Chapter 12: The Old Monster
Inside the Vadi Family’s sacrificial hall in the Deep World.
The entire hall was about seven meters tall, with scale-like tendrils hanging from above, lending the solemn scene a filthy, eerie atmosphere.
On the stone throne at the innermost part of the hall sat Vadi Family’s first patriarch, Vadi Trechi. This old monster seemed to be smiling, but his completely gray-black eyes and eye sockets sent a chill down one’s spine.
The old monster no longer felt human. His aura was deathly still, yet it carried no sense of decline.
“So, you’re the chosen one they picked? Those two in the church still haven’t given up.”
The old monster appeared to laugh, but his expression perfectly embodied the phrase “a smile that doesn’t reach the eyes.”
“Did you come here on the orders of my two old friends? Or are you here to vie with me for immortality?”
As the old monster spoke, an eye suddenly opened on his face. Its gaze was despairing, its pupil trembling—clearly possessing independent consciousness. If anyone familiar with the current Vadi Family patriarch, Vadi Lifake, were present, they would be shocked, for this eye belonged to Vadi Lifake himself. That unique pupil was unmatched in all of High Wall City.
The old monster calmly raised a hand, plucked the eyeball sprouting from his face, and popped it into his mouth, chewing.
“…”
Su Xiao said nothing. He had come neither on the orders of the Archbishop and High Priest nor to seize immortality. In fact, he had never cared about immortality. Pursuing infinite possibilities within a finite life—that was what made it exciting.
Su Xiao’s purpose here was straightforward. He upheld the fine tradition of the Shadow of Law Destruction: either never offend an enemy, or, once hostile, annihilate them completely.
For some reason, upon seeing this old monster, Su Xiao felt a faint familiarity. The indescribable fluctuation on the other party was somewhat similar to that of the Archbishop and High Priest.
Or rather, the special aura on the old monster was murky, unlike the purity of the Archbishop and High Priest.
This led Su Xiao to speculate: could this old monster be from the same era as the Archbishop and High Priest?
But this was just speculation. Su Xiao hadn’t forgotten the world’s introduction: Vadi Trechi was born in Wall Era 147 and later founded the Vadi Merchant Alliance.
The reason Su Xiao suspected the old monster was from the same era as the Archbishop and High Priest was not only the unique aura fluctuation but also the possibility that this old monster was and wasn’t Vadi Trechi.
If the old monster had lived from the Age of Gods to the Wall Era, he could have seized Vadi Trechi’s body and soul, devoured his consciousness, and replaced him as the new Vadi Trechi.
If so, the world introduction made sense. Vadi Trechi, born in Wall Era 147, was a normal person. He remained an ordinary man with business acumen through adulthood and middle age, until he established the merchant alliance in High Wall City, which drew the old monster’s attention.
What the old monster’s original form was remained unknown. His current state was extremely peculiar—having recently seized immortality from the Pain Maiden, the data from the Eye of All Gods showed only gibberish chaotic symbols beyond the name. Su Xiao had encountered this for the first time.
There was another reason Su Xiao suspected the old monster came from the Age of Gods.
On the 12th floor of the Grand Cathedral stood five stone thrones. Each throne’s back bore a symbol: the Archbishop’s had the “Hunting Mark,” the High Priest’s the “Moon Mark,” and the remaining three represented “Infinite Serpent,” “Myriad Insects,” and “Iron Heart.”
Hunter, Moon, Serpent, Insect, Iron—these were clearly five great figures from the Age of Gods. If the Archbishop and High Priest could survive to the present, why couldn’t others?
Now, on the stone throne behind the old monster, a symbol representing “Myriad Insects” was clearly carved. This was the main reason Su Xiao suspected the old monster was from the Age of Gods.
Or rather, these five people had founded High Wall City. Among them, the Hunter (Archbishop) and Moon (High Priest) jointly established the Healing Church.
The Myriad Insects (old monster) had seized the Vadi Family. As for the remaining Infinite Serpent and Iron Heart, it was even more obvious. The representative of Iron Heart was certainly the first leader of the Steam God Church.
As for the final Infinite Serpent, needless to say, the four major powers left High Wall Council, which was likely created by this figure.
Thus, the five masters of the five stone thrones had spanned the entire history of the Wall Era. No, they were part of history itself. The recorded history within the walls wasn’t as long as their lifespans. Some major events not recorded in history books, they had personally experienced.
Assuming a possibility: if these five all had some connection to the God of Immortality, then their survival to the present wouldn’t be surprising.
