Chapter Forty-One: Brave Heart (Sixteen)

The Bull Demon glared with his enormous eyes, staring at the altar before him with suspicion, as if confirming something. “The power I possess to descend here is only enough for one strike, and that won’t break this formation,” he said gravely, his gaze fixed on the altar, openly admitting his own limitation.

“Is this formation truly so difficult to break?” Crow’s mouth twitched, disappointment etched across his face as he looked at the Bull Demon.

The Bull Demon grinned sheepishly, scratching his head in embarrassment and replied with an honest, guileless air, “It’s not quite that difficult. My strike will be enough to shake the foundation of the array. After that, you can attack it a few more times and it should shatter.”

Hearing the Bull Demon’s confident words, Crow exhaled slowly, clasped his hands, and said, “Then I must trouble you, Brother Bull Demon, to first shake the array’s foundation. I shall stand guard for you.”

“Haha, no trouble at all, as the saying goes, ‘Take the man’s coin, bear his misfortune.’ Today you’ve sacrificed millions of blood souls; I will naturally do my utmost to help you.” The Bull Demon laughed heartily, waving his hand with complete nonchalance.

With nothing more to say, the Bull Demon wasted no words. He hefted his massive axe and unleashed a mighty blow.

With a wild roar, the Bull Demon’s black giant axe radiated rings of blood-red runes. The runes whirled and twisted, morphing into a vague, indistinct figure—none other than the Lord of Darkness himself!

Endless demonic energy surged from the void into the giant axe, swelling its power. “Boom!”

A bloody-black axe shadow shot forth from the axe, flying straight at the Four Symbols and Eight Trigrams Formation, colliding with a thunderous crash.

Inside the formation, the Four Heavenly Kings felt a sweetness in their throats and spat blood as they collapsed, clearly suffering grave injuries.

As for the Seven Ghosts of Mount Changyang, they fared even worse—three of them turned to black smoke and perished under that single strike, their souls scattered. The remaining four ghosts flickered with unstable black energy, obviously severely wounded.

The might of a single axe—utterly terrifying!

“So it’s just a broken formation. What a disappointment! What a disappointment!” The Bull Demon raised his head and howled, evidently unsatisfied with the formation’s power. But as his strength was spent, he could only regretfully let his projection dissipate and return to the darkness.

With the Bull Demon’s projection gone, the rift in the sky seemed to have fulfilled its purpose; it collapsed with a thunderous crash, sending ripples through the void, making space and time here even more chaotic and inscrutable.

Seeing the formation on the verge of collapse from the Bull Demon’s blow, Crow’s face lit with joy. He extended his right hand, and violent energy began to gather.

After a short while, a delicate snowflake rune floated above his palm, demonic energy coiling around it, exuding an evil aura.

“Hm, as expected of the power from the core of the Ice Hell—how I look forward to your brilliance. Well then, it’s time for you all to depart.” Crow gazed obsessively at the snowflake rune, grinned sinisterly, and flicked it forth.

The snowflake rune drifted toward the altar, truly appearing as nothing more than a snowflake, swirling in the wind, crystalline and beautiful.

Only when the snowflake landed on the altar did its true power reveal itself. Silently, the entire altar was veiled in a layer of blue gauze; the chilling aura of the first tier vanished, while the golden splendor of the second tier dimmed and lifeless.

The whole altar was transformed into a massive block of mysterious ice, and the Four Heavenly Kings, along with the four surviving ghosts of Mount Changyang, were turned—under the rune’s influence—into lifelike ice sculptures, exquisitely crafted, flawless in every detail.

“It’s over! All of it is over! Little brat, why aren’t you breaking free now? At this point, why so silent?” Crow burst out laughing, standing quietly and awaiting the Demon Fetus’s release.

“Yes, it should be over. Crow, you do not belong here; you are not of this time and space. Return whence you came.” A hoary voice sounded from behind Crow.

Who could it be? Of course, it was our protagonist! Surely you didn’t think the hero would idle away until the end, did you? Our protagonist has been lurking quietly for so many chapters—if he doesn’t make an appearance now, who would even remember he’s the lead? Damn it! At least let him assert his presence!

Yes! This was the moment when our protagonist, Luo Hanya, finally appeared! At this instant, he was like an enlightened old monk, his expression serene and tranquil, his voice calm and unhurried.

“What the hell?” Crow was thunderstruck, his expression a masterpiece of disbelief. He felt the world had gone utterly mad and was even starting to doubt his own reality.

It was as if an elephant had been standing tall, and suddenly an ant appeared, calmly telling the elephant, “Hey, I’m going to eat you, no lie! You’re about to be devoured by me!” Naturally, the elephant would be stunned to the core.

“Hahaha!” Crow burst into laughter, tears rolling down his cheeks. At that moment, his inner monologue must have been something like: Damn it, couldn’t the author be more professional? I, Crow, have lived for so long and never seen such a forcibly advanced plot. I know I’m doomed, but must I fall in such a humiliating manner? Couldn’t I get the respect a top villain deserves?

Of course, the author wouldn’t handle it that way. As the saying goes, cause and effect must be respected; the plot advances for a reason, never by force.

Let’s go back a few minutes.

At that time, our protagonist was still quietly hiding, seemingly resigned to awaiting death once more.

But! Once Crow opened the void tunnel, everything changed!

The situation was thus: Luo Hanya lay on the ground in agony, unable even to move a finger. He watched numbly as everything unfolded before him, waiting silently for death, cursing the unscrupulous author who always put him in mortal peril.

Just then, a distant and aged voice echoed in his mind. By all rights, this should be the typical mysterious elder appearing, the protagonist’s inner universe exploding, triumphing over all evil, and ultimately finding happiness.

“Young man who does not belong to this time and space…” Luo Hanya’s heart trembled with uncertainty. With the little strength left in his eyes, he scanned his surroundings, searching for the voice’s source.

“No need to look, I am the Buddha’s head,” the ancient voice spoke again.

“A single oversight in a hundred precautions,” the Buddha’s head sighed.

“What do you mean?” Luo Hanya asked, puzzled.

“By the will of Heaven, the Demon Fetus was never meant to be born. But you do not belong to this world; your actions are outside the bounds of cause and effect. This is why it has a chance to break free. Should the Demon Fetus emerge, chaos will descend upon the world,” the Buddha’s head said with sorrow.

“Master, I am confused. How do you know this is the Demon Fetus? And why will it bring disaster?” Luo Hanya was startled, but his mind remained calm.

“I am the Past Buddha of the Lamp, knowing the secrets of destiny. Whether the Demon Fetus is born now lies with you. Will you perform this act of merit?” the Buddha’s head intoned gently.