The Demon with Holy Radiance-Chapter 180 - 164: And the Strongest... Has Always Been Me

It was true. A Corpse Transformation was incapable of fusing with a Forbidden Artifact Fragment.

Fusing with a Forbidden Artifact Fragment was nearly impossible for anyone with a Cultivation Level below that of a Zombie God.

But Fu Ming had done it!

He knew this day would eventually come, so he had begun his preparations decades ago. He paid a terrible price to achieve what no ordinary person could.

He paid for it with his own lifespan.

He didn't have much time left. The only reason he was still standing here was because he had resorted to desperate measures to extend his life.

The concoction bubbling in the medicine pot was based on Golden Decay Grass, a most peculiar herb.

It could force a dying person to live on for a time, but their soul would suffer increasingly severe corrosion, causing unbearable and irreversible pain.

However, for Fu Ming, this served two purposes.

He could stay alive until this day arrived, and when he finally died, his soul couldn't be taken by Elder Life Crane. This was also the very reason He Tou detested him.

To fuse with the Forbidden Artifact Fragment, Fu Ming had sacrificed everything. He used an Array to merge the fragment into his body, a process that caused his flesh to decay constantly. Not even his Undying Body could heal the damage.

The Array only slowed the rate of decay; the damage was still irreversible.

Even now that he had reached the level of a Zombie God, both his body and soul were at their absolute limit.

He had waited a long, long time for this day...

But he believed it was all worth it.

"My disciple, why has it come to this?"

He Tou said nothing, its eyes fixed on Fu Ming. Seeing his current state, its gaze filled with killing intent.

It was Elder Life Crane who spoke. Unlike He Tou, his eyes were filled with pity, his expression one of grief.

"Is it because of the Cultivation Technique?

If you had wanted it, I could have given it to you. You were always the most obedient disciple, the one who stayed by my side the longest. I never wanted to see you reach this point."

"Master! Even now, you still put on this hypocritical act! It makes me sick!"

The moment Elder Life Crane finished speaking, Fu Ming roared, his eyes blazing with fury and madness.

"You knew this day was coming, didn't you? Weren't you waiting for it too? From the moment Fu'an died, you knew I would do this, didn't you?!"

Fu Ming's roars echoed throughout the Life Crane Sect, the sound reverberating endlessly through the sky above.

"The fate of every one of your disciples... from the moment we entered the sect, wasn't it already held firmly in your hands?

We can't even decide how we die!"

Hearing Fu Ming's thunderous words, Elder Life Crane let out a soft sigh.

"So, it really is about Fu'an. To be honest, I had long forgotten that name. If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have remembered a thing.

But he died by the Rules!"

"Yes! The Rules! *Your* Rules! That's why I've abided by them so faithfully all these years! But today... 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Forgive me, Master! I refuse to follow these bullshit Rules any longer!"

"As for Fu'an... actually, I've forgotten him too! HAHAHAHA!"

Fu Ming burst into wild, arrogant laughter, but his voice was laced with sorrow.

Who could know if he was telling the truth?

But this wasn't about the past. It was about the now!

Everything, all the decades of planning, had been for this very moment.

Everything that needed to be said had been said. Now, it was time for action.

All the flesh and blood on the ground began to expand rapidly, bulging segment by segment before pouring into Fu Ming's body.

His already monstrous form began another cataclysmic transformation.

His body swelled continuously, growing taller and taller. Within a single breath, he had reached a height of several dozen feet, becoming a giant.

Countless tentacles sprouted from his back, a dense mass that dragged along the ground.

His once-indistinct facial features twisted continuously until a single fissure appeared.

The fissure was like a single eye, but within the empty cavity was an irregularly shaped fragment, radiating an eerie red light.

"I know you're no ordinary Zombie God, Master. You've cultivated the Mystic Path Decoded and possess the legendary Ascension Artifact. You smelt the souls of us disciples—who have also cultivated the Mystic Path Decoded—into stepping stones for your own ascension to Xian. Even more powerful beings might not be a match for you."

"But! I want to try! I've always wanted to find out! What lies beyond the Rules?"

Fu Ming's voice became hollow and drawn out, like countless voices overlapping. It was completely different from his original voice.

As his words faded, his rapidly expanding body came to a halt. He now towered over Elder Life Crane, looking down on him.

"First, Master, have a taste of the grand Array I have spent decades preparing!"

"Array, activate!"

Fu Ming let out a heaven-shaking roar.

The red light that permeated the Life Crane Sect suddenly flared, coalescing into a colossal crimson storm.

Elder Life Crane was standing in the open space before the Heavenly Respect Pavilion, right at the center of the grand Array.

