Goku and his group stepped inside. Seeing Wei Zhuang engulf in demonic qi, Goku's expression remained unchanged; Gai Nie's brows, however, drew together ever so slightly.
"Goku… you've arrived just in time," Wei Zhuang said, eyes fixed on him alone, ignoring Gai Nie as if he did not exist. "I've been wanting to test the true power of Chi You's Sword."
The words had barely fallen when Wei Zhuang tapped the ground and slashed straight for Goku—
the blade flaring blood-red, as if burning.
Goku looked on calmly. As the sword descended, he slowly raised his right hand and extended two fingers.
The gesture made Wei Zhuang's pupils contract; fury surged in his chest. Again— the same contempt as before.
"This time, you'll pay in blood!" he roared. The demonic patterns on his face thickened with rage. Violent qi erupted from within him; his aura surged, his blade grew sharper—
and his speed spiked. In a blur of blood-red light he flashed behind Goku and hewed downward.
Cling!
A crisp ring echoed through the sealed chamber. Wei Zhuang stared—Goku had, once again, caught the blade between two fingers.
Killing intent flooded Wei Zhuang's eyes. This is Chi You's Sword—the so-called ruler of all weapons, peerless in sharpness and might. Why? Why is it still caught so easily? Was the legend a lie?
Humiliation, resentment, rage, madness—every emotion boiled up and was magnified by the sword in his hand. Black qi billowed from Wei Zhuang like a tidal wave.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
He howled; the demonic aura swelled, seething into boundless darkness that engulfed the hall. In a heartbeat, everything lay under its shroud.
Yet no matter how he raged, the sword pinched between those two fingers was as if pressed beneath a mountain—immovable.
"I don't believe it! I refuse to believe the gap between us is this vast—die!"
Hair flying, eyes crazed, twin streaks of blood trailed from Wei Zhuang's gaze as his aura spiked yet again. He would not accept a life's pursuit ending before two fingers.
'Strength—give me strength! Enough to fell the man before me! Take everything I am if you must! You are the ruler of all weapons—show me your full power!'
Runes crept across his arms and neck; his aura exploded, demonic light burning in his eyes as if a god-demon had descended. In that obsession and hatred, in that fixation on power, Chi You's Sword fully demonized him. His strength soared—his reason vanished. His eyes brimmed only with feral, murderous intent.
"Lord Wei Zhuang!" Chi Lian cried out, face stricken. She started forward—only for Bai Feng to seize her arm. "Not now. In this state, he'll cut you down too."
"No matter how you struggle," Goku said evenly, "it's useless. Between you and me lies the gulf between man and god." He lifted a finger; for an instant, even time seemed to still.
---
Pfft—
A thread of golden light shot from Goku's fingertip, piercing Wei Zhuang's chest in a blink. Blood sprayed, blooming like a scarlet flower.
The towering demonic qi dissipated. Chi You's Sword slipped from his hand and stabbed into the floor.
"H… how…?" Wei Zhuang stared in disbelief. Even in this state, he had been felled in a single move. Only now did he truly grasp this man's terror—unbeatable. Darkness closed over his vision as he toppled.
"Lord Wei Zhuang!" Chi Lian flashed forward to catch him, feeling the faint thrum of his heart and letting out the breath she'd been holding. She lifted her head to face Goku, wary as a cornered tigress. However powerless she was against him, she would not retreat from the one she cared for.
Goku's brow twitched—her feelings for Wei Zhuang were unmistakable.
He understood: this world was a parallel plane of Qin's Moon. If one wished to change it…
"Aaah—let me go… no—let me go—!"
Gongshu Chou's panicked voice cut across his thoughts. Everyone turned to see that, at some point, he had inlaid the Dragon Soul into the colossal Bing Mo Shen. A terrible suction pulled at him—
and in moments, he was drawn into the giant's body.
"Not good—he's activated the Bing Mo Shen!" the High Priestess cried. "Hurry, Lord Goku—stop him! If it awakens, the world will face endless calamity!"
"No need. Let him start it," Goku said mildly, eyes on the bronze colossus. "I'm curious how powerful this so-called ancient giant really is."
"Lord Goku, this is no joke," the High Priestess protested, paling. "The Bing Mo Shen's terror is beyond human strength!"
"Indeed, Lord Goku," Gai Nie added. "That giant is… unsettling."
"Relax," Goku replied, unruffled. He reached down and tugged Chi You's Sword from the floor. Blood-red miasma surged along the blade and raced up his arm—
"Careful—!"
"Brother Goku!"
Xiao Li and the others blanched. If Goku were corrupted by the sword, they would all be finished.
"Heh. You dare try to erode me? Who gave you that courage?"
Goku smiled faintly and gave the blade a light shake.
A keening ring split the air, so sharp it seemed to pierce the eardrum; Tianming and the others clapped hands to their ears with a cry.
Chi You's Sword trembled violently, humming as though in pain—like pleading, like fear.
As a swordsman, Gai Nie felt it first—the sword's emotion. A flicker of shock crossed his eyes.
"That's strange… why do I feel like it's afraid?" Tianming blurted. "How can a sword be afraid?"
"You can sense it too?" Gai Nie glanced at him, surprised.
"As expected of an ancient demonic weapon—it's gained a spirit," Shaoyu said, awe in his voice as the sword gradually quieted in Goku's hand. "It's submitting to Brother Goku."
"It seems Chi You's Sword has found its true master," Gai Nie said gravely. "But Lord Goku, though divine, it remains a demon blade. Do not let it cloud your mind."
"A toy sword like this, erode my mind? Gai Nie, you're overthinking."
Goku flicked the blade; a clear note rang out. He smiled.
"Then I fret needlessly," Gai Nie replied, unreadable.
"In this world, only Brother Goku could call Chi You's Sword a toy," Shaoyu muttered with a helpless smile—then felt his blood stir.
'When will I ever stand so tall?'
"Haha! Fools! I've already activated the Bing Mo Shen! Its power is unstoppable—even you, Goku, cannot—"
Gongshu Chou's triumphant laugh rolled from within the giant as the caverns thundered. The motionless bronze colossus suddenly stood. The earth heaved; the cavern roof burst apart. The sky filled with the towering outline of the ancient giant at last.
Panic swept through Loulan.
A massive fist crashed down. The mountain above the forbidden ground shattered—half the peak pulverized in a single blow.
Boulders rained. Terror surged among the people below.
From the collapsing slope, Goku streaked out—left arm holding Xiao Li, right arm catching the High Priestess, Chi Lian slung over his shoulder.
Right behind him came Xiao Pixiu, wings beating through the hail of stone, with only Tianming and Shaoyu astride its back.
Two more figures flashed free—Gai Nie and Bai Feng—the latter supporting the still-unconscious Wei Zhuang.
_____
T/N:
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