The setting sun was as red as blood, casting long shadows over the rugged mountain path where a line of figures walked in silence.
Jian Huaishuang wore paper clothes and carried his signature giant sword. His face was paler than ever, and a faint, jade-colored glint occasionally flickered in his eyes.
Following behind him were not living people, but dozens of expressionless paper dolls that made soft rustling sounds as they moved.
They maintained the silhouettes of the sword sect disciples they had been in life, even wearing paper-made swords at their waists.
This was the final "legacy" of the sword sect and the shackle that Jian Huaishuang had to carry.
The disciples had been deeply corroded by White Jade’s ghostly qi, causing their physical bodies to collapse. They could only reshape themselves into paper forms by utilizing the power of evil spirits.
They had just left the gates of the White Jade Sword Sect. The purpose of this trip was to purge the sect.
Those stewards and disciples who remained stubborn after the Immortal Celebration Day, still clinging to the illusory glory of the past or even attempting to resist or flee, had all been suppressed by Jian Huaishuang and his paper dolls.
The scum who had disgraced the sect's name had their cultivation stripped and were sent to the depths of the Wailing Mine in the City of the Wrongfully Dead for labor reform.
As for the few whose crimes were too numerous to record, Jian Huaishuang had shown no mercy, personally sending them to where they belonged.
At the same time, every resource that could be moved—manuals, medicinal herbs, ores, stored spirit stones, and even some aged building materials—had been scavenged and were now being carried by the tireless paper dolls.
The White Jade Sword Sect was now nothing more than an empty shell, its foundations completely hollowed out.
The procession moved in silence.
Lin Feng finally couldn't suppress the confusion in his heart. His voice, carrying a strange papery echo, asked, "Senior Brother... are we really going to submit to the Dead Man’s Forest just like this?"
Inside Jian Huaishuang's mind, the cold will belonging to White Jade immediately sent a mocking ripple, trying to interfere with his thoughts.
He forced it down, his voice as calm and rippleless as a still pond. "Yes."
Lin Feng was puzzled. His eyes, which were nothing more than crude sketches, stared at Jian Huaishuang's back. "But... there have long been rumors of evil spirits in the Dead Man’s Forest. The City of the Wrongfully Dead... just by the name, it doesn't sound like a good place. We are disciples of the sword sect, after all. Isn't this... inappropriate?"
There was a hint of the stubbornness he had possessed while alive in his words.
Jian Huaishuang suddenly stopped and turned around.
His eyes, which were usually gentle and weary, now erupted with a cold light as sharp as a blade. A flash of killing intent flickered uncontrollably.
Lin Feng’s paper body trembled at the look. He took a subconscious step back; he had never seen his normally kind senior brother show such a terrifying gaze.
"Do not forget," Jian Huaishuang’s voice was bone-chillingly cold, "the foundation of the sword sect."
Lin Feng was dazed, instinctively repeating the creed etched into his soul, "To exorcise demons and uphold the Dao... to protect all living beings..."
Jian Huaishuang withdrew his frightening gaze and turned to continue walking, his voice flat.
"The Lord slashed the snake demon that plagued Lakeglow Ridge for years, suppressed the evil spirits in the river that devoured lives, and saved tens of thousands of citizens from the fire on the Immortal Celebration Day in White Jade City.
"Regardless of what his true form is, in my eyes, he is the deity who practices the way of protection."
He paused, as if speaking to Lin Feng, but also as if emphasizing it to himself and all the paper disciples.
"As for the City of the Wrongfully Dead, it shelters the souls of those who died unjustly and establishes a netherworld order.
"You and I have already died once. Of those refugees the Lord brought back, which one was not at a dead end in the old world, nearly dead themselves?
"It was the Lord who gave them a new life, a place to stand, food for their bellies, and a place of peace. Seeking life through death in the City of the Wrongfully Dead—what is inappropriate about that?"
Lin Feng stood frozen. His senior brother’s words were like a heavy hammer, shattering the last bit of prejudice he held from his past.
Indeed, the Lord was practicing the Dao they insisted upon, and he was saving the people they wanted to protect.
They themselves, along with the citizens behind them, were already the wrongfully dead who had found a new life under that deity...
Jian Huaishuang did not look back, but his voice drifted clearly to the group. "Lin Feng, watch your words from now on. Do not commit acts of betrayal, or else..."
He left the sentence unfinished, but a cold killing intent permeated the air once more.
"...the sword in my hand will purge the sect on the Lord's behalf."
Lin Feng bowed his head low. "Yes, Senior Brother! I understand!"
The group reached the edge of the Dead Man’s Forest the next day, and the view before them suddenly opened up.
Though the surroundings were still eerie and strange, the place was bustling with activity. It was a scene of massive construction and labor.
Jian Huaishuang watched all this in silence. He instructed the paper disciples to take the inventory of resources brought from the sect to find Hong Ling.
He himself walked straight toward the center of the territory.
Several uncanny buildings had appeared there.
A simple, weathered gravestone, a stone platform burning with blue fire, and a ferocious Bone Altar.
Jian Huaishuang knelt on one knee and lowered his head to report, "My Lord, the matters of the sword sect are settled. The remaining resources and disciples have been brought back."
Chen Zhou emerged from the Ghost Domain, his gaze falling upon him.
"Stand up." Chen Zhou pointed at the Test Immortal Stone next to the Blood-Prison Pool. "Go and touch it."
Jian Huaishuang was slightly startled but did not ask questions. He stood up and pressed his palm, which contained a complex mix of powers, onto the stone.
【Jian Huaishuang】
【Aptitude: Heaven Grade Thunder Spirit Root (Orange): Increases cultivation speed and work efficiency by 150%】
【General Star (Red): A natural-born general. When leading troops, the combat power of subordinates increases by 200%. Possesses excellent comprehension of formations and slaughter-type techniques. However, this destiny also tends to attract the baleful qi of war and the attention of certain specific deities.】
【Lucid Sword Heart (Red): Born for the sword. Any sword-type weapon in hand can be mastered instantly. All attacks carry a strand of sword intent that can cut through anything. Attack power increased by 300%.】
【Perfect Vessel (Special): A human scabbard, a fated sacrifice. Can provide a perfect shell for a divinity with zero rejection and zero energy loss.】
【Eerie Fusion (Special): The body has merged the remaining will of White Jade, the origin of General Zhenjiang, and array energy. It is in a highly unstable state of balance, requiring continuous consumption of soul power to suppress, with a risk of losing control.】
Chen Zhou looked at this panel, especially the 【General Star】 destiny and the 【Perfect Vessel】 special trait, and understood everything.
It was no wonder White Jade had chosen him. Such a destiny was indeed a perfect vessel for an evil spirit like the one in Zhenjiang Shrine. Unfortunately, they had taken the wrong path.
As for the 【Eerie Fusion】 trait, Chen Zhou wasn't too worried. Once the offering cooldown was ready, he could just throw him onto the altar and sacrifice him.
He looked at Jian Huaishuang, who was composed but hid a surging power, and couldn't help but offer a rare internal compliment.
'A heart of awe like holding frost, a spirit soaring to the clouds.'
True to his name, he was indeed a talent.
Chen Zhou said, "Now that White Jade City has fallen and White Jade is dead, his protection has vanished. The remaining demons and monsters in Qudao County are likely eyeing the villages that have lost their support."
"You and Shitou shall lead a troop to subjugate all the remaining populated villages in the surrounding area."
"Yes, my Lord," Jian Huaishuang accepted the command.
Rate on N.U.
