Chapter 207: Killing God

Canyons, barren lands, swamps, toxic mists, deserts, glaciers...

Outside the City of Fractured Boundaries, the relentless pursuit continued through the night, marked by unceasing war drums.

Ning Changjiu, using an invisibility technique, was a mere thread of rain as he fled.

Had it been anyone else, they would have been impossible to find in the vast, boundless world.

Yet, he was not pursued by a single individual, but by the entire night itself.

This night, like a blood-black raven with dark wings, smelled the fugitive's scent and relentlessly pursued him, covering every inch of land.

Nearing the ice plain, a flash of lightning tore through the night, striking the ice surface, which was as thick as the earth itself.

Ning Changjiu's rain-like figure was illuminated by the lightning.

The Sin Lord had found him.

Thunder rumbled incessantly, and a shower of dark feathers fell from the sky, each like a spinning throwing knife, hurtling towards Ning Changjiu's position.

Ning Changjiu moved through the snow like a snake, deftly dodging left and right as several dark feathers whizzed past him. Behind him, the earlier lightning strike had hit the ice, its energy boring into the layers, then erupting with a golden flash. The overwhelmed ice surface vibrated like an earthquake, and cracks filled with electrical light rapidly spread across it, resembling an infinitely extending sword relentlessly closing in on Ning Changjiu.

Large amounts of snowmelt evaporated, and the piercing sound of cracking ice filled the air. Ning Changjiu, moving with his sword, appeared small and disheveled.

As the lightning-filled cracks closed in, Ning Changjiu could no longer evade. Forced to turn, the sword intent that had long accumulated within him erupted like a fiery beast opening its fanged, bloody maw, lunging towards the electrical light.

Sword fire met lightning.

The flames were torn apart by the lightning storm, and Ning Changjiu’s sword-wielding figure was instantly illuminated.

Though the sword fire was extinguished, the sword tip, still enveloped in pure white sword energy, thrust forward.

The sword energy clashed with the intent of judgment, each consuming the other. Where the black sword's edge cut, the Sin Lord's figure was perfectly outlined.

The white sword light also illuminated the Sin Lord’s silhouette.

He stood motionless in the snow, like a statue cast in silver, solemn and mysterious, completely unaffected by the battle raging around him.

With a soft rustle, the Sin Lord's wide sleeve descended like the night.

The sword energy unleashed by Ning Changjiu parted before the Sin Lord, like water dividing around a reef.

Several bright lights flashed intermittently, brilliantly illuminating the snow plain. The millennia-old, flat snow began to melt extensively, hissing as it did so.

The clash between the sword and the dark sleeve was brief, but in that instant, a hand emerged from within the Sin Lord's sleeve.

More than a hand, it was five slender, slightly curved hooks.

The tips of the claws seized the black sword.

Ning Changjiu tried to pull the sword free, but it was as if the opponent had merged with it; he couldn't dislodge it at all.

Ning Changjiu didn't waste more effort; if he couldn't pull it out, he would thrust forward.

The sword light flared again. Ning Changjiu held the hilt with his left hand and pressed his right palm against the base of the scabbard, pushing it forcefully forward.

The Asura Divine Record was like a spinning turbine, unleashing the accumulated power within him. A faint reddish glow emanated from his skin, forming flowing threads that surged towards the sword's edge.

Small, fiery blossoms also erupted from the side of his white robe.

This was the backlash from his power breaking through the limits of heaven and earth.

While Ning Changjiu and the Sin Lord were locked in a stalemate, the electrical light from the ice cracks twisted and surged forward. As it neared Ning Changjiu, it suddenly leaped up, like an electric python that had crawled on the ground and finally reached its prey.

It lunged at Ning Changjiu.

It was lightning, and Ning Changjiu’s hand was just as swift.

Ning Changjiu reached out and directly grabbed the lightning.

His hand instantly turned black from the lightning.

