Immortal of the Ages

“Not a single demon shall live?” Atop a ridge to the west of Dark Abyss Mountain, a beautiful woman in a black dress stood, her presence boldly asserted against the tempest. As her garments danced violently in the wind, her eyes locked onto the surging tide of a hundred thousand demons ahead, and a chilling aura billowed around her.

“A mere boy, regardless of his talent, is worthless without sufficient intellect. He's destined to die sooner or later. There's absolutely no merit in cultivating him.” With those words, the woman in the black dress turned away, ready to depart.

“Great Sword Venerable Ning!” Elder Wang and Shangguan Jia hastily blocked her path.

“Great Sword Venerable, please grant him one more glance! Once the battle begins, Yun Xiao is sure to catch your discerning eye,” Elder Wang implored urgently.

“What battle? You three thousand Azure Spirit Sword Cultivators merely need to guard the gate to the thousand mortal nations. Why venture into this demon nest? Could it be that you're all just tired of living?” The woman sneered disdainfully. “And don’t tell me this is youthful fervor. The brave without strategy meet their demise sooner. It’s a path of pure idiocy, utterly uninteresting!” Ning Yang's brows furrowed as she gazed at the two men before her. These two, one pudgy and the other uncouth, stood in stark contrast to her own exquisite and noble demeanor.

“Move aside.” Her words were soft, yet those familiar with her knew well that if these inferior men persisted in their annoyance, her patience would wear thin. She felt this was a fruitless journey! Moreover, a fruitless journey spent with two low-quality males. She was utterly speechless!

Elder Wang and Shangguan Jia exchanged glances.

“Yes, Great Sword Venerable.” They could only bow their heads, sigh, and cease their obstructions.

“Yun Xiao once represented the Sword Pavilion in the Conclave, single-handedly slaying one hundred and twenty opponents!” Shangguan Jia murmured softly.

"Tsk…" The woman in black chuckled softly, an air of disdain about her. Her delicate frame merged with the wind, and in a blink, she departed with regality.

“All this way, to put on airs and then just leave? Really!” Shangguan Jia exclaimed, helpless.

“True to form for a woman who birthed Xuanran and tossed her to the Azure Spirit, unseen for twenty-two years!” Elder Wang grumbled with resentment. But, they were powerless! They couldn’t keep her here.

“Forget it, let’s believe in Yun Xiao!” Shangguan Jia said.

“Yes! I trust him. We won’t beg anyone! We’ll rely on ourselves!” Elder Wang, gazing towards those three thousand Sword Cultivators, already felt his blood boiling.

“The two of us should join in!” The two gazed towards the blue flag at Dark Abyss Mountain. With clenched teeth and eyes aflame with vengeance, they mounted their Sovereign Swords to lend their support.

“I really don’t want to tell Xuanran that after her mother came, she didn’t even spare her a glance…” Elder Wang looked towards Zhao Xuanran, sighing inwardly.

They entered the fray!

“Why are the two of you here?” Li Chenlong asked loudly.

Elder Wang gritted his teeth and relayed the previous events.

The crowd fell into a deep, resounding silence upon hearing the tale.

“She was here?” A woman’s voice quivered ever so slightly.

Peering into the distance, Zhao Xuanran wore a blank expression as she gazed westward, where only emptiness met her eyes.

“There's no need, Xuanran,” Elder Wang spoke with a heaviness hanging in his words.

“I know!” Her brows dipped low, a flicker of hatred shimmering in her eyes. She abruptly lifted her head, fixing her gaze on the swarming horde of a hundred thousand demons, declaring coldly, “I came today to slay demons, and I need nothing from her.” As her voice fell, a hand gently patted her shoulder.

Turning, Zhao Xuanran met the eyes of Yun Xiao. The Northern Wastelands were perpetually shrouded in darkness, yet upon the youth seemed to shine a light, illuminating the three thousand Azure Spirit Sword Cultivators. He was their beacon in that moment!

“She missed a thrilling show, and that’s her loss,” Yun Xiao said, his words steeped in unquenchable conviction.

“Mhm!” Zhao Xuanran gazed at him tenderly. “Junior Brother Yun, your senior sister will accompany you!”

“Good!” He nodded. Abruptly, he swung around. At that moment, the vicious intentions of a hundred thousand demons roared mightily, and countless brutal killing intents coalesced into wave after wave of demon fog, rolling toward their legion of sword cultivators!

