Chapter Thirty-One: Obstruction

A plume of dark red flame descended upon their heads.

Strangely, this fire carried no heat, but surged with thunderous sounds.

Boom!

The fire-thunder landed atop Jiang Xuan's head.

Jiang Xuan remained unharmed.

"Your technique is indeed intriguing," Jiang Xuan said, stroking his chin as he regarded Xu Zhong. "Five Thunders and Five Luminaries, cycling endlessly, each luminary presides over a thunder lake, guards your fortune, and blocks the heavens from prying."

Jiang Xuan marveled repeatedly.

This was a world unbound by lightning tribulations; as long as one's vitality was locked, thunder tribulations would rain down from above.

Since Xu Zhong had gathered the seeds of the Five Elemental Divine Thunders, he no longer felt the pressure of tribulations.

Yet above Jiang Xuan's head, thunderclouds perpetually swirled.

Five Elemental Divine Thunders fell one after another.

Though unharmed, Jiang Xuan found it bothersome.

"This spell is truly exquisite, but alas, my Five Luminaries can no longer accommodate the gods of the thunder lakes," he shook his head.

Suddenly, he halted.

The wooden sword hovered in the air, then stopped as well.

It transformed into the body of a pale dragon, shielding Xu Zhong.

"What is it?" Xu Zhong asked, bewildered.

"We've arrived at the mouth of a deity," the pale dragon's body radiated divine light, a surge of sword intent shooting skywards. The river-like sword energy spanned three hundred miles, its force overwhelming.

Xu Zhong looked around but saw nothing.

Then he watched Jiang Xuan draw his blade.

A piercing sword radiance burst forth from the blade, its oppressive power making Xu Zhong's scalp tingle.

Within this stroke, the sword intent, momentum, and energy were unmatched in his lifetime.

This slash possessed the grandeur to shatter the void and remake mountains and rivers.

The blade's radiance sliced through, but what coursed was sword energy.

Sword energy formed ravines in the void, knotted into mountains; blade light became shadows in the void, conjuring rivers. Where sword intent opened paths, cities emerged where mountains and rivers converged; where sword heart shone, there appeared countless figures.

Each figure bore Jiang Xuan's likeness.

Each Jiang Xuan lifted a blade and unleashed the same sword technique.

Destruction!

The void wrinkled, annihilating and severing all.

The heavens were pierced.

Thus, Xu Zhong witnessed reality.

They stood inside the mouth of a demon god—above was the dark red palate, beneath their feet the tongue, before them a deep, shadowy tunnel, behind them the deity's teeth. Within the waist-high teeth flowed red light, like molten lava.

He was truly in the gaping maw of a demon god.

"This is indeed the Glutton," the pale dragon voiced Xu Zhong's thoughts.

Jiang Xuan, with that sword, tore apart the Glutton's disguise.

Endless sword energy filled the vast mouth.

In the next moment, the Glutton spat them out.

Along with them, countless streams of sword energy were expelled.

These rampant sword energies slaughtered all demon gods within fifty miles.

A destructive, silent sword intent, cutting off all vitality, continued to surge from Jiang Xuan.

"Using a blade is truly not the same as a sword!" Jiang Xuan smiled.

His body was undergoing wondrous change.

Yet the Glutton's appearance left Xu Zhong dazzled.

This Glutton had the body of a sheep and a human face, eyes under its armpits, tiger fangs, and human claws, matching the ancient descriptions.

Beside it lay massive bones.

These bones had lost their spiritual nature, mere ordinary bones.

But their size revealed they were anything but ordinary.

Their frame, pieced together from bones, was as large as a hill.

"My master says they're my rations, you are not allowed to touch them," the Glutton swung its tail, spewing shadowy clouds.

Behind it, several gazes fell.

Xu Zhong matched these beasts to their legendary descriptions.

They were Chaos, Qiongqi, and Taowu.

"So, these are the mounts of the Four Emperors," Jiang Xuan shed his illusion, revealing his true form.

He was a burly man, who looked at the Glutton with a mocking smile. "After the Four Emperors died, whose dogs did you become?"

"True Martial Sacred Body!" the Glutton was startled. "Are you a successor of the True Martial Emperor?"

The True Martial Emperor was the Northern Emperor among the Four Emperors of ancient Yue.

He was Taowu's master.

Sensing the aura of the True Martial Emperor, Taowu lowered its head and swung its ox tail.

"No, the True Martial Emperor died long ago. His successors are extinct."

Taowu raised its head, ceased swinging its tail, and spat thunder-fire.

"True or not, why not try and see?" Jiang Xuan extended his hand toward Xu Zhong.

The pale dragon became a sword and fell into his grasp.

The seal at his waist projected a royal crown and robes, revealing his true imperial form.

"You are a human emperor, but this is not the human realm," the Glutton stood upright, its human-like claws grabbing a mountain and wielding it as an axe, striking at Jiang Xuan.

"True Martial Sword Classic."

Jiang Xuan thrust his sword.

In that instant, true swordsmanship erupted.

Even a trace of energy leaking from the blade shattered the mountain to dust.

The Yuan Yang Sword, wrapped in dense sword energy, traversed time and space, targeting the Glutton's head.

Time and space—the sword severed the Glutton's existence from all others, trapping it within its own domain.

Under this sword, the Glutton had no time to think.

It opened its colossal maw.

Gluttons are ferocious and insatiable.

