshuang had suddenly gone berserk, her sword strike nearly obliterating him in an instant.

“Targeting those closest to Ye Chen is the Zhuxian Jian’s typical tactic,” Xiao Chen replied icily. As a native of Da Chu, he understood all too well the deep-seated grudge between the Zhuxian Jian and Ye Chen. In the past, it had manipulated Chu Xuan to wreak havoc in Da Chu, leading Ye Chen to kill her in a moment of confusion. That pain, even after a full cycle of reincarnation, remained etched in Ye Chen’s soul.

Later, it had targeted Ruoxi, another of Ye Chen’s closest ones.

Now, it was Ji Ningshuang’s turn. Not just Ye Chen, but even outsiders like him were seething with thunderous anger.

“I’m baffled why the Zhuxian Jian is so dead set against Ye Chen,” Ming Jue cursed.

“It’s not just Ye Chen—it’s against the Sheng Ti lineage. Ancient legends say only the Sheng Ti can truly destroy the Zhuxian Jian.”

“I see.”

“First, we need to suppress Ji Ningshuang,” Xiao Chen transmitted again.

“Understood.” Ming Jue stepped into the sky, forming seals with one hand and declaring firmly, “Absolute Stillness.”

In an instant, the heavens and earth froze, and all things fell silent.

However, to his shock, Ji Ningshuang was unaffected by the technique. His Emperor Dao Immortal Law of Absolute Stillness proved utterly useless.

Thud!

Blood sprayed as Ming Jue was struck by Ji Ningshuang’s sword, sent flying backward.

“Seal!” Xiao Chen activated his secret art, locking down the heavens and earth.

Yet, his seal was equally ineffective. Ji Ningshuang advanced without pause, her crystalline jade hand sweeping across the sky and slamming him back with a palm that made him spit blood.

“Again!” Ming Jue shouted coldly, coordinating with Xiao Chen from left and right, unleashing their visions and bearing down from above.

Ji Ningshuang remained silent and emotionless, swinging her sword to carve out a radiant, colorful immortal river. It shattered their visions and forced them to retreat with muffled grunts. Her own vision, meanwhile, was mysteriously terrifying, pressing down on Ming Jue and Xiao Chen until they staggered, even binding their origins with a dreadful force.

“Forcing me to use my big move.” Ming Jue steadied himself, gritting his teeth as he summoned his Sheng Wang-level emperor weapon, positioning it in the void and empowering it with an Emperor Dao Immortal Law. He unleashed a beam of immortal light.

“Take it easy—don’t destroy her,” Xiao Chen warned.

“She won’t die from this—worst case, she’ll be badly wounded,” Ming Jue replied.

No sooner had he spoken than the scene turned awkward. The immortal light, though powerful, was erased by Ji Ningshuang’s palm. Even the hovering Sheng Wang-level emperor weapon was flipped away by her strike.

Witnessing her bare-handed clash against an emperor artifact, Xiao Chen’s expression changed dramatically.

Thud!

The weapon was flung back, and Ming Jue suffered backlash, vomiting blood on the spot as his chest bones shattered, leaving his flesh torn and bloody.

Ji Ningshuang soared into the sky, merging thousands of secret arts into one finger wreathed in colorful immortal light, thrusting it toward Ming Jue’s forehead. It targeted his primordial spirit, aiming to eradicate his true form.

“The hell, trying to finish me off?” Ming Jue raged, his fury soaring as he formed his secret art to counter.

But before he could strike, the space around him shifted. A golden figure materialized where he had stood, punching through the air and repelling the advancing Ji Ningshuang.

That golden figure was naturally Ye Chen, who had arrived in a rush.

“Kid, your wife has gone full beast mode.” Ming Jue coughed up blood heavily, while Xiao Chen did the same, blood trickling from his mouth. Both were emperor-level figures, yet fighting two against one, they were being dominated by Ji Ningshuang.

Ye Chen said nothing, only gazing silently at Ji Ningshuang, his eyes filled with blood vessels, a mix of inexplicable fury and pain. He was furious at the Zhuxian Jian for cursing her and turning her into a murderous demon, and pained that she had suffered such a fate, her human emotions erased.

At his arrival, a flicker of confusion passed through Ji Ningshuang’s vacant eyes, but it was quickly overshadowed by a trace of colorful immortal light, leaving her dull and devoid of any human emotion.

The Zhuxian Jian’s true target was indeed Ye Chen. By cursing Ji Ningshuang and granting her divine power, its goal was to slay him.

Unfortunately, it hadn’t accounted for Ming Jue and Xiao Chen.

