Zanxing (Retranslated)

Chapter 334 - Offer (1)

The black water flow had become much gentler.

At the edge of the distant wilderness, the thick fog gradually dissipated, slowly revealing the shadow of a cliff.

This cliff, from top to bottom, was as if an entire mountain range had been brutally cleaved by a blade, slanting into the ground. Looking up, its end could not be seen, merging into the clouds and mist of the dome above.

“What is this?” Mu Cengxiao stepped forward, his gaze fixed on the cliff.

On the gray-black cliff, huge cracks were scattered haphazardly, resembling traces left by a spiritual weapon. These cracks were very deep, upon closer inspection, they almost penetrated the cliff by several inches. There was still a faint remnant of primordial energy on the cracks, and as soon as one approached, the remnants of this energy seemed to surge towards them.

Mu Cengxiao tightened his grip on the God-Slaying Blade and couldn’t help but take a few steps back.

“Who left this here?” Fu Ronghua asked in surprise, “To leave such marks and such profound primordial energy, even the top figures in the cultivation world today could hardly achieve this. These are sword marks, and this one is from a halberd?”

The deep marks on the cliff seemed to be left by a war halberd.

A fierce battle had once occurred here, but the person who left these battle marks on the cliff was no longer present.

Zanxing stood still, suddenly feeling a change in the celestial demon power within her body, as if something were calling to her. The begonia flower on her forehead began to bloom faintly.

Gu Baiying noticed her change, turned his head to look at her, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Zanxing shook her head, “It seems the celestial demon power has sensed something.”

Mimi at her feet appeared a bit restless. Ever since it had boarded the Black Dragon Fish, Mimi had not transformed into its lion form. It let out a couple of calls toward the distance and suddenly ran forward.

“Follow it,” Zanxing’s gaze sharpened.

The agile white cat’s figure moved like a light feather across the black wilderness. After running for an unknown amount of time, Mimi finally stopped.

“This is…” The crowd looked at what lay ahead, their expressions growing solemn.

In front of them was a massive deep pit, as if a powerful primordial force had slammed down from above, creating this enormous crater. At the top of the pit, several broken magical tools were slanted and embedded.

One was a purple jade flute, another was a green long sword, and in the middle was a blood-red war halberd split in two. The halberd was extremely tall and large, still retaining traces of demonic energy. As Zanxing approached, she immediately felt her celestial demon blood within her body start to boil slightly.

She was stunned, and before she could regain her composure, Fu Ronghua’s voice came from the other side, “Isn’t this the Suihua Sword of Fairy Qinghua?”

Years ago, Fairy Qinghua had slain the Demon King Gui Diaotang with a single strike of the sword at the Golden Gate Ruins, taking the demon’s corpse with her but leaving behind her cherished Suihua Sword, which had become too damaged to even have its sword spirit remain.

The group then turned their attention to the enormous blood-red war halberd, and Fu Ronghua murmured, “Could it be…”

“Menghun Halberd,” Bu Jiang, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. She walked up to the broken halberd and gently touched the spearhead, her gaze holding a distant look. “This is the Demon King’s weapon, the Menghun Halberd.”

Zanxing was taken aback.

Bu Jiang turned to look at Zanxing and smiled gently, “Zanxing, this is your father’s weapon.”

Demon King Gui Diaotang had been dead for many years. Over time, his appearance had gradually faded from people’s memories.

Now, with the appearance of this massive blood-red halberd, it instantly revived everyone’s memories of the Demon King. That handsome yet cold-blooded, gentle yet cruel man, who once wielded the gigantic Menghun Halberd, had brought one nightmare after another to the Duzhou Continent.

“This is the battleground of Qinghua and the Demon King,” Shaoyang Zhenren said, looking down. “This is where Qinghua killed the Demon King.”

Back then, no one had been able to enter the Golden Gate Ruins, so they were unaware of how fierce the battle had been. Now, however, through the marks on the cliff, the massive crater caused by primordial force, and the broken magical tools, they could glimpse the shadow of that great battle.

Zanxing remained silent.

She had never seen Demon King Gui Diaotang and could only gather an idea of who he was from others’ fragmented accounts. However, the feeling of standing directly before the halberd was far more intense than any secondhand description.

The residual demonic power on the Menghun Halberd resonated with her own demonic blood.

Fu Ronghua cleared his throat, “Those are things of the past. What’s done is done, we don’t need to dwell on it.” He glanced at Bu Jiang, concerned that the site might stir up her resentment towards the sect. To avoid any further complications, he spoke in a particularly cordial tone, “The Demon King went astray in the past, and Fairy Qinghua acted to save the common people. Now that the common people are in trouble once more, we, both humans and demons, should unite against our common enemy and work together. Isn’t that right, Demon Queen?”

Bu Jiang gave a sarcastic laugh and did not respond to his words.

Meanwhile, Mimi was hovering around the edge of the massive pit, tentatively scratching at it with her claws, appearing somewhat excited. She looked back at Zanxing and let out a few calls.

Gu Baiying was taken aback, “Is there something inside?”

The group paused, cautiously approaching the pit. As they drew near, they felt a dense energy emanating from within.

“Indeed, there’s something there,” Tian Fangfang said, surprised. “What could it be? It looks like… like…” He racked his brain but couldn’t come up with the right description.

“Looks like a seed,” Meng Ying said.

At the bottom of the pit lay a black, round object. It appeared to be a massive seed, unmoved and silent in the depths of the pit.

“A seed…” Zanxing’s heart skipped a beat. From this black seed, she sensed an aura similar to the Xiao Yuan Pearl. It wasn’t an illusion.

“This seed is quite unusual,” Daoist Lingxin said with a frown. “Should we investigate it? Apart from the cliff, there’s nothing else here. There’s no sign of the Imperial Platform’s chess board. I suspect the path to the Immortal Realm might be hidden within this seed.” Without hesitation, he reached for his Demon-Subduing Pestle to probe inside.

Daoist Lingxin was known for his impulsiveness, and Zanxing hadn’t had time to stop him. Suddenly, a powerful gust of wind carrying a murderous intent came from behind. She was startled, and just as she turned to dodge, she heard Gu Baiying shout, “Be careful!” As she moved aside, there was a crash—Gu Baiying’s Xiu Gu spear clashed with a long sword that had been thrust from behind.

The collision of spear and sword sent a surge of primordial energy that knocked those around them off their feet.

Pu Tao looked at the sword-wielding woman in disbelief and exclaimed, “Senior Sister?”

“She is not your Senior Sister,” Zanxing turned to face the smiling stranger in front of her, her expression growing cold. She said each word with deliberate emphasis, “Isn’t that right? Gui Yansheng.”

**

The halberd is a combination of a spear and an axe.