When Su Xiao had seen the Archbishop earlier, he clearly sensed something wrong. That sense of decline was palpable even without extending his perception.
Not only the Archbishop, but the High Priest was similar. When she gave Su Xiao that bag of ancient gold coins, she had said, “I probably don’t have much time left. Lucky you.”
Following this line of thought, the situation became clear. The five from the Age of Gods had gained near-immortal constitutions through their connection to the God of Immortality.
But not long ago, something went wrong with the God of Immortality, directly affecting the five. They all lost their immortal constitutions and were nearing the end of their lives.
The Archbishop and High Priest chose to accept it. They no longer coveted anything in this world and were ready to welcome eternal sleep. For them, it was a release.
The old monster was different. His obsession with life and immortality was terrifyingly strong. Having lost the immortality fed back by the God of Immortality, he began to scheme.
His plan was to use the special day of the Divine Sacrifice to steal a portion of the God of Immortality’s divine power, then use it to attract beings of similar nature.
The old monster succeeded. The Pain Maiden, possessing an immortal body, was lured in. Little Flower, the Goat-Headed Demon, and the Celestial Envoy were unexpected “bonuses.”
In truth, the old monster had only two targets: 1. The Pain Maiden, to seize her immortality; 2. The Dark Walker, to have this being corrupt all bloodlines of the Vadi Family.
The second target succeeded first. Over the years, other members of the Vadi Family had long sensed something wrong. Through generations of secret inheritance, they desperately concealed the truth from the old monster, secretly training hunter teams outside.
These hunter teams had only one goal: kill the old monster and free the Vadi Family from its shackles. Unfortunately, the old monster had long known this. He summoned the Dark Walker and, through a deal, had it corrupt the souls of all Vadi Family members via bloodline guidance.
After the Vadi Family’s destruction, the hunter teams naturally became blind beasts, no threat to the old monster.
The Dark Walker succeeded but hadn’t yet received its reward when the “Sun Pillar” fell from above. This terrifying being was instantly burned into a gaseous state.
Now, the old monster had eliminated the hidden danger and extended his immortality—a clear winner. But fate was unpredictable. Just as he became the victor, a Law Destroyer came knocking.
The old monster remained seated on the stone throne dozens of meters away, not rashly attacking. Having lived from the Age of Gods to the present, he felt something was wrong the moment he saw Su Xiao. He seemed to have encountered someone with a similar aura before, but the time was too distant, and related memories had been eroded by time.
A silver dagger formed of energy appeared in Su Xiao’s hand. He used it to cut his palm. No blood splattered; instead, scattered moonlight radiance fell. The triple temporary buffs of “Moon Oath,” “Moon Blade,” and “Spirit Blade” were simultaneously applied.
Seeing Su Xiao’s hand grip the sword hilt, the old monster, who had been smiling without sincerity, suddenly turned cold. Then, he laughed again.
“It’s been a long time since I used the Insect Sword.”
The old monster raised his hand. With a click, a sword hilt popped out from the stone throne’s armrest. As he stood, he drew a pure white sword.
Hiss!!
A corrosive sound came from the old monster’s hand. This Holy Insect Sword, which had accompanied him for years and even ventured with him to the root of Dead Silence City, was now eroding him.
The old monster seemed momentarily stunned, then accepted it. He released the Holy Insect Sword, kicked it aside, and it clanged into the wall, leaving only the hilt visible. Perhaps in this holy sword’s eyes, its master had long died—died in that disastrous deep incursion into Dead Silence City.
Click~
A 1.2-meter-long black spike popped out from the left armrest of the stone throne. The old monster grasped its handle and pulled it out. His right hand had held the “Holy Insect Sword,” his left the “Dark Insect Spike.” Now only the “Dark Insect Spike” remained.
Facing this old monster, Su Xiao naturally wouldn’t underestimate him. He had clearly sensed the High Priest’s strength earlier. If this old monster was from the same era as the High Priest, even if their strengths weren’t equal, he wouldn’t be much weaker.
Clang~
The long blade was drawn. Since entering this world, Su Xiao hadn’t fought at full strength. His previous clash with the Dragon God was too brief, and the Duke simply refused to fight him.
A faint blue light appeared in Su Xiao’s eyes—a sign that he had switched the Soul Severing Shadow ability to “Rapid Soul Core.” Rapid Soul Core plus the Abyssal Shadow title brought his speed to an unprecedented peak.
With a boom, the stone floor beneath Su Xiao’s feet shattered. He vanished instantly, leaving a trail of kicked-up gravel along the path between him and the old monster. He appeared before the old monster.
