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In the stands, Hu Liena, seated in a VIP section, watched in horror as the bloody slaughter unfolded around her. The screams filled her ears, and the blood splattering onto her face caused her stomach to churn. She quickly vomited up her lunch.
Compared to the self-harming tactics of the old bat's manipulation, this one-sided massacre—where even the fallen ones' corpses were not spared, ground into pulp, and their blood fully squeezed out—was far more terrifying and repulsive.
Soon, the bat-like symbols around the Hell's Arena began to converge, and the Hell Road trembled. A shocking crimson light filled the surroundings, signaling the opening of the Hell Road.
With a sudden motion, Qian Renxue leaped over a thousand meters, arriving at the end of the Hell Road. In the vast sea of blood, the blood-red Shura God Temple had risen from the blood ocean at some point, its gates wide open, a blood-red abyssal spiral seemingly waiting for Qian Renxue to enter.
Qian Renxue stepped forward once again, entering the Shura God Temple. The space around him vibrated slightly, and his vision gradually cleared. However, what appeared before him was not the magnificent palace he had once seen, but instead a barren wasteland.
The land was black, devoid of any vegetation or life. The sky was blood-red, and even the drifting clouds were crimson. The air itself seemed thick with a heavy, metallic stench of blood.
In front of Qian Renxue, the Shura God stood with his hands behind his back, waiting on the blackened land.
Unlike the last time Qian Renxue had encountered the Shura God, this time the figure did not possess the six arms, nor was he clad in the blood-colored armor. Moreover, the aura emanating from him was unexpectedly close to Qian Renxue's own.
"Are you ready?" The Shura God's deep, ancient voice suddenly rang out.
"I was ready the moment I arrived here, Master." Qian Renxue smiled faintly as he unsheathed the Shura Demon Sword from his back. Kneeling on one knee, he offered the sword to the Shura God with both hands.
The Shura God turned around and smiled in approval, taking the Shura Demon Sword. "Very well. The Ninth Trial of Shura. The challenger, Qian Renxue. The task: Defeat the previous Shura God. Begin."
The blood-colored space trembled slightly as countless chains surged into Qian Renxue's body. His twelve-winged Fallen Angel martial soul, all of his soul rings, soul bones, and even his Yin-Yang Complementary Twin Soul Core were sealed. In fact, even the killing energy absorbed by his Fallen Angel Domain was locked away. The only soul power available to him now was his Shura Sword martial soul.
In the blood-red space, Qian Renxue, dressed in black, gripped the Shura Sword, while the Shura God, dressed in blood-red, wielded the Shura Demon Sword. The two stood facing each other, barely ten steps apart.
Suddenly, both Qian Renxue and the Shura God's eyes flashed with a crimson light. Their arms trembled rapidly, and an invisible sword intent erupted from both of them. Two identical sword intents collided violently, transforming into visible blood-red whirlpools.
Where the whirlpools collided, sword energies were shattered, and the ground below was instantly torn apart, riddled with deep gashes.
In just a few breaths, the Shura God's right hand, trembling from the intense motion, slowly lifted. Qian Renxue's black clothing and skin were sliced by the sword Qi, blood spilling out, and the blood-red whirlpool pressed down upon him.
In the next instant, Qian Renxue stomped the ground, charging forward. He cleaved the Shura God's blood-red vortex in half with a single strike, swinging his sword at the Shura God.
A smile tugged at the corners of the Shura God's lips as he, too, swung the massive blood-colored sword in his hand. The sword, two meters long, danced in his grasp like a nimble serpent, moving in harmony with his towering frame.
The clash of the two swords erupted with a shower of sparks.
In the sky, the two figures—one black, one red—collided and simultaneously crouched as they landed on the ground.
As the Shura God rose, a strand of purple hair fell from his forehead, landing at his feet.
Before Qian Renxue could even smile, a sharp, painful slash appeared across his face, and a new bloodstain marred his cheek.
"Qian Renxue, what is the Way of the Sword?" The Shura God suddenly asked.
Qian Renxue was momentarily confused as to why the Shura God would ask such a question, but he still answered, "The Way of the Sword involves sword practitioners who make the sword their primary weapon, integrating their body and mind with the sword, forming a sword heart that is one with the self, striving to reach a higher level of power."
The Shura God shook his head slightly and said, "The Way of the Sword consists of two parts. One is the sword we hold in our hands. The sword lives as long as the wielder does; if the sword breaks, the wielder dies. The other part is the sword heart within us. As long as both exist, even if our body is destroyed, the sword still carries our will and shines brightly."
"This land," the Shura God continued, "was my final battlefield when I ascended to godhood. I should not have been called the Shura God. My title should have been a single word: Kill."
"I entered the Dao through killing, and that is how I attained my godhood. This dark land is stained with the blood I shed as I carved my path."
"The Way of Killing," the Shura God explained, "should follow one's heart. Anything that stands in the way, anyone or anything that causes discomfort, can be erased. Through this path, we elevate our strength. However, you focus too much on strength and neglect the essence of the Way of Killing. Sometimes, you kill just for the sake of killing, causing your sword heart to weaken and making you vulnerable."
Qian Renxue thought to himself, sighing. In a way, he and the Shura God were similar—both were limited by the rules of the gods and their respective positions. As the Shura God, he had to oversee the boring affairs of the divine realm, and his own sword heart was filled with scars.
"Focusing too much on power, neglecting the essence of the Way of Killing, and even killing just for the sake of it?" Qian Renxue recalled the time he had eradicated the Clear Sky Clan. His reasoning for wiping them out was to prevent any future threats from talented disciples. However, according to the Way of Killing, the Clear Sky Clan's leader, with his mere 96th-level cultivation, didn't deserve such a fate. Yet, he had carried out the massacre for the sake of the Spirit Palace.
Qian Renxue sighed, realizing that to walk the path of the Way of Killing, he had to abandon all irrelevant emotions and act solely for himself. His attachment to his family, his feelings for the Spirit Palace, were all hindrances to his sword heart.
Emotions for family and the Spirit Palace weren't inherently wrong, but they should aid his path. Unfortunately, the Qian family and the Spirit Palace had become two burdens holding him back. If Qian Dao Liu hadn't caused trouble for him, he would have already taken his head. But because of his attachment, he had let him live, and that had weakened his Way of Killing.
"Do you understand now?" The Shura God's voice was gentle, "Your talent is sufficient, and your understanding of the sword is deep enough. But your heart is lacking, which leaves no possibility of defeating me. As your master, I will give you a chance. Go, heal the wounds to your sword heart. You should know exactly when your heart was damaged."
With a wave of his hand, a blood-red vortex appeared next to Qian Renxue, and the scene of the Hell Road materialized once again.
Qian Renxue fell into deep thought. To heal his Way of Killing, the people who had caused him emotional turmoil—Qian Dao Liu, Qian Xunji releasing Bibi Dong, and Qian Xue going undercover in Heaven Dou City—would all have to be killed. These three had caused his emotions to fluctuate significantly, and the fact that he had spared them had weakened his heart.
Unless he truly eradicated these people and perhaps even destroyed the Spirit Palace, he couldn't fully heal his Way of Killing.
But Qian Renxue shook his head, saying, "Master, life is full of things we cannot control. Some things... I cannot let go. When I have such family, such a vast power, it is my destiny."
He let go of the Shura Sword, sighed, and said, "If erasing them is the only way to perfect my path, then I would rather give up this path altogether."
(End of Chapter)