The Immortal Emperor Returns

Chapter 253 Bled Dry

A dark look hung over Chu Xun’s eyes. What a cruel contrivance this was, to bleed the boy dry and compound it into pills.

Even from his height, he could smell the faint fruity aroma of the boy’s blood. That must be the innate properties of the magical fruit manifesting.

“What a rich scent,” the Grandmaster clutching the bucket grinned vilely, “The Young Master’s words might be true.”

Woosh!

Encouraged by what he saw, the Grandmaster holding up the boy swung his dagger again, adding another gash to expedite the process.

The terrified boy never stopped shuddering with panic. Even with his Acquired Realm strengths, there was no way he could do anything against the mights of two Grandmasters.

But it could be the magical fruit’s magical properties that whenever the assailants made a gash on him, it would heal quickly.

This prompted the assailants to stab and slice at him more frequently that he looked like a piece of steak.

“I would fancy a taste myself. Smell that sweety aroma!” gasped the Grandmaster holding the bucket. He could not help wanting a draught of the blood himself.

“You’re welcome to, if you’re not afraid of the Young Master’s punishment later,” teased his colleague.

“BEASTS!” yelled the half-Human King with all the strength he could summon, “You beastly animals!” Yet no matter how he tried, he just could not get up.

“What a racket,” said one of the Human Kings, “Just kill him and be done with it.”

A Ninth-grade Grandmaster drew nearer to the elderly half-Human King menacingly, hissing, “Let me send you on your way then, old fool.”

“You beasts! This is not the end, I swear it! Chu the Devil will have your hides for this devilry!” screamed the elderly man, his eyes resolutely steady with fearlessness.

“Wait up,” said the Human King, stopping the Grandmaster before he could strike, “You know Chu the Devil?”

“No, I don’t,” croaked the elderly man hoarsely with anger burning in his eyes, “But our chief does.”

“I see,” the Human King responded icily, his eyes glinting with malice, “The Tianwu Sect has ties with Chu the Devil. Well, I suppose that means that the Tianwu Sect will have to go as well.”

“Send word to the Leader,” barked another Human King, sounding just as malicious as his comrade, “Inform him that the Tianwu Sect has ties with Chu the Devil, so that he sends a detachment of men to exterminate them.”

“Understood,” responded a Grandmaster dutifully before he went to a corner and produced a handheld communication device to make the call.

Woosh!

A purple ray of light perforated his throat so stealthily that no one noticed.

Thud!

The Grandmaster’s body collapsed to the ground, spewing up dust and alerting the others.

“WHO GOES THERE?!”

One of the Human Kings yelped with surprise, and he summoned his Internal Breath and sent forth a bolt of energy.

But the bolt caught nothing; it slammed instead into the thick trunk of a tree so large that it would take the total arm’s lengths of two men to wind around it. With a loud bang, the ancient tree shook and dried twigs and leaves rained from its bough and a gaping hole opened at where the bolt hit.

“ARRGGH!” An excruciating scream from the Grandmaster hoisting up the boy pierced the silence of the night; something had lopped off one of his arms and blood sprayed uncontrollably out of the wound like a dam.

Puff!

Another squirt of fresh, hot blood reached as far as several meters. This time, it was the Grandmaster who was holding the bucket who was beheaded.

Come the time the rest of the Sifang Sword Sect realized what was happening, it was too late. Death was already upon them.

A shining cocoon of bright light wrapped around the wounded old man, swathing him in a protective shield.

“Fear not,” Chu Xun’s soft and soothing voice calmed the frightened young boy. A squirt of Hong Meng Immortal Qi entered his young frame and the lad felt himself regaining composure.

Chu Xun stole a glance at the pail on the ground. There was not much blood. Fortunately for the young lad, the magical fruits helped him to heal quickly and there was hardly enough blood to even fill the bottom of the bucket.

The boy recovered from his jitters.

Bang!

A Grandmaster struck at the cocoon-like enchantment protecting the old man, only for his blow to be deflected and he crashed backwards instead.

That startled everyone.

The faces of all three Human Kings of the Sifang Sword Sect fell. Exchanging quick glances, they readied themselves warily.

“Are you Chu the Devil?” asked one of them.

That came so unexpectedly that the Grandmasters around them all jumped with fright.

The elderly man and the young lad both have expressions of hope on their faces.

“What makes you say that?” asked Chu Xun, feeling peculiar instead. These men did not know him, yet how were they able to guess his identity so quickly?

“It is known that Chu the Devil has immaculate skills in conjuring enchantments and barriers.”

“I see,” Chu Xun realized at last. It was his use of the magical barrier that had betrayed him.

