The True Lord has arrived

Chapter 323 Only Killing Can Stop Killing
The merfolk, relying on their own abilities and the power of water element, created ripples that made the world glow with blue light. The high concentration of water element caused the humidity in the air to rise sharply.

The world was a dark blue, enveloping Zhou Yan.

Kaiming's figure flickered and appeared beside the child, who was still crying and pushing his mother and father, saying, "Waaah, I'll never be picky about food again, Dad."

"Mother, I won't argue with you anymore, and I won't ignore you."

"Wake up."

He had a big fight with his parents about the puppet before, and then he refused to talk to them in a huff. Now he was crying. Kaiming looked at the child who was crying so hard that he was a little dizzy, and couldn't help but sigh.

He thought of Jingwei, the youngest daughter of Emperor Yan...

A ripple of emotion flickered in Kaiming's eyes.

Zhou Yan plunged into the waves. The water vapor was so concentrated that it could envelop ordinary people, restrain the movements of Xuan Guan, make the martial artist's moves sluggish and his power insufficient, and suffocate him.

This is the true application of water-attribute supernatural powers.

It forms a barrier.

The next moment, a stream of crimson-gold fire exploded, tearing apart the large blue barrier. Zhou Yan stood in mid-air, holding a three-pointed double-edged sword in his hand. The blazing flames burned in his heart, and the crimson-gold light gathered around him, transforming into a huge Dharma image.

The golden-red energy dissipated and transformed into the shape of two arms, which held a three-pointed double-edged sword made of Geng metal evil energy. They slashed horizontally forward, and the golden and red energy instantly cut through the entire water element barrier!

The intensely blazing drought demon fire burned in reverse.

The water elemental was burned, turning into wisps of smoke.

The scattered fragments landed on Zhou Yan. Because the power of the Mermaid Tear he had just crushed and absorbed had obviously decreased, Zhou Yan's eyes turned fierce, and he swept his three-pointed double-edged sword horizontally, sending the heads of two Mermaids flying.

"kill!"

"kill him!!"

"He only has one—!"

Zhou Yan held the three-pointed double-edged sword in one hand, while his other hand was slightly clenched. Within his Dao Foundation, the Imperial Seal of the State slowly rotated, and the humanistic fortune surged out, wrapping around his body and transforming into armor, with his pale yellow battle robe billowing.

From the hem of his robe, a blue lotus, purely constructed from superior sword intent, flew out.

It transformed into a sword-like azure lotus, which was lifted up at Zhou Yan's feet.

The dense sword energy was also infused with the luck of humanity, rising and falling and swirling in succession. The sharpness and the vast and mighty killing aura combined with the luck of humanity to form the current form. Zhou Yan's own realm was originally only the sixth rank.

However, it took a trip through the accelerated time of [history].

It's equivalent to cultivating in a fairyland for three hundred years.

His cultivation level, through three hundred years of arduous training, was forcibly honed to the limit of the sixth rank, even with Zhou Yan's Dao foundation. Moreover, the purity and profundity of his magical power far exceeded the sixth rank.

At this moment, the [Qingyuan Miaodao Zhenjun] status is activated.

His cultivation level rose sharply, and finally, Zhou Yan slowly raised his eyes. His originally dark pupils rippled with gold due to the overwhelming divinity, and the divine form behind him, activated by the [Eight-Armed Seven-Headed Buddha Dharma Form], emitted a golden-red glow.

The surrounding energy was boiling, surging and turbulent.

The surrounding merfolk leaders stared at the figure, feeling a terrifying surge of energy. Their pupils contracted sharply, and a hint of shock, fear, and disbelief appeared in their eyes. They exclaimed, "...Fourth Rank, True Monarch?!"

Or perhaps, they've mastered the innate fire?!

A terrifying killing intent sent chills down his spine, and worry immediately filled his heart. He swept his azure spear and roared, "Go! Go!"

"Run immediately! Don't fight him!"