On second thought, if this had happened under the Yue Lao tree while Ye Chen was asleep, he would likely have been destroyed.

With Ye Chen’s arrival, Ji Ningshuang ignored Xiao Chen and Ming Jue, focusing solely on him. The colorful immortal glow around her body grew even more brilliant and devastating, each strand like the light of doomsday.

As a layer of yellow sand swirled up, Ji Ningshuang moved, stepping forward and slapping out with a palm that loomed like a world-ending force, crushing the void inch by inch.

Ye Chen remained silent, merging his nine Bahuang techniques into one to meet her head-on.

Boom!

Their fist and palm collided, triggering a thunderous explosion. The sky, which had just mended, collapsed again. A layer of destructive halo spread infinitely from the point of impact, freezing and shattering space in its wake.

Looking at the two, Ji Ningshuang stood firm, like an ethereal immortal poised gracefully.

Ye Chen, however, was forced back a step, his fist mangled and bloody, blood spilling from his mouth. As Xiao Chen had said, enhanced by the curse and imbued with the Zhuxian Jian’s divine might, Ji Ningshuang’s power now surpassed that of the Huang Gu Sheng Ti. Even Ye Chen’s dominant strength was utterly defeated in a single exchange.

Ye Chen didn’t attack again. In a flash, he retreated, fleeing toward the ancient city.

Ji Ningshuang pursued him, sweeping forth with her magnificent sea of immortals that engulfed heaven and earth.

Ming Jue and Xiao Chen followed like shadows, realizing Ye Chen’s intent: to lure her into the city’s formations and trap her there for sealing.

Indeed, devoid of her senses, Ji Ningshuang was unaware of the city’s hidden mechanisms and charged straight into the array.

Emperor Dao array patterns materialized, dense and intricate.

Ji Ningshuang remained silent, her expression cold as she wielded her immortal sword, slashing repeatedly at the confining patterns.

Though powerful, she couldn’t break the array and was firmly trapped, unable to escape.

“This move is brilliant! Why didn’t we think of it earlier?” Ming Jue coughed, seeing Ji Ningshuang contained.

“No time for chatter—this city isn’t a safe place.” Xiao Chen was efficient, deploying a sealing array, while Ming Jue did the same with a binding formation. The two worked in unison, directing their seals toward Ji Ningshuang.

Ye Chen wasn’t idle either, summoning the Dun Jia Tian Zi, ready to release it once she was sealed.

But then, complications arose. Ji Ningshuang ignored their seals once more.

Worse still, her form changed dramatically. An ancient divine pattern etched itself on her forehead, her already red hair turning even more crimson. Her clear, beautiful eyes transformed into pitch black in an instant, and the colorful immortal glow around her gained a demonic aura.

Most eerily, her blood had turned black.

With this change, her aura, bloodline, origin, and divine repository all reached their peak.

“Blood Extreme Boundary,” Xiao Chen frowned deeply.

“This is possible?” Ming Jue swallowed hard, his face paling. She was already terrifying, and now with the Blood Extreme Boundary activated, even if he, Ye Chen, and Xiao Chen teamed up, they might not stand a chance. This near-invulnerable state was overwhelmingly dominant and frightening.

“How could this be?” Ye Chen’s expression faltered slightly, unable to discern if it was Ji Ningshuang activating the Blood Extreme Boundary or the Zhuxian Jian aiding her. He only knew that she was now formidably strong—so much so that facing her alone, he would likely be destroyed.

Boom!

As they spoke, Ji Ningshuang unleashed her full might, slashing her sword and cleaving the trapping array. The dense Emperor Dao patterns shattered instantly, dissipating into the void.

With the array broken, the ancient city, which had stood for ages, collapsed with a tremendous rumble. Ye Chen, Ming Jue, and Xiao Chen were all shaken off their feet, each spitting blood as they stabilized.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The heavens trembled with rhythmic booms, which upon closer listening, were the sounds of footsteps—so heavy that each step made the sky thunder.

It was Ji Ningshuang, striding through the void from the rolling clouds.

Now, she no longer resembled an ethereal immortal but more like a female god of slaughter. The surging demonic aura merged with the colorful immortal glow, her presence violent and bloodthirsty, altering the very color of the world.

“Nearly invincible in this state—if the three of us team up, we’d probably get beaten to tears!” Ming Jue cowered slightly. Among women of the same level across the underworld and human realms, Ji Ningshuang was the strongest he had ever seen, bar none.

“Without the Blood Extreme Boundary, who’s her equal?” Even the typically fierce Xiao Chen wore a self-mocking smile.