[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h":3,"chapter-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-98":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Devouring Evil, Exterminating Demons Across All Heavens",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2267043,4426,"Chapter 98","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-98",98,"\u003Cp>“I’ve grasped two techniques.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind raised two fingers, then curled the middle one back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But one of them isn’t convenient to demonstrate—if you’re interested, I can only show you the other.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu smiled. “Fine, want me to spar with you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No need.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind said, “At the moment I grasped the technique, I was one with the blade’s soul, unleashing an unprecedented, full-force strike.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But after successfully grasping it, even without a blade in hand, I can still manifest its essence.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He drained the wine, then pinched the bottle’s neck between his thumb and forefinger, holding it lazily before him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind tapped the bottle’s base once, producing a muffled sound, then tapped its side three more times.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each strike landed in a different spot, each sound clearer and sharper than the last.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu caught the subtlety, staring intently, noticing the bottle trembling with a motion too faint for ordinary eyes to perceive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind tilted his head, listening, as if searching for the right angle—then suddenly puckered his lips and blew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lower half of the black porcelain bottle shattered on the spot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tiny shards flew outward; a few stuck to Cheng the Blind’s face, each no larger than a mung bean.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu was deeply moved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He saw clearly: though Cheng the Blind’s motion resembled blowing a dart, what he exhaled was merely a stream of air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With nothing but a breath from his mouth, blown nearly two feet away, he shattered this thick-bottomed bottle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Chu Tianshu’s internal organs, hardened as they were, might not manage it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Cheng the Blind had blown that breath as if it were effortless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The key surely wasn’t the strength of the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu pondered briefly: “Is it because of your finger taps… and the precise point where your breath landed?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind said, “This is the technique I grasped—Lanlan Slash.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the Western Han, the kingdoms of the Western Regions, including Loulan, frequently colluded with the Xiongnu to ambush and kill Han envoys and plunder Han property.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Jiezi was sent as envoy to Loulan, slew its king, and brought back his head to the court.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That mission appeared to be nothing more than a single killing strike within Loulan—but along the way, he observed local customs, visited neighboring states, and intimidated Western Region officials.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the tiny force at his disposal, each of these actions seemed trivial, yet together they produced an extraordinary effect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After slaying the Loulan king, he withdrew safely; Loulan and nearby kingdoms, far from seeking revenge, all simultaneously submitted to the Han.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The true subtlety of the Lanlan Slash lies precisely in this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To shatter a formidable force with several minute applications of force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu reflected deeply—he realized this must be an application of stress.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When an object is subjected to external influence—whether temperature, humidity, or direct impact—internal forces arise among its parts, called stress.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Due to differences in material, shape, and other factors, the point struck is not always where stress concentrates most.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With repeated strikes, the point of maximum stress shifts continuously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if someone precisely strikes each shifting point of concentrated stress, they can destroy even sturdy objects with minimal force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The theory sounds simple, yet even with the technological level of Chu Tianshu’s homeland, deploying a full array of instruments and going through great effort,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>they might still fail to achieve what Cheng the Blind did: shatter the bottle with just a breath after a few precise strikes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This seemingly ordinary blade-soul insight, in a certain sense, is more suited to combat than Zheng Hui’s absurd “Empty Drum Soaring Sky.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu could almost envision it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind faces a powerful foe, parries his weapon twice, then on the third strike, shatters the enemy’s weapon and cripples its soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or, when the enemy’s own weapon use creates a point of concentrated stress—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind’s first strike lands on the weakness, shatters the weapon, and kills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That year, on the battlefield, I met a man wielding a wolf-tooth club—forty jin heavy, yet he swung it as swiftly as a light wooden stick.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind said, “It was in that battle that I grasped the Lanlan Slash.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I blocked his club with one slash, then with the next, split him and his club apart.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After the battle, I was promoted to Captain. The General came to see me, named this technique for me, and told me that in ancient times, Di Renjie had been famed for his iron club techniques—his insight bore similarities to mine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the battle, I was promoted to Captain. The General came to see me, named this technique for me, and told me that in ancient times, Di Renjie had been famed for his iron club techniques, and the moves he had conceived bore similarities to this one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Di Renjie was such a high official! Back then, young and arrogant, I believed every flattering word.