"The enemy is a top expert in the mortal realm, a fourth-grade divine true lord! Run immediately, now!"

The voice was devoid of its previous arrogance and unrestrained manner, filled instead with fear and terror, a pale ashes of a battle spirit utterly defeated. At the same time, the tall and robust merman pounced on Zhou Yan.

boom! ! !
The water ripples shifted and changed, condensing from the newly shattered knotted water elements into a technique similar to a Dharma form. This was a secret technique of the Merfolk, where, at the fifth rank, one could pay a certain price and use their essence and blood to unleash a method similar to a fourth-rank Dharma form.

A trident wreathed in water elemental energy appeared in his hand.

They attempted to assassinate Zhou Yan.

The trident's three-pronged blade carried an incredibly dense water elemental power. This water elemental power condensed the surrounding energy and transformed into a form resembling a serpent, lunging towards Zhou Yan. Zhou Yan slashed down with his three-pointed, double-edged sword.

The merfolk leader changed the way he wielded his trident, attempting to block the attack.

"You only achieved the fourth rank through special means."

Even if I am no match for you, I can still buy you some time.

With this in mind, he launched a full-scale counterattack, his three-pointed double-edged sword slicing into the gap between the blades of the trident. The immense force caused visible ripples to sweep across the body of the merman leader.

In that instant, the merfolk leader felt as if he had been struck by a mountain. Starting from the arm holding the weapon, his flesh and blood were propelled by this surging and powerful force, violently 'colliding' with his body and internal organs.

The merfolk leader spat out a mouthful of blue blood.

What a terrifying power!

Zhou Yan felt that the blessing provided by his [Mountain God Position] had increased by at least 10%, and his strength and physique had been improved in all aspects. The reason for this seemed to be that he was facing the [Water God's Familiar] at this moment.

The mountain god of this blessed land, known as the "Central Pillar," was stirred to battle and fury.

If this mountain hadn't lost its spirituality and existed only as a conceptual "central pillar," without any mountain god, Zhou Yan would even suspect that the mountain would have simply placed him on it, allowing him to warm up and fight on his behalf.

The merman coughed up blood, yet still clung tightly to Zhou Yan, shouting, "Run!"

"Run!"

Seeing their leader sacrifice himself, the merfolk cultivators' faces showed resentment, pain, and sorrow, and they vented their anger on the common people.

While fleeing, they continued to attack, using weapons unique to the aquatic tribes to viciously slash at the ordinary people they had already killed.

The murderous intent in Zhou Yan's eyes grew stronger.

"You think you can escape?!"

The merfolk leader, Jiao Sha, changed his expression drastically. He saw the coldness in Zhou Yan's eyes and, with all his might, held onto Zhou Yan, even at the cost of damaging his own Dao foundation, in order to delay his death, despite being at the fifth rank.

The merman roared in a low voice, "I'd rather die here than let you harm them."

Zhou Yan said, "No one can escape."

With a thought, a scroll worn at his waist flew out. The scroll rippled with golden light, drawn by the power of human destiny. It suddenly unfurled, revealing a scroll covered with butterflies, vivid, lively, and lifelike.

Zhou Yan said, "Go."

Suddenly, the painting "Tengdie Tu" (藤蝶图) shimmered with light, and the scroll itself seemed to become a portal. Butterflies fluttered their wings and flew out of the scroll, each with a graceful posture, but their flapping wings were extremely fast, heading towards the fleeing mermaid.

boom! ! !
With a sharp mind, Zhou Yan saw the butterflies precisely locate the fleeing merfolk, then pounce on them, detonating themselves and transforming into streaks of golden lightning that bombarded all directions.

Accompanied by the roar of thunder, the merfolk who had used water escape techniques to flee in other directions let out screams of agony, and were completely annihilated in the thunder, their souls and spirits dead.

The Jiao Sha sensed the death of its kin and its soul was annihilated.

His expression gradually froze.

