The Last Sentinel

A devastating black ice shockwave suddenly exploded outwards from the point of Demonic Tribulation. The bone-chilling cold air, carrying with it overwhelming ferocity and annihilating demonic energy, swept across the surrounding rift valleys like a storm. Even the void itself trembled slightly from the freezing cold, condensing into fine black ice patterns.

Zhao Changcheng was deeply shaken. Old wounds in his meridians suddenly ruptured, and the reversed immortal power tore at his internal organs. He endured the excruciating pain of the backlash from his Dao injury, ignoring the churning of his blood and the near-vomiting of blood, and shouted sharply to dissuade him: "Senior brother! You've gone mad! Once you completely abandon the Dao and become a demon, there will be no turning back. You will be wanted and hunted down by all the righteous forces in the myriad realms. The Immortal Alliance will not tolerate a fallen demon. Your thousand years of painstaking cultivation will be destroyed in one day, and you will bear the infamy for eternity. Is it really worth it?"

"What right do you have to stand here and advise me?" Mo Lijie suddenly raised his finger and pointed it at Zhao Changcheng's nose. The black ice demonic energy swirling around his fingertip was chilling and bone-chilling. His eyes were filled with years of accumulated sarcasm and bone-deep resentment. His tone was sharp and piercing, and every word was barbed.

Crimson blood seeped from the lacerated wound in his chest, dripping onto the dark, demonic ice beneath his feet. The blood instantly froze into blood-red crystals, mottled and glaring: "Have you personally experienced the devastation of your father's death on the battlefield, his body vanished without a trace, and your clan heartlessly abandoning you and your widow? Have you witnessed your birth mother become a furnace for evil men, tortured day and night by vile demonic cultivators, dying with resentment in her heart—the ultimate despair?"

"You are your master's most beloved disciple, protected and favored by the sect since childhood. You are born with great fortune and are recognized by all the heavens as the chosen one. You have lived a life of luxury, with a smooth and easy path. How could you possibly understand my life?"

Dense black ice demonic energy tightly entwined his body, and the fierce wind made his robes flutter loudly. The black demonic patterns spreading across his cheeks became increasingly ferocious and conspicuous, completely swallowing up the gentle appearance of the former immortal disciple.

Mo Lijie's eyes were resolute, leaving no room for negotiation. His words were firm and resounding: "After this battle, I will shatter my immortal bones, sever all shackles of the Heavenly Dao and the Immortal Rules, and completely break free from the false shackles of the Immortal Path. From this day forward, I bid farewell to the so-called righteous path and the Great Way, and looking back on the mortal world, I will never again set foot in the Immortal Realm!"

Before he finished speaking, the black ice demonic energy that had gathered to its peak surged forth like a monstrous wave capable of destroying everything, and crushed Zhao Changcheng in front of him with overwhelming force.

Zhao Changcheng's feet were instantly frozen solid by thick demonic ice, unable to move an inch. The biting cold rapidly invaded his meridians and dantian along his limbs and bones, and his skin and flesh were covered with a thick layer of dark demonic ice at a visible speed. The freezing power continuously eroded his immortal essence and vitality.

He looked down at his body, which was gradually being devoured by demonic energy and losing consciousness. A helpless and bitter smile spread across his face. His eyes were filled with deep-seated self-reproach and a sense of tragic fate. He murmured to himself, as if analyzing himself, or perhaps lamenting the impermanence of life and the cruel twists of fate.

"A destiny ordeal, indeed, no one can stop it."

"Back then, my master devoted all his cultivation to deducing the secrets of heaven and exhausted all his efforts, but in the end, he could not reverse the tragic outcome of this infighting among fellow disciples. Now, I am deeply caught in the game and am even more powerless."

"I once naively thought that as long as I voluntarily relinquished my power and resigned from my position as speaker, I could dispel the resentment that had accumulated in your heart for many years, soothe your obsession, and completely prevent us from turning against each other and killing our own flesh and blood. I have also tried countless times to persuade and patiently comfort you, hoping that you can let go of the hatred of the past, turn back to the right path, and return to the path of immortality. But in the end, I suddenly realized that from beginning to end, I was just a pawn on the chessboard of fate, unable to control my own destiny and at the mercy of others."