With a single bite, it could consume tens of thousands of pounds of flesh.

Millions of pounds would barely sate it.

This ravenous Glutton, its mouth swirling with yin and yang, conjured True Fire.

It sought to devour Jiang Xuan's sword, refine his sword energy.

Sword energy is a form of spiritual energy.

Such demon gods, their cultivation long attained, had mastered the art of consuming energy to nourish their divinity.

Not just sword energy—even thunderclouds, with enough cultivation, could be devoured.

It swallowed all the sword energy.

Its body rapidly expanded, rounder than even Chaos.

The yin and yang within its belly swept through, refining the sword energy.

All the sword energy and light were swallowed; it merely let out a satisfied burp.

"Your sword energy is impressive, filled me a third," the Glutton sneered. "Devouring you should leave me full."

"Is that so?" Jiang Xuan smiled. "Then how about this sword?"

He struck again.

Within the sword light, a world was hidden.

The Glutton opened its mouth to devour again.

In this world, nothing could not be refined.

Boom!

The sword light expanded within the Glutton's mouth.

The world within the sword light burst its jaws.

It also shattered its head.

In the next moment, dense flesh buds sprouted from the wound, writhing to form a new head.

"A tough nut," the Glutton said to those behind, "You all come, let's join forces!"

The four fierce beasts leaped forth.

"Your new master has trained you well!"

Jiang Xuan spoke as he activated his True Martial Sacred Body.

A divine figure seemed to appear behind him.

In that moment, the sound of the Dao echoed, space seemed to solidify.

A sword light flashed forward.

This was Liang River.

Liang River surged, washing over ninety thousand miles.

With a flicker of sword light, Jiang Xuan sliced off one of Taowu’s ox horns.

The gushing blood brimmed with spiritual power, condensing into blood jade upon contact with the earth, translucent and crystalline.

Xu Zhong’s heart stirred.

He collected the blood jade from afar.

He would have taken the horn as well, but it was as huge as a hill and couldn’t fit in his storage pouch.

Taowu, enraged, spat a treasured sword at Jiang Xuan.

The sword circled above Jiang Xuan, its white radiance severing his head.

A white light flared at his neck, instantly reattaching his head.

This technique, called "Head Restoration," allowed a decapitated person to survive and even reattach their head; Xu Zhong knew it too.

But it required immense vitality; without fully opening the Five Luminaries within, one’s life force couldn’t sustain head restoration.

If the wound was overwhelmed by a powerful aura, the head wouldn’t reconnect and death would follow.

Taowu hadn’t expected Jiang Xuan to possess such a skill.

And then Jiang Xuan sliced off its other ox horn.

Xu Zhong excitedly gathered more blood jade.

Gradually, his storage pouch was filled.

"True Martial Great Seal!" Jiang Xuan formed a seal.

Nine rings of light appeared behind him, and from each ring another Jiang Xuan emerged.

Each one formed a seal and uttered a word.

Together, they formed the phrase: "Approach, soldiers, battle, all arrayed before!"

Boom, boom, boom!

A mighty force descended; all spiritual energy in the world was mobilized, and stone towers rose on all sides. Upon them were endless Dao inscriptions—above them, great destruction and mighty power. The towers formed a prison.

Qiongqi was trapped within.

Qiongqi charged forward and back, invoked earth and heaven, tried every method but could not escape the cage.

Within, thunder struck earth fire, the five elements reversed, yin and yang in chaos.

Qiongqi was suppressed by the seal, and faced death.

Only Chaos intervened.

Chaos broke the cage from outside, dragging out the dying Qiongqi.

But Chaos itself was struck by Jiang Xuan, who severed one of its wings.

Jiang Xuan nearly single-handedly suppressed the four beasts.

Yet, a sudden change occurred.

A long spear descended from the heavens.

At first, it was normal-sized, but as it fell, it grew into a mountain.

The spear tore the earth.

A massive ravine nearly engulfed Xu Zhong.

He rode a gentle breeze and narrowly escaped.

Jiang Xuan dodged beneath the spear.

Then, a young man in white descended step by step from the thunderclouds.

With each step, the spear shrank; when he reached Jiang Xuan, it was ordinary-sized.

The Glutton crawled to the young man's side.

"Failed your task. From now until next year, your rations are halved!" The Glutton hung its head, mournful.

"You are strong!" The young man pointed his spear at Jiang Xuan. "But you're not my match."

Jiang Xuan smiled silently.

He tapped his imperial seal.

In an instant, a true dragon emerged from the seal, then entered his body.

Jiang Xuan's cultivation soared!

The young man was stunned.

"Well then, what about now?" Jiang Xuan pointed his sword forward.

"Now, you qualify!" The young man summoned his energy and shot toward Jiang Xuan like an arrow.

His spear touched lightly, collapsing a space.

Jiang Xuan invoked the power of heaven and earth, transformed into the True Martial Emperor, and punched, shattering space like a broken mirror.

The collapsed space swallowed the young man.

He just emerged from the collapsed space, only to face another punch from Jiang Xuan.

Moments later, the young man, blood-soaked and battered, no longer graceful, lay on the ground like a beaten dog.

The Glutton trembled, curled up with the other beasts in a heap; they understood well enough why the successor of the True Martial Emperor had acted as he had.

In the sky, someone tried to escape, but Jiang Xuan would not allow it.

He stretched out his hand, intercepting the fleeing figure from the thunderclouds.