Unsheathed

Chapter 613 (2): Fourteen Thrones, Dragon Raises Its Head

Humans had risen to the top ten thousand years ago, driving the demon tribe to the vast and desolate lands that lacked both natural resources and spiritual energy. Afterward, the sword cultivators had been banished to what was now the Sword Qi Great Wall, which they had started to construct and guard. Beyond the Sword Qi Great Wall was the so-called Savage World, one of the four large worlds that the former world had split into.

When the Savage World had just formed, heaven and earth were still young, and the Great Dao had been nothing more than an unstable shell. There had been three prisoner sword cultivators at the Sword Qi Great Wall, with Chen Qingdu leading the others and challenging the demons atop Holding Moon Mountain. Afterward, the demon ancestor had disappeared without a trace, stripping the demon tribe of their leader. It was because of this that the Savage World and the Sword Qi Great Wall had fought for the next ten thousand years.

Meanwhile, the ancient well that was referred to as the Heroic Spirit Hall was a place where future generations of great demons held meetings and locked up prisoners. In reality, Holding Moon Mountain was the earliest location that had become similar to the imperial cities of the mortal world, but following the battle there, Chen Qingdu had returned to the Sword Qi Great Wall by himself, leaving behind an utterly destroyed Holding Moon Mountain.

As a result, the great demons had been left with no option but to construct another so-called capital, the Heroic Spirit Hall, to meet up and discuss matters. Even so, the fourteen thrones had never once enjoyed a full gathering over the past ten thousand years, with at most six or seven great demons gathering together at any one time. In fact, even this was rare, and it would only occur when the Savage World had significant matters to discuss. Sometimes, just two or three great demons would gather to make decisions.

After that sudden conflict, where an earth-shattering battle of life and death had taken place, countless demons and beasts had gained power and enjoyed a great rise, rushing to mark their own territories. The burly man in golden armor had been the most capable of them all.

With the demon ancestor, the only individual capable of commanding the respect and obedience of all the great demons, having vanished completely after that huge battle, the burly man in golden armor had resolved to fight for that paramount position and become the new ruler of the Savage World.

However, he had failed to ascend Holding Moon Mountain, so he had thus been subject to punishment according to the rules, with the great demons responsible for guarding the mountain working together to imprison him at the bottom of the ancient well in the Heroic Spirit Hall.

The burly man had calculated and schemed, eventually colluding with the outside world and overcoming many difficulties to break free from his imprisonment. Unexpectedly, a young Daoist priest riding an ox had coincidentally been traveling around the Savage World, and after arriving near the ancient well, he had stood above the well and extended a finger, lightly pressing the great demon back to the bottom of the well.

Having finally climbed out of the well after an immense struggle, the incredibly senior great demon was not only pushed back to the bottom, but golden light had further rained down on him, firmly restraining him and preventing any further escape. Thankfully, great demons enjoyed extremely long lifespans, something that the humans nurtured by the primordial deities couldn't hope to rival.

If great demons chose to slumber, the flow of time would have significantly less effect on them, and it was thanks to this that the burly man had finally managed to wait until the arrival of that elderly individual, who allowed him to make up for his wrongs while he remained a criminal.

Casting one's gaze toward that unmoving horizontal line in the south...

There was the great demon wearing a golden robe atop the upside-down mountain.

There was the great demon sitting alone on the railing amid the many jade buildings, appearing like those primordial immortals described in the books of the Majestic World.

A man stood atop the skulls of deities, and the spear pierced through the head of a corpse contained the purest divine lightning intent of the entire Savage World.

Atop the skeletal throne, there was a primordial great sword immortal that had been crafted into a puppet and returned to the pinnacle of its power.

A blood-red snake was wrapped around a column, appearing like a ruler that commanded all water deities in the Savage World.

A Daoist priest in snow-white robes had refined half of the three moons' essence into his bonded item.

The giant with three heads and six arms had once been the first to ascend the Sword Qi Great Wall, managing to live even after facing a sword strike from Chen Qingdu. When it marched into the Majestic World this time, all ancestral halls, regardless of size, would be pulverized into smithereens.

The beautiful woman wearing a crown and dressed in dragon robes had ambitions of becoming the ruler of the martial world across the nine continents of the Majestic World, allowing her to control the flow of incense in the mortal world, as well as the reincarnation of deities. In return, she would give the Elite Cavalry River to another great demon who had the same seniority as her, no longer competing against the great demons in the Savage World.

