txolops Chapter 79 Collapse
Chapter 79 Collapse
The night was as dark as ink, permeating every corner of the outer city of the Demon City.
There were no stars or moon here, only pale bone lamps hanging on deformed skeletons, emitting a faint, cold light that illuminated the surging heads and demonic shadows below.
Inside the tent, in the shadows cast by the intersecting beams and pillars, Huang Chen's figure blended into the darkness.
He looked down and saw that the main hall below was brightly lit, with a pungent and unpleasant smell of demonic energy mixed with the scent of blood and sandalwood.
"The General Account Night Market is now open!"
A long, drawn-out screech pierced the clamor, and in the center of the hall, a massive abacus made of countless wailing skulls was slowly pushed out.
Huang Chen's gaze was icy as he scanned the mission that had just appeared on the system panel.
Side Quest: Cut Off the Outer City's Main Account
[Mission Objective 1: Capture the Coordinates Master Ledger]
[Mission Objective Two: Destroy the Coordinate Corridor]
[Mission Objective 3: Rescue the Captive Humans]
Without the slightest hesitation.
Waiting will only allow more humans to be treated as commodities, branded with coordinates, and sent to an abyss of no return.
He took a deep breath, and with a thought, the long-silent stone tablet engraved with the figures of ancient human sages—the Humanity Prison Monument—suddenly appeared in his palm.
Upon handling the stone tablet, a vast, desolate, and ancient aura instantly emanated from it.
"Now!"
'
Huang Chen no longer hid; his figure plummeted like a meteorite from the shadow of the dozens of feet high beam!
He did not choose any demon cultivator as his target. His target was the heart of this sinful tent—the massive array core that covered the hall floor and connected all blood pacts and coordinate teleportation!
"boom--!"
A deafening roar, as if the sky had collapsed and the earth had split open.
Holding the Humanity Prison Suppression Stele, Huang Chen smashed it with tremendous force into the most dazzling blood crystal at the core of the array!
In an instant, a visible golden ripple, centered on the Prison Suppression Stele, swept across the entire tent with overwhelming force!
This power is filled with the absolute power to suppress all evil and heretical forces.
puff!
puff!puff!
Inside the lobby and outside the streets, hundreds and thousands of hanging bone lamps seemed to be extinguished by an invisible hand, bursting and going out one after another!
The light receded in an instant, and boundless darkness descended.
"what!"
"Formation!"
The formation has been broken!
"My blood pact...my contract is dissipating!"
'
Panic screams and angry roars echoed through the night sky. The demon cultivators who had just been trading "live goods" were horrified to discover that the soul connection between them and their contracted slaves was being forcibly severed and purified by a powerful force.
At this moment, the blood pacts, soul bindings, and coordinate teleportation patterns of the entire outer city simultaneously fell into an unprecedented state of stagnation and chaos.
Huang Chen struck successfully and did not stop.
He threw a backhand punch, the force of which was wrapped in dark golden witch clan battle patterns, directly shattering the row of slave cages made of human bones beside him.
"roar!
'
Just as the wolf demons guarding the cage were about to pounce, Huang Chen didn't turn his head and waved his left hand behind him.
A phantom of a twelve-petaled karmic fire lotus suddenly bloomed, the crimson karmic fire forming an insurmountable barrier that protected the terrified children and trembling laborers within.
When the karmic fire touched the wolf demons, they didn't even have time to scream before they were reduced to ashes in the raging flames.
"Walk!
'
Huang Chen uttered a single word to the rescued humans. His Mountain and River Boots flashed with light, and he transformed into a blur, rushing towards the coordinate stele corridor behind the tent.
That is the key node that holds the entire human trafficking network together.
Just then, a cold, emotionless voice rang out from the entrance of the stele corridor.
"How dare you run wild in the City of Ten Thousand Demons."
'
In the darkness, a slender, tall figure dressed in a black robe slowly emerged.
He had no facial features; his face was a smooth, black, jade-like mask, as if he were wearing the oldest and most eerie mask.
He is the ruler of this place, the black-faced contract officer of the tent tower.
He held twelve pale white bone mirrors, each about the size of a palm, in his hands, reflecting Huang Chen's rushing figure.
"town!"
As soon as the contract officer finished speaking, the twelve bone mirrors trembled simultaneously, shooting out twelve gray rays of light that intertwined in the air to form a net, instantly blocking all of Huang Chen's paths forward.
The light was not a physical substance, yet it carried a chilling power that could freeze the soul.
"Human race?"
He's a madman who's practiced the witch clan's body tempering techniques.
