The remaining half of the skeleton completely came apart, transforming into ninety-nine white bone nails.
Every one of them burned with bonefire.
“White Bone Soul Nails!”
The ninety-nine bone nails drove into the Demon Lord’s arm.
The Demon Lord’s movements faltered.
Seizing the opportunity, the Blood Prison Demon Sect powerhouse struck the crack in the Demon Lord’s chest with a punch.
Boom!
Black demigod blood gushed forth.
The Demon Lord groaned.
The wound in his chest was forcibly widened.
Wang Hao’s eyes lit up.
The Blood Tax Token began to stir again.
But he forcibly held himself back.
Moving now would make it too easy for the Demon Lord to notice him.
He had to wait.
Wait for something bigger.
The Sword Ruins powerhouse no longer had a sword.
He was also nearly too weak to continue fighting.
Yet, as he looked at the crack in the Demon Lord’s chest, he suddenly sat down cross-legged.
His body began to turn transparent.
Wang Hao’s heart skipped a beat.
“Sword Ruins elder, what are you...?”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse replied calmly,
“I still have one sword left.”
Wang Hao frowned.
“What’s the price?”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse answered evenly,
“My life.”
Wang Hao fell silent.
This time, he did not make a joke.
Because he understood.
The Sword Ruins powerhouse was not merely talking tough.
He truly intended to turn his life into one final sword strike.
The Sword Ruins powerhouse looked at Wang Hao.
“Wang Hao.”
“I don’t like you.”
Wang Hao nodded.
“I know.”
“Not many people do.”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse said,
“But you did say one thing right.”
“People are not skins.”
“Nor are they scraps in a lake.”
“If the Demon Lord becomes an immortal, all Nine Provinces will become a lake of skins.”
Wang Hao’s gaze darkened slightly.
The Sword Ruins powerhouse continued,
“If I die, and the disciples of Sword Ruins enter Great Xia, you are not to burden them with harsh taxes.”
Wang Hao considered it.
“They should still pay the standard taxes.”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse: “...”
He stared at Wang Hao.
Wang Hao sighed.
“Fine.”
“Sword Ruins disciples will be tax-exempt for three years.”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse closed his eyes.
“Thirty years.”
Wang Hao’s face stiffened.
“Senior, isn’t thirty years a bit...”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse’s body began to transform into a sword.
“I have one breath left.”
Wang Hao gritted his teeth.
“Deal!”
The Sword Ruins powerhouse smiled.
“You really are an emperor who never acts without profit.”
Wang Hao replied earnestly,
“I merely respect market negotiations.”
The next instant—
The Sword Ruins powerhouse transformed entirely into a streak of sword light.
There was no majestic sword aura.
No dazzling radiance.
Only a thin line.
A line that cleaved from the mortal world toward a demigod Dao Fruit.
“Final Sword Ruins Art.”
“The Mortal World Shall Not Perish.”
The sword light passed through the Demon Lord’s chest.
The Demon Lord’s body abruptly froze.
A distinct sword mark appeared upon his demigod Dao Fruit.
Crack.
The fractures in the Dao Fruit widened.
The Sword Ruins powerhouse was gone.
Between heaven and earth, only a wisp of sword intent remained, circling without fading.
Wang Hao gazed at that wisp of sword intent, his heart sinking.
Another Martial God had fallen.
The price of this encirclement and slaughter was too terrible.
But a battlefield would not pause for tragedy.
The Demon Lord let out a pained roar.
“Ants!”
“You all deserve to die!”
He tore apart the Yellow Springs chains with both hands, unleashing an overwhelming eruption of black fire.
The Yellow Springs Ancestor was blasted away.
The White Bone Old Monster’s bone nails all shattered.
Half the Blood Prison Demon Sect powerhouse’s body was consumed by black fire.
The Taiyin Old Matriarch and the other two were sent flying backward as the waning moon collapsed.
Though the Demon Lord’s injuries had grown even worse, his desperate outburst remained terrifyingly powerful.
He suddenly opened his mouth.