“Thank you so much, Immortal Chu, for saving us,” exclaimed the old man.

Chu Xun waved casually, saying, “Don’t mention it. Consider this a repayment of your Master’s kindness to me up at Xuanji Mountain before.”

Up at Xuanji Mountain years ago, it was the Master of the Tianwu Sect and Yan Yi who had defended his parents together when he fell.

Chu Xun cast another enchantment around the young lad to protect him.

Then he cast a look at the members of the Sifang Sword Sect, saying, “All of you. Together.”

Swoosh!

Before he even finished, Chu Xun vanished into a blinding light that shot at his foes, his fists raised aloft to strike.

With the animosity between him and the Sifang Sword Sect, coupled with their recent entanglement at Longcheng City, where the Sect helped the Broken Souls Cult to try to kill him, there was little reason to sue for peace.

Evidently, this was a sentiment shared also by the three Human Kings, who lunged as one too.

The brightness of the white bolt of light that was Chu Xun lighted up the darkness of the clearing, and the sheer magnitude of its aura, coupled with the three Human Kings’ created a miniature storm that screamed and ripped at the air, sending tremors that rustled the trees around them

Three other bolts of light charged at the single white light.

Chu Xun doled out three successive punches, each of them as terrible as the rumbling thunder.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

With three consecutive explosions, Chu Xun easily destroyed the other three magical bolts forged of Inner Breaths.

With his strength hardly waning, Chu Feng’s fists rained with unstoppable intensity and insurmountable dominance.

Bang! Bang!

The three Human Kings threw themselves again at Chu Xun, determined to bring him down. Miniature cyclones and explosions churned up by the sheer force and tension of their melee ripped the trees and foliage to shreds.

The air around him swirled with tongues of Immortal Qi that coiled even around his fists and arms whenever he swung them and with a sudden release of the Hong Meng Immortal Qi like a broken dam, he unleashed a shock wave that pummeled at all three Human Kings, sending them tumbling to the ground.

Sprawled on the ground, aghast looks of fear broke upon their faces. Only after a direct confrontation with Chu Xun, did they finally understood how powerful he was, and even now, their arms throbbed with pain from the forces of his blows.

Chu Xun bent slightly, gathering momentum. The ground cracked under the pressure he accumulated, and he kicked hard, lunging himself at his foes.

“Enough with this impudence, Chu the Devil!”

One of the Human Kings cried defiantly, swinging a finger to direct his attacks on the incoming Chu Xun.

Swoosh!

A ray of light—shaped like a sword—illuminated the night sky. Then more copies appeared until they hung in the air like a swarm of bees ready to attack.

“Humph,” snorted Chu Xun, “The Shadow Sword Technique.” He was no longer a stranger to this skill after his many run-ins with the Sect.

Chu Xun raised a hand and drew a rune, and the air suddenly grew tense with a thick aura of malice and blood.

The Formula of Kill!

The purplish rune of “Sha” materialized in midair and charged against the winds, slamming into the multitudes of energy blades like a battering ram.

Another shaking explosion ensued and the sky overhead completely flushed with burning conflagration as the sword-shaped energy bolts all erupted and dissipated helplessly.

Bang!

The giant “Sha” rune hammered into the Human King who conjured the Shadow Sword Technique and he collapsed with a grotesque howl before half of him was being squashed into bits of blood and viscera.

“Is this the only technique the Sifang Sword Sect has?” asked Chu Xun sardonically.

Hum!

The air trembled again. Another bolt of Sword Qi materialized in midair; a huge, gargantuan sword of light tens of meters tall looming overhead.

“Have a taste of this technique, Chu the Devil: the Origin of All Swords technique!”

Boom!

The gigantic Sword Qi-forged weapon came down with the force of an avalanche, rocking the earth and setting loose a rippling shock wave that blasted even trees and rocks into dust.

Chu Xun’s lips curled when he saw the blow coming. He flew up into the air, meeting it head-on. From every pore all around him, he released bursts of golden glow, and a coat of Immortal Qi glazed the surface of his skin. He could feel his insides trembling at his boiling strength and when he raised his fist, the air screamed with the roars of dragons.

Clang!

Sparks flew everywhere. Chu Xun smote his fist hard on the blade of the Sword Qi-forged weapon, only to emit the metallic grind of steel against steel.

Clang! Clang!

Undeterred, he let loose a flurry of punches, raining his blows like a hailstorm of fists. Thunders rumbled overhead and the air popped around them as if in resonance with his spiking aura and the intensity of his attacks.

Clang!

Another punch pounded on the blade of light. And this time, a crack appeared. It grew and stretched up the length of the Sword Qi-forged weapon and suddenly, the gargantuan weapon exploded into a confetti of small, harmless glows raining innocuously to the ground.

