Zanxing (Retranslated)

Chapter 230 - The Ten Thousand Killing Formation (1)

“Activate the Ten Thousand Killing Formation.”

“Sect Leader!” Meng Ying suddenly looked towards Shaoyang Zhenren.

Xuan Lingzi’s expression changed, and he quickly exclaimed, “Master, think twice!”

Hong Su sensed something was wrong and asked Men Dong beside her, “What is the Ten Thousand Killing Formation?”

Men Dong’s voice trembled, “….It is a formation specifically designed to deal with demonic beings. Any demonic creature that falls into this formation will be turned to dust.”

The Ten Thousand Killing Formation was created from the heart blood of Gui Diaotang, who died at the hands of Fairy Qinghua. His soul was completely annihilated, and his heart blood was used to create this formation. This formation did not harm humans or fierce beasts but exclusively targeted demonic beings. No demonic creature could survive once trapped in this formation. After Gui Diaotang’s death, most of the demonic beings left behind were annihilated by this formation.

If Zanxing was truly a demonic being… today, there was no chance of survival.

“Good!” Before Xuan Lingzi could continue pleading, Daoist Lingxin coldly said, “Activate the Ten Thousand Killing Formation!”

“Master,” Yue Qin said with some reluctance, “The Ten Thousand Killing Formation is no small matter. Once the formation is activated, it cannot be closed until the end of the ten thousand killings….” In other words, the formation cannot be closed until all demonic beings within it were dead.

“Yes, yes,” Li Danshu and Cui Yufu also said, “Sect Leader, it hasn’t reached this point yet…”

“Hasn’t reached this point?” Daoist Lingxin’s gaze flashed, and he looked at Li Danshu with a murderous intent: “It seems that the dead are not your Taiyan Sect’s disciples. Should I slaughter all of Taiyan Sect today and then discuss whether it has reached this point with you?!”

Rong Shuang stood opposite Shaoyang Zhenren, her beautiful face frozen with frost, her tone as cold as ice: “Currently, this method is the most fair.” She cast a glance at Zanxing, her eyes filled with undisguised disdain: “If we have wronged her, and she survives the Ten Thousand Killing Formation, I, Rong Shuang, will personally apologize to her. If she is a demonic being…” She sneered, “Then you should reflect on why a demonic being was able to infiltrate the sect and pretend to be one of your disciples for so long.”

Fu Ronghua of the Yinfeng Sect, dressed in a resplendent golden robe, always played the role of a good-natured person. Now, he maintained the same demeanor, smiling as he said, “Indeed, let Miss Yang try the Ten Thousand Killing Formation. After all, if she is not a demonic being, it will cost us nothing. Even if this gets out, no one will say we old folks bullied a young girl.” He looked at Zanxing with a smile, his tone carrying an inescapable dominance.

Zanxing did not respond.

The galaxy hung like a curtain above their heads, spilling its myriad of starlight. The wind on Gufeng Mountain was tranquil, yet danger lurked everywhere.

Shaoyang Zhenren waved his sleeve, and in an instant, numerous red columns of light rose from the vast mountaintop. These columns made the night as bright as day, forming a cage-like barrier. The central column blazed furiously, as if it were a giant pillar reaching to pierce the heavens, capable of incinerating all things in the blink of an eye.

“Divine Fire Pillars.” Mu Cengxiao frowned slightly.

“The Ten Thousand Killing Formation is indeed composed of forty-nine Divine Fire Pillars. Junior Sister is in danger.” Meng Ying tightened her grip on the Moon Soul Sword, “Once she enters this formation, she is doomed to die.”

The formation was still some distance from Zanxing, but the moment it appeared, she immediately felt a wave of coldness. Despite the pillars being some distance away, she felt as though her entire body was being scorched, compelling her to instinctively retreat.

As she turned to flee, a black long spike suddenly descended from the sky. The spike, initially the size of a palm, rapidly grew enormous as it fell towards Zanxing, resembling a sharp lance. It pierced through her spine from above and drove her into the ground.

With a poof, Zanxing spat out a mouthful of blood. The pain from her spine nearly made her lose consciousness.

“Hmph,” Daoist Lingxin coldly snorted and withdrew his hand from earlier: “This is the treasured Dragon Bind Spike of our Chihua Sect. When Qinghua from your sect dealt with the Demon King Gui Diaotang, I lent her the Dragon Bind Spike. I didn’t expect that twenty years later, you’d have the honor of experiencing its effects. Even if you die, it will not be in vain.”

“This scoundrel!” Cui Yufu was so angry that veins popped on his forehead: “The Dragon Bind Spike does not only harm demonic beings, he’s doing this deliberately!” While the Ten Thousand Killing Formation would not harm ordinary people, the Dragon Bind Spike, being a spiritual weapon, would severely injure anyone it pierced, potentially even ruining half their cultivation. Zanxing was currently only at the Golden Core stage.

“This Dragon Bind Spike can bind Gui Diaotang, let alone you?” Daoist Lingxin suddenly darted towards Zanxing, grabbing her by the collar and, treating her like a piece of cargo, threw her into the Ten Thousand Killing Formation.

Boom—

In an instant, flames soared into the sky. The forty-nine Divine Fire Pillars surged upward, as if alive. The central cluster of flames spread rapidly across the ground like flowing water, forming a cage with the other pillars, trapping everyone inside.

