Chapter 2171: Small Fragment of the Demon Pillar

This was a spiritual mountain, shrouded in immortal mist and bathed in moonlight, giving it an even more ethereal appearance.

Here lay the clan of the white-clothed youth great saint, known as the Haoyang Clan. Now, they were vassals to the Taotie Clan, with the Taotie providing covert support, allowing them to bully their neighbors without restraint.

Outside the mountain, Ye Chen, who had traveled from afar, stood suspended in the void. The face of the tenth emperor of Da Chu was still strikingly vivid, with a bright red palm print on his left cheek and fresh blood occasionally dripping from his right nostril.

At his side, the female Sacred Body stood as if nothing had happened. In her eyes, Ye Chen was the type who would cause trouble if not kept in check for three days—like tearing off roof tiles. It was lamentable that the Holy Lord of the Heavenly Court, who had once slaughtered an imperial capital, always seemed to capsize in the small ditch of women. Naturally, he hadn't been beaten without reason; he had a face that just begged for a punch, so even if he didn't stir up trouble, people might still want to hit him—let alone when he went looking for it.

Ye Chen glanced at the female Sacred Body before setting off, ignoring the Haoyang Clan's mountain-protecting barrier and stepping directly inside. He merged into the void, releasing his divine sense to envelop the entire spiritual mountain, thoroughly scanning the Haoyang Clan. Their forces were indeed formidable, with over a dozen great saints. In this era where quasi-emperors were rare, they could be considered a major clan.

What made his eyes flash with cold light was the presence of three Taotie members in the Haoyang Clan, lounging at a banquet and enjoying dances with women on both sides, while the Haoyang clanspeople fawned over them obsequiously, almost to the point of groveling.

Ye Chen snorted coldly and stepped out of the void, his killing intent rampant, causing the heavens and earth to frost over inch by inch.

"Who goes there?" Shouts erupted instantly, with figures rushing out from every peak, surging like a tide amid rolling clouds, their killing aura overwhelming.

Ye Chen didn't respond. As his power surged, a ghostly mask slowly materialized, covering his face and revealing only his deep, desolate eyes. With the mask on, he was no longer Ye Chen but a god of death, a cold and merciless killer.

"Trespassers on the Haoyang Clan shall be executed." A Haoyang Clan great saint spoke indifferently and charged first, a golden bronze furnace hovering above his head as his silver robes billowed. Without another word, he thrust out a hand that blotted out the sky, pressing down on Ye Chen.

Ye Chen didn't even glance at him, dodging in an instant and reappearing right in front of the silver-robed great saint.

"You..." The silver-robed great saint's eyes bulged in shock; he hadn't seen how Ye Chen had closed in. He tried to retreat, but it was too late. Ye Chen crushed him with a single palm into a puddle of blood, and his escaping primordial spirit was obliterated as well.

The Haoyang Clan experts who arrived afterward were horrified. That was a great saint, slain in a single exchange.

Thud!

Ye Chen struck again, splitting the second great saint in half. The third great saint was the most unfortunate; he had just arrived and hadn't even caught his breath before Ye Chen's sword extinguished his primordial spirit.

In just three or five moments, three great saints were wiped out, shocking the entire Haoyang Clan. Was he a quasi-emperor?

"Interesting." The three Taotie had already emerged from the palace, glancing toward the void with a playful smirk at the corners of their mouths.

"My lord, please aid our clan in this crisis." The Haoyang Clan holy lord pleaded.

"Easy enough." One of the blood-haired Taotie chuckled sinisterly, flinging his robe and soaring into the sky, instantly transforming into his true form—a massive beast like a mountain, with eyes as large as wine jars gleaming with fierce light, sending shivers through the Haoyang clanspeople. This form was terrifying.

Roar!

The Taotie's roar thundered like lightning, collapsing the sky. Weaker Haoyang Clan members were shaken to death on the spot. The Taotie didn't care about mere ants; it opened its massive maw, a dark vortex forming in its throat with immense suction. A small mountain peak and over a dozen palaces exploded instantly, swallowed whole, and many Haoyang clanspeople were caught in the calamity. The Taotie were a greedy lineage, devouring anything in sight with an insatiable appetite.

Even as Ye Chen was in the midst of slaughter, he was swallowed by the Taotie in one gulp.

Seeing this, the Haoyang Clan finally breathed a sigh of relief. So many of their people couldn't stop Ye Chen, but the Taotie had resolved it all in one bite.

Just as everyone prepared to fawn again, a wail came from the blood-haired Taotie. A bloody hole burst open in its abdomen, and a figure burst out—it was Ye Chen. What a joke; could a Sacred Body be swallowed so easily? What gave this mere great saint Taotie the confidence?

The blood-haired Taotie howled in agony, blood gushing like a spring. Its massive body shrank rapidly, reverting to human form as it staggered back in the starry sky, spitting blood mouthful after mouthful. Having a hole punched through its body, how could it not suffer?

"Damn you, you truly deserve to die." The Taotie raged, its eyes shooting thunder swords straight at Ye Chen's primordial spirit.

Ye Chen was domineering, not dodging at all. He charged forward with a single sword strike.

Thud!

The Taotie, known for its tough flesh, was as fragile as tofu and was split in two by the sword, its scarlet blood glaringly vivid.

"Emperor weapon." The Taotie's primordial spirit trembled violently and fled into the heavens. It had underestimated Ye Chen; as fellow great saints, the presence or absence of an emperor weapon made a world of difference in power.

It wanted to escape, but Ye Chen gave it no chance. A golden hand materialized, covering the sky and descending, obliterating the fleeing Taotie primordial spirit on the spot.