His breath grew weaker and weaker, intermittent and drawn out. The icy demonic ice had spread to his waist and abdomen, and half of his body had completely lost sensation. His immortal power rapidly dissipated. He raised his eyes to look at the dark and gloomy sky, his gaze desolate and forlorn, and continued to softly express the regret and remorse in his heart: "The prophecy left by the primordial will has ultimately come true."

"The time traveler never left his hometown, the guiding sentinel is lost, and the escapee will ultimately push the outcome to the brink..."

"It turns out that I, who wholeheartedly wanted to avoid conflict, settle scores, and protect you and me, ended up pushing everything to an irreversible dead end."

A chilling aura slowly crept up his neck, freezing his soul. His consciousness gradually faded and blurred, all his struggles, resentment, and guilt vanished, and his eyes returned to an extreme calm and relief.

He sighed softly, his gaze both gentle and solemn as he quietly looked at his senior brother, who had completely fallen into the demonic path and was filled with malevolence. His expression was extremely solemn.

Goodbye, senior brother!

He slowly raised his left hand to his chest, forming a gentle and dignified palm print, and placed his right fist against his waist, performing the final celestial salute.

The surging demonic energy around Mo Lijie transformed into thousands of thick, pitch-black chains, dancing wildly in the air and soaring straight into the dark clouds. The overwhelming demonic flames shook the entire rift valley, and the world was filled with an oppressive aura of annihilation. His narrow eyes were icy cold as he glanced indifferently at Zhao Changcheng, who was tightly wrapped in layers of black ice and gradually turning into a cold statue.

The pitch-black ice slowly spread, gradually covering the junior brother's cheeks and eyes, completely stripping away the warmth of his flesh and sealing away all his gentleness and openness. The once vibrant and warm human presence vanished completely, leaving only a lifeless, cold, and cold ice sculpture standing silently in the deep pit.

The way the two stood facing each other silently was just like the scene when they first met many years ago.

That day, the spring sunshine was bright and the breeze was gentle. Apricot blossoms fluttered in front of the mountain gate. The young boy was washing and sharpening his sword by the mountain stream, his white robes fluttering in the wind. His mentor led the slender and upright figure of the boy through the mountain gate, bringing him into the world.

"Mo Lijie, this is your junior brother! From now on, we will be fellow disciples and look after each other."

"Greetings, senior brother. My surname is Zhao, and my name is Zhao Changcheng. You can just call me Xiao Zhao." The young man had clear eyes and a gentle smile, full of sincerity.

"Greetings, junior brother. You can just call me Senior Brother Demon." At that time, the young man was not yet full of murderous aura, and his voice was calm and gentle.

"Senior brother, we are clearly cultivators seeking immortality, why are you calling me Demon Senior Brother?"

"Don't ask, anyone who asks will get beaten up..." A joke that hides the purity of youth and the purest camaraderie among fellow students.

The warm memories of the past vanished in an instant, shattered and gone without a trace.

Mo Lijie's violent aura subsided slightly, and his world-destroying frenzy faded somewhat. He slowly walked to the cold ice sculpture, raised his hand with faint black energy swirling around his fingertips, and gently stroked Zhao Changcheng's frozen forehead. His movements were restrained and humble, carrying a final touch of tenderness: "Goodbye, junior brother."

"You were the last vestige of attachment and the only warmth in my world before I stepped onto this blood-soaked, mortal path of demonic destruction. Now that you have perished here, I am free from all ties. From this day forward, I am a truly heartless and desireless demon, and no morality or sentiment can ever bind or hinder me. What is this illusory list of the Seven Prodigies? What is this laughable title of 'Sin of Arrogance'? How dare those other six mediocre individuals be ranked alongside me, stealing my place in the world?"