No one had trusted each other in the beginning, and everyone had wanted to devour the others. The situation now was completely different, with each great demon having even loftier ambitions.

The owner of the ragged robe had once departed the Sword Qi Great Wall together with Chen Qingdu, being one of the three sword cultivators who had challenged the great demons atop Holding Moon Mountain. He had once been a very close friend of Chen Qingdu.

The big-bearded man who had his only disciple standing beside him had fought with A'Liang before and had also drunk wine with him before. Feeling bored one time, he had also helped the blind old man move around the large mountains.

When the human world was completely destroyed, the man wearing Confucian robes would make his way to the Majestic World to rebuild the mountains and rivers, after which he would spread his teachings to educate the beings of the world without discrimination.

The great demon that had been suppressed by the suit of golden armor for countless years not only wanted to charge into the Majestic World, but he even wanted to lead an army and march to the White Jade Capital.

The old man on the hovering sword wanted to refine all of the Five Mountains in the Majestic World and transform them into his own possessions. He would also personally obliterate the nine Mighty Suppressing Pagodas, after which he would ask Bai Ze what the hell he was thinking.

The handsome man with a Sword Nurturing Gourd by his hip felt like his ambitions were already the smallest. He simply wanted to collect all of the beautiful faces in the Majestic World, and in any case, the female cultivators in the mountains could still survive even if they lost their faces. If they were unwilling to live after losing their faces, then there was no need for him to do anything, and there would naturally be hundreds upon thousands of ways for them to die.

These fourteen great demons represented the pinnacle of the Savage World.

Most of them had been woken from their endlessly long slumbers.

Some of them had been awake the entire time, but they had remained hidden in their dens, choosing to spectate the conflict at the Sword Qi Great Wall from the sidelines. They never participated in the assaults that took place roughly once every one hundred years.

The thrones in the Heroic Spirit Hall didn't stay unchanged for all eternity, and the number of thrones wasn't fixed either. Some great demons died, some thrones would crumble by themselves and fall to the bottom of the well, and some younger great demons might rise and win themselves a seat in the Heroic Spirit Hall.

There was no notion of experience, and those who possessed paramount combat power could enjoy thrones that towered higher above the others. Indeed, the weak deserved to gaze up at the strong. The history of the Savage World was a story of the strong trampling on the ant-like corpses of the weak, gradually ascending higher and achieving great feats.

There were also mortal empires that rose in the vast lands, no inferior to those in the Majestic World. They also adhered to rules and etiquette, some more than others, but all of them had ultimately succumbed to terrible fates, unable to remain in the Savage World. These empires were unable to withstand the stampede of those great demons that had gone from neutral to enemies, becoming nothing more than small splashes in the long river of time.

Overwhelming individual strength was the ultimate ambition of the elites in the Savage World.

Everything else was insignificant.

All of the internal struggles, the extermination of tens of thousands of demon tribes, the death of countless ants — all of these were solid steps on the path of a powerful great demon ascending to the peak.

This small group of paramount individuals would then counterbalance each other, preventing them from marching toward destruction together. This was the only rule in the Savage World. The existences in the Heroic Spirit Hall and the increase or decrease of thrones in the ancient well were all dictated by this single rule.

The fourteen great demons suddenly descended to the ground.

An old man in gray slowly walked out from the middle, holding the hand of a little boy.

The little boy held a decapitated head by its hair, with the deceased man's eyes wide and unafraid. It appeared as if he had failed to exact revenge for a huge grudge.

A bowing and subservient Ascension Tier great demon walked behind the old man in gray and the little boy, and he was none other than the great demon that had been responsible for the previous assault on the Sword Qi Great Wall, the great demon that had subsequently been pursued by Sword Immortal Zuo You. The great demon had named himself Zhong Guang, and he was an ancient and lofty being in the Savage World.

Great Demon Zhong Guang naturally didn't dare to assume his true form and swagger behind the old man in gray.

