First Immortal of the Sword

Looking in from the outside, Su Yi didn’t seem to move once throughout this process, yet both River Ancestor Shen Xiao and River Ancestor Lu Shu screamed in shock and horror, then stiffened from head to toe. Su Yi then announced that the two Celestial Demons were dead.

It was over in the blink of an eye, and no one could tell what Su Yi had done. All of them were looking at the two River Ancestors in disbelief.

The two River Ancestors were stunned, too. Some time passed before they came back to their senses.

River Ancestor Lu Shu was the first to step forward. “Many thanks, Fellow Daoist. You just saved my life!”

River Ancestor Shen Xiao looked ashamed. “We have only ourselves to blame for our ineptitude. We let two Celestial Demons invade our hearts. If you hadn’t turned the tide, it might well have led to irreparable disaster.”

Su Yi put away the Medallion of Past Karma and smiled. “A trivial matter. You needn’t thank me like this.”

And indeed, killing the two Celestial Demons had been effortless for him. The only hard part was making sure he didn’t kill the two River Ancestors with them. Thus, when Su Yi attacked, he used his Heart Soul to unleash the Seal of Light.

Of the divine abilities on the second page of the Book of Destiny, it had the most fearsome killing power. It could condense the light of the Natal Heart Lamp into a seal of the Destiny Soul and attack enemies’ hearts directly. Moreover, it was a natural counter to Celestial Demons, who were condensed out of heart devils.

Su Yi had asked that question before he attacked because he knew that once the fighting began, he could show no mercy. He had to kill both enemies in a single blow. That meant he naturally wouldn’t get any further answers out of them.

“Come with me, Innocence,” said Su Yi, turning to approach the spring. Innocence followed.

The others saw that Su Yi still had business to attend to, so they remained behind and waited.

Su Yi peered into the spring. Wisps of strange blood-red mist were rising out of the cracked spacetime barrier in its depths.

“If you want to visit your former home, here’s a way back,” Su Yi said softly.

Innocence shook her head. “In my heart, I haven’t had a home or relatives for a long time.”

“This isn’t a test,” Su Yi said warmly. “I can sense the hatred in your heart, and I’m sure there’s a reason for it. Are you sure you don’t want to go back and get to the bottom of things?”

Innocence pursed her lips and said nothing. There really was hatred in her heart. She didn’t understand why her people had forsaken her, leaving her to rot in the Nine Luminaries Forbidden Zone for countless years. She also didn’t understand why, despite the passage of countless years, not one of her clan’s experts came looking for her!

Was it because she was unworthy? Or because they’d long since given up on her?

Her questions had accumulated, and so too did her resentment. By now, any hope she’d had for her people had turned to ash.

After a while, she said softly, “If you order me to go back, I’ll naturally do as you command, Master.”

Su Yi shook his head. “You’ve misunderstood. How could I force you to do something you don’t like?”

Innocence blinked. “Master, that doesn’t mean I’m not willing. If it helps you, I can serve as your pawn and infiltrate the Celestial Demons’ ranks. When it comes time to battle the Celestial Demons, I can coordinate with you from inside!”

Su Yi laughed. “No need for that. That would be far too cruel to you, and I’m unwilling to use you as a pawn.”

Innocence was stunned. Su Yi had spoken casually, but his words sent waves of emotion coursing through her heart. A long time passed, but she still couldn’t calm down.

She finally understood. He really does see me as one of his own! He’s considering my wellbeing. I’m not just a pawn he can exploit at whim!

She took a deep breath. “Master, I... I want to go home!”

Su Yi glanced at her. There was no way he’d fail to guess her intentions, so he refused without hesitation. “You had your chance, but now, it’s too late. You’ll just have to keep cultivating by my side.”

He pressed his hand on her head. “Don’t worry about all that. Chat with me for a bit. How about you tell me about the Outsider Celestial Demons?”

“Mm,” said Innocence. The two of them stood beside the spring, one tall, one small, and spoke of the Void.

River Empress Peacock and the others saw this from afar, and all of them consideredately left without disturbing them.

Su Yi and Innocence were now the only ones in the area.

...

The world beyond the cracked spacetime barrier in the spring.

A blood-red furnace burned atop a ten-thousand-foot ancient altar. An aged figure stood before the furnace, strange, mysterious, blood-red light coursing over his entire body.

When Su Yi slew the two Celestial Demons, the aged figure sensed their deaths, then sighed. They failed.

No one knew how great a price he’d paid to send those two Celestial Demon experts across the barrier. Had things gone according to plan, they’d have worked together to establish a safe tunnel through the cracked spacetime barrier. Then, they could lead their armies into the River of Destiny. But now... everything had come to naught!