The black-faced contract officer spoke in a calm tone, seemingly unconcerned about the chaos before him.
He opened the book he was holding in his other hand, a book made from a whole piece of human skin.
On those pages, blood-red names and coordinates seemed to writhe, as if they were alive.
"Let me see your background... Oh? Interesting."
'
He stretched out his withered finger and pointed to one of the pages. Several twisted bloody characters suddenly appeared on the cover of that page—[Traces of the Valley of Fire].
"So it was those bedbugs hiding in the Hundred Thousand Mountains."
'
He smiled contemptuously, as if he had already pronounced Huang Chen's death sentence.
Huang Chen suddenly stopped in his tracks, his eyes narrowing.
From that living ledger, he not only saw records about the Valley of Fire, but also several familiar names that stirred up murderous intent in his heart.
[Crimson Flame Demon King, Dingmao year, traded goods, three thousand survivors, traded for a fragment of a treasure from the Xuan Tian Sect.]
】
[Zhao Wuji, born in the year of Gui Chou, on credit, exchanged seven Northern Sea Soul Seeds for ten human Golden Core cultivator souls.]
[Chu Yunfei, Jia Yin year, clearing accounts...]
It turned out to be the case.
From the Gale Gorge to the Xuan Tian Sect, and then to the remnants of the Northern Sea, all the enemies he had slain, all the sins stained with the blood and tears of the human race, ultimately flowed like streams into the sinful river of the City of Ten Thousand Demons.
This network was bigger and deeper than he had imagined.
"die!"
Huang Chen squeezed out a single word and ignored the twelve bone mirrors blocking his way.
The bloodline of the Witch Clan within him boiled completely, and the dark golden Pulse Fire Battle Domain burst open!
boom!
Within the domain, all the chilling aura was burned and evaporated by the raging pulse fire. The twelve gray rays of light collapsed instantly.
"Um?"
For the first time, the black-faced contract officer uttered syllables with emotion.
Huang Chen's figure had already appeared in front of him. A punch, simple, direct, and brutal, carrying the righteous energy of the Prison Suppression Monument and the destructive power of the Pulse Fire Battle Domain, slammed hard into his face.
The contract officer reacted extremely quickly, and the twelve bone mirrors instantly returned to defense, forming a mirror shield in front of him.
Click!
The fist collided with the mirror shield, and the three-sided bone mirror shattered into dust on the spot!
The contract officer grunted and was sent flying backward by the force of the impact.
Huang Chen pressed his advantage relentlessly, taking a step forward and catching up like a ghost, grabbing a terrified demon market guard standing nearby.
"I'll use you to pave the way!"
He grabbed the bull-headed demon cultivator and, like swinging a sledgehammer, smashed him hard into the coordinate stele corridor next to him!
"No!"
The bull-headed demon cultivator let out a desperate roar.
Boom!
Blood and flesh flew everywhere as a stone pillar inscribed with the coordinates of hundreds of humans was smashed in half, and countless blood-red runes were extinguished amidst wails.
[Merit +1200]
[Karma +3500]
A system notification sounded in my mind.
You're asking for it!
'
The black-faced contract officer was utterly enraged. He steadied himself, and the leather ledger began to flip without wind, gushing forth thick streams of resentment and curses.
But Huang Chen's target wasn't him at all.
After smashing the first stone pillar, he used the momentum to turn around and, like a tiger descending a mountain, crashed headfirst into the depths of the stele corridor, unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks, each strike accompanied by the heavy echo of his Mountain and River Boots.
Boom! Boom!
boom!
He ruthlessly smashed and kicked the stone tablets that recorded his crimes!
Countless blood pacts linked to these coordinates broke in response on the distant other side of time and space.
"Stop him!"
At all costs!
The contract officer let out a sharp roar, and the remaining nine bone mirrors shone brightly, attempting to lock onto Huang Chen.
However, with the support of the Pulse Fire Battle Domain, Huang Chen's speed reached its limit. He dashed left and right through the narrow corridor of steles, and the guards of the demon market could not even touch the hem of his clothes. Instead, he grabbed them at will and used them as "meatballs" to smash into the stone tablets.
In the chaos, Huang Chen seized an opportunity and grabbed the living ledger that was floating in the air.
The contract officer's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly retrieved the general ledger.
Stab it!
With a piercing tearing sound, Huang Chen actually snatched half of the general ledger from his hands!
[Mission Objective 1: Capture the Coordinates Master Ledger (Partially Completed)]
[Mission Objective 2: Destroy the Coordinate Corridor (Partially Completed)]
[Mission Objective 3: Rescue the Captive Humans (Mostly Completed)]
"you……!
