Chapter 1343: Deadly Star Returns

"Thirty-Seventh Elder!!"

Yun Che, with absolute resolve, had destroyed his right arm to break free from the Star-Quelling Chain. The agony of a severed limb should have been soul-shattering and unbearable, yet he instantly launched a furious single-armed assault on Xing Mingzi. Xing Mingzi's power was fully concentrated on the Star-Quelling Chain, and he had never conceived that Yun Che would cripple himself, much less explode with such force immediately after. Even as a Supreme God Master, the furious sword strike from Yun Che, aimed directly at his crown, plunged his vision into darkness and shattered his consciousness.

Yun Che's body swayed, and he abruptly collapsed to his knees. Yet, he instantly snapped his gaze upwards, his eyes burning with hatred. The Heaven Smiting Sword, wielded by his single arm, still unleashed terrifying power as he brought it down on Xing Mingzi.

However, this sword failed to land on Xing Mingzi, whose consciousness was still fractured. Behind Yun Che, roars erupted as hundreds of Star Guards closed in. The overlapping energy waves swept the heavily injured Yun Che away like a hurricane, deflecting his sword. It struck the ground with a powerful boom, and he was violently thrown backward.

Blood gushed from the stump of his right arm, and his entire body was completely drenched. No one doubted that he would bleed dry very soon. He slowly rose to his feet. Around him, one hundred... two hundred... three hundred... five hundred... an ever-increasing number of Star Guards swarmed in, surrounding him in layers.

Yet, even after he had fully risen, not a single Star Guard attacked. The pupils of the closest Star Guards trembled violently, and their hearts convulsed uncontrollably.

His chest was pierced, his right arm destroyed, his body covered in countless wounds, almost bled dry... yet he could still stand. The fierce aura emanating from him was still suffocating.

"He's at his last gasp... kill him quickly!"

This command came directly from the Star God Emperor, demonstrating how deeply wary the Star God Realm King had become of Yun Che. If he hadn't been bound by the ritual and barrier, he would have personally intervened, disregarding his status, to eliminate him completely.

No sooner had his voice fallen than, before the Star Guards could even react, a bloody light, mixed with fresh blood, exploded...

Boom!! From stillness to an explosive burst, even with only one arm, the terror of that sword strike sent shivers down the spines of all Star Guards. Over thirty Star Guards were swept away by a single blow, almost all of them heavily wounded.

A bloody shadow flickered, and Yun Che's figure, like a ghost, darted into the midst of the Star Guards. The blood-stained Heaven Smiting Sword simultaneously pierced through the bodies of two Star Guards, cruelly impaling them on its massive blade.

Despairing, demon-like screams erupted once more. As the scarlet flame reignited, the screams abruptly ceased. The Divine Sovereign bodies of the two Star Guards exploded within the scarlet flame, and the scattering fragments ignited a large number of terrified Star Guards, unleashing another chorus of screams that rent the heavens.

Boom!! Boom!! Boom!! In this world, more terrifying than a devil is an enraged devil; more terrifying than an enraged devil is a desperate devil. Step by step, sword by sword, each of his strikes brought with it a sky full of severed limbs and fresh blood, annihilating one Star Guard after another, entire swathes of their bodies and lives.

Countless spears, swords, and profound light attacks rained down on him, leaving his body riddled with wounds, with not a single intact spot remaining. Yet, he did not dodge or evade the Star Guards' attacks at all, nor did he divert even a fraction of his strength to suppress his injuries, allowing his body to become riddled with holes. But the Heaven Smiting Sword, wielded by his single arm, still swung with the might and flames from the abyss of despair.

The world in Yun Che's vision had long since blurred into a bloody haze. His body was breaking apart layer by layer, repeatedly pierced by wounds, yet his eyes were terrifyingly calm, containing only hatred and killing intent... his own life had long since ceased to matter. Just as he had been back then, after Su Ling'er's death—utterly calm, yet utterly despairing...

Over seven million lives... a blood debt that could not be cleansed in ten lifetimes...

Blood covered vast swathes of land, and the scattered flames dyed the sky a crimson red.

Within the barrier, the Star God Emperor, the Star Gods, and the Elders watched, stunned. Their expressions occasionally twitched, then froze, and for a long time, not a single person uttered a sound. Before their eyes were blood, severed limbs, and Star Guards falling one after another. In their ears were the roar of the sword's might and incessant screams and wails.

But Yun Che, covered in blood and riddled with countless wounds from the Star Guards' piercing attacks, simply refused to fall.

They didn't know when this nightmare would finally cease.

At that moment, Xing Mingzi's body twitched, and he abruptly stood up.

How could a God Master be so easily defeated? His consciousness, scattered by Yun Che's sword strike, finally recovered at that moment. He hastily rose, an agonizing pain radiating from his head. He slowly raised his hand to touch, clearly feeling several horrific cracks on his skull.

The skull is the hardest part of the body, and the toughness of a God Master's skull was unimaginable. Yet, Xing Mingzi's skull had been brutally cracked. He knew very well that if the Star Guards hadn't immediately surrounded Yun Che, Yun Che could have absolutely taken his life while his consciousness was scattered.

Dread, trembling, fear, anger, humiliation... Every vein in Xing Mingzi's body swelled with rage, threatening to burst. He suddenly clutched his chest and spat out a mouthful of dark crimson blood.

"Essence... Essence Blood!?" a Star God Elder exclaimed in shock at Xing Mingzi's action.

"Is Thirty-Seventh Elder insane?"