He abruptly looked up at the dark, lifeless sky, his demonic energy surging and churning once more, soaring to the heavens. He uttered a daring statement that would shake the entire universe, his icy voice echoing through the desolate rift, causing the wind and snow to howl incessantly: "From this day forward, my Demonic Calamity will be the calamity of the entire carbon-based universe, and the only catastrophe in all the heavens and myriad realms!"

"After I depart, I will merge with the primordial will of the ancient races, wield the ultimate rule of fairness in the world, and settle all grudges. Whether it be the carbon-based universe or the vast heavens, I will seek out, punish, and annihilate every being that has ever wronged me, belittled me, or trampled upon me, without any leniency!"

As he finished speaking, a rare and precious glimmer of tenderness flashed in his sharp, cold eyes. It was a deep-seated, unwavering longing for his loved ones, the only soft spot remaining beneath his bloody past. His voice was low and hoarse, filled with endless yearning and regret as he whispered a plea: "If fate allows, please tell my parents that they are well. I really... miss them so much."

As soon as he finished speaking, Mo Lijie's tall and lonely figure gradually became ethereal and transparent amidst the thick and surging demonic energy, and finally completely dissipated into the howling wind and snow, leaving only the cold demonic energy and endless desolation in the valley.

A tear, suppressed to the extreme and endured for millennia, slowly fell from the void, gently landing on Zhao Changcheng's icy cheek. In an instant, it was frozen by the extreme low temperature into a crystal-clear ice crystal, firmly embedded in the ice sculpture, forever freezing this tragic fate of youthful friendship, ultimate enmity, and separation by life and death.

The biting wind continued to howl wildly in the bottomless ravine, and the eerie demonic energy lingered and lingered in the valley. Finally, a series of staggering, hurried, and frantic footsteps echoed through this desolate land covered in black ice.

A slender, youthful figure stumbled through the thick fog and biting snow, scrambling into the deep pit. His steps were unsteady and he nearly tripped and fell several times over the sharp icicles under his feet.

The person who came was Zhao Donglai.

When he pierced through the thick fog and saw his master Zhao Changcheng, whose face was sealed by black magic ice, whose body was stiff and cold, and who had completely lost his life, he was instantly chilled to the bone. All his strength was suddenly drained away, his legs went weak, and he knelt heavily on the hard and cold black ice ground with a "thud".

Zhao Donglai's long-suppressed emotions collapsed instantly. Tears streamed down his face, and the regret, guilt, and self-blame that had been building up in his chest for so long erupted. He collapsed in front of the cold ice sculpture, sobbing uncontrollably, his shoulders trembling violently, choking back sobs: "Master!"

"master!"

"The Alliance of People respectfully bids farewell to the Seventh Speaker!"

Outside the howling wind in the valley, Zhuge Tingfeng staggered in, leaning on his flying sword.

Zhuge Tingfeng looked at the valley frozen by demonic energy before him, at Zhao Donglai who was weeping bitterly, and finally his gaze fell on the frozen corpse of Zhao Changcheng.

"Dead...?"

"How could you die!"

"Why did you refuse to acknowledge that I was your son until your very death!"

"I risked everything to enter the Supreme Arena, just to earn your acknowledgment!"

"Before my mother died, she said that my father was an unparalleled immortal, and that one day he would come to take her away!"

"But she died waiting for you!"

"You heartless bastard!"

"You've wronged my mother!"

"You should atone for your sins!"

"Instead of dying so easily!"

Zhuge Tingfeng went completely mad, snapping his flying sword in two with both hands. Blood flowed from his seven orifices, and he knelt weakly on the ground, his face pale, having lost all fighting spirit, muttering to himself.

"Putting aside your personal character, you were able to single-handedly defeat the arrogant and conceited Seventh Heaven of the Fifth Rank, causing him to fall into demonic possession and abandon immortality. You truly deserve the title of Peerless Immortal Venerable. Mother was right about you."

"Zhao Tingfeng respectfully bids farewell to Father! May you have a safe journey!"