Chapter 840: Endless Obsession

"How will we gamble?" Xuanyuan Wentian asked without any hesitation.

"It is... the Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood!"

"Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood?"

"Similar to the Devil Blood Reincarnation art applied to Fen Juechen a thousand years ago, the Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood is a unique forbidden art of my Eternal Night Devil Clan," the devil soul in the sword said sinisterly. "This Eternal Night forbidden art can transform a mortal spirit into dark blood, which is then absorbed into a devil body, allowing it to gain all of the mortal's vitality and power... And I mean *all* of it!"

"…!" Xuanyuan Wentian's eyes widened dramatically. He murmured, "So it directly seizes all of a person's life and cultivation? Without any loss?! Is there really such a terrifying forbidden art in this world?"

"Precisely! The might of my Eternal Night Devil Clan is beyond the comprehension of you mortals," the devil soul in the sword declared proudly. "However, this forbidden art only works on mortal spirits and is useless against beings with divine or devil power. The nascent devils of my Eternal Night Devil Clan occasionally use this forbidden art to absorb mortal spirits and enhance their strength, but for mature devils, the power of a mortal spirit is insignificant, and mortal blood is often tainted, so they disdain to use it. But for Fen Juechen, using the 'Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood' would cause his power to surge madly!"

Xuanyuan Wentian was shrewd; he immediately understood the devil soul's implication: "You mean... you want Fen Juechen to devour me using the 'Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood'?"

"Precisely!" the devil soul in the sword said in a sinister tone. "Then, you will completely vanish, and your life essence and cultivation will be fully obtained by Fen Juechen! You've already witnessed Fen Juechen's current strength. If the two of your powers combine, who in this plane could possibly be your opponent? And this is far more than a simple addition; the fusion of your powers will inevitably create a qualitative change in strength, directly allowing you to step into the Divine Path you've yearned for all these years... Remember, it's not a possibility, but a certainty!"

Xuanyuan Wentian: "..."

"Furthermore, the devil blood within Fen Juechen has only just begun to awaken; it's far from its limit. It will take another six months for it to fully awaken. Once your powers merge, you will be invincible in this world, and yet for the next six months, your power will continue to surge every single day. In just a few months, you will reach a realm you could never have dreamed of—a realm you cannot even comprehend right now!"

A scorching, almost crazed light suddenly erupted in Xuanyuan Wentian's eyes, but his voice remained calm and composed: "Lord Devil, have you perhaps omitted the most crucial detail?"

"Hehehe," the devil soul in the sword chuckled sinisterly. "Given your intellect, you must have largely guessed what I didn't mention, and it is indeed the most crucial detail... That's right! The 'Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood' absorbs and merges life essence and power, but it also integrates the soul! A mortal soul is like a firefly before the vast ocean compared to a devil god's soul; it would be instantly annihilated. However, Fen Juechen's situation is entirely different from yours! Fen Juechen possesses a faint devil body and devil soul, while you have a mortal body. He can use 'Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood' on you, but your soul power is far superior to Fen Juechen's!"

"When Fen Juechen uses his devil body to perform 'Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood,' merging your life essence and power, your physical body will completely disappear. Simultaneously, your soul will enter Fen Juechen's body. What happens next is simple: because your soul's strength far surpasses Fen Juechen's, you can, in turn, easily destroy his soul and become the new master of his body, thereby fully possessing his devil body, which already has awakened devil blood. And my devil soul power can also be entirely at your disposal!"

"..." Xuanyuan Wentian was silent, then let out a faint hum. "So that's how it is."

"So, it depends on whether you are willing to give up your physical body! More importantly, it depends on whether you dare to gamble! If you succeed, you will directly step onto the Divine Path you've always dreamed of, becoming invincible in this world, achieving unprecedented feats in this realm! But if you were to fail... you would not only lose your physical body, but your soul would also be scattered!"

Xuanyuan Wentian's eyes slowly narrowed as he murmured, "The devil blood in Fen Juechen's body has only been awakened for a little over ten days. While it's called a 'devil body,' it's still quite weak. Are you sure his 'devil body' can activate that forbidden art?"

"Heh, of course," the devil soul in the sword said with disdain. "While the Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood is a forbidden art, it's essentially a low-level technique used only by nascent devils. It's only classified as 'forbidden' because it involves devouring the flesh and blood of mortal spirits; if used too frequently, it can easily incur divine retribution. With my current soul power, I am at least ninety percent certain I can activate his devil body to perform the Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood once."

"What exactly is that 'what if' in 'what if you fail, your soul will be scattered'?" Xuanyuan Wentian asked.

"It's simple: your soul would be suppressed by Fen Juechen. The consequence would be that you wouldn't become the master of the devil body that merged all your power; instead, Fen Juechen would gain everything! As for you, both your body and soul would completely vanish from this world, hehehehe..."