"He's not insane," the Grand Star God Elder said in a deep voice. "His greatest rage and humiliation in his life are upon him today. He is willing to sacrifice his essence blood, even at great cost, to kill Yun Che." He then added, "But the cost... alas."

The star-light, emitting an eerie red glow, fully formed. Xing Mingzi's eyes widened, and a twisted pleasure spread across his blood-smeared face. He lunged towards Yun Che's location, letting out a hoarse roar: "Get out of my way, all of you!"

The God Master's furious roar pierced hearts and souls. The Star Guards surrounding Yun Che instinctively looked towards the source of the sound. When their gaze met the red light in his mouth, all of them trembled violently and scattered at the fastest possible speed.

Xing Mingzi's gaze fixed directly on Yun Che, and the red light in his hand locked onto him even more tightly. "Yun Che... die!!!!!" he screamed.

This howl seemed to release all the viciousness and humiliation in his heart. He swung his arm, and the red light instantly shot towards Yun Che, swifter than a falling meteor.

Wherever the red light passed, space was torn by an irresistible force, contracting layer by layer, and even light was swallowed, casting an oppressive gloom.

The sheer horror of this scene made all the Star God Elders tremble inwardly.

This was power Xing Mingzi had exchanged for his essence blood and his future. It had already surpassed the level of a Rank One God Master. Even Yun Che at his peak during his initial rampage could absolutely not have withstood it, let alone his current state.

The "Devil Extinguishing Remnant Star" was ferociously peerless. In less than a tenth of a breath, it was already upon Yun Che. Xing Mingzi's eyes were wide open to their extreme; he was absolutely certain that Yun Che would be annihilated into dust the moment he was touched by the red star-light. He wanted to fully witness this scene, not missing a single instant.

Yun Che's body half-turned. The spatial tremors brought by the approaching red light made it difficult for him to stand steadily, and he seemed utterly unable to escape. He raised his single arm, and the Heaven Smiting Sword met the red light with a very light swing...

The red star-light touched the Heaven Smiting Sword, then, like light reflected by a mirror, it suddenly bounced back... In Xing Mingzi's pupils, the scene of the "Devil Extinguishing Remnant Star" instantly destroying Yun Che did not appear. Instead, he watched as the red light, which had struck Yun Che, grew closer and larger in his vision...

A dull roar, as if the entire Divine Realm's earth had suddenly overturned. The reflected star-light struck Xing Mingzi's body, and exploding red light shot into the sky, piercing the firmament. Xing Mingzi's body was carried high into the distant sky, where red light flickered wildly on him, as if countless stars were continuously exploding. Each explosion brought with it screams that rent the heavens and vast showers of blood.

"Wh-wh-what's going on? What happened?"

Even though their nerves had long been numbed by Yun Che's shocking actions today, and their understanding had been utterly shattered, the scene they had just witnessed once again left the group of God Masters utterly horrified.

The Devil Extinguishing Remnant Star, unleashed by Xing Mingzi in his extreme rage and at the great cost of his essence blood, was actually... lightly swatted back by Yun Che with a single sword stroke!?

How could such a thing happen?! Even the Star God Emperor, even ten or a hundred Star God Emperors, could easily defend against it, but it would be absolutely impossible for them to instantly deflect a power like the Devil Extinguishing Remnant Star!

Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom...

The red light continued to explode consecutively on Xing Mingzi's body, only ceasing after a full hundred times. Xing Mingzi plummeted straight down from the sky, his entire body a bloody, mangled wreck. The moment he hit the ground, Yun Che's blood-stained figure swooped down with a monstrous roar, and the Heaven Smiting Sword slammed down violently.

Bang!! A God Master was still a God Master after all. Although Xing Mingzi had been half-destroyed by his own Devil Extinguishing Remnant Star, he still retained consciousness and power. He raised both hands, desperately propping them against the Heaven Smiting Sword. Their eyes met, both crimson like devils.

"Ugh... Ahhh!!"

Yun Che roared, and the Heaven Smiting Sword suddenly pressed down. With a deafening boom, it brutally crushed Xing Mingzi's raised arms. The blood-red light in Yun Che's eyes intensified. Like a completely deranged devil, he let out strange roars as the Heaven Smiting Sword swung like mad onto Xing Mingzi's mangled body.

Boom!! Xing Mingzi's right arm was pulverized. Boom!! His shoulder and neck cracked. Boom!! His legs were shattered into four pieces by a single sword strike. Boom!! His sternum and ribs simultaneously turned to dust, and his internal organs splattered.

"Ahhh! Stop!!"

The screams of Star Guards echoed behind him as they swarmed forward, trying to save Xing Mingzi's life. But Yun Che didn't even turn his head. The Golden Crow Illusion God shot out from his body, mercilessly unleashing a "Yellow Spring Ashes" among the charging Star Guards.

The roars instantly turned into countless screams. The golden flames engulfed all nearby Star Guards, burying them in a searing inferno. Meanwhile, Yun Che's sword plunged down with immense force, piercing through Xing Mingzi's body and embedding itself deep into the ground of Star God City.

"Ugh... ugh..." The light in Xing Mingzi's eyes completely scattered. His lips trembled in terror as he uttered the last sounds of his life...

"Mon... ster..."

Boom---- Flames erupted on the Heaven Smiting Sword, instantly engulfing Xing Mingzi's body. With a thunderous boom that shattered everyone's hearts, the God Master's body, consumed by flames, exploded beneath the sword, scattering into countless fiery fragments.