“Ah—” The sound of a blood-curdling scream came from within the formation, causing even the uninvolved disciples to shiver uncontrollably.

“Miss!” Hong Su, held back by those around her, was on the verge of breaking down.

“Junior Sister Zanxing!” Tian Fangfang brandished the Qianyang Axe fiercely, attempting to rush into the formation, but was repelled by the formation before he could get close.

“Useless,” Meng Ying murmured, “With our cultivation levels, we cannot enter this formation.”

Mu Cengxiao’s God-Slaying Blade could slay gods and demons, yet it was unable to cut through a pillar of the formation. As soon as he approached, the flames from the pillars wrapped around the God-Slaying Blade, rendering his power useless.

Men Dong clung to the Daoist Yueguang’s leg, pleading desperately: “Master, please beg the Sect Leader! She will really die, she will really die!”

The screams continued. Zanxing was trembling all over from the pain. The Divine Fire Pillars surrounded her, preventing her from moving a single step. Meanwhile, the Xiao Yuan Pearl, which had always protected her life, was desperately trying to resist with its internal energy. However, the black energy seemed to fuel the flames, making them burn even fiercer.

“She is reacting,” Fu Ronghua’s eyes shifted.

Rong Shuang looked at Shaoyang Zhenren with a calm gaze: “It seems she truly is a demonic being.”

“So what if she is a demonic being?” Daoist Lingxin’s gaze grew more frenzied as he watched Zanxing struggle within the formation. His expression turned mad as he said, “A demonic being is just right! The Ten Thousand Killing Formation is designed to kill from one to ten thousand. It will only close after the completion of the ten thousandth killing. This formation contains Gui Diaotang’s heart blood, specifically targeting demonic beings. Past demonic beings couldn’t survive even a hundred kills, the weaker ones died with just one. How many kills do you think this demoness can endure?”

“She managed to hide her demonic identity in the Taiyan Sect, much more capable than we imagined. Demonic beings are cunning; do not underestimate them,” Rong Shuang said indifferently.

Zanxing felt as if her entire body was being roasted in a blazing fire. For a moment, she suddenly remembered Yin Li, the small merman who bravely charged into the Demon Extermination Formation for his beloved in Li’er Country. Did he also endure such pain? The torment was unbearable—how did he manage to endure it?

The smell of charred flesh gradually wafted from the formation.

“Miss…” Hong Su had cried to the point of being physically drained, her gaze at the formation filled with despair.

“First the flesh is burned, then the bones,” Li Danshu, who had always been sarcastic, now spoke through gritted teeth: “The power of the Ten Thousand Killing Formation means she won’t last until the end.”

Zanxing rolled within the formation, trying to curl up to reduce the areas being burned, but the flames seemed to seep into every possible crevice. They entered her organs through her breath, making it impossible to escape.

First, her flesh was scorched. She felt her skin burning and blood seeping out. She couldn’t see what she had become, but it was surely far worse than the scars from the Yu. Next, she felt her bones slowly melting, losing the strength of her skeletal structure. She couldn’t even move, she could only lie on the ground like a lump, letting the flames sear her body.

“Third kill: spiritual essence. Fourth kill: soul…”

The spiritual energy was gradually depleting, and Zanxing felt as if her body had turned into an empty sack, a mere shell. The flames penetrated deeper into her body, tearing and then burning her soul to ashes. This intense pain seemed to extend to the Wuyou Staff beside her, which trembled slightly, as if recalling old memories, emitting a crisp ringing sound.

Indeed, the Wuyou Staff was once a sword, a sword with a sword spirit. The craftsman who wanted revenge for his daughter had traded his own soul to forge the sword spirit. Zanxing’s current experience was likely akin to the torment the craftsman endured when he threw himself into a blazing furnace, his soul being refined by the fire.

Zanxing let out a pained howl, but her throat was burned, and no sound came out.

“…Fifth kill: divine perception. Sixth kill: elixir.”

The flames burned fiercely, seemingly never to extinguish. Zanxing gradually lost sight and hearing, feeling nothing but repeated pain. Her once-consolidated elixir, the verdant and vibrant core, withered and faded under the Divine Fire Pillars, eventually dissolving into water and evaporating completely, leaving nothing behind.

Mu Cengxiao’s gaze tightened slightly: “Junior Sister…”

As a fellow member of the Miaokong Hall, Mu Cengxiao knew better than anyone the effort Zanxing had put in. Before the rooster’s crow, he practiced on the Chu Hong Terrace; at night, when the moon was hidden behind the clouds, he also practiced on the Chu Hong Terrace. The path of cultivation was lonely and harsh, and he always saw Zanxing practicing during countless mornings and nights.

The proud and willful young lady of Yuecheng seemed carefree on Gufeng Mountain, but only Mu Cengxiao knew how hard she worked behind the scenes. He knew Zanxing had tried desperately to make up for the foundation she lacked in her youth. She had studied the Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff repeatedly, her body bruised from countless strikes, all to better understand Fairy Qinghua’s inheritance.

Now, under the Divine Fire Pillars, all her past efforts turned to nothing, becoming a fleeting spark among the countless pillars, shining brightly for a moment in the night sky, then vanishing completely.

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Hey guys, stay tuned for the upcoming chapters. It’s gonna be a nerve-wracking ride!