Twenty Years Too Late

Although he had just warned his junior brother not to act rashly, Chu Jiao still saw the Green-Bearded Old Fiend.

In that instant, he lost his composure.

No—lost was not the right word.

Rather, within that brief span of time, he made a decision.

He could not wait any longer.

He had to erase this fiend from the world.

And… perhaps—

His memories surged backward through time.

It was before he had ever joined an immortal sect.

Back then, his cultivation was at the sixth layer of Qi Condensation—already quite high.

In a mortal kingdom, such a realm was enough to be granted noble rank, to become a Great General.

In fact, he was being groomed precisely for that role.

His family was a lineage of generals. They possessed only a single inherited cultivation manual—one that did not even describe how to establish a Foundation.

But Chu Jiao had never felt any obsession over that.

Crossing thousands of mountains and rivers to seek an immortal sect?

What a joke.

Abandoning a comfortable life to gamble on an uncertain future?

Besides, there were so many people placing their hopes upon him.

Of course, expectations also meant pressure.

Under that pressure, he gradually developed a hobby.

He became a “heroic vigilante.”

Yes—when night fell, the eldest son of the Great General’s Estate would don black garments and become a wandering knight who upheld justice in the shadows.

During this time, he made a friend.

Her name was Mo Ling.

Mo Ling’s true identity was the eldest daughter of a caravan escort agency.

Their statuses could not have been more different.

No matter how powerful a caravan escort agency was, the Great General’s Estate could crush it with a flick of the hand.

Her cultivation was also far weaker than his.

Yet they got along remarkably well.

Mo Ling used the escort agency’s information networks to uncover injustices.

He used the Great General’s channels to conduct deeper investigations.

For a time, the reputation of the “Heroic Duo” spread throughout the kingdom.

Noble scions and local tyrants alike trembled in fear.

Because they knew—the Heroic Duo truly killed.

Their methods were decisive.

Their intelligence networks impeccable.

Commit evil by day—lose your head by night.

Chu Jiao was immensely proud.

But at the same time, he was painfully aware—

For both him and Mo Ling, this was nothing more than a fleeting dream.

He knew that once he became a Great General, he would no longer be able to roam the night as a vigilante.

Mo Ling would one day marry.

She would live her own life.

Even if she never married and instead inherited the escort agency, she would not continue down this path.

For them, it was merely youthful indulgence—a brief, sweet dream.

And like all dreams, it would eventually end.

Their affair could not be hidden forever.

His father confined him.

And with a single word from the Great General’s Estate, how could a small escort agency resist?

Mo Ling met the same fate.

His father nearly made the decision on the spot—to marry her off.

Chu Jiao made his choice.

He was already at the sixth layer of Qi Condensation.

His father was only at that realm as well.

How could such confinement truly restrain him?

He already possessed the strength of a Great General.

His father’s words?

He could ignore them.

He fled from home.

Then he stormed into the escort agency, taking Mo Ling with him as they escaped the imperial capital.

The Heroic Duo reappeared in the martial world.

This time, their intelligence was no longer as refined as before.

But they believed they were doing the right thing.

Both felt deeply satisfied.

Until that day came.

That day, he truly understood the weight of the “Immortal Master” who visited the emperor once every decade.

He had never understood why the mighty emperor treated the Immortal Master with such reverence.

Now he knew.

Without the Immortal Master—

Outside the city, he raised his head and stared at the black clouds pressing down upon the entire capital.

“Ling’er!”

He ran toward the city at full speed, as if mad.

Against the tide of fleeing civilians, he watched the imperial capital grow larger and larger before his eyes.

And then—

In that very instant, the dark clouds dispersed.

An old man with a green beard hovered in midair, nodding in satisfaction.

“Not bad. Quite a flourishing dynasty. Such vitality concentrated in the royal capital—truly impressive. This should make the Heavenly Dao Sect uncomfortable, no? But after all, it’s just a mortal dynasty. The impact is negligible.”

He smiled faintly, holding a jet-black banner in his hand, clearly pleased as he rode the clouds away.

By then, Chu Jiao still had not reached the city.

When he finally rushed inside—

As far as the eye could see, corpses.

He ran to the Great General’s Estate.

Everyone was dead.

Including his parents.

He ran to the imperial palace.

The emperor and all officials lay dead in their places—silent, unmoving.

Finally, he returned to the residence he shared with Mo Ling.

Mo Ling was dead.

A truth he did not want to face.

Yet had no choice but to accept.

At that moment, he finally realized—

Those who do not become immortals are nothing but ants.

A demonic cultivator could slaughter an entire city as easily as flipping a hand.

Dark clouds blot out the sky.

Then—life across the city is extinguished.

The more than ten years of his life were a cruel joke.

The careful upbringing.

The laughter with friends.

Court intrigues.

Imperial authority.

The villains he punished.

The justice he upheld.

