Martial Cultivator

Chapter 540: Blank Paper Floating, as if Life Itself

Chen Chao’s greatest trump card had never been the notion that some important figure would save his life at a critical moment, nor was it the mysterious white mist. It was that single page he had discovered earlier in the Sublime Bright Sect.

That mysterious piece of paper, written with unknown characters, had always been carried by Chen Chao.

This page had saved Chen Chao’s life many times before.

And this time, he expected it would be no different.

The paper hovered in mid-air as the torrent of demonic qi surged forward, finally coming into contact with the mysterious sheet of paper.

At last, a brilliant golden light appeared once more between heaven and earth after a long absence.

The wind and snow seemed especially dim in the presence of this golden light.

The ominous black demonic qi, which had initially blotted out the sky and the sun, now seemed like the faint glimmer of a grain of rice, utterly insignificant compared to the radiance of the full moon.

This mysterious piece of paper of unknown origin remained a mystery to Chen Chao even now. He had only managed to discern a single word, “I,” from its contents. Beyond that, he could only speculate that the cultivator who wrote this page must have long surpassed the Nepenthe Realm and was a powerful and mysterious figure not of this era.

Chen Chao had lured the great demon into going all out because he intended to use this piece of paper to severely wound the great demon in front of him.

In the face of this page, the Nepenthe Realm seemed utterly insignificant.

In an instant, countless waves of demonic qi were suppressed by the golden light, and then devoured by it. The great demon's face twisted with shock and fury, as he sensed an overwhelmingly powerful force, far beyond anything he could resist.

He did not know just how strong this force was, but he thought to himself: even if His Majesty himself attacked with full force, it would be no more powerful than this, right?

What was this sheet of paper that this young martial artist possessed?

The great demon's mind swirled with countless questions.

However, these doubts were instantly pushed to the back of his mind.

Then, he made a decision that would later prove to be incredibly foolish. He did not retreat immediately, instead, even while feeling the incredibly powerful aura, he chose to attack again.

He gathered all his demonic qi and launched another attack at the page.

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Cultivators had many similar spells. For instance, in the Sword Sect, there was the Sword Sect's great talisman. A great sword immortal would store sword qi within the talisman, so that in times of crisis, disciples could summon the great talisman, unleashing a peerless strike from a great sword immortal.

Such methods were not unique to the Sword Sect, the daoist and buddhist sects had them too, even the demon race. However, they all shared one flaw: they could only deliver a single strike.

After one attack, it would vanish like smoke, with nothing to fear.

The great demon had clearly assumed that Chen Chao's page was similar to such items. Initially, upon sensing the powerful aura contained within the page, he chose to resist head-on before attacking again. In his view, he presumed that the page would subsequently dissipate.

But things did not go as he hoped.

After the second attack, instead of vanishing, the page emitted an even more brilliant and powerful aura, with an even more dazzling golden light appearing once again.

Puuh--

The great demon was hurled backward in an instant, blood splattering everywhere.

The powerful aura made him feel as if his liver and gallbladder were about to burst!

Thus, after getting up, he had no intention of lingering and transformed into a surge of demonic qi, fleeing wildly into the distance.

In an instant, he had already disappeared from Chen Chao's sight.

Watching his opponent leave, Chen Chao finally spat out a mouthful of blood and reached out to retrieve the page that had been floating in front of him.

Everything had gone according to his plan, including initially provoking the great demon. If he could not make the opponent go all out, he would not be able to severely wound him in one strike. If he could not severely wound him, he would not be able to scare him into fleeing.

If even a single detail had gone wrong, everything might have been lost, but Chen Chao had no other choice. He was already standing on the edge of a cliff and had to make this decision.

Fortunately, he had won the gamble.

Chen Chao gasped heavily for air, lying back and breathing deeply.

Not everyone had the courage to gamble with their life, but Chen Chao had never lacked such bravery.

He had experienced it countless times before.

After a moment, Chen Chao sat up and looked towards the direction where the great demon had disappeared, his eyes reflecting a hint of regret.

If he had not been injured at this moment, he could have tried to risk his life and have a life-and-death battle with that severely wounded great demon. Perhaps he could have even slain that great demon in the end.

Killing a great demon from the demon territory at the Great Beyond Realm would have been far more shocking than slaying the demon princess who was of the same cultivation realm.

However...

Chen Chao gave a self-deprecating smile. It was already not easy to preserve his life, thinking about such matters was probably unnecessary.

After resting briefly, Chen Chao got up and continued walking forward. Since a great demon had already made a move, it was unlikely that he would only face one such demon from here on out.

His condition was deteriorating, and he might not be able to last more than a few encounters.

He might really die on the desolate northern plains.

