Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Chapter 986 – One Person’s South Stream Temple Sword Array

The important personages in front of the stone hall did not know of those events taking place in front of the Imperial City, did not what specifically had happened, and certainly did not know that the massive rock had been slashed into a thousand piles of snow and become the reason for a marriage between a Bear tribe laborer and a noble lady of the upper city.

But they knew what the swords that had flown out of Chen Changsheng’s sheath had done.

Silence reigned around the observation platform.

Chen Changsheng had won again.

The Demon Lord was well aware, as were all the important individuals, just where Chen Changsheng had won, and what was meant by ‘again’.

Madam Mu maintained her indifferent visage, and it was impossible to tell what she was thinking. However, individuals like the Xiang clan leader and the Grand Duke from the Deer tribe had rather nasty complexions.

The Bear tribe leader was greatly relieved, feeling that his judgment of Chen Changsheng had not been wrong. The Shi clan leader was even more satisfied, feeling that the Pope was one of careful thought and outstanding judgment, as he had remembered that he could use this method to strengthen the friendship between the Human and Demi-human races, even in this tense moment.

Chen Changsheng had not thought of so much. He only realized this was happening and then set out to resolve it.

Acting according to one’s heart, what need was there to think?

Countless swords flew back to the observation platform, rejoining the several hundred swords around Chen Changsheng.

At this moment, an apathetic and lofty voice that seemed to come from the sea of stars appeared.

“Let us stop here.”

The speaker was Madam Mu.

Chen Changsheng did not stop.

He wanted to kill the Demon Lord and the Demon Lord wanted to kill him. Since life and death had not yet been decided, the battle had naturally not come to an end.

Until the end, there was no true victory or defeat.

The air over the observation platform was cut into countless regions by the awe-inspiring sword intent.

The torrential rain of sword energy seemed ready to tear apart the clouds.

The snowy plain of star radiance in his body was fiercely burning.

His sea of consciousness raged with waves several hundred zhang high.

The swords in the sky, guided by his spiritual sense, exhibited every kind of wondrous sword technique, all of them working together to kill the Demon Lord.

The rain of swords descended with the crisp cry of countless swords, its momentum even greater than before.

In the face of such a powerful attack, in the face of this sword style that no one could see through, the Demon Lord was without fear.

Even though he had already lost twice to Chen Changsheng’s sword.

His expression was very calm, his two hands hanging at his sides, hidden in his sleeves.

Only he knew that Madam Mu’s words had not been for Chen Changsheng, but for him.

……

……

The abyssal Qi released by the Demon Lord in the fight had caused the temperature in White Emperor City to drop by several degrees. The streets that had been warmed by the sunlight for only a little while began to fill with mist once more. Suddenly, the mist began to swiftly flow to the upper reaches of the city.

Madam Mu had finally moved.

A wave of her sleeve had stirred a wind from the Western Sea, attracting all the mist on the two shores of the Red River to this place.

Mist surged into the Imperial City and flowed up the stone steps, passing through the flowers and trees, finally reaching the observation platform, where it congealed into a cloud.

This was a most real cloud, yet it possessed the most unreal of details. Compared to the Demon Lord’s icy cloud, this cloud was whiter, like a flock of sheep. It seemed a very simple construct, but if one probed it with the spiritual sense, they would understand what it meant to be truly unfathomable.

The white cloud swallowed up the Demon Lord’s figure and then blocked the rain of swords.

The observation platform was silent.

Chen Changsheng and the Demon Lord were both quite extraordinary. In the future, they would undoubtedly become true Saints.

Madam Mu had been a Saint for many years now.

Even if Chen Changsheng and the Demon Lord brought the treasures of the Orthodoxy and most revered demon artifacts with them, they were still no match for her.

Moreover, she was the Empress of the Demi-humans. While the White Emperor was in seclusion, her will had the greatest voice in the Demi-human race.

It was perhaps for these reasons that the Demon Lord did not resist, allowing the white cloud to swallow him.