Clang!!
The long blade struck the insect spike with tremendous force, causing the old monster’s expression to change. He had initially thought Su Xiao was speed-type, but the clash revealed otherwise.
Sizzle~
The long blade pressed down, scraping sparks across the black insect spike, then sank into the old monster’s shoulder.
At that moment, Su Xiao’s soul energy erupted. “Rapid Soul Core” switched to “Soul Severing Soul Core.” Since the body was immortal, he would sever the soul.
Pfft!
The long blade cut through the old monster’s shoulder, slashing diagonally down to his opposite waist, cleaving him in two.
The old monster’s upper body flew backward, blood splattering everywhere. He seemed surprised by Su Xiao’s soul-severing ability, not expecting Su Xiao to achieve soul severing through blade techniques under this world’s combat power cap.
In truth, the old monster misunderstood. Su Xiao’s blade techniques could indeed damage souls, but not to the point of severing them. It was the Soul Severing Shadow ability that allowed him to cross that threshold.
Don’t forget: once blade techniques reached a certain level, they could also sever souls. When blade technique soul severing and Soul Severing Shadow soul severing stacked, the joy of it—Green Gillian would approve.
The long blade swept through, trailing large drops of blood. The old monster, his upper body flying backward, grew serious. After clashing with Su Xiao, some of his time-eroded memories suddenly became clear.
“Law Destroyer!”
The old monster’s gaze turned fierce. His entire body exploded into black-red blood with a pop, forming countless barbed spikes hurtling toward Su Xiao.
A foul wind came head-on. Su Xiao’s pupils contracted slightly. His perception screamed warnings. This move seemed simple but was likely one of the old monster’s trump cards. This guy was also a pragmatist—as long as the ability was effective, he didn’t care about flashiness or intimidation.
Su Xiao entered a spatial penetration state. After raising Dragon Shadow Flash to X, he could maintain spatial penetration for 0.2 to 3 seconds. During this time, he could not only evade physical and energy attacks but also spiritual and soul attacks. Cough—the time he was knocked out by the old knight didn’t count.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Hundreds of blood spikes pierced through with sonic booms, passing through various parts of Su Xiao’s body. The next instant, the black-red blood converged, reforming into the old monster holding the Dark Insect Spike.
The moment he appeared, the insect spike aimed straight for Su Xiao’s neck.
Clang!
The long blade blocked horizontally. Su Xiao felt a tremendous force transmitted from the blade to his hands. The old monster had been holding back earlier. The strength he now displayed was astonishing.
Boom!
Su Xiao landed in a half-crouch, the gravel beneath him scattering as he skidded. When he stopped, he straightened up calmly.
Drip, drip~
Blood dripped from Su Xiao’s left hand. He unbuttoned his [Wild Hunt Night] coat, letting the long coat fall to cover his legs.
Bare-chested, Su Xiao looked at his left upper arm. Dozens of centipede-like red-black insects clung to it, writhing in the blood, yet he felt no pain—only a slight coldness.
With a crack, crystal fragments burst from the wound on Su Xiao’s left arm, scattering the clinging centipedes. The old monster was strong; this attack had cost Su Xiao 2.73% of his health.
Such a small area of insect erosion caused this much damage. If the area were larger, Su Xiao’s health would plummet like water.
The old monster’s expression grew noticeably more solemn. Su Xiao found his killing methods formidable, while the old monster wondered if Su Xiao was truly of human constitution. If so, his physique was too strong—taking the erosion of his filth insects without issue, merely blasting them away with manifested body energy.
‘Blade Path: Azure Demon.’
Clang!
A blue-green blade aura tore through the air. Given Azure Demon’s occasional embarrassing performances, Su Xiao used it as a charge technique. After unleashing Azure Demon, he rushed toward the old monster.
Clang!
The old monster’s Dark Insect Spike shattered Azure Demon, causing him to pause, expecting a follow-up. There was none.
‘Blade Path: Flow.’
A graceful wind scar cut through the air, producing a crisp ring. Misled by Azure Demon, the old monster only managed to duck, losing half his skull.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The long blade and Dark Insect Spike clashed repeatedly, sparks flying. Su Xiao had noticed that the old monster’s immense strength was explosive, likely coming at a significant cost each use.
Clang!!
Su Xiao delivered a heavy strike, knocking the old monster’s Dark Insect Spike upward.
An opening.
Su Xiao kicked straight. Across from him, the old monster’s eyes widened. Being hit by this kick was no joke.