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tossed the remaining half-bottle into the air and suddenly drew his blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tossed the remaining half-bottle in his hand into the air and suddenly drew his blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The half-bottle was cut cleanly—not shattered, but instantly reduced to a cloud of powder midair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wind stirred, swirling the powder in the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Click. The blade returned to its scabbard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu sensed the anger in that strike.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suspected that when Cheng the Blind left the army, it wasn’t only because of his blindness—but because of some other infuriating event.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu did not press further, instead changed the subject: “Since you need new techniques to grasp insights, what did you think of the moves I described to you a few days ago in the tavern?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind nodded. “I’ve been pondering them lately, but I’m still far from grasping a technique from them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Blind Cheng nodded and said, “I’ve been pondering it in my mind lately too, but I’m still far from deriving a technique from it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui’s figure suddenly darted into the courtyard, face filled with urgency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Both of you are here?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui cried out, “Something major has happened—I need you both to come with me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu’s calf muscles tensed, and his body straightened instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng the Blind tapped his scabbard on the ground and rose as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui was desperate—he turned at once and led the way when he saw they agreed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All three moved swiftly, crossing the stream and woods, exiting the mansion from the side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside, several guards and three saddled horses waited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once mounted, Zheng Hui spurred his horse forward, then finally had breath to explain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Recently, I’ve been negotiating with the King to establish contact with the Tang. A diplomatic delegation has already entered our territory.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This delegation consists entirely of experts—they’ve come to signal intent and lend us their strength.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’ve strictly guarded the news, and kept close watch on the Duan family to ensure they learned nothing and took no action against the delegation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui let out a sharp breath, momentarily drowning out the sound of hooves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But just now, I received a pigeon message—the delegation was ambushed by a group of black-clad assailants, a hundred li away!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu gripped the reins with one hand, letting the steed gallop freely, his brow furrowing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The delegation had sent a pigeon for help—by the time it flew here, time had passed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time they arrived, the battle would already be over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t know if the delegation had survived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hooves thundered; the forest and wild grass blurred past.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui knew the delegation’s location precisely and led the way at full speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the sun rose higher, they reached the foot of a mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A camp halfway up the slope came into view.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A large clearing had been carved out—trees felled, over a dozen carts and horses in the center, with traces of campfires nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the draft horses were all dead on the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cart bodies were mostly shattered; corpses lay scattered everywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The campfires had nearly been extinguished by blood and bodies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Here, horses were too slow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui leapt upward, his figure darting up the mountain path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu and the others dismounted in midair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through dappled light and shadow beneath the trees, they reached the clearing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The stench of blood hit them, halting their steps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The delegation itself numbered dozens; at each stop, local Nanzhao guards were assigned to alternate protection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The corpses here numbered over a hundred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The earliest dead were clearly the Nanzhao light-armored guards—they patrolled the perimeter, all with slashed throats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The inner corpses showed more varied deaths.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some were drenched in blood, gripping broken swords, slumped against overturned carts, eyes wide open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some were pinned under dead horses, their skulls caved in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Others had their upper garments torn to shreds, lying among half-burned wood, chests crushed as if struck by heavy weight, stained with blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One old man, clutching a flag spear, with white beard and hair streaked with blood, stared wide-eyed—as if still gazing at his enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was also an old man holding a flag spear, his beard and hair white with streaks of blood, his eyes wide open as if staring at his enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The spear’s butt was deeply embedded in the earth, and the old man’s corpse leaned against it, upright and unfallen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His wound was a bloodied hole piercing through his chest, front to back, as if someone had punched clean through his torso.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That… is Jiang Brother?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui had met this old man several times before; during the last alliance, the envoy had been this very man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he reached the old man’s corpse, he seemed to age years in an instant, his beard trembling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How could this happen? Where did the Duan family get such manpower…? Is it Tubo…?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But even if it were the Duan family and Tubo, how could they possibly know the exact route of this envoy party?