The devil soul's final laughter seemed to mock him.

"Hahahahaha!" Xuanyuan Wentian burst out laughing. "My soul, Xuanyuan Wentian's soul, has endured two millennia of tempering! How could a mere Fen Juechen be worthy of scattering my soul? That's a colossal joke."

His laughter abruptly ceased, and he spoke in an unusually calm voice: "Ever since I learned of the Divine Path's existence years ago, pursuing it has been my life's greatest desire. Now that it's within reach, even if the danger is a thousand times greater, I wouldn't bat an eyelid... So, let's begin now! Before absolute power, what is a mere physical body?"

"Hehehehe, excellent. You truly don't disappoint me. I am but a remnant soul, barely surviving within this sword; I can never exist independently and can only rely on others. Though you are merely human, your pursuit of power is utterly crazed, making you worthy of becoming my wielder!"

The devil soul in the sword said sinisterly, "The Devil Wheel Sacrificial Blood can begin at any time, but during the process, you must ensure Fen Juechen remains unconscious. If his will is awake, I will be completely under his control, and there will be no way to forcibly activate his devil blood power... Uh-oh... He... he... he's awake..."

The devil soul's voice suddenly weakened, then vanished completely.

Below, Fen Juechen, whose seven orifices were stained with blood, suddenly opened his dark eyes and rolled over to stand up... but hundreds of sword qi had pierced his body, and his injuries were severe. Before he could stand steadily, he brutally collapsed onto his knees again, his entire body trembling in agony.

"Xu...nyuan...Wen...tian..." Fen Juechen raised his blood-stained eyes, glaring intently at Xuanyuan Wentian in the air, each word filled with profound hatred.

He stretched out his hand, and a black light flashed. The Heavenly Sin Divine Sword resonated, flying from Xuanyuan Wentian's grasp and instantly returning to Fen Juechen's side, where it plunged diagonally into the dark earth.

Xuanyuan Wentian made no move to stop it. He descended from the air and landed in front of Fen Juechen, smiling and remarking with appreciation, "You've taken a blow from my Boundless Blade, yet not only did you not die, you woke up so quickly. Should I praise your exceptional will, or marvel at how truly extraordinary your devil body is?"

"You..." Fen Juechen clenched his teeth, a trickle of dark crimson blood flowing from the corner of his lips.

Completely unfazed by Fen Juechen's furious, demon-like gaze, Xuanyuan Wentian said with a smile, "A thousand years ago, Ye Mufeng, whose power suddenly surged, gave me quite a fright, but more than that, he gave me a pleasant surprise. I never expected that a millennium later, his son would give me an even greater one! Although you wish to kill me, do you know how grateful I am to you, Fen Juechen... Oh no, perhaps I should call you..."

"Ye Huang!"

"Ugh..." Fen Juechen was struck as if by lightning, his pupils dilating to their widest extent.

"Heh heh, don't look so surprised. I've told you before, what I know is far more than you can imagine, even far more than what you yourself know."

Xuanyuan Wentian spread his hands, looked up, and intoxicatingly felt the world with his body... because this body was about to be discarded. "It's still early, and after all, this body has accompanied me for over two millennia. For this final farewell, allow me to tell you an interesting story."

"Roughly ten thousand years ago, a person coincidentally discovered a pitch-black sword. The sword bore an incredibly powerful seal, and within it, a faint soul was imprisoned. This soul had been sealed for too many years; it yearned for freedom, but with its own power, it could not possibly break free from the seal, and would eventually be completely consumed by it. To survive, it did not hesitate to cast aside its dignity, begging for mercy from the one who found it, and offering its only drop of devil blood and a powerful profound art, simply asking the person to remove the seal on the sword."

"Hiss..." Fen Juechen gasped violently.

"The person who found the sword granted its request, absorbed that drop of devil blood, cultivated that profound art, and gained immense power. However, he immediately felt his disposition being affected, so he ceased cultivation. He even spent an extremely long time cultivating a bloodline seal, forcibly sealing off the devil blood himself. Even his descendants who inherited his bloodline, especially his direct descendants, would have this bloodline seal planted on them at the moment of their birth."

"And that profound art, even without the support of the devil blood, remained incredibly powerful. Relying on that profound art, a previously unknown family rapidly rose to prominence, quickly becoming one of the most powerful profound sects on the entire continent, renaming themselves the 'Eternal Night Royal Family.' That profound art was the renowned 'Eternal Night Illusory God Record' back then... Oh no, its true name should be... the Eternal Night Illusory Devil Manual!"

Fen Juechen's pained expression shifted repeatedly, and his eyes contracted violently at Xuanyuan Wentian's voice... These were clearly things he had only learned after obtaining Ye Mufeng's remnant soul, absolute secrets known only to the patriarch's lineage of the Eternal Night Royal Family. Why would Xuanyuan Wentian know this...?