At this moment, the entire Langzhong was transformed into a dark night without any light. The butterflies that had been released fluttered their wings, shimmering with a faint golden light, and flew in from all directions. Under the moonlight, Zhou Yan appeared like a celestial being.

All the butterflies merged into that painting. It consumed about 30% of its energy, but it can still be used twice more in one go.

After that, you need to replenish your energy in order to continue using it.

The "Tengdie Picture" was re-tied and flew into Zhou Yan's waist. All of this happened extremely quickly. Zhou Yan's killing intent was so strong that these golden butterflies showed no mercy. Only despair remained in Jiao Sha's eyes.

He suddenly roared, released his grip on Zhou Yan's arm, and lunged at Zhou Yan's chest. Zhou Yan, holding the three-pointed double-edged sword in one hand, blocked the attack with a single parry and then retaliated with a punch.

The Jiao Sha's grief, anger, and despair were completely shattered by this punch.

Not only did his magical power dissipate, but even his pupils lost focus. He was clearly beaten into a state of mental disarray. Zhou Yan grabbed him and slammed him into the ground. With a violent tremor, Jiao Sha's entire body was buried in the ground, and all his bones and muscles were broken.

Several breaths passed before Jiao Sha could barely regain his focus. He felt a ringing in his ears and his vision blurred. After a difficult struggle, he saw the Taoist looking down at him with cold eyes.

The merman was filled with sorrow, then suddenly burst into laughter: "Cough cough cough, hahahaha, you're sad? Hahaha, when my people were captured by you humans and forced to turn into pearls through tears, we were just as sad. This time, it's just revenge!"

"When the great god Gonggong is resurrected, when everything returns, we will make you pay the price. This is absolutely not the end... My death..."

The demon's eyes were bloodshot as it stared at Zhou Yan, a mixture of sorrow and rage in its gaze, followed by a sinister grin.

"We are simply giving them a taste of their own medicine."

Zhou Yan looked at the crazed merman and suddenly sneered. He stretched out his hand, clenched his five fingers together, and a gust of wind swirled, causing drops of merman tears to fly out. These were the tears left by the merman race in their boundless fear, pure water elements gathered into pearls.

Jiao Sha's expression froze as he watched Zhou Yan envelop the mermaid pearls in his palm.

The merman screamed, "What are you going to do!"

Zhou Yan already knew that this was the reason for the tragedy of the merfolk. For the merfolk, the mermaid pearl was the root of their past tragedies, imprisonment, torture, and the extraction of the pearl. According to Zhou Yan's nature, he was unwilling to commit more killings, but at this moment, hatred and murderous intent burned like fire.

Zhou Yan clenched his fists suddenly, gathering immense power.

Right in front of Jiao Sha, the thirty-odd Jiao Sha Pearls shattered into dust, and the water elemental power inside surged out. To Jiao Sha, it was as if he saw his own kinsmen and comrades being completely pulverized. He let out a frenzied roar.

"You, what are you going to do?!"

"No, don't, don't!"

Zhou Yan activated his Daoist techniques, directly absorbing the pure water elemental power. He sensed his own energy gathering, and his control over the water attribute and resistance to the water elemental power both improved to a certain extent.

The merman's eyes were vacant, his face a mixture of boundless sorrow, weakness, ruthlessness, and resentment. He said, "You, you madman... You even prevented them from returning to nature, you..."

"You will get your comeuppance."

Zhou Yan looked down at the Jiao Sha: "Retribution, perhaps."

"But now, I am your retribution."

"This is naked revenge and retribution."

The demon said, "—You!"

Standing amidst the bloodshed, Zhou Yan said, "Originally, I thought it was your tragedy that led to this situation. But now it seems that this was all about hatred. So there's nothing more to say. Evil is evil. You killed people for sacrifice, so I'll kill you to take the pearl."

“You killed more than two thousand people, so I will kill four thousand of you.”

"I have always kept my word."