Boom!!
The old monster broke through a layer of air, flying straight backward, crashing into the wall with a thunderous impact.
“Heh heh heh heh…”
The old monster rose from the massive crater in the wall. His burst-open ribs, flesh, and shattered spine rapidly reassembled, restoring to normal.
Seeing this, Su Xiao narrowed his eyes. From the start, he had been puzzled by one thing: his soul-severing blade strikes could harm the old monster, but the damage was pitiful—only soul severing plus true damage, totaling 500 to 700 points per strike. Very low.
Yet this kick had directly shaved off a chunk of the old monster’s health. Though not explosive compared to fighting other strong foes, it was far better than his slashes.
This was strange. Soul severing, usually the most effective against the old monster, was now underperforming. Without figuring this out, he couldn’t win.
Enemies like the old monster were entirely different from the Old Knight or the Nether Emperor. Those two required brute force—no clever tricks worked without raw power.
Against the old monster, Su Xiao needed to find the correct method. Once found, he could end the fight quickly. But if not, with the old monster’s various methods, a prolonged battle would surely favor the old monster, whose health recovery outpaced Su Xiao’s potions.
In simple terms, the old monster, having long pursued immortality, had undergone bodily mutations. He had average max health but astonishing recovery speed. Either kill him in one burst or never kill him at all.
‘Myriad Insects.’
The old monster’s entire upper body exploded, transforming into arm-thick giant crimson centipedes.
“Roar!!!”
The centipedes roared, emitting layers of sound ripples.
‘Blade Path: Azure Demon.’
A blue-green blade aura flew, severing all dozen giant centipedes. But the next instant, the remaining halves regenerated at terrifying speed.
A dozen giant centipedes replaced the old monster’s upper body. Cracks split open beneath their abdomens, revealing cross-shaped sharp vertical eyes emitting crimson light, intending to envelop Su Xiao.
Su Xiao, charging forward, abruptly stopped. He raised his left arm to block, forming a crystal arm shield that rapidly expanded. Even so, his arms and legs were briefly exposed to the crimson light; he only managed to shield his torso and head.
The arm shield enlarged, and the oncoming crimson light intensified.
Crackle, crackle~
The sound of centipedes gnawing came from the crystal arm shield, lasting several seconds before stopping. Had the crimson light continued, he would have been gnawed to the bone.
With a crack, the crystal arm shield shattered. Across from him, the old monster, whose upper body had been a dozen giant centipedes, reverted to his original form, smiling without sincerity at Su Xiao.
‘Eclosion.’
The old monster’s eyes turned crimson. Seeing this, Su Xiao instinctively leaped backward.
The moment Su Xiao landed, intense pain erupted inside his hands and feet, as if living things were inside—tiny, transparent insects. These insects invaded the blood vessels of his limbs, multiplying rapidly, then surged through his blood toward his heart.
The old monster exhaled. The battle was over. But he didn’t let his guard down, still watching Su Xiao. After using ‘Myriad Insects,’ his condition was poor, requiring a few seconds to recover.
Across from him, in less than a second, countless tiny insects surged from Su Xiao’s limbs through his blood vessels toward his heart. In this dire situation, he didn’t give up.
Crack, crack, crack~
Cyan Steel Shadow energy crystallized inside Su Xiao’s body, effectively freezing all blood vessels in his torso. He had figured out what these tiny insects were. They weren’t foreign organisms but part of his own muscle tissue, transformed by the earlier crimson light into insect-like forms under the old monster’s control. If real foreign insect organisms had invaded, the Cyan Steel Shadow energy would have annihilated them immediately.
The old monster’s move was vicious. What body energy would destroy its own muscle tissue? Turning part of one’s muscle tissue into insects to attack the heart and brain—this was a killing blow.
The internal insects were frozen, but how to expel them?
Su Xiao held his blade with one hand, locking eyes with the old monster. Multitasking, he sensed the number of insects inside him, then pressed his left hand to his chest. Countless Spirit Shadow Threads, each micrometer-sized, plunged into his body.
The crystallized Cyan Steel Shadow energy reversed, reverting to its original form, freeing the insects in his blood vessels. But immediately, micrometer-level Spirit Shadow Threads entangled them.
Su Xiao yanked his left hand.
Pfft~
Drops of needle-tip-sized blood flew from Su Xiao’s chest. Spirit Shadow Threads hung from his left hand, their tips binding hundreds of writhing red insects.