Then, the Sin Lord, who had been holding the black sword’s tip, suddenly thrust forward.

Ning Changjiu, still holding the black sword, was sent flying backward. The lightning also broke free from his grip, striking his chest, tearing at his white robe, and pushing him to slide rapidly across the snow.

Simultaneously, the Sin Lord vanished from his spot, and then, his dark robe suddenly appeared right in front of Ning Changjiu.

A tearing pain shot through Ning Changjiu’s lower abdomen.

The Sin Lord hammered a fist into his abdomen, shaking Ning Changjiu’s Asura body. But Ning Changjiu gritted his teeth, and even as the punch sent him flying again, hellish flames still burned on him.

After punching Ning Changjiu away, the Sin Lord opened his left hand and caught the spear-like lightning.

Held in his hand, the lightning was no longer a sword, but transformed into a sharp, gleaming long spear.

"Annihilate life," the Sin Lord murmured softly, and then hurled the spear.

Ning Changjiu hadn't had time to adjust his position. As the spear arrived, he could only thrust his sword horizontally to meet its tip.

Ning Changjiu’s feet sank deep into the snow, like two gripping nails. But the spear forcibly pried these nails out, relentlessly pushing towards Ning Changjiu’s heart with the power of judgment.

Ning Changjiu was now too weak to wield the sword; he simply pressed its blade against his chest like a heart-guard. The rapidly spinning lightning spear ground against the black sword, and electrical sparks sprayed out in front of him.

This black sword truly lived up to its reputation as a divine artifact once held by the past God Realm's officials. Even under such intense combat, its surface remained as smooth as a mirror, without a single scratch.

Ning Changjiu felt a little relieved.

This indicated that the limits of this world's power were insufficient to destroy the sword.

Yet, even with an unparalleled sword, he was still no match for the Sin Lord.

The rapidly spinning lightning spear pressed against his chest, its penetrating force almost tearing his heart apart. His body was like a small boat in a raging storm, pushed backward by the waves in the torrent.

At this rate, his heart would eventually be overwhelmed, burst, and gush blood.

Suddenly, a low roar of a snow plain giant beast echoed from behind him.

The bright light and earthquake had agitated these primordial beasts. They charged and galloped across the snow plain, making the already dark night even more chaotic.

Behind Ning Changjiu, a herd of snow elephants charged toward the light.

The ground trembled uneasily.

Ning Changjiu, moving backward, collided directly with a snow elephant.

The elephant's mountain-like body was knocked down, but its resilient hide provided Ning Changjiu with excellent cushioning. Having no other support and being passively pushed by the lightning spear, he finally found an opportunity to adjust his stance.

He let out a low roar, turned his body sideways, stepped on the collapsing elephant, and leaped into the sky.

The lightning spear grazed his body and shot into the darkness behind him.

In a flash, the lightning spear returned.

In that brief moment of respite, Ning Changjiu executed the true art of "Moon in the Mirror, Water in the Flower."

His figure and the shadow cast by the lightning briefly inverted.

The lightning spear struck empty air.

The Sin Lord reappeared, grasping the spear's shaft. Without a moment's hesitation, he leaped up and brought it down towards Ning Changjiu.

Ning Changjiu had just pulled himself back from the brink of death; his limbs were numb, and he lacked the strength for a direct confrontation.

"Why do you kill me?" Ning Changjiu roared. "Blasphemers die? Why must blasphemers die? In this world, murderers die, arsonists die, traitors die... but blasphemy alone is not a capital crime!"

The Sin Lord swung his spear at Ning Changjiu, asking with authority, "Why not a capital crime?"

Ning Changjiu retorted quickly, "Everyone knows that a life for a life means you must kill, or have the potential to kill, to repay. You are a God Lord; no one can kill you. You have never been at risk of being killed. A person can crush an ant crawling on their body, but they absolutely cannot sentence it to death according to rules!"

"You are not human; you are a god who upholds the Heavenly Dao. By what right do you kill me with your laws?" Ning Changjiu challenged.

