The Darklight Assassination

The distant All-Demon Realm.

“Proceed according to the plan.” The Lord of All Demons stood alone upon a mountain peak, gazing out across the endless void, yet his voice pierced through the void to transmit into the minds of great powers in other worlds. “This assassination of Ji Ning and the retrieval of the All-Things Emissary—if done quickly enough—should be relatively simple. But there is a distinct possibility that this will trigger the final, ultimate battle. Are you all prepared?”

“Yes, Demonlord.”

“Rest assured, Windfiend.”

“We are all ready.”

The ten-plus most supreme great powers of the entire Seamless Gate each understood that this night… was arguably the most important night in endless eons. For this night would be a battle between the great powers of both sides, and some even saw it as the full eruption of the final war. The last final war had shattered two Chaosworlds—such was the terrifying might of a battle between great powers.

…

“A battle is coming?” A woman in purple robes sat cross-legged on a jade bed. Her hands were crystalline and pale, and a flicker of excitement could be seen in her eyes.

She was the most battle-hungry among the top few great powers of the Seamless Gate.

…

“This battle must not fail.” Another man, also in purple robes, with a wooden ruler strapped to his back, sat in an ordinary wooden cottage. He waved his hand, and the wooden ruler flew into his palm. Gazing at it, Master Stonerule stroked it gently and murmured to himself, “Old friend, we will battle together again. The last time we fought was during the Primordial Era.”

“Huum~~~” The wooden ruler trembled lightly.

Master Stonerule’s expression then turned solemn, his eyes filled with icy resolve. Though he disliked conflict, he would show absolutely no mercy when the crucial moment arrived.

…

“The Demonlord is being far too cautious. He even prepared a triple-layered plan. With a sudden ambush, Ji Ning won’t even have time to set up the Rahu Formation. Killing him is as easy as slaughtering a chicken. The first layer alone is enough. I don’t even need Wuying’s help; I can handle it myself.” A skinny old man with a hideous, centipede-like scar on his face let a cold glint flash through his eyes.

He was the Darklight Swordmaster.

His sword-force had reached the fifth level, and he was arguably the most accomplished assassin among the great powers of the Seamless Gate. Because of his assassination expertise, his sword was known as the ‘Darklight Sword’—for no enemy could ever see it.

The Seamless Gate’s first wave of action involved only a few great powers, was extremely covert and silent, and went completely unnoticed by Nuwa’s camp.

In the Imperial Palace of the Zhuolu Major World.

Ji Ning, dressed in white, sat opposite Silvermoon God, gazing at the star-filled sky.

“These peaceful days… they are wonderful,” Silvermoon God said while looking at the stars, his voice soft. “I just wonder how much longer this peace will last.”

“Once the great tribulation has passed, everything will be fine,” Ji Ning said, also staring at the starry sky. “The tree desires stillness, but the wind will not cease. We may wish for peaceful days, but there is always a cause behind this calamity. Only by cutting off the hidden hand, slaughtering those great powers who deliberately seek to throw the Three Realms into chaos, can we restore peace.”

“Haha.”

Silvermoon God laughed. “It’s a good thing we have you on our side. I don’t even know what you went through in the Moon Underwater Abyss, Junior Apprentice-Brother, but you—merely a True God True Immortal—can unleash such terrifying power.”

Ji Ning smiled but said nothing more.

All those who had emerged from the Moon Underwater Abyss, including those two hundred-plus Empyrean Gods, never spoke of the Abyss to outsiders. Thus, people like Silvermoon God understood that it wasn’t that Ji Ning was unwilling to tell them—it was that he couldn’t tell them. So no one pressed the issue.

“Ah. The wine is all gone.” Silvermoon God picked up his wine jug, gave it a shake, and rose with a smile. “Well, since the wine is finished, I should be going. No need to see me off.”

With that, Silvermoon God took a step and descended, then began to sway as he walked into the distance while calling out, “Kill a few more of those Seamless Gate bastards for me.”

“Alright,” Ji Ning replied.

Because of the severe drop in power from last time—having lost most of his soul—his senior had become quite weak and could no longer fight. In truth, Ji Ning could have restored his senior to full strength by using just a tiny bit of Chaos Nectar. But Ji Ning was well aware that once his senior regained his power, he would insist on joining the battle again.

Better to let him stay safely in the rear.

“This Ninefold Chaos Seal is truly inscrutable and profound.” Ji Ning flipped his hand, producing one of the Heavenly Stargold Beads, and began to meditate on the Ninefold Chaos Seal contained within it. The more he meditated, the more he realized its depth. Studying it made it easier for him to comprehend the sword techniques left behind by World God Northrest, and even easier to comprehend the Dao itself.