As he vanished, he still had not removed his hands from his sleeves.

Chen Changsheng also did not have the swords continue their descent.

Time silently pressed forward. After a few moments, the white cloud on the observation platform dissipated.

The Demon Lord was nowhere to be seen, transported from the depths of the cloud to some other place.

Chen Changsheng pensively gazed at the stone fissure on the ground.

A gorgeous sleeve slowly dropped down. The white cloud flowed back down to the city below like a waterfall as all became peaceful.

Madam Mu drew back her hand.

Chen Changsheng did not sheathe his swords.

He gazed at Madam Mu.

The several hundred swords in the sky slowly moved with his gaze, ultimately pointing at Madam Mu.

This scene had a very strange beauty to it, and also an unimaginable tension.

Did he really want to attack Madam Mu?

“Impudent!”

With a terrible expression on his face, the Grand Duke sternly rebuked Chen Changsheng, “Your Holiness, quickly withdraw your swords!”

Several tribal leaders and ministers also rebuked Chen Changsheng.

More of them remained silent.

This silence symbolized many things.

Footsteps resounded over the platform.

The Bear tribe leader, carrying his metal staff, stood behind Chen Changsheng.

The Shi clan leader followed him, though he stood a little closer to Luoluo.

Immediately after, the Prime Minister, several Grand Scholars, and more and more demi-human personages stood behind Chen Changsheng and Luoluo.

The alliance with the demons was the will of the White Emperor and Empress, and had obtained the approval of the majority of the Council of Elders. However, in the palace debate, still forty percent of the gathered tribal leaders, ministers, and generals had stated their firm objection.

And now, the circumstances had changed even further.

Pope Chen Changsheng had arrived, bringing with him the Human race’s most unswerving response, driving off the Demon Lord.

Although Madam Mu’s hand had put a stop to the battle, everyone could see who had won.

This was a very important point.

The demi-human personages who had good relationships with the humans or doted on Princess Luoluo now had more confidence.

Those personages who considered more the advantages for the Demi-human race were also beginning to think differently.

……

……

Madam Mu calmly looked back at Chen Changsheng and asked, “I save your life, and not only do you not return my kindness, you also want to strike me with your swords?”

Chen Changsheng knew what she meant.

Right when his swords were descending, he had suddenly had felt an incredibly ill foreboding, as if something extremely dangerous was about to occur. He rarely had this sort of feeling. The last time was when that pillar of light was piercing through the sea of stars to descend upon the snowy mountains.

He had noticed that the Demon Lord had kept his hands concealed in his sleeves the entire time.

Had the Demon Lord been intending to use the Astral Executioner?

But even if the Astral Executioner could be used again, how could the Demon Lord communicate his position to the starry sky?

There was no answer to this question, because Madam Mu’s actions had put a stop to it.

Chen Changsheng knew that Madam Mu had not meant him any kindness. She had most likely acted because, for various reasons, she did not want the Demon Lord to use that method.

But she had still put a stop to it all, causing that extremely intense sense of peril to vanish, so he did not retort.

Madam Mu did not care about the change in situation.

She was interested in Chen Changsheng’s swords.

“Just what sort of sword style are you using?”

The Demon Lord did know what sort of sword style Chen Changsheng was using. Madam Mu was also not sure. The extremely old and experienced Xiang clan leader and the extremely wise Shi clan leader also did not recognize Chen Changsheng’s sword style.

Because no one had ever seen this sword style before.

This was the first time since the Heavenly Tome Monoliths descended upon the world that this sword style appeared under the starry sky.

Chen Changsheng replied, “Unity Sword Art.”

The majority of people present had never heard of these words.

Madam Mu had heard of it, and she had guessed at it earlier, though she had found it impossible to believe.

Even now, hearing the answer from Chen Changsheng’s mouth, she still found it difficult to believe.

She silently thought for quite some time, then said, “I never expected, nor, I believe, did the first Holy Maiden, that the South Stream Temple sword array that awed the world… could actually be used by one person.”