'
The black-faced contract officer stared at the tattered account book in his hand, his smooth black face seemingly radiating endless rage.
Huang Chen didn't even look at him, turned around and left. The Karmic Fire Red Lotus swept up the rescued humans and was about to rush out of this chaotic place.
However, the contract officer suddenly calmed down and let out a cold sneer.
"You think this is the end?"
'
He slowly raised his right hand, holding a crystal-clear bone tooth that exuded an ominous aura.
"The rules of other cities are the rules."
'
"If you break the rules, you'll pay with your life."
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly exerted force with his five fingers.
Click!
The bone tooth that was carrying the message shattered instantly.
An indescribable, terrifying pressure seemed to traverse endless space and instantly descended upon the sky above the outer city of the Ten Thousand Demon City.
That aura far surpassed that of any demon cultivator here, and was even more powerful and profound than any enemy Huang Chen had previously killed.
An indescribable, terrifying pressure crashed down from the sky.
That was not magic, nor demonic energy, but a purer, more ancient, and more profound "rule".
It was as if an invisible mountain appeared out of nowhere above the heads of every living being, pressing down on them and making their souls tremble and their bones crack.
Alarm bells rang in Huang Chen's mind. He suddenly looked up, his gaze piercing through the torn roof of the tent and looking at the night sky stained with blood-red moonlight.
"You can't escape."
The black-faced contract official leaned against the dilapidated platform, a morbid pleasure appearing on his cold face for the first time.
"Outside the City of Ten Thousand Demons, there are ironclad rules. Anyone who dares to challenge these rules will be crushed into dust."
'
He had barely finished speaking.
Boom—!
A deafening roar came not from the sky, but from the very top of the tent. It was as if an invisible giant foot had descended from the clouds and precisely struck the crown of this sinful building.
Tiles, beams, and stones turned to dust in an instant and exploded in all directions.
A gigantic figure, billowing with dust, crashed heavily into the ruins of the tent.
The figure was three zhang tall, and its entire body was covered with an extremely thick set of bone armor.
The armor was not pure white, but rather had an eerie grayish-yellow hue, and was densely covered with countless tiny blood-red runes.
Upon closer inspection, the armor was made up of pieces of human bone fragments and demon bone remains that had been forcibly melted, twisted, and pieced together.
Each piece of bone armor was shrouded in a thick aura of resentment and death, as if countless souls were imprisoned within, wailing day and night.
He simply stood there, and the terrifying pressure solidified into a tangible form, distorting the surrounding space.
The outer city's bone decree, the demon general guarding the scene.
A terrifying being capable of suppressing all riots in this city of sin. Its power is already infinitely close to the threshold of Celestial Immortal.
"grown ups!"
The black-faced contract official prostrated himself respectfully, not daring to even raise his head.
The bone-armored demon general ignored him, its head, covered by a hideous bone helmet, slowly turning, its eyes burning with ghostly blue flames, instantly locking onto Huang Chen, who was holding half a book of general ledgers.
"Human race?"
'
The sound he made was like countless bone fragments rubbing against each other, dry and harsh.
"The rules have been broken."
'
Without further ado, he raised his giant hand covered in bone armor and made a grasping motion towards Huang Chen.
hum!
The armor he wore, forged from countless contract bone fragments, suddenly erupted with a blinding crimson light. The crimson runes seemed to come alive, transforming into crimson chains that danced and intertwined in the air.
Even more terrifying, the broken stone tablets that Huang Chen smashed also resonated, and the extinguished coordinate runes showed signs of being relit!
The armor of this bone-armored demon general is actually the "mother pattern" of all the coordinate stone tablets!
He could reactivate all the coordinates at any time if he wanted, and even lead to more and more hidden human hideouts.
The torch!
The thought flashed through Huang Chen's mind instantly. Once he relit it, the coordinates of the Valley of the Flaming Fire would be completely exposed to the City of Ten Thousand Demons!
"Dream on!"
Huang Chen roared, no longer hesitating.
With a thought, the ancient and simple phantom of the Humanity Prison-Suppressing Stele instantly appeared behind him, and then rapidly solidified and enlarged!
"town!
'
He poured all his magical power and blood energy into it, and the Prison Suppressing Stele emitted a deep rumble, as a vast and profound aura of human destiny poured out like a torrent.
That aura specifically counters all curses and contracts targeting the human race.
