Immortal Martial Emperor

"No!"

Hong Yu’s eyes felt like they would tear apart. His heart twisted in agony as he stared at her flower-like face.

Beichen Celestial Frost!

This gentle young woman, so outwardly cold and arrogant, so quiet and reserved, was in fact tender and considerate to her core.

The very moment she awoke, she had seen Hong Yu’s life threatened by the terrifying Dark Demon Wave and had rushed forward without a second thought.

She never asked anything of Hong Yu.

She never asked him to stop his cultivation to spend time with her.

She never threw tantrums or intruded upon his personal space.

She was always there, silently watching over him.

Quietly watching Hong Yu!

She was more like a shadow, appearing of her own accord only when he needed her.

Like now...

When Hong Yu faced a mortal threat, Beichen Celestial Frost had appeared before him in a flash, shielding him from the fatal blow without a moment’s hesitation.

Never demanding, never difficult, never needy...

She only ever thought of giving herself for the man she loved when he needed her most.

This was Beichen Celestial Frost!

A gentle young woman, outwardly cold and silent, but inwardly tender and considerate!

"I’m sorry, I can’t be with you anymore!"

A ripple of moisture filmed Beichen Celestial Frost’s hazy eyes as she slowly closed them.

As he watched the Dark Demon Wave about to claim Beichen Celestial Frost’s life, a sliver of rage ignited within Hong Yu’s chest.

The crimson gleam in his eyes grew increasingly crazed and savage. "GET LOST!"

In that instant between life and death.

Hong Yu pushed his Tyrant’s Walk: Wind Rider to its absolute limit. In the nick of time, he swept Beichen Celestial Frost into his arms and dodged away.

At the same time...

The Dark Demon Wave exploded.

VMMMM!

The explosion of the Dark Demon Wave was bizarre. There was no grand, earthshaking sound; instead, it was unnervingly quiet.

The once head-sized Dark Demon Wave suddenly trembled and contracted, shrinking rapidly. But Hong Yu felt a mortal threat as an intense suction force pulled at him from behind.

His body, which should have been speeding away with Wind Rider, was forcibly dragged back by this suction.

A glance from the corner of his eye sent a shock of horror through Hong Yu. ’Damn it, this Dark Demon Wave is so bizarre! Is it trying to pull me back before unleashing its full power?’

Hong Yu gritted his teeth, trying to escape.

However, he was frustrated to find that his speed and strength were no match for the Dark Demon Wave’s pull.

’Damn it, I have no choice but to risk everything. But before that...’

A glint of resolve flashed through Hong Yu’s eyes.

With a push of his hands, he sent Beichen Celestial Frost flying. A gentle force cushioned her, carrying her several dozen meters away.

Just at this moment...

The Dark Demon Wave behind him finally erupted.

A vortex of terrifying energy devoured the surrounding air. The moment Hong Yu touched it, the Dark Demon Wave released all of its compressed power with a thunderous BOOM.

RUMBLE!

Under the violent impact, Hong Yu’s body convulsed. His qi and blood churned within him, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. "BLECH!"

The energy contained within the Dark Demon Wave was comparable to a full-power strike from an expert at the Mid-stage Primordial Core Realm.

BOOM!

Hong Yu was sent flying.

He slammed hard into the stone steps, half of his body sinking into the massive flagstones. With a series of sharp CRACKS, a spiderweb of fissures spread out from him as the epicenter.

The dense web of cracks nearly split the seventy- or eighty-meter-long flight of stairs in two.

"Tsk, tsk, what a loving little pair you are!" Xue De cackled, striding toward Hong Yu.

"Allow me to send you on your final journey!"

He lifted his right hand slightly, condensing a Black Death Demon Saber before slashing down at Hong Yu.

The instant the Black Death Demon Saber left Xue De’s palm, it swelled to over fifty meters long and descended upon Hong Yu’s body.

Just as it was about to cleave Hong Yu in two,

in that critical moment, something strange happened.

The solid stone staircase suddenly began to tremble violently, as if some behemoth were about to burst forth from deep within the rock.

The force was immense, lifting the ground in a hundred-meter radius as if it were a balloon being inflated. Cracks spread even faster, and with a series of CRACKLE-CRACKLE-CRACKLE sounds, shards of stone shot out like hidden weapons.

THWACK! THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!

Like a torrential rain of stone, the dense barrage of fragments slammed into the Black Death Demon Saber.

BOOM!

The Black Death Demon Saber shattered completely.

"What’s going on?"

The smug look on Xue De’s face froze. He stared in horror at the sky-blotting storm of rock fragments, and with a low growl, he hastily erected a powerful barrier to block the assault.

VMMMM! VMMMM! VMMMM!

A semi-circular Primordial Gang Shield materialized before him, barely holding back the high-velocity stone fragments.

But the force of the stone storm was simply too great.

Under the relentless barrage, Xue De’s brow furrowed ever deeper as his body was forced back step by step. ’Damn it, what the hell is going on?’

Xue De was utterly horrified.

He never imagined he could be pushed this far by a mere volley of brittle rocks.

"Damn it all! Break!"

Xue De thrust out a palm. Surrounded by a swirling Palm Light, his True Martial Arts Intent, the Black Death Divine Light, lashed out repeatedly, finally blasting the sky-blotting stone storm to dust.

After the storm of stones subsided, a moment of calm finally fell.

But a flicker of unease crossed Xue De’s eyes. ’This little bastard is too uncanny. I have to kill him, and fast!’

At this thought, Xue De once again condensed a Dark Demon Wave.

