The Kitten's Death

Falling petals drifted down in a ceaseless cascade, crystalline and translucent as if the divine blossoms of immortals were withering. Buddhist chanting, songs of apocalypse, sacrificial hymns... echoed unceasingly.

"I do not wish for eternal life, only to live together; I do not contend for a hundred ages, only for this one life; I do not seek immortality, only the present... With my soul I offer sacrifice, a thousand ages of suffering, a hundred lifetimes of torment, all in exchange for the life of a little beast..." The voice lingered between heaven and earth.

The Seven-Colored Sacred Tree flickered, making Xiao Chen's palm almost translucent. Dots of holy light enveloped him where he lay in a pool of blood.

Radiant light turned night into day as bright as noon. Heaven and earth wept together. The death of the little beast drew cosmic anomalies, shaking all of Heavenly Emperor City. Every cultivator was stunned, and many felt an involuntary sorrow rise in their hearts—indescribable, incomprehensible.

This was a display worthy of a half-ancestral god! Those who could cause celestial anomalies could be counted on one hand since ancient times. It proved the might of the snow-white beast's race, and many felt a chill in their hearts.

Already, people were discussing the root of this turmoil: the death of the little white tiger. Everything had begun from this.

"The Tiger family of the Central Land is too tyrannical. The little white tiger died in a beast-fighting tournament—who can be blamed?"

"Since it entered the competition, it should have accepted the possibility of defeat and death. The beast-fighting tournament rules clearly state that life and death are determined by fate. Even a three-year-old child understands that. Yet they seek revenge afterward—utterly unreasonable and shameless!"

"Everything is because of this shameless family. They have enraged the heavens."

"The Hai family is no good either. Fearful of the Central Land Tiger family, they conspired with them, handing over their own son-in-law to outsiders for execution."

Everyone knew this storm would not subside with the little beast's death.

Having spoken his oath, Xiao Chen seemed to sink into dead stillness. He quietly stared at the tree in his hand, his eyes utterly devoid of emotion.

The Seven-Colored Radiance enveloped him. The divinely transformed acupoints in his body shone like stars, blazing with dazzling light in that moment. Boundless life energy surged forth, repairing his deathly injured body.

Though he said nothing, Xiao Chen wept silently. He did not know if he would ever see that mischievous little creature again. Even though the Seven-Colored Sacred Tree had apparently absorbed Keke's seven strands of essence, who could say it would truly reappear in this world?

The Seven-Colored Sacred Tree trembled, as if the little beast were breathing in a peaceful dream. Xiao Chen's heart shuddered along with it. The tree's radiance connected to the life energy hidden within his divine acupoints, quickly bathing his entire body in brilliant rays. Burst blood vessels reconnected, shattered flesh healed, broken bones reknitted...

Crystalline skin shimmered with specks of light. All bloodstains and scars were shaken off. The Seven-Colored Radiance was like a sacred flame burning. Xiao Chen seemed reborn from a bath of fire, life energy once again filling his body. In that brief instant, he had fully recovered. But the little beast... still had not appeared.

The Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant both felt fear. Facing this celestial anomaly, they had a premonition of disaster. Even if they were safe now, calamity would surely befall them in the future.

Without a word, the two charged at Xiao Chen. Tiger claw-shaped blades of light slashed at his neck, seeking to kill him.

Petals fell, scattering like ripples spreading outward from the Seven-Colored Sacred Tree in Xiao Chen's hand. Radiant light stirred; misty glow swirled. Seven different-colored beams flashed out, sweeping toward them.

"How can this be?" The Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant were both shocked. They flipped back dozens of meters, steadied themselves in the air, then attacked Xiao Chen again.

The Seven-Colored Sacred Tree left Xiao Chen's palm, floating into the air. It swept out a massive beam of light like a comet's tail. If not for the Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant's speed, they would have paid a heavy price. Even so, the residual light shook them, causing their energy to churn and nearly knocking them from the sky.

Light flickered. The Seven-Colored Sacred Tree descended again, hovering before Xiao Chen's heart. It shook continuously, then seemed to melt as it entered his body.