The blood-red light collided with the shadow of the monument, producing a sizzling, corrosive sound in the air. The coordinate runes that attempted to be relit flickered under the oppressive power of the Prison Suppression Monument, their light ultimately being suppressed and fading back into darkness.
"Um?"
For the first time, a hint of surprise appeared in the Bone Armor Demon General's pair of ghostly blue eyes.
"A humanitarian treasure?"
He seemed intrigued, taking heavy steps that left a deep footprint in the ground with each step.
"Perfect, I'll dismantle your bones and melt down your magical artifacts to add another layer of depth to my 'Myriad Contracts Armor'."
Huang Chen's eyes sharpened; he knew he couldn't let the other party cast the spell with ease.
He activated the protective barrier of the Crimson Lotus of Karmic Fire to its maximum, firmly shielding the rescued humans behind him. Then, he launched himself out like a cannonball, actively heading towards the colossal creature.
The Mountain and River Boots left a spiderweb-like crack on the ground as he stepped into the Bone Armor Demon General, his entire body transforming into a blur as he instantly closed in on him.
Without using the Asura Blood Blade, fists are the most effective weapon against heavily armored units like these.
Pulsefire Battlefield, open!
Dark golden witch runes covered his entire body, and his blood and witch power intertwined and boiled. On Huang Chen's right fist, it seemed as if an invisible flame was burning.
"Smash it!"
'
He threw a punch, the air exploding instantly with a sharp sonic boom. His fist struck precisely at a gap in the bone armor on the Bone Armor Demon General's chest.
clang!!
A deafening clang of metal clashing rang out, sparks flying everywhere.
Huang Chen felt as if his fist had smashed into an ancient divine mountain, and a terrifying recoil force spread from his arm throughout his body.
He groaned, his body jolted back seven or eight steps before he regained his balance.
The bone-armored demon general merely swayed slightly.
He looked down at the gap in his breastplate, where there was only a shallow fist mark.
"Not bad strength."
'
He commented with a sound like rubbing bones, then raised his giant hand and slammed it down on his head.
"Unfortunately, it's not enough."
'
Before the palm even arrived, the wind from the palm struck Huang Chen's cheeks like a sharp blade, causing them to sting.
Huang Chen dared not take the blow head-on. He exerted force with his feet, his body swayed, and he narrowly avoided the attack.
boom!
The giant hand slammed into the ground, shaking the entire ruins of the tent. A huge crater, the palm print, appeared on the spot, and dust billowed into the sky.
Just as Huang Chen was locked in battle with the Bone Armor Demon General, a cunning glint flashed in the eyes of the black-faced contract officer who was crawling on the ground. He quietly grabbed the half-torn leather ledger beside him, and like a slippery eel, he slid along the ground, about to slip away from the ruins.
Just as Huang Chen was locked in battle with the Bone Armor Demon General, a cunning glint flashed in the eyes of the black-faced contract officer who was crawling on the ground. He quietly grabbed the half-torn leather ledger beside him, and like a slippery eel, he slid along the ground, about to slip away from the ruins.
If he can escape with this half-book of general ledgers and return to the city, he will have a chance to make amends.
However, he had only moved less than three feet.
A dark shadow appeared above his head like a ghost.
Where do you want to go?
'
The cold voice made him freeze.
The black-faced contract officer suddenly looked up and saw Huang Chen's expressionless face.
He was even able to pay attention to himself while fighting the Bone Armor Demon General!
"you……"
He was about to beg for mercy or threaten.
Huang Chen gave him no chance at all, raising his right foot and stomping it down heavily with the immense power of the Mountain and River Boots.
Click!
With a sickening crack of bone, the black-faced contract official's spine was snapped underfoot. He let out a bloodcurdling scream, and collapsed to the ground like a lump of mud.
Huang Chen bent down and snatched the half of the leather ledger, combining it with the half in his own hand.
The moment he picked it up, a complete "Living Leather Ledger," radiating endless resentment, took shape in his hands.
"No--!"
The black-faced contract officer let out a desperate roar.
Huang Chen didn't even look at him. He raised the Humanity Prison-Suppressing Stele in his hand, which had shrunk to the size of a millstone, and aimed the corner of the stele, covered with ancient humanistic runes, at Huang Chen's head.
"Go with peace of mind."
'
boom!
Without the slightest hesitation, the Prison-Suppressing Stele slammed down heavily.
The black-faced contract official's head, like a smashed watermelon, was splattered with red and white matter; the smooth black face had completely vanished, and his soul and spirit had been annihilated.
Merit +1800, Karma +8500
【Ding!