The Sin Lord calmly replied, "According to the origin of the Great Dao, you are indeed correct. But you are wrong."

Ning Changjiu, holding the black sword, was sent flying again. His Asura body dispersed and then re-formed, and crimson-golden flames burned in his pupils.

"Where am I wrong?" Ning Changjiu sharply demanded.

The Sin Lord said, "I do not follow law; I judge only sin. Even if you are innocent, you must be held accountable for your past."

"My past?" Ning Changjiu echoed, puzzled.

The Sin Lord closed in, swinging his spear in an impenetrable flurry. "More than two thousand years ago, you should have been annihilated by heaven and earth," he declared.

Ning Changjiu's figure flickered in and out of the interlacing electrical light. He asked, "More than two thousand years ago? What crime did I commit then?"

The Sin Lord’s spear struck his chest again. "Those who draw swords against heaven shall be condemned by heaven," he stated.

As Ning Changjiu was sent flying backward again, he unleashed a sword strike, and a Golden Crow flew out, aiming to entangle the relentless spear.

The Golden Crow had a natural restraint over all darkness in the world, but its own combat strength was not particularly formidable.

Soon, the Golden Crow was deflected by the spear's tip, disintegrating into threads of light that flew back into Ning Changjiu's body. Ning Changjiu crashed onto the snow, rolling several times before finally coming to a stop. He pushed himself up from the snow, raised his face, and in the electrical light, several faint red marks were visible on his handsome features.

Ning Changjiu was so pressured by the spear that he could barely breathe.

Each time the spear's shadow formed a circle, dozens of miles of snow instantly evaporated.

Ning Changjiu felt his body about to rupture. Smoke curled within his scorching spiritual sea, signaling the exhaustion of his spiritual energy. His heart pounded erratically, and the veins at his temples throbbed distinctly. Nearly all his movements were now driven by pure combat instinct.

This battle left many corpses on the snow plain, all of them primordial beasts from the ice expanse.

They had been charred black on the outside and tender on the inside by the lightning, and their appealing meaty aroma incongruously wafted into the air. After a slight twitch of his nostrils, Ning Changjiu felt his stomach growl with hunger, and his physical exhaustion deepened considerably.

The snow plain was coming to an end.

The Sin Lord's right sleeve continued to flutter, gradually restoring itself.

This pursuit was also nearing its conclusion.

A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky.

The Sin Lord raised the lightning spear in his hand, and threads of lightning converged at its tip.

The Sin Lord swung the spear, drawing an arc in the air before bringing it down.

Ning Changjiu leaped, raising his black sword high. The dark blade acted like a lightning rod, absorbing countless strands of electrical light onto its surface. Ning Changjiu then replicated the Sin Lord's motion, striking back all the lightning from his black sword.

The lightning returned to the spear's body.

Ning Changjiu landed and swiftly fled backward.

However, the battle on the snow plain had drained too much of his strength. Now, as he attempted to escape, he appeared to be at the end of his rope.

At the end of the snow plain lay a vast canyon, turbulent with gray-white mist of time. A single stone path, like a precarious log bridge, spanned across it.

It was at the boundary between this snow plain and the rift valley that Ning Changjiu and the Sin Lord began their final confrontation.

In Ning Changjiu's initial plan, if absolutely necessary, he would leap directly into the canyon. With the withered branch protecting him, he could ensure he wouldn't be corroded.

But he had still underestimated the Sin Lord.

The Sin Lord's power was continuously recovering; even if not at its peak, it was still beyond Ning Changjiu's ability to resist.

The spear came crashing down.

Ning Changjiu raised his sword to block, but the moment the spear descended, it transformed mid-air into a soft long whip. Ning Changjiu, alerted, immediately changed his move, but halfway through, the whip transformed again into a blade.

The Sin Lord, holding the blade, chopped down.

