Chapter 2253: Blood Must Be Drawn

Boom! Bang! Boom!

The black hole, silent for so long, erupted once more with thunderous roars that echoed through the darkness.

"Have words to say properly, don't resort to violence."

"We're both Sheng Ti, why go to such extremes?"

"If you've got the guts, put down the Zhu Xian Jian."

Ye Chen fled ahead, surrounded by gusts of wind and thunder like flashing lightning, his mouth never stopping as he chattered away. He didn't dare look back, just kept running for his life, afraid that a moment's distraction would get him struck down.

The Female Sheng Ti pursued him relentlessly, ignoring his words entirely.

With her own consciousness, the Female Sheng Ti was even more terrifying than when controlled by the Zhu Xian Jian. Both her combat power and speed far surpassed Ye Chen's.

But that wasn't the worst part—the killing intent she exuded was raw and unfiltered.

In other words, she was truly out to destroy Ye Chen.

Ye Chen could sense it clearly, which was why he didn't dare stop. He had helped her regain control of her body, but she was even more ferocious than the Zhu Xian Jian. It wasn't just about her figure anymore; he wanted to talk his way out, but she was completely unresponsive, not giving him a chance to speak. If she caught up, she'd swing her sword without hesitation, not listening to his nonsense.

"From love turned to hate, her obsession has become a demonic barrier." Watching the scene, Ming Di murmured. He had witnessed everything from start to finish between Ye Chen and the Female Sheng Ti. Pulling her back would be no easy feat; it couldn't be resolved with a few words.

"To dispel the demonic barrier, blood must be shed." Di Huang said thoughtfully.

Compared to Ming Di, the eternal bachelor, Di Huang understood emotions better and saw things more clearly. The Female Sheng Ti's hatred stemmed from love, trapping her in sentiment. It wasn't impossible to bring her back, but it depended on whether Da Chu's Tenth Emperor had the courage to do it.

Pfft!

As the two supreme beings watched, Ye Chen spat blood in the black hole, struck by the Female Sheng Ti's sword across his back. It nearly split his Sheng Ti in two. The gruesome wound gushed with Sheng Blood, and through the gash, his radiant muscles and bones were visible, glowing with multicolored light, but they healed with great difficulty.

Ye Chen coughed up blood as he dodged away, evading her second strike.

Though his back was to her, his divine sense locked onto the Female Sheng Ti. The supreme queen chasing him now carried a demonic aura, her presence growing increasingly savage. Strands of demonic energy flickered around her, and her three thousand strands of hair were tinged with blood, showing signs of her descent into demonhood.

"Demonic barrier." Ye Chen muttered, furrowing his brow. He knew exactly why the Female Sheng Ti was like this—it was all because of him, thanks to that day's Tian Zhao, which had extinguished a trace of hope in her.

A demonic barrier wasn't terrifying on its own, but it was when the person afflicted was incredibly powerful.

At the Female Sheng Ti's level, falling to a demonic barrier meant either facing a tribulation or fully becoming a demon.

Ye Chen shifted his gaze from the Female Sheng Ti to the Zhu Xian Jian.

That damned immortal sword, even after losing control, was still causing trouble.

Its mischief was in goading her toward demonhood.

Imagine, if a Female Sheng Ti on the verge of great attainment turned into a demon, what chaos would ensue? Her mind would be clouded, turning her into a merciless female demon. With her power plus the Zhu Xian Jian, she could stand against an emperor—who could stop her?

"Throw away the Zhu Xian Jian." Ye Chen's primordial spirit roared.

But in response, the Female Sheng Ti's sword came again, severing one of his arms.

Sheng Blood sprayed, staining the black hole.

And his roar was utterly ineffective. The Female Sheng Ti was deaf to everything now, her mind and consciousness being eroded by the demonic barrier, fueled by the Zhu Xian Jian's instigation. At this rate, her transformation into a demon was only a matter of time.