After the old man in gray stopped, Zhong Guang acted according to his instructions and strode forward, approaching the Sword Qi Great Wall by himself and announcing loudly, "Sword immortals who don't use their full power in the subsequent battle will be spared when the Sword Qi Great Wall falls, and you'll be free to travel around the Savage World or enjoy the scenery in the Majestic World! The Lower Five Tier sword cultivators on the city wall, those who are unwilling to fight can leave, and you'll be esteemed guests of the Savage World in the future!"

There was silence on the city wall.

Dong Sangeng chuckled coldly and spat, "Upper Five Tier beasts in the south, those who ascend the city wall first can die first."

Zhong Guang turned around and looked back. After all, it wasn't his place to make any threats.

The old man in gray patted the little boy's head and said, "Go on. You were old friends in the past, so you can now greet Chen Qingdu as a direct disciple of Holding Moon Mountain."

The little boy slowly walked forward with the decapitated head in his hand, which was caked in dry blood. He walked quicker and quicker, releasing a thunder-like rumble. When he finally came to a stop, he forcefully tossed the head forward, causing it to fly through the air before tumbling along the ground.

The owner of the head was a great sword immortal from the Sword Qi Great Wall who had concealed himself in the Savage World for six hundred years. Not only did this great sword immortal possess lofty sword skills, but he was also a master of political games, with many conflicts and battles between the great demons arising as a result of his schemes.

The little boy felt slightly upset as he turned around and said, "Master, my cultivation base is too low right now, and there's quite a lot of sword qi on the city wall, so I'm not able to throw the head onto the city wall."

The old man in gray smiled and replied, "It's the thought that counts. In any case, the expressions of those sword immortals are already very satisfying."

The little boy cracked a grin and shifted his gaze, appearing slightly provocative as he looked at the young man standing beside the big-bearded man.

The skinny young man remained silent, but the numerous swords in the sword case on his back were all drawn one inch from their scabbards.

The old man in gray gazed up at the city wall, focusing his attention on only a single person: Old Great Sword Immortal Chen Qingdu.

Chen Qingdu clasped his hands behind his back and cast his gaze over the vast lands. After locking eyes with the old man in gray, he extended a hand and casually beheaded an Ascension Tier great demon in the dungeon to the north, summoning its head to his hand in an instant. He smiled faintly and said, "I especially saved this head for you for so many years. This great demon is also a direct disciple of Holding Moon Mountain."

The old man in gray smiled and remarked, "Chen Qingdu, it's only been ten thousand years, yet you've already become this powerful?"

He paused for a moment before eventually continuing, "Then I'll let you experience death once again?"

Many outsider sword immortals on the city wall were extremely confused.

"As expected of someone who's been hiding underground and suppressing their resentment for ten thousand years. It's no wonder that you're making such bold threats straight away," Chen Qingdu replied.

The old man in gray shook his head and commented, "I've heard that your new sword is called Lasting Qi — this is fairly mediocre. No, it's far too mediocre."

Chen Qingdu remained standing with his hands clasped behind his back, and he retorted with a faint smile, "You'll only get the opportunity to know whether I can last long or not if you're a lady."

There were loud whistles on the city wall.

By the looks of it, it wasn't only sword cultivators in the city who enjoyed such vulgar jokes.

Sword immortals were much the same.

The little boy returned to the old man in gray's side, tugging his master's sleeve and saying, "His retort was very impressive."

The old man in gray didn't become angry, and he looked down at his closing disciple, whose soul was still incomplete despite so much effort searching for it. He instead smiled and said, "These people are all talk, regardless of whether they're dead or alive, and no matter whether they're sword cultivators or not. If you so desire, you can feel free to learn this lowliest of skills in the Majestic World in the future."

The great demon sitting on a railing amid the numerous immortal jade buildings laughed and remarked, "Chen Qingdu, you're truly respectable, detestable, and most of all, pitiful. You've locked up so many great demons without killing them, using them as whetstones for the sword immortals and utilizing them as materials for that alchemical pill market. This has probably resulted in many scholars in the Majestic World criticizing and scolding you, right?

"You're dragging the entire Sword Qi Great Wall over here to wait for death, so you're presumably resented by many of your own people as well, am I correct? Say, aren't you very pitiful? You've already died once, yet you're still being backstabbed by those around you. Chen Qingdu, oh, Chen Qingdu, I would just kill myself and be done with everything if I were you."

Chen Qingdu completely ignored this profoundly powerful great demon.

Zuo You looked at the ethereal jade building and asked, "Are you worthy of speaking to the old great sword immortal?"