Su Xiao glanced at the insects. All were evaporating due to the old monster’s ability, but it was too late. He finally understood why the old monster feared neither soul severing nor excessive true damage or instant kills.
Why? Because the old monster, seemingly a single entity, had long turned himself into a swarm of insects, splitting his soul into millions of parts, each insect body carrying a fragment of his soul.
This was why soul-severing damage was so low. A single slash cut a line, killing only the insects along that line. Even with soul severing, each insect body had a max health of 10 points. No matter how much soul severing or true damage was applied, at most, it killed that insect body, dealing no more than 10 points of damage.
Thus, the old monster feared slashing damage. Conversely, the earlier kick, though not soul damage or true damage, had a large impact area, causing far more severe injury.
If Su Xiao were fighting the old monster from when High Wall City was first built, they would be two Technique Grandmasters in a life-or-death duel. But now, the old monster was no longer a Technique Grandmaster. Composed of thousands of insects, he had lost not only technique abilities but even his own sword rejected him.
Within 10 seconds, kill this filth insect collective.
Across from him, the old monster lowered his eyelids, watching Su Xiao. He wasn’t surprised by Su Xiao’s removal of the hundred insects. This was a Law Destroyer—things ten or a hundred times worse wouldn’t be unexpected.
With a whoosh, Su Xiao vanished, reappearing before the old monster.
‘Blade Path: Absolute Abyss…’
Bang!
A white thread insect pierced Su Xiao’s left shoulder, interrupting his blade technique. The old monster instantly transformed into ten thousand centipedes, swarming to devour Su Xiao.
This was exactly what Su Xiao wanted. Since the other party was no longer a Technique Grandmaster, deliberately showing an opening went unnoticed.
‘Blade Path: Time.’
Thump~
A shockwave spread. The centipedes swarming around Su Xiao slowed.
‘Blade Domain!’
A semicircular domain appeared around Su Xiao, 100 meters in diameter. Pale blue blade auras flashed throughout the domain, each leaving fading black scars in the air—caused by space being cut. This made the Blade Domain look spectacular.
It was worth noting that among Su Xiao’s many abilities, Blade Domain was the pinnacle of visual appeal.
Clang, clang, clang!
The crisp sounds of slashes rang out continuously. Centipedes around Su Xiao were shredded. Against the Old Knight or Nether Emperor, Blade Domain might have been underwhelming, but against the old monster, this dense, sufficiently powerful slashing was a hard counter.
Three seconds passed. Blade Domain closed. Su Xiao stood still, blade tip pointing diagonally at the ground. Around him, black scars in the air gradually faded.
Centipede fragments rained down. Those about to land on Su Xiao were repelled by his aura.
Su Xiao scanned his surroundings. He was certain the old monster wasn’t dead yet. An enemy with immortality traits wasn’t so easily killed.
Buzz~
A swarm of flying insects emerged from the centipede carcasses, preparing to scatter.
‘Blade Path: Time.’
Su Xiao expanded the range of Time to its limit. He sheathed his long blade, assuming a draw-cutting stance.
Black-blue smoke rose from the scabbard. After an extremely brief charge:
‘Demon Blade: Slay!’
Whoosh! A black-red slashing chain shot out. Though this move sounded powerful, it was rarely used. It combined “Demon Blade” and “Blade Path: Slay,” a large-area killing ability.
To kill the old monster, every insect body had to be slain. Of course, the old monster had limits. With his soul split like this, if any insect bodies were more than ten meters apart, one would wither within a short time. That was the price of splitting the soul into millions of parts.
The black-red slashing chain slanted out, engulfing all flying insects. They suddenly froze midair.
“Squeak!!”
An insect shriek, as if from the deepest abyss, rang out. All flying insects rapidly converged, reforming into the old monster, who crashed to the ground with a thud.
“How… is this possible.”
The old monster raised his hands, looking down at his body. He felt death approaching. He had never been this close to death.
His arms first turned into insects, then melted, followed by his torso, legs, and head.
“I can’t die yet. Dead Silence… Dead Silence still awaits my breaking. I am one of the original five chosen ones. I too… I too once bathed in the radiance of the gods.”
With these words, the old monster completely dissolved into insects. In a large pool of liquid on the ground, only a single crimson centipede writhed in its death throes.
Seeing this, Su Xiao stepped forward. He stopped, then stomped down with his left foot, grinding the centipede under his sole, ensuring it was crushed into pulp. The last insect crushed like this was named Ultimate Insect.
The old monster was crushed to death.
PS: (Recommending a friend’s book, titled “Hello, 1983.”)