Ye Chen's face darkened, his eyes flashing with cold light. He wanted to separate the Female Sheng Ti from the Zhu Xian Jian, but he lacked the ability. Before he could even try, she'd strike him down.

In the next instant, he gritted his teeth and stopped, turning to face her.

Zheng!

The sword's resonant hum pierced painfully into his primordial spirit. The Female Sheng Ti's strike was devastating.

Pfft!

Blood splattered vividly. Ye Chen was impaled by the sword.

At that moment, Ming Di and Di Huang's divine forms tensed. Da Chu's Tenth Emperor had real guts, using this method to eradicate the Female Sheng Ti's demonic barrier. The blood that needed to be shed was his own.

The demonic barrier arose because of him, so it had to be cleansed with his blood.

Yet, the danger of this approach was clear to the two supreme beings. One misstep, and Ye Chen could be killed outright. The Female Sheng Ti's sword was no joke.

The space in the black hole fell silent again.

Her sword pierced Ye Chen's chest, the bloody scene seeming to freeze forever. The two ancient Sheng Ti—one man and one woman, one on the east and one on the west—stood like stone-carved statues.

Pfft!

After a few breaths, Ye Chen's coughing broke the deathly stillness.

His bloodstained hands gripped the Zhu Xian Jian tightly.

Da Chu's emperor was bold, but his condition was utterly wretched. Though it was his Sheng Ti that was pierced, his primordial spirit was also gravely wounded. Every part of his Sheng Ti—from limbs and bones to organs and meridians—was crumbling inch by inch amid the killing intent. The once-fierce flame of his primordial spirit was nearly extinguished by this single strike.

At a glance, he was a blood-soaked figure, even the Sheng Blood flowing from him turning to ash. His Sheng Ti was disintegrating, and the radiant glow of his muscles and bones was rapidly fading.

In contrast, the Female Sheng Ti, stained with Ye Chen's fresh blood, saw her demonic energy dissipate.

The demonic glint in her eyes vanished as her consciousness returned, completely erased. What she saw was Ye Chen's pale face and his eyes, whose divine light was rapidly dimming.

In that instant, unprecedented pain surged through her entire body, originating from the half of the Sheng Ti origin within her that wasn't hers—it was Ye Chen's. Sensing its master was on the brink of death, it roared hysterically. The origin had its own spirit and awareness.

"Why didn't you dodge?" the Female Sheng Ti said, her lips parting slightly.

"This sword... is it enough to repay that day's Tian Zhao?" Ye Chen's voice was hoarse. Perhaps from the severity of his wounds, he didn't even have the strength to lift his head. His scattered hair covered half his face, and he coughed up blood mouthful by mouthful, his life force rapidly dissipating amid the collapse.

Pfft!

The Female Sheng Ti suddenly withdrew the Zhu Xian Jian, but she couldn't catch Ye Chen as he fell backward.

As fresh blood sprayed, Ye Chen's Sheng Ti exploded in a boom, leaving only a faint primordial spirit. The remaining flame of his primordial spirit was dimmed to the extreme, as if a single breeze could snuff it out.

"No!" the Female Sheng Ti screamed.

She tried to step forward, but staggered, because the damned Zhu Xian Jian was counterattacking, merging back into her Sheng Ti to reclaim control. And this time, its will was extraordinarily strong.

Ugh!

Her Sheng Ti trembled as she clutched her head and groaned in pain.

It was another clash of consciousness, evenly matched—or perhaps the Zhu Xian Jian had activated some forbidden technique, launching a surprise attack that even the Female Sheng Ti couldn't anticipate.

"Get out of my body!" she shouted coldly, reaching into her own body and yanking out the Zhu Xian Jian, hurling it deep into the darkness.

Buzz!

The Zhu Xian Jian hummed as it flew backward, firing a dazzling multicolored immortal light straight at the Female Sheng Ti. It was a forbidden technique, a curse sealed with destructive and erasing power, mysterious and terrifying.

Ugh!