The immense impact not only numbed Ning Changjiu's hand between his thumb and forefinger but also gave him the sensation that his entire skeleton would shatter from the blow.

This was an almost overwhelming power.

Electrical sword energy intertwined, dark feathers flew like knives, and bright flashes flickered repeatedly. Ning Changjiu was forced to continuously retreat.

As he neared the edge of the cliff, just as Ning Changjiu prepared to leap down, a blade, moving faster than he could imagine, sliced into his chest.

He dodged sideways with his fastest possible speed.

But he still couldn't avoid it.

Ning Changjiu watched helplessly as the blade sliced through his formidable Asura body, severing his sword-wielding right arm at the shoulder.

Not only he, but even the sword spirit within him felt a sense of despair.

During the previous suffocating pursuit, Ning Changjiu had found it difficult to even attempt that one desperate sword strike.

Now with his right arm severed, how could he possibly have any chance of victory?

Yet, his sword-holding right arm did not fall to the ground.

A sudden anomaly occurred.

The hand that should have fallen limply to the ground miraculously flew back, reattaching itself to his right shoulder without even a trace of injury.

Time had rewound.

Behind the Sin Lord, the Fates stood gracefully, enveloped in a dark ink-colored cloak.

The Fates’ appearance was a variable in this battle.

The Sin Lord had imprisoned her on a crucifix for six days, and the Fates had been unable to escape, suggesting she lacked the ability to break through a spiritual prison.

Yet now, this woman had broken free and appeared before him.

The Sin Lord quickly deduced the answer.

Someone else had broken through the spiritual prison; it wasn't the Fates, but that mortal girl in the red dress.

Many years ago, arrogant ancient gods had experienced the power of the mortal realm, when mortal blades severed the heads of many ancient deities. After the 'Severing of Heaven and Earth', which separated mortals and gods, the remaining ancient gods either went into exile to live among humans or gained even greater power. In any case, they rarely had true interaction with mortals anymore.

Thus, ancient gods habitually overlooked the power of most mortals.

The Sin Lord quietly watched the Fates.

All her wounds had healed, and a cold smile played on her beautiful face.

The Fates didn't look at the Sin Lord immediately; instead, she turned to Ning Changjiu and smiled faintly. "So disheveled?" she remarked.

Ning Changjiu, of course, had no time for witty banter with her.

He used this time to steady his breath and reconnect the severed Asura power.

The Sin Lord asked, "Are you here to save him?"

The Fates smiled faintly. "I am here to kill him," she replied.

A cold chuckle seemed to emanate from within the Sin Lord's dark robe. "Legend says that when your authority merges with Night Cleansing, it can unleash world-shattering power."

The Fates nodded. "Lord Sin Lord, would you like to try it?"

"Hm." The Sin Lord nodded. "But I will try it myself."

A fierce gale, carrying lightning fragments, suddenly arose.

The Fates' black robe billowed backward, her hood was blown off by the strong wind, and her silver hair flew wildly. Her delicate face, previously hidden by the hood, was revealed, her beautiful features glowing with a faint moonlight.

She looked at Ning Changjiu and sharply urged, "What are you waiting for?"

Ning Changjiu understood. Holding the black sword, he struck at the Sin Lord's back.

The lightning blade transformed into an electric bird, its electrical essence echoing like the bird’s high-pitched cry.

The Fates also moved, enveloped by the power of time, which nearly doubled her swiftness. Her movements seemed to occur in an instant.

The black sword hummed upon meeting its true owner, and within that hum, a hidden message from the Fates was conveyed.

Ning Changjiu understood and thrust his sword at the Sin Lord.

The Sin Lord neither blocked nor evaded, for this sword strike was merely a feint.

In a brief flash of electrical fire, Ning Changjiu and the Fates attacked the Sin Lord from two sides, their figures crossing swiftly.

The lightning spear swung.

"Heaven's Punishment!" the Sin Lord roared, locking onto Ning Changjiu.

