"Shang'er." A benevolent voice echoed directly from the white great sun.
Qin Shang, his heart filled with hatred, quickly responded, "Ancestor! Shang'er is here!"
The white radiance quietly dissipated, and a slender old man with white hair and white robes appeared amidst the battlefield of blood and fire.
His calm and detached expression was so out of place with the scene of corpses strewn everywhere and the heavens and earth overturned, causing Qin Shang, who saw him, to fall into a daze.
The Ancestor, this immortal who remained unfazed even when the sky fell, was perhaps the true immortal who had forgotten all emotions!
Original Immortal Venerable slowly turned around, paying no heed to the Demon Lord and the host of true demons behind him.
The old man patted Qin Shang's head, as kindly as he had during their conversation in the bamboo forest:
"You've suffered, child. This war must have cost you a great deal?"
Hearing this, Qin Shang's protagonist tears welled up in his eyes. In this moment, he was no longer the Dao Master of Immortals, but merely a child cared for by an elder in his family.
"Your child does not suffer! As long as these demons can be eradicated! Your child is willing to follow Ancestor, spending thousands upon thousands of years! To forge a new cultivation world!"
Original Immortal Venerable gently stroked Qin Shang's hair:
"Then, I wish for Shang'er to do one last thing for me. Are you willing?"
Without a second word, Qin Shang replied, "Please speak plainly, Ancestor! Shang'er is at your command!"
The slender old man laughed heartily upon hearing this:
"Good! Good! My Original lineage is fortunate to have you, child!"
"Since you agree! Then, lend your life to this old man!!!"
*Riiip!*
The withered hand stroking his head suddenly exerted force, and with a snapping sound,
Qin Shang's head was violently torn from his chest,
Blood gushed out from the severed neck. Qin Shang, the Dao Master Immortal, was now as fragile as a mortal in Original's hands!
Original Immortal Venerable chuckled as he held up Qin Shang's head. With a casual wave, the remaining nine Dao Master Immortals behind him all knelt down.
Looking at their eyes, they were clearly puppets devoid of any self-awareness!
Qin Shang was not yet truly dead. Blood surged from his mouth, and amidst the metallic tang of rust, he stared fixedly at the ever-smiling old man beside him, murmuring,
"Why? Why?!"
Original Immortal Venerable smiled without speaking, while in the distant demon camp, a shocking change also occurred!
The black great sun slowly retracted, also transforming into human form.
And the nine Dao Master Demons all knelt down, their eyes vacant just like those Dao Master Immortals, having long been refined into puppets.
Some Dao Master Demons who sensed something was amiss tried to escape, but the moment the Demon Lord appeared, they were reduced to dust with no power to resist.
As the Demon Lord stepped through the air, Qin Shang, upon seeing his face clearly, had his eyes bulge with fury!
It was a slender middle-aged man, but Qin Shang immediately recognized that this Demon Lord, who had always been mysterious, looked exactly like the Immortal Venerable in his middle age!
At this moment, Original Immortal Venerable suddenly raised Qin Shang's head and calmly asked,
"Shang'er, do you understand now?"
Beside him, the Original Demon Lord's eyes held no pretense of benevolence, only endless malice and mockery.
Qin Shang stared intently at the Ancestor he had always admired the most, his voice hoarse as he said,
"It was you... Immortal Venerable is you! The Demon Lord is also you!! Original, what is your scheme? This entire world is on the brink of destruction from the war! The human immortal path is almost eradicated!"
"The lands and rivers painstakingly established by human martyrs will likely return to the demon race!"
"What do you gain by doing this?!?"
Before Original Immortal Venerable could answer, the Demon Lord beside him impatiently pulled out a seemingly ordinary iron sword:
"Kid, who says this world will return to the demon race?! Look at those four-legged snakes! They are all here!!"
The iron sword appeared unremarkable, yet it bore hundreds of dragon-shaped patterns. Those dragon patterns writhed continuously, as if countless true dragons were roaring in agony.
"Haha, I never expected that after so long, the demon race would only nurture such a small number of true dragons. I wonder if they'll be enough later!"
"Demon! You talk too much!" Original Immortal Venerable glared at the Demon Lord with displeasure. The Demon Lord shrugged, and with a sneer, he closed his mouth.
Original Immortal Venerable brought Qin Shang's head closer, maintaining his benevolent demeanor:
"Child, I was once like you. I loved this land, loved our kin, and I even loved the demons who oppressed us."
"That is why, after they exited the stage of history, I did not pursue them."
"Even when I ordered the demons to slaughter the other demons, I kindly allowed them to leave some roots."
"Do you know why I summoned you back then? It wasn't because your cultivation was fast enough, but because I felt you were very much like me."
"Like the me who still had a conscience!"
Qin Shang was stunned. He looked at the still benevolent old man before him, but for the first time, he faintly grasped his true nature:
"Madman... you are a madman!"
Upon hearing this, Original Immortal Venerable was pleased and fixed Qin Shang's head in mid-air:
"Yes, a madman. Did I go mad while researching demon bloodlines? Or did I go mad while cultivating the primal beasts?"
"Did I go mad when I comprehended qi and blood? Or did I only go mad after embracing spiritual energy?"
As Original Immortal Venerable spoke, his voice layered upon itself, as if countless voices were repeating endlessly.
"Right, it was at the very beginning, when the primal beasts devoured my family, when I watched my parents' limbs turn to pulp between those bone-white teeth, that I went mad..."
"Heh heh, I want to live, to live until the end, to become the strongest!"
"But, too weak! The demons are too weak!!"
"So...."
"I founded the Demon Court and guided the demon race!"
"I secretly cultivated countless primal beasts, disrupting the balance, and triggering the great calamity of primal beasts!"
"I found the blood from beyond the heavens, and with it as the core, forged the strongest dragon race!"
"I assisted the dragon race, causing the complete annihilation of primal beasts in the world! The era of demons began because of me!"
"Dragons were merely combat tools I created. They appeared to be high and mighty, but the ape race, which I led, was the supreme ruler of the demons!"
"But I was still not satisfied... because I would still die!"
"No matter how many bodies I changed, even replacing my brain several times!"
"But my soul was still aging!"
"I once tried to become a dragon, but the dragon's bloodline rejected me. That was also the longest period of my slumber!"
"When I finally woke up again, I was delighted to find that the world had become broader! And at the same time, a very peculiar power appeared between heaven and earth!"
"That was spiritual energy!"
"Under my leadership, the ape race made every effort to create forms more suitable for spiritual energy!"
"The human race, began because of me!"
"The immortal path, started because of me!"
"I am Original!"