Puff!

With his magic forcibly destroyed, the Human King went as pale as milk. His aura plummeted without a warning and he anguishedly belched a mouthful of blood.

With his stance lowered, Chu Xun hurled himself forward and swung his fist, delivering another purple bolt of energy into the air.

Bang!

The blow met its mark, kicking up a fog of dust and blood spanning several meters around the clearing, and that was the end of another Human King—dead by Chu Xun’s mere fists.

“Nice parlor trick, by the way,” remarked Chu Xun dryly. Despite being opponents, the Origin of All Swords was beyond a doubt a very good technique.

The Sect dispatched three Human Kings for this mission. And now, only one remained, with one dead, and another nearly there.

“All right, come on. What else do you have? Try it now or you’d never have any chance again,” prodded Chu Xun.

The last standing Human King trembled with defeat. The Sifang Sword Sect did have a wide range of techniques and magic yet to be displayed. But he knew there was only so much he could do; his powers were almost on par with his other two colleagues whose attacks barely grazed Chu Xun, if not weaker.

Yet, still he remained to put up a strong face, “Humph. You think you’re ready for another test?”

He flung out his arms and a pair of Sword Qis shot out.

Swoosh!

The pair of Sword Qis turned to four, and four to eight, and eight to so many that the Sword Qis filled every corner of the sky, striking fear into anyone else present.

Swish!

The air screamed with the deluge of Sword Qis boring down on Chu Xun.

Chu Xun’s brows furrowed with boredom. He could not believe it, for it was the Shadow Sword Technique yet again.

Swoosh!

Unexpectedly, right after casting the Shadow Sword Technique, the Human King turned tail and fled.

“Coward, Ma Yuping!” cried the Human King still teetering to his last breath with his body half-destroyed like a squashed tomato angrily.

The rest of the Grandmasters of the Sect were all petrified with fear, panicking with incomprehensible words escaping their lips.

Chu Xun shook his head wearily. A dome of light appeared over him and he kicked, rising up into the air to meet the sky-full of Sword Qis.

Boom! Boom!

The energy dome shielding him clashed with the throng of Sword Qis hanging in the sky, and initiated a never-ending cascade of explosions like a magnificent display of fireworks.

Hovering in the air, Chu Xun waved his hand and more than a dozen of Reincarnation Lines shot like bullets and barreled through the throats of the remaining Grandmasters.

He did not neglect to send another one that drove right through the forehead of the Human King still living with half of his body, killing him instantly.

The Grandmasters were nowhere near as strong as the Human Kings, but they were complicit in the savagery of bleeding the young lad too earlier and none of them protested against it.

That relieved Chu Xun of any guilt in executing them.

The rain of Swords Qis descended on him as if to stop him. But Chu Xun zipped through them with the neck-breaking speed of Mach 2.5, left behind another sonic boom as he zipped through the torrential hailstorm of Sword Qis like a jagged lightning bolt. There was simply no chance for the Human King to flee.

In mere seconds, he caught up to the Human King and pounded a fist into his face, crushing his face into a bloody pulp.

A breeze blew by suddenly, whisking away the stench of blood in the air.

He went back to the old man and healed his injuries, then, with his sorcery, he channeled the boy’s blood back into him.

“Thank you so much for saving us, Immortal Chu. We’ll never forget this kindness,” said the old man, falling down on his knees.

Chu Xun hastily waved a hand and an invisible force lifted up the elderly man before his knees hit the ground.

“But why is the Sifang Sword Sect hunting you down?” asked a curious Chu Xun.

“It all started with a magical fruit...” the old man began his tale, looking positively morose.

As it happened, the boy was the only son of the Master of the Tianwu Sect. The boy had stumbled upon some ancient ruins during a hunting trip where he found a magical fruit and he ate it. Unbeknownst to him, the Young Master of the Sifang Sword Sect long knew about the existence of the fruit beforehand, although he failed to get into the ruins. The boy and his people left the ruins, only to be ambushed by the Young Master of the Sect and his men, all the way until here where only two of them survived.

Chu Xun gazed at the boyish face of the young man. So, this boy could very well carry a huge destiny in the future, he mused.

“So, why were you fleeing towards Wujin Mountain?”

“The Rock Sect shares friendship with us of the Tianwu Sect. When the Master heard about the Rock Sect’s trouble, he departed with his men to come here to help defend them. So we are here to reunite with him.”

Chu Xun nodded gently.

The old man and the young boy buried their dead men and left grave markers made planks carved from fallen trees.

When their work was done, all three of them journeyed together to Wujin Mountain.

Although neither of them knew that Wujin Mountain was already in danger.