】
Side quest "Cut Off the Outer City Headquarters" completed!
[Task Evaluation: Perfect]
[Mission Objective 1: Capture the Coordinates Master Ledger (Completed)]
[Mission Objective 2: Destroy the Coordinates Corridor (Completed)]
[Mission Objective 3: Rescue the Captive Humans (Completed)]
[Rewards are being processed...]
[Rewards: Karma +38000, Merit +18000!]
】
An immense, unimaginable force surged into Huang Chen's limbs and bones in an instant.
His magical power, his vital energy, and the karmic fire lotus in his soul all surged wildly at this moment!
Every inch of the intermediate-level witch clan battle body was emitting a joyful hum.
"roar!
'
The Bone Armor Demon General noticed the change and roared angrily. He turned around and threw a punch, the shockwave from which blew away the surrounding ruins.
However, Huang Chen at this moment is no longer the same as before.
He didn't dodge, but met the punch head-on. It was still a punch, but this one was several times stronger than the previous one!
boom--!!
The fists collided, and the resulting shockwave was like a tangible shock wave, leveling everything within a hundred feet.
This time, it wasn't Huang Chen who retreated.
The bone-armored demon general, who was three zhang tall, was forced to retreat repeatedly by this punch. Each step he took left a deep pit in the ground, and he only managed to regain his footing when he reached the center of the stele corridor.
His right fist, covered in bone armor, cracked under the strain, and several pieces of bone armor, engraved with coordinates, broke off and fell to the ground.
"How is that possible..."
His will-o'-the-wisps of eyes throbbed violently.
Huang Chen gave him no chance to catch his breath.
He took a deep breath and pushed his newly acquired power to its limit.
"I said I would shatter you and your rules together!"
'
He raised his hands high, and the Humanity Prison-Suppressing Stele swelled in his hands, instantly transforming into a towering stone stele tens of feet tall. The humanity runes on the stele shone with unprecedented light, as if to illuminate a world belonging to the human race in this dark demon realm.
"town!
Press down!
Huang Chen used all his strength to smash the giant stele, which carried endless human fortune and merit, down onto the Bone Armor Demon General and the entire stele corridor beneath its feet!
The Bone Armor Demon General let out a deafening roar, crossed its arms above its head, and unleashed all the blood-red light from its Myriad Contract Armor, attempting to withstand this world-destroying attack.
But it was all in vain.
Before the absolute power of humanity, all contracts based on sin and enslavement appear so fragile.
Rumble rumble rumble—
The prison-suppressing monument fell down.
There was no earth-shattering explosion, only an extremely heavy crushing force.
The blood-red light on the Bone Armor Demon General melted away rapidly, like ice and snow under the scorching sun.
The seemingly indestructible Myriad Contract Armor crumbled inch by inch, emitting a series of dense cracking sounds.
Next, there's the stone tablet at its feet, the corridor behind it, and the core of the entire outer market of the Demon City...
Everything was reduced to its most primordial powder under the suppression of the Prison-Suppressing Monument.
The earth trembled violently, and huge cracks spread in all directions from the suppression point.
At this moment, the road outside the City of Ten Thousand Demons completely collapsed.
After a long while, the smoke and dust dissipated.
All that remained was a bottomless pit and a slowly shrinking prison monument.
The token inside the City of Ten Thousand Demons.
It seems that although the main account in the outer city was destroyed, the real main account is still inside the city.
Huang Chen put away the inner token and his gaze fell on the complete "Living Leather Ledger".
He casually flipped through the pages, which recorded countless tales of humanity's blood, tears, and sins.
He flipped through the pages quickly, until the last page.
His finger stopped.
On the last page of the ledger, there was only one record, written in dried, dark red blood.
That wasn't a transaction record; it was more like a note about a battle achievement.
In the autumn of the year Gui Mao, the Black Wind Mountain demon army, under the orders of the "Cracked Fang Demon General," slaughtered 3,126 members of the nameless tribe, forged three blood banners, and presented them to the city lord's mansion.
】
Black Wind Mountain Demon Army...
Fang-Cracking Demon General...
Huang Chen's pupils suddenly contracted to a dangerous pinpoint.
The demon army that slaughtered his entire tribe, the name that turned him from a carefree boy into a lonely ghost, reappeared before him in this way after many years.
It turns out they belong to the City of Ten Thousand Demons.
It turns out that it was just a trivial achievement among their countless sins.
Huang Chen slowly closed the main account. The hatred that had been suppressed in his chest for so long erupted like a volcano that had been dormant for thousands of years.