In that brief instant, the divine tree spread out inside Xiao Chen like a sacred vine. Its roots pierced into his limbs and hundred meridians. The ink-jade leaf, white-jade leaf, emerald-jade leaf, and golden-jade leaf trembled, illuminating his five viscera and six bowels.

The nine divinely transformed acupoints, like nine treasuries, connected with the Seven-Colored Sacred Tree, all linked by the little tree's roots. Light blazed brilliantly. Xiao Chen's body emitted a thousand auspicious rays and ten thousand colored beams.

Tears blurred Xiao Chen's eyes. The little beast's treasure tree had saved him. But what about the little beast? Was it truly within the sacred tree? Could it ever reappear in the world?

Heart-wrenching...

In that moment, Xiao Chen felt his life bound together with the sacred tree. The Seven-Colored Sacred Tree connected his nine divine acupoints, implanted itself among his organs, and took root in his limbs and meridians—like a spiritual life root, establishing an inseparable link with him. He raised his hand, and with a “whoosh,” a beam of light flew out. It was the great dragon divine art—Imprisonment!

Everyone present was stunned. Many faces turned extremely ugly. How had the gravely wounded, dying Xiao Chen merged with the little tree and mastered Keke's great divine art?

Among the six demigods in the sky, aside from the Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant who dared to kill Keke, the others had come to kill Xiao Chen. Now this man who should have died had gained such an encounter, immediately making them restless.

The six demigods in the air surrounded him in an instant. A domain spread out, trapping Xiao Chen on the ground. Matters had already come to this—they could not let Xiao Chen go. Only by completely annihilating him could they permanently eliminate the future threat.

Xiao Chen spread his Undying Wings, struggling to rise into the sky. His palm blade swept forward with the force of a thousand armies, unleashing an endless cascade of brilliant light. Fully seventeen levels of divine radiance rolled toward the Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant like a tidal wave.

The Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant struck back without mercy. White tiger-shaped energy waves charged like external incarnations, while blades of light tore through the void to counter the great dragon divine art.

In an instant, the night sky lit up as bright as day. Energy waves surged and roiled, shaking the ten directions. The shockwaves overturned many nearby houses.

This was a collision of great divine arts! A decisive clash of power!

Xiao Chen was shaken back to the ground, but his body was unharmed. He coldly scanned the sky.

The Tiger Slave and others were shocked. How could Xiao Chen match them? Even if he had mastered the little beast's divine art, he should not be so overwhelmingly strong. Under the domain's suppression in the air, even the little beast itself had struggled to resist them. Now Xiao Chen was merely borrowing the power of that divine art—how could it be stronger than the snow-white beast itself?

In truth, Xiao Chen was also surprised at first. But after a moment's thought, he understood. It was not just the little beast's power at work now, but also the immense energy of the Seven-Colored Sacred Tree and the strength of his nine divine acupoints.

"Even if you have mastered the little beast's divine art, can you break through the domain and escape?" The Tiger Slave glared venomously at Xiao Chen. By now, she was furious. Repeated unexpected events had worn her patience thin, and her fear was growing—she dreaded some unforeseen disaster.

Xiao Chen remained coldly indifferent. He launched attack after attack, trying to break through the blockade of the six demigods.

Life-and-death combat, fierce collision. Xiao Chen could withstand the domain, but could not break through.

The six demigods in the air grew anxious. Though they were undefeated, they urgently wanted to eliminate Xiao Chen as quickly as possible. With the sacred tree fused into his body, they could not help but worry—who knew if another unexpected change would occur?

"Adequate in defense, lacking in offense..." Xiao Chen sighed inwardly. He had only mastered the Imprisonment and Sweep techniques among the great dragon divine arts, and had no clue about the Killing technique. He wished he could immediately cut down the six in front of him. But even with the sacred tree within him and Keke's divine art, he still could not overpower the six in the air, only barely holding on from the ground.

"Am I doomed to die here?" Xiao Chen's heart sank. He did not consider outside help. Among those he knew, only the Devil and Lan Nuo had the strength, but they were too far away—distant water could not quench the present fire.