“Moon Fairy and those ten Demon Kings, along with several thousand shape-shifting demons, have all disappeared,” Yun Xiao furrowed his brow.

“It’s their tactic!” Zhao Xuanran declared bitterly.

“Tactic?”

“Yes! The Northern Wastelands is a land of resentful spirits, where any being can transform into a demon. What it lacks least are lesser demons! Three years ago, the Northern Wastelands Demon Emperor exploited the lives of twenty thousand lesser demons to exhaust my father and seven senior brothers and sisters of their magic powers before making a move on them!” Blood-red vengeance surged in Zhao Xuanran’s beautiful eyes.

Right here at Dark Abyss Mountain! Tens of thousands of demons, besieging eight people! A pain that pierced the heart of the Sword Pavilion!

“Demons are unlike humans. Humans fear death, but lesser demons, devoid of spiritual wisdom, are easily manipulated…” Chen Dong spoke in a grave tone.

“Moon Fairy and those Demon Kings are now lurking deep within Dark Abyss Mountain, waiting for us to be exhausted from the killing before they pounce!”

A hundred thousand lesser demons! Even with three thousand Sword Cultivators, the slaughter would be lengthy! This so-called tactic was despicable yet effective! It was the demon wave tactic of the demons of the Northern Wastelands!

Mortal Sword Cultivators were few and far between. But the demons of the Northern Wastelands were inexhaustible! Precisely because of this, even the people from the Sea of Swords would think that coming to this demon nest to fight was folly!

Gazing upon the boundless one hundred thousand demons, even the hot-blooded and vengeance-filled three thousand Azure Spirit Sword Cultivators felt a sense of helplessness creeping into their hearts.

It was simply too many! When would the killing end? Humans weren't made of steel, and their magical power was finite. Who could survive, cutting through all the way?

Moon Fairy was a sly and deceitful fox demon! She had no sense of morality whatsoever!

“Kill!” Above Dark Abyss Mountain, demon fog churned, shrouding those hundred thousand demons, seeping into their beings. A hundred thousand demons, eyes ablaze with a blood-red hue, went berserk!

Under the icy, disdainful command of Moon Fairy, a cacophony of one hundred thousand demons erupted—howls, roars, shrieks and wails—as they surged toward the three thousand Sword Cultivators.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!! The earth quaked, the sky darkened, and even the sun and moon were devoid of light. Mists of malevolent demons, blood of the vicious, poisonous airs, and ghostly winds overwhelmed the land.

Each tiny demon, utilizing every limb, bared teeth in a gruesome grin, void of any fear of death. Their eyes glimmered with nothing but greed, hunger, and brutality.

The terrifying sight threw a bucket of cold water over the three thousand Sword Cultivators from the Azure Spirit Sword Sect. Even those with unwavering beliefs, like Cai Maomao and Qin Tong, found their hands trembling on their swords amidst the earth-shattering chaos.

Yet, in front of them, a solitary white silhouette stood, steadying hearts and resolve alike. Yun Xiao faced forward, his eyes the epitome of tranquility.

"Ride your swords into the sky!" he suddenly commanded.

"Ride our swords?"

Hearts tightened among them, but they did as bid without hesitation.

VROOM VROOM VROOM! One after another, the Sword Cultivators from Azure Spirit propelled themselves into the clouds on their flying swords.

Once airborne, they all exhaled in collective relief. Of the hundred thousand demons below, only a little over a thousand could fly.

Three years prior… Zhao Jianxing and the Sword Pavilion Seven couldn't escape by flying, as Moon Fairy had summoned all the flying demons in the Northern Wastelands to kill them, most of whom perished in the attempt.

With their predecessors paving the path, the situation for these three thousand successors in the Northern Wastelands had markedly improved.

"With our swords, these hundred thousand demons can't touch us!" Tears streamed wildly down Cai Maomao’s cheeks. It was his brother. “They eradicated the demons that could fly…”

Oh, how gallant they had been on that day. With their memories burning bright, fiery determination kindled within the three thousand Sword Cultivators.

"But if we use our Sword Souls to fly, we can’t use them to kill the demons, can we?"

How then, would the life-and-death battle transpire?

And besides, flying on swords consumed magic power!

"Wait, someone isn’t flying!" Upon these words, a hubbub erupted amongst the three thousand Sword Cultivators.

Looking down, they saw, standing resolutely before the hundred thousand demons, a lone white figure.