The merman was finally frightened. He let out an angry roar and tried to struggle.

After facing the most terrifying scene, Zhou Yan thrust his three-pointed double-edged sword forward with all his might. The weapon pierced the Jiao Sha's head as if it were a watermelon, embedding it deeply into the earth.

The merfolk struggled for a moment before slowly dying. The souls of these merfolk surged into the magic jade talisman, causing its quality to subtly improve. The jade talisman changed from white to a faint blue, its texture became stronger, and its power increased.

The Jiao Sha's fear, terror, and worry coalesced into a single, enormous tear. Before dying, he cried out in anguish, "Gonggong, my vengeance for us..."

Zhou Yan held that single teardrop in his hand:
"Then I will take my revenge on him."

He killed the Jiao Sha, but he was slightly out of breath from the exertion. He slowly turned around and saw a despairing scene under the moonlight: corpses lay on the ground, like a scene from hell. The stench of blood in the air made it difficult for Zhou Yan to breathe.

Kaiming was rescuing people when he turned around and saw Zhou Yan.

He saw the self-blame and sorrow in Zhou Yan's eyes, different from his previous ruthlessness. Kaiming sighed – it was only natural to feel sorrow for one's kind. But then Kaiming's eyes flickered, and he saw a golden chain suddenly appear on Zhou Yan's left arm.

Those were the chains that King Yu used to seal the ancient serpent.

At this moment, the Gonggong brand on Zhou Yan's arm is locked.

A flash of insight struck Kai-ming; he suddenly realized something, and his expression changed drastically: "Zhou Yan, get out of here!!!"

Zhou Yan said, "What?!"

wow-

The chains on his arm began to shake violently, and dark waves rippled across his arm. The intense pain caused Zhou Yan's arm to be pulled downwards. Zhou Yan noticed that on the ground covered with corpses and blood, a blood-red light shone, transforming into an array.

On the blood-stained altar of the formation, blood-red chains spread out, locking onto Zhou Yan's arm and wrapping around it. Kaiming shouted, "Damn it, these merfolk sacrificed human blood to Gonggong. You killed them, and that guy is calling for Gonggong."

“We couldn’t have summoned you normally, but you just killed Qingyuan-jun.”

"Gonggong already left his mark on you!"

"While Yu the Great's chains are still effective, hurry back—!"

Zhou Yan said, "If I hadn't retreated," he shook his arm, "what would have happened?" Kaiming paused, completely unable to understand Zhou Yan's words, and said, "You would have faced Gonggong directly—!"

"Stop wasting time, come out now."

"Facing Gonggong head-on..."

Zhou Yan looked around at the people who had been murdered, the men whose stomachs had been cut open, the women and old people who had been impaled on guns and hung up, the children who had been beheaded... everything presented a humiliating and bloody ancient style.

Should we back down now?
Perhaps, but—

not enough.

Zhou Yan felt a suppressed anger and killing intent within him. He calmed down, swept his arm, and threw the chain binding his left arm away. One end was attached to Zhou Yan's arm, and the other end landed in front of Kai Ming.

Kaiming frantically grabbed the thing and asked, "What... what are you going to do?"

Zhou Yan looked at the blood sacrifice array beneath his feet: "I believe in you, Kaiming."

"If I really can't hold on any longer, then pull me back."

Kaiming stared in disbelief at the blood sacrifice array, which was now circulating faster because the chains had partially loosened, causing the seal on Gonggong's mark to weaken. He asked, "What... what are you going to do?"

"doing what?"

Zhou Yan gripped the three-pointed double-edged sword and said, "I'm not happy."

"My heart is unsettled, and my temper is agitated."

"Wait a moment—I'll be right back."

He exhaled, turned to look at Kaiming who had protected the survivors, as if his next action posed no danger whatsoever. With a hint of mockery, he said softly:
"Damn, let's give Gonggong a big beating!"

The Crimson Blood Sacrifice Altar is now open!
(End of this chapter)