Chapter 173 — Escape

A warm current roared up from the region of his heart and burst outward—pure yang breath, scattering straight through his meridians. His whole body shuddered, and for a moment his mind was clear. With a great shout he gathered the cultivation of a lifetime and hurled it forth; lightning and thunder flashed through his mind, the three volumes of the Heavenly Book swept past in an instant, and the three hues of blue, gold, and red rose at once upon his face. Faint though they were, life returned to him.

The Great Brahma Prajna spanned his heart-veins, the true dharma of the Buddhist gate holding firm, and even the Immortal Slayer paused for a moment. Seizing that instant's respite, with the Taiji Mystic Purity Way as his path, Ming Li's right arm in an instant swelled to twice its size; a dark red radiance raced through it, flowing from the arm into Soul-Eater. Yet just as he meant to strike back and flee, the Immortal Slayer's devouring demonic force broke through the Great Brahma Prajna once more. In a heartbeat Ming Li's whole body went numb; he could not move, and that thread of clarity in his mind dimmed once again.

By now, to those watching, Ming Li's face was withered and dry, little different from a dead man's. Song Dayi and others who had once had some acquaintance with Zhang Qingyue all turned their heads away, unable to bear the sight.

Just then, when the outcome seemed settled, the Soul-Eater in Ming Li's hand suddenly lit up. A dark blue-green radiance slowly surged, like one waking slowly from deep slumber; the Bloodthirst Orb at its tip kindled again with threads of uncanny red, and deep within the orb, never before seen, beneath the blue-green glow and the blood-threads, golden Buddhist true words rose up.

The true dharmas of the three gates—Buddha, Dao, and Demon—at this very moment, in Ming Li's final desperate blow at the brink of death, had truly become one.

The Bloodthirst Orb shone brighter and brighter, its strange yet gorgeous light flickering without cease. Then the whole of Soul-Eater blazed up, as though crying out something, and a moment later, from the junction of Soul-Eater and the Immortal Slayer, another muffled report rang out.

Only then did people notice anew that aside from Ming Li's left hand, Soul-Eater, gripped in his right, had also been clinging to the Immortal Slayer all along, and had never fallen away.

The uncanny light on the Bloodthirst Orb grew brighter and brighter, three-colored rays revolving and turning, and a low sound, like the murmur of ancient demons from ages long past, slowly issued forth:

"Wu... wu... wu..."

A wisp of red vapor, translucent and crystalline, was first wrenched out from the sword-scar on the Immortal Slayer and drawn into Soul-Eater. It tumbled within the Bloodthirst Orb, seeming still to resist, but soon it could be seen that it was subdued and conquered by the strange breath within the Orb, slowly transformed to a pale red—a small part assimilated by Soul-Eater, but the greater part sent back through Soul-Eater into Ming Li's own body.

Once this strange change began it did not stop. Red vapor was ceaselessly devoured from the Immortal Slayer; as more and more was drawn in, the strengthened Soul-Eater shone ever brighter, and Ming Li, replenished again, gradually recovered his color. The skin of his face slowly returned from withered dryness to its former state, and stranger still, took on a faint, mild luster.

The red glow upon the Immortal Slayer, from its blazing peak, now seemed powerless against the devouring demonic force of the Bloodthirst Orb, and slowly dimmed, while Soul-Eater grew ever more luminous. The Canglan Sect people around them were no fools; by now most could see that something was wrong. Plainly this demon Ming Li had secretly worked some sorcery or other, and the Immortal Slayer seemed scarcely able to hold out against it.

After a stir and a clamor, suddenly several shouts of rebuke rose from the crowd, and at the same moment several beams of enchanted light flew at Ming Li. At this moment Ming Li's whole mind was fixed on his struggle with the Immortal Slayer, and he had no attention to spare for what went on around him; he made no response at all. A moment later those several enchanted weapons struck him full and square upon the back.

Ming Li's body convulsed; his qi and blood surged, his throat turned sweet, and another mouthful of fresh blood sprayed out—straight onto the Immortal Slayer. The sword had already fallen silent, but with this sudden spatter of blood, a red light flashed and it seemed once more to gather strength. Ming Li felt it in his own flesh; before he could even heed the grave wound at his back, he felt within his body that the Immortal Slayer's monstrous devouring force had suddenly swelled again.

Lightning and thunder flashed through his heart; he understood that this was truly the narrow line between life and death. If the Immortal Slayer regained its ascendancy, he feared he would have no chance left at all, and would end withered and drained. At this thought he gave a wild roar, cast all caution aside, and with every ounce of strength in his body, with the cultivation of a lifetime, with the divine power of the three true dharmas just now comprehended as one, he struck with all his might.

No one saw Ming Li make any move; they only saw him take the blows of several magic treasures head-on, blood spraying from his mouth. The red glow of the Immortal Slayer flickered, and just as it seemed about to flare bright, a tremendous roar and shriek burst forth between Ming Li and the Immortal Slayer, mingled with the sound of bones cracking and snapping. Ming Li's whole body was driven out by some vast and inexplicable force, like an arrow loosed from a bowstring, streaking over the heads of the crowd and falling far off into the distant woods.

The Canglan Mountain disciples were struck dumb with shock, frozen where they stood. After a long moment, someone came to his senses and shouted, "After him! We must not let that fiend escape!"

The cry woke them all, and in an instant countless figures were speeding toward the place where Ming Li had fallen. Everyone present had seen it plainly: Ming Li had been gravely wounded in his duel with the Immortal Slayer, and now was the perfect moment to hunt him down.

The crowd rose into the air and gave chase, one after another, until only the people of Great Zhu Peak and Little Zhu Peak remained rooted to the spot. Song Dayi and the others could neither give chase nor not give chase; they could not bring themselves to pursue him. And on Wen Pei's side there came a cry of alarm—Lu Xueling had fainted dead away.

As the women of Little Zhu Peak rushed in frantic confusion to tend to Lu Xueling, a sound suddenly emerged from amid the uproar—a sound most faint and small.

Faint as it was, somehow it was sharp as a needle, piercing into the heart of every Canglan Mountain disciple present. It was like the sound of something quietly breaking—coming from the Immortal Slayer beside them.

Every face drained of blood at once, as though that soft sound were the echo of the world's last day. Slowly they turned their heads, as though the motion cost them all their strength.

Under the gaze of all, the legendary Immortal Slayer—the ancient sword standing quietly point-down in the stone flags of the ground—gave out once more a tiny, minute sound of shattering from the fine crack, now widened, upon its plain old blade.

The crack slowly grew, creeping outward—slow, yet irresistible—spreading across the plain and once-sacred blade, until the Immortal Slayer gave voice once more:

Crack!

With a sound so light and crisp, half the blade, together with the hilt, fell to the ground, while the other half remained thrust into the earth.

In that instant, everyone was stunned, breathless, their minds utterly blank...

The Immortal Slayer!

The ancient sword Immortal Slayer!

Broken...