“Junior Brother Yun!” Even Zhao Xuanran hadn’t expected him to stand alone, wielding a single sword, blocking a horde of one hundred thousand demons.

“What courage does this take?!” Li Chenlong exclaimed, his heart pounding in his chest.

“Xuanran, just how far has he cultivated these three days?” Chen Dong asked, his voice shaking.

“I don’t know…” Zhao Xuanran gazed blankly at the white silhouette, her heart a tempest of emotions. All she knew was that when the treasure vault had opened, he had shut himself inside. Three days later, the doors of the vault opened again!

When he emerged, Zhao Xuanran took a peek inside. The Azure Spirit Sword Sect's Treasure Vault was empty!

The youth scratched his head at the moment, sheepishly grinning, “Senior Sister Zhao, rest assured, the interest will still be calculated at 0.015%!” He would pay it back!

Zhao Xuanran didn’t know why he’d taken the foundation amassed by the Azure Spirit over hundreds of years! Anyway, she had promised to keep it secret! And she’d also agreed that no matter what he did today, she would cooperate, absolutely forbidding acting on whim.

"Quick, aid Yun Xiao!" Many people, perceiving the situation, were startled and hurriedly shouted.

"No need!" Zhao Xuanran yelled, promptly blocking the other Sword Cultivators.

Everyone simultaneously turned towards her, their eyes filled with bewilderment. "Senior Sister Zhao..."

"Let him take the lead! When he gives the order, it won’t be late for us to go up!" Zhao Xuanran decisively said.

"Yes!" Three thousand Sword Cultivators nodded.

One person, one sword, first to kill a round? Their eyes were ablaze, intensely watching that white-clothed youth! Their passion exploded!

"A hundred thousand little demons, no more than a hundred thousand mortal warriors, dare to harm my Junior Brother Yun?" Cai Maomao roared angrily.

"Kill!" In the unified outcry, the youth had already swung the sword in his hand, a man like an Immortal amidst the swords! The three thousand Azure Spirit Sword Cultivators rode to the heavens! He alone battled a hundred thousand demons of the Dark Abyss Mountain!

Up ahead, gloomy winds howled, and dark clouds veiled the moon! Those faces of malice and brutality, some entirely beastly, some half-human, half-beast, and some defiled into demons!

Yun Xiao, in his flowing white robes, stood with a sword horizontally in place! Creator Immortal, a generation's divine visage! Such a scene was enough to be engraved in the memories of all present for a lifetime!

White robes, an azure sword, a hundred thousand demons! Who in the world did not know Yun Xiao?

"Come!" Yun Xiao stamped on the ground, suddenly rushing out! The earth of the Dark Abyss Mountain shattered thunderously! The white robe was like a demon! The azure sword in hand shot out in an instant!

Swallow Tail Flash!

This soaring first sword, in an instant, pierced through eight thousand feet! Within eight thousand feet, there were rocks, soil, demons! No matter what it was, it was instantly penetrated by the Flying Sword!

Boulders exploded, blood and remnants ascended to the heavens!

With one strike, a bloody path straight through the Dark Abyss Mountain was carved!

"So powerful!!" Witnessing this, the eyes of the three thousand Azure Spirit Sword Cultivators burned with awe, their hearts pounded in their chests. What realm was he in, after all? Everyone wanted to know, yet no one did!

BUZZ! Terrifyingly, when the Flying Sword returned to his hand, it hadn’t been stained with a single drop of blood! Everything had been absorbed by Heaven Burial!

That Flying Sword whirled like a storm in his hand, twenty-nine layers of Sword Aura manifested as twenty-nine azure dragons, a black Sword Ring circling like something demonic!

"It's not merely a Sword Soul; it's a nightmare that devours life!” Cai Maomao exclaimed, shocked. Three thousand of them watched, eyes wide, as Yun Xiao launched his Flying Sword time and again!

One sword! Yet another! Each sword strike carved an eight-thousand-foot path of blood! Wherever the Flying Sword passed, demons exploded into blood, bones disintegrated, and rivers of blood flowed! Thousands of them fell in battle!

What was terrifying was that, up until now, the hundred thousand demons hadn’t even reached Yun Xiao!

JL's Thoughts

Fun fact! This chapter was the inspiration for the cover of the novel! It's just so utterly badass. Real Kimetsu no Yaiba vibes, but amped up to Chinese levels of ridiculous.