The Fates also activated her authority, rewinding time to nullify the Sin Lord's judgment.

This was her night; empowered by the sundial, she was more than twice as strong as she was in daylight. Now, at a similar level, she could even contend with the Sin Lord over the strength of their authorities.

But even if their authorities could cancel each other out, the Fates was still no match for the Sin Lord alone.

However, Ning Changjiu was still there.

As their figures crossed, Ning Changjiu had already returned the black sword to the Fates.

This black sword unleashed a completely different power in the Fates' hands.

The Fates swung the sword horizontally.

The sword appeared to move extremely slowly, like an old ox pulling a cart, struggling with each step.

Yet, a dangerous urgency, like an arrow released from a bow, ripped through the air, sending shivers down one's spine.

Speed and slowness, paradoxical yet real, manifested in this single sword strike.

If an ordinary person faced this sword, their mind would surely be seized, and they would then be cut in half by the illusory speed and slowness of time.

But the Fates could not deceive the Sin Lord.

The moment her sword strike began, the lightning blade in the Sin Lord's palm transformed into a sharp edge and sliced towards the Fates.

The lightning blade sliced through layers of time, precisely striking the black sword's energy at its weakest point.

The cage of time simultaneously dissolved.

But the Sin Lord did not press his advantage.

The instant the blades clashed, Ning Changjiu also leaped forward like an arrow, condensing the techniques of the Eighty-one Asura Forms into his fist, and struck towards the Sin Lord's back.

Both Ning Changjiu and the Fates were considered at the peak of this world's cultivation, and their authorities served as their armor and weapons.

At the same cultivation level, the Sin Lord was akin to wearing impregnable heavy armor and wielding a divine sword unparalleled in the world. The Fates, on the other hand, was like holding the shield and sharp sword of time. Only Ning Changjiu fought bare-handed and alone; had it not been for the Asura Divine Record strengthening his physique, he would have long since perished under the Sin Lord's judgment.

However, with two peak-level cultivators now besieging the Sin Lord, though he possessed formidable armor, he could only guarantee his own invincibility. Killing both opponents simultaneously was extremely difficult.

Ning Changjiu struck the Sin Lord's back, only to feel pain in his own bones.

The Fates’ astonishing sword strike was also forcibly repelled.

The lightning spear danced into a circle.

The Fates and Ning Changjiu both retreated.

Their gazes met in the air, and they simultaneously understood each other's intentions.

Ning Changjiu made a decisive move, plummeting directly into the abyss below.

The Sin Lord did not pursue, as even at his current level, it was difficult to completely prevent the erosion of time's power.

Ning Changjiu leaped into the endless canyon.

The Sin Lord then turned his attention to the Fates.

The furious lightning spear descended, and the laws of judgment transformed into electric birds, pursuing relentlessly. These laws would only cease once their judged target was killed.

The power of time enveloped the Fates, and her figure flickered erratically along the side of the rift valley as she desperately tried to buy time.

At a certain moment, she suddenly extended her hand.

In the rift valley behind the Sin Lord, the power of time began to surge wildly.

Ning Changjiu, who had leaped in, did not sink. He was held aloft by the Fates' authority, and only after the withered branch at his waist absorbed enough power of law did he suddenly leap up from the deep canyon.

The withered branch could not be infused with spiritual energy, but it could be infused with time.

Ning Changjiu, holding the withered branch, struck down at the Sin Lord.

The Sin Lord drew a perfect circle in front of him.

But in the face of endless time, no perfection endures forever.

The withered branch glowed with a moist moonlight, and when it struck down, it was like a waterfall descending from the sky.

That circle seemed to undergo a vast expanse of time, beginning to twist and deform, gradually turning into grains of sand.

The Sin Lord's authority was broken.

He knew that it wasn't the law of time that truly shattered his authority, but this withered branch.

He stared at the withered branch, as if trying to discern some profound secret within it.

"Is this your sword?" the Sin Lord suddenly asked.