At that moment, from the direction of the mournful flute music, the desolate sound abruptly stopped. A sword ray, like a transcendent immortal descending from the heavens, cut across the sky and shot straight toward the domain formed by the six demigods!

Like a star falling to the earth, like a vast sea reversing and crashing against the nine heavens—a sword of overwhelming momentum! The sword light tore through the domain in an instant, savagely carving a path.

No one had anticipated that such a powerful figure would intervene. An astonishing, peerless sword that pierced the domain and shattered the balance!

Xiao Chen had a natural talent for combat. In that instant, he shot into the sky. The dragon divine art Sweep lashed out horizontally, divine light piercing the heavens! Sweeping aside more than a dozen terrifying energy beams from the Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant, he burst out of the domain in a flash, standing in the sky. He took a deep look in the direction from which the flute had come, then coldly swept his gaze over everyone present.

With a “whoosh,” Xiao Chen spread his Undying Wings and charged forward in an instant. A beam of divine light swept out, and the Tiger Slave was thrown into a backward somersault.

Enraged beyond shame, the Tiger Slave knew that without the six demigods' domain, she alone could not withstand the little beast's great divine art. She screamed, “Quickly form the domain! Absolutely cannot let him escape! He must be slain tonight!”

In truth, which of the six wanted to let Xiao Chen go? In the future, he would be a calamity.

How could Xiao Chen allow himself to be trapped again? Like a swimming dragon, he swept across the sky and fled into the distance.

“After him!”

“Absolutely cannot let him get away! He must be killed!”

The falling petals gradually thinned. The Buddhist chanting, songs of apocalypse, and sacrificial hymns all vanished. Like the wind, like lightning, Xiao Chen left Heavenly Emperor City far behind and fled into the Southern Wastes of the million-barren mountain range.

The six demigods pursued relentlessly, using every means, but among the wild forests they gradually lost sight of Xiao Chen.

Xiao Chen laughed coldly. Finally, silently evading the six, he retraced his path and stealthily made his way back toward Heavenly Emperor City.

A bloodbath! This was an impulse he could hardly suppress. Though he knew that fleeing now was the safest course, he could not bear it. If he could not kill the Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant, he felt he would have no face to face Keke.

The little beast could not have died in vain!

Now he would enter the city and create chaos.

Inside the city, the Hai family was still searching. Xiao Chen encountered a squad in an instant. The great dragon divine art Sweep struck mercilessly, instantly shattering these people. Though it was not a specialized killing art, it was more than enough for them.

“Help!”

“He's here!”

“Xiao Chen has returned to kill!”

Before they could finish shouting, Xiao Chen had already struck, charging straight at the Hai family members. His palm blade slashed horizontally, instantly bisecting seven or eight men. Blood sprayed everywhere. Xiao Chen searched for Hai Yunxue and Hai Fanyun among the crowd. He raised his hand and swept out another beam of divine light, sending over a dozen heads flying sideways. Blood spurted like fountains. The street was dyed red with blood.

Failing to find Hai Yunxue and Hai Fanyun, Xiao Chen rose into the air in an instant, then charged out of Heavenly Emperor City again and vanished into the endless dark void.

The six demigods who had rushed into the wild mountains hurried back. The four Hai family experts immediately became frantic. Among the more than twenty who had just died, seven or eight were Spirit-Treasury realm experts—a loss that should never have occurred! Ignoring the Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant, the four rushed in all directions to gather their family disciples.

The moment the four departed, Xiao Chen silently rushed in from the distant sky and struck directly at the Tiger Slave!

“Damned brat!” The Tiger Slave and Tiger Attendant both flew into a rage and turned to attack Xiao Chen.

There was no denying the immense power of the great dragon divine art. Dodging the Tiger Attendant, Xiao Chen sent the Tiger Slave flying with a heavy sweep. Spreading his Undying Wings, propelled by the power of the Seven-Colored Sacred Tree, his movements were as fast as lightning. He pursued directly.

Divine light exploded. With a “whoosh,” Xiao Chen slashed a beam of radiance diagonally.

The Tiger Slave blocked, but could not withstand it. Amid the sound of shattering, divine light trembled. Xiao Chen charged through more than a dozen pieces of the Tiger Slave's shattered light.