A horrifying suction force surged from the dark immortal gate.
“Devouring Heaven Demon Burial!”
All the blood, souls, qi, and bones across the battlefield streamed toward his mouth.
The lingering essence left behind by the fallen Martial Gods.
The demonic qi within the ruins of Black Heaven City.
The lingering resentment of the Lake of Human Skins.
Even the scattered demigod blood.
All of it was drawn back toward him.
Wang Hao’s expression changed drastically.
“Not good!”
“He’s going to forcibly reclaim all his power!”
If the Demon Lord absorbed it all back, part of the advantage they had fought so hard to gain would be wiped out.
More importantly, the half-immortal blood Wang Hao had just secretly collected began to tremble inside the token, as though it was about to be sucked back as well.
Wang Hao flew into a rage on the spot.
You can hit me.
But stealing my money?
Absolutely not.
He clamped a hand over the Half-Immortal Blood Tax Token.
“Once something enters my pocket, you think you can take it back?”
“Dream on!”
The Blood Tax Token blazed with dark golden light.
The imperial blood qi within Wang Hao’s body poured into it.
The vague imperial silhouette on the back of the token seemed to open its eyes.
A peculiar majesty spread outward.
It was not martial pressure.
It was more like the collection of tribute mandated by Heaven.
The half-immortal blood being drawn toward the Demon Lord suddenly split in two.
Most of it flew toward the Demon Lord.
But a smaller portion was forcibly withheld by the Blood Tax Token.
Wang Hao’s eyes shone frighteningly bright.
“So it can be used like this!”
The Demon Lord noticed as well.
He could scarcely believe it.
He was using the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Burial, yet someone actually dared to intercept taxes halfway through?
“Wang Hao!”
Even the Demon Lord’s voice changed.
Wang Hao answered with perfect righteousness.
“Senior.”
“I am collecting in accordance with the law.”
“You do your swallowing.”
“I’ll do my collecting.”
The Martial Gods: “...”
This kid really had gone insane.
Enraged, the Demon Lord made the suction force of Heaven-Swallowing Demon Burial even more terrifying.
Quite a few severely injured Martial Gods were dragged so hard that they could barely keep their footing.
Wang Hao’s gaze darkened.
He knew he could not allow the Demon Lord to keep absorbing.
He had to interrupt him.
But the Martial Gods had been scattered by the blast, and few were still capable of fighting.
He lowered his head and looked at the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Tower.
The Thunder Dragon on the ninth floor could not move again for the time being.
The Thunder Phoenix on the eighth floor could still be released once, though only barely.
The New Emperor Sword was cracked, but after absorbing the half-immortal blood, its fighting spirit had become even fiercer.
Wang Hao licked the blood from the corner of his mouth.
“New Sword.”
The New Emperor Sword said in a trembling voice,
“Master, what are you planning to do now?”
Wang Hao said,
“We’re going to chop his mouth.”
The New Emperor Sword fell silent.
A moment later, it grew excited.
“Now that’s thrilling!”
Wang Hao shot into motion.
The blood qi of a ninth-layer Martial God erupted.
The imperial phantom followed at his side.
Rather than charging the Demon Lord head-on, he raced around the edge of the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Burial’s pull.
The suction force of a half-immortal was terrifying beyond measure.
An ordinary Martial God would have long since been dragged off balance.
But while using the Heaven-Imprisoning Earth-Overturning Palm to stabilize the space around himself, Wang Hao also borrowed the suction force to accelerate. Instead of being pulled in, he carved a bizarre arc along the battlefield’s edge.
Yellow Springs Ancestor’s eyelids twitched.
“That kid is borrowing the Demon Lord’s strength?”
Coughing up blood, Taiyin Old Matriarch said,
“Madman.”
White Bone Old Monster replied weakly,
“No.”
“He isn’t crazy.”
“He just can’t bear to see his half-immortal blood get sucked back.”
Everyone fell silent.
That did seem to be the case.
Wang Hao grew faster and faster.
The suction force should have dragged him toward the Demon Lord.