Remembering his master's words, Ning Changjiu firmly replied, "Yes."

The Sin Lord said, "This object is not of this world. Where did you obtain it?"

Ning Changjiu, of course, would not tell him the truth.

He used an escape technique to approach the Fates, utilizing the time power from the withered branch to dismantle the pursuing judgment for her.

However, the power of law infused in this withered branch was also limited; it couldn't withstand many uses. Once depleted, the Sin Lord would certainly not give him another chance to replenish it.

The fierce battle resumed.

Ning Changjiu and the Fates moved in an intricate dance in the air, flashes of electrical light intermittently illuminating their faces and bodies.

The Fates knew that ordinary attacks could barely inflict any wounds on the Sin Lord.

Therefore, she simply attacked without defending, adopting a fierce stance of "harming the enemy a thousand, self-harming three thousand," attempting to leave some marks on the Sin Lord.

Ning Changjiu, meanwhile, used the power of the withered branch to help the Fates dispel the entangling judgments. When judgment fell upon Ning Changjiu, the Fates would reverse time, canceling the Sin Lord's judgment.

This kind of battle continued ceaselessly.

Blood once again seeped from the Fates' brow, and many fine lines appeared on her wrists beneath her sleeves. In one of the most perilous instances, the Sin Lord's lightning spear breached her defenses, piercing directly through her dark robe, the spilling blood deepening the already black fabric.

Along the cliff face, the battle left shattered rocks that crumbled and tumbled into the abyss below.

The restoration of the Sin Lord's right robe had clearly halted as well, indicating he had also sustained imperceptible injuries in this battle.

Thousands of years ago, before the Sin Lord became a God Lord, he had engaged in many true life-or-death battles.

But now, he was a God Lord.

After dozens of moves, he still hadn't defeated these two bothersome flies.

This made him somewhat angry.

The Sin Lord suddenly halted, hovering in mid-air. He slowly raised his lightning spear, and bolts of lightning continuously streaked across the sky.

An aura of destruction permeated the air.

Ning Changjiu involuntarily recalled the prophecy from the Zhao imperial city: "Punish Heaven, uphold Earth's laws, sacrifice cities and nations."

Although the terrifying sense of world-shattering destruction hadn't yet materialized into a grand spectacle, the entire night seemed to extend countless blades, all aimed at the people by the cliff's edge.

They knew the Sin Lord was about to unleash his truly terrifying power.

This was beyond their ability to resist.

With a shared understanding, Ning Changjiu and the Fates instantly drew closer.

"Go," the Fates urged, her body covered in wounds, barely holding on.

She constructed a wall of frozen time in front of her to buy Ning Changjiu time.

Ning Changjiu grabbed her wrist, drew a reverse flying formation, and before the destructive aura could fully descend, they escaped the crumbling cliff.

The next moment, they found themselves far from the tribe.

It was a desolate wilderness, strewn with rocks.

Scattered across the wilderness were a few houses, long abandoned—traces left by the tribe members during their migration from afar.

They had temporarily evaded the Sin Lord, but they couldn't hide for long.

Ning Changjiu pulled the Fates into a dilapidated house.

"Water!" the Fates cried out as her suppressed injuries flared.

She, of course, wasn't asking for actual water.

Ning Changjiu handed her the withered branch.

The Fates leaned against the wall, took the withered branch, swept back her disheveled silver hair, and tilted her head slightly, bringing her lips to the branch and drawing its power.

Ning Changjiu said, "I'll treat your injuries first."

The Fates, immersed in the thick liquid of time, merely nodded in response to Ning Changjiu's words.

Once she recovered, she could use her authority to quickly heal Ning Changjiu.

The Fates’ black robe was soaked with blood, making it impossible for Ning Changjiu to discern her wounds. He thought that if she were wearing a white dress underneath, it would be clearer.

With these thoughts, he reached out and unfastened the front of her black outer robe.