Xuanyuan Wentian put his hands behind his back and continued unhurriedly, "As for that sword... the Eternal Night Royal Family rose thanks to the profound art granted by that sword, yet they completely violated their initial promise. Not only did they not remove its seal, but they added dozens of powerful seals onto the sword itself, locking it within the Blazing Pool and designating that area as the clan's greatest forbidden zone, forbidding anyone from approaching... Tsk tsk, if not for the sword's benevolence, who would even know of the Eternal Night Royal Family? How utterly ungrateful and despicable they were."

"Such a vile clan was truly a disgrace to the profound way, so I, the Sword Master, acted on behalf of heaven to make this so-called Eternal Night Royal Family completely vanish from the world, *phew*..." Xuanyuan Wentian let out a soft breath, his smile radiant.

"Xuanyuan Wentian..." Fen Juechen's eyes were bloodshot, and his teeth seemed on the verge of shattering. "You are the most despicable and shameless person in this world..."

"Don't get so agitated now," Xuanyuan Wentian maintained his smiling expression. "The disappearance of the Eternal Night Royal Family wasn't the end; on the contrary, it was just the beginning. Aren't you curious why I know all this, why I know what power you possess, and why I know your other name... Heh."

"After annihilating the Eternal Night Royal Family, I casually found an opportunity to easily acquire the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword and unsealed several of its restraints. The devil soul within the sword told me everything, all its secrets. It told me that a devil soul could awaken devil blood, and that if all seals were removed, the nearly extinguished devil soul could gradually revive through the devil blood. The fusion of devil blood and devil soul would then yield power incomprehensible in this plane."

"But I learned all this too late. Because the Eternal Night Royal Family had already been utterly destroyed, and only Ye Mufeng's persistent, eerie soul remained, there was no devil blood left in the world... However, the devil soul in the sword told me something: Ye Mufeng had a son named Ye Huang, who died tragically during an extermination. Ye Jianxi, the Queen of Eternal Night, to save her deceased son, did not hesitate to violate severe ancestral prohibitions, using a forbidden art from the 'Eternal Night Illusory Devil Manual' to forcibly seal Ye Huang's soul, which was on the verge of dissipating, along with all his vital essence. Using twenty percent of Ye Mufeng's soul as a catalyst, she activated a reincarnation forbidden art that defied the heavens, allowing Ye Huang's soul and vital essence to persist indefinitely, and to be reborn through reincarnation at a special moment... Tsk tsk, truly worthy of power from the devil realm; it's extraordinary. Had I not heard and witnessed it myself, even I wouldn't believe such a heaven-defying art existed in this world."

"You...!!" Fen Juechen's entire body went cold, his blood feeling as if frozen... He couldn't believe that Xuanyuan Wentian knew even all of *this*!

What on earth was going on?

At this moment, he had a terrible realization: everything he had always considered extremely secret, even things he himself could barely accept, had seemingly been under a horrifying watchful eye all along...

"Heh, what a wonderful arrangement of fate. Ye Mufeng and Ye Jianxi wanted to leave a trace of their bloodline after the Eternal Night Royal Family's destruction, but they also left the last of the devil blood for me, the Sword Master! Over these past thousand years, guided by the devil soul in the sword, I constantly monitored the devil blood's movements while it was under the reincarnation forbidden art... until a little over two decades ago, the last of the devil blood finally found an opportunity to be reborn into a body within a sect called Burning Heaven Clan in Azure Wind Nation, becoming the sect master's third son..."

"Hiss!!" Fen Juechen's pupils almost burst. Every word Xuanyuan Wentian uttered seemed to come from the abyss, filling his heart with an unprecedented terror.

"Soon, I arranged everything as well." Xuanyuan Wentian lowered his head and said faintly, "Do you know why Ye Mufeng's remnant soul was placed in that location in Blackfiend Nation? Because it's the place with the heaviest yin energy on the Profound Sky Continent, and with the Soul Sealing Coffin, it could ensure Ye Mufeng's remnant soul wouldn't dissipate for a thousand years. And do you know why your grandfather, Fen Yijue, had that key? Heh, I personally gave it to him and even implanted a spiritual suggestion in his mind."

"Speaking of which, I originally planned to slaughter the entire Burning Heaven Clan three years ago, leaving only you, and then, driven by hatred, have you take the key Fen Yijue gave you to find Ye Mufeng. I didn't expect Yun Che to appear unexpectedly and make all this happen prematurely. Fortunately, he slaughtered the entire Burning Heaven Clan but specifically left you alive. Although there was a slight deviation in timing, neither the process nor the outcome was affected in any way; it remained perfectly flawless. Afterward, you successfully found Ye Mufeng, awakened Ye Huang's memories, and unexpectedly gained a portion of Ye Mufeng's power. What you would want to do most after that would certainly be to retrieve the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword, because it could unlock the devil blood seal in your bloodline, allowing your power to surge like Ye Mufeng's a millennium ago, thereby achieving revenge... And this is precisely what I wished to see."