“Pft!”

Blood splattered. Xiao Chen's palm blade shattered the Tiger Slave's right hand. With another shake, he completely ground her forearm to pulp, leaving the pursuing Tiger Attendant burning with rage but unable to rescue her in time.

“Ah...” The old crone Tiger Slave screamed. She flew backward with all her might, escaping Xiao Chen.

But the moment Xiao Chen dodged the Tiger Attendant behind him, he swept out a kick. Blazing divine light nearly severed the old crone's neck as it grazed by, shaving off a small piece of her chin.

With that, Xiao Chen vanished into the distance without looking back. He knew that if the two joined forces, defeating them would cost him dearly. Only by attacking when they were separated could he succeed.

“How can this be?! How can this be!?” The Tiger Slave shrieked, her face twisted with hatred, her eyes full of murderous light. She stared at the fading figure in the distance, her voice dripping with venom. “This boy must not be allowed to grow! Kill him! He must be killed tonight!”

She and the Tiger Attendant pursued.

Strike and retreat—this was Xiao Chen's strategy. Now he entered Heavenly Emperor City again. His target was a lone demigod of the Hai family.

With a “whoosh,” divine light blazed. The great dragon divine art Imprisonment swept out, instantly trapping the old man within it. Though it could not completely bind him, it clearly slowed his movements, as if advancing through a swamp.

One beam of divine light after another. After a continuous sweep of thirty-six rays, Xiao Chen finally trapped the old man.

Without any hesitation, Xiao Chen charged like lightning. He spun and swept his leg, blazing light illuminating the entire sky. Everyone in the area felt the energy fluctuations.

“Pft!”

Blood sprayed. This expert who had just entered the demigod realm lost his arms in an instant.

With a fierce kick aimed at the Sky-Mastery expert's waist, Xiao Chen intended to cut him in two. But a demigod's reflexes were strong. Even trapped, the old man managed to block with both hands at the last moment.

The moment his arms shattered, Xiao Chen reversed his body and slammed back-first into his chest. Without a hint of reluctance, his right elbow drove violently backward.

“Pft!”

Blood burst forth with a scream. The demigod's chest collapsed inward. Xiao Chen kicked backward without looking back, then vanished into the distance.

A head exploded. The corpse fell from the sky.

Xiao Chen was immensely talented in combat, rich in life-and-death experience. He had only lacked in cultivation and power. Now, having briefly acquired the sacred tree's divine force, he had brought this instinct to its fullest expression.

“Xiao Chen, you deserve death!”

The moment Xiao Chen struck and fled, Hai Fanyun and an old man reached this part of the sky. They chased after him in fury, shouting behind him.

“So Hai Fanyun, you too have long broken into the Sky-Mastery realm. Good, I have noted this. Also remember that both your head and your daughter Hai Yunxue's head are mine for the taking!” His voice faded as Xiao Chen disappeared into the dark sky in the distance.

Xiao Chen dared not venture deep into Heavenly Emperor City. He only waited for opportunities in the dark void, because he was worried. He knew full well the terror of those great families. If... a Deathless Longevity realm expert actually appeared, it would not be surprising. Then he would truly be dead!

Should he retreat now? Yet, he was so unwilling, filled with such hate. Keke had been killed. If he fled without avenging it, his heart felt as if it were being torn apart with pain.

But Deathless Longevity... there might truly be experts of that realm in the city—an existence he could not challenge. Must he find a secluded place to cultivate and endure for years before he could take revenge? Xiao Chen's heart was full of frustration and agony.

“Do you want power? I can give it to you. But there is a condition...” A voice like a demon's suddenly rang out in Xiao Chen's heart, tempting him toward a choice.

“I can give it to you too...” Another voice arose in his mind, carrying an indescribably demonic force. “In this world, everything is fair. To gain, you must first give.”

“Decide quickly. The dragon clan's sacred tree will not remain in your body for long.”

“It is truly fair. You only need to...”

“Unleash a slaughter...”

“Bloodbath Heavenly Emperor City...”

Two demons were tempting him.