Ji Ning had originally thought this was merely an ordinary chaos seal among the endless chaos. But after learning the many techniques passed on by World God Northrest, and comparing them side-by-side, he began to feel that the Ninefold Chaos Seal was far from ordinary.

“Perhaps someday, when I venture into the endless chaos to seek the Heavenly Palace of Azure, I will learn the true origins of this Ninefold Chaos Seal.”

Holding the Heavenly Stargold Bead, he meditated.

After meditating for over an hour, the night had grown deep.

“Hmm?”

Ji Ning suddenly shuddered, an inexplicable and terrifying premonition making his heart pound violently. He could even sense, with an intense clarity from the depths of fate, an overwhelmingly terrifying threat descending upon him—boundless, endless, and suffocating to the point that despair naturally arose in his heart.

“Not good!” Ji Ning was alarmed.

Ever since he had comprehended the second level of the Heavenly Stargold Beads and could transform them into the ‘Heaven-Observing Mirror,’ his sensitivity toward the arcane flows of fate had become far greater than before. But this time there had been no warning at all. Only when the threat erupted did it arrive so swiftly and horrifically. It was clear that the enemy’s mastery of ‘fate’ far surpassed his own, and they had even managed to obscure the threads of fate until the very moment of the strike. By the time he noticed, it was already too late.

“Flee.” The only thought in Ji Ning’s mind under this overwhelming threat was ‘flee.’

Suddenly—

“Hum~~~~~”

A fan-shaped stream of black light, like a peacock unfurling its tail feathers, swept past Ji Ning.

It was utterly silent, yet inconceivably fast.

By the time Ji Ning sensed the fan-shaped black light, it was already upon him. All he could do was raise his Starseizing Hand and desperately try to block.

“Shua shua shua~~” In an instant, the fan-shaped black light tore completely through Ji Ning’s body. Though his true body was protected by the ninth cycle of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, it still could not withstand the terrifying black light. The Fiendgod body collapsed entirely—and naturally, the Golden Core within, as well as the soul, were instantly extinguished.

In the blink of an eye, the white-robed youth who had been sitting there was reduced to nothingness.

“Hmph. No matter how powerful he was, what good is having the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation or the Ninth Cycle of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art?” Above the Imperial Palace, a skinny old man appeared. It was the Darklight Swordmaster of the Seamless Gate. This operation was too important. Because Ji Ning possessed the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation, any delay would have allowed Ji Ning to escape.

Thus, they had specifically enlisted the assassination expert ‘Darklight Swordmaster’ for this task. His sword was so concealed, so terrifying, that it could annihilate Ji Ning in an instant!

Had the Darklight Swordmaster failed, allowing Ji Ning to use the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation to escape, then the next to act would have been the being most skilled in escape within the entire Three Realms—the Lord of All Demons himself—personally making a move. The Lord of All Demons’ speed in escape far surpassed Ji Ning’s; even the Golden Crow Demonking reborn could not compare.

But…

Ji Ning had grown too complacent within the Imperial Palace of Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan. He had trusted Patriarch Subhuti too much, trusted Yellow Emperor too much, and was too confident in himself. And so, he was killed in an instant, without even the time to activate the Lightning-Serpent Teleportation and flee. The Lord of All Demons had no need to intervene.

…

Two terrifying auras within the Imperial Palace suddenly surged.

“Darklight!”

A furious roar shook the heavens and the earth. The old Daoist robed in white, who was always serene and smiling, was now overflowing with murderous intent. He had sensed something wrong quickly—but by the time he realized it, Ji Ning’s true body had already been annihilated without any chance to resist.

“Subhuti, don’t be hasty.”

A calm voice rang out across the Imperial Palace.

Above the palace, a purple-robed man appeared. He held a wooden ruler in his hand and pointed it from afar at Patriarch Subhuti. Instantly, a hazy purple light enveloped Patriarch Subhuti. The other great power, Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan, who was also shocked and enraged, was likewise caught in that hazy purple light. Trapped within the purple light, both Patriarch Subhuti and Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan found it exceptionally difficult to break free for the moment.

“Rend.” Subhuti pointed from afar.

“Swoosh~~~” The surrounding spacetime began to shatter.

“Useless.” The purple-robed man stood calm in the void. Though spacetime shattered layer by layer around him, the endless purple light continued to forcibly congeal everything. In terms of pure defense and containment, Master Stonerule was the most terrifying being in the entire Seamless Gate. Even if all Three Sovereigns came together, he could hold them off alone—let alone just Subhuti and Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan.

PS1: This critical chapter was somewhat slow to write. One chapter for now; a second chapter will be uploaded before 6 PM.

PS2: The Desolate Era mobile game has had another ‘update,’ adding a few new features. There is also a quiz event in the game, with all questions taken from the Desolate Era novel. Those who wish to download and play the Desolate Era game can enter the address to download.