As the crimson storm surged, he remained standing in place, but the flesh was being stripped from his body, layer by layer, rapidly siphoned away.

In less than the blink of an eye, a massive red phantom formed behind Elder Life Crane.

The phantom looked identical to Elder Life Crane and was saturated with a thick, murderous aura!

The storm raged on, and the phantom seemed to grow more solid. Correspondingly, the flesh and blood continued to be rapidly siphoned from Elder Life Crane's body.

On the phantom's shoulder was a monster that resembled He Tou, its eyes glowing red, looking even more demonic than the real thing.

A heaven-rending crane's cry suddenly shrieked throughout the Life Crane Sect. The phantom He Tou transformed into a massive red shadow and abruptly lunged to envelop Elder Life Crane, attempting to swallow him whole. Its method of attack was identical to He Tou's.

But as the red phantom descended, Elder Life Crane remained impassive, while He Tou revealed a mocking smile.

"A clumsy imitation!"

Its flesh swelled. The originally human-head-sized He Tou instantly transformed into a massive black shadow dozens of zhang high. In a single breath, it burst through the enveloping red phantom and devoured half of the phantom He Tou's head in one bite.

"Pathetic trash!"

The massive black shadow that was He Tou sneered, then inhaled sharply, sucking the entire red Life Crane phantom into its maw.

"HAHAHAHA!"

Having devoured the phantom in the blink of an eye, He Tou let out a wild laugh.

Meanwhile, Fu Ming showed no surprise that the phantom had been devoured.

"As expected of you, Master. A little trick like that was never going to defeat you. However...

Do you know, Master? Some things shouldn't be eaten so carelessly! HAHAHAHA!"

Laughter suddenly echoed from all directions.

He Tou was still in its massive black shadow form, but the moment Fu Ming finished speaking, it began to shrink uncontrollably, receding until it was back on Elder Life Crane's shoulder in its original form.

At that moment, however, He Tou's gaze froze.

SHIIINK—

Suddenly, countless red threads burst from its head, piercing out from within its skull.

The threads tore through its flesh, shooting out from its skull and into the surrounding void.

The crimson storm enveloping the Life Crane Sect didn't stop. Instead, it spun faster and faster, its power growing immense.

"You—!"

He Tou tried to speak, but it only managed to get out a single word before it was forcefully suppressed, its form twisting and distorting as the red threads covered its entire head.

Just then, the red threads piercing the void began to pulse with an eerie light, which instantly surged from the void and down along the threads to He Tou's head.

The light coalesced into a strange, arcane symbol that burned itself fiercely into He Tou's skull.

The instant the symbol appeared, the twisting He Tou froze as if petrified, unable to move an inch.

From He Tou devouring the phantom to its complete suppression, the entire process took but a single breath.

"Quiet! It's quiet!! It's finally quiet!!!

HAHAHAHAHA!"

Fu Ming began to laugh maniacally. After so many years, it seemed to be the first time he could no longer hear He Tou's voice. His chest heaved violently as he trembled with uncontrollable excitement.

The irregularly shaped fragment in the great fissure on his face, like a true eye, suddenly turned toward Elder Life Crane.

"Master, now it's a contest between you and me. I hope you won't hold anything back. Let me witness your true power!

Of course, if you insist on holding back... you will die!"

The fragment within the fissure trembled slightly, and a visible ripple instantly spread out, covering the entire Life Crane Sect in the blink of an eye.

"The Power of Rules within this Forbidden Artifact Fragment can distort Mana.

Its name is Qu Hao!"

"Are you ready, Master? Let's begin the slaughter!"

Fu Ming stared intently at Elder Life Crane.

Yet Elder Life Crane's expression remained unchanged. Even with He Tou sealed and suppressed, not a flicker of emotion crossed his face.

Hearing Fu Ming's words, Elder Life Crane sighed softly.

"My disciple, do you still not understand?"

"The reason I am your master has nothing to do with the Rules!

Fu'an's death had nothing to do with the Rules either!

That which you crave beyond the Rules is, to me, merely incidental.

What truly lies beyond the Rules is power!

And the most powerful... has always been me!"

The moment he finished speaking, Elder Life Crane's body began to twist. The flesh of his face turned liquid, enveloping the sealed He Tou on his shoulder, devouring it, and merging with it.

His body did not expand. But as it twisted, a crimson flame suddenly erupted around him. Dense red feathers began to sprout all over his body, intertwining with the fire.

His head transformed into a ferocious crane's head. The crown atop it sank into the flesh, and in its place, Elder Life Crane's original human face appeared, its features twisted into a savage grin.

"Very well. Let me teach you one last lesson."

"This is not how the Power of Rules is meant to be used!"