"I used the 'Secret of Divine Profound' as bait, gathering all the top experts from Profound Sky to convene the Devil Sword Convention. The purpose was to break the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword's final seal. The Devil Sword Convention was a complete success, and what followed was for you to obtain the fully unsealed Heavenly Sin Divine Sword. Because the first thing you would do upon acquiring the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword would undoubtedly be to awaken the devil blood! And the devil soul in the sword, free from its seal, could gradually recover through your devil blood. Once it regained enough devil soul power, it could forcibly reclaim your devil blood and bestow it upon me, allowing me to possess both devil blood and devil soul, and thus supreme power... Although that red-clothed demoness disrupted everything, she ironically helped me by placing the unsealed Heavenly Sin Divine Sword into your hands, hahahaha. All of this is undoubtedly heaven's reward for my millennia of persistence." Xuanyuan Wentian burst into laughter.

Fen Juechen's arm slammed heavily onto the ground. His entire body trembled, drenched in sweat, as if he had collapsed from exhaustion.

Since the destruction of the Burning Heaven Clan, his world had contained only two words: "revenge." For revenge, he took the black key Fen Yijue had given him before his death and went through countless perils to reach the Land of Death in Blackfiend Nation... For revenge, he desperately absorbed and merged with the power from Ye Mufeng's devil source, even enduring soul-repelling pain akin to hellish torture... For revenge, he risked immense danger, traveling alone to the Supreme Ocean Palace... For revenge, he knew his will and disposition would be distorted, yet he still used the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword to awaken the devil blood within him...

Today, he finally realized that all the hatred, all the pain, and all the efforts he had experienced and endured had actually been meticulously calculated and arranged by someone else!!

And that person was the mastermind behind the Eternal Night Royal Family's demise and the source of all his tragedies... the one he hated most and most wished to kill in this lifetime.

He had spared no effort to kill him. Yet, in the end, he had merely followed his arrangements, step by step fulfilling his ambitions.

This pain, this feeling of helplessness, was indescribable.

"Why... why did you do all of this... what for?" Fen Juechen's entire mental world was on the verge of collapse, his voice raspy, like sandpaper rubbing together.

"Heh," Xuanyuan Wentian chuckled faintly. "Of course, it's for what I've always pursued."

"Twelve hundred years ago, when I inherited the position of Sword Master of Heaven's Might Sword Region, my cultivation had already reached the peak of the Monarch Profound Realm. But after that, no matter how hard I tried, I could never break through the limits of the Monarch Profound Realm; it was as if I was locked in an unbreakable cage. I once thought that was the limit of human power, that I was the pinnacle of human existence, until finally, I learned of the 'Realm of Gods' from an ancient book. Only then did I realize that human power could indeed break through the Monarch Profound Realm's limits and reach the legendary 'Divine Path.' Thus, I began searching for any possible opportunity... the 'Heavenly Sin Divine Sword' of the Eternal Night Royal Family, imbued with infinite strangeness, was one such opportunity."

Fen Juechen's eyes were wide, and his voice trembled as he said, "Just to pursue a higher level of power, just for a potential opportunity, you were so vicious, not hesitating to destroy a large, innocent family... You actually... actually..."

"Is there a problem?" Xuanyuan Wentian spread his hands, his expression suggesting it was only natural. "The only thing that has never changed in my life is my pursuit of greater power. For this, I will stop at nothing, use any means. As long as it allows me to possess stronger power, anything can be my stepping stone. This is why I, Xuanyuan Wentian, am where I am today!"

"A thousand years ago, Ye Mufeng's sudden surge in power filled me with endless delight, because I clearly saw power that transcended the limits of the Monarch Profound Realm; I clearly saw an opportunity! For this, I expended all my efforts for a full millennium. Nineteen days ago, I witnessed the power of that red-clothed demoness... The power I once believed to be at its peak, invincible in the world, was, in her presence, merely garbage, easily shattered. Do you know what that felt like? Fear... trembling... humiliation... and more than that, desire and excitement! Because Ye Mufeng's power was still far from its limit, and even higher levels of power awaited me... There's no reason why I, Xuanyuan Wentian, shouldn't possess the power others can!"

"And today is the first step for me to ascend to another level!"

Xuanyuan Wentian's obsession with the profound way was extreme, a fact known to everyone in the Four Great Sacred Grounds.

But no one knew he was insane to such an extent.