“I’d like to see just who ruined my plans!” said the old man, his eyes flashing with imposing, blood-red light.

The people of the Void knew him as Demon Sovereign Zi Yu. He was a supreme Demon Sovereign of transcendent status. From his lofty vantage point, he could gaze down upon the whole world!

He stretched out his left hand, which condensed into a seal. Light gathered into scenes, which flitted through his mind.

The elderly Demon Sovereign Zi Yu froze, completely gobsmacked. There was no hiding the astonishment on his face.

The two Celestial Demons were dead, but Demon Sovereign Zi Yu had used a secret technique to claim their last memories, which were now on display in his heart. In them, he saw Innocence, Su Yi, and the two Celestial Demons’ last moments!

All of this came as an enormous shock.

“Her Highness Xin Cheng, a pureblooded descendant of the Profound Blood Demons! She... She really is alive...”

“And Su Yi has actually ignited his Natal Heart Lamp. It’s no wonder that the Threelives Buddha of Spirit Mountain Buddhist Court was so confident that Su Yi would be the biggest threat we faced when we invaded the River of Destiny!”

Demon Sovereign Zi Yu was quite stunned.

Su Yi wasn’t particularly famous among the rank and file Outsider Celestial Demons of the Void, but all of the Demon Sovereigns knew of him.

That was especially true after what happened just a few years prior. The Threelives Buddha used a secret technique to send a message to each and every Demon Sovereign of the Void from across that boundless spacetime barrier.

In that message, he told him about Su Yi!

Demon Sovereign Zi Yu just hadn’t anticipated that he’d run into Su Yi now, much less that he’d appear alongside Her Highness Xin Cheng of the Profound Blood Demons!

The whole thing made Demon Sovereign Zi Yu feel rather strange. It was as if his strike had missed the mark... only to score a lucky hit on a different target altogether.

“I have to inform the Profound Blood Demons. If Su Yi is threatening Her Highness Xin Cheng, the consequences will be dire...” Demon Sovereign Zi Yu frowned.

Xin Cheng’s status among them was utterly unique and extraordinary. The Celestial Demons saw her as a necessary component of any attempt to uncover the mysteries of their ancient origins.

When she was first “lost” on the River of Destiny, it shook the entire Void and infuriated the entire Profound Blood Demon Race, leading to a storm of bloodshed.

The Profound Blood Demons believed someone had tricked Xin Cheng.

Of course, the incident came to an end without a clear or satisfying conclusion. Try as they might, the Profound Blood Demons never discovered the culprit.

Now, Xin Cheng had appeared again, and she was with Su Yi, the man who’d likely be the greatest threat their people had to overcome. Demon Sovereign Zi Yu instantly realized how serious the problem was.

He promptly issued a decree. “Send a messenger to the Profound Blood Demons and ask Demon Sovereign Xuan Shang to come see me. Tell him I have news about Her Highness Xin Cheng!”

......

In the Golden Frost Forbidden Zone, in front of the spring.

“You suspect you were betrayed by your own people?” exclaimed Su Yi.

He’d already learned a lot from their conversation.

During the Devastation, the Outsider Celestial Demons marched on the River of Destiny, sweeping across the Eternal Heavens Domain. A grand battle had broken out between the forces of the Void and the Eternal Heavens Domain.

Innocence, then known as Xin Cheng, had been among them.

The battle raged for hundreds of thousands of years, transforming the Eternal Heavens Domain in its entirety.

In the end, the demon armies broke, and the survivors had no choice but to return to the Void.

But it was then that Innocence fell prey to a trap. Her guardians were brutally suppressed, and she was imprisoned in the Nine Luminaries Forbidden Zone.

“That’s for sure,” Innocence said staunchly. “I can say with certainty that the ones who hurt me... were my clansmen!”

Su Yi rubbed his forehead. It seems that betrayal, in-fighting, and treachery exist in the Void, too.

“Why would they do that to you?” asked Su Yi.

Innocence fell briefly silent. “If I’m not mistaken, it was because of my status.”

A look of reminiscence appeared on her face. “When I was little, some of our elders said that I was the first descendant of the Profound Blood Demons born with the potential to awaken our progenitor’s bloodline. And our race’s progenitor’s bloodline hides a power connected to the secrets of the very origins of the Void!

“I never cared about that, but there was no denying that my bloodline afforded me an extraordinary status in the clan. I was famous, too; every Celestial Demon knew my name.

“But fortune and disaster go hand-in-hand, and harboring a treasure is a sin. It’s likely because of my bloodline that I was betrayed...” Innocence let out a deep sigh.

She’d buried these secrets in her heart for far, far too long.

Now that she’d finally given them voice, she was still indignant and in low spirits.