His time with Mo Ling.

Their resolve.

Their resistance.

Their stubbornness—

All of it.

Everything.

In the blink of an eye—

Shattered.

Effortlessly erased.

Like a soap bubble.

What he resisted.

What he upheld.

What he insisted upon—

All vanished into nothingness.

He could grasp nothing.

He became an empty shell.

Marching unceasingly toward the Heavenly Dao Sect.

With only one obsession in his mind.

Sleeping in the open.

Enduring wind and frost.

A numb expression.

It took half a year before he finally arrived.

Fortunately, he succeeded in joining.

During the entrance competition, he saw terrifying phenomena.

He saw the overwhelming might of the Heavenly Dao Sect’s Immortal Masters.

He saw Lin Wushuang controlling her flying sword—cold, ruthless.

He instinctively knew—

She was the same as him.

She must have experienced—

He chose Dao Sword Peak.

He discovered his talent exceeded expectations.

Dao Sword True Master, a Nascent Soul cultivator, accepted him as a disciple and offered to fulfill one request.

“I share irreconcilable hatred with the demonic sects. I beg Master to eradicate demons.”

That day, Dao Sword True Master took him across tens of thousands of miles.

In an instant, they arrived at his former imperial capital.

“Hm? Evil cultivators still dare operate here?”

The capital had been refined into a corpse city.

That day, the Green-Bearded Old Fiend had not taken the corpses.

Now—at this very moment—they were being used by another demonic cultivator.

The opponent was at the Golden Core stage.

Dao Sword True Master merely raised two fingers.

A streak of sword qi flashed.

The capital split in two.

So did the demonic cultivator.

All corpses turned to dust.

“Disciple—are you satisfied?”

“Master, the one who attacked that day was not this fiend.”

Dao Sword True Master frowned and calculated with his fingers.

Then he sighed.

“Too much time has passed. The traces are difficult to capture. However—”

His gaze fell on Chu Jiao.

“If you have the will, one day you will naturally come to punish this demon yourself.”

“Yes. This disciple thanks Master.”

…

Twenty years had passed.

Of course, he knew the Green-Bearded Old Fiend was at Golden Core Perfection.

He himself was only mid–Golden Core.

This fiend had followed the demonic path for a long time.

His talent was mediocre—thus stuck at the Golden Core realm.

But his combat power among Golden Core cultivators was terrifying.

To say who could defeat him with certainty—

Probably only Yu Lian.

But Chu Jiao could not wait.

He knew it was a desperate hope.

A soul from twenty years ago—within the Myriad Souls Banner—

Could it still remain?

He knew exactly how such banners worked.

Like demonic gu cultivation.

Souls devoured one another to birth stronger ones.

Not every soul survived.

But—

What if?

What if Mo Ling’s divine soul was still inside?

What if she was still alive?

As for himself—

Reforging the body was possible!

He had heard Master possessed a Yin–Yang Rebirth Pill.

If he could obtain it—

Even reincarnation through yin and yang—

He would accept it without hesitation!

So he could no longer wait.

“Green-Bearded Old Fiend! Die with me!”

The Square Sword expanded endlessly, as if spanning the heavens, charging straight toward the Green-Bearded Old Fiend.

The fiend’s face changed drastically.

He gathered his power.

A jet-black seal appeared, blocking the sword.

Demonic energy clashed violently with righteous qi.

The Green-Bearded Old Fiend’s cultivation was clearly superior.

“True Path Sword Chu Jiao?!”

The fiend was shocked.

“Young hero—wait! Why attack me?”

“You are of the demonic path. I wield the righteous sword. Why shouldn’t I kill you?”

Chu Jiao continued circulating his power.

The fiend struck back, blasting the Square Sword away.

“Your Heavenly Dao Sect’s mission is to exterminate the Life-Severing Sect. You abandon your post—aren’t you ruining your sect’s plan? There is no enmity between us. Within the Life-Severing Sect are far greater evils than me. Why not eliminate them first? Why seek out this old man?”

“All demonic cultivators deserve death! There is no order!”

Chu Jiao prepared to strike again.

The Green-Bearded Old Fiend’s face darkened.

“True Path Sword! Out of respect for your Nascent Soul–stage Master, I call you ‘young hero’ and show you courtesy. Otherwise—you are merely mid–Golden Core! How dare you speak so arrogantly?! Don’t push me! I do not wish to kill you and incur your master’s pursuit!”

His words pierced Chu Jiao’s heart.

Chu Jiao knew—

This fiend dared not kill him.

Because his Master lived.

No demonic cultivator would dare offend a Nascent Soul True Master.

But that meant something else.

Twenty years later—

He was still the same.

Powerless.

Just like that day, watching helplessly as black clouds covered the capital.

Once again.

A sharp pain tore through his chest, igniting his fury.

“Enough words!”

He forced his sword forward.

“Fight me to the death!”