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui’s thoughts raced, growing more tangled, “And how many men would Tubo need to send to slaughter them all? These were all experts.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did they send an entire army into Nanzhao?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu scanned the battlefield, then walked toward the west through the thick stench of blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several corpses lay here, their limbs and torsos severed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Precisely because the deaths were so brutal, no one had paid much attention to this spot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu stared closely—and realized something was wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nanzhao’s guards wore light armor and military garb; most of the envoy party dressed in robes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But these corpses had worn black clothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu followed this trail westward, entering the woods. After just a few steps, his expression changed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Come look!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui snapped out of his daze and led the others rushing over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Scattered throughout the forest were many more dead bodies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some lay sprawled over tree stumps, others rested beneath rocks—but all wore black clothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They were the ones who ambushed the envoy party.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui forced calm into his voice, “Yes, they must have suffered losses during the attack. They probably tried to carry away their dead—but…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If these corpses were all men lost during the ambush on the envoy party,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>then why move them only this far before abandoning them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Most of these men were killed by the same person.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu studied the corpses’ crimson skin and the palm prints on their chests, reconstructing the battle in his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They struck successfully, slaughtered the entire envoy party, and were preparing to leave—when another man arrived here.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Chu Tianshu spoke, he examined the traces of combat in the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unconsciously, the others followed behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The further they went, the clearer the signs of battle became.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The black-clad men had realized what had happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They turned and surrounded the newcomer in a deadly assault.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their weapons included iron clubs, chains, and curved blades—each strike brutally precise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Trees as thick as a man’s waist were severed in one stroke, the cut as smooth as a tabletop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On boulders half a man’s height, deep grooves from chain strikes ran over two inches.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui picked up a chain and recognized the tiny, ant-like scriptures etched upon it—his heart jolted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tubo’s Great Monk’s Binding Divine Chains.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked around in shock, “All these black-clad men… are they the royal guards of Tubo? The Great Monks who climbed the snowy peaks bare-chested?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But all of them were dead—some with crushed skulls, others with sunken chests—each killed by a single blow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet here, fabric outside the black clothing appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One chain was wrapped with a scrap of red silk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One man’s teeth clamped a tiny strand of white cloth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the edge of this battlefield stood a massive tree, wide enough for three men to encircle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A towering monk, over eight feet tall, stripped to the waist, was embedded deep within the trunk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His head was slightly pointed, his eyebrows thick as reed flowers, his white beard hanging low—he was an old monk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet his physique was so formidable, one could never associate him with the word “aged.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui stared at the old man and exhaled slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Grand Priest! Only the Grand Priest could command so many Great Monks. Tubo truly has great audacity!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Grand Priest’s death mirrored that of the Tang envoy—his chest had been punched clean through, a gaping blood hole.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone had torn out his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the blood on the old monk’s hands clearly did not belong to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially his right hand, still clutching a large piece of red paper with a bamboo frame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A folding fan?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu stepped closer, his gaze fixed, “No—it’s an umbrella.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Half the canopy of a red umbrella?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Hui had been shocked too many times already; now he seemed incapable of further surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Chu Tianshu’s question, he answered with absolute certainty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who else could it be? Alone, he killed the Grand Priest and over thirty Great Monks.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Only the Tang Empire’s greatest master—the Right Director of the Imperial Guard…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as he spoke, Zheng Hui could not help but draw another sharp breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But even him—I never imagined he could fight so many of Tubo’s top masters alone, with only a red umbrella.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Xianzi’s face also changed—he now knew who it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Blood sea surging, the Crimson Emperor comes from the east—it’s Hai Donglai!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2403,"2026-06-19T20:45:51.976Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","4d364d9b3b81f8a76728b16dbcb06389aa1b0e5629d87c88b85e436bffb594a2","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-99","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-97",155,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fdevouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-cover.jpg"]