The Female Sheng Ti groaned again, clutching her head and staggering unsteadily. She struggled to resist the force, but she had underestimated the Zhu Xian Jian. That power was too overwhelming.

"Man's plans are no match for heaven's will." Ming Di's expression darkened.

Di Huang said nothing, but his face was grave.

Ye Chen had succeeded in dispelling the Female Sheng Ti's demonic barrier, but his fate was uncertain.

The Female Sheng Ti had rid herself of the barrier, yet she was now afflicted by the Zhu Xian Jian's curse.

The two sole Sheng Ti in the heavens were both severely wounded, each more miserable than the last. They might even be finished off by that damned Zhu Xian Jian.

Sure enough, the thrown Zhu Xian Jian came charging back.

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

The ten emperor artifacts hummed, erupting with emperor might as they all attacked the Zhu Xian Jian.

These ten emperor artifacts were all quick to anger, acting on their own to gang up.

Boom! Clang! Bang! Clash!

The battle of artifacts raged on, each collision sparking brilliant fireworks.

It was clear the Zhu Xian Jian was at a disadvantage, being ganged up on by the ten emperor artifacts, hammered relentlessly until it couldn't lift its head. The multicolored immortal glow on its blade dimmed strand by strand, proving it was sustaining damage.

It was undeniably tough; without exception, each of the ten supreme emperor weapons bore its sword marks. In a one-on-one fight, it could have severed them all.

But facing ten at once, it was no match.

Zheng!

With a final hum, the Zhu Xian Jian fled, streaking away as a multicolored immortal light.

Buzz!

The ten emperor artifacts trembled in unison, like ten beams of emperor light, chasing after it.

The two sides vanished into the darkness, one ahead and one behind.

Ming Di and Di Huang's attention wasn't on them, but on the Female Sheng Ti and Ye Chen.

Ye Chen's primordial spirit was gone, reduced to a tiny speck of light.

As for the Female Sheng Ti, she underwent a strange transformation under the multicolored immortal light, gradually shrinking. From a woman in her twenties, she regressed to a teenage girl, then to a child, finally stopping at around two or three years old.

This scene resembled a reversal of aging.

She fainted, and in an instant, all her cultivation was stripped away.

"What a domineering curse." Di Huang frowned. To reduce a Sheng Ti on the verge of great attainment to a child's form and strip away her cultivation, this level of forbidden art had clearly transcended emperor-level immortal techniques, even making a great Sheng Ti like him feel shocked.

"After using this curse, I'm afraid the Zhu Xian Jian isn't faring well either." Ming Di chuckled.

"Seeing you so composed is rare." Di Huang glanced at him.

"Don't worry, your descendant won't die." Ming Di said with a light laugh. "As for the Female Sheng Ti, her cultivation and realm are still there—they've just been sealed by the Zhu Xian Jian's curse. This childlike form might last for some time, but it will eventually be undone. Who knows, when she returns to her peak, she might become Ye Chen's wife. I have confidence in Ye Chen on that."

Hearing this, Di Huang raised an eyebrow, and his furrowed brow relaxed.

"We should thank the Zhu Xian Jian." Ming Di smiled.

Di Huang didn't argue and smiled too. If not for the Zhu Xian Jian goading the Female Sheng Ti into demonhood, Ye Chen wouldn't have risked his life. That fatal strike had repaid that day's Tian Zhao and, in a way, helped resolve their grievances.

Most importantly, the Female Sheng Ti had regressed to youth, and in the long days ahead, there would be plenty of opportunities. If Ye Chen couldn't win her over, no one would believe it.

In that sense, they really should thank the Zhu Xian Jian.

That damned sword was truly a perfect whetstone; every time it caused chaos, it brought Ye Chen some kind of fortune.

This time, it had miscalculated, underestimating the ten emperor artifacts and their spirits. Without the ten emperor weapons' protection, it likely would have destroyed both the Female Sheng Ti and Ye Chen.