Yet he continuously adjusted his angle, moving like someone riding the waves amid a violent storm.
The eighth floor of the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Tower opened.
The Thunder Phoenix flew out.
Silver and black radiance intertwined around the New Emperor Sword.
Wang Hao gripped the sword with both hands.
“Nine Swords That Split the Heavens!”
All nine swords became one.
The Thunder Phoenix coiled around the sword light.
Dark golden radiance from the Half-Immortal Blood Tax Token clung to it.
This sword strike was not merely a slash.
It also carried an exceedingly strange power of collection.
Wang Hao swung his sword at the center of the Demon Lord’s Heaven-Swallowing Demon Burial.
“I told you!”
“Anything that has entered my accounts—”
“Is not being returned!”
Boom!
The sword light cleaved into the dark vortex.
The Heaven-Swallowing Demon Burial was forcibly torn open.
The Demon Lord’s suction force faltered.
Great masses of the blood qi and souls drawn into the air scattered and collapsed.
The pressure on the Martial Gods abruptly lessened.
Yellow Springs Ancestor’s eyes lit up.
“Now!”
The Taiyin Old Matriarch forced her battered body onward and unleashed another blast of Taiyin frostlight.
The Blood Prison Demon Sect powerhouse roared and hurled out the remnants of the sea of blood.
The White Bone Old Monster, left with nothing but bonefire, transformed it into a white fireball.
The surviving Martial Gods of the sacred lands and demon sects all seized the opportunity, launching their attacks at the Demon Lord.
The Demon Lord’s Heaven-Devouring Demon Burial was interrupted, and he suffered a backlash.
The sword scar left by his Dao Fruit on his chest widened further.
Behind him, the dark immortal gate shook violently.
Crack!
Another fissure split across the immortal gate.
At last, the Demon Lord staggered a step.
Since the battle began, this was the first time he had truly lost his footing.
The Martial Gods were greatly encouraged.
Wang Hao was sent flying, crashing heavily into the ruins.
The New Emperor Sword was embedded nearby, smoke rising from its blade.
“Master...”
“I think we hit him in the mouth.”
Lying in the crater, his face covered in blood, Wang Hao laughed.
“Good.”
“I’ll award you first-class merit when we get back.”
The New Emperor Sword said weakly,
“Is there a reward?”
Wang Hao replied,
“Yes.”
The New Emperor Sword waited eagerly.
Wang Hao said,
“Your reward is getting to keep living.”
New Emperor Sword: “...”
It should never have asked.
In the distance, the Demon Lord slowly raised his head.
His aura had begun to weaken noticeably.
The peak of his all-out burst, fueled by burning his Dao Fruit, had already passed.
The backlash from that stick of incense’s worth of power was also nearing its final stage.
But that made this moment all the more dangerous.
Because there was no longer only fury in the Demon Lord’s eyes.
There was also an utterly mad resolve.
He looked at the others, then at Wang Hao.
Suddenly, he smiled.
“Good.”
“This Lord admits it.”
“You ants truly are worthy of making this Lord pay the final price.”
Wang Hao climbed out of the crater, his heart tightening.
Whenever a villain said something like that, it was never a good sign.
Sure enough.
The Demon Lord slowly turned around.
He did not charge at them.
Instead, he looked toward the dark immortal gate behind him.
The Martial Gods’ faces changed drastically.
The Taiyin Old Matriarch cried out,
“Stop him!”
“He wants to sacrifice the immortal gate!”
The Demon Lord spread his arms, and his entire body began to merge into the dark immortal gate.
That immortal gate, riddled with cracks and on the verge of collapse, erupted with an unprecedented black radiance after swallowing his flesh.
The Demon Lord’s voice resounded across heaven and earth.
“If this Lord cannot become immortal,”
“Then all of you shall be buried beneath the immortal gate with this Lord!”
Wang Hao’s expression instantly darkened.
Sacrificing the immortal gate.
He intended to drag them all down with him.
The dark immortal gate slowly opened a narrow crack.
Beyond it was not the Immortal Realm.
It was an endless abyss of demons.
ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
