Chapter 165 — Dust of the Mortal World
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 1 of 5
Like a lightning bolt tearing through the black night and falling to the mortal world, that pillar of light, gathered from the great power of true dharma, suddenly descended from the heavens, striking from directly above the White Bone Snake Demon and piercing straight down through the crown of its head. In an instant, a tremendous force burst forth from that vast body, and the several Qingyun disciples who had been harrying it from the flanks were all propelled far away by the invisible yet substantial current of air.
The White Bone Snake Demon raised its head and let out a long, piercing cry. The enormous skeleton that supported its body, from top to bottom, suddenly began to emit a strange radiance; moments later, tiny cracking sounds issued from countless places, and rays of light shot out from within its bones. Then, with a thunderous crash, the colossal body toppled, smashing a great deep crater into the hard white jade slabs beneath it. After thrashing a few times on the ground, it finally ceased to quiver.
The dazzling pillar of light slowly dissipated, revealing the figures of the seven elders and Lu Xueling, Xiao Yichen, and the others floating in the sky. Beneath them, beside the body of that gigantic demon, corpses lay strewn across the field—among them the bodies of four Qingyun elders, fallen forever. Of those still living, even more were wounded. Among the younger generation, Lu Xueling's face was cold as frost, but more than half her garments were stained red; Xiao Yichen was relatively well off and appeared largely unharmed; only Zeng Shuyan was holding himself up by sheer will. Just as he let out a breath of relief at seeing the great demon finally dead, his head suddenly lolled to one side, and he plummeted down insensate.
Everyone was startled, but fortunately Xiao Yichen was right beside Zeng Shuyan. He caught him, examined him carefully, and then, relieved, signaled to the others that there was no grave danger. Only then did the rest set their minds at ease, and they threw themselves once more into the remaining battles.
From the moment several dozen senior elders of the righteous path joined the fray, the tide of this catastrophic battle turned in favor of the righteous for the first time. The cultivation and dharma power of these venerable masters far surpassed that of ordinary disciples; though they were few in number by comparison, their impact was immense. Under the combined assault of more than a dozen elders and young disciples such as Xiao Yichen, Lu Xueling, and Zeng Shuyan, those few gigantic beasts—fearsome as their demonic power was—were suppressed, and in the end slain by the concerted effort of all. Yet such demons were vicious after all, and they exacted a grievous price from the righteous path.
But amid such blood and carnage, who still remembered the fallen companions?
At the moment the White Bone Snake Demon's colossal body crashed down, the people floating high in the sky had already turned and, expressionless, were hurling themselves at the next battleground, continuing the slaughter and strife. Xiao Yichen flew to the rear and set Zeng Shuyan down in a quiet spot, then hurried back—but in the blink of an eye, from the corner of his eye he glimpsed Lu Xueling, back where they had been, seemingly dazed, staring blankly at the demon's carcass, her face deathly pale.
Puzzled, Xiao Yichen called out, "Sister Lu, what's wrong?"