The great demon laughed and replied, "Perhaps I'm not entirely worthy of speaking to Chen Qingdu, but I'm more than worthy enough to speak to you."

The little boy walked forward by himself again, eventually arriving beside the great sword immortal's head and placing a foot on it. He looked up and smiled, saying, "I'm twelve years old right now, and I've heard that the Sword Qi Great Wall is full of prodigies? Have someone around the same age as me come out to fight me! I won't bully you guys either, and I'll accept any sword cultivator under thirty years old. Oh, and remember to bring some extra pseudo-celestial tools and immortal treasures and whatnot, or else you won't stand a chance!"

Old Sword Immortal Qi Tingji furrowed his brows and said, "This little brat wants Ning Yao to accept his challenge, and after they fight to the death, they want you to leave the city wall, giving that old bastard an advantage."

Chen Qingdu nodded and replied with a smile, "This is indeed what they're planning, but it doesn't matter. How can we guard the Sword Qi Great Wall if we can't even overcome this provocation?"

Chen Qingdu waved a hand.

A group of youths appeared behind him, with Pang Yuanji, Chen Sanqiu, and Dong Huafu among the dozen or so people.

Of course, there was also Ning Yao, who had already exited seclusion, as well as Chen Ping'an, who had initially been standing inside the pavilion atop Dragon Slaying Cliff.

Chen Qingdu extended his arm and raised the head of the great demon, turning around and asking with a smile, "Who's going to help me deliver this reciprocal gift?"

Ning Yao stepped forward, yet a hand immediately grabbed her shoulder.

"Let me go," Chen Ping'an said.

Chen Qingdu smiled widely and asked, "Are you not afraid of using up your one opportunity here? How will you deal with the next large-scale battle?"

"I'll think about it then," Chen Ping'an replied with a smile.

Chen Qingdu casually tossed away the head of the Ascension Tier great demon and said, "Let go and fight to your heart's content."

A figure in azure leaped onto the parapet before striding forward and sprinting down along the great wall. He suddenly stood still, and it was as if his feet had become powerful roots as he bent his knees slightly before shooting south like a ferocious arrow, allowing him to catch the plummeting head. He held the head in one hand and placed his other hand behind his back as he gracefully hovered to the ground.

On the other side, the little boy flicked the dusty head of the sword immortal up and caught it in his hand before slowly walking forward.

There were one hundred or so paces between Chen Ping'an and the little boy.

"Why don't we have the result of this battle determine which of us steps forward to face a sword strike?" Chen Qingdu asked with a cold chuckle.

The old man in gray nodded and replied, "Why not?"

On the ground, the little boy grinned and beckoned with his hand.

Chen Ping'an directly threw the head of the great demon over, and the little boy also flung his arm at the same time, throwing the head of the sword immortal high in the air.

The little boy didn't reach forward to catch the head of his companion from Holding Moon Mountain, and he instead stomped it to the ground with his foot and patted away the blood on his clothes. He leaned forward and crossed his arms, saying, "You look so light and frail. Are you sure you can put up a good fight?"

Chen Ping'an caught the head of the great sword immortal, whose name he didn't know, and lightly ran his hand across the sword immortal's face, allowing him to close his eyes.

However, this action exposed a huge opening.

Following the little boy's punch, the figure in azure slid back dozens of meters and left a shallow ditch in the ground. However, he remained steady and standing the entire time.

The little boy stood in the young man's initial position and nodded in approval, saying in exuberance, "Not too shabby. You can play with me for a good while."

Chen Ping'an looked back, with the head of the sword immortal having disappeared from his hand. Great Sword Immortal Yue Qing placed the head under his arm and cupped his fists in gratitude at the young man.

The little boy smiled and said, "It's your turn to throw a punch now. You have one chance, and I'm going to use my full strength afterward. You're going to die very, very quickly. You'll definitely die even quicker than the useless parents of my original opponent, Ning Yao."

Chen Ping'an turned around to look at the little boy before lowering his head and rolling up his sleeves. The corners of his mouth curled up into a smile, which grew wider and wider. However, his eyes became increasingly still, and the matter that was being suppressed with much difficulty in his heart could finally break free and raise its dragon head.

So, when he finally looked up, he displayed the face of a viciously smiling young man.