The Dark Demon Wave shot toward Hong Yu.

Hong Yu remained embedded in the stone steps, seemingly unresponsive to the attack...

Atop Guiyuan Hall, the spectating experts all drew in a sharp breath.

"This battle is finally over!"

"Yes, I thought Hong Yu might actually pull off a miracle, but it seems he can’t complete the legendary feat after all!"

"Still, to be able to defeat Zheng Tian, who had just entered the Primordial Core Realm, means Hong Yu’s strength is already comparable to the strongest geniuses in the Southern Ten Nations. It’s a shame he’s too young and doesn’t understand that the tallest tree catches the wind. How could he survive after offending the Guiyuan Sect?"

"Even so, I’ll remember his name."

"Defeating an expert who’d just entered the Primordial Core Realm while only at the Peak of the Celestial Soul Realm... his name is indeed worth remembering for that alone."

"A pity he’s about to die, though."

As they whispered among themselves, everyone felt a sense of pity for Hong Yu.

A Celestial Soul Realm cultivator killing a Primordial Core Realm expert, a feat that crosses a major realm boundary!

If Hong Yu could pull it off, he would become another legendary genius, a true legend in the making. But now, it seemed he was destined to fall short.

The assembled experts all sighed with a mixture of emotion and regret.

However, just as they prepared to watch Hong Yu be annihilated by the Dark Demon Wave, the quiet ground once again began to stir.

BOOM!

The earth trembled and swelled once more.

The range of this tremor was even greater, shaking the entirety of Celestial Essence Peak as if in an earthquake. A grim fissure split open in the mountainside, racing toward both the summit and the foot of the mountain.

As the chasm spread, the mountain itself began to collapse.

The massive Guiyuan Hall itself trembled, the ground shaking and the mountain swaying as if it were the apocalypse.

"Wh-what in the world is happening?"

"Look at Hong Yu!"

Someone suddenly cried out.

All eyes focused on Hong Yu.

VMMMM!

A faint golden light enveloped Hong Yu, and a sacred aura emanated from his entire being.

He pulled himself free from the stone, slowly rising into the air. He lowered his head slightly, his gaze fixed directly on Xue De.

Hong Yu was in a profound and mysterious state.

The golden light surrounding him made him resemble a golden War God, divine and sacred. Golden flames danced within his eyes, and his long black hair, flecked with brilliant specks of gold, whipped in the wind.

Suddenly, Hong Yu’s golden eyes fell upon Xue De.

"Xue De, one year from today will be the anniversary of your death!"

Xue De froze.

Then, fury flooded his face. He sneered through gritted teeth, "Hong Yu, oh, Hong Yu, as arrogant as ever. I don’t know what you did to cause such a commotion, but so what? The conclusion of who would leave here alive today was decided from the very beginning..."

"And the one left standing can only be me!"

Xue De barked.

He raised both hands, condensing two spheres of the Dark Demon Wave. After they merged into one, he sent it hurtling toward Hong Yu.

His face was a mask of pride and confidence.

However, just as the Dark Demon Wave was about to reach Hong Yu, the character for ’Luo’ slowly materialized above his right hand.

The golden ’Luo’ character grew larger and larger.

Hong Yu spoke slowly, enunciating each word. "SEN! LUO! SEAL!"

VMMMM!

The Senluo Seal grew, expanding to a size of five zhang in the blink of an eye.

As it descended, it finally made contact with the Dark Demon Wave. But in that single instant, the powerful Dark Demon Wave was shattered with a hum, dissipating completely.

"Th-this is impossible!"

Xue De stared in utter disbelief at the massive, ’Luo’-emblazoned Senluo Seal.

He frantically launched a series of powerful attacks, trying to halt the Senluo Seal’s advance.

But Xue De quickly realized that no matter how hard he struggled, he was powerless against the terrifying Senluo Seal. His heart filled with despair and terror. ’How is this possible? The kid is only in the Celestial Soul Realm! How can he have such a terrifying attack? No! No, I can’t die...’

Xue De roared in terror, "Elder Wang, save me!"

Atop Guiyuan Hall...

Wang Ba shot upright, ready to intervene, but Old Sir Tie, who was beside him, instantly moved to block him.

Old Sir Tie looked at the furious Wang Ba and said calmly, "You yourself said it. This is a matter between the younger generation. It wouldn’t be right for us elders to interfere, would it?"

Wang Ba’s expression flickered. "You..." he snarled. "You’d better pray nothing happens to Xue De. Otherwise, the Guiyuan Sect will stop at nothing to kill Hong Yu."

"Heh, you’re welcome to try," Old Sir Tie’s expression was serene, but inwardly he was reeling with shock, feeling a tension he hadn’t experienced in decades. ’Hong Yu, oh, Hong Yu... are you really about to create a legend? To slay a Primordial Core Realm expert with your Celestial Soul Realm cultivation?’

Under the watchful eyes of all...

Hong Yu’s Senluo Seal finally crashed down upon Xue De.

VMMMM!

Bathed in the golden radiance, Xue De’s face turned deathly pale, his eyes filled with intense unwillingness and despair.

The next moment, the Senluo Seal erupted in a blinding golden light that illuminated the heavens...

Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed unblinkingly on the dazzling golden light.

Could Hong Yu truly perform a miracle...

And, with the cultivation of the Celestial Soul Realm, slay a Primordial Core Realm expert in a fit of rage?

[Author’s Note: I wasn’t satisfied with the plot, so I deleted 20,000 characters and am currently rewriting. I’ll upload it once it’s finished!]