Chen Chao sighed and inexplicably thought back to his first time hunting demons in the mountains. That year, he became the warden of Tianqing County. Despite his low cultivation realm, his monthly salary was used to temper his body, which was like trying to put out a cartload of burning logs with a cup of water. To continue advancing, he had to find other means. That night, after lingering at the entrance of the county town for a long time, Chen Chao went into the mountains with Cloud Mud that was broken back then.

That night marked his first solo venture into the mountains to hunt demons. He was nervous the whole way, and whenever he heard any sounds, he instinctively gripped the broken saber at his waist. On a small mountain, he was drenched in sweat before he had even covered half the distance. Over time, he had developed a habit of gripping the saber hilt; a habit that had started from then.

That night, his hard work paid off as he encountered a demon he could barely manage to handle. After a fierce battle that lasted half the night, he severed its head but also received his first genuine injury. Chen Chao remembered clearly the deep wound on his lower abdomen, he could almost see his intestines through it.

When he descended the mountain during the day, he nearly fainted several times but ultimately managed to make it home. He then spent half a month unable to get out of bed.

After that, he ventured into the mountains again and again, each time facing life and death. As his realm continued to rise, the scars on his body increased as well. New wounds layered upon old ones, and by then, he had grown accustomed to it. Chen Chao used to think that if he ever married, when he undressed on his wedding night, his bride would likely jump in fright at the sight of all his scars.

But while these scars looked frightening, what was truly terrifying was the moment each scar was made.

Before going to the Divine Capital, Chen Chao was truly a small figure, without any background or support. He had to rely solely on himself to make progress. Otherwise, when he first encountered Xie Nandu, he would not have risked his life for that bit of gold.

As a martial artist with no one behind him, his only way forward was to repeatedly temper his body and strengthen himself. But the resources required for such training were far beyond what a small warden in Tianqing County could afford on his salary.

Thinking back on those seemingly miserable days, Chen Chao smiled faintly. Life had been hard, but not unbearably so. The most difficult time was the year of the great flood in Wei Prefecture. To survive, he had no choice but to leave Wei Prefecture and make his way to Cang Prefecture.

That year, Chen Chao had seen too much of the warmth and coldness of the human heart.

When people were driven to the brink of starvation, they were actually no longer humans.

The scent of meat filled the air from large pots along the roadside. What was being cooked was none other than children.

The historical record's mention of "swapping children to eat" was summed up in just four simple characters.

But anyone who had seen such a scene firsthand would never think those four characters were simple.

Chen Chao paused, then opened his eyes. The clarity in them gradually gave way to a sense of confusion.

A cloud of mist rose from his heart to cloud his vision.

A voice sounded softly, "You fight so hard, yet in the end, aren't you still going to die? Why bother holding on?"

It was here.

The heart demon that had been suppressed before resurfaced once again.

Chen Chao chuckled, listening to the voice in his mind, shaking his head as he replied, "Doesn't mean I'm going to die. Back then, didn't I survive even when I was on the brink of death? This is nothing in comparison."

"So, how does the taste of human flesh feel? Still remember it in your heart?"

That tempting voice laughed. "After eating human flesh, can you still call yourself human?"

Chen Chao said calmly, "Stop wasting your efforts. Sooner or later, I'll destroy you."

As he said this, clarity gradually returned to Chen Chao's eyes. Though the heart demon had managed to surface briefly from deep within, he still suppressed it once more. It was not particularly dangerous, but it served as a warning to Chen Chao.

He exhaled a breath of white mist and chuckled softly, "The saber is still in my hand, how can I do so easily?"

……

……

By the banks of the Onan River, a snow-white eagle flew swiftly from the distant blizzard. It circled above the Demon Emperor for a moment before soaring off into the distance.

The Demon Emperor smiled, feeling rather emotional. "I underestimated him. Even a great demon couldn't kill him. It looks like he really can't be kept alive."

Autumn who had remained by her royal father's side looked puzzled and asked, "He didn't suppress his cultivation realm?"

The Demon Emperor nodded. "After lifting the suppression, the great demon ended up gravely injured instead. That young man carries something extraordinary. He hadn't used it earlier?"

Autumn shook her head.

In her battle with Chen Chao, both relied on their own cultivation realms, without excessively depending on external objects.

"It seems that kid is rather cunning, but now his location has been exposed. The desolate north is vast, and in his current state, he won't survive for long. Unless Great Liang sends someone too, but We will send people to intercept them."

The Demon Emperor said calmly, "He will die in the desolate north."

Autumn thought for a moment, then shook her head. "On the contrary, I think he'll manage to leave alive."

The Demon Emperor asked with interest, "Why?"

Autumn shook her head again. "I don't know. It's more like an instinct. I just feel he won't die just like this, he should die by my hand."