"So strong?" Another Taotie frowned deeply.

"Retreat." The third Taotie spoke, opening a domain gate as he did. The opponent was a great saint wielding a damaged emperor weapon; even he couldn't see through the mask. They had to leave now, or it would be too late.

"My lord!" Seeing the two Taotie flee, the Haoyang Clan holy lord panicked, but received no response.

That was because his status wasn't high enough; the Taotie didn't even look back. But Ye Chen's presence was commanding. He crossed the void in a step, manifesting a massive hand that reached into the domain gate. The two Taotie who had just entered were yanked out and slammed onto a mountain peak. That peak exploded miserably, and all the Haoyang clanspeople on it were crushed into blood mist, their screams cut short.

"You're going too far." Amid the flying debris, the two Taotie burst out, attacking Ye Chen from left and right.

Ye Chen sneered and swept his sword horizontally, sending them both flying. Going too far? What were they thinking?

"Your grudge with the Haoyang Clan is no longer our concern." The two Taotie gritted their teeth, staggering as they spoke. They had been so arrogant before, but after one sword strike from Ye Chen, they were completely cowed. It wasn't fear of him personally, but of the emperor weapon in his hand. Even damaged, it held destructive power; not even a peak quasi-emperor could handle it easily.

Ye Chen said nothing, ignoring their babble and raising his sword to strike. They came here thinking they could just leave? Not a chance.

Thud! Thud!

As two sprays of blood bloomed, the two Taotie knelt without a doubt, their ethereal primordial spirits twisting in agony, filled with terror. From the killing intent in Ye Chen's eyes, it was clear he wasn't after the Haoyang Clan—he was targeting them.

"Have a safe journey." Ye Chen pressed down with a palm, a black vortex swirling in his hand—it was the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Art. The two Taotie primordial spirits were swallowed clean. It was always the Taotie eating others, but today, they got their due, meeting the same fate.

"Activate the killing formations and blast him apart." The Haoyang Clan holy lord roared hoarsely, hiding behind a mountain peak and pointing his sword at Ye Chen from afar.

The heavens rumbled as countless killing formations activated, unleashing beams of divine light aimed at Ye Chen.

Ye Chen paid them no mind; these formations couldn't harm him yet. The cold god of death had no mercy. Gripping his blood-stained damaged emperor weapon, he advanced, slaughtering all in his path. Row after row of figures fell, and not a single expert could stand against him. It was a one-sided massacre.

Boom! Bang! Boom!

Amid the wails, mountain peaks collapsed and palaces exploded. The once fairy-like Haoyang Clan had truly become a bloody hell.

It was unclear when the booms and screams finally faded. Except for the Haoyang Clan holy lord, everyone else had been exterminated.

"Who are you? My Haoyang family has no grudge with you—why?" The Haoyang holy lord lay weakly on the ground, blood pouring from his mouth, his blood-red eyes fixed fiercely on Ye Chen. He wanted to remember this person, etch him into his soul, even as a ghost.

Ye Chen remained silent, but the ghostly mask dissolved inch by inch in the bloody wind, revealing his imperial countenance bit by bit.

"You..." The Haoyang holy lord's pupils contracted in disbelief as he stared at Ye Chen. That face was known throughout the myriad domains—the war god who had slain an emperor, his legends pure myth.

In that moment, he needed no further answer from Ye Chen. He understood why the Haoyang family had been destroyed. As the Taotie's lapdogs, they were enemies of the heavens, and given Ye Chen's feud with the Taotie, how could he spare them?

Ah...!

The Haoyang holy lord roared to the sky, his cry filled with rage and desolation. In this world where strength ruled, the laws were brutally clear; the desolation came from the Haoyang family's fate—wiped out entirely!

As the roar echoed, the holy lord's primordial spirit fire extinguished, turning to ash.

Ye Chen slowly turned and walked away, fading into the distance.

Passing a patch of land, he suddenly stopped, instinctively looking down. A strange fluctuation emanated from underground.

Immediately, he burrowed into the earth, descending deeper. The underground was pitch-black and chilling, with a sinister aura.

After some time, he halted. Before him was a murky pool, its water foul and stench-filled. The odd fluctuation had come from here.

Ye Chen waved his hand, burning away the pool water with immortal fire.

At the bottom, he found a dark fragment, no larger than a fingernail, flickering with a dim, eerie light.

Ye Chen's eyes gleamed. This wasn't an ordinary fragment—it was a piece of the Mo Zhu. He could imagine that in some ancient era, the Mo Zhu had shattered, and this small piece had fallen into the Lei Domain, into this very land. Through eons of change, it had been buried by time.

In that instant, Ye Chen was certain that somewhere in the heavens, there must be more of the Mo Zhu. He even confirmed that it wasn't complete, and the small fragment in his hand must have come from that damaged Mo Zhu—otherwise, why would it remain un decayed after eons?

Realizing this, Ye Chen emerged from the ground.

Outside the mountain, the female Sacred Body stood gracefully, having witnessed Ye Chen's slaughter from beginning to end.

Amid the drifting blood mist, Ye Chen stepped out and flattened the immortal mountain with a single palm.

"Come, take a look at something fresh." Ye Chen tore at his blood-soaked clothes and held the Mo Zhu fragment in his palm, suspending it before the female Sacred Body.

Upon seeing it, the female Sacred Body's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly before returning to normal. She knew exactly what it was.

Ye Chen chuckled and put the Mo Zhu fragment away. With it, combined with the heavenly demon origin, his chances of finding the foundation of the heavenly demon were much greater. There had to be a connection between the three.